Buttercream Swimmer Cake or Cupcakes (fondant-free)

I made this cake and the matching cupcakes to celebrate the end of an amazing high school swimming season for my boys. 

What You Need:
1 x 8 or 9" 2-layer cake (see my recipe for doctoring a cake mix here.) 
  OR 24 cupcakes
4-6 cups decorator's icing (recipe here; I subbed 1/2 butter, 1/2 shortening)
Red, yellow, brown, black food coloring (or whatever color your team/swimmer is)
Silver & Gold Luster Dust
Red Petal Dust
For cake: Tips 1A, 12, 5
For cupcakes: Tips 12, 5, 3, 2

Ice the sides of the cake smooth, and the top can be roughly iced, as it will be fully covered.

(Click here for my tutorial on how to ice a cake smooth.)

Using the Tip 1A and the shade of icing you choose for skin, cover slightly more than half of the cake with a thick layer of icing. (I achieved this color with a drop each of red, yellow and brown.)

Smooth the icing with a spatula. 

If you use an icing like my decorator's icing that forms a "crust," use parchment paper or a flat paper towel (Viva) to smooth icing even more.

Do the same with the "cap color."

Add all of your details. I used a tip #5 to make the edges of the designs on the cap, a tip #12 with dark gray icing for the goggles, and a tip 1A for the nose.

Once the icing had set, and I smoothed it further, I added the sparkle to the cap, goggles, and the brush of pink to the cheeks.

For the cupcakes, I used a Tip #12 for the face, cap, nose, and a size 3 or 5 for the goggles. The decoration on the caps was done with Tip 2.

To do the varying skin tones, I started with the palest, then took out 1/3 of the icing, added more brown and black to get the darkest color, then combined the two for a mid-tone.

Easier French Silk Pie

I don't blog much anymore, but I wanted to add this adjustment to an older recipe because I have made it a couple of times recently, and a few small changes made it so much better!

What You Need: 

For the crust:
2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1/2 cup shortening (cut into chunks)
3 Tbsp. butter (cut into chunks)
1/3 cup ice water

For the filling:
3 large eggs
1/4 cup sugar
5 oz. semisweet or dark chocolate (chips, chunks or broken into chunks)
3/4 cup butter (softened)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

For the topping:
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/4-1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Yield: About 36 mini pies (or you can use a 9" pie pan, and this will make you one pie)

Sprinkle Surprise Cake

This cake, exploding with sprinkles has been declared, by my son, "The BEST Birthday Cake Ever!" And I have to tell you that it actually isn't all that hard to make. A little putsy, but not hard.

What You Need:
3- 6" chocolate cakes
  - I used a boxed mix and doctored it, but you could also do my scratch chocolate cake. You basically want three 6" round by 2" tall cakes.
4-6 cups icing
  - I made Salted Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream Icing by adding an extra 1/2-3/4 tsp. of salt to my Caramel Buttercream Recipe.
2-3 cups mixed sprinkles
  - I bought 4 bottles of sprinkles, of varying shapes, sizes and types, and combined them in a jar to mix well. (You can buy "unicorn mix," but they are usually pastel, and 13-year-old boys don't love pastel.)

Homemade Gingerbread Caramels {Recipe}

These caramel candies are a favorite in our house at the holidays. The recipe came from another parent at my kids' school. She sells vanilla caramels every year at the bake sale, and last year, I asked if she'd show me how to make them. Thankfully, she obliged.

What You Need:
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
1 lb dark brown sugar (2 3/4 cups) OR 1 lb light brown sugar + 1/4 cup molasses
1 cup white corn syrup
1 (14-15 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Yield: 50-60 caramels 
*Note: I often double the recipe (as you will see in the photos) because I gift them.

Easy Cross Cake - How-To

It's that time of year... First Communion season for the Catholics.
Given that I have two second graders, it's a time of many masses, parties and cakes.

The easiest First Communion cake I can make is this cross one. It's made by cutting a 9x13 cake into pieces, rearranging it, and covering it with icing.

I added the Chalice and the Host made out of fondant, which I painted with Wilton's Pearl Dust.

What You Need:
9x13 cake, baked and cooled (I recommend a white cake if you've never done this before... fewer crumbs)
5-6 cups Decorator's Buttercream Icing (more if you want to add filling)
Optional:
4 oz. white fondant
Clear Vanilla
Silver or Gold Pearl Dust

Easy Minecraft Birthday Cake

If you have elementary-aged children, you know about Minecraft. Okay, that's not true at all. I know nothing about Minecraft, but many of my kids' friends do. And this birthday cake was for one of them.

What You Need:
Square Cake (This is two layers of 8" square)
Chocolate Ganache Icing (2 cups)
Buttercream Icing (1-2 cups) - colored dark green

S'mores Toffee Bark {Recipe}

This recipe is amazing.
I found it in the Busy in Brooklyn blog a few months ago when making a special S'mores treat for my sister's wedding festivities. I changed it just a little, as I like a little more s'moresy goodness on top.

