Speaker 1: This is Keto right. Well, I'm not going to waste
Speaker 1: any more time because guys cake, Why would I waste
Speaker 1: any more time when they are the most magnificent baked
Speaker 1: creations in front of me. It's it's an absolute privilege
Speaker 1: and a delight to say good morning and welcome to
Speaker 1: weekend Breakfast to el Marie Rosachaki from Montful Soot, Good morning.
Speaker 2: Good morning, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1: Now I told you off air, and I'm going to
Speaker 1: tell you again on air. I feel extremely bad having
Speaker 1: learned that you were up until two am baking or
Speaker 1: up from two am. Rather, you woke up at two
Speaker 1: am this morning to bake and get ready for us
Speaker 1: for the show for these incredible, beautifully looking creations.
Speaker 2: Not at all. That's the life of a baker, I suppose.
Speaker 1: So Actually, when you, when you are a baker, you
Speaker 1: anticipate early mornings. I suppose tell us about, Hey, how
Speaker 1: you came to start Montfulsoot and what your business does.
Speaker 3: So Mourntful Suit is a cake studio. I work on
Speaker 3: pre orders for whole cakes. I'm saved with cakes that
Speaker 3: are all about flavor and ingredients, so we focus on
Speaker 3: creating something with locally sourced ingredients and take a lot
Speaker 3: of inspiration from that. And every month we have a
Speaker 3: seasonal cake that we celebrate either an ingredient or a
Speaker 3: small producer, or sometimes we take inspiration from an occasion.
Speaker 3: So Easter, for example, we did simial cakes, and then
Speaker 3: we also did a very nice collaboration with a ceramic
Speaker 3: studio called Ceramic Matters.
Speaker 2: June, we have a beer.
Speaker 3: Cake, for example, that we're doing taking inspiration from Agger
Speaker 3: micro Brewery at Innurtuk and for Father's Day and the
Speaker 3: cold wet winter took and took their wee heavy beer
Speaker 3: and created our owntake of like a Guinea style chocolate cake.
Speaker 1: Ooh wow? Is that no? That beer cake that you mention?
Speaker 1: Is that any of these ones that we have in
Speaker 1: studio this morning?
Speaker 2: Unfortunately, not.
Speaker 1: Tell us about these cakes that you've presented us with
Speaker 1: this morning emory.
Speaker 3: Of there, we have a slice of the Bear cake,
Speaker 3: which is inspired by the TV series The Bear, which
Speaker 3: you can find weekly on the counter at Cake Canteen.
Speaker 1: Okay, they have a.
Speaker 3: Branch in Gardens Valvo, Stalamosh and they're opening up in.
Speaker 2: Johannesburg as well.
Speaker 1: Oh wow, Okay, yeah.
Speaker 3: And then we also have mini cakes like the carrot
Speaker 3: with a spelt crumbled top and a cream cheese icing
Speaker 3: and locally sourced pecans, which you will find on the
Speaker 3: counter at Max Burgel's in Park Road and the Daili
Speaker 3: Social in Hotware.
Speaker 1: Now these just to explain to listeners that can't see yet,
Speaker 1: we will post the pictures. These mini cakes are probably
Speaker 1: a bit too big for one person. I would say
Speaker 1: maybe sha share between two, but the size of about
Speaker 1: it looks like maybe two cupcakes.
Speaker 3: Yes, it's a I would say, like a good It's
Speaker 3: the equivalent of a slice of cake, okay, a generous
Speaker 3: slice of cake.
Speaker 1: But just in a beautifully presented round shape like a
Speaker 1: mini cake. Yeah.
Speaker 3: It kind of alleviates people having to slice and manage
Speaker 3: slicing a cake on the counter.
Speaker 1: Lovely okay. And that cake over there.
Speaker 3: Also the carrot cake. The one over there that you've
Speaker 3: got is the dark cocoa sponge with a mocker butter
Speaker 3: cream and then it has an espresso bean covered chocolate
Speaker 3: espresso bean on top.
