Wedding Cakes

A wedding cake is the traditional cake served at wedding receptions following dinner. In some parts of England, the wedding cake is served at a wedding breakfast, on the morning following the ceremony. In modern Western culture, the cake is usually on display and served to guests at the reception. Traditionally, wedding cakes were made to bring good luck to all guests and the couple. Modernly however, they are more of a centerpiece to the wedding and are not always even served to the guests. Some cakes are built with only a single edible tier for the bride and groom to share.
The contemporary wedding cake has grown out of many traditions. One of the first traditions began in Ancient Rome where bread was broken over the bride’s head to bring good fortune to the couple. In Medieval England cakes were stacked as high as possible for the bride and groom to kiss over, if they successfully kissed over the stack they were guaranteed a prosperous life together. From this the Croquembouche was created. The myth behind this cake tells that a Pastry chef, visiting Medieval England, witnessed their tradition of piling sweet rolls between the bride and groom which they would attempt to kiss over without knocking them all down. The pastry chef then went back to France and piled sweet rolls up into a tower to make the first Croquembouche. The modern croquembouche is still very popular in France however it is common to place the croquembouche tower on a bed of cake and make it one of the top tiers of the wedding cake. This traditional French wedding cake is built from Profiteroles and given a halo of spun sugar.
The modern wedding cake as we know it now originated at the wedding of Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany, in 1882; his wedding cake was the first to actually be completely edible. Pillars between the cake tiers did not begin to appear until about 20 years later. The pillars were very poorly made from broomsticks covered in icing. The tiers represented prosperity and were a status symbol because only wealthy families could afford to include them in the cake. Prince Leopold’s wedding cake was created in separate layers with very dense icing. When the icing hardened the tiers were then stacked; this method had never been used before, and it was a groundbreaking innovation for wedding cakes at the time. Modern wedding cakes still use this method, but because of the size of today’s cakes, internal support is added to each layer in the form of dowels.

Cappuccino...

Cappuccino is a coffee drink topped with foamed milk. It is made in a steam-producing espresso machine. The espresso is poured into the bottom third of the cup, followed by a similar amount of hot milk. The top third of the drink consists of milk foam; this foam can be decorated with artistic drawings made with the same milk, called latte art. In a traditional cappuccino, as served in Europe and artisan coffee houses in the United States, the total of espresso and milk/foam make up between approximately 150–180 ml (5–6 imp fl oz; 5–6 US fl oz). 

'Cappuccino' comes from the diminutive form of cappuccio in Italian, meaning 'hood' or something that covers the head, thus 'cappuccino' reads 'small capuchin'. The coffee beverage has its name not from the hood but from the colour of the hooded robes worn by monks and nuns of the capuchin order. This colour is quite distinctive and 'capuchin' was a common description of the colour of red-brown in 17th-century Europe. The capuchin monks chose the particular design of their orders' robes both in colour and shape of the hood back in the 16th century, inspired by Francis of Assisi's preserved 13th century vestments.

The consumption of coffee in Europe was initially based on the traditional Ottoman preparation of the drink, by bringing to boil the mixture of coffee and water together, sometimes by adding sugar. The British seem to have started filtering and steeping coffee already in the 2nd part of the 17th century and France and continental Europe followed suit. By the 19th century coffee was brewed in different devices designed for both home and public Cafés. Adding milk to coffee is mentioned by Europeans already in the 1600s, and sometimes advised. 

Cappuccino as we write it today is first mentioned in northern Italy in the 1930s, and photographs from that time show a 'viennese' —a coffee topped with whipped cream sprinkled with cinnamon or chocolate. The steamed milk atop is a later addition. Though coffee was brewed differently all over Europe after WW2, in Italy, the real espresso machines became widespread only during the 1950s, and 'cappuccino' was re-defined, now made from espresso and frothed milk (though far from the quality of steamed milk today). As the espresso machines improved, so did the dosing of coffee and the heating of the milk. Outside Italy, 'cappuccino' spread, but was generally made from dark coffee with whipped cream, as it still is in large parts of Europe. The 'Kapuziner' remained unchanged on the Austrian coffee menu, even in Trieste, which by 1920 belonged to Italy and in Budapest, Prague, Bratislava and other cities of the former Empire.

For Latte Art designs: http://www.latteart.org/photos-latte-art.html

Birthday Parties!

Birthday party

A birthday party is a celebration of the anniversary of the birth of the person who is being honored. The tradition started in the mid-nineteenth century but didn't become popular until the mid-twentieth century.

Birthday parties are a feature of many cultures.

In Western cultures, birthday parties include a number of common rituals. The guests may be asked to bring a gift for the honored person. Party locations are often decorated with colorful decorations, such as balloons and streamers. A birthday cake is usually served with lit candles that are to be blown out after a "birthday wish" has been made. The person being honored will be given the first piece of cake. While the birthday cake is being brought to the table, the song "Happy Birthday To You" or some other birthday song is sung by the guests.

At parties for children, time is often taken for the "gift opening" wherein the individual whose birthday is celebrated opens each of the gifts brought. It is also common at children's parties for the host to give parting gifts to the attendees in the form of "goodie bags". Children and even adults sometimes wear party hats (colorful cone-shaped paper hats) at a birthday party.

Birthday parties are often larger and more extravagant if they celebrate someone who has reached what is regarded in the culture as a milestone age, such as transition from childhood to adulthood. Examples of traditional coming of age celebrations include the North American sweet sixteen party. 

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