6 cakes a day !!!

It seems that Saturdays are "THE DAY" to have all parties. They are our busiest days. From simple cakes to cupcakes to full on designer cakes , we've done each and everything in the span of this one day

Now 6 cakes might not seem much to you, but when each is cake takes a minimum of 3-4 hours (Excluding baking and icing time) , it is a hell of a lot of work .

 We start at approx 12 in the afternoon ( we are super lazy humans , but yeah working till 5 the previous night does also kinda add to the late waking up :P) and work for 10 hours straight. I'm sure you've started calculating 3 hours * 6 which is 18 hours but they are saying 10. Lol , Rome wasn't built in just one day ( That is if this even correct to use here ? *Blush* ) Anyhow, just like that, designer/customised cakes aren't made in one day. The process starts at least 2 days before.

We start by baking the cakes and freezing them . ( Yup all those people who tell you they bake and create on the same day , ALL THE TIME , are either super efficient or not telling you some vital details). When you sculpt a cake, it needs to be slightly hard and if done otherwise will start falling in pieces.  So yeah a day earlier we ice the cakes and cover them with icing ( depending on the client requirement).  Now it sounds honky-dorky but its a lot of work. You have to colour the icing according to what the client needs and then individually roll it out and then put the icing on top of each cake. The process itself takes at least 45 mins - 1 hour.

On the day itself is when we start working on all the details , the small , tiny elements that are soo important on a cake. Each element is researched on ( Google is our God) and made using various tools. It takes time but we know how important those are. Finally, the time comes to integrate the elements with the cake . That done, the cake is given a final touch- up and boxed to be picked up by the client.

Now imagine all this * 6 in one day. ( The 6 pictures above done in various colours is proof of what we are saying) That is what our Saturdays are all about. Its been hell for our social lives but oh what a pleasure for us :)

Thank You

Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

Confessions of a Chocoholic??

I'M A CHOCOHOLIC. I love , love the taste of chocolate and can devour more than 4 any given day. This doesn't bode well for my weight but arghh, that's another story for another day.

In this entry , I don't promise to tell you all that there is to chocolate or what exactly is chocolate. I'm not a chocolate maker and only make them for fun and to place on top of my cakes. But that's it !! If you are looking for a crash course on chocolate, google it but if you are in India and looking to make chocolate for fun, read ahead!!

Chocolate - that super yummy, change the taste of your mouth aphrodisiac. Its a mood uplifter and can be an addiction. Ask anyone around me , they'll tell you about my "Chocoholism". If you are like me, you must try your hand at making some.

The Heel, the Boot and the Lipstick are all made out of chocolate.

Amateur Crash Course 1 : TYPES OF CHOCOLATE : From what I've learnt there are two main types of chocolate - Compound and Couverture.

• Couverture is the superior chocolate which we rarely ever get in India and is expensive as hell. 
• Compound, its cheaper version is quite good and is what you find in most home-made chocolates so our discussion from here on will always refer to Compound Chocolate. 

Amateur Crash Course 2 : Types of Compound Chocolate (Given in order of increasing Cocoa Butter content) :

• Dark Chocolate : Its not the pure dark chocolate but good enough
• Semi-sweet Chocolate : It's what most home-made chocolates are made of and is mostly dark but with a slight sweetness to it. 
• Milk Chocolate : Its MILKY. I never ever use it while making home-made chocolate as how many ever brands I've tried, it always leaves a slight after-taste in my mouth which I do not like. 
• White Chocolate : Do I need to describe this ? However one thing I will say , its the fastest melting one out of all the others due to the high Cocoa Butter content. 

Amateur Crash Course 3 : Brands of chocolate found in the market :

• Selbourne - Decently superior taste wise, it is also expensive. 
• Morde - Not as great but one of the most popular
• 2 MA - Low quality and not great for making chocolates but its all right for usage in other forms of baking. 

There are many others brands that you will find there. Experiment and use the one you feel is the best. Don't just go by word of mouth. 

