Back in business

After a about a six week hiatus, I got back in the cake mode this week.  I was happy to make the wedding cake for some good friends, Jim and Tracy.  The design was very much like the blue cake I did in May, but purple!  Jim and Tracy are K-State fans so I'm not sure if that's why purple was their color but I liked it as well.  I think this was the first cake that didn't give me a bit of frustration.  I was super worried about delivering the cake because of the heat, but I was able to deliver the cake early in the morning and all went smoothly.  With my Mom out of town on vacation, Scott stepped in and was my chauffeur.  Thanks, Scott!  I was happy to hear how much everyone liked the cake but the best compliment was from Jim's daughter.  During her toast she said the chocolate cake was one of the best things about the wedding.  How can that be topped?!?! 

2 weekends, 2 wedding cakes

The past two Saturdays I have woken up with cake on my mind.  Wedding cake that is.  On May 28th, I made a black and white themed cake for a couple I never met.  Talk about trust!  This cake was special because I bartered this cake in exchange for wedding photography at my wedding.  Thanks craigslist.com!  The Bride emailed pictures of a few cakes and I suggested my favorite which she agreed with and that's how the cake design was finalized.  The Bride chose lemon cake...yummy!  I don't have a great picture of the cake because I have since lost my camera, but you get the idea of what it looked like.  I tried to make edible jewels but they didn't turn out.  Sometimes it's just not necessary to make it all edible!

The black and white cake was to feed 60-70 people.  Last weekend I made a cake to feed over 200!  Yes, it was a bit stressful especially with the 95 degree heat.  It's a bit harder to deliver a cake when it's so hot.  Thanks to my Mom's help, we got it delivered and it was a success!  The wedding colors were Tiffany blue, orange, and off white.  The colors were great!  The cake might have been traditional white on the inside, but it was a pretty Tiffany blue on the outside.  It's fun to see all the different layers with different designs come together and look good.  Of course the most important thing is that it tastes good and the Bride's Mom tells me she continues to get compliments on how great the cake tasted.  That makes me smile!  No cake mix in this masterpiece!

This weekend there is no cake on my mind!

Martini Birthday

I made the cutest martini birthday cake for my friend Janel this weekend.  When her husband asked me to make the cake for her surprise 30th birthday party, I was happy to do so!  I found a picture online and had so much fun making it a reality in my kitchen.  The cake was chocolate with a fudge frosting filling and buttercream on the outside.  The martini glasses, fruit, and colorful shapes were all edible and made out of fondant.  It was time consuming to make all the martini glasses but it was well worth the time.  I was super happy with the results.  Enjoy!

Royal Birthday

Last weekend I had two cake orders to fulfill.  The first was my goddaughter's 2nd birthday cake.  The birthday party theme was "Royal Birthday" since it was the same day as the Royal Wedding.  No, I did not duplicate the Royal wedding cake!  I did try something new.  I used isomalt to create and crown to top the cake.  Isomalt is a sugar substitute that can be used for sugar art.  Considering I didn't have a mold, I think the freeform crown turned out pretty good.  The strawberry cake was a great choice for a spring birthday!

After the birthday celebration friday night, I was up early Saturday morning to put the finishing touches on a bridal shower cake for a coworker.  Another fun spring cake!

Barbie Girl!

Two of my favorite childhood characters came to live in my kitchen this week.  I don't really remember the story about Strawberry Shortcake, but I do recall having a Strawberry Shortcake mini-house and lots of plastic figures.  I also had a Strawberry Shortcake doll that smelled wonderful and had a fabulous haircut thanks to yours truly and a pair of scissors.  My Mom loves to hassle me about cutting my dolls hair.  I will post of picture of the Strawberry Shortcake cake later this week.  I also made my first Barbie cake this week.  Mattie sure is a lucky girl!  She had two parties with two fabulous cakes to celebrate her 5th birthday on Tuesday. 

No, I did not bake Barbie in the cake!  The cake is actually 3-9 inch round cakes topped off with a cake I baked in a mixing bowl.  Better yet, Barbie is made of carrot cake with a top secret pecan filling.  I made Barbie's dress pink to match the streaks of pink in her hair.  I hope Mattie had a wonderful birthday celebration all week! 

Fresh Fruit Sponge Cake

This week's project was a sponge cake topped with whipped cream and fresh fruit.  It was for a coworker who is moving back to Japan.  Since she doesn't like super sweet desserts, I opted for a light sponge cake with pastry cream in between the layers.  It was topped with a thin layer of whipped cream and lots of fresh fruit.  Since I gave up sweets and dessert for Lent, I didn't try a piece but it sure looked good.  Oh, did I mention that I was up at 4:00am Friday morning to put these cakes together?  I didn't want to let it set overnight so I just got up early to get it done before work.  I must really like making cakes!  My next projects include a Strawberry Shortcake cake and a Barbie cake. 

Happy 1st Birthday Calen!

It was a Super Calen Bowl yesterday!  My little friend Calen turned one yesterday and I was happy to make is football themed birthday cake.  I had dreams of making an edible version of the Super Bowl trophy, but opted for a football field and 3D football on a kickoff tee.  Folks often ask me if I watch the cake decorating TV shows.  I do, but I often wonder if anyone eats those cakes.  They look cool on the outside but I'm not sure I want to eat cake that has been handled so much.  And I sure don't want to eat dried out rice krispies treats covered in frosting and fondant.  So, my goal is to make cakes that taste as good or better than they look.  Sometimes that means I can't make my dreams come true.  But, I was happy with the results of this cake and Calen seemed to enjoy it as well!