Mother/Daughter baking team in Benicia, CA create eye-popping bread sculptures every Halloween, inspired by popular film & television characters
BENICIA, Calif., Oct. 7, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- An incredible mother/daughter baking team in Benicia, California today unveiled "The Last of Crust," a life-size bread sculpture inspired by the hit show and video game "The Last of Us," starring Pedro Pascal.
The "clickers" from the show, hand-sculpted and baked by Hannalee Pervan and her mother Catherine in Benicia's One House Bakery, are covered in more than 1,000 individually-created "mushrooms." The exhibit took over 400 hours of labor to construct, more than twice as long as last year's "Pan Solo." The creature's man-eating chompers were hand-sculpted and modeled after Catherine's own teeth.
"We both just loved the show!" says head baker and co-owner of One House Bakery, Hannalee Pervan. "I'm not usually into being scared, but the story was so incredibly beautiful while also being terrifying. I cried after every single episode!"
Hannalee, who studied at Le Cordon Bleu and previously worked as a bread maker for French Laundry, had no playbook to follow for creating the intricate and unusual shapes that make up the "clickers" -- zombie-like creatures infected with a mind-controlling fungus. She relied on chisels, blow dryers, and a Dremel to create the spookily life-like detail.
"I was lying in bed one night, and I thought, 'What if I wrap a balloon in a really thin layer of dough and then bake it?' When the popped balloon is removed, it leaves behind these really strange pod-like shapes we were able to use."
It's not the first time One House Bakery has paid homage to a Pedro Pascal Show. In 2020, they created "The Paindoughlorian," featuring the iconic characters of The Mandalorian.
"The Last of Crust" is just the latest in a long line of One House's incredible bread sculptures over the years, created annually for Benicia's Halloween Scarecrow Contest:
- 2020: "The Paindoughlorian," a life-size bread sculpture of another Pedro Pascal series recreated the Mandalorian and Baby Yoda - and was featured on Live With Kelli and Ryan!
- 2021: "Alligator "Dough-ki," also made from bread, a life-size Alligator Loki from Disney+'s Loki
- 2022: "Pan Solo" a life-size bread sculpture of Han Solo frozen in carbonite, made international headlines and was featured in The New York Times, Washington Post, and The Today Show
Why do these women put so much of their heart and soul into these sculptures every Halloween, while also running their own business?
"We just want to get people to come to Benicia," Hannalee says. "Make a day out of it! Go up and down First Street and look at everybody's display. It's magical here in the fall."
One House Bakery's annual creations are part of Benicia's Scarecrow Contest, where visitors can view similar displays outside the many charming restaurants, art galleries, and shopping boutiques lining First Street, Benicia. Visitors can also vote for their favorite from Oct 1 - 23 (scarecrows will be on display through 10/31)!
"The Last of Crust" will be available for visitors to see and pose beside throughout the spooky season, until the first or second week of November.
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- Media Kit (Photo Credit Hannalee Pervan, One House Bakery)
- One House Bakery's original instagram post for "The Last of Crust"
- Video for social media with factoids and halloween music
TO ARRANGE AN INTERVIEW WITH HANNALEE PERVAN, OR FOR OTHER MEDIA INQUIRIES, PLEASE CONTACT:
Kevin Almeida | CDA (Agency of Record for Visit Benicia)
p. 213.509.7630
SOURCE City of Benicia
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