Thursday, August 9, 2007

Glory McLennan, a St. Ignace cake maker is pictured left with one of her wedding cakes.  Her company TasTCreations offers cakes for any occasion.

"Flavor Is Deciding Factor as Glory McLennan Wins Mackinac Bridge Cake Contest"

Using her Grandmother's lemon cake recipe topped with a special butter cream frosting recipe she created, Glory McLennan, owner of TasTCreations in St. Ignace, won the cake contest held during Mackinac Bridge celebrations commemorating the 50th anniversary of the bridge Saturday, July 28.
"I couldn't believe it," she said of the win.  She was awarded a certificate to make the honor.
Four other cakes stationed under a covered picnic area at Bridge View Park competed in the contest judged by renowned cake makers Kevin Pavlina and James Aslanian from Pavlina Cakes in Fenton.  Other entrants were Ronda McGreevey of Great Turtle Cake Company in Cedarville, Kim Sperl of Cheboygan for Bella E Dolce (Grand Hotel), Erin Sontag of the Detroit area, and Brenda Spencley of Bren's Cakes in St. Ignace.                                                                                                     
The two chefs considered the entries based on how successful each baker was at capturing the anniversary theme.  They also took into consideration the neatness of the decorations, overall appearance of the cake, and the taste. 
While all entries were well decorated, Mr. Pavlina said its flavor was the deciding factor in choosing Mrs. McLennan's cake.
The sheet cake was decorated (pictured right) with two peninsulas made of fondant, using a sugar base, and airbrushed green.  Creating the peninsulas, Mrs. McLennan said, was the most challenging part of her design.  Getting them in to the right shaped proved more difficult than she expected, although she finally was able to work the material in the shaped she needed.
Overall, her goal was to show how the bridge brought both of Michigan's peninsulas together.  Atop the two peninsulas were lighthouses, the state capitol building, freighters, sailboats, trees, a teepee, seagulls, and markers naming Michigan State University and the University of Michigan.
"I definitely wanted to make sure I got both the Upper and Lover Peninsulas together on the cake.", said the New Jersey native.  "I learned a lot about Michigan from doing this." 
Mrs. McLennan began her cake making business in 1997, when her husband, Ned was hired to work at the Mackinac Bridge as a steeplejack.  To replicate the bridge cables often climbed by her husband, Mrs. McLennan used floral wire on the cake.   She also used toothpicks and dowel rods to provide support for the decorations made of gum paste.
The project proved to be a learning experience.  Her first lighthouse, supported by toothpicks, collapsed.
"There was a lot of trial and error," she said, before she came up with the idea to use tiny dowel rods.
As a young girl, Mrs. McLennan started out helping her grandmother each summer in a New Jersey bakery.
"I decorated the cupcakes," she said.  "They sold pretty well." 
Now, she has her own cake company and has won the 50th anniversary cake contest.
"It's really, really exciting." she said.  "I'm going down in the books."

THE ST IGNACE NEWS by Karen Gould wrote,

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Glory McLennan of St. Ignace traces the Mackinac Bridge 50th anniversary token design onto a piece of glass using Royal Icing.  The process is the first step in making the confection, which will sit on top of the cake she is making for the November 1st Celebration.

"Baker Asked To Come Up With Second Mackinac Bridge Cake"

   Glory McLennan meticulously traces an image of the Mackinac Bridge on a thin piece of glass slightly smaller than a sheet of notebook paper.  Standing over a marble countertop, she draws the image using white Royal icing.  She does not consider herself an artist.
Mrs. McLennan, owner of TasTCreations in St. Ignace, won the cake contest celebrating the 50th anniversary of the bridge in July.  That sheet cake design portrayed the role of the bridge in uniting Michigan's two peninsulas, and was topped with elements common to the state, including freighters, trees, lighthouses, and a teepee.  The lemon cake recipe she used was her grandmother's.
Now, the Mackinac Bridge Authority has asked her to share her talents again and create a cake for the November 1st ceremonies marking the day the bridge first opened to traffic in 1957.
Coming up with ideas for the cake was easy, she said.  Sketching those ideas, however, proves to be more challenging.
"I'm so bad at drawing," said Mrs. McLennan, who comes from a family of artists.  Her father was an architect and her brother is an artist, as was her grandfather.  Her grandfather is known for creating the original rendering of the New Jersey legendary creature, The Jersey Devil.
When she was asked to provide cake for the November celebration, she was flooded with ideas for the cake's design.  She focused on the 50th anniversary bridge token, which will top the cake.
A gold confection replica of the token, she said, will stand atop a white, three-tiered cake decorated with gold and white roses.  She again will use her grandmother's lemon cake recipe and white fondant will cover the cake.
"I did 'fun' for the cake contest.  I wanted to do something beautiful that definitely had the 50th theme," she said.  "I want to do something elegant, something really nice."
With a steady hand, she begins the process of creating a mold for the coin.  Using a parchment bag containing meringue, powdered sugar, and water, she traced the bridge onto a piece of glass in a process called piping.  Under the glass is a paper enlargement of the anniversary coin.  She used an artist's brush to smooth her work.  She will continue tracing all of the raised design of the coin.
Once completed, she will roll out sugar paste in the shaped of a circle and press the glass with its piping into the paste to make a mold.  After it dries, she will use the mold to make the raised fondant replica of the token.  The replica will be air brushed with gold food coloring before she placed it on the cake's top tier.
"I like the creativity," she said. "and I enjoy what I do."
The cake will serve 100 people.
She also is making three sheet cakes to serve those who attend the November 1st event and to accommodate different tastes.  The sheet cakes include a spice cake with cream cheese frosting, a fudge marble cake with white butter cream frosting, and a chocolate fudge cake topped with chocolate butter cream frosting.  Each cake will serve 100 people.
Since winning the July cake contest, Mrs. McLennan said her cake business has gotten busier, with many wedding cake bookings added for next year.  The contest was judged by renowned cake makers Kevin Pavlina and James Aslanian from Pavlina Cakes in Fenton.
As a young girl, Mrs. McLennan began baking by helping her grandmother.  After moving to St. Ignace in 1999, she worked at Justrite Bakery before taking classes in cake making.  Mrs. McLennan's husband, Ned, who has been a steeplejack at the bridge since 1997, is proud of her baking accomplishments, she said.  The couple has two children.
"To be a part of the bridge celebration is really neat.  The bridge is a huge part of Michigan's history," said the New Jersey native.  "I'm starting to feel like Michigan is my home."