I highly recommend making it only when you have somewhere to take it, or you may end up eating the entire batch all alone! It is also called "S'Mores Crack," and for good reason!

What You Need:
2 sleeves honey graham crackers
2 sticks (1 cup) butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
pinch of salt (if using unsalted butter)
1 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips
2-4 cups mini marshmallows

Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix {Recipe}

My boys and I made these homemade hot cocoa gifts for their teachers this year. Just because I thought they needed it, I also threw in a mini bottle of schnapps to flavor their cocoa. They work with second graders all day. They deserve it!

What You Need:
1 cup Hershey's Cocoa Powder
1 cup Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 Tbsp. corn starch
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
Pinch of salt
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

* Note: You could use all of the original Hershey's unsweetened cocoa, and you may cut back about 1/2 cup of the sugar.

Spy or Secret Agent Birthday Cake

My boys turned eight (eight?!) over the weekend. Their birthday party had a spy (or secret agent) theme.
I made this super simple magnifying glass cake for the party. All you need is white and black frosting, and two or three round icing tips. It couldn't be any easier!

What You Need:
Cookies & Cream Cake Recipe
  (I used the exact recipe as you will find on my link above. However, since the cake was a large 9x13, I doubled the cakes, and made 1 1/2 times the icing recipe.)
Black Decorating Icing
  (You could even purchase 2 or 3 tubes of black icing to make it more simple.)
Crushed Oreo or other cookies
Piping Bag and Icing Tips #3, 7 & 12

Rose-Covered Cake Tutorial

This cake is a new favorite. It's beautiful, and it's not hard to do. BUT... it does take a ton of icing.
I first saw a cake like this on the blog of another Minnesota baker, iambaker.net.

What You Need:
Cake ;-) (I used 2 layers of 6" round cake.)
   - How to Make Cake Mix Taste Homemade
6 cups (or more) Buttercream Icing
  - Recipe for Decorator's Buttercream Icing
Piping Bag and Tip #1M

Simple, Special Cakes

Click this link to see the video on the Fox9 Website.

I visited my friends at Fox 9 this morning to do some fun, simple decorating... and to promote some of my upcoming classes.
Below you will find the links to register for the classes and for the techniques I showed and talked about on the show.

Simple, Special Cakes Classes
(Click each link to register for that class)
Monday, Sept. 29 6-9pm Roseville Area High School
Tuesday, Sept. 30 6-9pm Henry Sibley High School (West St. Paul)
Saturday, Oct. 4 9:30-11:30am Northfield Middle School
Tuesday, Oct. 6 6:30-8:30pm North Dale Rec. Center (St. Paul)

Quilled Flowers for a Simple Wedding Cake

My baby sister is 12 years younger than me... and somehow they allowed her to get married!

She isn't the world's biggest fan of cake. So, she wanted a s'mores bar at her wedding reception... which she had. But my mom really wanted the traditional cutting-the-cake pictures. So, I agreed to make her a wedding cake.

I generally don't do wedding cakes, for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that they're a LOT of work. And for this one, I was working out of my other sister's kitchen, which is really fine in size and amenities, it's just not mine!
(Please forgive some of the photo quality. Not working in my own kitchen presented some lighting challenges, so some photos are a little - uck!)

The Quilled Sunflowers are made of gum paste, and were designed to match my sister's invitations (above), which she made of quilled paper herself.

What You Need:
For the quilled flowers and ribbons:
Gum paste (16 oz. pouch of Wilton brand is what I used and had plenty left over.)
Fondant ribbon cutter (or a pizza or pastry cutter)
Ruler or measuring tape
Clear vanilla or vodka
Food-safe paintbrush
Food coloring

For the cakes:
Two 10" x 2" round cake layers
Two 8" x 2" round cake layers
Two 6" x 2" round cake layers
Triple batch of my Rich Vanilla Icing
Food-safe dowel rods
Cardboard cake circles (one each 10", 8" & 6")

*Note: I used cake mix as a base for these cakes because I was away from home, and needed to simplify things as much as possible. Click the link to see how I Make Cake Mix Taste Homemade.

Tree Trunk or Tree Stump Cake

Okay, so I love this cake... like L-O-V-E love it!
I was jumping up and down around the kitchen when I finished it, I was so happy with it.

My sister's wedding reception was held at a nature center. And she and her hubby love to do all kinds of nature-y things. So, when I was trying to think of a way to bring in the groom's favorite kind of cake (chocolate with raspberry filling), I thought of this, realizing that you could "carve" the ganache to look like bark, and it would not be all that hard to make.

