Martha Speaks Cake

My baby was turning 1, so I decided to do a Martha Speaks cake. She loves that show, especially the theme song. It was super cute, and everyone loved it!

Chocolate cake with my French buttercream is my very favorite combination. I decided to do the base which was a double layer half sheet cake with that combo because it is always a crowd pleaser and I love it so much! I did the dog bowl with the same icing, but white cake instead. I made my baby her own little smash cake with white batter as well. I didn't know how much of her little cake she would eat, and I didn't want her eating an entire 6 inch chocolate cake. It turned out that she didn't eat that much of it, mostly icing :) I decided to use a stuffed Martha for several reasons. One of the reasons was because I thought my daughter would really enjoy the stuffed Martha afterwards, which she really does! Another reason, though, was because Martha is a cartoon character and not 3D. I didn't really want to sculpt a 3D version of a flat cartoon character . I used rolled fondant to cover the cakes. I don't like the taste of it, and I think only one person ate it, but it was super cute! Everyone loved the cake, and I am very proud of it!

Do you use nonstick pans to bake your cakes or cookies? You may want to think twice about that. You will get a much more tender, evenly baked product if you use regular baking pans that have been well greased, if the recipe calls for that. Dark metal pans are typically heavy, and therefore conduct and hold heat more than pans that weigh less and are a lighter color. If you do choose to use these dark pans, you must adjust the baking time and sometimes even the baking temperature. Otherwise, your product will be overbaked. I, as well as most professionals that I have come across, prefer lighter pans to bake. I think your product turns out much better overall.