Amateur Crash Course 4 : Making Chocolate (Simple and easy):

• Buy yourself some Chocolate Moulds ( Found at most departmental stores or specialty baking stores , you can purchase some from the suppliers listed on my other post, Pigmento there specially keeps the cheap ones which are for amateur bakers,  http://floc-fortheloveofcake.blogspot.com/2012/01/sharing-and-caring.html ) 
• IN THE KITCHEN :

1. Keep your moulds ready . 
2. Melt your chocolate - There are two ways of doing this .

• In a double boiler - Break your chocolate compound , make a double boiler, put the chocolate in the double boiler and melt it while constantly stirring so that there are no lumps. Once melted take off heat. 
• In the Microwave - Now though told by most Chocolate Makers, this is not a very good way , I've found it very useful for small amounts of chocolate. Again break the compound into small pieces, put in a microwave safe bowl, which does not mean glass bowls ( Remember if the bowl is to hot for you to touch after a minute in the microwave , its too hot for the chocolate too) and heat it at 30 second intervals while stirring the chocolate inside after each 30 seconds for about 5-10 seconds.  Once the chocolate is mostly melted, take it out and stir it till fully melted ( The heat in the already melted chocolate will melt the rest ).

      3. MOLDING THE CHOCOLATE : Now put the melted chocolate into the moulds with a spoon so that   

          you don't over fill and once done with all the cavities, tap the mould lightly by raising it and dropping it 

          on your work surface. Do not leave it , drop it while holding it so that it levels out and no chocolate is 

          outside the cavities. 

    

     4.  COOLING THE CHOCOLATE : Put it in the fridge (not freezer) and after 10 mins take it out and 

         de-mould it by inverting the chocolate mould and lightly tapping on the top of each chocolate. They 

         should fall out easily. If not , do not force them . Put them back in the freezer for 5 mins and take them

         out again. 

These are your Basic Chocolates. If you've any questions , message on this and I will reply back. 

Enjoy !!

Avani Malhotra

for www.fortheloveofcake.in

Big Chill - Still the best in town ?

There's a question on my mind : When you blog from your official business ID, does it always have to be about that business only ?

Well, breaking away from the conventional is something we do really well so here goes :

BIG CHILL - We've all heard of it and if we've been living in Delhi since childhood I'm sure we've visited it at least once. The beauty of this place is that in a place like Delhi, where restaurants die out faster than we get to know of them , this place has survived for 11 years ( started out in 2000)  and its popularity has never dimmed, just grown.
Well that's about the place. Now to get down to the real part :
Its desserts are AMAZING. I do not say this lightly. I'm a chocoholic and hate anything non-chocolate but they've amazed me with their beautiful, yummy products , though their Chocolate Truffle is still my very favorite. The most awesome part - they haven't changed their basic recipes in 11 years. They found out what worked early on and then stuck to it and even though Delhi has been awarded the Best City for Food , the funda of sticking to what is working , has given it, its unique place in the city.

So if you are looking for yummy desserts, this is the place to go .

Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

Logo Designing : :-O

It's a logo ? How tough can it be , right , righttt? I mean I know its supposed to define your company and I know its supposed to be your identity but is it really that big deal ?


Well, the answer to that question , which I found out 2 months of major designing and re-designing , YES IT IS!!


Let me give you an example or wait let me give you a word , "APPLE"
Yup , that should explain to us what a logo means. The logo is the identity of the company , whenever we see the half- eaten apple we know how beautiful the product will be.


The description we started with : " It needs to be subtle , pretty , define our work and should be pink. "


The logo we got : 

Thank You Pria for giving us the perfect identity.

The Art of Pricing : The Whys'

I get about a half a dozen calls a day , most result in orders while some do not , and 50 percent of the times this could be due to a price factor so I felt very strongly that the customers needed to understand why they are paying the price that they are. I've been trying to figure out how to convey this to you and read a status that stated precisely what I had been wanting to tell you so here goes :

"The price of cakes - particularly novelty cakes can sometimes be more than you might have had in mind initially. "Oh my gosh!", you think. "Surely it can't be that much - it's just a cake!". People often expect to pay a lot for a wedding cake, but are surprised at the quote they have been given for a novelty cake. Yet novelty cakes are often more difficult to make.

