Ep 4. Life's a Zoo

In season 1, episode 4 of Ace of Cakes, titled "Life's a Zoo," viewers are taken on a wild ride as the Charm City Cakes team is tasked with creating a cake for the Maryland Zoo's 130th anniversary. The team must create a four-tiered cake that features various animals and landscapes representative of the zoo.

The episode starts with a brainstorming session where the team discusses ideas for the cake design. They toss around ideas such as an elephant smashing through a cake wall and a zoo map-themed cake. But they eventually decide on a design that features a lion standing on top of a rocky outcrop, with a waterfall cascading down the side. Surrounding the base of the cake are several other animals including an iguana, a giraffe, and a crocodile.

Once the design is final, the team starts working on creating the various components. Chef Duff Goldman is tasked with creating the lion, which he carefully sculpts out of modeling chocolate. Mary Alice, the team's resident painter, starts working on painting the various features of the cake. And the rest of the team works on baking and assembling the various tiers of the cake.

As with every episode of Ace of Cakes, there are several obstacles that the team faces. In this episode, one of the biggest challenges is the size of the cake. The Maryland Zoo has requested a cake that can feed between 1,500 and 2,000 people, which means the team must create a cake that is nearly three feet tall. This presents challenges when it comes to transporting the cake to the zoo, as it must be transported in several pieces and assembled on-site.

Another challenge that the team faces is the heat in the kitchen. Since the cake is so large, it takes up a significant amount of space in the kitchen, which means it's harder to keep the temperature down. This makes it more difficult to work with the various components of the cake, such as the modeling chocolate used to create the lion.

As the deadline for the cake approaches, tensions rise in the kitchen. Chef Duff becomes increasingly frustrated as he struggles to get the lion just right, and Mary Alice worries that she won't have enough time to finish painting the various animals. But despite the challenges, the team is able to come together and create a stunning cake that is sure to impress the visitors to the Maryland Zoo.

Overall, "Life's a Zoo" is a thrilling episode of Ace of Cakes that showcases the creative talents and teamwork of the Charm City Cakes team. From brainstorming the initial design to the final assembly at the zoo, viewers are sure to be on the edge of their seats as they watch the team create a cake that truly captures the spirit of the Maryland Zoo.