The cake covers a square meter and is made of 1500 roses gleaming in different tones of red – yet only at second glance do you see that these are not real but made of marzipan. The heads of the roses look so fragile that the cake really should really have been given a place in the glass-fronted cabinet in the lounge rather than being eaten.
The creation “Bed of Roses” is one of cake-designer Peggy Porschen’s best-sellers – and requires days of crafting by hand. Crystal powder gives the frail blooms their sparkle, and Peggy Porschen has composed the pale pink, shocking pink and deep red from numerous food colorings. It’s just three elementary things that Peggy requires for making cakes, yet these are by no means straightforward: Time, patience and technique. The results resemble works of art. One of the cakes looks like a present that has been beautifully wrapped up, tied in a broad ribbon, another is barely distinguishable from a hatbox. On top of some of the pralines sit brilliantly colored marzipan butterflies that look as if they are about to fly away in a moment.
"Nostalgic chocolate hearts" © Georgia Glynn SmithA lifelong passion
Even as a small child, Peggy Porschen entertained a passion for imaginatively decorated cakes and biscuits. She was given a birthday cake by her parents every year from her first birthday onwards. She started to bake herself when she was 14. Soon there was no doubt about her dream career. She wanted to be a pastry cook. At 23, the future cake designer did her long keenly anticipated apprenticeship at Le Cordon Bleu London, the renowned patisserie and culinary school.
After a post as head of the patisserie in the famed Lanesborough Hotel in the British capital, Peggy worked for the successful caterer Rhubarb Food Design and for the Konditor & Cook patisserie chain. In 2003 she finally went independent – and her flat became a bakehouse. Yet the first major order from Fortnum & Mason, that traditional London luxury store, took her to the very limits of her capacities. More than 5,000 cookies piled up in her bedroom of all places – and Peggy took the decision to open her own studio.
The cake studio in London's Battersea district
Along with her friend Bryn Morrow, a successful chef, in 2005 she founded Peggy Porschen Ltd. The patissier’s cake studio is located in the London district of Battersea and is among the top addresses for people needing to order top-flight patisserie for festivities.
"Monogram cake" © Georgia Glynn SmithPeggy’s legendary cakes already thrilled Stella McCartney’s wedding party and the guests at Elton John’s AIDS Gala. Yet these tasty works of arts are not reserved for a prominent elite. Anybody may order cookies, muffins, cakes and tarts. Peggy’s team consists of eight staff, some of whom she has herself trained as cake decorators. Her team brings fierce ambition and immense love of detail to implementing the clientele’s wishes on topic and style. Couples getting married, for example, are asked to bring along a piece of lace from the bride’s dress or an invitation card. When designing the cake, the team can them copy a pattern to the last detail.
The effort required is immense: If a cake of several tiers has been ordered, for instance, up to six days may be needed for the preliminary work.. A tight schedule is unavoidable. The tiers of a cake are made separately, because the lower parts of the cake have to bear the whole weight and therefore need to be made of stiffer dough. This and the fillings can be varied from tier to tier.
“Very pretty and romantic…
… but also very detailed and filigree,” is how Peggy describes her cake style. Ideas for new creations will often occur to her on a walk through London. She immediately applies trends like the Retro look or the Baroque style in her decorations for cakes and biscuits. Wedding fashions, for example, were for a while dominated by a broad ribbon around the bride’s hips that Peggy then emulated on her cakes in the form of a band made of marzipan. She often takes her inspiration from the patterns on wallpaper or porcelain – creating bakery products that look as if they are wrapped in fabric.
Peggy Porsche’s wealth of inspiration knows no limits. This cake designer’s gleaming, brilliantly colored creations are suitable for use on very differing occasions. Decorated cookies in the form of starfishes, handbags or pine trees can be used as table or Christmas tree decorations, or as place card holders. Anybody wishing to try their hand and practice baking and decorating cakes can turn to Peggy Porschen’s prizewinning books in which she reveals her secrets. However, these offer no guarantee that a reader will achieve such perfect creations as the author’s.
The International “Le Cordon Bleu” Patisserie and Culinary School
"Butterfly dreams" © Georgia Glynn SmithThe International “Le Cordon Bleu” Patisserie and Culinary School was founded in Paris in 1895. Today more than 29 schools on five continents are worldwide leaders in training in gastronomy. This lasts for about one year and ends with a Grand Diplôme that is recognized by all culinary establishments worldwide and seen as an international entrance ticket to a successful career.
Around 20,000 pupils take the training every year. The master-chefs supervising the instruction mainly hail from restaurants that have already made names for themselves with their Michelin stars, while others have already won prestigious competitions. Along with French cuisine, the chefs also provide instruction in modern international cuisine.
The name “Cordon Bleu”, incidentally, originated in 16th century, when King Henri III of France founded the Order of the Knights of the Holy Spirit. The symbol of the Order was a cross suspended from a blue ribbon known as the “Cordon Bleu”. Thanks to the Order’s distinguished history and its lavish, splendid ceremonies, the name “Cordon Bleu” stands for superb quality. No wonder, then, that Marthe Distel, journalist and publisher of the culinary magazine “La Cuisinière Cordon Bleu”, opted for this name when founding her culinary school.