A novelty cake is never just a cake. It's a tailor-made commissioned piece of art for your friend/ loved one. A personalized gift to light up their face and make their day, and hopefully remember for some time afterwards. Much much more than simply a dessert at a party, or something to eat with their cup of tea; a novelty cake takes centre-stage on the table at any celebration."

- *Wish upon a Cupcake*

I'm not turning around and saying we don't make money. Of course we do , after all it is a business but do we feel the cake is worth the money. Definitely YES!!!

Still have questions? Call me on 919811614222:)


Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

Sharing and Caring

The field of super fancy cake decorating is still new in India and the number of people doing it are few. However we are still not as united as we should be. 
(Ref : Cake decorating community in the UK)


The basis for most cake decorators abroad is that they work on a mutual admiration rule. They "LIKE" each others' page , discuss suppliers, compliment others' work and even give tips on how they mastered some particular technique. To start this relationship I'm going to start with a list of suppliers I'm aware of in the New Delhi area. As I keep finding out more, I will add those to the list. Hope this is helpful.


In Delhi :


CCDS - www.nowletslearn.com - Most cake decorating tools (Wilton and Ateco), fondant, gumpaste. 


Butler - http://www.thebutlermart.com/ - They keep some cake decorating tools and other hospitality stuff.


Transworld Enterprises - http://www.twe.in/contact.htm - They keep the PME brand.


Pigmento - http://yellowpages.sulekha.com/delhi/arts-entertainment/art-galleries-crafts/jangpura/pigmento-india-art-craft-colours.htm - For raw material , cake bases, cake boxes, customised stuff


SugarCraft India - http://sugarcraftindia.wordpress.com/ - For Cake Tools ( I personally haven't bought any from them so can't tell you what they sell exactly but you can always check it out)


Will keep adding more. Do keep a look and if you know any do mail me at avani.floc@gmail.com or leave a comment here. 


PS  - Some of you sent me nos. but those got deleted due to some problem with my phone. Please mail me with the same information.

Our First Stall - and What a Stall!!

The Week Before :
We had a week to prepare but as you might have read previously, we are last minute souls and this was a last minute show.

Photos at :  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.293808970667249.63091.218809414833872&type=1

The Night Before:
At 10 last night the panic started setting in. Our first stall - something we had thought about all week long but thanks to all the cake orders(we are NOT complaining) we just didn't have the time to actually plan it out. A few frantic calls to our saviour best friend, Jeevika Chhabra , a trip to IN and OUT and a few cancelled plans and we were set to start work on the cupcakes. We started at 10 P.M. (luckily we had baked most the day before) and till 2 A.M. all we were doing was icing . And God, we cannot tell you how difficult it was to keep the family away from the cupcakes. Our dear brother(Ankit Malhotra), useless when we need him (just kidding!!) constantly kept hitting the table and finally decided to work in return for one cupcake (Yup, that's how it works in our family, a favour for a favour. We are not very good kids.) Finally by 5 A.M. we were semi-done - 4 people working 7 hours straight for 200 cupcakes. The lists were prepared, most of the stuff kept on our Grandmother's favourite sofa(for which we got screamed at in the morning) and a house left in a state that my mother said resembled a robbery scene.


D-Day : The Morning
A late start in the morning, icing that nearly got over and a call stating that the stall should be set up earlier than we had planned , set the stage for another panic attack. However , a super organised and efficient mother and an amazing amazing father never let you down. By the time we had finished icing the cake (Yes, we had 2 deliveries also today), everything was in the car , packed and ready for the venue. ( Don't you wonder how the qualities that trouble you the most in your parents turn out to be the biggest blessings mostly?)


Another surprisingly supportive friend (Anshul Khanna, Thankkk Yoouu), the best friend , the sister , the cousin and I all packed ourselves into the car and finally left. However, as it normally is in our case , the drama didn't just end here. WE GOT LOST. For 45 mins , all we were doing was trying to find JULIA GABRIEL LEARNING CENTRE in Vasant Kunj.


The Afternoon :
Finally , finally , finally we entered and what a place!! Super cute , done up with a lot of colour and looking super pretty. The perfect place for a stall by FLOC. We set up and I must say, the stall looked adorable thanks to the various PRETTY gifts by my family (Tallena Welch- bua) and friends (SPRINKLES!!!).
The whole concept of the stall was something that we had done with our niece and nephew and entailed on the kids decorating their cupcakes themselves(Messy but oh what fun!!!)


