A Tribute to Stevie Famulari

If you’re a regular watcher of Food Network Challenge, you understand why this cake is utterly brilliant…

Have no fear, though. If you’re not, here’s the back story.

Spectacular. Simply spectacular. That cake deserves a tribute, and that cake with gum paste models certainly does the job splendidly.

– Posted with Stuffr! –
This entry was posted in Food. Bookmark the permalink.
  • Stevie Famulari

    oh my!– there’s a cake based on the Flambe cake! I’m floored at the whole scene, and laughing! I cannot believe the result of Flambe to have the attention it has. Are there other photos of this cake- and who created it for what event?
    Stevie Famulari

  • http://stevie@steviefamulari.net Stevie Famulari

    oh my!– there’s a cake based on the Flambe cake! I’m floored at the whole scene, and laughing! I cannot believe the result of Flambe to have the attention it has. Are there other photos of this cake- and who created it for what event?
    Stevie Famulari

  • http://www.insignificantthoughts.com/ Vinny

    Hey Stevie! Wow, a real celebrity commenting on my site! I’m so excited!

    Anyway, here’s the only other picture:
    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/Stf66H55wMI/AAAAAAAAFAg/b4LlTbfKU9g/s1600-h/cakewreckplicachallenge-03.jpg

    It was taken for Cakewrecks.com when the author was doing her book tour. Many consider it a masterpiece; after all, how many cakes ever needed a fire extinguisher? :-)

  • http://www.insignificantthoughts.com Vinny

    Hey Stevie! Wow, a real celebrity commenting on my site! I’m so excited!

    Anyway, here’s the only other picture:
    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_wGr8njEWjtI/Stf66H55wMI/AAAAAAAAFAg/b4LlTbfKU9g/s1600-h/cakewreckplicachallenge-03.jpg

    It was taken for Cakewrecks.com when the author was doing her book tour. Many consider it a masterpiece; after all, how many cakes ever needed a fire extinguisher? :-)

  • Stevie Famulari

    A friend sent the link to the photo and I just had to laugh.

    Celebrity- flattered, truly. An artist, and proud one at that. The first in Food Network Challenge History to require a fire extinguisher- entertaining for sure! Masterpiece- Flambe, the episode, or this cupcake wreckplica? Any one of the choices is flattering as to which is the masterpiece.

    Flambe got discussion about art, food art, cakes, and that there are other options besides cute cakes, traditionally beautiful realistic replica cakes. Food Arts should explore concepts of modern art(which, for the record, Flambe has all the forms of sugar in the same cake to explore the materiality of sugar in form, texture, scale and color). All the pieces on Food Network explore modern food arts- and they get discussion- which is good.

    Now to find out who did the cupcake and see if she has other photos of it…

  • http://stevie@steviefamulari.net Stevie Famulari

    A friend sent the link to the photo and I just had to laugh.

    Celebrity- flattered, truly. An artist, and proud one at that. The first in Food Network Challenge History to require a fire extinguisher- entertaining for sure! Masterpiece- Flambe, the episode, or this cupcake wreckplica? Any one of the choices is flattering as to which is the masterpiece.

    Flambe got discussion about art, food art, cakes, and that there are other options besides cute cakes, traditionally beautiful realistic replica cakes. Food Arts should explore concepts of modern art(which, for the record, Flambe has all the forms of sugar in the same cake to explore the materiality of sugar in form, texture, scale and color). All the pieces on Food Network explore modern food arts- and they get discussion- which is good.

    Now to find out who did the cupcake and see if she has other photos of it…

  • Nel

    I just saw the show last night and was aghast at the “cake” Stevie made. Only came in at halfway but still, the cake truly sucked from any artistic standpoint I have ever seen or experienced. Maybe some people thought it was brilliant from a deconstructionist standpoint or from a point of view that they too, who have no artistic talent nor skills, can make a pile o’ cr@p on national tv. And then to tell the client that the client’s wishes or tastes don’t matter is the height of arrogance and hubris. Didn’t you mama teach you any better, girl? Were you brought up in a barn? Jeez. Would you dare to ruin a couple’s wedding with some off-the-wall, came up with your own idea after throwing out the client’s agreed upon design? I’d bet money you would.

