Once, when I was in China with a friend, we wanted to buy a cake for some other friends we were going to see. We knew there was a bakery near their home. We thought we could walk in and buy one, but that wasn’t how it worked. They did have many delicious smelling treats to buy as a walk-in customer, but you had to order the cake from several pictures. Then, the cake would be made for you. My friend and I were disappointed because we really wanted to take a cake as a surprise and a thank you, but we knew we didn’t have time to wait for a cake to be made.
On a whim, I asked how long it would take to have the cake made. To our delight, we were told about fifteen minutes. Wow! I couldn’t believe they could make a cake that fast. So, I asked again and received the same answer. The cake was chosen and then the clerk spoke with the baker. The baker waved to us and began his work.
From a large flat tray of cake, the baker carved out three large circles. I realized he was cutting out each layer. He took the first circle (cut with a knife that looked to be way too big for the job) and set it on a work area. His next step was to place some icing on the top, and then he put the second layer on top of the first layer. Again, he covered the cake with a thin layer of icing, and put the third layer on top. I was amazed at how each of the layers he had just cut, without measuring, were all the same size; I think he had done this before!
It was impressive to watch how quickly the baker decorated the cake to look just like the picture we chose. Every last detail was exactly as the picture, including the chocolate on top and the confectioner’s sugar. Our friends loved it; we were happy we had gotten it for them. If you like chocolate cake, I think you would have enjoyed it also!
