Hockey Jersey Cake

My boyfriend is a huge Leafs fan. He has stuck with them through the good and the bad and has made me a default leafs fan.

So naturally for his birthday I was going to make him a hockey themed cake. I initially thought of making a hockey rink (arena?) but decided that there wouldn't be enough actual cake to eat or too much cake. Still want to try that sometime though.

This cake was relatively simple to make. I had originally planned on adding a buttercream border at the bottom to hide the imperfections of fondant but I didn't have enough time.

It is also much harder to cover a square or rectangle cake in fondant than it is for a round cake.

And it is also much harder to fit a Tamil name onto a tiny little maple leaf.

After I made the cake, I realized I should have done the BACK of the jersey with his name as the players name rather than the front.

I then smashed the cake into a wall and started all over again.

KIDDING

I brushed my shoulders off and put it in the books for next time.

I also just realized that this is the first 'boy' cake I've made. It kind of killed me that I couldn't put anything pink or pretty on it :(

I guess what matters in the end is that he loved it, even though he doesn't really eat cake....weirdo.

On a different note, I know I kind of fell off the face of the blogworld this past week. Its only because I'm running around like a chicken with its head cut off. I will be back to some much needed baking soon with more pics and funnier posts than this one....I hope.

Till then...Happy Baking!!

Bharathanatyam Cake

I am super excited about this cake.

My friend recently had her 21st birthday. As many of you may remember from my previous post, 21 is a big deal in my culture...well for girls at least.

But I did not make her a key cake...I was planning to do a change up on the traditional key cake but then things got expensive and it just wasn't going to happen.

INSTEAD...I made something better! Well at least I think so :)

My friend loves to dance. She's an amazing classical Indian dancer and is most passionate about it.

I looked high and low on the internets for a beautiful "Bharathanatyam" inspired cake...and found nothing.

So I took some inspiration from other dance themed cakes and came up with the sketch for my cake. I wanted it to look like the silhouettes of dancers on stage.

I traced the dancers out from black fondant and let them dry out. I also got to use an impression mold from Wilton which I will be doing a review on soon. The inside was a marble cake and covered in vanilla buttercream.


The hardest part of this cake was obviously the dancers. I wanted them to actually look like dancers and include all the little details like the pleated fan skirt and the graceful arms. Initially I had wanted them to have even more detail like bangles and the bells on the feet but since they were small, the details didn't come through. But they look like dancers to me so s'all good!

Every time I look at this cake, or pictures of this cake, my stomach jumps a little and I get excited all over again.

All in all, a very successful personalization of the cake :)
 

And thanks to Emily again for the amazing pictures. She has her own blog now too! Check it out here 

Happy Baking!

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!

21st Key Birthday Cake

My personal preference when it comes to cake decorating is usually fondant. Even though it's expensive and super annoying to colour, it gives a much cleaner appearance in my very amateur opinion. Maybe this is because most of the cake blogs and sites that I stalk usually focus on fondant art and modern, minimalist design cakes. One of these days I should do a post on all the pictures I have saved as inspirations for future cakes.

That being said, there is something truly awe-inspiring about a cake that has been fully piped. However, It seems that piping is an art that is soon going to be lost in a sea of fondant. I personally am way too intimidated to even begin learning to pipe....or so I thought.

For my friend's 21st birthday, I stuck true to the Tamil/South Indian tradition of a cake in the shape of a old key decked out with roses. This was a milestone cake for me for many reasons.

Firstly, and what I'm probably most proud of, was that it was my first time making buttercream roses. If you ask my mother though, she would point out about 5 things wrong with my roses. But I think they're pretty good for a first time.

Secondly, the entire cake was piped. Not a bit of fondant in sight. Everything from the little stars on the body of the key, to the shell border, and the lettering were all piped. Maybe I was a bit naive in that I practiced about one row on a piece of parchment and then just jumped on to the cake. I guess luck was on my side because it worked out well.

Thirdly....well there is no thirdly : )

This cake was definitely time consuming but it was pretty relaxing piping all those stars and watching TV.

I'm not too happy with the lettering though. I think I should use a template or something for those.

I also didn't start with a drawn out plan, so the positioning of the flowers was a little awkward. And finally, I think I piped the cake backwards. I first did all the stars, and then the mound of roses working bottom up. I think I should have done the roses mound top down and then piped the whole thing. Maybe next time...

And that concludes the three cake line up for the October birthdays.

