tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66701697372281348772024-03-14T01:02:00.186-05:00The Joys of CakingWhere Joy makes the cakes that fill your tummy with joy.The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.comBlogger60125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-71365113258262403812021-12-13T14:04:00.002-06:002021-12-13T14:13:55.033-06:00The Best Way of Spreading Christmas Cheer . . .<p> Is making a cake!</p><p>This year I was fortunate enough to participate in our community theatre's production of Elf, the musical. We wrapped the show this past weekend and had a potluck cast party.</p><p>And what does an amateur baker bring to a cast party potluck? A buddy the elf cake of course!</p><p>I started by making Buddy out of fondant.</p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhgLVzEUykqiCR91Bm4VOge5S_hS23qoD5sHNXuzrnaq5ELejGeKWwL58cLMOC5xMs1Mupj2scoNj460olTPWbswt_Hlk51aCEkPUzaB1fG_g7vYQi-JyjUHKyNVo3zJ-ypA3gW8H8LCMF02vJjLdcLc2-CDam3u-3K5qHlKpZaafsozNUHfruBMipv=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhgLVzEUykqiCR91Bm4VOge5S_hS23qoD5sHNXuzrnaq5ELejGeKWwL58cLMOC5xMs1Mupj2scoNj460olTPWbswt_Hlk51aCEkPUzaB1fG_g7vYQi-JyjUHKyNVo3zJ-ypA3gW8H8LCMF02vJjLdcLc2-CDam3u-3K5qHlKpZaafsozNUHfruBMipv=s320" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgX9qMPWxRfN8EFN93pai7UPeXOUkvGL7sUVfEuhfYw_m23gh9hv0cLFHNsxipSFI8YRPY-KQoLoNCmPBtyqu1qnTY8jflynTHt1u5RZtXnZGFrola2LT6bAQ92vTJtiblW_1vjsg537vGmyP_JqFNNel5OASTsSro4trYlKTw5tmDQFdQzf4rqPgIi=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgX9qMPWxRfN8EFN93pai7UPeXOUkvGL7sUVfEuhfYw_m23gh9hv0cLFHNsxipSFI8YRPY-KQoLoNCmPBtyqu1qnTY8jflynTHt1u5RZtXnZGFrola2LT6bAQ92vTJtiblW_1vjsg537vGmyP_JqFNNel5OASTsSro4trYlKTw5tmDQFdQzf4rqPgIi=s320" width="240" /></a></p><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiuDEJ6VAlA6L5ACnN0DoXxYfKiP9Udcq8aTZeeyNuKpCCIyYPDARShR5NURzygK76Fz9_S0YDKipzI7epiCscLiyucfcCRVoEZUoPp0U48j7ABD4stN9URqpkPqUO2GvvGEaVdAOJmV_O38o4TwKalxMtr8wt5eiF5-W_MgqLQdksj-JR6Bp1qybYt=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjujc2DlUjWkmgKX2Mo64GjG9z_yMdm4hoCi5HorI_WAkSISs-yKEROBDXckM0t8wsXsE5se--pBQ6n0ngU_HLpR1SvQphKlGmFyburI0EfT2ZomqovjJxLufziYw5-4LNRrn7qsDKWlsLX-dqhgXN3GyBRqtM4rFReR1Sp3S2lRFAN842PhpeS5nKL=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjujc2DlUjWkmgKX2Mo64GjG9z_yMdm4hoCi5HorI_WAkSISs-yKEROBDXckM0t8wsXsE5se--pBQ6n0ngU_HLpR1SvQphKlGmFyburI0EfT2ZomqovjJxLufziYw5-4LNRrn7qsDKWlsLX-dqhgXN3GyBRqtM4rFReR1Sp3S2lRFAN842PhpeS5nKL=s320" width="240" /></a><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiuDEJ6VAlA6L5ACnN0DoXxYfKiP9Udcq8aTZeeyNuKpCCIyYPDARShR5NURzygK76Fz9_S0YDKipzI7epiCscLiyucfcCRVoEZUoPp0U48j7ABD4stN9URqpkPqUO2GvvGEaVdAOJmV_O38o4TwKalxMtr8wt5eiF5-W_MgqLQdksj-JR6Bp1qybYt=s320" width="240" /></p><p></p><p>I knew I wanted to make the cake look like Buddy's outfit. I made a two tier, chocolate with chocolate cream whipped filling (8 in and 6 in). I covered them in a crumb coat and then green fondant. I added a yellow triangle on the bottom tier and covered the seams with rolls of green fondant. The top layer got a black belt, yellow buckle, and white collar. I used yellow dust to look like the embroidery on the jacket.</p><p>My husband made a cone for me out of posterboard. I covered it in green fondant, added a yellow stripe and a red feather, then gently placed it on top of the cake.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhCvcElDbHf_mByIgIBYovxp90-IEqNRbcP1tuWNdNpr8K3bKGBAFx3ryU9MJwi6-ogkFm-vGr9kz5Hhmi6YrmczMTSUl3OYkVu4zqcql9AOMmGf3MeYots-iuPQIEJtWZAQhmdKtXtmAAV1Z42ML1o0waNyLXPa5c2bd8vWHCjGbDILS8BWpbc8pKy=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhCvcElDbHf_mByIgIBYovxp90-IEqNRbcP1tuWNdNpr8K3bKGBAFx3ryU9MJwi6-ogkFm-vGr9kz5Hhmi6YrmczMTSUl3OYkVu4zqcql9AOMmGf3MeYots-iuPQIEJtWZAQhmdKtXtmAAV1Z42ML1o0waNyLXPa5c2bd8vWHCjGbDILS8BWpbc8pKy=s320" width="240" /></a></p><p>I also made an etch-a-sketch, two fondant trees, and a bowl of spaghetti.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhij1ZoQQ5poE-M7X2_tV_xgLyUoUUiY8b4CgeMnPNv919ryU-seYpIuCA3ujiHh-LciRt4obP8TikgrGzRo6yyLYvcRSm78MTrw3eLnOH0qzzHDYhI2M4-eFfNIXl3ujYGWFHwZh_SWiCkj29xBhZ0_8HyJXkFesjpearQIxx8p0S6ly0EBwoFH5uX=s4032" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhij1ZoQQ5poE-M7X2_tV_xgLyUoUUiY8b4CgeMnPNv919ryU-seYpIuCA3ujiHh-LciRt4obP8TikgrGzRo6yyLYvcRSm78MTrw3eLnOH0qzzHDYhI2M4-eFfNIXl3ujYGWFHwZh_SWiCkj29xBhZ0_8HyJXkFesjpearQIxx8p0S6ly0EBwoFH5uX=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Buddy with his breakfast spaghetti</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhrw6eEjwMD8X6HT2Dd7mHK2yvnPCqx4jcjlQxR2uMT7RrhnoEdDF6eceVUK9msET5CtGwme0BzxMAlJnmXJf9YFK2PvwZwsBDoLk8TmQppf3EOaanLkJcLuMT_qSQ1-wNzFzeOL-DQpULvkR62PmTATsxcC5kRZMihFKmeg8L1NPq8LTtPFj0f0sV8=s4032" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhrw6eEjwMD8X6HT2Dd7mHK2yvnPCqx4jcjlQxR2uMT7RrhnoEdDF6eceVUK9msET5CtGwme0BzxMAlJnmXJf9YFK2PvwZwsBDoLk8TmQppf3EOaanLkJcLuMT_qSQ1-wNzFzeOL-DQpULvkR62PmTATsxcC5kRZMihFKmeg8L1NPq8LTtPFj0f0sV8=s320" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Buddy and his etch-a-sketch</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgfIdw1DNFnxXwTmfMPBRjkPQmiJMsewK9eFqzVGPO1vsqHUloCeQC5fnAeUUwyx3WBtyS1jCgoqxbbJVtE3wwLnnj8libFnPBxjt7WSpeBLZMv3_g1oHsE0ByHbvEyisf9sFfSeSu-ahTfy6gkAOqtnEn4shvwIcKeVXiPLTQPSs1_svFR8ayhe7CR=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgfIdw1DNFnxXwTmfMPBRjkPQmiJMsewK9eFqzVGPO1vsqHUloCeQC5fnAeUUwyx3WBtyS1jCgoqxbbJVtE3wwLnnj8libFnPBxjt7WSpeBLZMv3_g1oHsE0ByHbvEyisf9sFfSeSu-ahTfy6gkAOqtnEn4shvwIcKeVXiPLTQPSs1_svFR8ayhe7CR=w300-h400" width="300" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhz7sfCFn9JA4anFL5ktaIuELSiSomNHRP21CagULRka3OOLHef4Bq088pDy4VgESdLm4C2L1Psmy9Wu4wjMkogLrZD4p7KFaT0QD5wG8mzBR5L9oA7P5h1pUC-N_o6ACRlv_dYv2DHNEGQqYtmvB2OV_itsVW7kgovRm-zVPrKzfl9g5EeNpQ1wki7=s4032" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhz7sfCFn9JA4anFL5ktaIuELSiSomNHRP21CagULRka3OOLHef4Bq088pDy4VgESdLm4C2L1Psmy9Wu4wjMkogLrZD4p7KFaT0QD5wG8mzBR5L9oA7P5h1pUC-N_o6ACRlv_dYv2DHNEGQqYtmvB2OV_itsVW7kgovRm-zVPrKzfl9g5EeNpQ1wki7=s320" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Etch-a-sketch and bowl of spaghetti</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgdxT09EskTOsrwY5Gj2RVdeiK9YefDla_7qNoLi9AWb5xd35tyErEN0UxQuUmjZs7wWL2EZ6L5Cx1dKY3uuwHWb5ZgXE-mkxO9tndKpHdFZwgIrNr21y1HhrOZhMEeIxYXh3cn083i2WPKhkq8s2r6g3twcLaQZ9OhzhsQqabT7sF-QyvtHiRoGDAg=s4032" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgdxT09EskTOsrwY5Gj2RVdeiK9YefDla_7qNoLi9AWb5xd35tyErEN0UxQuUmjZs7wWL2EZ6L5Cx1dKY3uuwHWb5ZgXE-mkxO9tndKpHdFZwgIrNr21y1HhrOZhMEeIxYXh3cn083i2WPKhkq8s2r6g3twcLaQZ9OhzhsQqabT7sF-QyvtHiRoGDAg=s320" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Buddy.</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Everyone at the cast party loved the cake!</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-GInP9pRIxnT4hw52z8ildHmtskjD8jj-CvsslCjCyNz395fCpCKtzJxPEJLlGFz4pdC5FW9jc7lsQ3hyRHEjvjlQQqLIcI_kBEUnK15Fx1-vm_V7XCWYA1EMPxcgbAqSsoukejN7UFZm-GU9s0tLiqWQzQChM7dhGUYmVX0Ve3nxjqXNQl_LaBSf=s4032" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg-GInP9pRIxnT4hw52z8ildHmtskjD8jj-CvsslCjCyNz395fCpCKtzJxPEJLlGFz4pdC5FW9jc7lsQ3hyRHEjvjlQQqLIcI_kBEUnK15Fx1-vm_V7XCWYA1EMPxcgbAqSsoukejN7UFZm-GU9s0tLiqWQzQChM7dhGUYmVX0Ve3nxjqXNQl_LaBSf=w480-h640" width="480" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Happy last performance!</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p></p></div>The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-52976384864375270132021-08-16T13:16:00.002-05:002021-08-16T13:16:19.416-05:00Minnie Mouse in the House!<p>You know how that saying:</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7ZK5JQvMRCg/YRqkyaALfWI/AAAAAAAAdIk/nkSXyYAKazgavzn2-PrI3QDa5x0wQqCWACLcBGAsYHQ/s466/grandchildren.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="409" data-original-width="466" height="281" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7ZK5JQvMRCg/YRqkyaALfWI/AAAAAAAAdIk/nkSXyYAKazgavzn2-PrI3QDa5x0wQqCWACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/grandchildren.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>Well, I'm so smart, that's exactly what I did! (Although technically I started with stepkids)<div><br /></div><div>We celebrated my granddaughter's first birthday last weekend. I can't believe she's one! She is so adorable. She's curious and fiercely independent. She is just so stinkin' cute.</div><div><br /></div><div>Now, I've always had a policy that I don't make birthday cakes for one year olds. This happened because my nephew was older than 1 when I started making cakes, so I kind of just made it a rule for all the others. It's not like they will remember it, right?</div><div><br /></div><div>But for my granddaughter, I had to make an exception. Her party was Minnie Mouse themed and her mom asked me to make this beautiful pink outline of Minnie Mouse.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thank you, Minnie Mouse, for being an easy shape. </div><div><br /></div><div>The first thing I made was the fondant hairbow so it could dry and hold it's shape.</div><div><br /></div><div>I made one 10-inch round cake for the face and two 6-inch round cakes for the ears. The ten inch was my classic yellow cake with raspberry mousse filling (haha, get it? mouse -- mousse).</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nKFD_c3sBY8/YRqqe47WieI/AAAAAAAAdI4/XYQ2oczaoEwQRp-INHxP8flQZWFv5NS0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1564/IMG_20210816_131019.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1564" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nKFD_c3sBY8/YRqqe47WieI/AAAAAAAAdI4/XYQ2oczaoEwQRp-INHxP8flQZWFv5NS0gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/IMG_20210816_131019.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The six inch cakes were chocolate with a chocolate fudge mousse and peanut butter chip filling.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S9I3NX9wVds/YRqmyEoyH3I/AAAAAAAAdIs/RRI69yNRbb8VF7kEioSmcEEezzHK2meDACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210814_144330952.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-S9I3NX9wVds/YRqmyEoyH3I/AAAAAAAAdIs/RRI69yNRbb8VF7kEioSmcEEezzHK2meDACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210814_144330952.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div><br /></div>One of the biggest challenges of making this cake was finding a cake board that was the right size. I don't live near a JoAnns or Michaels or Hobby Lobby and Walmart didn't have the size I needed. So, I improvised. I bought a foam board from the craft section and my husband cut it into a square for me. I covered it with silver cake board wrapping and it looked fantastic!<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-55Iv3uaSStA/YRqmyDP0cWI/AAAAAAAAdIs/cI6iKmO9afQW-rjuRZmmxJpb8TJLXlcPQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210814_151839092.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-55Iv3uaSStA/YRqmyDP0cWI/AAAAAAAAdIs/cI6iKmO9afQW-rjuRZmmxJpb8TJLXlcPQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210814_151839092.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div><br /></div>I did a quick crumb coat of the cakes and then began piping (I used tip 1M for those who care). I had estimated I would need 2 batches of frosting for this cake. I ended up needing 5 BATCHES. That's an insane amount of frosting. Do you know how hard it is to match the color of 5 separate batches? Honey, I think I do need the professional kitchen aid mixer after all . . . </div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vr1ZFeqNMNI/YRqmyEip98I/AAAAAAAAdIs/Acj0tVZRausReo866lSG8AFK1j8ggRggwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210814_162016851.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Vr1ZFeqNMNI/YRqmyEip98I/AAAAAAAAdIs/Acj0tVZRausReo866lSG8AFK1j8ggRggwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210814_162016851.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div>The next challenge was to transfer the ears from their cutting boards to the cake board without dropping them or messing up the frosting. I used some big cake knives and managed to get both of them on the board without mishap!</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tW4ygu4OTcM/YRqmyFnwWCI/AAAAAAAAdIs/9uaUV94nJocc-tZyw9bcxy37CH3kIkJfACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210814_162840807.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tW4ygu4OTcM/YRqmyFnwWCI/AAAAAAAAdIs/9uaUV94nJocc-tZyw9bcxy37CH3kIkJfACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210814_162840807.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Then I added the hairbow.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4f01TdVVJAc/YRqmyOpPIsI/AAAAAAAAdIs/NXA1HGytxt4dau3VHUHJ8T5MMeJ-xOYmQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210814_163222372.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4f01TdVVJAc/YRqmyOpPIsI/AAAAAAAAdIs/NXA1HGytxt4dau3VHUHJ8T5MMeJ-xOYmQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210814_163222372.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><div><br /></div>I had planned on piping my granddaughter's name on the cake, but I ran out of frosting. So I quickly cut out some fondant letters and put them on the cake board.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--uXC4fXySVQ/YRqmyMLAhdI/AAAAAAAAdIs/DSYe3jPkcvQKpx4c1ftA_eBC2Eqfb5qkwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210814_163857790.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--uXC4fXySVQ/YRqmyMLAhdI/AAAAAAAAdIs/DSYe3jPkcvQKpx4c1ftA_eBC2Eqfb5qkwCPcBGAsYHg/w480-h640/PXL_20210814_163857790.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div>The cake looked adorable. Here it is at the party! And of course, it tasted delicious as always.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fBZOocc7qrc/YRqmyEL7KyI/AAAAAAAAdIs/T_3T24cA-us11qfqRyN2hzDG_mNOdj-XACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210814_170213546.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fBZOocc7qrc/YRqmyEL7KyI/AAAAAAAAdIs/T_3T24cA-us11qfqRyN2hzDG_mNOdj-XACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210814_170213546.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div>Happy birthday, Emryn! Here's to many more birthday cakes!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div><br /><p><br /></p></div></div></div>The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-39315765801362817032021-02-23T12:32:00.000-06:002021-02-23T12:32:41.056-06:00Cheesecake is Still Cake<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I used to not really like cheesecake. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then I met my husband.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">He doesn't like super sweet desserts, so cheesecake is right up his alley. The first cheesecake I ever made was for his birthday a couple years ago. And I was hooked.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Since then, I've been experimenting with different flavors. (the cranberry Christmas cheesecake was the favorite so far).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This year for his birthday, I tried a turtle cheesecake. But none of the recipes I found were quite what i was looking for, so I ended up combining about four different recipes to create this masterpiece.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Now my husband always gets frustrated when he clicks on a link for a recipe and then has to read through endless "cutsey" text and anecdotes before he can get to the actual recipe. So in honor of him, I am posting the recipe first. (Love you, honey!) If you like the tips, photos, and anecdotes, keep reading.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_f9Lab_Mato/YDVIMLcGqdI/AAAAAAAAaHg/pFdzAfLkpmsIDFs-g-1QAZfetPU0HOG5wCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_211622804.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_f9Lab_Mato/YDVIMLcGqdI/AAAAAAAAaHg/pFdzAfLkpmsIDFs-g-1QAZfetPU0HOG5wCPcBGAsYHg/w400-h300/PXL_20210221_211622804.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8m1ArSWsw_I/YDVFgiRHVwI/AAAAAAAAaHA/WpezCLfeVJYgTQTqwAB6pNu0TTCgJfsXACLcBGAsYHQ/s800/imageedit_3_6408988599.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="800" height="384" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8m1ArSWsw_I/YDVFgiRHVwI/AAAAAAAAaHA/WpezCLfeVJYgTQTqwAB6pNu0TTCgJfsXACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h384/imageedit_3_6408988599.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uEafjhp7fMY/YDVHPJBEtZI/AAAAAAAAaHU/WagelWaFRwswlOHZuzDmqrs1dFaR-OqbACLcBGAsYHQ/s941/imageedit_6_8912166707.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="941" height="367" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uEafjhp7fMY/YDVHPJBEtZI/AAAAAAAAaHU/WagelWaFRwswlOHZuzDmqrs1dFaR-OqbACLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h367/imageedit_6_8912166707.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Shout out to <a href="https://www.lifeloveandsugar.com/mini-chocolate-cheesecakes/#tasty-recipes-31817" target="_blank">Life, Love, and Sugar</a>, <a href="https://mommymouseclubhouse.com/carmel-pecan-turtle-cheesecake/" target="_blank">Mommy Mouse Clubhouse</a>, <a href="https://hustlemomrepeat.com/best-turtle-cheesecake/" target="_blank">Hustle Mom Repeat</a>, <a href="https://realitydaydream.com/turtle-cheesecake-yes-please/" target="_blank">Reality Day Dream</a>, and <a href="https://www.manilaspoon.com/2015/09/yummy-blueberry-cheesecake.html" target="_blank">Manila Spoon</a> for providing parts of this recipe.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I started with the crust. I could not find chocolate graham crackers at the store but they did have chocolate teddy grahams. So I chopped those up in my fabulous ninja "food processor" and mixed them with butter and just a little sugar for the crust.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cIF1zFb3Vrc/YDP6Ly2zB4I/AAAAAAAAaF8/lJNLGkGsaakg2-QiTPphbWHYq_FAv9QrwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_143751699.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cIF1zFb3Vrc/YDP6Ly2zB4I/AAAAAAAAaF8/lJNLGkGsaakg2-QiTPphbWHYq_FAv9QrwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_143751699.PORTRAIT.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I sprayed the bottom of my springform pan with Wilton baking spray, then poured in the crust. I use the bottom of a glass to push it down so it holds together nicely.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TcNcQTE4B2c/YDP6L2xZeJI/AAAAAAAAaF8/0ykiu3MpsEkESPm1dPU1UKRVBFHEDKsCwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_144839006.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TcNcQTE4B2c/YDP6L2xZeJI/AAAAAAAAaF8/0ykiu3MpsEkESPm1dPU1UKRVBFHEDKsCwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_144839006.PORTRAIT.jpg" /></a></div><p>I was supposed to bake the crust for 8 minutes, but it was more like 6 (I was pressed for time). Then I let it cool for a bit.</p><p>Next I put a layer of caramel on top of the crust. It hadn't quite cooled enough, so the caramel soaked in more than I wanted it to. But it turned out okay. I used Torani caramel because I use their syrups for punch and lemonade and I thought it would be good caramel. It was! And the bottle was really easy to use, which was nice.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gUBjIcE6mQI/YDP6L7W8BLI/AAAAAAAAaF8/ajXwTDO83mAmk4t9Ct73hm1p03FcSVucgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_150140183.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gUBjIcE6mQI/YDP6L7W8BLI/AAAAAAAAaF8/ajXwTDO83mAmk4t9Ct73hm1p03FcSVucgCPcBGAsYHg/w150-h200/PXL_20210221_150140183.jpg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cTd2FlnK-MA/YDP6L_hq5ZI/AAAAAAAAaF8/3GHHUa0Ns8orKQJ2_OQKVlsHJQlm00cCgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_145059790.PORTRAIT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cTd2FlnK-MA/YDP6L_hq5ZI/AAAAAAAAaF8/3GHHUa0Ns8orKQJ2_OQKVlsHJQlm00cCgCPcBGAsYHg/w150-h200/PXL_20210221_145059790.PORTRAIT.jpg" width="150" /></a></div></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DpQ8IiIsxZo/YDP6L6omA7I/AAAAAAAAaF8/hpeEIeF4RC8riEelX-GZTo0DqBo3hjDUACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_150234197.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DpQ8IiIsxZo/YDP6L6omA7I/AAAAAAAAaF8/hpeEIeF4RC8riEelX-GZTo0DqBo3hjDUACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_150234197.jpg" /></a></div><p>Next I made the cheesecake batter. Most cheesecake recipes have sour cream, but I really like this one from <a href="https://www.manilaspoon.com/2015/09/yummy-blueberry-cheesecake.html" target="_blank">Manila Spoon</a> which omits the sour cream. I use it as the base for all of my cheesecakes.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SWkElIDH8Pg/YDP6L_LGPyI/AAAAAAAAaF8/JWU0_G2DuX8dE43GQ-Ytf40CIqiP__htQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_150648524.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SWkElIDH8Pg/YDP6L_LGPyI/AAAAAAAAaF8/JWU0_G2DuX8dE43GQ-Ytf40CIqiP__htQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_150648524.jpg" /></a></div><p>Make sure to whip the cream cheese and sugar until it's nice and soft and looks like frosting.</p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--CPNmBr39ZA/YDP6L-hIpAI/AAAAAAAAaF8/hVkCQjnF838hfFYb1H7SNltTiERA5fbqgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_151215669.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--CPNmBr39ZA/YDP6L-hIpAI/AAAAAAAAaF8/hVkCQjnF838hfFYb1H7SNltTiERA5fbqgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_151215669.jpg" /></a></div><p>When you add the eggs, beat them in one at a time. Make sure you scrape the sides of the bowl often so you get all ingredients that hide in those hard to reach places in your mixer. It should end up looking like this.</p><p>I took the crust out of the fridge.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KgDKLwVrRsk/YDP6L_0KAsI/AAAAAAAAaF8/KMIIrQjVjwsUAxznksT7AGfTd4Pl-INlwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_151221028.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KgDKLwVrRsk/YDP6L_0KAsI/AAAAAAAAaF8/KMIIrQjVjwsUAxznksT7AGfTd4Pl-INlwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_151221028.jpg" /></a></div><p><br /></p>I poured in 2/3 of the batter, then split the last third into two bowls to mix in the caramel and the chocolate chips. I almost poured it into the melted chips right after taking them out of the microwave! There are eggs in the batter and you don't want to cook them by adding them to something hot. So I put the chocolate in the fridge for a few minutes to cool down before I mixed it in. I didn't really like the chocolate chips, next time I would use hershey's fudge sauce instead.<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iPdl1_uAwyU/YDP6L9Cg0bI/AAAAAAAAaF8/EwYfFaA535w6slf7igGXxVEokd0qSZhQACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_152132464.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iPdl1_uAwyU/YDP6L9Cg0bI/AAAAAAAAaF8/EwYfFaA535w6slf7igGXxVEokd0qSZhQACPcBGAsYHg/w150-h200/PXL_20210221_152132464.jpg" width="150" /></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rJAEG8gftXc/YDP6L1Fd90I/AAAAAAAAaF8/R89ZfYU3wCIbN0WCeA7EAb4VVEOQOS6bQCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_152238747.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rJAEG8gftXc/YDP6L1Fd90I/AAAAAAAAaF8/R89ZfYU3wCIbN0WCeA7EAb4VVEOQOS6bQCPcBGAsYHg/w150-h200/PXL_20210221_152238747.jpg" width="150" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div></div>Then I spooned in the caramel and chocolate batter and swirled it with a knife.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fEfAmcnwHi0/YDP6L3dwfgI/AAAAAAAAaF8/xZuubE28sOAxGblZuJmw1ncRGOUB3RYyACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_152556084.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fEfAmcnwHi0/YDP6L3dwfgI/AAAAAAAAaF8/xZuubE28sOAxGblZuJmw1ncRGOUB3RYyACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_152556084.jpg" /></a></div><p>Your cheesecake will jiggle even when it's done. It's just that the middle doesn't jiggle on it's own, more of the whole cake will move together. If you hit the side of the pan with a wooden spoon, it shouldn't jiggle.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wUkfRJxAOJ8/YDP6Lyg9CuI/AAAAAAAAaF8/ZwzHt6DzID8sCDtadGVzZfbN8olaiWq9wCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_162947104.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wUkfRJxAOJ8/YDP6Lyg9CuI/AAAAAAAAaF8/ZwzHt6DzID8sCDtadGVzZfbN8olaiWq9wCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_162947104.jpg" /></a></div><p>Once it's done baking, I turn off the oven and crack open the door to let it cool slowly. This is to help prevent cracking. I do this for about 30-60 minutes and then take it out to cool fully. (Confession - this time it pretty much went straight into the fridge after cooling it in the oven because again, I was short on time).</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bMNS9VpD2Uo/YDP6LwSyT1I/AAAAAAAAaF8/42fH6O095es58mijtxtmHNJkOkMvDphdwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_185033048.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bMNS9VpD2Uo/YDP6LwSyT1I/AAAAAAAAaF8/42fH6O095es58mijtxtmHNJkOkMvDphdwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_185033048.jpg" /></a></div><p>Normally you would want it to chill for several hours, but once it was fully cooled, I added the decoration.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5m7fHWWbWHk/YDP6Lz5q-0I/AAAAAAAAaF8/2TnuDDYQ0z4NugGkto18Byp1Arl7CwyUwCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_185050655.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5m7fHWWbWHk/YDP6Lz5q-0I/AAAAAAAAaF8/2TnuDDYQ0z4NugGkto18Byp1Arl7CwyUwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_185050655.jpg" /></a></div><p>I put some Hershey's chocolate fudge in the microwave for about 20 seconds to make it pipeable. Then I spooned it into a piping bag and cut of the end. I went back and forth making chocolate lines. Next I added caramel using the Torani bottle.