She’s known for her down-to-earth, beautiful cakes and easy cake kits – but as The Caker’s Jordan Rondel says, it doesn’t matter if you’re baking for celebs in LA or in your own kitchen for your mum on Mother’s Day – you can’t skimp on the basics! She shares her secrets and fills us in on how she’s going in Los Angeles below! (And keep scrolling for an EPIC giveaway from Kenwood!)
- Kia Ora Jordan! How’re you going now you’re back in LA?
Kia Ora! I’m going well thank you. I’ve been incredibly busy since being back working on lots of exciting projects – keep an eye on my @thecaker Instagram to see these come to life.
- It’s Mother’s Day veeeery soon – what’s your advice for novice bakers attempting something special for Mum?
I really cannot express how important is it to use room temperature butter if your cake recipe calls for it! Using room temperature butter helps with the final texture of the cake.
Another tip for a novice baker is that I really can’t advise using a good stand mixer more. I’ve used Kenwood stand mixers at home and in my bakeries for many years and they have truly shaped the way I bake – not only does a good stand mixer help you save time and make the whole process a lot easier, but it ensures that your batters are light and fluffy and helps to avoid over mixing too.
- How do you make a cake special? Are there little touches you can do to help your cake stand out?
I love decorating my cakes with fresh spray roses (these aren’t for eating, just for looks). I think they just elevate the look of a cake in such a simple way and have become a real signature look for The Caker cakes.
- What inspires you to bake a new cake?
New recipes are usually inspired by what fruits are in season, because my cakes pretty much always contain big pieces of fruit! Sometimes I’ll be inspired by a certain spice or nut too, or even an ingredient from a more savoury setting, like tahini or miso. All of these ideas get jotted down and from there I draft a new recipe.
- Has your mum had any hand in your inspiration?
My mum isn’t a baker at all, but grandmother has played a very important role in The Caker’s evolution.
- Is there a never-fail, tried-and-true flavour combination or recipe that you’d recommend for a beginner?
My cake kits are an amazing way for a novice to get comfortable baking! They are fail proof, but still require some techniques that will carry on into baking from scratch, like being careful not to overmix and getting to know your oven.
- Are there any differences you’ve noticed between how we celebrate Mother’s Day in the US and in NZ?
To be honest I don’t really know because the last time I was here for Mother’s Day we were in lockdown so nobody was really celebrating anything! I’ll certainly be missing my mum this time round 🙁
To be in to win a Kenwood Chef Sense Stand Mixer (worth $869.90) head to our Instagram page @capsule_nz from Sunday morning!
(Main image/ Instagram @thecaker)
