Home > Creepy Q&A > Halloween Grill #4

What do you get when you mix terrific skill in the kitchen with a slightly twisted sensibility? We interviewed Michael and Gemma of Curious Confections bakery in Austin about how they get their cakes looking so delicious and so…horrible.

Happy Magazine: What in the world is going on in that bleeding pumpkin cake?

Curious Confections: The bleeding pumpkin cake was the second in a number of cakes to use my patented (if only!) “brain pan.” A brain made from a chocolate shell is cast from a custom mold of my own design, which is filled with a candy-syrup blood (I studied cinematic special effect makeup for a while – the nice gory kind – so I have a background in mold-making).

The blood in question was dark green because…well, you wouldn’t expect a vegetable to bleed red, now would you? *grins* The initial “cut” to that sort of cake is typically made with a nice heavy knife, like a cleaver…but a hammer or hatchet can be employed for even more dramatic effect. (I don’t think anyone has attacked one of our cakes with a chainsaw yet!) The syrup oozes and flows out of the seemingly innocent confection.

HM: How long do these cakes take to assemble?

CC: That’s a tricky question. Depending on the complexity of the cake, it can take anywhere from ten to forty hours (or more!), including baking and making any sort of custom armatures or supports. The zombie’s hands [at the bottom of the page] have a “skeleton” of copper tubing within that is painstakingly wrapped with krispie treats, then wrapped in fondant before final decoration. Specialty cakes are a one-of-a-kind art piece that you can eat, and each is given the time and attention to detail it deserves.

HM: How do you get such a smooth surface, like that on the pumpkin or the Dia de los Muertos cake. Is that marzipan or fondant?

CC: The covering is fondant, and that is the key to a nice, smooth surface that aids in helping to keep the cakes together. Since fondant is rolled out or sculpted, almost like a springy modeling clay, you can get nice smooth finishes that can easily be painted or decorated.

HM: You’re in Austin, Texas. Say one of our readers in Alaska wants some bleedin’ pumpkin. Would a Curious Confections cake survive a UPS experience?

CC: Ah, well, that’s the sad part. No, it likely wouldn’t, especially when you consider the beating packages take by commercial delivery services – you’re entirely likely to end up with a box of delicious cake chunks. We are unable to ship our cakes, as we cannot guarantee their safe delivery, and we want to ensure that everyone who orders from us is completely satisfied.

HM: For more delicious photos, take a look at these!