Cake Tasting Seconds

On Tuesday, my Austin stand-in-bride, Hillary, did our second cake tasting. As you remember, our first tasting, Lucy's, was a bit disappointing and our 3rd choice, Matty Cakes, was booked up while we waited. So we were really counting on Michelle's. And according to Hillary...it delivered! Hillary called it "delicious" and said that Michelle was really "nice and flexible." Perfect for the out of town bride. The only downside was that Hillary didn't get to taste the flavor combo I was most interested
in, the banana indulgence--vanilla cake filled with vanilla custard, banana slices and a thin layer of chocolate ganache. I get excited just thinking about it. The upside is, she did get to taste some other flavors that she loved. Here's what she had to say about them

Italian Wedding (usually has almonds)
"Good. This one was good. A little dryer than the rest. The frosting was delicious and I was lapping it up! Pretty good for Italian Wedding Cake."

Tres Leches (a Mexican-inspired cake soaked in 3 milks, usually with cinnamon)
"Moist. I really liked this one. It was moist and sweet. It wasn't rich, but very indulgent. Guests might want smaller pieces. Not like tres leches I've had before, but still delicious."

Chocolate with Chocolate Butter Cream (potential groom's cake flavor)
"Rich. The chocolate is very indulgent. I mixed it with the strawberries and it was incredible. It is a little rich to were I wanted a glass of milk."

Strawberries & Cream
"Delicious! The Butter Cream was creamy and not gritty or too rich. I love strawberry's and they were super fresh. Great cake that you can really sink your fork into."

I think we're most likely to go with the strawberries & cream option. I'm a huge fan, but mostly I'm excited to find out the buttercream is good. I'm really picky about my icings as a lot of NY bakeries go with a toothache-sweet icing that can actually be gritty. Michelle's policy is apparently, less sugar plus more butter equals a lighter fluffier icing. I heartily agree. I'm still interested in the Banana Indulgence, but I don't think we could go wrong here. Here are some other things I like about Michelle's:

1) They never freeze the cakes. Lots of bakeries do and this causes the cake to dry out.
2) The new and improved buttercream
3) Michelle will deliver the cake herself.
4) Most slices are $3 each.
5) She operates out of her house!

Yep, check out these pics of her in-home business. (I'm so jealous. I gotta figure out a business I could run out of my house.)



Michelle's Patisserie Home Office


Super cute pink chandelier


Michelle's showroom


Adorable baker, Michelle

And here are some examples of Michelle's work:












So what do you guys think? Should we risk going with the Banana Indulgence for a layer even though we didn't get to taste it? Can you tell I'm excited about this place? I'm still waiting on the estimates, but I'm really hoping it works out!

Mary