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When someone said let's have a party for 4,000 soldiers and their families, Vernon Parish's own cake bosses, Russell and Sue Bailey, of Bailey's Bakery in Leesville, said "We'll do the cake!"
"He knows I'm always looking for a challenge," said Sue Bailey of her son, who asked her for help on the project. A cake to serve more than 5,000 people is certainly that.
"We got this," she said, stirring a batch of red butter cream icing and with an air of confidence that only 30 years in the business can lend. "We had to work out a few details, but I think it's going to be great."
The duo plan to combine 54 16x24 sheet cakes (each can serve about 100 people). The cakes will be baked and iced individually and later assembled, to create the 748 pound confection in the shape of a U.S. flag.
Each sheet cake takes 12 pounds of batter and must be weighted precisely on a scale before baking. Once it's baked and cooled, the cake is leveled (the top, rounded part is cut off) and then iced. Each of the 54 sheets will have approximately six pounds of icing on it.
It takes about an hour and a half to bake eight of the sheets, for a total baking time of a little more than 10 hours. Then it takes about 15 minutes to ice each cake, for another 13 hours. It's understandable that mother and son are working at the bakery after hours.
The blue canton of stars alone will require six and a half sheets. The stars, each made of fondant and measuring about six inches wide, will require a template for correct placement, said Russell Bailey. The remaining sheet cakes will make up the field of red and white stripes. Each sheet in this section will be iced half red and half white.
The cake will be transported by truck to the Leesville Wampus Cat Stadium on three roller racks. Once there, the cake will be assembled by a team of workers, said Russell Bailey.
"It's a lot of work, but we have a pretty good plan. Getting rid of it, that's the nervous part," said Bailey.
The cost of the cake is in the thousands; however, Bailey's suppliers, including Dawn Foods, donated nearly all the ingredients. Bailey's representative from Dawn Foods, Riley Venza, was eager to help, said Russell Bailey "no matter what it is."
In fact, Dawn Foods threw in 100 dozen cookies, too, just in case some of the guests of honor don't like cake.
Here's the list of ingredients (in pounds):
262 powdered sugar
144 granulated sugar
31 water (for the icing)
231 water (for the cake)
5 vanilla
61 eggs (or 600 eggs)
182 flour
41 vegetable oil
47 shortening
The cake will be part of the Welcome Home Honor Party, hosted by the Vernon Parish Chamber of Commerce from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10 at the field west of Leesville High School’s Wampus Cat Stadium. A variety of other foods, (brisket, gumbo, chicken, pulled pork, dirty rice, boudin, hot dogs) will be served and activities offered to more than 6,000 family members and their soldiers, who recently returned to Fort Polk from Afghanistan.
At 3:30 p.m. a change of command ceremony for the 4th Brigade, 10th Mountain Division will take place at the Leesville High School's Wampus Cat Stadium. Due to space limitations, the change of command ceremony is by invitation only.
At 5:30 p.m., immediately following the change of command ceremony, the Christmas Parade will begin, led by 4,000 marching soldiers and The Purple Heart Float. Merchants along the parade route will be honoring our soldiers with flags and confetti. The local participants will follow with bands and floats with Santa arriving on his big red fire engine. The sponsor for the Christmas Parade will be chamber member Barksdale Federal Credit Union. The theme is “I’ll be home for Christmas” in honor of the recently returned soldiers. Special honors will be given to the family members of fallen soldiers. The Grand Marshall for this year’s parade will be Retired Col. William (Bill) Howerton of Leesville.
At the parade's conclusion, there will be cash door prizes as well as awards for best float in each category. All parade goers and parade participants are encouraged to follow Santa at the end of the parade to the judge's stage located in front of the Vernon Parish Police Jury office.
Merchants and individuals interested in making donations to help offset the cost and to help provide transportation for surviving family members can contact the Vernon Parish Chamber of Commerce at 337-238-0349.