    As much as I love Buddy Valastro, his cake was trite, and the cake that won was way too bland and looked like a stack of pastel colored soccer balls with a crown on top. Political win, there. The cake Zane made should have won, IMO, since it had all of the elements needed to be a beautiful work of culinary art fit for a middle-aged woman with more traditional.

    Famulari is crass, arrogant and will see the wisdom of my comment when she has a few more decades on her. However, the above pictured cupcake cartoon of the event is brilliant. The fire extinguishing was the best part of the Famulari cake.

    • http://www.insignificantthoughts.com/ Vinny

      Let me tell you why I love her. She doesn’t make excuses or apologize for her style or her beliefs. If you want your cake and not hers, go to someone who will make it for you. I admire the fact that Stevie has been on the show a few times and made things that were, at the end, hers, and she’s unapologetic about it. No one should be made to feel bad about their stylistic choices or their artistic integrity.

      When you add in the fact that she can laugh about it when people don’t get it, you have to admit, she truly is a class act. I’m not saying you have to love her or hate her or anything of the sort, but at the end, you have to respect her.

  • Nel

    I just saw the show last night and was aghast at the “cake” Stevie made. Only came in at halfway but still, the cake truly sucked from any artistic standpoint I have ever seen or experienced. Maybe some people thought it was brilliant from a deconstructionist standpoint or from a point of view that they too, who have no artistic talent nor skills, can make a pile o’ cr@p on national tv. And then to tell the client that the client’s wishes or tastes don’t matter is the height of arrogance and hubris. Didn’t you mama teach you any better, girl? Were you brought up in a barn? Jeez. Would you dare to ruin a couple’s wedding with some off-the-wall, came up with your own idea after throwing out the client’s agreed upon design? I’d bet money you would.

    As much as I love Buddy Valastro, his cake was trite, and the cake that won was way too bland and looked like a stack of pastel colored soccer balls with a crown on top. Political win, there. The cake Zane made should have won, IMO, since it had all of the elements needed to be a beautiful work of culinary art fit for a middle-aged woman with more traditional.

    Famulari is crass, arrogant and will see the wisdom of my comment when she has a few more decades on her. However, the above pictured cupcake cartoon of the event is brilliant. The fire extinguishing was the best part of the Famulari cake.

    • http://www.insignificantthoughts.com Vinny

      Let me tell you why I love her. She doesn’t make excuses or apologize for her style or her beliefs. If you want your cake and not hers, go to someone who will make it for you. I admire the fact that Stevie has been on the show a few times and made things that were, at the end, hers, and she’s unapologetic about it. No one should be made to feel bad about their stylistic choices or their artistic integrity.

      When you add in the fact that she can laugh about it when people don’t get it, you have to admit, she truly is a class act. I’m not saying you have to love her or hate her or anything of the sort, but at the end, you have to respect her.

  • Larry

    Originally Posted By VinnyLet me tell you why I love her. She doesn’t make excuses or apologize for her style or her beliefs. If you want your cake and not hers, go to someone who will make it for you. I admire the fact that Stevie has been on the show a few times and made things that were, at the end, hers, and she’s unapologetic about it. No one should be made to feel bad about their stylistic choices or their artistic integrity.

    When you add in the fact that she can laugh about it when people don’t get it, you have to admit, she truly is a class act. I’m not saying you have to love her or hate her or anything of the sort, but at the end, you have to respect her.

    an artist needs to evoke emotion then she is an artist.. would I pay her to make a cake for me? probably not but I do like watching train wrecks.. and this my dear was just a disaster as her emotion was that expressed in her “art”… while our emotion was expressed in our “ridicule”…

  • Larry

    Originally Posted By VinnyLet me tell you why I love her. She doesn’t make excuses or apologize for her style or her beliefs. If you want your cake and not hers, go to someone who will make it for you. I admire the fact that Stevie has been on the show a few times and made things that were, at the end, hers, and she’s unapologetic about it. No one should be made to feel bad about their stylistic choices or their artistic integrity.

