“And you won’t be nervous at all once you start to bake.” Michelle glanced at her watch. “Let’s arrange our bowls and pans, Hannah. It’s almost time to introduce the judges and the contestants.”
Michelle was right. Once the introductions were made and Alain Duquesne had started the clock, Hannah’s nervousness disappeared in a blanketing cloud of activity. They’d rehearsed their cakes in Sally’s kitchen early this morning, and everything had proceeded smoothly. Hannah wasn’t sure if that was because she’d baked so often with Michelle, or because they’d rehearsed this cake more than five times. It really didn’t matter in the giant scheme of things. They finished mixing the cake batter, coloring and flavoring it with the Jell-O powders, and were currently waiting for their oven timer to sound so that they could cool the cakes enough to frost them.
“The frosting’s ready,” Michelle said, carrying the bowl over to the center of their workstation. “Five more minutes before the cakes come out. Too bad we don’t have a kitchen coffeepot. I could use a cup.”
“We do,” Hannah said, motioning toward the coffeepot that was set up behind them. “I brought our kitchen percolator, and I just made a pot of church basement coffee.”
“You brought that big pot just for us?” Michelle asked.
“No. I’m serving church basement coffee with my wedding cake. I think it’ll be perfect to cut the sweetness.”
“You’re right. I wonder if they’ve ever heard of church basement coffee.”
“I doubt it. It’s hard to find percolators these days. Dad had a case of thirty-cup pots and another case of twelve-cup pots. I snagged them both before I sold the hardware store for Mother.”
“Smart thinking! I’ll get the coffee. Do you want a cup?”
“Yes, please. I need to keep my energy up for the judging.”
“Do you think I should offer a cup to Brooke?”
“I really don’t think we should disturb her right now. She looks a little frazzled. She told me last night that she was making three kinds of petit fours and she was afraid the time would expire before she’d frosted them all.”
When Michelle brought the coffee for them, both sisters climbed up on the tall, counter-height stools that were provided for each contestant and assistant. They had just finished their coffee when the stove timer rang. The cakes were ready to come out of the oven, and they had to cool the layers and frost them before the end of the competition.
It took only five minutes to cool the cake layers in the micro-chiller. Then Hannah removed them from the pans and passed them to Michelle to frost.
It was obvious to Hannah that Michelle had been practicing her cake decorating skills with Lisa. Her sister worked quickly and confidently, spreading frosting between the layers and stacking them expertly. Once the layers were stacked, she frosted the outside of the cake and then the top.
“Time?” she asked Hannah.
“Twelve,” Hannah said, glancing at the huge clock on the wall near the table where the judges were sitting.
“Plenty of time.” Michelle picked up the pastry bag and proceeded to decorate the cake with a white-on-white scroll-work design that looked like fine lace, a copy of the pattern that was on Hannah’s veil. She finished it with red roses around the layers and added a heart on the top.
“Done,” she said, stepping back to turn her cake slowly around on the carousel plate to make sure the design was perfect. “Do you want me to carry it to the judging table?”
“Yes. I’ll bring the tray with the coffee. It’s beautiful, Michelle. Thank you for learning how to frost it.”
“I had a great teacher. Lisa’s really amazing with the pastry bag. Are you nervous about cutting it?”
“Only because I hate to spoil perfection. I’m really looking forward to cutting this cake. It’s so pretty inside.”
Hannah glanced at the clock again. They still had three minutes. “Are we good to go?” she asked.
“We’re ready. I’ll push the cart with the cake, the cake knife, the server, the forks, and the plates. All you have to do is put on your veil and bring the cart with the coffee.”
Hannah felt silly as she clamped the veil on the top of her head. She felt as if she were making a spectacle of herself. But Aunt Nancy had been absolutely right, so far, and there was no reason to change the game plan at this late date.
When Hannah heard her name, she motioned to Michelle to deliver the cake. Then she pushed the cart with the coffee in her sister’s wake. The cake was the star, after all. It should be the first thing the judges noticed.
“What have we here?” Chef Duquesne asked her, looking highly amused.
“It’s a much smaller version of my wedding cake,” Hannah explained. “I wanted something different, and I decided to serve a Double Rainbow Swirl Cake.”
La Vonna Brach looked intrigued. “What’s that?”
“It’s a cake with all the colors of the rainbow inside. As you can see, it looks like a regular wedding cake from the outside.”