When someone said let's have a party for 4,000 soldiers and their families, Vernon Parish's own cake bosses, Russell and Sue Bailey, of Bailey's Bakery in Leesville, said "We'll do the cake!"
"He knows I'm always looking for a challenge," said Sue Bailey of her son, who asked her for help on the project. A cake to serve more than 5,000 people is certainly that.
"We got this," she said, stirring a batch of red butter cream icing and with an air of confidence that only 30 years in the business can lend. "We had to work out a few details, but I think it's going to be great."
The duo plan to combine 54 16x24 sheet cakes (each can serve about 100 people). The cakes will be baked and iced individually and later assembled, to create the 748 pound confection in the shape of a U.S. flag.
Each sheet cake takes 12 pounds of batter and must be weighted precisely on a scale before baking. Once it's baked and cooled, the cake is leveled (the top, rounded part is cut off) and then iced. Each of the 54 sheets will have approximately six pounds of icing on it.
It takes about an hour and a half to bake eight of the sheets, for a total baking time of a little more than 10 hours. Then it takes about 15 minutes to ice each cake, for another 13 hours. It's understandable that mother and son are working at the bakery after hours.
The blue canton of stars alone will require six and a half sheets. The stars, each made of fondant and measuring about six inches wide, will require a template for correct placement, said Russell Bailey. The remaining sheet cakes will make up the field of red and white stripes. Each sheet in this section will be iced half red and half white.
The cake will be transported by truck to the Leesville Wampus Cat Stadium on three roller racks. Once there, the cake will be assembled by a team of workers, said Russell Bailey.
"It's a lot of work, but we have a pretty good plan. Getting rid of it, that's the nervous part," said Bailey.
The cost of the cake is in the thousands; however, Bailey's suppliers, including Dawn Foods, donated nearly all the ingredients. Bailey's representative from Dawn Foods, Riley Venza, was eager to help, said Russell Bailey "no matter what it is."
In fact, Dawn Foods threw in 100 dozen cookies, too, just in case some of the guests of honor don't like cake.
Here's the list of ingredients (in pounds):
262 powdered sugar
144 granulated sugar
31 water (for the icing)
231 water (for the cake)
5 vanilla
61 eggs (or 600 eggs)
182 flour
41 vegetable oil
47 shortening
The cake will be part of the Welcome Home Honor Party, hosted by the Vernon Parish Chamber of Commerce from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10 at the field west of Leesville High School’s Wampus Cat Stadium. A variety of other foods, (brisket, gumbo, chicken, pulled pork, dirty rice, boudin, hot dogs) will be served and activities offered to more than 6,000 family members and their soldiers, who recently returned to Fort Polk from Afghanistan.
At 3:30 p.m. a change of command ceremony for the 4th Brigade, 10th Mountain Division will take place at the Leesville High School's Wampus Cat Stadium. Due to space limitations, the change of command ceremony is by invitation only.
At 5:30 p.m., immediately following the change of command ceremony, the Christmas Parade will begin, led by 4,000 marching soldiers and The Purple Heart Float. Merchants along the parade route will be honoring our soldiers with flags and confetti. The local participants will follow with bands and floats with Santa arriving on his big red fire engine. The sponsor for the Christmas Parade will be chamber member Barksdale Federal Credit Union. The theme is “I’ll be home for Christmas” in honor of the recently returned soldiers. Special honors will be given to the family members of fallen soldiers. The Grand Marshall for this year’s parade will be Retired Col. William (Bill) Howerton of Leesville.
At the parade's conclusion, there will be cash door prizes as well as awards for best float in each category. All parade goers and parade participants are encouraged to follow Santa at the end of the parade to the judge's stage located in front of the Vernon Parish Police Jury office.
Merchants and individuals interested in making donations to help offset the cost and to help provide transportation for surviving family members can contact the Vernon Parish Chamber of Commerce at 337-238-0349.
