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Ouch..that stung a little more than I thought it would!

post #1 of 50
9/7/11 at 7:42pm
Thread Starter 
SOOO, got wind of a little gossip today about my cakes LOL! Normally, I do not give a hoot who likes my cakes, who thinks the competition does better...blah blah blah, you know, small town talk...Anyways...my best friend just gave me a call, she seemed kinda mad...turns out a friend of hers was going to order a cake from me, but someone who has NEVER had one of my cakes, turned her nose up and said "ugh, she uses a box mix! I am taking my business to "John Doe's Bakery" who bakes from scratch. I will even pay double just to know its not a box mix"...Okay...great, do that then!! So now, this girl is terrified that my cakes might not be any good having never tasted them! I use a version of WASC for my vanilla cake only, everything else IS scratch! Normally, it wouldn't bother me a bit because the only reason I still use the WASC for vanilla is because it has brought me sooooo much biz and people LOVE that cake, I just cant change it because one person doesn't like the IDEA of a cake thats not 100% scratch!! Sorry for the vent..but it did sting a little actually hearing it, and of course, my friend was BLAZIN mad (hehe sweet friend icon_biggrin.gif) because this person was talking down my cakes having never tasted one. It does make me want to try and find a good vanilla scratch cake that can live up to the expectations set by WASC though! Please oh please do not turn this into a scratch vs box debate, but, if any of you have any suggestions for a cake you believe CAN live up to the WASC, I would greatly appreciate you sharing! icon_lol.gif
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post #2 of 50
9/7/11 at 8:02pm
Good luck and i cant wait to see the comments! So I have tried at least 6 different white/vanilla cake recipes this month, after throwing them all out....I tried the WASC. It was perfect! I loved it and so did my family, but in the back of my mind thought I was "cheating" a bit. I too bake everything else scratch, but think I'm going to stick to the WASC!! thumbs_up.gif
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post #3 of 50
9/7/11 at 8:09pm
I have actually been wondering the same thing! I made a scratch white cake that I thought was really good, but my hubby said he prefers the WASC still. I thought the flavor was a little better than WASC, but it wasn't quite as moist. I'm going to try making it this weekend and sour cream to see if that helps. It's the cook's illustrated white cake.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/member/views/COOKS-ILLUSTRATED-WHITE-LAYER-CAKE-50017374

I think it's hard to get a good-tasting white cake. If it were me, I'd be tempted to head on over to "John Doe's Bakery" and taste their cake and then when you realize yours is actually better, give yourself a big pat on the back. icon_smile.gif
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post #4 of 50
9/7/11 at 8:17pm
you know, there will always be some who dislike box mix, and some who dislike scratch, and some who dislike certain recipes you make. the idea is to ask the person which do they prefer. offer both box and scratch. why is it that we cake decorators seem to think that we must choose between the two?? you know...you can even do a taste test of a box mix and scratch (of the same flavor) and see what people think!
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
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Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
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post #5 of 50
9/7/11 at 8:44pm
Oh good grief! If it tastes good and looks amazing who really cares if it was made from scratch or from a box? It's all the basic same ingredients anyway...sheesh. People are so funny about things like that. I use a sour cream cake that uses a box cake mix and people absolutely love it. I haven't come across a scratch cake mix that will stand up to it yet. So until that point in time, I guess I'm just never going to be as "good" as the from scratchers... icon_smile.gif My loss.
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post #6 of 50
9/7/11 at 8:49pm
I can understand why this would irritate you, but personally, I wouldn't order from somewhere that uses box cakes if I had another option. I prefer to keep my food as unprocessed as possible, and some cake mixes add stuff I would prefer to keep out of my food.

As you said, this is only one person. Don't stress about it icon_smile.gif
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post #7 of 50
9/7/11 at 9:22pm
I have baked for friends and family and honestly they do not know if I make from scratch or from box mixes. All the cakes I do are a version of the WASC cake. As far as I feel, I have a don't ask, don't tell policy. If they do not ask, I'm not telling. They try my cakes and love them. That's all that matters to me at this point in time.
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post #8 of 50
9/7/11 at 9:26pm
Dame boat as you! I use the WASC for my white cake. There is a scratch version of the WASC that also bakes up beautifully - it has a slightly different texture and a milder flavour. But other than that it works great! I'm quite sure there is a recipe for it here on CC but if you can't find it pm me with your email and I'll email it to you icon_smile.gif
Sunny Smiles from the Cayman Isles!
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Sunny Smiles from the Cayman Isles!
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post #9 of 50
9/7/11 at 11:02pm
I can spot a box mix no matter how much you try to cover it up. People do expect a bakery to bake from scratch, even though most don't. The person was not lying. I would also tell a friend when a bakery uses box mixes. So you got found out. You have to feel confident in your product and stand by it, no matter what it is. Not trying to start a war, but if you use box mixes, admit it. Don't be mad when it gets out. And if I taste a cake from a baker that uses a box, I will assume that all flavors are box.