Now I have some time to brush up on some cupcake skills. And plan my next cake for November :)

Finally, if you have an event coming up and would like a custom cake, do contact me. A few people have asked me if I only make these as a hobby and whether or not they could order from me. I would definitely be interested in taking orders so email me if you have a request.

I am also going to be doing some product reviews of baking equipment and tools that I have used so stay tuned!!

Now I have to get back to assignments and reading...*sigh*

Camera Cake

I am so damn tired right now. Like tired and cranky and snappy. But I am so excited about this cake that I just had to do a quick post on it.

Disclaimer: If you are a photographer or a camera geek and are cringing at all the ways this cake is not super detailed like a real camera is, you should leave now....

Still here? Okay good : )

My goal for this cake was to get the basic structure of an SLR (or DSLR?) camera down and add a few of the obvious features the camera has. My roommate is an amazing photographer and has an awesome Nikon. So I added that signature red Nikon thingy. And also tried to pipe on the Nikon logo as best as I could.

It was also a new experience trying to cover a non-round cake in fondant. It wasn't as hard as I was anticipating but still not the most perfect job.

I kind of cheated. The lens part isn't cake. Its actually a bunch of rice cakes glued together with peanut butter and covered in fondant....OH WELL :)

And finally, a note to myself for next time...do not attempt carving a cake if its super moist. I used chocolate cake and it fell away at the touch. The structure would have been much cleaner and less lumpy if I had used a different recipe I think.

Next time I attempt a camera cake, I'm going to try to add more detail and also get the size proportion a tiny more accurate. But at the end of the day, I was super proud of my first structure cake.

Now on to an upside down topsy turvy circus cake....KIDDING!

I also find it ironic that my roommate took pictures OF the Nikon WITH her Nikon...bahaha!

2 down...1 more to go!!!

Make Up Cake

As I mentioned in a previous post, 3 of my friends have birthdays this week. Each has a unique personality and so I decided to make a different cake for each one.

Ambitious?...Yes
Impossible?...No

I was excited about this cake for many reasons. Firstly, since my birthday passed recently, I got a lot of new baking swag. My friends obviously know me way too well. But the ultimate gift came from my boyfriend. Ladies and gentleman, please say hello to my newest love and baby

Isn't she a beauty? After suffering all the horrors of a hand mixer, I really appreciate the beautiful machine.

So I decided instead of covering this cake in fondant, I would try to do buttercream and try to get it smooth as smooth can be.

I also had the opportunity to use gum paste for the first time but didn't end up using much of it because I already had coloured fondant on hand and didn't want to colour the gum paste and also because gum paste is a lot tougher to work with.

I had tonnes of fun making this cake and it ended up looking really cute. It also tasted amazing! Not being covered in fondant helps...a whole lot.

It didn't get to be as smooth as I intended but at least it was straight, even, and relatively smooth.

Off to make cake number 2!!!

And sorry about the crappy quality of the pics. Me and my camera are in a fight. Clearly, the camera is winning. 

And see that super duper lipstick that looks oh so real....my artsy roommate made that...it makes me so proud!!

And also....if you want to be up to date on my posts and baking adventures, make sure you subscribe!!

AND FINALLY, I would love to get some feedback on what looks good and what doesn't so LEAVE COMMENTS!

Okay, I'm really done now : )

Pink Butterflies and Polka Dots

I love pink. Anyone who knows me knows I love pink. I like other colours too but if I had a choice, I would go for pink.

























A friend of mine turned 21 recently and I made a cake for a little gathering we had. In my culture, 21 is considered your 'key' birthday. Before you all get excited thinking you get the keys to a house or a car, its really just the key to your adulthood...or virginity...or something like that.

So usually people make cakes in the shape of keys, but it's kind of cliche and so I made her a butterfly polka dot cake :)

This friend of mine, is an amazing person. Funny, energetic, smart, and gorgeous. But she doesn't like chocolate cake. Well, she says she doesn't like chocolate icing on the chocolate cake, but chocolate cake with vanilla icing is like having steak with a side of couscous...its just plain wrong :)

I am deathly afraid of making vanilla or white cake. I don't know why...oh wait yes I do...because they turn out horrible! With chocolate cake, its always moist and rich but the vanilla flavour just isn't rich enough for me to mask things like dryness, or a tough texture (not that a cake should be dry or tough but just in case).

