Making the Edible Incredible.

What are some highlights from your journey as a Home Baker? 

Sneha Zaveri:- My baking journey has been eventful, I started baking only for family and friends and the creations were a huge stressbuster with a back breaking corporate job. I used to work long hours and remember coming back home and staying up all night just to bake. Before I could realize I had orders lined up and I decided to quit my corporate job, that is how Sugar Zest was born. 

I am a self-taught baker, apart from a couple of workshops, I have learnt everything from the internet. The journey has been difficult yet fulfilling, I still remember visiting a baking supply store and standing there for longer than required just to understand what the others are buying. I have come a long way from where I had started, recently I also received a title of being among “India’s TOP 25 Home Bakers” by homebakers.co.in and it feels joyful and gratifying to get recognized for your work. However, there is still so much more to learn and achieve. 

I have recently started taking workshops as well, there are dozens of tutorials online but understanding the science and the reason for each technique is what I aim to impart. 

What is your greatest strength as a Baker? 

Sneha Zaveri:- Any home baker needs a few basic set of skills to survive like being creative, ability to multitask, work with precision, etc. but what helped me most was my yearn for knowledge. I remember before I even started baking or cake decorating, I used to stumble upon cake pictures and would then look for references online to achieve the result. Also, I do not give up on things too easily, so even if I don’t succeed in my first attempt, I make sure I use the experience and come back stronger. 

Please share your favourite cake memory. 

Sneha Zaveri:- I would like to believe that all my cakes have created beautiful memories, I love to see the gleaming happiness on that special someone’s face, that is the greatest achievement and is so fulfilling. Till date I eagerly wait for feedback for all my cakes, I have butterflies in my stomach till I hear back from them. 

If I must yet name one of them, it would be my first fondant cake ever, after all its difficult to forget your first love, Right?? The cake was for a colleague’s first anniversary, I had draped fondant on fresh cream and tried to replicate their figurines. I was not aware of gumpaste or fondant structures, or ganache then, but still could pull off a decent looking cake. And the happiness I could see on my colleague’s face was priceless. 

For you, what techniques are most important in preparing a customized cake? 

Sneha Zaveri:- Before deciding on techniques, it is of utmost importance to understand client expectations, because even if one makes an excellent cake but misses on one of the client’s brief the cake will not be as meaningful. 

For any customized cake it is very important to keep the cake clean and crisp, this is what I have learnt with experience after a lot of hard work and practice. Apart from having a clean hand it is very important to hold back, understanding that “less is more” and not making the cake cluttered. Another very important technique that I have acquired is figure modelling, adding a 2d or a 3d Edible model is a game changer, it can be a simple cute looking figurine to an edible caricature. 

Lastly, we at Sugar Zest give a lot of importance to taste, fondant cakes can also be very tasty, you do not have to remove the fondant layer and eat the cake. We guarantee that even the figurines on the cake will be wiped off in no time. 

What are the golden rules of working with chocolate? 

Sneha Zaveri:- Working with chocolate can be tricky for beginners, you need to understand the type of chocolate you are working with before determining the method of tempering etc. Most bakers confuse compounds as chocolate, compounds are definitely easier to work with, but they are not real deal. Each type of chocolate requires a different temperature to melt or temper, are used in different ratios for different uses and needs a specific treatment. 

Sneha Zaveri:- Whenever you are working with chocolate, work in a clean space, preferable a steel or marble surface. Follow the method of tempering with precision and BE PATIENT. It only takes a while to befriend Chocolate after which you can hardly go wrong. 

Why is your signature dessert? 

Sneha Zaveri:- We offer an array of eggless desserts and have a range of flavours to choose from. Our bestseller is Ferrero Belgian Delight. We also experiment with a fusion of Indian flavours in Modern desserts, our recent addition of Rose Pistachio cake has been a hit. 

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