And for the person who said box and scratch are all the same, please do your homework. They are not anywhere near the same. I don't care what people use, but I find it insulting to my many years of trial and error and constant study to compare my cakes to a box who's sole purpose is to produce an edible product no matter how many mistakes are made.
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post #10 of 50
9/8/11 at 5:29am
scp1127--I doubt everyone has a palette as discerning as yours. icon_smile.gif I think for the majority of people, they really can't tell that WASC isn't from scratch; they just have this idea in their head that from scratch is better. And maybe for some people it is, but I'd be interested to see how many people prefer WASC over scratch in a blind taste test!
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post #11 of 50
9/8/11 at 6:05am
I am just curious why if WASC works great for you (you state it has generated a good deal of business for you) why one reply is motivating you t find a scratch recipe? Folks like it, lots of folks like it. But it seems like you feel you now have to find a recipe that everyone likes.

Please do not take this as trying to be critical. Rather what I am trying to do is say blow this person off. That she refused to buy from you is her problem, her hang up--don't let her hang up become yours. You have good reasons why you use this approach for this cake. It works well, it tastes good, and most importantly you have plenty of people that buy from you because of it. Look for a scratch recipe because it is fun to tinker with recipes, but don't let this one individual lead you second guess your choice.
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post #12 of 50
9/8/11 at 6:09am
I politefully disagree. I am right there with SCP1127. I can always tell a box mix. I went to a bakery that claimed "all scratch", but what I tasted was a box mix, one with real fruit in it, but it was a box. Though thast wasn't for me, I was more dissapointed by the false claim, then the fact that it was a base mix. And my sister, who thinks McD's can be gourmet, can tell the difference froma scratch and a box mix. She has gone into bakeries and asked and could tell they were lying. So, no this is not about discerning pallette, but an obvious taste difference. And to the OP, if you are happy with your cake and evryone is happy with your cake, stick with it. There may be some who don't like my orange cake, but I sure as heck ain't coming up with a recipe just for them to like it. If we worked like that, we would go crazy! icon_biggrin.gif
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post #13 of 50
9/8/11 at 6:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by traci_doodle

scp1127--I doubt everyone has a palette as discerning as yours. icon_smile.gif I think for the majority of people, they really can't tell that WASC isn't from scratch; they just have this idea in their head that from scratch is better. And maybe for some people it is, but I'd be interested to see how many people prefer WASC over scratch in a blind taste test!



I tried the WASC for vanilla and chocolate now. Although they tasted good, I could still tell that they were box based. So could my whole family. There really is a taste that you can't get rid of, and if you do know the difference between scratch and box, you will be able to tell. That being said, I did a wedding cake for free not to long ago, and I used a WASC recipie, (to save some pennies) and those who are used to just box cakes though it was amazing! Everyone else was to drunk at that point to care!
~*Make your next event special*~
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~*Make your next event special*~
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post #14 of 50
9/8/11 at 6:26am
I've never tried wasc so, I can't offer up something that can replace it. I just wanted to say I understand how you feel, I think. It's not so much that there are those that decide on another baker for the taste, it's the fact that this one singled out and said aloud why she would rather go with the other baker.

I know of situations where people have snubbed other bakers in front of me (I really do dislike anyone mentioning another baker's quality in front of me...good or bad) only to find out that cake(s) was attained from said snubbed bakers (it's happened more than once with more than one baker). I know that I'm probably a snubbed baker when some talk with the other bakers as well.

I do not care (really, I don't) if everyone doesn't like my cakes. I like my cakes. I wouldn't be able to bring myself to convince someone to buy my cake if, in my heart, I preferred something else.

Put some icing on that sting and carry on.
"Be the change you want to see in the world."- Mahatma Gandhi

miniature cake tutorial

http://www.youtube.com/user/MyNewSneakers?feature=mhsn
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"Be the change you want to see in the world."- Mahatma Gandhi

miniature cake tutorial

http://www.youtube.com/user/MyNewSneakers?feature=mhsn
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post #15 of 50
9/8/11 at 6:42am
I can tell a box mix from scratch, but I just think most people aren't judging cake the way we do. We work with cake all the time. For example, I went to a cupcake shop with friends and we all loved the vanilla cupcake. But I was the only one who could tell there was cream cheese in the cake. And whenever I try a new frosting, I try to get people to give me an opinion, but all they can say is "it tastes like frosting", when what I really want to know is if it's too sweet, or if the chocolate flavor is strong enough, etc. I even made some where I thought the butter was bad, but everyone else thought it tasted fine. Some people can tell the difference, but I think the chemical taste is very subtle and most people don't even notice it.
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