Wednesday, July 21, 2010

From Proposal to “I Do”

Here at Toni Sweets we love celebrations! So much so, in fact, it is part of our tagline: “The Sweet Art of Celebration”. We are always thrilled that people come to us to create special cakes and pastries for important occasions in their lives:

A few months back a gentleman requested a special cake for that same day. He planned to ask his girlfriend to marry him that night, and he wanted to present the engagement ring with one of our cakes. We were delighted to be involved and we jumped through hoops to get the cake ready for him. We were so excited to hear the outcome!



















She said yes! A few weeks later I was sitting with the newly engaged couple discussing the design for their wedding cake. The wedding had an Arabian Nights theme, and they wanted their cake to look like stacked pillows.



















Not long after meeting with the bride and groom, the bride’s sister asked us to design a cake to celebrate their engagement. This cake was designed to look like an engagement ring inside a jewelry box.



















The final product was something that won’t soon be forgotten!



















From the proposal cake to the wedding cake, we were honored to be a part of this couple’s journey. We wish them nothing but happiness!

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Congratulations Graduates!

There are many ways to celebrate graduates. At Toni Sweets, we love finding unique ways to make each graduate feel special. From cookies in the shapes of caps and scrolls in High School or University colors, to shaped cakes in the graduates' area of interest. This year we will be making a cake in the shape of a Stethoscope and Prescription Pad for a medical school graduate! 
One of my favorite ideas for graduates is creating a “Game of Life” cake that celebrates the exciting journey they are about to embark on customized to their individual goals. The pictured cake below was a surprise Groom's Cake depicting his life with his bride at the finish line. 
We are proud of our seniors that work here at Toni Sweets, and congratulate the Class of 2010!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Anemone Bridal Shower Cake

We were excited to make a bridal shower cake for one of our regular customer’s daughter using sugar paste anemone flowers. The floral inspiration for the cake was drawn from her wedding bouquet. Coincidentally anemone are one of my personal favorite flowers as well.
Using an invitation in the decorating process is a great way to tie the cake to the theme of an event. This shower was a beautiful black and white themed party and the cake made for a dramatic accompaniment

Friday, April 30, 2010

Mother's Day

I don't think there could be a more perfect time of year to celebrate mothers.  The trees are budding and the flowers are in bloom all over town!  I know that my mother loves this time of year, and loves to spend as much time as possible outside working in her flower garden.  She has passed that passion on to me, so when I was designing a cake to celebrate Mother's Day for the shop, I knew it had to be covered in beautiful buttercream flowers.  I love how cakes with this pastel design have such a soft, Victorian feel.

As another homage to my mother, I've put together a cookie basket with garden-themed cookies in a little pail.  It's perfect for summertime, and re-usable as well!

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Gift Baskets

We have been making TONI gifts and baskets for a while now and we are pleasantly surprised at how popular they are becoming. Back in November, a corporate customer had us do thank you baskets for their clients. We loved the combination of our signature blend coffee with their branded mugs.

I have been looking for ways to expand our offerings and give our customers options for any occasion. I think the Easter Baskets we created for this weekend are adorable and I am excited about our ideas for Mother’s Day Gifts.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Spring Desserts

I find it interesting that we crave different foods during different seasons. My favoite spring desserts usually incorporate tropical fruits. I wonder if my body is craving the sunshine it takes to create these exotic fruits!

Our spring menu definitely reflects this theory. We have everything from Key Lime or Coconut Cream Tarts, to Pina Colada Cheese Cakes and Mango Raspberry Tortes.

Just looking at our Spring Bouquet Cake makes me smile! The fresh lemon mousse, light vanilla genoise, and lemon buttercream frosting add to its sunny appeal. This cake is a perfect centerpiece for an Easter or Spring celebration, especially when combined with Jane's Blue Iris' florals and sitting atop our two tiered stand!






Thursday, March 25, 2010

Spring Fever at Toni

There is nothing better than getting outdoors in the spring. I’m working hard to get all of the flower boxes on my deck planted so that I can start to host dinners out there.

Being a morning person, I’m also planning a brunch for friends on my deck in the near future. I was inspired to plan a brunch when my kitchen manager, Kim was pitching her idea for a goat cheese, caramelized onion and roasted red pepper savory tart to sell in the store. Accompanied with sweet breakfast pastries and fresh fruit, I think it will be a hit.

Now we just need the weather to hurry up and cooperate!






