Hi, my name is Veena Azmanov, and welcome to my blog. I was born and raised in India before moving to a few countries worldwide. I was lucky to have traveled all across the globe and experienced many different cuisines.
I created this blog as a little space to share my recipes with family and friends worldwide. And as a professional cake artist, it also became a place to help self-taught cake decorators like me expand their baking and decorating skills.
My mission
I want you (my visitors) to learn how to develop on their own skills in the kitchen. Rather than just giving out recipes, I want to provide the necessary tools and knowledge so that you understand the process from start to finish. I provide tips, tricks, and troubleshooting guidance so that you can learn the importance of the order of ingredients or the most efficient way to cream butter and sugar. I include step-by-step progress pictures so that you can better visual the process. And, I want to create content that you can use to create something delicious with confidence, unleashing their inner master chef.
In our home, I strive to keep a balanced diet. While I encourage my family to live healthily, I also want them to enjoy the joys of good food, whether in meals or desserts. So, here you will find everything from healthy salads to indulgent desserts that will have your family and friends drooling for more.
My home
I live in Israel with my husband and two kids. My husband Ziv works as a consultant for start-up companies, so he often works from home, meaning we get to spend much time together. My kids Aadi and Rhea are both teens. Aadi is 16 years old and Rhea is 14 years old. So, yes, my days are often filled with teen melodrama.
Until a few years ago, I was a professional cake artist with a custom-decorated cake business from home. I specialized in wedding cakes. Being self-taught, this was a fascinating journey filled with good and bad days. I made many new cake friends across the world and even traveled to teach cake for a while. My cakes have been featured in many magazines and websites worldwide.
However, cake decorating can be time-consuming, leaving no time to spend with my family or share recipes on my food blog. So, I decided to close my business and focus on my family and blog to continue sharing my recipes and tutorials.
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My background
I was born in Mumbai, India, and raised by a mother who taught me that nothing can stop you from achieving your goals if you dedicate yourself to them. While she was uneducated formally, she was the most talented and wise woman I've ever known. An excellent baker, cook, seamstress, gardener, and teacher. So I've got her to thank for teaching me those skills.
After I graduated college in Mumbai, I worked for Singapore Airlines as a flight attendant for 10 years. That's how I met my wonderful husband Ziv, who at the time was living in the US. We traveled together as much as we could before we got married. And while it was a very long-distance relationship, it was also like one long honeymoon. After we got married, we relocated to Israel.
Since I have a degree in English literature, a second degree in marketing, and an MBA, my original plan was to be a marketing executive after leaving the airline. And yet, life had other plans for me. And I decided to listen to my heart and pursue my passion for cake decorating, baking, and cooking.
Cook, bake, decorate
I've always been a natural at cooking and baking from a very young age. My mom was an excellent cook and she always encouraged and inspired me to learn more. Over the years, traveling around the world opened my mind and palate to many new flavors to explore.
On the other hand, cake decorating was a new challenge for me. And I had to learn it from scratch the hard way. I taught myself by learning everything I possibly could from YouTube, cake blogs, and of course, at home practicing, practicing, and more practice. There are no shortcuts to becoming great at anything. And cake decorating is no exception.
With time, I got better and better. And yet, mastery is a life-long journey and I continue to learn, practice and improve every day. Today, I have great satisfaction and pride in seeing how far I've already come from where I started. And this experience gives me the confidence that I can achieve any goal I set for myself.
As a result, I felt that it's also important for me to give back to the community for what it has given me. I want to help others the way others helped me. So, when I started my blog and shared my recipes, tutorials, and tips. I aim to use my story, know-how, and experience to empower more women to bake, cook, decorate, and pursue their passions like me.
Because it's not just about food and cakes, it's also about feeling confident, valued, and self-sufficient.
My goals are:
- Make you a great cook so you can enjoy making great food in your own kitchen.
- Turn you into a skilled baker so your family, friends, and customers will come back for more.
- Help you become a professional and confident cake decorator, and get paid for your hard work.
How do we do all that?
- I teach you the techniques and tools that I have mastered over the years as a cook, baker, and cake decorator.
- The key to becoming a good cook or baker is understanding your recipe and ingredients. Therefore, I don't just give you a recipe. I also help you understand and know your ingredients, their role, and their effect on each recipe.
- Cake decorating is easy if you know the right methods. And yet, it can be a nightmare if you just try to wing it. So, I teach you everything you need to know about cake decorating, from basic to advanced skills. You will find lots of tips, detailed tutorials with step-by-step instructions, as well as video tutorials.
- Being a professional takes more than just knowing how to make cakes. It's about finding that balance, knowing how to juggle between home baking and professional baking which is why I have a section just for a cake business.
- Starting a business can be daunting at first and it's more than just registering your business. I share the lessons and advice from my own experience to save you from making the same mistakes that I made. Also, I show you how to start your own cake business from home. And how to create a website to showcase your cakes, as well as other marketing tips. So you can spend your time and money wisely.
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Veena is also the author of two other blogs Cake Decorating Tutorials where she shares all cake decorating tutorials and resources from around the world, and East Indian Recipes a blog dedicated to both Indian and her native ethnic cuisine.
stellajannat
Thank you so much for sharing your lovely recipes - we love all your recipes - food as well as cakes. Love you
Veena Azmanov
Thank you so much Stella
Art Pollard
Hi Veena. I love what I have found on your blog while I am researching fondant. I have a question that I haven’t found an answer to. Is there any appreciable difference in quality between fondant made from a syrup or fondant made from powered sugar? I could imagine that fondant made from a syrup would have smaller sugar crystals and thus being smoother. Is this the case? Of course making it from powdered sugar is easier but I’m thinking only about the quality difference. Any assistance would be hugely appreciated as none of my books cover this in any depth.
Veena Azmanov
Hey Art Pollard. Not sure what fondant are you referring too. Are you talking about pouring fondant? The one you pour over petite fours or desserts? They are both very different. The fondant recipes on my blog are rolled fondant which we use for decorated cakes. Thanks
Anupama Krishnamurthy
Hello Veena,
Wonderful blog! I loved reading about your life journey from being a flight attendant to marriage, carving out a life in Israel, and following your passion. I have bookmarked a couple of your cake recipes and hoping to bake this weekend.
All the best,
Anupama
Veena Azmanov
Thank you so much, Anupama
Paulette
Hi Veena, I wrote to you many times in the past.
I really love your website and all your recipes.
Lately since I downloaded the latest update on my mobile I can only see the instructions on how to make any recipes you have posted but The recipes itself like quantities do not download.
I find it really frustrating not to be able to know how much of everything in the recipe is used?
Regards Paulette from Australia
Veena Azmanov
Hey Paulette,
I agree it can be frustrating not knowing how much of the ingredients you need.
Not sure how to solve the issue at my end. My website loading has no issues. In fact, it's been checked every day for page speed.
I think the problem is with your internet speed. I highly recommend contacting your internet provider to see how they can help you.
Thanks