Baker uses creativity to brighten others' days
By Holly Ebel
Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN
While her husband Ted, weatherman for KTTC-TV, is known for his forecasts, Cara Schmidt has gained a following of her own by being one of the most creative bakers in town.
"Oh, don't say that," she pleads, but the truth is that those lucky to have birthdays at KTTC-TV are always treated to one of her cakes or her special brownies, as are her co-workers in human resources at Mayo Clinic. She is also known for the yearly teas she hosts with a friend.
The baking, the creativity and the love of teas all came together on a recent weekend, with the first birthday celebration of the Schmidts' daughter Madeleine.
"Since I decided the theme would be a tea party I wanted to bake a cake in the shape of a teapot," she said.
She googled "teapot cake," and several sites popped up. The recipe she chose was on the M&M Web site.
"It seemed to be the best one, plus the picture was adorable."
Not leaving anything to chance for this special birthday, Schmidt first did a dry-run baking of the cake, including the decorating.
"Good thing I did because there were a few glitches." Such as? "Well, the cake is baked in two bowls, and the first one had a very crispy outside but was doughy on the inside."
The solution was to insert what she called a metal flower rod, used to form sugar flowers, into the dough. That acted as a heat conductor to the center, resulting in a cake that was done evenly inside to outside.
"I read about it on a blog," she said.
Schmidt also changed the decorating and frosting from the original version, using instead tropical flavored Starburst jelly beans and brightly colored M&M's to fashion flowers around the teapot. The handle and spigot were formed from a heavy poster-board type paper.
While the cake was the centerpiece of the birthday tea, Schmidt also treated guests to her special multi-course tea menu, which included cucumber sandwiches with chive butter, scones, madeleines (a French cookie), lemon curd and fruit.
Schmidt's love of teas not only gives her the opportunity to bake traditional tea specialties, she also uses prized family heirlooms such as china, crystal bowls, silver and linens.
"I love to bring out all of those treasures that have been handed down to me and that I am fortunate to have. They all have a story to tell, like who they came from, and when and where they got them. They are very special to me."
Schmidt's baking is not just reserved for birthdays and teas.
"I bake something every weekend, either popovers or scones. What I love about baking is that it gives the house such a warm and inviting feel. That is important to me."