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-594Nw0Pcays/YDP6Lwxf6oI/AAAAAAAAaF8/QrG9u41hiowXEyA-HdMIiiGZOn4L1iSuACPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_185355107.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-594Nw0Pcays/YDP6Lwxf6oI/AAAAAAAAaF8/QrG9u41hiowXEyA-HdMIiiGZOn4L1iSuACPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_185355107.jpg" /></a></div><p>Then I added chopped pecans (courtesy of the Ninja again) and piped on the chocolate whipped cream (recipe above).</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k1tvu0nkNkM/YDP6Lxbh9ZI/AAAAAAAAaF8/mOXZEB2YR14XR5Rv5mr_o6rd3Qn3cCaSgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_211622804.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k1tvu0nkNkM/YDP6Lxbh9ZI/AAAAAAAAaF8/mOXZEB2YR14XR5Rv5mr_o6rd3Qn3cCaSgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_211622804.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>Finally, I piped Happy Birthday with the leftover Hershey's fudge sauce.</p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9aY4eJAjGLU/YDP6L1RmrTI/AAAAAAAAaF8/BIezKkebOtkOYU13YnoaPmxdPNtOSlMywCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_211616051.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9aY4eJAjGLU/YDP6L1RmrTI/AAAAAAAAaF8/BIezKkebOtkOYU13YnoaPmxdPNtOSlMywCPcBGAsYHg/w480-h640/PXL_20210221_211616051.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p>It was delicious! "Better than the cheesecake factory," according to my daughter-in-law. </p><p>Here's what it looked like on the inside:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h9po9g4Bkxk/YDP_WhjJh_I/AAAAAAAAaGM/W2KYheVSjMMPq5k_3tItW20AVziUJ7DLgCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20210221_212418073.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h9po9g4Bkxk/YDP_WhjJh_I/AAAAAAAAaGM/W2KYheVSjMMPq5k_3tItW20AVziUJ7DLgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/PXL_20210221_212418073.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p>Jeff said it was a toss up between this one and the cranberry one as to which was better.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nowC9Pe9A6E/YDQAU_6EMzI/AAAAAAAAaGU/AMPaS6oMNUQXuK6vrz6SHUz2HZDRoOdogCPcBGAsYHg/s4032/PXL_20201225_231527234.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nowC9Pe9A6E/YDQAU_6EMzI/AAAAAAAAaGU/AMPaS6oMNUQXuK6vrz6SHUz2HZDRoOdogCPcBGAsYHg/w480-h640/PXL_20201225_231527234.jpg" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just for comparison</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Happy Birthday to my favorite person in the world! I'm sure there will be many more cheesecake adventures to come!</p><br /> <p></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-73281802826858280042021-01-24T16:06:00.007-06:002021-01-24T16:06:54.375-06:00A Lovely Bouquet of Flowers<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I've already used my cake kitchen again!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">My co-worker, Diana, retired this January after many years of service. She worked in the office through 4 or 5 different county attorneys. Because of COVID, we couldn't have a retirement party for her, but we still wanted to give her a special send off.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I was in charge of cupcakes (the COVID friendly cake). I wanted to do something pretty that wasn't super complicated and I discovered the cupcake bouquet!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I started by making yellow cake and adding green food coloring so there would be this yellow color sticking out under the frosting flowers.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bshKxqGUpho/YA3qM5wI88I/AAAAAAAAZtg/Ejcsr4qZdwkkKuojfqxyVkxyd4lFYc0pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_034736885.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bshKxqGUpho/YA3qM5wI88I/AAAAAAAAZtg/Ejcsr4qZdwkkKuojfqxyVkxyd4lFYc0pwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_034736885.jpg" /></a></div><p>We weren't able to have Christmas with my in-laws this year but my mother-in-law sent us some goodies in this beautiful basket. it was perfect for the display. I bought a foam half circle and covered it with green tissue paper.</p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eVdIkwaUkQs/YA3qMpRxDQI/AAAAAAAAZtY/OQM2amJH2uIPlWeNROin_9yK8EoYdYwVgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_034740398.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eVdIkwaUkQs/YA3qMpRxDQI/AAAAAAAAZtY/OQM2amJH2uIPlWeNROin_9yK8EoYdYwVgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_034740398.jpg" /></a></div><p>I filled half the cupcakes with butterscotch pudding. Then I colored the icing and made the flowers. Some of these I learned a long time ago and others I learned from youtube videos. I didn't make enough icing to frost all of the cupcakes, so if I do it again, I would probably do one and a half batches. But it made enough for the bouquet.</p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pCGuvFQuhSE/YA3qM0HtmBI/AAAAAAAAZtc/Vl8GoGqKH3cT5cZz3n7VY5UW-Byo6NooACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_050617194.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pCGuvFQuhSE/YA3qM0HtmBI/AAAAAAAAZtc/Vl8GoGqKH3cT5cZz3n7VY5UW-Byo6NooACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_050617194.jpg" /></a></div><p>Next I stuck toothpicks in the cupcakes and then stuck them into the foam circle. The problem was that the filled ones wouldn't hold up! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VFfil_CbkwE/YA3qOX1cyiI/AAAAAAAAZtk/S9_AINEz66UyLfLdqVE7EOlSRyuMKdepgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_052331857.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VFfil_CbkwE/YA3qOX1cyiI/AAAAAAAAZtk/S9_AINEz66UyLfLdqVE7EOlSRyuMKdepgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_052331857.jpg" /></a></div><p>I ended up putting the filled ones around the bottom edge and the regular ones on the top. Next time I would skip the filling so it would be easier to place them. Next I tore up strips of dark green crepe paper and put it in between the cupcakes to look like leaves.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xb4paqdUUGk/YA3qQQUKNpI/AAAAAAAAZtw/uvaAhR95DO0otL4mK-aq9tK-3CZejCmLQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_053000524.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xb4paqdUUGk/YA3qQQUKNpI/AAAAAAAAZtw/uvaAhR95DO0otL4mK-aq9tK-3CZejCmLQCLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/PXL_20210115_053000524.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p>As you know, leaves are my favorite thing to pipe because they just add so much depth to flowers. The crepe paper here did the same thing and really made it look spectacular.</p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cQ6HcehaSTg/YA3qQD6VGLI/AAAAAAAAZts/KTlgRyiilQkSICidjZAP5ZVhqRijS-3GwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_053846546.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cQ6HcehaSTg/YA3qQD6VGLI/AAAAAAAAZts/KTlgRyiilQkSICidjZAP5ZVhqRijS-3GwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_053846546.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Y84e3Qo6lM/YA3qP4j0b-I/AAAAAAAAZto/Uey1_JKej9sfSXrFpmadrykqmvOvgF5YwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_053925824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Y84e3Qo6lM/YA3qP4j0b-I/AAAAAAAAZto/Uey1_JKej9sfSXrFpmadrykqmvOvgF5YwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_053925824.jpg" /></a></div></div><div><br /></div>If you don't look too closely, it looks like I'm delivering a basket of flowers!<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5F3WdDyFhtg/YA3qRS07rjI/AAAAAAAAZt0/ahjQW_Dd7GUZnC_Qh-F97q2NL3R0H7FkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_054208125.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5F3WdDyFhtg/YA3qRS07rjI/AAAAAAAAZt0/ahjQW_Dd7GUZnC_Qh-F97q2NL3R0H7FkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_054208125.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3T0ljqewgRA/YA3qT5yWolI/AAAAAAAAZuA/y2yxq4WUxz0_VwFeoNogxFLw_S3FipzpACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_145138154.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3T0ljqewgRA/YA3qT5yWolI/AAAAAAAAZuA/y2yxq4WUxz0_VwFeoNogxFLw_S3FipzpACLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/PXL_20210115_145138154.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Up until lunch, the cupcakes sat on Diana's desk next to the real flowers. A bunch of people did a double take before realizing they were cupcakes!<div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wtW1SZilkU4/YA3qTPPCRNI/AAAAAAAAZt4/MZ31aLh5fqUjLNvj9gn67MpKawgLsXYkACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_145201399.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wtW1SZilkU4/YA3qTPPCRNI/AAAAAAAAZt4/MZ31aLh5fqUjLNvj9gn67MpKawgLsXYkACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_145201399.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div>This turned out so well. It looked adorable, it was bright and cheery, and it was fairly easy to make. I would definitely do this one again.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L45PvwBCCW4/YA3qTIk3yVI/AAAAAAAAZt8/pNYHr1zFA8cwmeh9cFQHYz7pYaYM_4IZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20210115_182619547.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L45PvwBCCW4/YA3qTIk3yVI/AAAAAAAAZt8/pNYHr1zFA8cwmeh9cFQHYz7pYaYM_4IZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20210115_182619547.jpg" /></a></div><br /> Happy retirement, Diana!<p></p></div>The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-90871351363108878402021-01-04T13:52:00.000-06:002021-01-04T13:52:53.767-06:00Nah-nah nah-nah nah-nah nah-nah Bat Girl!<p> Well hello 2021!</p><p>It's been over a year since I made fancy decorated cake and probably even longer since I've posted a cake on this blog. I've gone through a lot of life changes over the past year including getting married and moving to a new state. But now that I've settled in, it's time to start baking again!</p><p>One of the best things about my new house is that I have my very own cake kitchen, separate from our regular kitchen. This is awesome because now I can make a huge mess over a period of several days and still be able to make dinner (or let my husband make dinner).</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2-imBrsaACk/X--79r_iODI/AAAAAAAAZdE/hbmYOBa7FAIMl6rjd9uMkvRYtCrz8JKTQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201219_220210750.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2-imBrsaACk/X--79r_iODI/AAAAAAAAZdE/hbmYOBa7FAIMl6rjd9uMkvRYtCrz8JKTQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201219_220210750.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Part of my workspace</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div>Two of my favorite people, my nieces Chloe and Sarah, were born in December. I was in the delivery room for both of their births. But I realized that I've never made a cake for Sarah! In my defense, she was born after I moved 3.5 hours away from my family, so it was a little more difficult to make cakes for anyone.<p></p><p></p>So I decided to make a co-birthday cake for the two of them. Like all of my nieces, they are obsessed with super heroes. Sarah loves the color purple and her favorite super hero is Batgirl. Chloe's favorite (although not sure if she's really a super hero) is Harley Quinn. Super hero cake to the rescue!<p></p><p>Now I didn't know very much about either of these characters but I knew I wanted to make figurines to go on the top of the cake. So I started by getting some pictures.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0jfcTSUYVjI/X--76ucWgxI/AAAAAAAAZcw/Wr6rlMpRYKo3oimbR4sy9_dsJWj76i-CQCLcBGAsYHQ/s568/PXL_20201219_172857920.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="568" data-original-width="426" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0jfcTSUYVjI/X--76ucWgxI/AAAAAAAAZcw/Wr6rlMpRYKo3oimbR4sy9_dsJWj76i-CQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201219_172857920.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">For those of you not familiar with Batgirl and Harley Quinn</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p>I've done some figures in the past but not as well as I would like. So I bought this <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/541357585/basic-body-face-pdf-tutorial-with?ref=yr_purchases">tutorial </a>on Etsy from CrumbAvenue. It was so helpful! I highly recommend it. The tutorial was for basic female bodies and I just modified it to work for Batgirl and Harley Quinn. Batgirl was first.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KwAxPZFnSDo/X--77t_fX_I/AAAAAAAAZc0/xRWo-LJq0ncNxyQPkha3WUSNRroQn_iaACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201219_231538794.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1371" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KwAxPZFnSDo/X--77t_fX_I/AAAAAAAAZc0/xRWo-LJq0ncNxyQPkha3WUSNRroQn_iaACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201219_231538794.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div>I had a heck of a time trying to get the dowels in at the right angle and close enough to each other. This was the first time I used a dowel rod to help support my figures.<div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-96chb2XuHyM/X-_E39MRatI/AAAAAAAAZhw/PhUMt4Vwc20V66xKTh614uXLuj8JcjVqwCPcBGAsYHg/s1564/IMG_20210101_185010.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1564" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-96chb2XuHyM/X-_E39MRatI/AAAAAAAAZhw/PhUMt4Vwc20V66xKTh614uXLuj8JcjVqwCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210101_185010.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's the little details that make a difference</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then I had to make the head. Heads are the hardest because mine always just come out looking . . . odd. But with the help of the tutorial, it turned out pretty awesome.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QI3XKXSVhrY/X--7_1PzGPI/AAAAAAAAZdQ/3C11GDd7AbcNYnz80tfvH084mZMlnBE2QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201221_024859474.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1872" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QI3XKXSVhrY/X--7_1PzGPI/AAAAAAAAZdQ/3C11GDd7AbcNYnz80tfvH084mZMlnBE2QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201221_024859474.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Batgirl's face</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I even made eye lids! And those lips don't look ridiculous! I was very happy with my success, but unfortunately, I had to cover some of it with a mask. I was super nervous to add the head and the cape because I was really worried that she was going to fall over from the weight. I didn't balance it correctly when I made the body, so the head was not right on top of the dowel rods.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxI2AG-NWdE/X-_E3yTMnwI/AAAAAAAAZhw/DNMi1s7R51MJYPp1FDzTI5vY2NexYsQQgCPcBGAsYHg/s1564/IMG_20210101_185109.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1564" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZxI2AG-NWdE/X-_E3yTMnwI/AAAAAAAAZhw/DNMi1s7R51MJYPp1FDzTI5vY2NexYsQQgCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210101_185109.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The cape is the shape of a bat.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />For the same reason, I wanted to let the head and body dry for awhile before I added the hair, so I started on Harley Quinn. Her outfit was slightly more involved. Again, I used the tutorial for the skirt and shirt and modified it.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YPRB9wrh8mU/X-_E32h6QBI/AAAAAAAAZhw/AF7dAa628RANqqhjXLUW9GuU4c_PTTeDQCPcBGAsYHg/s1564/IMG_20210101_185237.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1564" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YPRB9wrh8mU/X-_E32h6QBI/AAAAAAAAZhw/AF7dAa628RANqqhjXLUW9GuU4c_PTTeDQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210101_185237.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next I added the detail for Harley's shirt and made her head and arms.</div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZDIs3aQKK58/X-_HqTw-7NI/AAAAAAAAZiU/7O-msjXZ4oAkumXfCY4HTRcqcePa2Uf2QCPcBGAsYHg/s1080/Screenshot_20210101-190637.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1022" data-original-width="1080" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZDIs3aQKK58/X-_HqTw-7NI/AAAAAAAAZiU/7O-msjXZ4oAkumXfCY4HTRcqcePa2Uf2QCPcBGAsYHg/s320/Screenshot_20210101-190637.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Harley Quinn's face</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZXCJxl3mmc4/X-_E3zxNsXI/AAAAAAAAZhw/aW3VHBkXBu4q5WPXuXLZ-H-zNtsQPFIfACPcBGAsYHg/s1564/IMG_20210101_185402.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1564" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZXCJxl3mmc4/X-_E3zxNsXI/AAAAAAAAZhw/aW3VHBkXBu4q5WPXuXLZ-H-zNtsQPFIfACPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210101_185402.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just need some hair!</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div>Now I couldn't put it off any longer and I had to do the hair. I didn't do much with the back of Batgirl's head because I knew it would be covered by the hood. But it turned out amazingly well.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8sG4yHjpO8k/X--8G_JiqII/AAAAAAAAZeM/HUxmGUd0DXsVrEwqQCMUGU-gDWph9F5HgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2619/PXL_20201225_010239391.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2619" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8sG4yHjpO8k/X--8G_JiqII/AAAAAAAAZeM/HUxmGUd0DXsVrEwqQCMUGU-gDWph9F5HgCLcBGAsYHQ/w294-h640/PXL_20201225_010239391.jpg" width="294" /></a></div><div><br /></div>And she was still standing up! Harley's hair was a little different. I covered her head and made some bangs. Then I made her pigtails and let them dry so they would hold their shape. I also was concerned about transport, so I decided to wait to put them in until I put everything together.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vdYaROOBeN0/X--8IssgMxI/AAAAAAAAZeY/oNyRBYS-ovU4VP7BluwB0DmqI2qD8o--ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201225_062842146.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vdYaROOBeN0/X--8IssgMxI/AAAAAAAAZeY/oNyRBYS-ovU4VP7BluwB0DmqI2qD8o--ACLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h300/PXL_20201225_062842146.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div>Now the figures were done but I still had to make the cake. Batgirl was the bottom layer. I made a chocolate cake with chocolate fudge and mini chocolate chip filling, covered in purple buttercream and fondant. The fondant was on point! The Batgirl symbol went on the front and Chloe and Sarah's names graced the sides (thanks to the bazillion cookie cutters I got as a wedding gift!).</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ps0wImPzrJg/X-_JRS4ZVJI/AAAAAAAAZis/Y14oSomkBnATXVEj1W4zX8EIIxYb6fNBQCPcBGAsYHg/s1564/IMG_20210101_191519.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1564" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ps0wImPzrJg/X-_JRS4ZVJI/AAAAAAAAZis/Y14oSomkBnATXVEj1W4zX8EIIxYb6fNBQCPcBGAsYHg/s320/IMG_20210101_191519.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div>Harley Quinn was represented on the top tier. I covered this one in white fondant first. Then I used my diamond cutter (which I usually use to make a quilted pattern on fondant) to cut out the diamonds in red and black. I used the cutter again to mark where they should go on the cake and attached them with gum glue. As a final touch, I made a border of blue for the bottom.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4CLyqx3sIHM/X--8IniFhKI/AAAAAAAAZeU/oY1xeoSCBakWhU4eUlCOX6doijXFXHDHACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_063450078.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1930" data-original-width="2048" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4CLyqx3sIHM/X--8IniFhKI/AAAAAAAAZeU/oY1xeoSCBakWhU4eUlCOX6doijXFXHDHACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_063450078.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>And then came the problems. I made the dowels on the figures too long! Batgirl was too tall for the cake. So my husband got out a saw and a vice grip and ever so carefully cut off some of the dowel rods while I held on tightly and held my breath, hoping it wouldn't damage the figure. Success!</div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">To transport, I put the figures in a plastic container on top of those air bag things you get in Amazon packages. But upon arrival, Harley's head had come loose. On top of that, we discovered the dowel rods on her figure were also way too long! I took the head off completely so it wouldn't jiggle off while my husband bravely used another saw to get through the dowel rods. I was so nervous it was going to fall apart.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dsXZm-0KWz8/X--8MA-zTSI/AAAAAAAAZek/vbXMlN_zEJM-8pFOsPzdYd2BKH8xDOqygCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_203753349.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dsXZm-0KWz8/X--8MA-zTSI/AAAAAAAAZek/vbXMlN_zEJM-8pFOsPzdYd2BKH8xDOqygCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_203753349.jpg" /></a></div><div><br /></div>But it worked! We were able to place the head back on and everything was fine. Batgirl was a little too tall as well, but I had some extra yellow fondant so I just made some platform boots for her instead of trying to saw off some more.</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P4k5SqsdXg0/X--8PF56gNI/AAAAAAAAZeo/KzfyvyuqxoU0JvSMIle3C9_phxl9NCuAACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_204846205.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1182" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P4k5SqsdXg0/X--8PF56gNI/AAAAAAAAZeo/KzfyvyuqxoU0JvSMIle3C9_phxl9NCuAACLcBGAsYHQ/w370-h640/PXL_20201226_204846205.jpg" width="370" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The finished cake!</td></tr></tbody></table><br />These are easily the best figures I have ever made.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eCyeHwYThag/X--8RZeEomI/AAAAAAAAZew/AK8_ujK6ieQAEelk5be4fCrTJ-K_9kOjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_204858947.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eCyeHwYThag/X--8RZeEomI/AAAAAAAAZew/AK8_ujK6ieQAEelk5be4fCrTJ-K_9kOjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_204858947.jpg" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l_sxg4QKaZ4/X--9Lv8QhOI/AAAAAAAAZgg/av2ggkzIuq4rIZPIkYWjkrxbE4O3PKTEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_234657079.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l_sxg4QKaZ4/X--9Lv8QhOI/AAAAAAAAZgg/av2ggkzIuq4rIZPIkYWjkrxbE4O3PKTEQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_234657079.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JnU0I17TREY/X--9JJnXHeI/AAAAAAAAZgM/kGSCfFoDyycH7PxEtMlxEQB1lmUSELjBACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_205006740.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JnU0I17TREY/X--9JJnXHeI/AAAAAAAAZgM/kGSCfFoDyycH7PxEtMlxEQB1lmUSELjBACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_205006740.MP.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The girls loved it! (Don't worry, there was no birthday party, I just wanted to make them a fun cake).</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u_dLXLFhib4/X--9JuYOyUI/AAAAAAAAZgQ/iLRPMu2EwqYmBDdtjs8Iiv-yOaGuIEHjACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_205202435.MP.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u_dLXLFhib4/X--9JuYOyUI/AAAAAAAAZgQ/iLRPMu2EwqYmBDdtjs8Iiv-yOaGuIEHjACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_205202435.MP.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RC3QjIiTk00/X--8_htzqeI/AAAAAAAAZgA/1usU2CTleQsP2tF7zyexBRX4CFky4cweQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_205329449.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RC3QjIiTk00/X--8_htzqeI/AAAAAAAAZgA/1usU2CTleQsP2tF7zyexBRX4CFky4cweQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_205329449.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tnxlYsS02r4/X--9J80uIUI/AAAAAAAAZgU/Nv-JVQ0zLF0EY_M99iwvNlBEgwa5Xxp5gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_234643740.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tnxlYsS02r4/X--9J80uIUI/AAAAAAAAZgU/Nv-JVQ0zLF0EY_M99iwvNlBEgwa5Xxp5gCLcBGAsYHQ/w300-h400/PXL_20201226_234643740.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XJ7eXYUPcVc/X--9L-N0aLI/AAAAAAAAZgk/8NfOdUXLDoAnNJPgW9XQCnUSXouoWNklQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_234706044.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XJ7eXYUPcVc/X--9L-N0aLI/AAAAAAAAZgk/8NfOdUXLDoAnNJPgW9XQCnUSXouoWNklQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/PXL_20201226_234706044.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p>Happy birthday to some of my favorite SuperGirls, Sarah and Chloe! </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZY2f-MONJ1Q/X--9HMNLi7I/AAAAAAAAZgI/UnpPxHPHCUcsgoWMcSZTPo3KIPkBDWDngCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/PXL_20201226_234631339.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZY2f-MONJ1Q/X--9HMNLi7I/AAAAAAAAZgI/UnpPxHPHCUcsgoWMcSZTPo3KIPkBDWDngCLcBGAsYHQ/w480-h640/PXL_20201226_234631339.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p></p></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /></div>The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0Iowa, USA41.8780025 -93.097702-15.056454928490012 -163.410202 90 -22.785201999999998tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-42980912735329365512018-09-09T17:57:00.000-05:002018-09-09T17:57:26.776-05:00Mrs. Potato Head<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So, I thought that I was ready to post the Curious George cake, but I have since discovered that I skipped 4 cakes that I made before the last one I posted. Oops. That's what happens when you get so far behind . . . .</div>
