Page 76 of Not Your Average Vixen
“I’m not! Tom and I watch those baking shows and—”
“And Lori is constantly saying that you can do it better,” Tom replied, finishing Lori’s sentence.
Soren stared at his BFF like the guy had ten heads. “You watch baking shows?”
“It’s crazy relaxing, man. You should try it,” Tom replied, wrapping his arm around Lori.
Lori leaned into her fiancé. “I still can’t believe you haven’t opened up your own shop. Birdie, you’d be amazing.”
Bridget went over to the sink, washed her hands, then plucked an apron from a hook on the wall, ignoring the comment.
Amazing?
No, she didn’t have what it took to be amazing. Amazing meant taking risks and putting it all on the line. And that…that wasn’t who she was. She’d been tasked with Lori’s welfare since she was a teenager, and that’s when her dreams had moved to the back burner.
Dreams wouldn’t pay the rent.
No, she played it safe.
“Hypothetically, what would you do if you had your own bakery?”
Soren had posed the question—surprisingly enough.
She mulled it over as she put on the apron, then opened the large refrigerator. It was stocked with butter, eggs, and heavy whipping cream. Dan and Delores had delivered on making sure she had everything she needed, plus a whole lot more.
“The butter’s out and softened,” her sister said, taking out her phone.
Bridget nodded as she gathered the rest of the ingredients to make the buttercream frosting, and suddenly, she wasn’t worried about the brooding Soren or pulling off the perfect wedding. No, here, with her ingredients and the scent of cake in the air, the answer to Soren’s question came together in her mind.
She glanced around the cozy shop. It was a shame Cupid Bakery was going out of business. Anyone could tell the equipment and space were in good shape. The bakery chain wasn’t going under due to lack of care or cutting corners, and the couple who started the business were legends in the baking world.
But what did they do wrong?
Combining sugar and water, she prepared a simple syrup on the stove as she chewed on this question. Her best ideas came when she was baking. She went to the mixer and added the butter, watching carefully to get it smooth, like her grandma Dasher had taught her, before incorporating the powdered sugar, vanilla, and heavy whipping cream to create the perfect buttercream frosting.
She picked up a wooden spoon and gave the fluffy mixture a stir to feel for the correct texture. Satisfied with the consistency, she fell into the familiar routine of assembling a wedding cake, then glanced up to find Soren watching her.
“Well, what would you do?” he prodded. He was still in grouch mode, but curiosity flashed in those cat-like eyes of his.
“If I had my own bakery,” she began. “I’d make sure to be dialed into the community. That’s important, but it’s not all you need. Word of mouth can only get you so far. You’d want to have a signature dessert available year-round, as well as new creations to pique continuous interest. And in this day and age, a vibrant social media presence is required. The bakery should become an extension of the bakers, and that personality should shine through. And I’d make sure to have a robust online sales presence. That’s what Cupid Bakery did wrong.”
She was in the zone as she gathered the dowels that would hold the three stacked layers in place as well as the cake turntable, an offset spatula, and a bench scraper to keep the frosting even and smooth. She barely registered Tom’s presence as he set the cooled bottom layer of red velvet cake next to her. Carefully, she removed it from the cake pan, cut off the top to level the layer, set the deep red slab of red velvet onto the cake turntable, then applied the simple syrup with a pastry brush.
With her tools assembled and her mind focused, she went to work frosting the bottom layer.
“What do you mean when you say, ‘that’s what Cupid Bakery did wrong’?”
Soren again.
She kept her gaze locked on the cake as she spun the turntable and evenly applied the crumb layer of frosting. “I mean, they were a great bakery, but they only had one stream of revenue—in-store purchases. To be profitable, you need multiple streams. You should branch out.”
Tom brought her the cooled center and then the top layer. She glanced over to find Lori with her phone out, filming her. And as she worked, she began explaining what she was doing and why she was doing it just like her grandmother.
Always use a simple syrup to lock in moisture, especially if you’re making your cake a few days in advance.
Apply a crumb layer of frosting to create a smooth, even surface.
Be generous with your frosting—for many, it’s their favorite part.