I won't bore you with many details but give you some tiny incidents that stood out from today :


1. A tiny adorable girl who picked up the sprinkles like they were diamonds and stuck them onto the cupcake PERFECTLY.
2. A boy who had to pick up 6 cupcakes for his Mum's birthday and decorate them and did each one a different colour.
3. A girl who decided our sprinkles didn't have to decorate the cupcake but the other cups filled with sprinkles and started mixing them all.
4. The father of a child who told us that Rs 100 was too much for a cake but came back 10 minutes later and told us "These are the best cupcakes I have ever eaten." That's called a compliment !!
5. A fan who followed us on facebook (Smita Chawudhari) came and met us. What a feeling!!!
6. A tiny baby girl who came , chose her cupcake, decorated it and then paid us herself ( So embarrassing for us but such a big moment for her:):). It definitely put a smile on our faces)
7. Another father who inquired whether the paper was truly edible or " would it come out the next morning the same way it went in" ( LOL!!!)

3 hours , 2 days preparation but oh what fun!!! All in all , working with kids is nothing if not pleasurable. It was an experience and the kids were sooo adorable.


Thank You Meenakshi Chibba and Julia Gabriel Learning Centre for letting us be a part of this experience. It was amazing!!!!:)


Avani Malhotra
For https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.293808970667249.63091.218809414833872&type=1

The Toughest Question : Professionalism vs Personal Relationships

What is the balance that you MUST maintain when it comes to your work place? When do you cross the limit? Who decides the limit? Is it better to be a friend to your customer or keep a distance ?


These are some of the questions that I've many a times wondered about. If you've been following our blog , you'll know that I'm a clinical psychologist by training and thus that means being able to empathise with a person while keeping a certain amount of professional distance. Those of you who know me will know that for me to do that is quite impossible. By nature, I'm outgoing, decently social (less in the past few years) and well, friendly. For me , maintaining distance is quite impossible. So how do I balance it out?


Well , simply by believing that relationships come above everything and that the best marketing strategy is to market yourself. For me , a client is a friend. A co-worker is someone I will end up becoming best friends with and facebook is a social site, not a professional site. So for those of you who sometimes mind the personal conversations we've on the site, realise that we are showing you a side of us we only show to our friends and that for us, our fans are our friends. You are not just a client , you are someone we get to know to make sure that the cake we deliver is best suited to you and the person you are getting it for . :)


Cheers !! Hope to see you soon.


Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

Red Velvet Cupcakes - The Mystery Behind Them

"Ooohh"
"Aaahhh"
"Yummm"
"Harrods, London "
"They are as good as sex "
"Sorry to use a dirty word , but they were orgasmic"
" Scrumptious"
" I ate 5 of them at one go and I DON'T LIKE SWEET THINGS"


When these are the reactions you get to something, it definitely deserves a separate entry on your blog. What are these things called the Red Velvet Cupcakes? Let's demystify these mysterious things.

The first time I hear of Red Velvet was only a year back. Cupcakes had just started getting popular in India and these were yet to make an entrance. I had just started getting into baking and a friend in the U.S.(Polomi Batra) sent me a post on these. They didn't look all that amazing, other than the colour and being a true chocoholic, for me anything that didn't look dark brown didn't deserve attention thus they were forgotten about. However, this friend was pretty persistent that I must try these and hence started the search for the perfect Red Velvet Cupcakes.


Let me tell you a secret : When I started baking , I never knew what I was baking. I am the least observant of all people and a recipe for me was just that, a recipe to follow. I never thought about the whys and the hows but just the end result. All I knew was that I had to mix everything well , there is something known as "cut and fold" and the end should be yummmm.


To get back to the story , I finally managed to find a recipe. Yup , it was just that ,a recipe ,the good and the bad I had no idea about. So I made them and made this "poor excuse" for a cream cheese icing and called this friend who had been in the  US (figuring he must have eaten them) to come be the judge. And lol, what a judge!! HE LOVED THEM, however the man had never eaten RVC (Red Vevlet Cupcakes) and had just fooled me into giving him 6 RVCs and we were back to square one with no idea if these tasted like the original.


