Question for Mara

[asscher_girl]

Hi Mara!

I have a quick question for you. I know you and your hubby got married in HI and we are too. Well we are going to Maui in about a week and meeting w/ our wedding coordinator. We will be doing our cake flavor tastings and she sent me a list of the flavors to pick from. Do you have any recommendations for filling flavors? I was thinking of doing buttercream frosting or ganache (you mentioned in a previous post to me that Fondant isn''t good to use there w/ the heat). I do need to find out though if they can make ganache in white chocolate.

We will be having 4 little cakes made w/ the flavors for our taste test.

Here is the list the planner sent me w/ flavors:

Maui Wedding Cakes Flavor Choices:
Cake Body: Our basic choices for cake body are White Sponge Cake, Dark Chocolate Cake, or Marble. We can also make Carrot Cake or other special orders.

Fillings: Our choices for fillings included in the basic prices shown
are: Vanilla Whip Cream Custard; Vanilla Whip Cream Custard with a
layer of Raspberry; Vanilla Whip Cream Custard with a layer of Lilikoi
(Passionfruit - a big favorite); Chocolate Mousse; Chocolate Mousse
with a layer of Raspberry, Raspberry Mousse, Whip Cream or Mocha.

Other fillings available that carry an extra charge are: Banana Cream,
Pineapple, Coconut, Macadamia Nuts, Guava, Lemon, Strawberry Mousse, White Chocolate Mousse, Tahitian Vanilla, Fresh Strawberries,
Raspberries or other fresh fruits. Cream Cheese filling is available
for carrot cakes.

Icing: Our Italian Buttercream is light fluffy and not overly sweet.
Fondant is like a "sugar playdough" which is rolled out in sheets and
smoothed over cakes giving them that perfect matte finish. It adds
quite a bit to the cost of the cake as it is tricky and time consuming
to work with. We can make a Chocolate Buttercream, which has a mocha coloring to it. Chocolate Ganache is a liquid pour of rich, dark,
shiny chocolate.


Thanks so much for your help! My fi and I are so excited to be going to Maui soon and get the planning started.

Oh and BTW - I had my hair done by Karen and she did a great job! And I also checked out Le JJ Belle nail salon over by SCU and they did a great job on my eyebrows.

Thanks again!

 

[cara]

I''m not Mara and haven''t been married yet but I just got back from Hawaii for spring break.

I had a few chocolate desserts with lilikoi sauce which I loved - the passionfruit is a bit tart and citrusy but more fruity than lemon. Maybe try that instead of the rasberry? And in general the mac nuts in Hawaii were fabulously fresh and rich if you want a very decadent mildly nutty type filling. Hope this helps.

 

[laine]

I''m also not Mara, and have never even been to Hawaii, but I like the idea of using the Lilikoi, gauva, or macadamia nut type fillings, since those are more tropical and special to Hawaii. I don''t know anything about which would go better with white or chocolate cake, but I''m sure the baker could tell you.

 

[Jas12]

I have to put a vote in for a vanilla (white cake) and a passionfruit icing...or a mac. nut icing. Like the others have mentioned, this has a regional appeal, and I am a firm believer in serving in-season cusine from a a particular area.

 

[asscher_girl]

Cara - thanks for your help, that lilikoi sauce does sound really good. I do love Hawaiian mac nuts too. So many yummy decisions

Laine - I totally agree. I want something that will have a tropical feel/taste to it.

Thanks again!

