Home baker gets creative
Home baker Karina Victor of Marshalltown decorates a cake in her dining room. She is a self-taught baker who teaches other people how to navigate their way around cake pans.
There are two words to describe Karina Victor’s sweet creations. They are stunningly delicious.
The 42-year-old Marshalltown resident has been baking confections for the last 27 years. She not only takes orders from people who need Valentine’s Day candy bouquets, but also birthday parties, weddings and more.
Victor is at the point where she is considering opening her own bakery. However it all started as a hobby 27 years ago. With her sister, Maria, 33, serving as translator, Victor said she was invited to a birthday party years ago where she ate a piece of tres leches — three milks — cake. Victor found the ingredients to the cake and tried making it herself.
“I made it for everybody in the house and they all liked it,” she said. “I started baking from there.”
Tres leches cakes are primarily what Victor makes. However, since it is February she is getting many requests for chocolate-covered strawberries, which she can include in a homemade bouquet of flowers for Valentine’s Day. She also makes gelatin desserts and delightfully delicate bunuelos.
Most of the confections Victor makes have strong Hispanic influences that differ from the traditional American fare.
For example, Maria said her cakes primarily feature whipped frosting, whereas Americans prefer buttercream frosting. The Hispanic cakes tend to feature jams — such as peach, pineapple or strawberry — between layers or spices in the cake batter. Most of Victor’s American clients just want vanilla cake.
Victor gets inspiration for her desserts whenever she visits Mexico. It was there she discovered gelatina artistica, or artistic jelly. She was eager to try it when she got back to Marshalltown and is now creating edible flowers encased in Jell-O.
All of this and Victor is completely self-taught.
She watches baking videos online and replicates what she sees. Victor used books to learn about cake decorating and now she is teaching baking and decorating classes of her own.
“I love what I do, being creative and when people see the finished product,” Victor said.
When she is decorating a cake or gelatina artistica, time just flies by the baker. Victor loves the process of creating and can tell when something does not go right.
She has had plenty of kitchen disasters since her baking experience began.
“The most common is when I get in a hurry and I forget to add an ingredient,” Victor said. “I will open the oven door and see nothing happening. Then I have to start all over and do it again.”
People interested in ordering one of Victor’s desserts or get a lesson in baking, can find her on Facebook.
Tres Leches Cake
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter or margarine
1 cup white sugar
Karina Victor of Marshalltown loves to put flowers on the cakes she makes. However, she can provide customers with other art on their cakes.
5 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole milk
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 12-ounce can evaporated milk
Karina is learning how to make intricate gelatin desserts called gelatina artistica.
Whipped frosting:
1.5 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour one 9×13-inch baking pan. Sift flour and baking powder together and set aside. Cream butter or margarine and the 1 cup of sugar together until fluffy. Add eggs and the 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Beat well. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture 2 tablespoons at a time. Mix until well blended. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Pierce cake several times with a fork. Combine the whole milk, condensed milk and evaporated milk together. Pour over the top of the cooled cake. Whip heavy cream, the remaining 1 cup of the sugar and the remaining 1 teaspoon of vanilla together until thick. Spread over the top of the cake. Be sure and keep the cake refrigerated.
During February, orders for chocolate covered strawberries increase for the baker.
Chocoflan
Softened butter, to coat the pan
1/2 cup cajeta, or caramel sauce
For the cake:
10 tablespoons butter, room temperature
Bunuelos, pieces of fried dough, are coated with sugar, remarkably crispy and come with designs.
1 cup sugar
1 egg, room temperature
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
For the flan:
1 12-ounce can evaporated milk
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
3 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
For the garnish:
1/4 cup cajeta, or caramel sauce
1/4 cup chopped pecans
Use a 12-cup capacity bundt pan. Put an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Coat the bundt pan with a little butter, then coat the bottom with 1/4 cup cajeta and put it in a large roasting pan. The roasting pan will serve as a water bath during baking. For the cake: Add the butter and sugar to a bowl and use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer to beat until light and fluffy. Then beat in the egg. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa in a medium bowl. Beat 1/3 of the flour mixture and 1/2 of the buttermilk into the egg mixture. Repeat, ending with the flour mixture. Blend until well incorporated. For the flan: In a blender, combine the evaporated milk, condensed milk, cream cheese, eggs and vanilla. Blend on high for 30 seconds. Scoop the cake batter into the prepared bundt pan and spread evenly. Slowly pour the flan mixture over the cake batter. Cover with foil and add about 1 inch of hot water to the roasting pan. Carefully side the pan into the oven and bake 1 hour or until the surface of the cake is firm to the touch or an inserted toothpick comes out clean. When the cake is done, remove from the water bath and cool completely to room temperature, about 1 hour. Invert a large, rimmed serving platter over the bundt pan, grasp tightly together, jiggle a little and flip over. Remove the pan and scrape any remaining cajeta from the pan onto the cake. Garnish with chopped pecans and serve. Cook’s Note: The batters may appear to mix when you pour them into the pan but they completely separate while baking with the flan ending up on the bottom when it’s inverted. I like eating it warm, but traditionally, it is chilled 24 hours before serving. Flan is a rich, creamy, cooked egg custard. It is often flavored with vanilla and baked in a water bath to retain its delicacy. Cajeta is a thick and creamy spread or paste made with caramelized sugar and milk. It is used as a dessert on its own or as a topping. Also known as dolce de leech, it is sold in many supermarkets, Latin specialty markets or online. It can be substituted with a thick caramel sauce.
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- Home baker Karina Victor of Marshalltown decorates a cake in her dining room. She is a self-taught baker who teaches other people how to navigate their way around cake pans.
-
- Karina Victor of Marshalltown loves to put flowers on the cakes she makes. However, she can provide customers with other art on their cakes.
-
- Karina is learning how to make intricate gelatin desserts called gelatina artistica.
-
- During February, orders for chocolate covered strawberries increase for the baker.
-
- Bunuelos, pieces of fried dough, are coated with sugar, remarkably crispy and come with designs.
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