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My niece Chloe was born in the month of December. As all you December babies are aware, sometimes this means her birthday gets celebrated in a completely different month. If I remember correctly, this was the year that her baby sister arrived on New Year's Eve. So we celebrated Chloe's third birthday in January instead. Chloe always gives me easy ideas for her cakes and this year was no exception. She wanted a Mrs. Potato Head cake.</div>
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I was pretty excited about making all the little elements for this cake. However, first I had to carve the right shape for the cake itself.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7XU1PYEusSk/W5WhHLnHTII/AAAAAAAAMfY/6aDb8H9k2KkS1zhX9iLP1ln4hzLBihHmwCLcBGAs/s1600/20160102_221202_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7XU1PYEusSk/W5WhHLnHTII/AAAAAAAAMfY/6aDb8H9k2KkS1zhX9iLP1ln4hzLBihHmwCLcBGAs/s320/20160102_221202_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
<br />As most of my sister's kids do, she requested chocolate cake (although I believe her older brother had something to do with that . . . .)<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mWlejOdHHzw/W5WhH3qR_kI/AAAAAAAAMfo/JeUJoQ0XJWYFLlUvI8PG7W6J5LR5WNX1ACLcBGAs/s1600/20160102_225729_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mWlejOdHHzw/W5WhH3qR_kI/AAAAAAAAMfo/JeUJoQ0XJWYFLlUvI8PG7W6J5LR5WNX1ACLcBGAs/s320/20160102_225729_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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I knew I would have a lot of fondant elements, and I tried to stick with traditional potato head colors.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UAp9DbH-ihs/W5WhHBHP1fI/AAAAAAAAMfg/zgEPyf5S-lotXk6y4uNazFANdARM54xJwCLcBGAs/s1600/20160102_221208_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UAp9DbH-ihs/W5WhHBHP1fI/AAAAAAAAMfg/zgEPyf5S-lotXk6y4uNazFANdARM54xJwCLcBGAs/s320/20160102_221208_HDR.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I colored the fondant and then started making the pieces. The shoes and the earrings:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X--kCsrQfxg/W5WhLynu5_I/AAAAAAAAMf8/L1iCL3fNDb0LLHcb57K7cM2LMxQvplt6QCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_000821_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-X--kCsrQfxg/W5WhLynu5_I/AAAAAAAAMf8/L1iCL3fNDb0LLHcb57K7cM2LMxQvplt6QCLcBGAs/s320/20160103_000821_HDR.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The purse and the eyes (I love the eyes so much)<br />
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The lips, ears, nose, and hands:<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_pRKhQF5LBs/W5WhJ3sDgvI/AAAAAAAAMf0/JlyfQVuiNaIngWW7Y625sgquJQMqrUSHwCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_000813_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_pRKhQF5LBs/W5WhJ3sDgvI/AAAAAAAAMf0/JlyfQVuiNaIngWW7Y625sgquJQMqrUSHwCLcBGAs/s320/20160103_000813_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Zgo20SPynQ0/W5WhLtun8pI/AAAAAAAAMf4/IQJx1f1HD7gbIvJYL9oFX6pZY1DEEoo6wCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_000818_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Zgo20SPynQ0/W5WhLtun8pI/AAAAAAAAMf4/IQJx1f1HD7gbIvJYL9oFX6pZY1DEEoo6wCLcBGAs/s320/20160103_000818_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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I thought about leaving off some of the elements and just putting them on the cakeboard as if the child had not put in all of the pieces yet. I started with the hat.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v827ySxv6iE/W5WhMm8350I/AAAAAAAAMgA/bZlKl4ctFFgLDznKFADz1jw2VTyT6Jh0QCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_001343_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v827ySxv6iE/W5WhMm8350I/AAAAAAAAMgA/bZlKl4ctFFgLDznKFADz1jw2VTyT6Jh0QCLcBGAs/s320/20160103_001343_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Then added the lips.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lFveAlZntNI/W5WhN3WNuxI/AAAAAAAAMgE/HbsP7U9EAMA8FdEcomb0g4_i9woiiZtCACLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_001445_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lFveAlZntNI/W5WhN3WNuxI/AAAAAAAAMgE/HbsP7U9EAMA8FdEcomb0g4_i9woiiZtCACLcBGAs/s320/20160103_001445_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Then the nose, eyes, and shoes.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l7Vve3h1ukU/W5WhRG5n5eI/AAAAAAAAMgU/cbEzWSZadTkRMN_325t6DnVujHR_s6QEACLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_001540_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-l7Vve3h1ukU/W5WhRG5n5eI/AAAAAAAAMgU/cbEzWSZadTkRMN_325t6DnVujHR_s6QEACLcBGAs/s320/20160103_001540_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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At this point I just decided it would look best with all of the elements on, so I added the arms, purse, ears, earrings, and a little bling for the hat.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BEG0wEYIdDc/W5WhQyqJdJI/AAAAAAAAMgQ/hqcDpMfkJGoK86fWB2ld1uWynXqYOj_0QCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_004151_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BEG0wEYIdDc/W5WhQyqJdJI/AAAAAAAAMgQ/hqcDpMfkJGoK86fWB2ld1uWynXqYOj_0QCLcBGAs/s320/20160103_004151_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Here's a closer look at some of the elements:<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AQ9jlGpCRmk/W5WhRZGXGFI/AAAAAAAAMgY/mJAvfH_nWV0niNRFlqnJmqbRv2qJXtw1gCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_004158_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AQ9jlGpCRmk/W5WhRZGXGFI/AAAAAAAAMgY/mJAvfH_nWV0niNRFlqnJmqbRv2qJXtw1gCLcBGAs/s640/20160103_004158_HDR.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I love that purse!<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IFe9cYMEnbE/W5WhT7efJLI/AAAAAAAAMgc/JQ0fmgimqcEUrxi0kE5eS2Uof7Pood0JQCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_004201_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IFe9cYMEnbE/W5WhT7efJLI/AAAAAAAAMgc/JQ0fmgimqcEUrxi0kE5eS2Uof7Pood0JQCLcBGAs/s640/20160103_004201_HDR.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wmm85yIA8B0/W5WhTy4HPcI/AAAAAAAAMgg/1EpFYebYuMsbmMiZa8nR4wGf4QQ1xGI8wCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_004204_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="360" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wmm85yIA8B0/W5WhTy4HPcI/AAAAAAAAMgg/1EpFYebYuMsbmMiZa8nR4wGf4QQ1xGI8wCLcBGAs/s640/20160103_004204_HDR.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9fwimYfOwYQ/W5WhUWLo8HI/AAAAAAAAMgk/DIh2lFI8GRYlK5g7AYksaaOpBIcLjkoCwCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_004334_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9fwimYfOwYQ/W5WhUWLo8HI/AAAAAAAAMgk/DIh2lFI8GRYlK5g7AYksaaOpBIcLjkoCwCLcBGAs/s320/20160103_004334_HDR.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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And here is the star of the day, wearing her I'm the big sister shirt.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RiB9M-aUMoQ/W5WhWmTVhyI/AAAAAAAAMgo/abi0tyjl5L0cJJ3UMa2MbtT-NFLF4RmugCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_134752_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RiB9M-aUMoQ/W5WhWmTVhyI/AAAAAAAAMgo/abi0tyjl5L0cJJ3UMa2MbtT-NFLF4RmugCLcBGAs/s400/20160103_134752_HDR.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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Unlike her sister Elisa, Chloe is ready to cut the cake and eat it. We are done admiring it, just take a picture and dole it out already!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pWR3iydcybg/W5WhZrWYdQI/AAAAAAAAMg8/vQCzKENw7bIcSZiilpYvuD4b0IzBdaCpACLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_134847_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pWR3iydcybg/W5WhZrWYdQI/AAAAAAAAMg8/vQCzKENw7bIcSZiilpYvuD4b0IzBdaCpACLcBGAs/s640/20160103_134847_HDR.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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Happy third birthday Chlo Chlo!<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ez2N9lWz-xY/W5WhbbhVrKI/AAAAAAAAMhE/DYdS64e3hZ8F0wnsbmcDQ00tlwz9vuV4gCLcBGAs/s1600/20160103_135038_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1086" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ez2N9lWz-xY/W5WhbbhVrKI/AAAAAAAAMhE/DYdS64e3hZ8F0wnsbmcDQ00tlwz9vuV4gCLcBGAs/s640/20160103_135038_HDR.jpg" width="434" /></a></div>
<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-72916713177778515992018-07-02T15:35:00.003-05:002018-07-02T15:35:40.289-05:00Curiouser and Curiouser<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
*I wrote this two years ago and finally got caught up enough to post it! Only two years of cakes left to post to catch up . . . . .*</div>
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Laura [used to] work in my office. Her niece was getting baptized and they wanted to have a cake to celebrate. Apparently, Curious George is quite popular in their family. So she commissioned a two-tier, yellow cake, with raspberry whipped cream filling and the theme of Curious George.</div>
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I decided to do George, sitting amongst the trees. But you can't have a monkey without bananas! So, first, I made some fondant bunches of bananas. They turned out pretty darn good.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BLLtt1GaZV0/V5Q2xKnHteI/AAAAAAAAFEw/mfc4G3Gibhc2IiC0aLrwUe43Zgz9xq8qACEw/s1600/20160428_223828.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BLLtt1GaZV0/V5Q2xKnHteI/AAAAAAAAFEw/mfc4G3Gibhc2IiC0aLrwUe43Zgz9xq8qACEw/s320/20160428_223828.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Next I made the leaves for the trees and some single bananas. I had to make the leaves ahead of time so they would dry and harden. That way when I put them onto the trees, they would hold their shape.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lTjUsYV4R8I/V5Q2xS1qlfI/AAAAAAAAFE0/ZjND6cWcyGMUj5FAdNfz3ljHB2YXcEw5wCEw/s1600/20160428_223840.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lTjUsYV4R8I/V5Q2xS1qlfI/AAAAAAAAFE0/ZjND6cWcyGMUj5FAdNfz3ljHB2YXcEw5wCEw/s320/20160428_223840.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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(You may notice the banana peel there)<br />
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Now, I had to make George. I'm getting better at figures, but they still freak me out and I'm not great with the balance. I didn't take any pictures while I was making him, but I do have pictures of the final product.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bpQI2spn8YI/V5Q3M6iRbJI/AAAAAAAAFFE/GZvbGrRNSMU-ovHmrk9OA-kAI5dOhAJmwCLcB/s1600/20160429_021549.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bpQI2spn8YI/V5Q3M6iRbJI/AAAAAAAAFFE/GZvbGrRNSMU-ovHmrk9OA-kAI5dOhAJmwCLcB/s320/20160429_021549.jpg" width="265" /></a></div>
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I put George on a styrofoam circle, on top of some parchment paper. This way, if you need to use toothpicks in the bottom or anything like that, you can just stick it in the styrofoam. The Crisco can behind him is helping to make sure the body doesn't fall over. I did use a <a href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/35/90/93/359093270aeb09f5aaed016ba6a1642f.jpg" target="_blank">tutorial </a>to make the monkey.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6wbVUN6DR6M/V5Q3NdJFF9I/AAAAAAAAFFI/OxwSm5u6ZcUoow8defVyUdcEiJblsg5GwCLcB/s1600/20160429_021555.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6wbVUN6DR6M/V5Q3NdJFF9I/AAAAAAAAFFI/OxwSm5u6ZcUoow8defVyUdcEiJblsg5GwCLcB/s320/20160429_021555.jpg" width="235" /></a></div>
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I made the body first, then added the legs and arms. I made the hands and feet separately and then added them to the arms and legs. I made the head separately as well and then attached it to the body using a toothpick. I started with the dark brown part, then added the thin layer of ivory color to the front. Next I added the ivory colored part of the mouth which goes under the dark brown part. Next came the nose and ears. Finally, I added the eyes and piped on the pupils, eyebrows, and mouth.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UX9hCMYGQhI/V5Q3On_MtKI/AAAAAAAAFFQ/paSaiHLk0SkuQJeXeFUCwXNCDiUMujqpwCLcB/s1600/20160429_021617.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UX9hCMYGQhI/V5Q3On_MtKI/AAAAAAAAFFQ/paSaiHLk0SkuQJeXeFUCwXNCDiUMujqpwCLcB/s320/20160429_021617.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Finally I made the banana that George is holding. I used the calyx cutter to make the peeled banana. It turned out so great!<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BgyV-m5uc-A/V5Q3NvY7EMI/AAAAAAAAFFM/IYEDwsNQuBA5z0vlfOJNbsQTiOX4ta9hwCLcB/s1600/20160429_021605.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BgyV-m5uc-A/V5Q3NvY7EMI/AAAAAAAAFFM/IYEDwsNQuBA5z0vlfOJNbsQTiOX4ta9hwCLcB/s320/20160429_021605.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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What would curious George be without the man in the yellow hat? So, as a tribute to him, a yellow fondant hat.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rGnleJCvWv0/V5Q3OjSk67I/AAAAAAAAFFY/zJ-ZDEZcQo4uU-9WZUJ7yaDoOwnB5BG7ACLcB/s1600/20160429_021630.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rGnleJCvWv0/V5Q3OjSk67I/AAAAAAAAFFY/zJ-ZDEZcQo4uU-9WZUJ7yaDoOwnB5BG7ACLcB/s320/20160429_021630.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now it was time to assemble the cake. I covered both tiers with green fondant and stacked them. Then I started adding trees and branches. The trees are pretzels with green leaves glued on with icing. The branches are fondant. I also made a fondant leaf border where the two tiers connect.<br />
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I added more trees and started adding vines as well. The yellow hat went on the top tier.<br />
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Then I added more piped leaves. It really started to look like a jungle.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7OjA0ZUBd5o/V5Q3R09od4I/AAAAAAAAFFo/HpS4FjYnuZQbkCXqrR1yvfOyPvSya0z3gCLcB/s1600/20160429_045939.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7OjA0ZUBd5o/V5Q3R09od4I/AAAAAAAAFFo/HpS4FjYnuZQbkCXqrR1yvfOyPvSya0z3gCLcB/s320/20160429_045939.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Finally, I added the bananas and a few flowers.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xcawrvpPV1E/V5Q3T9-9VEI/AAAAAAAAFFs/vxrM25iqFTwtbh8plb5PlVc7EtOMIQCvQCLcB/s1600/20160429_052854.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xcawrvpPV1E/V5Q3T9-9VEI/AAAAAAAAFFs/vxrM25iqFTwtbh8plb5PlVc7EtOMIQCvQCLcB/s320/20160429_052854.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Meanwhile, George started to get a little tipsy. So I propped him up with a chip clip against the crisco can and hoped that he would dry well and not fall over.<br />
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Delivery Day: I actually left work early to go to Wisconsin for a dance competition, but first I had to drop off the cake. Fortunately, Laura lives only a few blocks away from me. I got the cake set up and it was time to add George.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bVb_4WXqoOY/V5Q3U_sPWnI/AAAAAAAAFF4/w7mjAGN_0T4umPhwel_SgjR8ggWioL9OACLcB/s1600/20160429_152255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bVb_4WXqoOY/V5Q3U_sPWnI/AAAAAAAAFF4/w7mjAGN_0T4umPhwel_SgjR8ggWioL9OACLcB/s640/20160429_152255.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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He looked fantastic!<br />
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Laura's family loved the cake. Apparently, her husband said that my talents are being wasted, since I'm an attorney and not a professional baker.<br />
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-11275340499638067912018-04-16T17:33:00.000-05:002018-04-16T17:33:34.945-05:00A Hunting We Will Go!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So back in October of 2015, I had just started my new job in a new town, three and a half hours away from everyone who knew me. So of course, I knew I had to show everyone what I could do, so they would want to buy cakes from me!</div>
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My co-worker, Jesse, had a birthday in October. He jokingly asked me to make him a birthday cake. So I decided to show off a little (it worked, people starting asking me for cakes. Just saying).</div>
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Jesse likes to hunt with a bow and arrow. I decided to make a two-tiered hunting cake, complete with hunter in a tree, with a bow and arrow. The tiers would be different flavors.</div>
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I made the hunter first because it was the hardest part and needed time to set. I started out with some manilla/tan colored fondant. I made pants and the torso first.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iucwnPEKceI/WtIjt4lBTBI/AAAAAAAALOI/H5iMH0YoK_428yUV2Xx-SM8ntHZ3sLioACLcBGAs/s1600/20151018_234523.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iucwnPEKceI/WtIjt4lBTBI/AAAAAAAALOI/H5iMH0YoK_428yUV2Xx-SM8ntHZ3sLioACLcBGAs/s400/20151018_234523.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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What would a hunting cake be without camouflage? I used my gel food colors and painted the different colored spots on. I thought it looked pretty good.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xbH4oWA9MxQ/WtIjt5ejGVI/AAAAAAAALOA/x8IbRjlg79w7hqo6us7vSffwP3Je8H2SQCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_004237.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xbH4oWA9MxQ/WtIjt5ejGVI/AAAAAAAALOA/x8IbRjlg79w7hqo6us7vSffwP3Je8H2SQCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_004237.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As you can see, I used the lid of the food coloring to prop the feet up while they were setting.</td></tr>
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Then I added the left arm and hand and camouflaged that too.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9ncqD_Tpk8s/WtIjugGhoOI/AAAAAAAALOM/g-fEAG-TDCkjfgbGJkbeHCcM4xQUC5RlgCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_004243.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9ncqD_Tpk8s/WtIjugGhoOI/AAAAAAAALOM/g-fEAG-TDCkjfgbGJkbeHCcM4xQUC5RlgCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_004243.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Next I made the head and the right arm. I needed the right arm to be up in the air because I wanted him to be holding the bow and arrow. But, as usual, it was too heavy to sustain itself. So I made a little brown box to help prop his arm up.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5zYdK4kP0Ik/WtIjvVtcSfI/AAAAAAAALOc/rnTYGKn55CkYhPuNW5K7KB6m6wL8lh8AACLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_022741.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5zYdK4kP0Ik/WtIjvVtcSfI/AAAAAAAALOc/rnTYGKn55CkYhPuNW5K7KB6m6wL8lh8AACLcBGAs/s320/20151019_022741.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And there was my hunter! (This is actually probably the opposite way of how he holds his bow in real life, but it's cake, don't be so picky.)</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-18mPE5aHUb8/WtIjxkR4jKI/AAAAAAAALOk/Dv3XuB1cGygk9pyB5O7s7QAd2gyOY3CygCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_022756.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-18mPE5aHUb8/WtIjxkR4jKI/AAAAAAAALOk/Dv3XuB1cGygk9pyB5O7s7QAd2gyOY3CygCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_022756.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Now I needed to make the cake. I wanted to make the bottom tier camouflage as well. So I freehanded some lines and then piped different colors in each section, using the star tip. First tan.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o7YIOlL9OAs/WtIjyJAiV5I/AAAAAAAALOo/-L8qhaZxfcg-vHQs8QnS5yFoXh8RDUyvgCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_022806.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o7YIOlL9OAs/WtIjyJAiV5I/AAAAAAAALOo/-L8qhaZxfcg-vHQs8QnS5yFoXh8RDUyvgCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_022806.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then light green.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-byCO_iRpwe0/WtIjz4QXAdI/AAAAAAAALOs/IFj_MT8TTbQVMBWmWuFgg-auwcx5yg8AwCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_023446.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-byCO_iRpwe0/WtIjz4QXAdI/AAAAAAAALOs/IFj_MT8TTbQVMBWmWuFgg-auwcx5yg8AwCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_023446.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then a darker green.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z1d-B7hsmyA/WtIj0W4qgnI/AAAAAAAALOw/mavHYbckK2wvP0Ep5jKCPFpu7BM4N97vgCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_024214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z1d-B7hsmyA/WtIj0W4qgnI/AAAAAAAALOw/mavHYbckK2wvP0Ep5jKCPFpu7BM4N97vgCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_024214.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then brown.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dZobmEeEZNg/WtIj0rwPWqI/AAAAAAAALO0/9W0a4EVBoeswhlW7SqIFMBYOmQKKbk9TACLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_030959.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dZobmEeEZNg/WtIj0rwPWqI/AAAAAAAALO0/9W0a4EVBoeswhlW7SqIFMBYOmQKKbk9TACLcBGAs/s320/20151019_030959.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I thought that turned out pretty well.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BumOY1lBm94/WtIj3EQmepI/AAAAAAAALO4/O9Lx1uEmCM4jb9aynNcKA5IMuMRqe9wwwCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_031002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BumOY1lBm94/WtIj3EQmepI/AAAAAAAALO4/O9Lx1uEmCM4jb9aynNcKA5IMuMRqe9wwwCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_031002.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The next tier I colored blue to look like the sky.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FmXuH9dHGQ0/WtIj5a1IktI/AAAAAAAALPE/yjTt3FEe4usJUf6p4Ych1H0fioRW0TBTgCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_035855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FmXuH9dHGQ0/WtIj5a1IktI/AAAAAAAALPE/yjTt3FEe4usJUf6p4Ych1H0fioRW0TBTgCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_035855.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Then I added a tree trunk. I also made a leaf border where the two tiers met to cover any imperfections.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UMVufyJ6is0/WtIj6nmy1nI/AAAAAAAALPM/d-fvlwCiFOYiCyTXC32wfrExgPGKmtlFACLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_040608.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UMVufyJ6is0/WtIj6nmy1nI/AAAAAAAALPM/d-fvlwCiFOYiCyTXC32wfrExgPGKmtlFACLcBGAs/s320/20151019_040608.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Next I added some branches and leaves. I made these leaves using a single cutter. I normally use a different kind of fondant leaf, but I felt the size and texture of these leaves fit this cake better.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AAFQjwJyOts/WtIj_0elJOI/AAAAAAAALPo/01Dfb14QDl0yhuqRWUMQg4VJlNfKexhIwCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_080740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AAFQjwJyOts/WtIj_0elJOI/AAAAAAAALPo/01Dfb14QDl0yhuqRWUMQg4VJlNfKexhIwCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_080740.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now it looks a lot more like a tree!<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zHdNgV1UQiM/WtIj9qvczGI/AAAAAAAALPY/ShxvC5RN6XwOhby6tbZ0d3a7henv8fgFACLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_045025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zHdNgV1UQiM/WtIj9qvczGI/AAAAAAAALPY/ShxvC5RN6XwOhby6tbZ0d3a7henv8fgFACLcBGAs/s640/20151019_045025.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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For the top of the cake, I made a hunter's perch and some more branches. These branches would stick up on the top of the cake, so I wouldn't put them in until I got the cake to the office. I didn't want to risk moving it with them already in place because I knew they would fall over. I should have made them earlier to give them a little more time to set.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TOV_jAuzn1c/WtIj-PPJIqI/AAAAAAAALPc/mJhXGPJf5Rg_p6xmN6ucGy5tVB-YN45oQCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_080735.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-TOV_jAuzn1c/WtIj-PPJIqI/AAAAAAAALPc/mJhXGPJf5Rg_p6xmN6ucGy5tVB-YN45oQCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_080735.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Once I made it to work with the cake, I added the branches, the perch, the hunter, and the bow and arrow.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UKba8wMvab4/WtIkATX_njI/AAAAAAAALPs/MgCipOux5dwNIaaLr1bqvZUcWlFrT1HHwCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_085304.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UKba8wMvab4/WtIkATX_njI/AAAAAAAALPs/MgCipOux5dwNIaaLr1bqvZUcWlFrT1HHwCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_085304.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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Here you can see the bow and arrow and if you look closely, there is string on the bow, made from flower wire. It's the only part of the cake that isn't edible.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2FlHSDbhzlE/WtIj_iEiHxI/AAAAAAAALPk/2GdXVM04GRITEZCqfKhNZP6HedbMDFwNQCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_085313.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="1600" height="272" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2FlHSDbhzlE/WtIj_iEiHxI/AAAAAAAALPk/2GdXVM04GRITEZCqfKhNZP6HedbMDFwNQCLcBGAs/s320/20151019_085313.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This one turned out to look pretty amazing!<br />