 

[asscher_girl]

Thanks jas - I can''t wait to taste a bunch of these

 

[Mara]

hey AG!! how fun, a trip to get everything situated, that's what we did too.

we ended up having two layers on our cake...one was something like a truffled double chocolate cake because greg wanted chocolate hehe (and i couldn't fault him, i luv chocolate too), and the other layer was something like a white cake with lilikoi...which is like 'the local' flavor down there...i vaguely recall it might taste kind of like passionfruit? it was definitely yummy and tropical. i would do a guava or a lilikoi depending on which you like better, and then maybe have something like chocolate for people who are just chocolate lovers (like my hubby). i am personally not a fan of macadamia nuts really so i wouldn't have chosen that one but it surely is hawaiian too.

our cake turned out great and it was fun to have two totally different flavors, and one with local flair...!!! awesome about your hair, i love karen. i haven't been to LeJJ belle yet but i drive by it all the time...i didn't know they do waxing, which is good to know since my long-term gal (8 years now!!) is in MV so if i am ever desperate then i might go to LJJB...so how are you liking it here? we really should try to get together or something soon!!

keep me posted, have a blast!

 

[asscher_girl]

Hi Mara! I''m thinking something w/ chocolate would be good since so many people like it. We are thinking of doing mini cakes - one per person, so we could even alternate flavors. I defiinitely want some sort of tropical favor.

I''m so glad we are going over to do the planning. And to have a mini vacation! I''m bringing my laptop too, its got so many pics of ideas, I hope our wedding planner doesn''t think I''m crazy, hehe

We are really loving it here. I started working a little over a month ago for a really great company, I got super lucky. I didn''t really do any looking before we left, but it only took me 1 1/2 months to find a great position.

I really want to go back to Sunnyvale to check it out, we went there for St. Patty''s night and it was pretty cool. The downtown area was cute.

I was in Palo Alto the other day for work, and that area was amazing! I want to go back there! Looks like a lot of cool restaurants too.

I don''t know the girl''s name that did my eyebrows, but she did really good at LeJJB. And it was only $10. The pedi''s can get pretty expensive, but they have a basic spa pedi for $25, which I have found to be reasonable around here. But they do have pedi''s that go up to $75

Thanks again for all of the advise! I really appreciate. And yes we should get together! I''d love to check out some other great restaurants.

 

[asscher_girl]

Hey Mara,

I went to LeJJB on Sunday and had a pedicure. They did a really good job. The $25 pedi included about a 15 min (or maybe more, it felt like a long time) massage. They also give you a choice of coco butter or chocolate massage cream. I had coco butter but I cant wait to try the choc next time. Yum! hehe

 

[Mara]

oh nice on the $25 basic...yeah i looked online at their prices and was like wow they can be expensive. the place i go to in MV that i have gone to for years (same as where i get waxing) is $36 for mani and pedi and included is a hot stone massage and parrafin wax treatment. so it's pretty sweet, you definitely feel pampered. but i'd love to have an 'alternate' for when i need a mani pedi and don't have the extra 20 minutes to drive to and from MV (sometimes it's way longer depending on traffic!)

did i tell you about Tao Tao in downtown Sunnyvale? fab chinese food, they are famous for their chinese chicken salad and their mai tais. definitely check it out. it's on the main street downtown. and yeah PA has a ton of cool restaurants, as does MV as well on their main downtown streets. and Menlo Park is fun too, there is a fab singaporean place we go to sometimes in downtown. also Cafe Barrone on El Camino in Menlo (it's like 5 min up from stanford mall) has great soups, salads, sandwiches, and also coffees, pastries, desserts and live music on the weekends. and outdoor seating for summertime, it's a HUGE hangout and it's fun to people watch. they also serve breakfast on the weekends and lots of people bring their dogs.

congrats on the new job! i also just started a new gig about 3 weeks ago...it's definitely exciting times.

 

[asscher_girl]

Wow, if I''m ever in MV I should go to your place ! $36 is great. Thanks for the food recommendations, we''ll have to try those soon. Cafe Barrone sounds like a lot of fun too. We have got to start exploring a little more. Time flies by so fast.

Congrats to you too on a new job! How are you liking it?

I''m really loving the company I''m with. I''m in the same industry as I was in on the East coast, but I''m in sales, so I''ve got to build all of my relationships and contacts again. Its fun meeting new people though.

Thanks again for the advice. I''ll probably post some pics when we get back from Hawaii, I can''t wait!

