After stopping in the Mile High City in 2010 on his first national tour, TLC TV star Buddy Valastro is making a another stop for his newest live show: An Evening with Buddy Valastro: The Cake Boss. For his interactive program on July 13 at the Paramount Theatre, Valastro says to bring your four-year-old or your great-grandmother. Participants will square off against other audience members in a cake-decorating challenge and the Cake Boss will do what he does best: decorate a wedding cake. Valastro will also discuss the history of Carlo’s Bakery (in Hoboken, New Jersey), talk about how he became “the Cake Boss,” and field questions. I got the conversation started.

5280: What’s better: the cake or the frosting?

BV: It’s a combination of both.

5280: Is there an ingredient that recreational bakers should make sure to use?

BV: Try to do everything from scratch. Make it with love, that’s the difference. Use butter. Use the good stuff.

5280: What’s your advice for high-altitude cake decorating?

BV: I have worked in Denver a few times with different competitions and it’s pretty hard. The fondant dries out. It is trickier than usual. If you are using fondant, massage a little vegetable oil into the fondant to give it a little elasticity. That’s a trick I learned the hard way.

5280: How do you keep Carlo’s Bakery grounded even though it is known internationally?

BV: We stick to our roots and traditions. We do things the old fashioned way. We build things up a little bit at a time and that’s how I think we’ve stayed good.

5280: How do you balance family life, the TV show, appearances, and running the bakery?

BV: What I try to do is give 100 percent of Buddy to wherever I’m at. If I’m talking to you right know, you have 100 percent of my attention. If I’m doing a cake, it’s 100 percent. If I’m with my kid, it’s 100 percent. When you are in the moment, give all of yourself and there’s nothing else you can do.

Photo courtesy of Mills Entertainment