It's been a struggle to find the perfect recipe for these but we've managed  and by the end of this entry, I'm realizing that the reason these cupcakes are so popular is because they are so mysterious. Hence I'm going to let the mystery remain and not spoil the experience.  Just to describe them , they are red and they are like heaven. ;)


And because we made you read for so long but didn't give you what we had promised,  with an apology we will also give you a RVC for free:D ( At least for those who live in Delhi). Just message us on this with your no. or your BB pin and we promise to get back to you :)


Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

The Perfect Harmony or WAIT, is it The Perfect War?

A typical scene you would imagine every morning in our house - My sister and I wake up, look at the orders for last night , decide which one each will work at(depending on our strengths) and start work. We finish work a few hours before the client is to come in and hand over the finished product. :)


THE typical scene at our house every morning - I wake up and decide to stay in bed just a little while longer as its so cosy while constantly keeping a check on the time to make sure we don't get late with our order. I wake my sister up once, who typically sleeps as if she's had "bhaang" before hitting bed , she mutters something, changes positions and goes back to sleep. The clock keeps ticking and suddenly I look at the time and jump out of bed because OMG, there is now only 3 hours left to the time when the client has to take the cake. I scream at my sister to wake up , who again mutters and switches positions. I hit her, while informing her that she will be thrown out of FLOC if she doesn't move her a**. Since the threat has been heard so many times , it falls on deaf ears. Just to teach her a lesson, I start work on the cake by myself while all the time screaming from the dining room. My mother, who has seen the panic on my face, mutters something about making her house dirty and goes into her room so that she doesn't have to witness the mess we are creating in her house. In comes my brother, strutting like he's the all time stud , looks at the cake, makes sure to make one nasty comment that would rise my blood pressure and goes and screams at the sister to wake up(Yes she is still sleeping).  In the meantime , the clock shows only 2 hours till the client is suppose to come in. By this time, I'm hyper and running out of patience so I do what siblings to best with each other. I go to the room , take off the blanket , switch on all the lights and put on the fan (In case you are wondering, the perfect plan to wake someone up). Of course the sister wakes up, yawns , screams at me but finally moves her a** and goes to the restroom. (PHEWWWW).


And then we peacefully finish the cake.That is how it should end right ? Lol , NOT if you are living in my house. We are siblings whose favourite pastime is to fight over everything and wow has FLOC caused some major fights between us. Each cake that we've made has been a screaming war from beginning to end. Each detail criticised and many a times, each others work smashed to bits because the other person wasn't happy with it. We fight over colours , designing, product and finishing. We fight over who will do what , who will clean up , who will carry the stuff onto the dining table , who will bake and obviously who will deliver ?However, at the end of each cake , I can truly tell you there is this sense of accomplishment and all the fights just seem to fade away. One cracks a joke and the tension dissipates and from warriors, we go to being laughing Buddhas. 


 So now you know, that the cake you ultimately do buy , is not just ingredients , its from our hearts and we've fought over each item to make sure we deliver the best we can to you. :) 


LOVE


Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

"THE BEST FRIEND STORY"

What is "The Best Friend Story"? What is behind this competition ? Well its simple . 


4 days back while sitting down to eat dinner I was trying to figure out the perfect gift to give my best friend - someone who I had known for 15 years yet knew so well that I had rejected all the ideas I had thought of OR to be more precise, she had rejected all the ideas I had thought of. Finally came the idea of giving to her something for all the support she had shown me all this while for FLOC - spending the night with me to make a cake , tasting everything, rushing to my house every time I had learnt a new technique, giving constructive criticism which often ended up into a fight, coming at 11 PM to see a cake we had just completed and overall, for believing in us , basically a typical Best Friend. Thus to show how much I've valued everything she's done for me till now resulting in "THE BEST FRIEND STORY".