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It was quite popular at work. This was all that was left of all that cake!<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-b4QQojZLABw/WtIkFKevtYI/AAAAAAAALQE/uwHZs89JwJY-pHRu6-ggo4U7Tad1rVOMQCLcBGAs/s1600/20151019_161623.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-b4QQojZLABw/WtIkFKevtYI/AAAAAAAALQE/uwHZs89JwJY-pHRu6-ggo4U7Tad1rVOMQCLcBGAs/s400/20151019_161623.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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Happy birthday Jesse and happy hunting!</div>
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-89450156672178619882018-04-08T12:25:00.000-05:002018-04-08T12:35:50.053-05:00The Monster Book of Monsters<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Once Upon a Time, way back in 2015 . . . . .</div>
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Like many young lads, my favorite nephew is a little bit obsessed with Harry Potter. (I recently went to the Harry Potter Studio Tour in London and he was SOOOOO jealous). Back in 2015 I had just moved 3 1/2 hours away to central Illinois. So the family came down for Peter's birthday to go to Curtis Orchard and go apple picking. Peter knew he wanted a Harry Potter cake, so we poured over pictures trying to decide which one I should attempt.</div>
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This one was way beyond my skill level and amount of time available to make the cake. </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eSMwDYjWVow/WspDcxujvbI/AAAAAAAALKw/DVTVbYHaV2Ehu1wZKFXUHRdA9WmqIDOYACEwYBhgL/s1600/d2d4e3a41d96c29c9a0ee017d810c4bd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="777" data-original-width="564" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eSMwDYjWVow/WspDcxujvbI/AAAAAAAALKw/DVTVbYHaV2Ehu1wZKFXUHRdA9WmqIDOYACEwYBhgL/s320/d2d4e3a41d96c29c9a0ee017d810c4bd.jpg" width="232" /></a></div>
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Something like this was bandied about as well.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gM4rlpRs99Q/WspDc42dHEI/AAAAAAAALK0/1zHpwbCfA3ATQ7DbrMi_RkLH0ReL5TWQQCLcBGAs/s1600/1ecd4a54434920796616421076ac501c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="423" data-original-width="564" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gM4rlpRs99Q/WspDc42dHEI/AAAAAAAALK0/1zHpwbCfA3ATQ7DbrMi_RkLH0ReL5TWQQCLcBGAs/s320/1ecd4a54434920796616421076ac501c.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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But ultimately, we decided to go with the Monster Book of Monsters. For those of you unfamiliar with the world of Harry Potter, the Monster Book of Monsters is a required text book for the third year student taking Care of Magical Creatures. (It's also apparently available on Amazon). Here's what happens when you open the book:</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/H7GQFHLDTcg/0.jpg" frameborder="0" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/H7GQFHLDTcg?feature=player_embedded" width="320"></iframe></div>
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And here is a still picture of the book:</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RpNepkNc10M/WspGTO7-PtI/AAAAAAAALLU/2CpmpGKLLRQ_adKSI9ARpJk9rYOohUu1ACLcBGAs/s1600/622eca90cd24af9a0b7555fcdb03c2fd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="342" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RpNepkNc10M/WspGTO7-PtI/AAAAAAAALLU/2CpmpGKLLRQ_adKSI9ARpJk9rYOohUu1ACLcBGAs/s640/622eca90cd24af9a0b7555fcdb03c2fd.jpg" width="540" /></a></div>
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To start out with, I made a sheet cake for the book. Peter loves chocolate so I used chocolate cake. I used my largest frosting tip with ridges to make the white frosting on the edges look like pages.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TPTWHQNRemI/WspAQ4gYInI/AAAAAAAALJs/7YVDl208ZL4lQoaqeaWct3tY5DDeYkD9wCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_1539.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="297" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TPTWHQNRemI/WspAQ4gYInI/AAAAAAAALJs/7YVDl208ZL4lQoaqeaWct3tY5DDeYkD9wCLcBGAs/s400/IMG_1539.JPG" width="400" /></a><br />
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Then I started making the features like the tongue, the mouth, and the tentacles.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F6puBWzBUkY/WspARahSk7I/AAAAAAAALJ0/jxCnc5OqRBgbSuCmVIzJnyZuU66HkpIrwCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_1542%2B%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="874" height="216" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-F6puBWzBUkY/WspARahSk7I/AAAAAAAALJ0/jxCnc5OqRBgbSuCmVIzJnyZuU66HkpIrwCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_1542%2B%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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For the tongue, I just cut out a big chunk of reddish/pink fondant and scratched some lines onto it.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OR8VonzajZU/WspAQxuvKOI/AAAAAAAALJw/ggn0TktxQmI3BbelquXcc4UwCqu0j4wlwCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_1541%2B%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="793" data-original-width="1110" height="228" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OR8VonzajZU/WspAQxuvKOI/AAAAAAAALJw/ggn0TktxQmI3BbelquXcc4UwCqu0j4wlwCLcBGAs/s320/IMG_1541%2B%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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For the mouth, I used the same fondant to create a sort of gum look. The teeth are yellow fondant shaped to a point and then shoved into the gum fondant. I thought it turned out pretty well.<br />
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For the tentacles, I used gray fondant and just rolled them in varying sizes until they looked right to me. Normally I try to use spaghetti when I stick stuff in cake because if someone accidentally eats it, it won't stab them in the mouth. But the tentacles were heavy and were hanging off the cake, so I had to use toothpicks so they would hold.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fz4Pe7RTVQQ/WspAS1ekzJI/AAAAAAAALKE/QEHXdOHvetsUSKmt2gz9X9GMqujqKi-NQCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_1544%2B%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="725" data-original-width="1600" height="288" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Fz4Pe7RTVQQ/WspAS1ekzJI/AAAAAAAALKE/QEHXdOHvetsUSKmt2gz9X9GMqujqKi-NQCLcBGAs/s640/IMG_1544%2B%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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You can see some of the toothpicks sticking out - they will be covered with frosting!<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d0apugbHEoQ/Wso_lPKeVAI/AAAAAAAALGc/GaJm2Ty1bK8MibB4TzGkD06srfqGnOOVQCLcBGAs/s1600/20150918_221323%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="955" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d0apugbHEoQ/Wso_lPKeVAI/AAAAAAAALGc/GaJm2Ty1bK8MibB4TzGkD06srfqGnOOVQCLcBGAs/s640/20150918_221323%2B%25282%2529.jpg" width="382" /></a></div>
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Then I used one of my favorite tips, the grass tip, to pipe on the "fur" on the top of the book. It's hard to see, but there is a mound in the middle for the eyeballs.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sJbXePqJ4yQ/Wso_lW1sliI/AAAAAAAALGg/PdWzvSppITUZdGsDUtNOFoXFXdnhsEmbwCLcBGAs/s1600/20150919_002338.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sJbXePqJ4yQ/Wso_lW1sliI/AAAAAAAALGg/PdWzvSppITUZdGsDUtNOFoXFXdnhsEmbwCLcBGAs/s320/20150919_002338.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Next - the eye balls. I used yellow fondant rolled into varying sizes.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YDnfiQpMtKQ/WspAQXIzFxI/AAAAAAAALJo/yLN9j3KbTKkCL3EO3QxGRDjMJ9ElSTIFACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_1540%2B%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="835" data-original-width="527" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YDnfiQpMtKQ/WspAQXIzFxI/AAAAAAAALJo/yLN9j3KbTKkCL3EO3QxGRDjMJ9ElSTIFACLcBGAs/s400/IMG_1540%2B%25282%2529.JPG" width="251" /></a></div>
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And then I added them to the mound and piped black pupils on.<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VjVXemMhph4/Wso_2njSuzI/AAAAAAAALHw/-TzUm5mbL7w_9-mG-y8vERoq_-ixnUSqACLcBGAs/s1600/20150919_141614.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VjVXemMhph4/Wso_2njSuzI/AAAAAAAALHw/-TzUm5mbL7w_9-mG-y8vERoq_-ixnUSqACLcBGAs/s320/20150919_141614.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The cake was almost complete. I added the bottom tentacles.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cOnRKIHhJYo/Wso_lv124aI/AAAAAAAALGo/wz91QsYwrCgEKnhhZ4EwXXQ4SygaVUE2wCLcBGAs/s1600/20150919_003410.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-cOnRKIHhJYo/Wso_lv124aI/AAAAAAAALGo/wz91QsYwrCgEKnhhZ4EwXXQ4SygaVUE2wCLcBGAs/s320/20150919_003410.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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And then piped the book title in yellow.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZlKlvHe9xv0/Wso_zaCdlXI/AAAAAAAALHg/7-RT6yFsG9kclqy-5bJT1VZQjiWPUkhBwCLcBGAs/s1600/20150919_141601.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="900" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZlKlvHe9xv0/Wso_zaCdlXI/AAAAAAAALHg/7-RT6yFsG9kclqy-5bJT1VZQjiWPUkhBwCLcBGAs/s400/20150919_141601.jpg" width="225" /></a></div>
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One of the tentacles was too heavy and kept falling off. So I propped it up with a round cutter so that it had a chance to dry before it fell off.</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ISFp3tlkAPQ/Wso_lyiul_I/AAAAAAAALGs/_2QTlHtxo4wSn1QKN6AbvHyX7o9Qf5ucwCLcBGAs/s1600/20150919_012002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ISFp3tlkAPQ/Wso_lyiul_I/AAAAAAAALGs/_2QTlHtxo4wSn1QKN6AbvHyX7o9Qf5ucwCLcBGAs/s400/20150919_012002.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Propping it up worked - I removed the cutter and the cake was finished!<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QHkV0E_VPBs/Wso_ze6NLqI/AAAAAAAALHc/1wCaHS9jo6QgF8IOOQkeY3Y54HcA7vrvgCLcBGAs/s1600/20150919_141545.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QHkV0E_VPBs/Wso_ze6NLqI/AAAAAAAALHc/1wCaHS9jo6QgF8IOOQkeY3Y54HcA7vrvgCLcBGAs/s320/20150919_141545.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here are some close ups:<br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iNZVx8S9Oaw/Wso_ooMkXwI/AAAAAAAALG8/LSIpgLdyYbIdtQTG1hYFUJJemfpRYWmywCLcBGAs/s1600/20150919_012039.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="180" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iNZVx8S9Oaw/Wso_ooMkXwI/AAAAAAAALG8/LSIpgLdyYbIdtQTG1hYFUJJemfpRYWmywCLcBGAs/s320/20150919_012039.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Peter poses with his sister.<br />
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Gotta make sure you know to whom the book belongs!</div>
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Here Peter is risking life and limb putting his hand close to the book's mouth . . .<br />
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It's been a few years now, but this is still one of my favorite cakes. Happy birthday Peter!The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-38961243836876120112017-06-11T18:29:00.000-05:002017-06-11T18:32:32.966-05:00A Man is Shipwrecked on a Tropical Island . . .It's been over a year since I've had a desktop computer, but I finally got my new one set up and in working order (sort of. We've had some long talks with tech support).<br />
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And that means - I can get back to posting cakes. Because although I haven't posted in awhile, that doesn't mean I wasn't caking!<br />
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This next cake was done for a beach themed wedding shower back in April of 2015! I don't remember why that was the theme, but I was asked to make a sort of tropical island cake. And you can't have a tropical island without palm trees.<br />
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I knew that I needed to make the trees ahead of time because if the fondant was still soft, there is no way the trees would hold up. I used brown fondant wrapped around lollipop sticks and I cut out some green leaves for the top. I glued them on with gum glue and stuck them in a glass with some wrap to hold them up while they dried.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see the lollipop stick at the bottom and the ceran wrap is holding up the leaves.</td></tr>
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I made a chocolate cake with my normal chocolate fudge and chocolate chip filling. I used blue icing to make the wall for the filling since I knew I would be using blue on the cake for the water.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HEcdqDC3vrQ/WT3NfHgsxTI/AAAAAAAAFgY/DdQ8K7rDtGU17Ek4MnUKxM5MVTAnntaKgCLcB/s1600/IMG_1495.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="239" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HEcdqDC3vrQ/WT3NfHgsxTI/AAAAAAAAFgY/DdQ8K7rDtGU17Ek4MnUKxM5MVTAnntaKgCLcB/s320/IMG_1495.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Once the cake cooled, I frosted it and covered it with fondant. I added "waves" as a border using the blue fondant. I also added a fondant piece on top for the sand.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iu_WMLDY5OY/WT3Ng6SyToI/AAAAAAAAFgo/Z9DWOTJTs-AKj39XNto62JWhUzTeutc3wCLcB/s1600/IMG_1499.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1195" data-original-width="1600" height="239" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iu_WMLDY5OY/WT3Ng6SyToI/AAAAAAAAFgo/Z9DWOTJTs-AKj39XNto62JWhUzTeutc3wCLcB/s320/IMG_1499.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Next I added the trees (and they stayed upright!). But that brown fondant sand really doesn't sell the idea of sand.<br />
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So I added brown sugar to get that nice granular effect.<br />
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Next I used a shell mold and some Wilton candy melts to make candy shells. These would be added to the border later.</div>
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Then I made some fondant items that one might associate with a beachy paradise:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Life preservers, shells, and flip flops.</td></tr>
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I also made a beach ball using gum glue and petal dust.<br />
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Looking pretty good!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View from the rescue plane.</td></tr>
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And finally, I added the candy shells to the border.<br />
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A tropical island paradise!The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-71815114682655403862016-08-08T21:41:00.001-05:002016-08-08T22:00:31.168-05:00Follow the Yellow Brick Road<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Somewhere over the rainbow . . . .</div>
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Ahh, that iconic song. Who doesn't love the Wizard of Oz? In 2015, my niece definitely loved it. She was Dorothy for Halloween and many times the Halloween costume is indicative of the desired theme for the birthday cake.</div>
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But how to do justice to the Wizard of Oz?</div>
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There are so many fantastic Oz cakes out there. Just google it and you will see what I mean. But I was also trying to keep the difficulty level to a medium (hahaha) and also not make so much cake that we'd be eating it for a month.</div>
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I knew I had to have Dorothy. I've been getting better at fondant figures, but I still have issues with balance and making them look realistic (or realistic cartoons). I needed flesh color, blue, and brown fondant.</div>
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I started with the body and legs. I made a fleshy "body" and added it to the legs, with ruby slippers on the bottom of the legs. I added a white color and white socks. You can kind of see the neck on there as well. </div>
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Next I added the pieces of the blue dress.<br />
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I made the arms with the sleeve attached.</div>
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The the straps of the jumper and the belt were added. Next the arms went on. <br />
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But Dorothy still needs a head. I hate making hair. It looks like it shouldn't be that hard, but it is a NIGHTMARE. For this one, I did a brown piece on top of her head. Then I added a little bit for her bangs in the front (also to cover up the horrible looking piece I put on first). I used a tooth pick to make the curls, wrapping the thin rolls of fondant around them and letting them dry just long enough to hold the shape.</div>
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I attached the ears and then used gum glue to stick the curls on. I was terrified that they wouldn't stay on, but they held. Finally, I made to small blue bows and glued them on to the spot where the curls met the base hair, looking pretty and covering it up so you can't see the seam.</div>
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If you are going to make a Dorothy figure, then you probably should have Toto too. I made him out of black fondant. Don't try to make black fondant - it's impossible and you will get super frustrated. Just buy it.</div>
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I also had to make the Wicked Witch of the West. She was a little different - I didn't make any legs or feet for her. I just took a blob of black fondant and covered it with her long, flowy dress. Then I added her arms and green hands. </div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Next the head went on (I love the nose!) and the iconic black hat. The last detail was the broomstick.</span></div>
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For the cake itself, I started with a large, green, sheet cake.</div>
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I wanted to include the yellow brick road, because, of course! I also have this <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Wilton-409-2575-Texture-2-Piece-Grass/dp/B00CGNPHOI" target="_blank">texture mat</a> for a brick pattern that I wanted to try out. It worked pretty well and I had a nice yellow brick to make the road pattern. </div>
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Once I put it on the cake, I covered it with some gold petal dust to make it shiny,</div>
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I tried out several new toys with this cake - I have a house cake pan that I haven't used yet. So I made a house cake to be Dorothy's house after being dropped in Oz by the tornado. I made the house a non-descript color, since it was from Kansas and not Oz.</div>
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Then I piped on some details.</div>
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Next I piped, Happy Birthday, Elisa, in the corner.<br />
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I added a grassy border and some grass around the house.</div>
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But you can't have the house without having the squashed Wicked Witch of the East! I made the black and white legs using my smallest round cutter. I cut out a bunch of thick, white and black circles, then glued them together with glum glue, alternating the colors. Finally, I bent the ends so it looks like they are starting to roll up. The shoes of course are already on Dorothy's feet.</div>
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Now I just had to position everyone on the cake. I attached Dorothy's head to her body and put Toto next to her on the cake.</div>
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Side view of Dorothy.</div>
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The WWW got her spot on the Yellow Brick Road.</div>
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The WWE's feet went "under" the house. This is kind of my favorite part of this cake.</div>
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This looks like an action shot. They are getting ready to rumble! It's also a nice view of the back of Dorothy's hair.<br />
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A nice aerial view.<br />
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A few more different angles.</div>
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It really looks like the house fell on top of her. Or that the house sprouted a pair of legs . . .<br />
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Close up of the yellow brick road.<br />
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Nice side profile of the WWW.</div>
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Happy birthday (a bit late) to my beautiful, compassionate, sweet niece Elisa!</div>
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The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-27377081480305438722016-07-25T14:00:00.002-05:002016-07-25T14:01:27.302-05:00Teardrops on My Guitar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
So a few years ago, I made a <a href="http://thejoysofcaking.blogspot.com/2012/03/build-bunny.html" target="_blank">build-a-bunny</a> birthday cake for Kiah. Yay for repeat customers! She's a little older now (this was back in April or May of 2015) and her interests have changed a bit. Now she is into Taylor Swift. So her mom asked me to make her a guitar cake.</div>
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I bought a guitar pan in order to make it easier to make the correct shape. It came out very nicely.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tWANIkDSUtU/V5V_KYT03UI/AAAAAAAAFHQ/_mGUn95G2lEPAhB9ZhOKWGBQ3acq42TSgCLcB/s1600/017c488ea6938f6ab44a6ba0326ec8e6ddd725a6d1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tWANIkDSUtU/V5V_KYT03UI/AAAAAAAAFHQ/_mGUn95G2lEPAhB9ZhOKWGBQ3acq42TSgCLcB/s320/017c488ea6938f6ab44a6ba0326ec8e6ddd725a6d1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I started by adding the "wood" of the guitar.</div>
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Next I added the bridge, the neck, and the sound hole, along with the sides of the guitar. The darker parts are made with chocolate frosting. I think I used a tip to get the sides to look so nice and clean. The tip was the perfect size and it looks really good!</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9-XIz1i1Dm0/V5V_K_cWkEI/AAAAAAAAFHY/nutgzpbELV4g8g_Bz_1agJdlKknj3q9EgCLcB/s1600/01838ed652ca2db0a2a176b5fd31e83b3d8afee2d0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9-XIz1i1Dm0/V5V_K_cWkEI/AAAAAAAAFHY/nutgzpbELV4g8g_Bz_1agJdlKknj3q9EgCLcB/s320/01838ed652ca2db0a2a176b5fd31e83b3d8afee2d0.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then I started adding some details to make it look a little fancier.</div>
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Including Taylor Swift's signature!</div>
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Next I added the strings.<br />
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And the frets.</div>
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But the guitar needs a little color.</div>
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So I added a flower.</div>
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And we have a beautiful, autographed guitar.<br />
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And then we load it into the box and it's ready to go! it almost looks like you could play it.</div>
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So even though it's more than a year late, Happy Birthday Kiah!</div>
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-3078138575632930022016-07-23T22:12:00.001-05:002016-07-23T22:13:06.338-05:00The Doctor Will See You Now<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So, I'm about a year and a half behind on my cake blog. It's not that I haven't been making cakes, I just haven't been posting them. I also lost my computer (it died an untimely death), so that has made it difficult to keep up with the blog.</div>
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So, I'm going to try and do a bunch of posts in the next few weeks. I also finally figured out how to get the pictures from my Ipad onto my Surface, so hopefully that will no longer present a problem.</div>
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My niece, Chloe, turned 2 in December of 2014. We didn't celebrate her birthday until January of 2015 (that sounds so much better). At the time, she was a huge fan of Doc McStuffins. It was so cute when she said Doc McStuffins! So, I decided to make her some doctor cupcakes.</div>
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We started out with the chocolate cupcakes.</div>
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And then added pink frosting. Pink and purple are Doc McStuffin's colors.</div>
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Next I made some bandaids out of fondant. I basically just cut some rectangles, added some lines with a knife and made the holes with a small tip.</div>
