"ace of cakes" news and stories

Duff Goldman does not want you to associate him with irritable bowel syndrome. Even for a six-figure payday.
The star of Ace of Cakes was in New York the other day to promote his new line of cake decorating supplies. He said that in his five years of being on the network, this was one of the first times he had accepted an endorsement deal.

Two he had turned down: a line of Duff Dog Food and the opportunity to be the spokesman for a medicine to treat irritable bowel syndrome.

"The second I got my own show, people were saying 'hey will you be the spokesman for this? Hey can we put your name on that, hey will you endorse this?'" Duff told Slashfood. "I was like 'no, no, and no. I'm a cook. I make cakes. I decorate cakes.'"
The irritable bowel syndrome gig would have paid "a lot of money," he said. "Six figures. It was a four month run of stuff right he middle of football season so every time you'd turn on football, you'd see me."

Not for him, Duff said, although he did acknowledge that the way food TV stars make their real money is from endorsement deals. Nevertheless, the teenage rebel in him has driven his talent agent nuts saying no to deal after deal.

We knew going into this week's Iron Chef that we'd have fun. The only question was how much fun. Ace of Cakes professional goofball Duff Goldman as a competitor? Chocolate and chiles as the secret ingredients? Who needs the Super Bowl?!

Sure, it may have been a little brazen of the Food Network to slot one of their own superstars opposite the easygoing (and similarly cue-ball domed, chin-scruffed) reigning chef, Michael Symon. But, hey -- if you want to lure viewers away from one of the most-watched events of the year, you've got to bring out the big guns, right?

They didn't stop there: Not only did Duff get his own cheering section -- his Charm City colleagues and a bunch of screaming ladies -- he also got a super-celeb judging panel. The whole evening, in fact, seemed to be designed for the 25-to-40-year-old female demographic who, if we may be so bold, probably wasn't bothering with the macho-testosterone play-by-play over on CBS. Call it the "Women Who Appreciate Fine Dining and the Bald Lunkheads Who Love Them" hour.

• The Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah is coming up and one of the food traditions that goes with it is the consumption of honey, to represent the sweetness of life.
• This week, the Recipe Finder features a Graham Cracker Brownie recipe. Yum!
• Rob Kasper searches for the perfect Maryland Fried Chicken with Cream Gravy and comes up with a winner.
• Cherry tomatoes are an easy crop to grow on a patio and make a terrific pickled addition to a martini (in place of the olive).
• Geof Manthorne, the enigmatic right-hand man on Ace of Cakes, has become something of a heartthrob since the show's inception.

Cakes aren't just for birthdays. That's something I sometimes forget. I'm not a big baker anyway, but I do likes me some good cake (chocolate, with vanilla frosting...mmmmm) so I really should make them more often. I thought someone in my family would have made one for Thanksgiving, but although we had a lot of desserts (pie, cookies, rugelach, brownies, etc), no one made anything cake-ish.

Today is National Cake Day. You can learn the basics of making a cake and frosting a cake. After you learn all that, why not try making this Double Chocolate Layer Cake, this Christmas-y Snowflake Cake, or this Lemon Poke Cake.

You can also watch these cake makers and see what you can learn.

Though I don't watch a lot of television, I'm a big fan of the show Ace of Cakes. If you've never seen it, it's like reality TV mixed with extreme baking. Owner and pastry chef Duff Goldman runs Charm City Cakes in Baltimore along with his team of friends/co-workers, and as I found out over at WellFed.net, you now have a chance to win a one-week internship on location courtesy of Jane Magazine and the Food Network. The winner will also write a recap of their adventures with Duff and his crew, to be published in a future edition of Jane.

If you are interested in entering, you can do so on their website until February 26th. Previous baking skills are not required, the winner will be chosen by random draw on March 1st. The winner will receive round-trip airfare, spending money, accommodation and car rental, valued at approximately $4650. Some restrictions do apply though, so I'd recommend checking out their official sweepstakes rules if you are interested in participating.

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