Celebrate someone’s special day with the help of ASCA Australian Latte Art Champion Amy Zhang. She brings her interpretation of a birthday cake to life with symmetrical rosettas, lines and drags to impress anyone marking another trip around the sun.
During moments of joy, the art of coffee intertwines with the sweet allure of birthday cakes, creating a sensory masterpiece that stimulates both the taste buds and visual senses.
The choice to feature a birthday cake at the centrepiece of my latte art exhibition is a reflection of the timeless connection between celebratory occasions and indulgent pleasures. Just as a canvas awaits an artist’s touch, the birthday cake becomes the medium through which I express my creative talent.
I firmly believe that each latte art creation embodies the perfect fusion of expertise and imagination. And this thematic focus on birthday cakes is not only a genuine tribute to the joy that birthdays bring, but a reminder that life, much like a meticulously crafted cake, is meant to be savoured and cherished.
Now, let me show you how to create a birthday cake for your next celebration. This design is easier than you think. It involves techniques such as rosettas, dragging foam, inversion, and dripping skills. Put it altogether, and the result is something you’ll want to stand around and start singing happy birthday to, rather than the cake itself.
This article appears in the October 2023 edition of BeanScene. Subscribe HERE.
Amy Zhang’s Birthday Cake
Step 1
First, keep the cup handle at 3 o’clock, and pour a 12-leaf rosetta at the bottom of a clean canvas. Pull up, but don’t pull through the rosetta.
Step 2
Pour another 12-leaf rosetta in the middle of the cup parallel to the first.
Step 3
Keep the cup handle in the same position and pour a short three-leaf rosetta on the right side of the second rosetta, making sure to connect the two together.
Step 4
Pour another three-leaf rosetta on the left side of the second rosetta and connect them together. Those two short rosettas create the outside of the cake.
Step 5
Turn your cup handle to 6 o’clock and pour three short rosettas to create the candles.
Step 6
Drop three flame-like pours on top of the three candles for a realistic effect.
Step 7
Turn the cup handle back to 3 o’clock and draw a wave line between the first and second rosettas.
Step 8
Drop seven dots of milk foam up and down on both side of the wave. There you have it, a birthday cake.