But a birthday without cake it just wrong and so I plowed forward and used this vanilla cake recipe and this buttercream recipe. In short, the cake tasted good but I found it a little on the dry crumbly side. I would have liked it to be more moist. The buttercream was amazing! Sweet, light, and fluffy. I wouldn't recommend it for piping though. I also added a layer of strawberry jam between the two layers of cake because the thought of vanilla cake with vanilla icing seemed bland. It turned out pretty good.

I used fondant to cover the cake and made circle designs and a butterfly out of cookie cutters. I also got a chance to use lustre dust on the butterfly...pretty sparkles.

The biggest problem I had with this cake is that since I refrigerated the cake and didn't give it enough time to thaw before I covered it in fondant, I had a lot of air bubbles and 'droopy' fondant. It looked bloated and puffed from the bottom, kind of how I look after I've had one too many cupcakes. Hopefully no one minded though :)

And I saved this for last because I wanted to leave a lasting impression. Whenever you start a new project, whether that be baking or DIY projects or writing a book, it never ends up being just your work...it is the love, work, and support of all those around you. Making this cake, I realized how much of that went into this cake. From my incredibly talented roomie who took these AMAZING pictures which make my cake look 50 times better than it actually is and keeps me grounded so that I don't obsess over the details, to my dedicated and determined new roomie who even in her hectic schedule still manages to get me the perfect ribbon in the perfect shade of brown. From my patient yet sarcastic sister who spends hours walking the aisles of Michaels with me, to my friend who sits at the table and watches me roll, knead, and cut fondant while supplying very...ahem...calming and rich music :P. My super patient boyfriend who is always encouraging me to keep going and listens to all my whack ideas even at 1 in the morning and finally, all the people who are actually brave enough to eat what I make and don't squint their face in disgust. A huge thank you to all of you! I can't and won't ever be able to do all I want to without you. I love you guys :)

MM is fast approaching, and I have a few more projects lined up.

I have 3 birthdays coming up in one week! Each person is different and unique and I'm so excited to make these cakes for them!!!

I'm also going to be making some cake pops for a school event. AHH SO MUCH BAKING!

Have a great weekend!!!

My second birthday cake!

First of all, please accept my MOST deepest and sincere apologies for missing MM this week. I had something planned but unfortunately, with moving, and my sister's surprise birthday party and everything in between, life got hectic. REGARDLESS, no excuse is good enough as this was my second week *runs into corner and hides*

BUT...hopefully this post will bring me back in the good books. I've been planning and scheming and organizing my sister's party for the past few weeks and have been ITCHING to blog about it. It's finally over and I can blog to my heart's content!!

The first birthday cake I ever made was for a very good friend of mine. It was a 2 tiered square cake. I'll do a more detailed post on it later. It was good for a first attempt and I had a TONNE of help from my roommate but I still couldn't see past its flaws. The Transformers cake I made for my sister was my second ever and took a tonne of planning and research. I made a cupcake tower...yes..the tower...as well as all the cupcakes and the cake at the top. I also had to do all this into the very late hours of the night as it was a surprise.

I used my very favourite chocolate cake recipe for the 8 inch cake. I had to buy the fondant and the buttercream for the crumb coat because I was pressed for time and had no energy. I used chocolate buttercream to fill the cake after I torted it and also used it to cover the cake. I made sure the cake was even and flat and straight. I watched videos on YouTube like this and this to figure out a technique.

I then covered the cake in yellow fondant. I coloured all the fondant 24 hrs before hand. That was definitely the most fun part about this cake....okay I'm lying. It was a pain. Especially getting the black to be black. I sweat up a storm and my shoulders ached the next day.

Once I got the cake covered, the rest was easy. I printed out a picture of the Transformers logo thingy...which in case you haven't caught on is the theme of the cake( I wondered many times in this process whether I had a sister or a brother. Trying to make a transformers cake look girly is VERY hard) and used a knife to free hand cut the different parts out of grey fondant. I guess it would have looked neater if I traced around the printout and cut it into sections but at 2 in the am, I wasn't thinking straight.

I mixed some silver lustre dust with peppermint extract and brushed it onto the cutouts. I painted some areas more dense than others to get a metally, worn out effect. Not sure if it worked :S. I then positioned it onto the cake and cut black strips of fondant to add to the sides. TA DAAA...the cake was ready to 'roll out'...get it? like the Autobots rolling out....okay I'll stop.

So that was it. I'll do another post on the cupcakes and the cupcake tower all made from scratch. I am so proud of this cake and the look on my sisters face when she saw it was totally worth it!!