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I also made some doctor bags, a stethoscope, and Doc Chloe out of greyish blue fondant.</div>
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Doc and the stethoscope went on one cupcake and Chloe went on another.<br />
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In Doc McStuffins, the bandaids have hearts on them. So I added those.</div>
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And then the bags and the bandaids went on the cupcakes.<br />
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Close up shot.<br />
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I also made some reflex hammers.<br />
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I tried to get a picture of Chloe in her new shirt with the cupcakes, but she was so busy looking at them, she wouldn't look at the camera.</div>
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This was the best I could do.<br />
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Chloe loved her cupcakes. Some of the adults felt that the bandaids were a tad bit too realistic and therefore not so appealing to eat . . . . .</div>
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I can't believe that this was already a year and a half ago! That girl is growing up too fast!<br />
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-46901592769848537392015-05-06T11:42:00.000-05:002015-08-12T10:46:23.343-05:00Leslie's Lil' Pumpkin Patch<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This was my third cake in three weeks. I had survived to the final round!</div>
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I made Leslie's <a href="http://thejoysofcaking.blogspot.com/2014/04/im-gettin-married-in-morning.html">wedding cake</a>, so it was really fun to be able to make her baby shower cake as well. The shower was in the fall and the theme was pumpkin patch. And when you are making a cake full of pumpkins, what better flavor to use than pumpkin?</div>
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I decided to make cake pops for the pumpkins. I used this <a href="http://www.popsugar.com/food/Pumpkin-Cake-Pops-Recipe-19842748">recipe from Pop Sugar</a> for pumpkin cake and it turned out really tasty. I used their cream cheese frosting recipe as well.</div>
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I have a baby cakes machine, but this time I did the traditional cake pop procedure - mixing the frosting with the cake. I formed the balls and put them in the freezer for a short time. I melted some orange candy melts, stuck the shortened lollipop sticks in the candy, and then stuck them in the cake pops. I put them back in the freezer to make sure the sticks would stay in the pops when I dipped them in the candy.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CXCn7VZpF-w/VEcmbk-OLNI/AAAAAAAADNs/CSZZZ3mgAH0/s1600/IMG_1362.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="312" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CXCn7VZpF-w/VEcmbk-OLNI/AAAAAAAADNs/CSZZZ3mgAH0/s1600/IMG_1362.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I dipped them in the orange candy melts put them in styrofoam cups to dry. Cake pops are hard - I can never get them to look smooth!</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0geNcaYnPgc/VEcmbkDF_zI/AAAAAAAADNw/eLH-TDLYrt0/s1600/IMG_1363.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0geNcaYnPgc/VEcmbkDF_zI/AAAAAAAADNw/eLH-TDLYrt0/s1600/IMG_1363.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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For the cake, I wanted to make part of of it pumpkin and part yellow cake. I wasn't sure if everyone would want pumpkin cake, so I need to have more than one option.</div>
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I got this nifty <a href="http://shop.hobbylobby.com/products/batter-daddy-845123/">little tool </a>at Hobby Lobby. You put it in the pan, then pour in the batter on each side. Then you quickly remove the divider.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-INwn7b7M67U/VUJ0U2gRCAI/AAAAAAAAEOw/RA5rcBX1R6I/s1600/Batter%2BDaddy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-INwn7b7M67U/VUJ0U2gRCAI/AAAAAAAAEOw/RA5rcBX1R6I/s1600/Batter%2BDaddy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The pumpkin batter was a lot more dense than the yellow batter, so I put that in first and kind of smooshed the divider up against it. It was a little more difficult to do than I thought because the divider wouldn't stand up on it's own. But it did the job!</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UsUWrPtB5Ik/VEcmbbpkaOI/AAAAAAAADNo/87NujYDfxzA/s1600/IMG_1361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UsUWrPtB5Ik/VEcmbbpkaOI/AAAAAAAADNo/87NujYDfxzA/s1600/IMG_1361.JPG" width="241" /></a></div>
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Now, the yellow cake did bake over the pumpkin part just a tad.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JJefVpNWnT4/VEcmcyDIRoI/AAAAAAAADOU/SkAIXSdiHdk/s1600/IMG_1366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JJefVpNWnT4/VEcmcyDIRoI/AAAAAAAADOU/SkAIXSdiHdk/s1600/IMG_1366.JPG" width="239" /></a></div>
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But as you can see, it was just on the top. When I cut it in half, it looks great!</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qrs_MG00hhA/VEcmcwB5TrI/AAAAAAAADOQ/X66-Wps4YZ4/s1600/IMG_1367.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Qrs_MG00hhA/VEcmcwB5TrI/AAAAAAAADOQ/X66-Wps4YZ4/s1600/IMG_1367.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I filled the yellow cake part with raspberry whipped cream filling and the pumpkin part with cream cheese frosting.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f_fPe64Ahns/VEcmdCBzgnI/AAAAAAAADPg/rYQ2d-epceU/s1600/IMG_1368.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f_fPe64Ahns/VEcmdCBzgnI/AAAAAAAADPg/rYQ2d-epceU/s1600/IMG_1368.JPG" width="244" /></a></div>
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Then I covered the whole thing with green buttercream frosting. I didn't worry about making it look smooth on the top because I was going to add grass piping.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-423f8L09dvY/VEcmdSMusKI/AAAAAAAADOg/S63mR8p4cKw/s1600/IMG_1369.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-423f8L09dvY/VEcmdSMusKI/AAAAAAAADOg/S63mR8p4cKw/s1600/IMG_1369.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I piped the grass and added the pumpkins.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0-sqY-KIcWQ/VEcme0YozvI/AAAAAAAADPQ/Oi86trZ_sPg/s1600/IMG_1375.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0-sqY-KIcWQ/VEcme0YozvI/AAAAAAAADPQ/Oi86trZ_sPg/s1600/IMG_1375.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Of course they look a little boring and plain. So I added some leaves and vines to make them look more like pumpkins. This is also a great way to cover up errors and bumps on your cake pops.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L1Sa52uw92w/VEcmfvQ9yBI/AAAAAAAADPk/ulcZAv3Ct8E/s1600/IMG_1377.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L1Sa52uw92w/VEcmfvQ9yBI/AAAAAAAADPk/ulcZAv3Ct8E/s1600/IMG_1377.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now I needed to make the baby inside the pumpkin. I made one really large cake pop and covered it with orange fondant. Then I made a smaller, round, ivory ball for the head.</div>
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It didn't look that great - you can see where I had trouble with the fondant. But I knew I was going to add details to it, so I didn't worry about it.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-naL8W046AQc/VEcmefWIoZI/AAAAAAAADO8/Yp9xNk7Oo5g/s1600/IMG_1373.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-naL8W046AQc/VEcmefWIoZI/AAAAAAAADO8/Yp9xNk7Oo5g/s1600/IMG_1373.JPG" width="289" /></a></div>
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Next I made some fondant hands. Basically you just roll a little ball of fondant and then smoosh it down into a circle. Then using your fondant sculpting tools, you make the fingers.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X9Ndcx4s8Gg/VEcmdUa0FPI/AAAAAAAADOk/gY_RIZu1HFQ/s1600/IMG_1370.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X9Ndcx4s8Gg/VEcmdUa0FPI/AAAAAAAADOk/gY_RIZu1HFQ/s1600/IMG_1370.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I used a round cutter to cut out some cake for the hat. I covered that in orange fondant as well and made the brown stem. You can also see where I've pinched the nose on the baby's face.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YiFCfG24WhA/VEcmeRb8lPI/AAAAAAAADPA/Vhqu13iqsCQ/s1600/IMG_1374.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="292" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YiFCfG24WhA/VEcmeRb8lPI/AAAAAAAADPA/Vhqu13iqsCQ/s1600/IMG_1374.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I added the ears and the hat. I used a toothpick dipped in black food coloring for the face details. I also used pink petal dust for the cheeks. I didn't put the baby on the cake until I got to the shower. Then I piped some green leaves and vines to add a little more color and to cover up those ugly spots on the fondant.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5JUdX0DoNIk/VEcmanZomVI/AAAAAAAADNY/mmHyLPdJBE0/s1600/CAM00432.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5JUdX0DoNIk/VEcmanZomVI/AAAAAAAADNY/mmHyLPdJBE0/s1600/CAM00432.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I got this really cool <a href="http://www.michaels.com/texture-mat-set-stone-wood/10265952.html#start=3">mold or impression mat</a> that makes fondant look like wood. You roll out your fondant, then you roll it over the mat. Viola!</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1ZQ8s-KpuEk/VUJE_Y411tI/AAAAAAAAEOg/98nFSwq2ug0/s1600/wood%2Bmold.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1ZQ8s-KpuEk/VUJE_Y411tI/AAAAAAAAEOg/98nFSwq2ug0/s1600/wood%2Bmold.jpg" /></a></div>
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A few days before, I used it to make the sign,</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-73a471QMGaM/VEcmgIyCpiI/AAAAAAAADP4/YkGiv7XMSNo/s1600/IMG_1379.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-73a471QMGaM/VEcmgIyCpiI/AAAAAAAADP4/YkGiv7XMSNo/s1600/IMG_1379.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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and the fence. I let them dry for as long as possible.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OWPBh64h-O8/VEcmhN5TVtI/AAAAAAAADQU/kWnfuFILrLs/s1600/IMG_1382.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OWPBh64h-O8/VEcmhN5TVtI/AAAAAAAADQU/kWnfuFILrLs/s1600/IMG_1382.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then I carefully brought them to the shower and added them to the cake. The fence really adds a lot - I think it came out really well.</div>
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So glad little Avery is here and healthy and that I could make her baby shower cake!</div>
<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-5345042074115557382014-11-07T11:29:00.000-06:002014-11-07T11:29:37.125-06:00Stressed is Desserts Spelled BackwardsWeek one of my three cakes in three weeks was done. Now on to week two.<br />
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Wedding cakes are high stress. I mean, if you mess up a birthday cake, eh, they will get another one next year. But a wedding cake? That's a one-time thing. And so I could also have named this post "The great hunt for violet food coloring," or, "The time my life flashed before my eyes."<br />
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But let's start at the beginning.<br />
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Tehillah had asked me to make her wedding cake.<br />
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At first, she and her fiance just wanted me to decide what to make. MINOR PANIC ATTACK. I know that choosing what you want on a cake can be fairly overwhelming, but what if I picked something they didn't like?<br />
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So Tehillah and I had a cake consultation. I think it was easier for her once I showed her some options and she was able to tell me what she liked and didn't like.<br />
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We decided on a two-tier cake. The bottom tier would be smooth fondant with a ribbon border and white pearls. The top tier would be the basketweave. Then I would make orange mums and lilies and purple violets, plus green leaves, to go on the top and sides. Finally, I would pipe their initials on the top.<br />
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I made some of the flowers out of fondant and some out of royal icing. The orange mums turned out great. I learned how to make these in one of my Wilton classes. The color was perfect and I didn't really have any problems putting them together.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CEsqkpS-190/VEckfBgLbVI/AAAAAAAADJc/e7LpOsxg0h0/s1600/IMG_1333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CEsqkpS-190/VEckfBgLbVI/AAAAAAAADJc/e7LpOsxg0h0/s1600/IMG_1333.JPG" height="320" width="167" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mum bases.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6K1Kwzd9e78/VFvLkyi8deI/AAAAAAAADRU/JorZEIxiX7E/s1600/Mum.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6K1Kwzd9e78/VFvLkyi8deI/AAAAAAAADRU/JorZEIxiX7E/s1600/Mum.JPG" height="309" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mum.</td></tr>
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It should have been a sign.<br />
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The night I set out to make the violets and lilies turned out to be crazy. I had already made the royal icing, now I just needed to color it and pipe the flowers. Except, I could not find my violet food coloring gel anywhere. I looked in every possible location before remembering that I had thrown it away. When food gets into the food coloring, it goes bad.<br />
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At this point, I should have just decided to mix different colors to make purple. But I thought that would take too much time and be too difficult to get the color right. So, I thought I'd just pop over to Walmart and get some violet food coloring. I hopped into the car and off I went.<br />
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It took me awhile to find the cake aisle at Walmart. That place is HUGE. I found it, located the coloring gel and then the section with violet and, wait what????? The<i> only</i> color they are out of is VIOLET? Are you kidding me? Is this some kind of cosmic joke? I kid you not, the only color they did not have was violet.<br />
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Okay, I can still do this, I thought. I'll head over to the Target across the street. Surely they will have some.<br />
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And . . . . . that would be a no. I actually bought some food coloring there, but I opened the package and it was the wrong kind (you do not want to add liquid food coloring to royal icing!), so I promptly returned it and rushed out to my car. I didn't want to trek all the way to JoAnn's - so where else could I get this stupid gel? AHA! Hobby Lobby! Perfect, should have that of that in the first place since it was on my way to Walmart.<br />
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Unfortunately, by the time I got to Hobby Lobby, it was closed. This was turning into a ridiculous waste of time. But by now, I had to get the color because I didn't have time to make my own. And so off to JoAnn's I went. I burst through the door, ran to the cake aisle and my heart stopped. Could it be they are also out of violet? What, is everyone making purple colored cakes or something? <br />
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I got the very, very last bottle of violet coloring gel. Whew. Crisis averted. So far.<br />
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I finally got back home and colored the icing orange and purple. I started with the lilies. Now I have always liked making royal frosting lilies because they are so easy. Famous last words. I think that some grease may have gotten into my icing because these lilies refused to dry. You pipe them on aluminum foil in a lily nail and then set them to the side to dry. Later you remove the foil. But for some reason, it did not work.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yOTlW00cZFk/VEckgYZYVjI/AAAAAAAADKA/j8sQWmI5vew/s1600/IMG_1337.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yOTlW00cZFk/VEckgYZYVjI/AAAAAAAADKA/j8sQWmI5vew/s1600/IMG_1337.JPG" height="191" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They look deceptively nice sitting on their foil squares.</td></tr>
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So I began to freak out that I wouldn't have any flowers on this cake! I started piping the violets and they looked horrible. It just looked like lumps of purple icing. I was really starting to panic now. But I adjusted the way I was holding the piping bag and it started to work a little better.<br />
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I decided that I needed to make another "big" flower, just in case I couldn't use the lilies. So I made some purple primroses as well. I'm so glad that I did.<br />
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I also made some royal icing leaves and left them to dry.<br />
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Compared to the flowers, the cake part went pretty well. The fondant went on the bottom tier nicely.<br />
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The ribbon I was a little nervous about. It's a common thing to see on fancy cakes (I guess non-edible ribbon just doesn't count??) but I had never done it before. I used this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KwPMzIF3w0">tutorial</a> and it turned out to be fairly simple. I just got the ribbon wet, squeezed out the excess and then stuck it to the fondant. No pins or gum glue required.</div>
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Next I added the pearls. I just sort of eyeballed them. I did use my small spatula to make sure they were at least somewhat similarly spaced. Then I just piped on two dots of clear piping gel and added the pearls. I love this look. Pearls are my new favorite thing!</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J598SEd5neM/VEckhksbcLI/AAAAAAAADKg/liBT9q7mqLw/s1600/IMG_1341.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J598SEd5neM/VEckhksbcLI/AAAAAAAADKg/liBT9q7mqLw/s1600/IMG_1341.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I frosted the top tier and got everything ready for the next day. The plan was to put the whole thing together at a church near the outdoor wedding and let it stay out of the sun until the reception.</div>
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The danger started early. I had packed up my car and was heading out of my driveway, very slowly. As I came up to the road, preparing to turn right, this car came out of nowhere, zooming down the street right in front of me. I had to slam on my brakes. Although I wasn't going very fast, the sudden stop caused the top tier, which was sitting in a box lid on my front seat, to fly forward. I swear my life flashed before my eyes. Everything went in slow motion.</div>
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And I caught the cake. Well, technically I caught the box with the cake in it, but regardless, the top tier was saved. Which was good, because I had no time to make another one. I was pretty shook up after that, but I managed to make it to the church in one piece.</div>
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Of course once I arrived, I discovered that the building I was supposed to be in was locked. I tried every single door. I knew that the girls would be there at some point to change, but I needed to get in now so I could finish the cake.</div>
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I made some calls and discovered that the bride's sister had the key to the church. But of course she was at the park where the wedding was going to be, helping to set up. I jumped in the car, drove over carefully, and then sprinted across the park to get the key and back to the car. Then back to the church where I finally was able to put the cake together.</div>
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I finished the basketweave and started to add the flowers. </div>
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But as I feared, the lilies would not come off of the foil. I tried several of them, but this is what happened:</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X5FEXUg_aH4/VEckhsB8i1I/AAAAAAAADKk/4PGPYI1vuT0/s1600/IMG_1342%2B-%2BCopy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-X5FEXUg_aH4/VEckhsB8i1I/AAAAAAAADKk/4PGPYI1vuT0/s1600/IMG_1342%2B-%2BCopy.JPG" height="196" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">So I grabbed my scissors and tried to cut as much of the foil off as I could </span><span style="text-align: left;">without breaking the lilies.</span></div>
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I was really disappointed that they didn't work correctly. I did not like how it looked with the foil. But everyone else seemed okay with it.</div>
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Finally, I piped on their initials.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DWWDuSBRcZs/VEckks57o7I/AAAAAAAADLw/x1avbZUJN1M/s1600/IMG_1354.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DWWDuSBRcZs/VEckks57o7I/AAAAAAAADLw/x1avbZUJN1M/s1600/IMG_1354.JPG" height="308" width="320" /></a></div>
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Not bad for freehanding it. Here are some close ups of the flowers:<br />
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After the ceremony, my dad and I went back to the church to get the cake. We drove very slowly but there were no more close calls. Here is the cake on the dessert table (other desserts were added so it didn't look so tiny on this huge table).</div>
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Congratulations Tehillah and Nathan!<br />
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Two weeks down, one to go. Will I survive?The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-66411788114453883752014-10-23T13:00:00.000-05:002014-10-23T13:00:01.419-05:00"It'sa me, Mario!"The challenge: Three cakes in three weeks.<br />
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I went for months without making a single cake. Then suddenly, I realized that I had committed to three cakes in three weeks. I would need to be Super Mario himself in order to pull this one off. Would I rescue the princess? Or would I succumb to the mushrooms, flying ducks, spitting fireballs or worse?<br />
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Only time would tell.<br />
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Week One: Mario<br />
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My nephew, like many young boys his age, is obsessed with video games. He LOVES Super Mario. And he is very good at it. He was quite shocked to discover that I hadn't passed the first world yet (he's beaten the game and is now trying to go back and collect all of the star coins). I have since made it to World 2. Where I am stuck on level 5.<br />
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So we decided to make a Mario cake for his birthday. Now, I may not be the best at playing Mario, but I was determined to be the best at caking Mario. You know what that means.<br />
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A Super Mario fondant figure.<br />
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I've been getting better at my people/figures/fondant sculptures, so I wanted to try this out. The idea was to make a sort of simple cake, just one tier, with a lot of the Mario elements. Then on top, I'd put a pipe and Mario going into the pipe. Piece of cake.<br />
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The cake itself wasn't too bad. I made a chocolate cake with chocolate fudge filling, as requested, and covered it with light blue fondant. I freehanded some green fondant to look like trees and hills.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KhU-Z2VTYFI/VEciWL_ThlI/AAAAAAAADFM/I0dlKqgwDpo/s1600/CAM00384.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-KhU-Z2VTYFI/VEciWL_ThlI/AAAAAAAADFM/I0dlKqgwDpo/s1600/CAM00384.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's what it looks like right? Trees and hills?</td></tr>
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Then I did some clouds. I looked everywhere for a cloud cookie cutter, but I couldn't find one, so they are free-handed too. Who knew making clouds would be so difficult?<br />
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I made some yellow fondant and cut out a bunch of stars, squares and circles to use as elements on the cake. I also cut out red circles and ivory circles to make little mushrooms.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">They are all covered so they don't dry out before I need them.</td></tr>
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Then I started adding elements. I decided which section I wanted to be the front and added the brown door. I also added some piranha plants in pipes.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Awww, it looks so cute and innocent right now.</td></tr>
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Then I began adding stars, coins, mushrooms, and question blocks.<br />
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Then one of my favorite elements - the vine.<br />