Speaker 1: Oh wow. And this one is an apple cake Okay,
Speaker 1: that's the apple cake, yeah.
Speaker 3: With olive oil and spout, and then a maple cream
Speaker 3: cheese icing.
Speaker 1: Now some of your I know that baking with sustainable
Speaker 1: and different ingredients is very important to you, and some
Speaker 1: of the ingredients that you mentioned one wouldn't automatically associate
Speaker 1: with cake. For instance. I mean, well you said beer
Speaker 1: and then you mentioned off a tahmi. I wouldn't think
Speaker 1: of using tahini and a cake.
Speaker 2: Yes, it is a little bit.
Speaker 3: Yeah, how can I say it's not mainstream? It is
Speaker 3: a little bit fringe baking. But once you get into
Speaker 3: the fringe baking of cakes, you realize that there's a
Speaker 3: lot of people that are really into it and also
Speaker 3: appreciate that cakes are a beautiful vessel for all these
Speaker 3: different ingredients and tastes and flavors.
Speaker 1: Where do you get the inspiration, elmor? Is it just
Speaker 1: lots of experimentation or how does it come to you?
Speaker 3: Yes, I would say it's been a lot of experimentation.
Speaker 3: I've always worked in food, but when I had children,
Speaker 3: I stayed at home and then I kind of started
Speaker 3: baking as a hobby and also just to keep the
Speaker 3: home cozy and create an activity at home. Didn't also,
Speaker 3: we lived in Camps Bay and all block of flats
Speaker 3: and there wasn't a bakery or good bread around. So
Speaker 3: it really started with sourdough bread. I started making bread
Speaker 3: at home to have something that was yummy to eat,
Speaker 3: and then it kind of branched out to cakes and
Speaker 3: also being at home, having kids, having family come over,
Speaker 3: it was just the kind of thing to have around
Speaker 3: with a lot of people. So yeah, and also I
Speaker 3: baked with my mother and my grandmother, so it was
Speaker 3: a little bit of something that I grew up with, so.
Speaker 1: Kind of in your jeans almost.
Speaker 3: Yes, And my mom was very particular about the kind
Speaker 3: of cakes that you liked, which was very much the
Speaker 3: style of baking, not leaning towards overly sweet, but more
Speaker 3: towards interesting flavors and flavors with a little bit of contrast.
Speaker 1: So what would you say are some of the most
Speaker 1: unusual ingredients that you've used in the cake.
Speaker 3: Well, I think people always get a fright when they
Speaker 3: hear the tahini because they really don't think it goes
Speaker 3: with cake, But it's the tahinium use it in the icing,
Speaker 3: and it works a charm because that specific chocolate cake
Speaker 3: is really it's actually quite sweet on its own. So
Speaker 3: it's I love being able to have something to cut
Speaker 3: that down so that the salty sweet works well in there.
Speaker 3: And I also actually put a sesame brittle on top
Speaker 3: of that cake. So yeah, it just looks it is
Speaker 3: something different. Looks different as well. Olive oil people always think.
Speaker 1: Yeah, because olive oil does have quite a sharp taste,
Speaker 1: so you don't think of using it in baking.
Speaker 3: Yes, but it really shines through. And then of course
Speaker 3: the spelt in the cake as well, it's quite unusual,
Speaker 3: which is a beautiful spelt from Krinfontein in Cedarburg area
Speaker 3: are actually also based in Hot Bay.
Speaker 2: I think their house is there, so they travel between
Speaker 2: the two.
Speaker 1: Okay, So just so that listeners that may not know
Speaker 1: your business can understand, you mentioned you are based in
Speaker 1: heart Bay, but you don't have an actual shop.
Speaker 2: No, I don't have a shop front.
Speaker 3: I bake, have a website montfulsuit dot com, and.
Speaker 2: I take pre orders for cakes. So whole cakes, the.
Speaker 3: Smaller items or if you're interested in only having a
Speaker 3: slice would then be found at these dailies and restaurants
Speaker 3: that I've kind of made associations with.
