on zombies and cake styling

i hate zombies. i hate anything that looks/sounds/conveys scary. i will walk out of a movie theater because a ghost sneaks up on the main character (true story). i will totally jump and hold onto whoever's next to me (even strangers, another true story) when something like unexpected trailers not fast forwarded during commercials show up on screen(hello, did you see the trailer for Mama? took me days before i recovered from that) .. and with that being said, when i am confronted with the idea to make a cake and tie it into a zombie theme, i draw a complete BLANK..  
i am a total rustic, yet chic, simple homemade cakes/cookies/sweets kind of baker. if there is decoration, it is the bare minimum and usually hand crafted. I'm not fond of fondant and type A decorative perfection type of cakes. i appreciate them though because i know it takes a certain artistic talent to get them looking like they do. perfect cakes makes me not want to eat them, just sit, stare and admire. But when faced with these decisions to make something work creatively, i am not opposed to learning. i am forced to research zombies, stare these ugly scary looking creatures in the eyes and figure out how to make. it. work.    
the first time i committed to a zombie project was for my big bro B's birthday cake a few years back. he is the ultimate gamer geek and he was having a zombie birthday party. I had a brilliant idea for a dirt topped cake with a fondant zombie hand coming out of it. it was inspired by this: 

that seems to be the first thing i think of when i think zombies, their rise from the dead. am i on the right track? do they always rise from the ground, hands first? anyway, i made marshmallow fondant. it was a project and a half and i gained some awesome arm muscles i never knew i had! what i learned from this fondant experience is that it is pliable but HEAVY. i was unable to make the hand stand up like i imagined. the Chocolate Peanut Butter cake was a hit, but B and his friends really loved that edible hand as i caught a few of them nibbling the digits, straight up like candy. it was an earnest attempt to use my imagination and stimulate creativity. 

zombie hand modeling.

finished cake.

my what brittle(slivered almond) nails you have.

last week, another zombie themed party fell upon me. a Cookies and Cream cake was the request, as the MBA graduate is a chocoholic. i enjoy cakes that are visually stunning in its simplicity. this cake was a sturdy cocoa sheet cake, a white chocolate mousse with crushed oreos filled its cavity and whipped chocolate ganache enrobed the exterior. in order to create the same dirt like texture, i decided to make a simple glaze, letting it drizzle over the sides (reminiscent of blood oozing) and finishing it off with crushed oreo crumbs. it was decorated with yet another set of (toothpick) zombie hands and a banner reading "congratulations!" 

drippity drip.

tada!

cake.filling.cake.filling.cake.

and since the graduate's wife wanted in on some creative fun, i provided her with a 6" chocolate peanut butter cake as a blank slate. she fondant-ed a cake to help emphasize the theme of the party. as that's not my thing, i'm glad she did it because it was so fun! 

in continuing to develop my own style in this cake driven world, i've realized that i've learn alot about restraint. to not overdo it is my forte. imperfection is perfect in my world. to strike a balance between a visually stimulating piece of art and a homemade handcrafted cake is truly representative of me as a baker and keeps me standing my ground in my #annbakes vision. while i played with fondant on the first zombie cake, i kept it very organic and raw. 

so zombies taught me an important lesson in defining my own style, hone my craft,so to say.. thank you, i now know more about your kind than i've ever wanted to know. i will continue to avoid sightings of all things scary.. and please don't come after me in the zombie apocalypse. i appreciate it. thank you.