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Then I did some piping to finish off the elements.</div>
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Then I started to work on Mario. I used two tutorials that I found on Pinterest. Mainly this one from by <a href="http://cakesdecor.com/entries/476">Cesare Corsini on Cake Decor</a> but also <a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/526102_454790641227845_988016328_n.jpg">this one</a> which I have no idea where it came from. I started with the body. Cesare's tutorial is for a Mario that is standing, but I wanted it to look like mine was going into the pipe. So I omitted the legs, but I put two little stumps there so it would like he had legs that were in the pipe and also to help balance the body. Sometimes I think we make the mistake of trying to make the body and then add the clothes. You have to think of it a little differently so it is easier to make. So here we see the blue pants and the red shirt.<br />
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I add the arms in red (all of this is using gum glue to stick it on tight) and then the suspender straps.<br />
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For the head, I made a ball out of ivory fondant and made eye impressions with one of the green fondant tools. I tried to follow the tutorial as best I could.<br />
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He used paint for the eyes, I went with mostly fondant, except for the pupils.<br />
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It took forever for me to figure out if Mario had brown or black hair. In some pictures, he had brown hair but a black mustache! I just decided to go all brown because it was easier and I didn't want to buy a whole thing of black fondant. This was white fondant that I colored brown.</div>
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I made the back of his head kind of flat because I knew I would be adding the hair. I'm still not very good at the whole weight balancing thing. This little guy got real heavy, really fast. I did have to adjust the head later on. Another problem was that I had already painted the pupils onto Mario's eyes using black food coloring. Then when I was squeezing the hair on, I realized my fingers were touching his eyes! So it got a little bit smeared. Probably should have painted the eyes on last.<br />
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The hands were pretty fun to make. I just used a knife to cut the fingers and then shaped them a little and folded them over into fists. They look pretty good!<br />
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If I ever do this cake again, I will not make the pipe the same way. I thought that I had this brilliant idea - I would use the cake that I cut off the round cakes to make them flat. Then I would mix them with frosting, like a cake pop, cover that with fondant, and have a great pipe!<br />
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The first problem was that I used my <a href="http://www.joann.com/bake-even-strip-set-6-piece/12386066.html">new baking strips</a>. My old ones were kind of dying so I replaced them with these purple cloth ones. The thing I love most about these is that they have built in straps to hold them in place against the cake pan. No more pinning the baking strips!!!! Yay!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://www.joann.com/bake-even-strip-set-6-piece/12386066.html"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-d-JE25eFOpY/VElBKIOE94I/AAAAAAAADQ4/oY5AjPMckYQ/s1600/baking%2Bstrips.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can get a <a href="http://www.joann.com/bake-even-strip-set-6-piece/12386066.html">six piece set</a> at JoAnn's for $25 and if you use a 40 or 50% off coupon, <br />that's pretty close to what Wilton charges for 2 pieces.</td></tr>
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However, they worked so great, that at first I thought I wasn't going to level them at all. And then there would be no cake to make the pipe.<br />
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However, I did end up leveling them and using that to make a pipe shape. I tried to freeze it after I mixed it with the frosting, but it did not stay firm. (I know now that I used waaaaay too much frosting).<br />
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So it took awhile, but I finally got some fondant over it and it sort of looked like a pipe. Sort of.<br />
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I brought Mario separately to my parents house, planning to put him on the cake after arriving. Unfortunately, since he was so heavy, the foot stubs I had on the bottom had flattened in front, causing him to lean forward. So I just added a little more blue fondant on the bottom to balance him out.<br />
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Here is the finished product, right before we cut it:<br />
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It kind of looks like he is standing on top of the pipe with really, really short legs, but oh well.<br />
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I tried to get a picture from all angles, so you can see all of the details.<br />
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You can see here how Mario's eyes got a little messed up.<br />
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And here is the birthday boy with his cake!<br />
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Happy birthday Peter! </div>
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One down, two to go.The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-33399846411249326742014-06-27T12:10:00.000-05:002014-06-27T12:10:12.819-05:00Let it Go!Unless you have been living under a rock, you have heard of the movie Frozen. I think every kid that I know has seen it at least once and has the soundtrack memorized. My niece turned five in April and she chose to have a Frozen party.<br />
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Now I have not seen the movie. Which of course shocked all of my niece's little friends. I've promised to have my niece and nephew to my house for a sleepover when we will (FINALLY) watch the movie together. My niece brings this up every time she sees me now. "I'm still planning our sleepover, Aunt Joy," she said to me the other day.<br />
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I've read a lot about the movie so I kind of know the basic plot and who the main characters are. Plus the movie is called Frozen, so ice is going to be a given. And there is no shortage of Frozen cake pictures on the internet. It's a crazy fad (but a good one).<br />
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I planned to do a fairly simple cake, but I still wanted it to look cool. I decided to do a 10-inch round cake in light blue frosting. <br />
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The top would be covered with white fondant, like this:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This was the goal. <br />
Maybe I shouldn't show this picture . . . .</td></tr>
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You might think this would be easier than covering an entire cake with fondant.<br />
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But you would be wrong. </div>
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If I did it again, I think I would do it very differently. It's hard to make it smooth and nice with nice curvy edges. It did not look that pretty, but I figured I could cover it up with snowflakes and make it look better.<br />
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Any Frozen cake worth it's salt needs to have snowflakes right? I scoured the internet looking for a snowflake mold. I finally found one that I really liked, but I didn't really want to spend over thirty dollars for a mold.<br />
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So instead I got <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003QP3DZ0/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i01?ie=UTF8&psc=1">this one</a>. <br />
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I was a little apprehensive because many of the reviews on Amazon complained that the mold was way too shallow and therefore unusable. But you don't want to have super thick snowflakes!!! They are supposed to be delicate. Anyways, it was pretty shallow, but it worked fine to pipe in the melted chocolate. I made white and blue snowflakes. (These turned out to be <i>extremely</i> popular with the kids.)<br />
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Now I needed a topper. My plan was to buy Elsa and Anna figurines to just put on the top of the cake. But you cannot find these figures anywhere for under ten dollars. Seriously, it's impossible. I knew I didn't have time to try and make them out of fondant. Plus people are really hard to make. So I asked Elisa which of the characters was her favorite. "Elsa and Anna," she said. <br />
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I know you like both but which one is your favorite?<br />
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"Both," she said. "And Olaf too!"<br />
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Aha! Olaf is a snowman. I don't really know how he fits in the story, but a snowman is made of round shapes. I could make an Olaf!<br />
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I found this <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/111112315781088679/">picture tutorial</a> on Pinterest. It is a little blurry, but it was clear enough to follow the directions. I made Olaf the night before due to illness preventing me from working on it earlier in the week. If I could do it again, I would make him more in advance.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-STcxylg7DLY/U4pNmW0xV8I/AAAAAAAAC-U/RjbwwfRQ5Hs/s1600/Olaf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-STcxylg7DLY/U4pNmW0xV8I/AAAAAAAAC-U/RjbwwfRQ5Hs/s1600/Olaf.jpg" height="640" width="321" /></a></div>
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I put him on a lollipop stick instead of a dowel. First I made the three balls so I could tell if they were about the correct size. I put two balls on the stick and added the feet.<br />
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Then I made the head. I thought this would be the hardest part. I only had the picture instructions, so I was just kind of making it up as I went along.<br />
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At first it looked super creepy. Here I've added the eyes and the background for the mouth.</div>
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Now the eyebrows and the buttons.</div>
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Next the little hairs on his head.<br />
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The arms were actually the hardest part. I wrapped fondant around toothpicks, but it did not want to stick! Eventually I got it to work.<br />
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Add the tooth and the nose - and there's Olaf! I could only hope that he wasn't too heavy to stand up.<br />
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I also wanted to make a candy "5" for the top of the cake, but I wasn't sure if it would hold up either, once the candy hardened. I piped the candy onto some parchment paper and stuck the lollipop stick into it. I piped the blue candy over the white and stuck it in the fridge to harden.<br />
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On the day of the party, I added the snowflakes to the cake and piped on Elisa's name. Then I added blue raspberry rock candy crystals all along the border. I was a little disappointed with this purchase. They had absolutely no flavor whatsoever and only succeeded in turning my hands completely blue. I would not buy them again. But it did look cool - so I guess it was worth it.<br />
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I brought the cake to my sister's house without the toppers on. I wasn't sure if the lollipop sticks would hold, so I didn't want to stick them in until I got there. The five went in fine, although the stick was a little too long for the cake. Should have made it slightly shorter.<br />
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Olaf went in fine too, but he was a bit heavier than I realized. I knew that he was going to sink into the cake. I wished I had a longer stick for him. But we got some good pictures taken right away. Olaf managed to stay up through lunch and through ice skating, which was several hours. He did sink a little bit, but it wasn't too bad.<br />
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Everyone wanted Olaf, but of course he belonged to Elisa. Unlike her brother, who chose to save his fondant angry birds, she decided to eat the poor snowman.<br />
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All in all, a very successful cake. Happy birthday to my beautiful niece Elisa!<br />
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*If you are interested in ordering an Olaf topper without a cake, send me an email and I'll see what we can do.The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-11166788751289417322014-06-05T11:19:00.001-05:002014-06-05T11:19:53.303-05:00Under the SeaIf you ever need an event planner, look no farther. No, not me. My friend Hillary is amazing at this stuff. She was in charge of this shower for my sister-in-law and it was probably the best decorated shower I have ever attended! Seriously, she has a gift.<br />
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So Hillary asked me to make some cupcakes for the shower. The theme was Under the Sea - a Shellabration. She found these super cute turtle cupcakes on Pinterest.<br />
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But I didn't really want to make 48 turtle cupcake toppers. So I decided to do some starfish and shell cupcakes as well.<br />
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The shells were easy. I used the Wilton shell candy mold and made sets of light blue, dark blue, green, and "sand" (aka peanut butter flavor) candy shells. They turned out great!<br />
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The starfish were also really easy. I used a star cutter and cut out thick orange fondant stars. I used the wrong end of a piping tip to make the smiles. I let the stars dry on the flower drying rack so that they would be slightly curved. For the eyes, I dipped a toothpick into black food coloring and the stuck it into the star.<br />
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The turtles were slightly more complicated, but they were very cute.<br />
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I used the circle cutters for most of the turtle. The small one made the feet. I just had to cut off one side and reshape them.</div>
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I used the large cutter for the blue background and the medium cutter for the head and body. I just made the head smaller.<br />
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I used the wrong end of a piping tip to make the smiles. I used gum glue to attach the turtle to the blue background.<br />
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Then I added the legs.</div>
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I used piping tip 3 and cut the circles in half to make the little spots to go on the turtles back.<br />
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I also used a toothpick dipped in black food coloring for the turtles' eyes.<br />
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They dried overnight and then I just had to add them to the cupcakes.<br />
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I got a new cupcake stand that holds more than my old one and is a platform. So we put brown sugar on it to look like sand and added a few candy shells.<br />
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We also placed some cupcakes on the tables as part of the centerpieces.<br />
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The cupcakes fit in great with the decor!The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-35098784704988824942014-05-03T17:17:00.001-05:002014-05-03T17:17:20.181-05:00Edible DiapersUnless you have absolutely no contact with babies or people who have babies, you probably are aware that cloth diapers are all the rage right now. When my parents had us kids, they used cloth diapers. But back then it was just the rag that you pinned together.<br />
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Nowadays, they have all these fancy diapers, with inserts, that come in all sorts of fancy colors and sizes. My sister-in-law was due at the end of March. She and my brother decided they wanted to use cloth diapers, so they registered for these:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QdZ20Q_LCYg/U1VfG2qPUPI/AAAAAAAAC4E/JVjNhaOXdnQ/s1600/Bum+Genius.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QdZ20Q_LCYg/U1VfG2qPUPI/AAAAAAAAC4E/JVjNhaOXdnQ/s1600/Bum+Genius.jpg" height="252" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bum Genius Diapers</td></tr>
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Super cute! But who wants to give one diaper for a shower gift? And yet, they are probably the most needed items on the registry. So my mom threw a diaper-themed shower for our side of the family. (Annnnnnd we are finally getting to the point here.) Naturally, at a diaper-themed shower, one must have diaper themed cake, or in this case, cupcakes.<br />
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But no one has ever done diaper cupcakes before! Okay, so I finally found one person on etsy who sells diaper shaped fondant cupcake toppers. But that's it. I could not find anything cake-related with diapers. There are the creepy baby cakes where the babies are wearing diapers.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uMzR99tKZAo/U1Vf0L1BsII/AAAAAAAAC4Q/YLSQsCU8Pis/s1600/baby+with+diaper+cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uMzR99tKZAo/U1Vf0L1BsII/AAAAAAAAC4Q/YLSQsCU8Pis/s1600/baby+with+diaper+cake.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trust me, they get a lot creepier than this.</td></tr>
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And the diaper cakes/cupcakes that are actual diapers. I would not recommend trying to chow down on these. So, what to do?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WyJu5BNSzRc/U1Vf0IpgxHI/AAAAAAAAC4M/uV_7fh43pU4/s1600/diaper+cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WyJu5BNSzRc/U1Vf0IpgxHI/AAAAAAAAC4M/uV_7fh43pU4/s1600/diaper+cake.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cute, but not the taste I was going for.</td></tr>
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I had ordered two diapers for the shower and when they arrived, I realized how simple it would be. I would make cupcake toppers that look like the packaged diapers!<br />
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So I rolled out some different colored fondant. I eyeballed a T-shape with a knife, then folded it up like a diaper. I made the buttons using tip 12 and the stitching with my roller tool. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WJELWRyQC1s/U2VozB8xsRI/AAAAAAAAC5I/VJZMb5Gw8BE/s1600/IMG_1044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WJELWRyQC1s/U2VozB8xsRI/AAAAAAAAC5I/VJZMb5Gw8BE/s1600/IMG_1044.JPG" height="320" width="149" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The only tools I needed (besides a knife).</td></tr>
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Fastest fondant item I have ever made!<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k4PbbqituFI/U2VoyGk0c5I/AAAAAAAAC4w/DhHooIwjKSw/s1600/IMG_1039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k4PbbqituFI/U2VoyGk0c5I/AAAAAAAAC4w/DhHooIwjKSw/s1600/IMG_1039.JPG" height="214" width="400" /></a></div>
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Some close ups:<br />
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I whipped up the cupcakes, put on the diapers, and they turned out great!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pmml8h2wxfY/U2VozxrhFOI/AAAAAAAAC5k/vn24kk6ovo4/s1600/IMG_1046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pmml8h2wxfY/U2VozxrhFOI/AAAAAAAAC5k/vn24kk6ovo4/s1600/IMG_1046.JPG" height="640" width="472" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We put them in a "B" for baby. <br />At the time, we didn't know her name.</td></tr>
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Passing out the cupcakes . . .<br />
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Elisa is enjoying hers!</div>
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Kylie is here now and let me tell you, those huge cloth diapers look very cute on her little bum. Love you Kylie!<br />
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-28353441294429515162014-04-09T13:11:00.000-05:002014-04-09T13:11:00.477-05:00I'm Gettin' Married In the Morning!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I met Leslie and Darren at my church. Leslie saw the <a href="http://thejoysofcaking.blogspot.com/2014/02/a-whimsical-panda.html">Whimsical Panda cake</a> and thought it looked like it could have been a wedding cake. She and Darren had been cake tasting, but they hadn't found a place that made cake they liked. And it was very important that it taste good.</div>
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So they came to me. Ooooh, I'm famous!</div>
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I had a meeting with the two of them a few months before their February wedding to talk about what they wanted. Leslie showed me some pictures and we talked about the elements that they liked. We ended up deciding to do a three tiered cake, with quilting on the top and bottom tiers and their initials on the middle tier. The topper would be red roses and each tier would also have some roses. Then I would also make an extra sheet cake to ensure we had enough to feed all the guests.</div>
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As we talked, I mentioned a<a href="http://thejoysofcaking.blogspot.com/2014/01/the-river-of-life.html"> groom's cake</a> that I had done. Darren had never heard of a groom's cake, so I explained the concept. Be careful what you tell prospective clients!!!!!! He thought it would be great to have a groom's cake. Darren is British, so his idea was to have half the cake be the British flag and half the American flag. Alright, so flags are pretty much lines and shapes, that shouldn't be too hard.</div>
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I was nervous about the red roses. Red is such a hard color to get right. And I did not want it to look pink. But, I remembered that I had used Wilton Spray on my red dance shoes and I thought that might work for the roses as well.</div>
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I knew I wanted to make at least 40 roses to make sure that I had enough. I'd be assembling the cake the morning of the wedding, and it was my worst nightmare that I would run out. I literally had dreams that I was putting the cake together and didn't have enough.</div>
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So a few weeks before the wedding, I started making roses in every spare moment I had. Fortunately, I learned how to do this in one of my cake classes.</div>
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You start by making rose bases. You have to make these first, on spaghetti (or wire if you are using wire instead) and then let them dry before you start putting the petals on.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Petals</td></tr>
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You roll the fondant very thin and then cut out a bunch of pieces using the large rose cutter. While keeping the rest covered, one by one you add the petals to the base (the process is slightly more complicated, but we won't go into boring details). I made 4 different sizes, rosebud, 3-petal rose, 5-petal rose and 7-petal rose.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rosebuds.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DuEy1KQULH8/UvaL6xCX7SI/AAAAAAAACpE/T51UlqLK-zU/s1600/IMG_0970.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DuEy1KQULH8/UvaL6xCX7SI/AAAAAAAACpE/T51UlqLK-zU/s1600/IMG_0970.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">7 petal and 5 petal rose.</td></tr>
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After the roses dried, I sprayed them with the red Wilton spray.<br />
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Here you can see the difference in color. The one on the left is made with red fondant but not sprayed.<br />
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I think the final count of roses was 46. That's a lot of work. I went through a lot of episodes of Alias and Eureka while making these.</div>
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I baked the cakes on the Thursday before the wedding. One six inch, one 8 inch and one 10 inch round, plus the 9x13 grooms cake.<br />
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I'm still pretty nervous about fondant ever since the <a href="http://thejoysofcaking.blogspot.com/2014/03/monsters-inc.html">Monster's Inc. cake.</a> And although Chicago was in the middle of negative-this-is-crazy-14 weather, my apartment was a balmy 85 degrees. I was the only one in Illinois with my windows open!!! <br />
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I don't control the temperature in my apartment, my downstairs neighbor does. And heat rises . . . . . I knew there was no way the fondant was going to work in that heat. I actually had to ask my neighbor to turn the heat down so that I could make the cake. Which she very graciously did (she didn't know it was so hot in my apartment).<br />