Speaker 1: Okay, and can people find the list of those dailies
Speaker 1: on your website or which the best way for them
Speaker 1: to get hold of a montful suitcake if they want
Speaker 1: to d s.
Speaker 3: Well, okay, so whole cakes you could order through me
Speaker 3: on my website. And then for let me tell you
Speaker 3: that Max Bagel's in Park Road, the Deli Social in
Speaker 3: Hot Bay Cake Canteen, and then Agger is having they
Speaker 3: have the beer cake on their counter.
Speaker 1: I'm so excited about that because you as you know,
Speaker 1: I'm a noted local, So now I know where to
Speaker 1: get my mournful suitcake.
Speaker 2: Get your sweet fix.
Speaker 1: You mentioned of a El Marie that you bake to order,
Speaker 1: but it's a Friday collection, so there's only once a
Speaker 1: week that people can pick up a cake from you.
Speaker 2: Except if they are in Hot Bay.
Speaker 3: So I've just found that that was the easiest way
Speaker 3: to streamline things because not everybody. A lot of the
Speaker 3: communication then comes from larger Cape Town area.
Speaker 2: So yeah, And what's been some.
Speaker 1: Of the coolest feedback you've had from some of your customers.
Speaker 1: I mean, have you had somebody from a different country
Speaker 1: or somewhere far away just go, wow, that was the
Speaker 1: most amazing cake I've had anywhere in the world.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I've had really, I mean to be honest, I
Speaker 3: have amazing customers.
Speaker 2: I've had people buy for me for a very long time.
Speaker 3: People buy every year for the birthdays or those celebrations
Speaker 3: that come back or they ask are you doing that
Speaker 3: flavor again or can you do this for me? I
Speaker 3: recently had a person come back and say they've lived
Speaker 3: They've lived in New York and actually operated a restaurant
Speaker 3: there as well, and there was came back especially for
Speaker 3: the teini cake, saying like can I please make that
Speaker 3: for their birthday? Its favorite of theirs. So yeah, then
Speaker 3: it's traveled far as well. A lot of people take
Speaker 3: things fruitcakes especially, We've also gone all over the world.
Speaker 1: Incredible. I mean, in conversation with baker el Marie Rossichaki
Speaker 1: of Mournful Soot, she's telling us about her confectionery and
Speaker 1: her creations. I see you've also brought in a container
Speaker 1: of chocolate and coffee biscotti, which looks absolutely amazing. Tell
Speaker 1: our listeners about that.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it's a gift tube that I do with piscotti,
Speaker 3: which is well classically an Italian kind of cookie, but
Speaker 3: I think I describe it as somewhere between a rask
Speaker 3: and a cookie. As tasty as a rask, but not
Speaker 3: as cute as a cookie. I think that's actually a
Speaker 3: tagline that are created for it because it's it's like
Speaker 3: a chunky finger of piscotti that's quite long, and I
Speaker 3: would say it's not the traditional like the original recipe
Speaker 3: was much more. It was pistachios a litle fennel seed,
Speaker 3: which is also lovely, but this is a bit more
Speaker 3: of a yummy version. So it has four kinds of
Speaker 3: chocolate in it. It's got coconuts in it, seventy five
Speaker 3: percent chocolate and then espresso.
Speaker 1: Yeah, okay, Well, we were talking off air about, you know,
Speaker 1: the fact that it's eight o'clock and we've got a
Speaker 1: selection of cake in front of us. Which is the
Speaker 1: most breakfast ye and you said perhaps the biscatti or
Speaker 1: the apple.
Speaker 2: Yes, the apple can definitely passes a breakfast number.
Speaker 1: The apple cake looks absolutely gorgeous. In fact, they all
Speaker 1: do talk to me a little bit more about this
Speaker 1: chocolate cake, which is the Bear Cake.
Speaker 2: The Bear Cake.
Speaker 1: So that's really the show, But I want to get
Speaker 1: the backstory.
Speaker 3: Well, okay, so it is inspired by the TV series
Speaker 3: The Bear, which is all about the restaurant industry as
Speaker 3: well and working as a chef, and it kind of yeah, showcases.