    When you add in the fact that she can laugh about it when people don’t get it, you have to admit, she truly is a class act. I’m not saying you have to love her or hate her or anything of the sort, but at the end, you have to respect her.

    an artist needs to evoke emotion then she is an artist.. would I pay her to make a cake for me? probably not but I do like watching train wrecks.. and this my dear was just a disaster as her emotion was that expressed in her “art”… while our emotion was expressed in our “ridicule”…

  • Rylan

    I love Stevie. She is one of the best people living in this world. If you have nothing good to say, respect her before I shove my foot on your mouth.

    Vinny, you are awesome! Thanks for sharing this.

  • Rylan

    By the way, I was referring to Nel with my first comment.

  • Rylan

    I love Stevie. She is one of the best people living in this world. If you have nothing good to say, respect her before I shove my foot on your mouth.

    Vinny, you are awesome! Thanks for sharing this.

  • Rylan

    By the way, I was referring to Nel with my first comment.

  • Sheri

    I just saw the Flaming Cake episode, and I was quite disappointed to see a competitor being so unprofessional. Your clients must be sadists, Ms. Famulari, because you expressed yourself that you are willing to take their money but not their concerns into consideration.

    The only way I could justify Stevie Famulari’s “cake” as anything other than the results of blindfolded 3-year-olds left unsupervised is if it was intended to be an artistic representation of Famulari’s attitude or Kerry Vincent’s soul.

  • Sheri

    I just saw the Flaming Cake episode, and I was quite disappointed to see a competitor being so unprofessional. Your clients must be sadists, Ms. Famulari, because you expressed yourself that you are willing to take their money but not their concerns into consideration.

    The only way I could justify Stevie Famulari’s “cake” as anything other than the results of blindfolded 3-year-olds left unsupervised is if it was intended to be an artistic representation of Famulari’s attitude or Kerry Vincent’s soul.

  • Ellen W.

    Respect? No. If she considers herself a spoiled artist, then she should go into painting where she doesn’t need to please anyone but herself. Grow up, Stevie. Artistic talent isn’t about temper tantrums and selfishness.

  • Ellen W.

    Respect? No. If she considers herself a spoiled artist, then she should go into painting where she doesn’t need to please anyone but herself. Grow up, Stevie. Artistic talent isn’t about temper tantrums and selfishness.

  • Rob

    The biggest problem with Stevie is she thinks that putting out substandard and lazy cakes defines her as different, great and breaking new ground… She’s one of those classic people that overcompensate for their “lack” of coolness by being rebellious, for no other reason but wanting to seem cool.
    Stevie should count her lucky start that such and untalented and uncharismatic person isn’t begging for pennies on the sidewalk.

  • Rob

    The biggest problem with Stevie is she thinks that putting out substandard and lazy cakes defines her as different, great and breaking new ground… She’s one of those classic people that overcompensate for their “lack” of coolness by being rebellious, for no other reason but wanting to seem cool.
    Stevie should count her lucky start that such and untalented and uncharismatic person isn’t begging for pennies on the sidewalk.

  • Angela J.

    I just saw the re-run of this episode (I had only seen the flaming cake in a snippet before). I have to say that I was far more forgiving having only seen the snippet. Clearly the “Challenge” was to create a cake representative of the client. One can't say that Ms. Famulari failed at that particular challenge since she didn't have any intention of trying to do any such thing – period! Surely, any moron should have been aware of the fact that the finished product should not only have been skillful, not only representative of the client, but also “edible”??? Surely this woman couldn't have seriously expected ANYONE to eat that disgusting pile of glop???? It was revolting! Here's a hint Ms. F, it may be made of non-toxic food based product, but that doesn't make it “edible.” – Then, of course, there was the “attitude.” After seeing what an obnoxious git she really was I was actually pleased to see how completely talentless & lacking in skill she really was.