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So with a breezy 75 degree apartment, the fondant went on smoothly and I got the three cakes filled and covered. Then I had to do the quilting on the top and bottom tiers.<br />
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There are several different ways to get the quilted look. I chose to use a diamond cutter. <br />
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You line it up and press it in the fondant around the sides of the cake. The hardest part is learning how hard you need to press. Too soft and the lines aren't visible, but too hard and the frosting underneath starts to show. You also have to do it quickly because the fondant starts to dry and crack. I did have some cracks and I wasn't really happy with how it looked. I had to remind myself that no one would be standing one inch from the cake, examining the smoothness of the fondant. And later when I added the pearls, it looked much better.<br />
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For the groom's cake, I had my brother (<a href="http://futurewolf.com/">futurewolf</a>) create the custom design for me, which turned out great. But then I had to print it out as a 9x13. My printer can't handle such a task. So I took it to Kinkos. On the phone, they told me that it was going to cost around 5 dollars to print. WHAT? Five dollars is ridiculous! But what else could I do? The wedding was the next day. So I had them print it. Of course when I got there, the picture was facing the wrong direction and it was in color. Way to follow instructions Kinkos! They did fix it fairly quickly. I almost fell over when they told me the cost was $0.25. That was more like it!<br />
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I taped down the image on the table and taped parchment paper over it. The tape is very important so that your image doesn't move.<br />
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Then I piped clear piping gel on all the lines of the image.<br />
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After letting it sit, I flipped the parchment paper over onto the cake and rubbed the piping gel onto the frosting.<br />
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Then I started filling it in.<br />
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White:<br />
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Blue:<br />
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And red:<br />
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To achieve the smooth look, you pipe the frosting in. Then dip your finger (clean finger, of course) in cornstarch and spread it around evenly. The cornstarch keeps the frosting from sticking to you.<br />
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For the stars, I used little star sprinkles. They were perfect!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">American flag on the top left and bottom right; <br />
British flag on the top right and bottom left.</td></tr>
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I used the same technique to put the initials on the middle cake. It didn't work quite as well so I had to kind of freehand the letters. But it turned out nice.<br />
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DAY OF THE WEDDING:<br />
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Another snow storm. We have had our share of snow this winter!! So the snow was thick on the ground and more was falling. I loaded up my car and my sister, Amy, arrived to be my assistant. The roads were really slick, so I had to drive very carefully, but we made it in one piece, albeit a little later than I had planned.<br />
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My sister helped me put the tiers together. As she put it - she doesn't really like seeing the behind the scenes work that goes into making the cake, she'd rather just see the final product. Apparently it ruins the magic. But I could not have gotten this done without her.<br />
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I added the border on the tiers while she put the pearls on the quilted pattern. I thought the quilting looked pretty good, but when you add the pearls, it really makes it pop.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My beautiful sister adding pearls to the cake.</td></tr>
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To get the pearls to stay, you just put a dollop of clear piping gel on each "X" and the place the edible pearl on top of it. The piping gel holds it in place.<br />
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And then the big moment arrived. I put a mound of frosting on the top tier and prepared to place the first rose. My trusty assistant was very nervous that I was going to mess it up. Thanks for the encouragement sis!<br />
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The first flower went on and everything was still fine. So I just kept adding flowers.</div>
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Once the top was finished, I moved on to each tier. I think I would do the top a little differently in the future, but it turned out okay.<br />
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I'm not sure how long this took, but finally all the roses were in place.<br />
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With a sigh of relief, I began to add my favorite part, the leaves.<br />
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The leaves just add that extra dimension, don't they?<br />
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I'm really proud of these roses. Everyone said they looked like real flowers. They represent a lot of hard work. So here's some close up shots:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Seriously, this picture looks like it could be from a magazine.</td></tr>
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Funny story - Leslie's daughter, Georgia, came in the room as we were working on the cake. She was all dressed up in her <i>white</i> flower girl dress and had her hair done. (Can you tell where this is going?) She asked if she could have a flower. So I said sure, as long as I had extra.<br />
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She came back later to collect her rose. My sister handed her one. Both of us thought she was going to keep it and take it home with her. But no, she just took a huge bite right out of the flower! I think Amy and I were a little shocked. I mean, they are edible, but we just weren't expecting her to gobble it down. Right then. Shortly before the wedding! <br />
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And of course the color from the flower rubbed off on her hands, her mouth, and even got on her neck! Oh boy, we narrowly averted getting into some major trouble. None of it got on her dress, thank goodness. We sent her off to the bathroom to clean herself up and told her NOT TO TOUCH ANYTHING. Hah, sorry about that Leslie.<br />
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The last step was to add the border to the groom's cake. (I almost ran out of frosting, but I had just enough)<br />
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And finally I was finished.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3jntB_7MjRY/UvaMYyzHSkI/AAAAAAAACwk/xK29R3Y7-U0/s1600/IMG_1031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3jntB_7MjRY/UvaMYyzHSkI/AAAAAAAACwk/xK29R3Y7-U0/s1600/IMG_1031.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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The cake was so heavy and the base was not really sturdy enough (I was trying something new, but I won't use this kind of base again). So I was really, really worried that when the caterers moved it from the cart to the cake table it would collapse in on itself. I had visions of cake everywhere and my lovely creation destroyed. I didn't see them move it, but apparently all went well because the cake was in one piece.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-H8aqcFbm3nQ/UvaMZP_NVfI/AAAAAAAACws/m4MbBOJj-Lw/s1600/IMG_1034.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-H8aqcFbm3nQ/UvaMZP_NVfI/AAAAAAAACws/m4MbBOJj-Lw/s1600/IMG_1034.JPG" height="400" width="298" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Displayed at the reception</td></tr>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pg1vz7fecEI/UvaMZ-9kbHI/AAAAAAAACw4/7grts5L_8TI/s1600/IMG_1035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Pg1vz7fecEI/UvaMZ-9kbHI/AAAAAAAACw4/7grts5L_8TI/s1600/IMG_1035.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I love that the color of the roses matches so well!<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKCCmqPYq0w/UvaMXSpPTLI/AAAAAAAACwY/rVO3TT250yw/s1600/IMG_1033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mKCCmqPYq0w/UvaMXSpPTLI/AAAAAAAACwY/rVO3TT250yw/s1600/IMG_1033.JPG" height="320" width="239" /></a></div>
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Thank you Leslie and Darren for trusting me enough to make your wedding cake. Congratulations and I hope you have many happy years together!<br />
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-24193155558220816382014-04-06T20:31:00.000-05:002014-04-06T20:31:21.356-05:00Who Let the Dogs Out?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Jim and Amie are good friends of mine who attend group swing dance classes with me at <a href="http://chicagodancefactory.com/">Chicago Dance Factory</a>. They are so much fun! They are always hamming it up and making me laugh. I had the privilege of competing in West Coast Swing with Jim. They are some of my favorite people and I always enjoy hanging out with them. Unfortunately, whenever we go out to eat, we end up with one of us having a bug(s) in our food! So far Jim has escaped unscathed . . . . .</div>
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The week before Amie's birthday, Jim asked me if I could make her a cake. He didn't really have any specifications, other than requesting chocolate. Amie has a dog, Petunia, that she loves very much, so I decided to make a puppy cake. No, this is not a replica of Petunia. Amie said it would have been difficult to eat a cake that looked like her dog. (Obviously it's not because I don't have the ability to make an exact replica of a real, live dog).</div>
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Now since the last <a href="http://thejoysofcaking.blogspot.com/2014/03/monsters-inc.html">fiasco with the fondant</a>, I was very, very nervous about this cake. It was a similar concept, with a dome instead of a ball covered in fondant.</div>
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I used the small sports ball pan again but only made half. This would be the head.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oZ7Y9XqJ4vw/UvaKcZn_ePI/AAAAAAAAClk/36RvwDCi46w/s1600/IMG_0942.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-oZ7Y9XqJ4vw/UvaKcZn_ePI/AAAAAAAAClk/36RvwDCi46w/s1600/IMG_0942.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I made an 8-inch round cake and the larger sports ball pan went on top of that. I did have to carve it down a little bit to get the shape that I wanted.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JVdWgHSWUK8/UvaKb8UI7HI/AAAAAAAAClg/204dJa0s_xQ/s1600/IMG_0943.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JVdWgHSWUK8/UvaKb8UI7HI/AAAAAAAAClg/204dJa0s_xQ/s1600/IMG_0943.JPG" height="265" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then I frosted both and put them in the fridge to harden.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1IU-m3lL2nQ/UvaKblhsEoI/AAAAAAAAClc/S0tZaAIZGdM/s1600/IMG_0944.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1IU-m3lL2nQ/UvaKblhsEoI/AAAAAAAAClc/S0tZaAIZGdM/s1600/IMG_0944.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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Here was the moment of truth. Would the fondant fail me again? I opened the package of plain white fondant and relief swept over me. It was soft and pliable, like PlayDoh, the way fondant was meant to be. I rolled it out, covered the smaller cake, and . . . . .<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5m5A-ZxK56o/UvaKcyfPazI/AAAAAAAAClw/NNHLQRQgcl8/s1600/IMG_0945.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5m5A-ZxK56o/UvaKcyfPazI/AAAAAAAAClw/NNHLQRQgcl8/s1600/IMG_0945.JPG" height="298" width="400" /></a></div>
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Perfection! No rips or tears.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lQ2zpX18aoo/UvaKdM2lo1I/AAAAAAAACl8/63Bf0SnpO_k/s1600/IMG_0947.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lQ2zpX18aoo/UvaKdM2lo1I/AAAAAAAACl8/63Bf0SnpO_k/s1600/IMG_0947.JPG" height="245" width="320" /></a></div>
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The bigger one was slightly more challenging because it was, well, bigger.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2W94SXZx16A/UvaKdIWj3XI/AAAAAAAACl4/IVArqFNOrG8/s1600/IMG_0946.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2W94SXZx16A/UvaKdIWj3XI/AAAAAAAACl4/IVArqFNOrG8/s1600/IMG_0946.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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But that one came out great too.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kYerfijRyX0/UvaKdsb0-UI/AAAAAAAACmQ/YpWaay4eDys/s1600/IMG_0948.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kYerfijRyX0/UvaKdsb0-UI/AAAAAAAACmQ/YpWaay4eDys/s1600/IMG_0948.JPG" height="238" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then I put the two pieces together on the cake board.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mpxq5g1_guk/UvaKeg_aj-I/AAAAAAAACmM/bl3j9c8kiyQ/s1600/IMG_0950.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mpxq5g1_guk/UvaKeg_aj-I/AAAAAAAACmM/bl3j9c8kiyQ/s1600/IMG_0950.JPG" height="202" width="320" /></a></div>
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I made three white feet and one black foot out of fondant.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A4ggGuztNug/UvaKfarHv2I/AAAAAAAACmo/WUb2eyGa9Xw/s1600/IMG_0952.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-A4ggGuztNug/UvaKfarHv2I/AAAAAAAACmo/WUb2eyGa9Xw/s1600/IMG_0952.JPG" height="476" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here's the three white feet.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jdnwlKlnobY/UvaKfraV15I/AAAAAAAACmk/0v419-JdzeI/s1600/IMG_0953.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jdnwlKlnobY/UvaKfraV15I/AAAAAAAACmk/0v419-JdzeI/s1600/IMG_0953.JPG" height="217" width="320" /></a></div>
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And the black one.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lcm5YuCPsh4/UvaKmsrQLzI/AAAAAAAACoo/MJOgAkYRRKk/s1600/IMG_0968.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lcm5YuCPsh4/UvaKmsrQLzI/AAAAAAAACoo/MJOgAkYRRKk/s1600/IMG_0968.JPG" height="320" width="239" /></a></div>
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The nose.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQJpDEuuxcU/UvaKgaTV3MI/AAAAAAAACmw/2i4KpDtQjtc/s1600/IMG_0954.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZQJpDEuuxcU/UvaKgaTV3MI/AAAAAAAACmw/2i4KpDtQjtc/s1600/IMG_0954.JPG" height="279" width="320" /></a></div>
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I freehanded the ears.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PSs2_AclqOU/UvaKhHi9J_I/AAAAAAAACnA/KFrD5nn6uPA/s1600/IMG_0955.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PSs2_AclqOU/UvaKhHi9J_I/AAAAAAAACnA/KFrD5nn6uPA/s1600/IMG_0955.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I added blue eyes with a little bit of blue fondant I had left over.<br />
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Finally I added the spots on the back and the tail.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dPfYj423DbA/UvaKj_VeAJI/AAAAAAAACn0/xj5pakpxUlE/s1600/IMG_0961.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dPfYj423DbA/UvaKj_VeAJI/AAAAAAAACn0/xj5pakpxUlE/s1600/IMG_0961.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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Okay, now the collective, "awwwwwwwwww!!!"<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DX4JFxhCoko/UvaKhzH0m8I/AAAAAAAACnY/R07DcfX2iBI/s1600/IMG_0958.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DX4JFxhCoko/UvaKhzH0m8I/AAAAAAAACnY/R07DcfX2iBI/s1600/IMG_0958.JPG" height="400" width="346" /></a></div>
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I'm not a dog person, but that's a cute puppy dog face . . .<br />
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View from the rear.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IAt2IAWYeCU/UvaKk1jLfpI/AAAAAAAACoA/5Xbrar19g2g/s1600/IMG_0963.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IAt2IAWYeCU/UvaKk1jLfpI/AAAAAAAACoA/5Xbrar19g2g/s1600/IMG_0963.JPG" height="640" width="478" /></a></div>
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I snuck the cake into class before Amie arrived. Then afterwards, we surprised her with it and ate cake in the back room. It was a hit!<br />
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Happy birthday Amie!!!!<br />
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-73711710515468079572014-03-11T18:54:00.001-05:002014-03-11T18:54:51.490-05:00Monster's Inc.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
And finally, we come to the last cake of 2013. I have known Catrina and Mark for a few years now. Catrina and I were roommates on a missions trip to Brazil and Mark plays on the worship team at church. </div>
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I also had the privilege of surprising them with an engagement cake a few years ago.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RXxKn_NoNpQ/Ux9GutzUOnI/AAAAAAAAC2Q/YC3QkZvGD-M/s1600/311260_583334018668_3695069_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RXxKn_NoNpQ/Ux9GutzUOnI/AAAAAAAAC2Q/YC3QkZvGD-M/s1600/311260_583334018668_3695069_n.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, I made the figures are made out of modeling chocolate.</td></tr>
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I am always excited for repeat customers because I know they really like what I do. So I was very happy to work on the cake for their son Jacob's Monster's Inc.-themed first birthday party.<br />
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It was pretty easy to pick the concept for this cake. I would do a round cake that looked like Sully's fur. Then a fondant covered Mike would sit on top of the round cake.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://pixar.wikia.com/File:Mike_Wazowski_and_Sulley_003.jpg"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--JisSMTWR2Q/Ux9I60sKlfI/AAAAAAAAC2c/D8mqNFS_0Rw/s1600/640px-Mike_Wazowski_and_Sulley_003.jpg" height="200" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pixar.wikia.com/File:Mike_Wazowski_and_Sulley_003.jpg">Picture from Pixar Wiki</a></td></tr>
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I started with Mike. I used the round sports ball pan, which makes two halves of a ball - like this:<br />
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I frosted one and flipped it over.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dk_8U_PkzGE/Ux5vftmNskI/AAAAAAAACx0/KLc3BEbpBgs/s1600/IMG_0776.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dk_8U_PkzGE/Ux5vftmNskI/AAAAAAAACx0/KLc3BEbpBgs/s1600/IMG_0776.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I frosted the second one and put it on top of the first. Then I frosted them together.<br />
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So far everything was going great! Next I started on Sully. It took awhile to get the frosting the colors that I wanted, but I think they turned out really well.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FpDyc0cky-A/Ux5vgasT-YI/AAAAAAAACyI/lBnvKWWV6Ao/s1600/IMG_0780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FpDyc0cky-A/Ux5vgasT-YI/AAAAAAAACyI/lBnvKWWV6Ao/s1600/IMG_0780.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I used the grass tip to make it look like fur.<br />
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It looks like you could reach out and pet it!<br />
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Things were still going really great. Famous last words.<br />
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My plan was to cover the ball with green fondant. Then I would make the arms and legs out of fondant as well. But I was worried about the fondant itself. It felt really hard through the box and I was afraid that it would be too hard to use. I was so worried about it that I actually went out and bought a second package of green fondant. I felt every box at the store, but they all felt the same way.<br />
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Okay, I thought. If they are all like this, then it must be okay, right? Wrong.<br />
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I rolled out the fondant, but it was extremely dry. I tried adding some shortening to help it, but it wasn't enough to save it.<br />
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I bravely plowed on. I covered the ball with the fondant and began to smooth it down the sides. This is when the horror began. (Ok, it's not really that bad, but at the time, I was really freaking out).<br />
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The fondant began to crack and then literally fall apart. No!!!!!!! I had to quickly wrap up the ball so it wouldn't fall off completely, which resulted in these lovely folds.<br />
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Not what I was going for. What should have been a smooth, round ball of green was now a lumpy, not so round anymore, lump wrapped in ripped fondant.<br />
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Maybe I could cover the ripped parts with the face . . . . But then all those ridiculous folds would be there and it would just look really bad.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is what disaster looks like.</td></tr>
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I didn't know what to do. I was so frustrated because it wasn't my fault! The stupid fondant was messed up and I knew the second package would be the same. I'm not going to lie, there were tears at this point. I felt like I was letting Catrina and Mark down. How could I bring a cake like this to them? This was complete and utter failure.</div>
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I took a moment (or two, or three, or ten) and pulled myself together. Finally I decided to make some green buttercream frosting and just cover the whole mess. It wouldn't be smooth, it wouldn't look like fondant, and I'd have to make the legs and arms out of frosting as well, but it would be better than the alternative. It was really the only option I had.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Plan B.</td></tr>
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So that's what I did. Then I started to add the face. I made the eye, the teeth, and the horns out of fondant. I used buttercream for the pupil and iris and the inside of the teeth.<br />
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The ball looks a little different because I refrigerated it and then added more frosting to try to make it look a little smoother.<br />
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I brought the two cakes to the party separately, driving through a snowstorm to get there. Then I plonked Mike on top of the round Sully cake.<br />
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Ok, so it didn't look as horrible as I thought it would. But I still had to add the arms and legs. Tense moment . . . . .<br />
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Will it look okay?<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uWyX-vw6sf4/Ux5vnMtDafI/AAAAAAAACz4/RldUuVWL4U8/s1600/IMG_0798.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uWyX-vw6sf4/Ux5vnMtDafI/AAAAAAAACz4/RldUuVWL4U8/s1600/IMG_0798.JPG" height="320" width="239" /></a></div>
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On to the second leg . . .<br />
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And then the arms . . .<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IP-aW3A_qck/Ux5vogVZG1I/AAAAAAAAC0U/S7NnElVo69s/s1600/IMG_0800.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IP-aW3A_qck/Ux5vogVZG1I/AAAAAAAAC0U/S7NnElVo69s/s1600/IMG_0800.JPG" height="320" width="239" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hey there, how <i>YOU</i> doing?</td></tr>
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And it was done.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IRkvGYuVSZE/Ux5vowggIDI/AAAAAAAAC0Y/Nka3I_w9gtY/s1600/IMG_0803.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-IRkvGYuVSZE/Ux5vowggIDI/AAAAAAAAC0Y/Nka3I_w9gtY/s1600/IMG_0803.JPG" height="320" width="239" /></a></div>
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Well the legs and arms were a little skinnier than I had planned, but they looked alright.<br />
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I think the feet and hands are my favorite part of the cake. The toenails and fingernails are made from fondant.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-09Uu6JBRPF4/Ux5vtU8eb7I/AAAAAAAAC1Y/XZVFKsJ7kbQ/s1600/IMG_0811.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-09Uu6JBRPF4/Ux5vtU8eb7I/AAAAAAAAC1Y/XZVFKsJ7kbQ/s1600/IMG_0811.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TVjjeTaLkYo/Ux5vuobG5MI/AAAAAAAAC1w/78bdy1S6Vn8/s1600/IMG_0813.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TVjjeTaLkYo/Ux5vuobG5MI/AAAAAAAAC1w/78bdy1S6Vn8/s1600/IMG_0813.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It does look like he's actually sitting there.</td></tr>
