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Published Wednesday February 4, 2009
My Wacky Job: Many layers to building a career in cake
BY BRYAN REDEMSKE
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

After the "I do's" and the dress, the cake is among the most important details of a wedding.

Brides often have a very specific look in mind. It's up to Sarah Bryan to make it happen. By day, Bryan coordinates the Sharing Clinics at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. In her spare time, she creates custom cakes.

It all started about two years ago when a co-worker told Bryan about a cake-decorating class.

"I was pregnant and bored," Bryan said. "I thought, 'Why not?' I absolutely loved it."

The class set Bryan on a path she hopes will someday lead to full-time cake making. She operates Creative Cakery out of her home near Fort Calhoun, Neb.

Bryan will usually bake a cake the night before it's needed, then frost it the next morning. While that sounds pretty straightforward, each cake presents its own challenges. The first is color.

"I always ask brides to go to a paint store. They usually have a certain color they're seeing. They can look through all of those colors and find the exact one."

And then there's the transportation. Cake and frosting aren't the most durable mediums in the world.

"That's the most nerve-racking part of the whole process," she said. "You get it just right, then you have to take it somewhere."

In case of emergency, Bryan always has a fix-it kit. It contains a full recipe of frosting, plus the necessary tools to make repairs. So far, she's had to repair only one "disaster."

"I had this layered cake with chocolate ganache filling. By the time I got to the hall, the top layer had dislodged from the bottom. It was 5 inches too short. I had four hours to get it done, so I repositioned the cake, peeled off the parts that were screwed up and then redecorated."

Here, Bryan draws out the branches of what will become a cherry tree complete with blossoms.

Sarah Bryan runs Creative Cakery out of her home near Fort Calhoun, Neb. Bryan makes custom cakes in her spare time, but she hopes to turn it into a full-time business.