Friday, March 12, 2010

St. Patrick's Day

Pour some Bailey's in your coffee, it's time to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day! We have been busy baking all of our Irish favorites. New this year is Kennedy Rye. I got the recipe from Albert Cumin, pastry chef in the Kennedy White House. This rye bread was a favorite of the President, so we have named it after him. We also created a Ruben Sandwich which I think will be a great addition to our lunch menu and goes perfectly on the Kennedy Rye bread.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Wedding Walk Inspirations Part 2

This week we started getting ready for the 6th Annual Hinsdale Wedding Walk which is coming up Sunday, March 7th.

We always try to create a party-like atmosphere for the event, and fill the store with great wedding cakes and favor ideas.

I thought that last year our store looked especially festive with the raspberry and orange color scheme we used.











This year, we are going for a more elegant and glamorous look. I got my inspiration by looking through fashion magazines and different websites. I imagine brides do the same thing when they start the planning process of their weddings!
Our new color scheme is silver, pink, and black, which are pulled from our new logo and store colors. We are still very excited about our new look and can't wait to share it with you!

More on the wedding walk in blogs to follow!

Friday, February 12, 2010

Crate and Barrel's Bridal Party

On Sunday I attended the Oak Brook Crate and Barrel’s first ‘Bridal Party’ of the year. It was fun to meet the brides, and I always enjoy their reactions to the cakes I have on display. We will have a table set up with breakfast pastries and cake samples for all of the brides every Sunday in February from 9am-11am. It’s a fun event and I’m always glad to be a part of it.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Paczki Day

I can hardly believe next Tuesday, February 16th, is Paczki Day! This year it is only two days after Valentine's Day. We are grateful here at TONI to have so many reasons in February to celebrate with sweets.

Paczkis (pronounced pawnch-key) have become a Fat Tuesday tradition in the Chicago area because of the large numbers of Polish immigrants that live here. In Poland, Paczki Day is actually the Thursday before Lent. Paczkis are similar to Bismarks, however, the dough is a little richer, because of additional eggs. Our fillings are especially rich and very unique. We have Paczki filled with White Chocolate Mousse and Fresh Strawberries, Cream Cheese and Blueberry filling, as well as more traditional flavors.

If you stop by, you won't miss our LARGE SIGN that I carefully put up during the blizzard, just for you!
TONI Paczki options

Monday, February 8, 2010

Valentine's Desserts

Valentine desserts make me happy! By this February holiday, we are all looking for a little love, fresh red berries and decadent chocolate. At TONI it gives us a chance to do some beautiful individual desserts. One of my favorites and of many of our customers is the Rosewater Petit Four. The flavor and the candied rose petal capture the Valentine sentiment.

Last year we started making an individual heart shaped French Silk pastry, perfect for an intimate valentine dessert. It has so many great components and textures. I couldn't wait to bring it back this year. (It is made with White Chocolate mousse, raspberry swirl, a nutella crunchy layer, chambord soaked genoise and a praline wafer) We do a larger version to share with the whole family. Valentines Day what a great winter treat!




Friday, February 5, 2010

Wedding Walk Inspirations

Every year we decorate the shop in anticipation of the Hinsdale Wedding Walk. We sample and display cakes, favors, and sweet table options. Here are some photos of the treats we made for the Wedding Walk in 2008. The color inspiration was red, pink and aqua blue. I loved how the aqua blue popped against the pinks and reds. It was one of my favorite windows and we have had many brides inspired by the "Word" cake.




Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Super Bowl XLIV

We try to do something special in anticipation of Super Bowl parties. Of course it is always the most fun when the Bears are involved… Alas… not since 2007. On the bright side, the surprise performance of the New Orleans Saints has given us the idea to incorporate Mardi Gras and the Super Bowl this year. King Cakes make a fun hostess gift as well! Here are some things we’ve put together for Super Bowl XLIV.


Wednesday, January 6, 2010

King Cakes and Mardi Gras


The holiday fog is starting to lift here at the bakery, and today we will be taking down the last remaining decorations. The timing is just about right, because we baked our first batch of King Cakes today!

Each year at Toni we love to keep the holiday season going by celebrating Mardi Gras.

We do this with traditional New Orleans-style King Cakes. Our King Cake is a light, buttery coffee cake that is accented with cinnamon-sugar, and decorated with purple, gold, and green sugar. We make it even more festive by including the .History of the King Cake beads and a plastic baby trinket, inside the cake itself.

Legend has it, whoever finds the baby trinket in their piece is crowned King for the day, AND gets to throw the next Mardi Gras party and provide the King Cake!

Join in on the New Orleans tradition and brighten up the dreary winter months by bringing one to parties in the office, school, or with family and friends thru February 16th.