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In the end, everyone loved the cake. I guess it was fitting that I had a scare while making it . . . . .<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CtpR6DD7O2Q/Ux5vuupDD2I/AAAAAAAAC1s/g7bERwwNjf0/s1600/IMG_0814.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CtpR6DD7O2Q/Ux5vuupDD2I/AAAAAAAAC1s/g7bERwwNjf0/s1600/IMG_0814.JPG" height="640" width="456" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boo!</td></tr>
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Crisis averted. Happy birthday Jacob!The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-55918571132030305852014-02-12T12:07:00.000-06:002014-02-12T12:08:08.695-06:00A Whimsical Panda<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
One of my pastors, Anita, also works for Children's Relief International. She helps to raise money for <a href="http://www.childrensrelief.org/how-we-help/nutrition/">Tessa Grace Nutrition Center</a>. Tessa Grace exists to help malnourished and under-developed babies in Mozambique. Anita was hosting a fundraising dinner and asked me to make a cake to auction off.</div>
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Since the cake was for Tessa Grace, I wanted to make something whimsical and fun. I chose pastel colors because that felt more "childlike." I chose pandas because they are cool and I had some black and white fondant I wanted to use up.</div>
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I started by making the pandas.</div>
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These are the legs and arms.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nJGaBl8ZEZU/UufZjKgF3OI/AAAAAAAACh0/nFwj8mpJhnA/s1600/IMG_0727.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nJGaBl8ZEZU/UufZjKgF3OI/AAAAAAAACh0/nFwj8mpJhnA/s1600/IMG_0727.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I guess I stopped taking pictures after that.<br />
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I used this rather useful cake pan that my sister gave me a few years ago. It creates a space in the cake so you can have more filling than just the thin layer you get when you tort a cake.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hmqGss3Bszk/UufZkvIM5BI/AAAAAAAACiE/7zFlYfUMvmY/s1600/IMG_0730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hmqGss3Bszk/UufZkvIM5BI/AAAAAAAACiE/7zFlYfUMvmY/s1600/IMG_0730.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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Each half has the space.<br />
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You fill it with something scrumptious.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ThZM7rZeK0U/UufZjH3jyDI/AAAAAAAAChw/YIHo8o8vQw4/s1600/IMG_0729.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ThZM7rZeK0U/UufZjH3jyDI/AAAAAAAAChw/YIHo8o8vQw4/s1600/IMG_0729.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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(The best part of the filling is that I don't use a recipe, I make it to taste, so I have to keep trying it until it is just right. Yum.)<br />
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And then flip on side over on top of the other. This was the bottom tier. I also made a six inch top tier.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qJcOh8opL4U/UufZnFg-FDI/AAAAAAAACis/UJqMdYT0_qc/s1600/IMG_0736.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-qJcOh8opL4U/UufZnFg-FDI/AAAAAAAACis/UJqMdYT0_qc/s1600/IMG_0736.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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Anita said to make it fancy. So I decided to do a basket weave on both tiers.<br />
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If you have never done this before - practice first! I hadn't used this technique for a while, so I made sure I remembered how to do it before I started piping on the cake. Make absolutely certain that your icing has trans fat in it. So use shortening with trans fat or use 2% milk or whole milk instead of water (which you should do anyway because it tastes ten times better). I realize this may be difficult since our government is trying to make food with trans fat illegal, but if you don't, the basketweave will fall right off the face of your cake. I saw it happen when someone didn't use trans fat in her frosting. There is nothing more discouraging than putting all that work in only to see it tumble off the side.<br />
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I made button flowers and fondant leaves ahead of time. So now I just had to add everything to the cake.<br />
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I love this picture because it's exactly what I was going for. A panda sitting in the midst of all these beautiful flowers. And the little leaf he's holding - perfect touch.<br />
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This panda is relaxing on some leaves.<br />
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Back view.<br />
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And here it is on display.<br />
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<br />The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-41841407813383029142014-02-08T10:29:00.000-06:002014-02-08T10:29:39.071-06:00May the Force be With You<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
One of the great joys in life is introducing young children to good science fiction. It's that moment when this little person sees something for the first time that you know they will love and that you have loved for many years.</div>
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My nephew has fallen in love with Star Wars. I watched the first movie with him and my niece (they had already seen it a few times at this point) and they kept telling me all of the awesome things that were going to happen. "Wait, you've seen this before, Aunt Joy? Do you know what happens next?"</div>
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By now he's probably seen those movies more times than the rest of my family put together. So naturally, for his birthday, he requested a Darth Vader cake.</div>
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I don't know why, but for some reason, both he and my niece love Darth Vader. Maybe it's the voice. I don't know. But I was not loving the idea of making a Darth Vader cake. I mean, it would be cool. But do you know how much black fondant I would need????? Way too much.</div>
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Fortunately, when I presented the idea of Star Wars cupcakes with ALL of the characters instead of just one, he was on board.</div>
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I made chocolate cupcakes and sprinkled some gold sprinkles on top to look like, well, stars. I know, clever.</div>
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That was the easy part. Now I had to make all of the characters. Suddenly that Darth Vader cake wasn't looking so bad . . .<br />
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While doing some research, I discovered these star wars cookie cutters. There are a few different versions (including one with ships) but I got the one that included Yoda, Darth Vader, a Storm Trooper and Boba Fett.<br />
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Now I was a little nervous about these. Some of the reviews of the product said the cutters were hard to use and they couldn't get the dough out of the cutter. However, I found that they were extremely easy to use, at least with fondant.<br />
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First I cut out some storm troopers in white fondant.<br />
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I made a lot of these because as any Star Wars fan knows, the storm troopers always far outnumber the good guys. Good thing none of them can hit the broadside of a barn.<br />
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They look pretty cool just like that, but I wanted to add the black as well.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-19agH4UoIgY/UuP0pQbCiBI/AAAAAAAACdo/x8AowitC0IQ/s1600/IMG_0639.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-19agH4UoIgY/UuP0pQbCiBI/AAAAAAAACdo/x8AowitC0IQ/s1600/IMG_0639.JPG" height="640" width="432" /></a></div>
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Next I made Darth Vader. I know that there is only one Darth Vader, but since I knew both Peter and Elisa would want that one, I made two.<br />
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Wilton has this new product - it's like edible modeling clay. I used this instead of black fondant because it was a little bit cheaper. It's fairly similar to fondant, but it seemed to be less sticky.</div>
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I love Yoda. Too many Yodas, you never can have.</div>
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I had to make the rest of the characters without cookie cutters. The first one (and my favorite) was C3PO.</div>
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I used yellow fondant and just cut out the shape with a knife. I used the small round cutter to cut out the eyes. Then I dusted it with gold petal dust to give him some shine.<br />
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I thought he turned out great!<br />
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I used the medium circle cutter to make the faces for Han, Luke and Leia. I also used it for Luke's hair. Han and Leia's hair - frosting.<br />
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I just eyeballed R2D2.<br />
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Chewbacca was a little darker than I intended. I just used the grass tip for him. There was another cookie cutter set that included him, but everyone recognized who it was supposed to be.<br />
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Leia's close-up.<br />
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It's the good guys vs. the bad guys.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BhklMXyPH-4/UuP0s9u1TnI/AAAAAAAACfA/yJT0Ri_6Wlw/s1600/IMG_0649.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BhklMXyPH-4/UuP0s9u1TnI/AAAAAAAACfA/yJT0Ri_6Wlw/s1600/IMG_0649.JPG" height="237" width="400" /></a></div>
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Vader and his army.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PcrWvRoL1UU/UuP0tSHVjPI/AAAAAAAACfI/nR_Wwzt8mI4/s1600/IMG_0650.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PcrWvRoL1UU/UuP0tSHVjPI/AAAAAAAACfI/nR_Wwzt8mI4/s1600/IMG_0650.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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The good guys.<br />
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Who doesn't love robots?<br />
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These were his favorites. Of course he picks the bad guys.<br />
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Happy birthday Peter! May the force be with you!The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670169737228134877.post-34033614457665310642014-01-18T17:14:00.000-06:002014-01-18T17:14:27.397-06:00The River of Life<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Laura was my first roommate in college. We lived together for two and a half years, until we each spent a semester off of campus. We are very different but we just kind of clicked. I was very fortunate to have her as my "roomie." We still call each other that even though we haven't lived together for almost ten years.</div>
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Laura asked me to make the groom's cake for her wedding. Now it has come to my attention that many people don't know what a groom's cake is. It is more of a southern tradition now (Laura is from Texas), but it started in Victorian England. Back then, they would cut the groom's cake and give slices to the bridesmaids. If the bridesmaids slept with the cake under their pillow (um, gross??) they would dream of the man they would marry. Now I'm not a big fan of the bouquet toss, but this tradition seems a bit messier.</div>
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Now it is more of a chance to give the groom something at the bride-centric wedding. It is usually a more "fun" cake than the more traditional wedding cake and tends to showcase something about the groom. If you are curious, <a href="http://voices.yahoo.com/10-reasons-grooms-cake-wedding-day-3380630.html">here is some more info on the subject</a>. </div>
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Laura told me that Joel, her groom, was a big fan of Minnesota and especially the woods and canoeing. Something along those lines would be great.</div>
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So I decided to be extremely adventurous. The cake would be Laura and Joel, in a boat of some sorts, rowing down a river, through the woods. </div>
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Yikes. People are hard and I was going to make them for someone's wedding!?!?!?!? Crazy.</div>
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So naturally I started with the trees. I found an <a href="http://judyscakes.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-tree-tutorial-2.html">awesome tutorial</a> that made it super easy. You start out by rolling some green fondant into a shape like this:</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gI50k7cUBYM/UsiU9PHKAqI/AAAAAAAACN8/2fJCGSg7FAM/s1600/IMG_0476.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-gI50k7cUBYM/UsiU9PHKAqI/AAAAAAAACN8/2fJCGSg7FAM/s320/IMG_0476.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then you take scissors and make small little snips into the cone. The tutorial said to use curved scissors, but since the only ones I had were used nail scissors, I thought that was a bad idea. I just used small scissors instead. Either way works.<br />
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The tutorial also said to put a stick into the cone before cutting. But I wasn't planning on putting the trees on the cake until I brought it to the wedding in a few days. So I didn't stick anything in the cones. I just cut some parchment paper and put them on that so they didn't have to sit on my hand while I cut the snips. I made a few different sizes.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-du-TDaqMm7A/UsiVQ8NVNZI/AAAAAAAACR0/oKLqNcajYOw/s1600/IMG_0513.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-du-TDaqMm7A/UsiVQ8NVNZI/AAAAAAAACR0/oKLqNcajYOw/s320/IMG_0513.JPG" height="316" width="400" /></a></div>
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Pretty snazzy! <br />
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Next I had to make the boat. I decided to go for a rowboat type shape. I used chocolate fondant and gum glue. You can see the plastic wrap under the planks. They are there to help it dry in the correct shape and not fall down.<br />
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In retrospect, I should have made the boat a little bit bigger . . . .<br />
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I made the boat a few days in advance so it would dry before I put the people in it. The day before the wedding, I made "Laura" and "Joel."<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7ByftXF88gg/UsiU9DjzjqI/AAAAAAAACN0/GxpmnSbPc-A/s1600/IMG_0480.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7ByftXF88gg/UsiU9DjzjqI/AAAAAAAACN0/GxpmnSbPc-A/s320/IMG_0480.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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There are a lot of good tutorials out there for people. I didn't want to make them too realistic because I knew it wouldn't look very good. So I went with a slightly cartoonish figure. First I started with the bride's legs. Then I made the body without the arms.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6SfQshA8LJg/UsiU-rGUyNI/AAAAAAAACOM/cgNk1CvUah8/s1600/IMG_0482.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6SfQshA8LJg/UsiU-rGUyNI/AAAAAAAACOM/cgNk1CvUah8/s320/IMG_0482.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I wrapped the body in white, then added the arms. The body was on a toothpick so I could add the head on later.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BXBdjtp2SPc/UsiU-54ZSII/AAAAAAAACOI/d3-xrIbWEVw/s1600/IMG_0483.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BXBdjtp2SPc/UsiU-54ZSII/AAAAAAAACOI/d3-xrIbWEVw/s320/IMG_0483.JPG" height="320" width="227" /></a></div>
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I made some shoes and put the legs into the boat. Now I should have flattened the legs where they are on the bench, but I didn't.<br />
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Next came the skirt. This was unbelievably hard to get in there. I should have wrapped it around the legs before putting it on the boat. But it turned out ok.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-950xcGNx0GA/UsiVBAq4_fI/AAAAAAAACOo/UrivwvgrFKE/s1600/IMG_0485.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-950xcGNx0GA/UsiVBAq4_fI/AAAAAAAACOo/UrivwvgrFKE/s320/IMG_0485.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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Next I added the body and a sash to connect the top of the dress to the bottom. Those hands look pretty good!<br />
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Again, looking back, I should have made the body lean forward. You'll see why later.<br />
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"Joel" was a little different because he was wearing a suit. I used gray fondant because black is really expensive. Imagine my surprise when he actually wore a gray suit at the wedding! Score!<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jt7Zo0NQsxc/UsiVC5adkVI/AAAAAAAACPE/pwv3Uxffaz0/s1600/IMG_0489.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Jt7Zo0NQsxc/UsiVC5adkVI/AAAAAAAACPE/pwv3Uxffaz0/s320/IMG_0489.JPG" height="235" width="320" /></a></div>
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Again I put the feet in first and I should have flattened it on the bench. But I didn't. I added the body without the arms.<br />
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Here you can glimpse the coattails in back. And also now Laura's head is attached. It's really hard to make these fondant people proportional . . .<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4efpSOb4zpE/UsiVG6lgW7I/AAAAAAAACPw/lqA36ZZv2ks/s1600/IMG_0492.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4efpSOb4zpE/UsiVG6lgW7I/AAAAAAAACPw/lqA36ZZv2ks/s320/IMG_0492.JPG" height="320" width="251" /></a></div>
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And then the arms. You can start to see the problem here. The bodies and heads were very heavy, so they started to lean backwards.<br />
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They were just trying to balance out the boat, right?<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aTPeEXWizEw/UsiVGZ_Mj0I/AAAAAAAACP4/IdjVOZTQ-iE/s1600/IMG_0494.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-aTPeEXWizEw/UsiVGZ_Mj0I/AAAAAAAACP4/IdjVOZTQ-iE/s320/IMG_0494.JPG" height="320" width="312" /></a></div>
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Then I had to make Laura's hair. I wrapped yellow fondant around a toothpick to get this look.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EUmqqhHBbIA/UsiVGvTvjWI/AAAAAAAACP0/odq-eU9K9A8/s1600/IMG_0496.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EUmqqhHBbIA/UsiVGvTvjWI/AAAAAAAACP0/odq-eU9K9A8/s320/IMG_0496.JPG" height="299" width="320" /></a></div>
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Joel's hair and beard were a littler harder. It's difficult to make hair look realistic and not completely ridiculous.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wHvhizGZ6yo/UsiVKuCTgMI/AAAAAAAACQg/yL8-S-cDYaI/s1600/IMG_0497.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wHvhizGZ6yo/UsiVKuCTgMI/AAAAAAAACQg/yL8-S-cDYaI/s320/IMG_0497.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I was trying to make it look the way he actually wears his hair. Not really sure if I succeeded. But it works.<br />
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The eyes look kind of creepy without the irises.<br />
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I put the hair on Laura's head and it looked great, but it was so heavy, I was terrified the head was going to fall off. And the wedding was not until the next day!! So I took her head off and decided to just add it once I got to the wedding.<br />
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Finally, I had to make the cake. Chocolate sheet cake, covered in green buttercream frosting with a lovely blue river down the middle.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pple-6O740c/UsiVLc-LWvI/AAAAAAAACQs/nkkEkXyGU34/s1600/IMG_0502.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pple-6O740c/UsiVLc-LWvI/AAAAAAAACQs/nkkEkXyGU34/s320/IMG_0502.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
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I always put parchment paper or aluminum foil under the cake when I'm frosting it. That way it keeps the cake board underneath clean and frosting free. Unfortunately, when I pulled out the parchment paper this time, some of the cake decided it wanted to come too.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rWWytZQj5F4/UsiVLsZLbNI/AAAAAAAACQ4/iSFbLXFShes/s1600/IMG_0503.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rWWytZQj5F4/UsiVLsZLbNI/AAAAAAAACQ4/iSFbLXFShes/s320/IMG_0503.JPG" height="298" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is not pretty.</td></tr>
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I didn't panic, but stuffed the cake back in and covered it with a border.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-03wr_qKXD34/UsiVNOXVx9I/AAAAAAAACRA/MHQXE5-fxc8/s1600/IMG_0505.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-03wr_qKXD34/UsiVNOXVx9I/AAAAAAAACRA/MHQXE5-fxc8/s320/IMG_0505.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front side.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QsoALd3oxX0/UsiVNrUca2I/AAAAAAAACRM/oJlzs6TcsAA/s1600/IMG_0506.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QsoALd3oxX0/UsiVNrUca2I/AAAAAAAACRM/oJlzs6TcsAA/s320/IMG_0506.JPG" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Back Side.</td></tr>
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All fixed. And if you are wondering why the frosting isn't smooth, that's on purpose. I wanted it to look like water and grass.<br />
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WEDDING DAY<br />
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A hot day in July (at least I think it was July, it's been so long, I could be remembering incorrectly). I loaded everything in my car, cranked up the air conditioning and prayed that none of the fondant would melt. I headed to the reception hall where my trusty assistant, Rachel (she helped me with my <a href="http://thejoysofcaking.blogspot.com/2013/06/going-to-chapel.html">first wedding cake</a>), helped me unload the car. She took pictures while I finished the cake. She also continued to reassure me that I would finish in time and that the figures would not fall off the cake. The people who made the wedding cake were there too and that was kind of fun as we both were working to finish.<br />
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I added some rocks along the side of the river and then the boat with the people in it.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see "Laura's" head in the plastic wrap on the table there.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And "Joel" looks like he is sliding down into the boat . . .</td></tr>
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Next I added the trees.<br />
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And "Laura's" head. Tense moment . . . Would it stay?????<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It held. Whew.</td></tr>
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Then came the oars.<br />
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And I was done! So cute!<br />
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The problem was that the wedding reception was outside. So I would still have to move it after the wedding ceremony. And it was very hot. And I was worried that the fondant would melt and the bodies would fall over.<br />
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Solution? Take lots and lots of pictures so there is evidence that it once looked awesome. Just in case.<br />
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So the cake survived the journey from inside to the table under the tent. Here it is displayed along with the wedding cake.<br />
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But as the evening wore on, things started to happen. Joel eventually lost both hands and arms.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look Ma, no hands!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You can see here that even the oars are melting and bending.</td></tr>
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And although a little bit of hair fell off into the water - Laura <u>never</u> fell off the cake.<br />
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I know that's hard to believe - especially with this picture. But she hung in there the whole time! Joel, on the other hand (haha), did topple out of the boat. But just the top half, leaving his legs sitting on the bench. I was able to plop him up again, but that's when he lost his arms for good. I guess he wanted to go for a swim to escape the heat. Or maybe Laura pushed him . . . .<br />
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So the cake (basically) survived until it was cut. It turned out great, but I would do the people a bit differently the next time.<br />
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Congratulations Joel and Laura! Thanks for letting me be a part of your special day. I love you Roomie!The Joys of Cakinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06763173538168259855noreply@blogger.com0