However, this was the gift. What kind of a cake do you give the person whose not only seen all your cakes but even helped on some of them ? Let me describe her for you - She's one of the most loyal people you will ever know , she's super stubborn , has gone back to studying after years of working , loves my family just like her own family , wanted to live in Paris for the longest time and when she visited it , decided she loves India, wants a firangi baby with an Indian husband and is the best secret-keeper in the world. Thus cakes I decided - an Eiffel tower, a I love Paris cake , a student surrounded by books with Masters in french written , a bottle of Wine , a picture of all of us , a picture of her and me , a scene from Paris printed and many more like this. Well guess what ? ALL WERE REJECTED and all by her. 

It was now 3 hours before her dinner and we were forcing her to go for dinner with us thus I had only half an hour in which to think of an idea. Finally my brain cells worked and I decided to gift her messages on the cake , but messages that could only be understood by her as they were in French. After days of thinking, this is what we finally came up with(Given above). She loved it and our day was made:) Another one for FLOC!!!


Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

The Weight of Responsibility

The business we've started seemed like a fun idea initially , something we could do as a hobby and something which would give us a creative high while not taking up all of our time. Well , guess what? WE WERE WRONG. VERY VERY WRONG.


Don't misunderstand - it is a LOT of fun, it is super creative but it is NOT a hobby and cannot be. It takes up all of our time and energy, at times more than the time we would have spent at a desk job, simply because at the end of the day , whatever said and done , this is OUR business and the weight of responsibility lies with us.


When I was doing the course, I was told one thing , " NEVER EVER cancel an order, specially last minute, unless absolutely essential." I live by those words now.  I've seen how a customised cake can make a person's day and make them feel so wonderful, at the same time ruining the day if not done well. It's not a job you can pass on and its not work you can push onto the next day. Thus be it a fight with your best friend, a super low day , sickness, someone in the hospital or even worse come to worse, a tragedy in the family , you have to complete the work because if you don't, you could be ruining a very special moment for someone.


In 6 months, I've personally experienced at least 3 out 4 of the above said things but luckily I've a sister to take up the slack and nothing's been so bad. Touchwood and hope to continue this run with our fans, not just as fans but as friends!!

The Wedding Cake - Currently not a centrepiece

This is something I've been wanting to share for a long time. 

In America, UK, Australia, New Zealand and most other Christian dominated countries there is a tradition that is very important during weddings - its known as " The cutting of the Wedding Cake ". Its a centerpiece , the one thing brides order months before, after weeks of pondering over designs and flavours. They could be the TRADITIONAL WEDDING CAKES or just the more MODERN WEDDING CAKES personalised to match the personality of the bride and groom. It is tall and gorgeous. It is the "in" thing at a wedding and the best part - it is delicious.

India, in that sense , is a country filled with "meetha" lovers. We love our sweets and always have a dessert counter at every wedding with at least 3 varieties of desserts. But somehow , we overlook one of the most important parts of the wedding/reception , which is the cake . It is a sweet yet it is not given prominence!!WHY? 

We spend hours and hours looking for the perfect wedding outfit + our entire trousseau + our jewellery worth lacs + another bomb on the caterers and at the end, the one thing in the entire wedding which is for the bride and the groom , which could be their defining moment in the wedding , the one moment which is so special at all other occassions (be it birthdays , anniversaries, graduation etc) we spoil by not having that perfect cake. 

Let's step out of this mindset. Let's make it about us - the bride and the groom and not the entire family and friends. It is our "shining" moment. A moment most experience only once in their lifetime. So LIVE IT the way you want , not the way others also have. 

Avani Malhotra

For www.fortheloveofcake.in

The First Cake

My First Fondant Cake - it was for my childhood best friend Naina Dayal who had just seen us on facebook. 

When we were children , Naina and I were inseparable. Went out everywhere, hung out with each other, constantly stayed at each others' houses and refused to let anyone else enter this cosy world of two. However life happened. She shifted to Kuwait as her dad got transferred there. Her mum was a school teacher in our school and one of my favourites , Mrs. Payal Dayal - gentle , loving and caring with just the right amount of strictness is how I remember her. When they got back , she enrolled in another school and thus slowly over the year we lost touch, only to reconnect in College where for obvious reasons the relationship was not the same. But it was still nice to reconnect to an old friend, a friend who had been the centre of your life for a whole while.