Speaker 2: I think it does show.
Speaker 3: How hard people work and how much stress they are
Speaker 3: working under in the kitchen in the hospitality industry, and
Speaker 3: I think that is worldwide the case. But the cake
Speaker 3: is inspired by the pastry chef who then works his
Speaker 3: way up from being like a very basic maybe basic
Speaker 3: is the wrong word, but the restaurant itself undergoes like
Speaker 3: a metamorphosis transformation, and this cake is one of his
Speaker 3: original recipes before he kind of travels goes to Denmark
Speaker 3: and Scandinavian restaurants, and it's a it's just a really
Speaker 3: good chocolate cake.
Speaker 2: You know, you can't really go wrong with it.
Speaker 3: It lasts well, it's it's always hits the spot it is,
Speaker 3: it's indulgent.
Speaker 1: It looks incredibly I'm actually gonna taste a piece. I
Speaker 1: never like chewing on air, but I have to con'trasist.
Speaker 1: It looks incredibly like moist and.
Speaker 3: Yeah, so it's a it's a dark coco sponge. It's
Speaker 3: really my favorite sponge. Always go back to it because
Speaker 3: it is moist and it's soft and it's but it's
Speaker 3: got flavor and then it's layered with like real.
Speaker 1: Chocolate moose, so real, chocolate moose.
Speaker 3: Real, not like you know, going through the whole process
Speaker 3: of making chocolate moose, with the eggs, the cream, the chocolate,
Speaker 3: the coffee, and then that's wrapped in a Mocker butter
Speaker 3: cream that I use, which is essentially a Swiss marangue
Speaker 3: butter cream that's made with chocolate un espresso. Wow.
Speaker 1: And I can just I can tell you absolutely can
Speaker 1: taste the difference this is. You know, I can taste
Speaker 1: all the work that's gone into this chocolate mouse creation
Speaker 1: and the sponge. It is Oh wow, that is absolutely delicious.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 3: I'm glad you like it. I mean, it's a I
Speaker 3: think it's a really cool. It's a it's a nice
Speaker 3: slice of cake. You know, it's a celebration on its own.
Speaker 3: One slice is good. You can take it as a
Speaker 3: gift or absolutely in.
Speaker 1: Fact, any of these I think would make an exquisite
Speaker 1: gift for somebody. You know, it really is just very special.
Speaker 1: We've got a voice note from a listener who's got
Speaker 1: a question for you. I believe let's take a listen
Speaker 1: to that now.
Speaker 4: Good morning, Amy, it's dialog more. I wonder if you
Speaker 4: could ask your guests her name El Marie, if they
Speaker 4: do anything gluten free. Unfortunately, glutens would have a known
Speaker 4: for me. Dairy as well, quite restrictive. Thanks.
Speaker 1: You definitely couldn't eat that beer cake then die. What
Speaker 1: a shame if you are dairy free and gluten free,
Speaker 1: El Marie. That's a tricky order when it comes to cake.
Speaker 3: It is indeed, I don't do gluten free or dairy
Speaker 3: free or vegan cakes as such. It is a very
Speaker 3: specific style of baking which has its own repertoire that
Speaker 3: one really needs to go into.
Speaker 2: I feel that.
Speaker 3: Within cake there's very few people that are focused on
Speaker 3: bacon cake with really good quality ingredients. So this is
Speaker 3: kind of a niche in itself that when you're going
Speaker 3: to have a piece of cake, enjoy it. Let it
Speaker 3: be really good. But it's not void of sugar or
Speaker 3: gluten or dairy for that matter either.
Speaker 1: And I think also you know you're not operating a
Speaker 1: restaurant or a walk in bakery where people will feel
Speaker 1: excluded if they are not being catered you. You are
Speaker 1: selling through other channels and have a loyal customer base
Speaker 1: as you mentioned, of people that are wanting this kind
Speaker 1: of real ingredient made from scratch with love product.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I do.
Speaker 3: I mean, if someone is really in need of a
Speaker 3: gluten free cake, we do like a classic almond torte.