What You Need:
Cake
   This was one 10"x2" round layer, two 9"x2" round layers and one 8"x3" round layer
Milk Chocolate Ganache:
 - 16 oz. heavy whipping cream
 - 32 oz. milk chocolate (I thought any darker of chocolate made the bark look too dark)
White Chocolate Ganache:
 - 4 oz. heavy whipping cream
 - 2 oz. white chocolate

Easy Cookies & Cream Cake {Recipe}

My boys - and my husband - went away to scout camp for the weekend... I wanted to surprise them with a treat when they got home.
But... as (un)luck would have it, I was also without a car for the weekend while one was in the shop. I needed to make something with what we had at home. And I didn't have the camera, either, so that meant I couldn't take many pictures of the process.

What You Need:
For the Cake:
1 Chocolate Cake Mix* or Chocolate Cake Recipe
1-2 packages Oreo Cookies

For the Icing:
(This recipe is adapted from the Tasty Kitchen blog.)
5 Tbsp. flour
1 cup milk
1 Tbsp. vanilla
1 cup butter (unsalted) - at room temperature
1 cup sugar (not powdered sugar)

*Note: You need the cake mix and the ingredients to make the batter. I always "doctor up" the cake batter, using milk and melted butter in the place of the water and oil.

Elephant Baby Shower Cake

My good friend, Amanda, is having a baby boy!

Her colors are yellow and gray, so we thought an elephant theme for the shower would be fun.

Even though making the gray icing made me think of a line from the movie Steel Magnolias, I still love the way this cake turned out!

What You Need:
Cake -
   I used two 8" x 2" round layers
    and two 5" x 2" round layers
   I made my favorite Chocolate Cake Recipe (1 1/2 time the recipe)
Icing -
   I made a double batch of Rich Vanilla Buttercream (SMBC)
    I took 3 cups out for the yellow, and dyed the rest gray.
   You will also need a piping bag and tip #104.

Elephant and Letter Decorations -
   Fondant - colored gray (You only need about 4-6 oz. of fondant)
   Rolling pin
   Cut-outs: Elephant, petal or tear-drop & letters

Easy Homemade Piggie Cupcakes

This little piggie went to a birthday party...
These pig cupcakes are very easy, and require only three colors of icing, and two icing tips.

They're so much fun.

What You Need:
2 dozen cupcakes*
1 batch Buttercream Icing
Pink food coloring
Black food coloring

*Note: I made these cupcakes strawberry-flavored by doctoring up a white cake mix.
I used 1 cake mix, 3 eggs, 1/2 cup melted butter, 1/2 cup pureed strawberries and 1/4 cup milk.
Click this link to find more about how I make cake mixes taste homemade.

Triple Chocolate Ice Cream Cake {Recipe}

My sweet little boy got his tonsils and adenoids removed the week before Easter.
So, I decided I would try to make it a little easier for him to enjoy the Easter goodies by making an ice cream cake.
(I did not, however, get great pictures of the finished product because of the recovering child, and a family that was rather eager to dig in!)
 

I'd never made one before, and I have to say, even though it wasn't exactly easy or quick, it wasn't really hard either. It just takes some pre-planning. In order to get everything ready, you need to plan to get the pieces in the freezer at least a day ahead of time.

What You Need:
The recipes for each of these is linked or posted below
Chocolate Cake (homemade or from a mix)
Chocolate Ice Cream (homemade or store bought)
Chocolate Fudge Sauce (homemade or store bought)
Whipped Cream Frosting
Toppings:
 Go nuts! Sprinkles, crushed up candy, mini chocolate chips, crushed Oreos, fresh fruit, etc.

Chocolate Martini Cupcakes {Recipe}

Cupcakes and Cocktails. They go together perfectly. So, when I agreed to hold a little party to benefit my kids' school, I decided to make these... Chocolate Martinis with Chocolate Martini cupcakes.
(We also made some Strawberry Margarita Cupcakes, if you're interested in that recipe.)

What You Need
For 24-30 Cupcakes:
6 oz. (about ¾ cup) semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup whole milk
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
3 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 1/2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup vanilla-flavored vodka*
1/4 cup chocolate liqueur (like Godiva)
*Note: If you want a “boozier” flavor, add ¼ cup vanilla vodka and ¼ cup plain vodka.

For the Icing:
4 egg whites (at room temperature)
1 cup sugar (not powdered sugar)
3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) butter
2-3 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder
1/4 cup vanilla vodka
2-3 Tbsp. Chocolate Liqueur

Orange Cream-sicle Cake {Recipe}

During a recent bout of strep throat in our house, my boys decided that they would live on the ice cream treat, orange creamsicles.

True to form, I decided to try to make a creamsicle cake. One of my boys has since declared it his favorite cake of all time. (Though that may just be because it's what he was eating at the time!)

What You Need:
1 white boxed cake mix
3 (large) eggs
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter
1/4 cup orange juice concentrate
1 cup milk (not pictured)*
1-2 Tbsp. orange zest

Cream Cheese Icing (To decorate with this "petal effect," make a double batch of icing.)

*Note: You could also use 3/4-1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice instead of the concentrate... and add 1/4-1/2 cup milk to that. I didn't have enough oranges to make that happen.