Piecaken and a One of a Kind Birthday

by Drew Holmes

As anyone shares a birthday with a holiday will tell you, things tend to fall into a predictable routine. Similar decorations and themes become constants and finding a way to do something different can be a challenge.

My birthday is July 4, which for Americans is an annual celebration of our independence. While I do enjoy red, white, and blue ice cream cake, there comes a certain point (about 20 years, give or take) that you want something innovative or different. While scrolling through my news feed I found my inspiration for this year’s cake: Piecaken.

Piecaken is, as the name would imply, based on the more well-known turducken, a turkey-duck-chicken combination. Instead of savory birds, this sweet dessert is a pie baked into a cake. Genius! Knowing how simple an operation this would be, I decided not only to do no further research, but also add a layer of ice cream in the middle. What could possibly go wrong?

The plan was to keep it as simple as possible and minimize variables while keeping with the red, white, and blue color scheme (old habits die hard). The top cake later and the middle ice cream layer came together in short order. The bottom pie layer, however, was another matter altogether.

I put a thin layer of cake batter in the bottom of the pan, added the pie, filled the pan with the rest of the batter, and baked it. After the initial bake, the center was still mostly liquid, so I put it back into the oven for a second bake. Still liquid. Now I was worried about burning the sides, so I wrapped the pan in foil to cover the baked sides. That solved the problem with baking the top, but the bottom was still wet. Not wanting to risk overbaking the pie layer, I removed it from the pan, put in into a nonstick skillet, and cooked it on the stovetop. That did the trick, and the layer was completed. Every challenge overcome created another one, but patiently working each problem one at a time led to a result I was pleased with.

There was an underlying lesson that became obvious as I was trying to bake the pie layer — adapt and overcome. As musicians we cannot always control the circumstances of how we make music, but we can control how we react. The weather can turn against us, sheet music is lost, or we just do not have the chops that day. Our audience does not see these things, they just see the result. Whether you are creating a Beethoven symphony or an absurd birthday cake, the thought process is the same.

There were many times while making this dessert I considered giving up because it had gotten too complex. But my audience was my two small boys and I wanted them to experience this unique treat and create a special memory. In the end they loved the piecaken and it was the perfect departure from the usual birthday cakes I have grown so accustomed to. And that was worth the effort.