Why Some Things Need to be on Paper and Not in My Head

Another post about a lesson learned, although this one not as harsh and ugly as the previous one :)

I recently made a bunch of cupcakes and a small cake for a friend's birthday. I used my usual chocolate cake recipe but for some reason, it didn't turn out the way it usually does. It was good...but just not as chocolatey.

I also made a small 6 inch cake because a birthday is not complete without cutting into a cake while everyone sings a very off key but loving rendition of Happy Birthday...in fact the only part of that song that everyone sings in sync is the very first Happy...if your lucky, it might be Happy Birthday toooooo.....

But I digress.

Initially I had wanted to design the cake to look like a falling spatter of tiny little flowers. Kind of like this.

And that's how the cake looked in my head.

However, since I was pressed for time and ASSUMED that it seemed like a simple design, I didn't draw a sketch or look up tutorials or helpful hints like I usually do.

The look I was going for didn't really translate onto the end cake I made. It doesn't look bad...it just wasn't the look I was going for. I guess I overestimated my abilities...it tends to happen. I also think the design would work better for a multi-tier cake.

Anyway...the cake still looked cute...the cupcakes also looked cute. And I loved the teal colour of the buttercream.

And I haven't given up on the splatter design...I will recreate it one day.

Moral of the story: plan, research, plan, sketch, and plan!

And thank you to my friend Emily for the pictures!!! You give my cupcakes a touch of magic :)

Happy Baking!