Christmas Cookie Time

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Where the Wild Things Are Cake

I had the pleasure of making a first birthday cake for a very cute little boy named Max.  His parents wanted a cake that depicted a boat scene from the book Where the Wild Things Are.  I pondered how I was going to accomplish this for some time.  I think I came up with a great solution, and I have to say, I am pretty proud of this cake.

I used a lot of different techniques and tools to help me make this cake.  I had the idea to make it like a painting.  I used a sheet on fondant and drew this picture free hand while I looked at the page out of the book.  Then I used a variety of things to actually fill in and color the picture, including edible markers, food coloring, gum paste.  I was so pleased with the results.  I think this is one of my favorite cakes I've ever done!

Fairies Cake

I am so behind on blogging that this is my daughter's 2nd birthday cake.  She is turning three in about two weeks!  Oh well, better late than never, right!?!?  My daughter really loves Tinkerbell and all the other fairies that reside in Pixie Hollow!  In fact, up until very recently, she has been saying that she wants a Tinkerbell cake again this year.  She has changed her mind, and hopefully I will have her 3rd birthday cake on here before she turns four!

I generally do not purchase items to place on cakes.  I often prefer to handcraft things instead of plopping some plastic crap on my cakes.  However, I was just so enticed by these adorable fairy figures that were actually usable stamps after coming off of the cake that I just could not resist.  Plus, I was pregnant, so the easier the better!  Of course my daughter was thrilled to get some fun little toys after her cake too, so maybe that plastic crap isn't so bad after all.  I did a lot of cutting and stacking with this cake.  I believe it was about a full double layer sheet of cake when all was said and done.  It was delicious, and my little birthday girl adored her cake.  What more could I ask for?

 

Cutting and shaping cakes is a lot easier than it seems.  You just need a little practice.  Most importantly, make sure that if you plan to cut and stack or sculpt cake that you are working with a sturdy cake.  There is nothing worse than trying to do this work with a crumbly cake.  You can even buy cakes un-iced at your local bakery or from me to practice!  And, I am sure your family and friends will be thrilled to help you get rid of your practice cakes.

Mint Chocolate Birthday Cake

Wow, it has been quite a long time since I have made a post.  My last post was back in July before my third daughter was born.  I had three kids 4 and under for about a month until my 4 year old turned 5 in August.  Needless to say, I have been super busy not only with the kids, but with baking too!  I have a ton of things to post, but I decided to start with this sweet little cake.

I made this cake for little girl's first birthday.  Her parents are huge fans of chocolate and mint, so I came up with this delicious combination.  I started with my regular chocolate cake.  I decided to throw some Andes candies chips into the batter.  It made the cake slightly minty and extra moist and chocolatey.  I didn't want to make the cake too minty/toothpastey, so I decided not to cover the whole cake in mint buttercream.  However, I did make a standard buttercream with some mint extract for in between the two layers of cake.  I have a recipe for an icing that I call chocolate satin frosting.  It is almost like a ganache, but not quite, and it is not super sweet.  I thought it would be the perfect pairing for this cake.  (Actually, I think it was my hubby's idea.)  I used simple fondant numbers and letters with polka dots for the decorations.  All in all, I thought this cake looked sweet and was delicious.  Even my husband who is not a huge fan of chocolate and mint enjoyed this cake.

The National Confectioners Association has declared February 19 "Chocolate Mint Day".  So next year on February 19, celebrate with some chocolate mint candies, mint chocolate chip ice cream, or whip up and cake like this for yourself.  Or better yet, save yourself the mess, and order one from me!