Speaker 2: Okay, either a citrus version or a chocolate version of that.
Speaker 1: But okay, yeah, there are options.
Speaker 3: But it's not something that would be an add on
Speaker 3: to other if you're an existing customer and if there
Speaker 3: is another existing order going around.
Speaker 1: Now, you mentioned, of course, and we've said on air
Speaker 1: that you did get up very early to prepare, and
Speaker 1: you said that you said good night to your husband
Speaker 1: and kids very early in anticipation of your early start.
Speaker 1: Do they love your cake? Do they beg you to
Speaker 1: make it for them every day?
Speaker 2: Yes?
Speaker 1: I'm sure. I bet you. Everyone wants to come to
Speaker 1: your kid's birthday parties.
Speaker 3: We've actually just had my daughter's if they party last weekend.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 3: Look, my children have very much been at the heart
Speaker 3: of montful Suit and my husband as well. They have
Speaker 3: to taste everything and give feedback. They have to sit
Speaker 3: next to the cakes traveling in the car. They have
Speaker 3: to deal with the delivery schedule and the baking schedule,
Speaker 3: which yeah, I at some point rented space in town
Speaker 3: and then eventually decided to build a second kitchen in
Speaker 3: our house, so they really, oh wow, are very close
Speaker 3: to the heart of the business.
Speaker 2: Oh wow.
Speaker 1: And I hope you have help in that kitchen because
Speaker 1: it's an awful lot of work for one person to
Speaker 1: be managing all these orders and demands.
Speaker 3: Yes, I do have an amazing assistant, Oka Sauna, who
Speaker 3: really helps me.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 3: I just love working with her. And having meticulous and
Speaker 3: hardworking woman work with me is amazing.
Speaker 1: El Marie, weare to you next for montfull Suit. What
Speaker 1: are the plans for the future.
Speaker 3: Well, hopefully when my children are a little bit older,
Speaker 3: there will be a shop in town with its own
Speaker 3: little shopfront.
Speaker 1: Ah, that'll be wonderful.
Speaker 3: But for now, being able to collaborate with these other
Speaker 3: businesses that are my shop fronts and the customers who
Speaker 3: are happy to deal with my baking schedule and collection points,
Speaker 3: and I.
Speaker 1: Think it's just what's really nice for me. Also is
Speaker 1: the personalization and the attention to detail. You're not just
Speaker 1: churning out a random bark because you feel like you're thinking, well,
Speaker 1: it's June, it's Father's Day, it's men's health month. Let
Speaker 1: me see where this takes me. Kind of thing. There's
Speaker 1: a lot of thought that goes into all your products.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think if I did, if I was bound
Speaker 3: by a shop right now, I would not be able
Speaker 3: to have that creative freedom. So I'm grateful to be
Speaker 3: able to play with it still and explore all my
Speaker 3: different ideas and recipes.
Speaker 1: Well, I hope we've with the appetite of our listeners
Speaker 1: ever so slightly. If they would like to get in
Speaker 1: touch with you and order a piece of heaven, I'll
Speaker 1: call it a slice of heaven? How can they go
Speaker 1: about doing so?
Speaker 3: So they can have a look at our website morenfulseit
Speaker 3: dot com. We are closed for next week Friday because
Speaker 3: we are running off to the movie for Fabula camping
Speaker 3: trip with my family. But after that back in action
Speaker 3: and if you can't find what you're looking for on
Speaker 3: the website and welcome to just send an email to
Speaker 3: montful suit at gmail dot com. I'm also on Instagram, Montful,
Speaker 3: Mournful Underscore Suit.
Speaker 1: Wandful Underscore Soot. If you'd like to find your on
Speaker 1: Instagram or montfulsoot dot com online and it is well
Speaker 1: worth visiting, trust me, you won't be sorry. El Marie Rossichaki,
Speaker 1: thank you so much for coming into studio with these
Speaker 1: gorgeus creations and have an incredible holiday, and I think
Speaker 1: it's very well deserved.
Speaker 2: Thank you very much, Thank you very much for having
Speaker 2: me recording