8 years down , my business happened and she turned out to be one of the first clients. It was like " LIFE" once again. And who was the cake for ? Her mum - " Yes this was as scary as it could get !!"


Thus came the day before the delivery. I was jittery , panicky and obviously very very nervous.  I called 2 of my friends(Jeevika Chhabra and Mehak Gandhi) to come over to spend the night and "help me" and they like poor, good friends came. (If you ask them , they say I gave them no choice). 
Moving on , we spent the entire night (9 hours) working on a 1 kilo cake - it was torture. We covered the cake twice(coz the first time the entire lower layer looked like it had cracks ALL OVER), I forgot how to make roses , we made the wrong colours to put on the cake, piping lines down the cake was torturous and I forgot how to breathe(LITERALLY). One friend gave up and slept on the table itself , the other refused to and kept egging me on. The sister decided it was time to sleep , but would come back every minute to check on the progress. It seemed like an impossible dream and I kept thanking God that I had the foresight to make the cake a day in advance. Each tiny line was cheered on and each time I messed up "groans" were heard. 


Finally 9 hours , 4 friends and many "hold my breath " moments later, it was ready. The first fondant cake I had ever made and what happened after that ? - WE CRASHED. (Yup, that was our Happy Ending)


Naina liked the cake and I got fantastic feedback for it. Its till date one of my favourite cakes (as they say, you can never forget your first:) ). 


So to all you bakers out there, if this happened with you too, don't panic. Call your friends over and see miracles happen. If you have a good support system , even miracles happen frequently. Share your first cake stories with us  to show us we aren't alone :)


Avani Malhotra
For www.fortheloveofcake.in

The Story Behind FLOC

So many of you have bought cakes from us, trusted us to do a good job and given us fantastic feedback and praise . But don't you wonder what FLOC is all about ? Who are we ? What makes us ? Why do we do what we do ? And how has it changed our lives? This is Avani Malhotra, telling you FLOC's life story ( however short it might be )


The year was 2011, the month August and the date 7th , when a daughter(already highly spoiled called Avani Malhotra) asked her parents for yet some more money for a baking course that she was doing. The course had already cost her a bomb and the equipment was costing another bomb and she was just half-way through it. Thus started the tussle, between the daughter and the mother for money and in that tussle the daughter decided that it was time that this course started paying for its own self.


Hence the seed called FLOC got planted. Joined in by her super-talented sister (called Akriti Malhotra who co-incidentally also came up with the name FLOC) , they started a small business on 8th August 2011 from home and started selling to their favourite customers - their friends and family. (Highly supportive friends and family who at the beginning didn't only buy the cakes but stayed up all night with us making them.)


It wasn't easy.  One came from a psychology background having completed her Masters just last year. The other came from a finance background, having just left her job at Ernst and Young to take her GMAT. To convince your parents, that you would rather bake than work at an office is not easy and it wasn't for us either.


Its been 6 months. With each cake that we put out, we grew and we saw our parents go from accepting to supportive to being super proud. We are glad we followed our passion. As I stated in our "ABOUT US " , for the first time we understood that ambition grew from passion .


 Its still not easy and there is a long way to go but we will get there. Hope you continue in this journey with us :):). See you soon.


Avani Malhotra
www.fortheloveofcake.in

The Ending of the Founding Year of FLOC - 2011

Things 2011 gave us :

FLOC - which made us understand that ambition comes from passion

Mother's unconditional love - When a mother supports her children despite the constant 

mess in her house it proves that a mother's love for her children is greater than any other love.

Supportive and an interactive father - We've realised a father's support will always be there even if its silent. (Funding everything even while disapproving)

The value of sisters and brothers and "cousins" - they will always ur cheerleaders and biggest supporters in whatever you do.

The best friends - saw us through the ups and the downs , the tension and the obsession . And the first ones to test , taste and buy pour products.

Our girl group - ur core group for the rest of ur life . Those who supported us by making themselves fat.

Fans - What a wonderful feeling.Those who love our work and show the appreciation.

Peace and happiness- Our state of mind depends on us, not on anyone else and the decisions we make have to make us happy , not anyone else coz the ones who love us will be happy when we are happy .

Thank You to Alll of you. You know who you are.
www.fortheloveofcake.in