 

[asscher_girl]

Hi Mara,

Well we went to Hawaii and had a blast! The wedding coordinator was awesome too. We tried a bunch of cake flavors and loved the lilikoi

. We are probably going to have 3 major tables at the reception and a sweetheart table and each table will have their own cake and their own flavor too. Even the chocolate w/ raspberry was awesome too. Thanks so much for the suggestions. I''m still trying to figure out what the bouquets are going to look like. Even though I''m doing the lime green orchid as the main flower, I''m thinking a more simple white cali lilly bouquet for mine.

Oh and a question off topic.... can you give me the name of the nail salon you go to in MV? And the name of the girl you use? I think that would be a great alternative for the times I don''t want to go to LeJJB.

How''s the new job going? Mine''s going well

 

[Mara]

Hi AG...I just randomly saw this pop up...ooh an update!!! Sounds like the trip was fun, I''m so jealous, we are dying to go to Hawaii...we are maybe planning to go with my family for Christmas this year but we are seeing how the year shapes up...I have a friend who is getting married in Mexico in October so we are trying to go to that as well!

The place in MV that I go to is called La Monique Salon, they usually get ''Best of Mountain View''...I think they have only not gotten it like one year out of the last 5 or something. They do nails and also there is a gal who does waxing (who is the one I use) and her name is Ly Van. You can call the regular salon and ask for Ly Van''s # as she is in a separate area of the salon sometimes. But she and all of the gals there are super nice. I don''t have one particular gal who does my mani/pedi, they all are pretty good but if I go sometimes I will point and ask for one of the gals if I remember her from last time. I like a hard massage on my legs and feet and sometimes the gals are too soft. Also if you want to plan a fun afternoon or evening, you can schedule your appt and then have your honey meet you down there (or you can take the train down or whatever) and then go to dinner at Cascal in MV which is this amazing spanish tapas restaurant that has live music I think on Fri and Saturdays...the food is great and the sangria is SOO tasty!! And there is little shopping/boutiques all along Castro and it has some interesting night life. There was a writeup on it in some magazine recently about how it''s way more trendy and cool to hang out in MV than it used to be thanks to all the new restaurants lately. They also have a MV art and wine at some point (2x a year i think) so it''s fun to go to that and then you can schedule your appt that day too and do like an art/wine walk and then get some mani/pedi pampering or similar! The train goes right into downtown so if you want you can take that in from wherever you are.

I went to Karen yesterday and got my hair done, they are at the new salon (just moved upstairs) and the new space is pretty cool!! Anyway I forgot to ask if she remembered you so maybe next time!!

I am LOVING my new job...glad to hear you are feeling the same way. I am really happy here, the people and the company is so great and honestly everyone has been so welcoming and helpful. I''ve been there almost a month and I am already loaded up with projects which is great, I love being busy. And it feels so good to be back in the eCommerce space I used to be in before I took a sales break a few years ago. So I''m totally in my element.

Glad to hear Hawaii went well, post some pictures if you have them!!

 

[asscher_girl]

hey Mara! I''m glad you saw this. I hope you guys will be able to get to Hawaii, I just love it there. It''s so relaxing (maui is anyway - not sure about Honolulu). Thanks for the nail salon info. Oh and we have got to try that tapas place, we are all about that. There was a great little tapas place back in Atlanta that I''d go to a lot (that is where we moved from).

How does your hair look? I''m already due for another highlight. My hair grows so fast, especially when the weather heats up, it grows like a weed. Not good for the wallet, lol

I''m glad you''re liking the job. Everyone in my company is really great too. There is a ton of training, which I actually like, my last company was lacking on that.

I''m going to try to attach some pics. One is of the actual spot (between the two palms) where the ceremony will take place next year. Another is of the reception site. Its on the terrace of a restaurant right on the beach, its a beautiful spot and only about 200 yards from the ceremony so its convenient too.

Enjoy!

 

[asscher_girl]

Here is the other picture