I used to have a birthday party blog. But then this blog took off and then the domain for the birthday blog was stolen so I shut it down. I decided to transfer the cakes I made over to this blog :)

The Sleep Over Cake

My niece loves to watch Cake Boss and other cake shows on TV. So she came over one day to help me make some cakes. She was in charge of this one and I think she did an AWESOME job! We were having so much fun I forgot to take some of the pictures that showed the process. But this is an easy cake so I think you will get the idea.

We made a cake in a 9×13 pan, took it out of the pan, froze it, and then frosted it all blue. Then we added 4 Twinkies that we had cut in half so the wouldn’t be so tall. We forgot to freeze the Twinkies as well and it made it kind of hard to frost them. We frosted over the Twinkies and the bottom half of the cake in a different color so it would look like a blanket. She piped on the pillows and then added a vanilla wafer cookies for the heads.

She used a sandwich baggie with a tiny bit of the corner cut off to pipe the faces onto the cookies. And then a bigger hole to do the dots on the blanket.
This cake doesn’t even have to be for a birthday party. It could just be for a sleepover with friends!

I used to have a birthday blog as well. But this blog took off and then the domain of the birthday blog got stolen so I shut it down. I decided to transfer the cakes I made to this blog :)

The Lion Cake

It doesn’t get much easier than this! When my son asked for a lion cake I started to plan this elaborate cake that required a lot of carving. Then it dawned on me. Just do the face silly! This is one the kids can help with too.

I used to have a another blog about birthday parties but then this blog took off and then the domain got stolen of the birthday blog so I shut it down. I am transferring the cakes I made over to this blog :)

The Lady Bug Cake

This cake is super easy! I poured one cupcake and then the rest of the batter went into the round pan.
I used frosting for the dots but you could also use mini Oreos. The eyes are just big blobs of frosting. Pipe cleaners make good legs and antennae. You can buy them in all black or all brown packs. I probably should have gone with brown to match the chocolate frosting, but oh well! It still turned out pretty cute.

I used to have a birthday party blog. Then this blog took off and then the birthday blog’s domain was stolen so I decided to shut it down. I am now transferring the cake tutorials over to this blog :)

The Sunglasses Cake

 

This was a fun cake to make. I made it for a friend whose daughter was having a pool party. It went along with the swimming suit cake and the flip flop cake. Since I made this cake before I created this blog, I don’t have pictures of the process. I drew a picture of how I cut the round cake instead. I hope that helps. You discard ( or eat!) the triangle shaped pieces. Then one of the shapes you turn over onto its other side. Then you match them up. When you go to frost it, frost the whole thing yellow and then add the brown on top. I pipe the outline of the “lens” first and then fill it in. It makes it easier. The sky is the limit when it comes to decorating this one. Glittery, stripes, dots, flowers!!!

I used to have a birthday party blog. But then this blog took off and then the birthday blog domain was stolen, so I shut it down. I am transferring the cake tutorials here to this blog :)

The Worm Cake

I am the mother of 4 boys. We like bugs at our house. So it didn’t even phase me when my son asked for a worm cake. It was pretty easy too. I baked the cake in a bundt cake pan. I cut the cake into three pieces and turned two around the other direction so instead of a circle it was a squiggly line like a worm. I carved one end to be pointy and one rounded. I put it on a cookie sheet and then spread Oreo cookie crumbs all around to look like dirt.

Once I had a birthday blog. But then this blog took off and the birthday blog’s domain was stolen, so I shut it down. I am transferring the cake tutorials to this blog since I still get so many emails about them.

The Campfire Cake

I loved how easy this cake was. Something so simple can have a big impact. Another thought I had (after it was all done and eaten of course) was to add candy rocks around the fire to look like a fire pit. It isn’t necessary but might be a cute addition if you can find them.

While the cake was baking I made the candy part of this cake. I put 1/2 cup of sugar, 1/4 a cup of corn syrup (Karo syrup) and 1/8 cup water in a sauce pan and brought it to a boil. I don’t have a candy thermometer so I use a trick my mom taught me. I have a bowl of ice water next to the stove and when it starts to get thicker and I think it might be ready I use a spoon and put a little in the water. If it hardens and cracks when I break it then it is ready. If not, stir a little longer and then try again. I make candy often with my kids and this has always worked. If you want a more exact way or if you already have a thermometer then it needs to reach 295 F. I added the coloring at the end because I didn’t want it to mix all of the way. I wanted the color to vary a little. I also added flavoring. Don’t add the flavoring until you have turned off the heat and allowed it to sit for about 30 seconds. I then poured it onto tin foil that was on a cookie sheet.


If you have a gap between the cake and whatever the cake is on, just pipe frosting to fill in the gap, then smooth it with a butter knife. This is another cake that doesn’t need a perfectly smooth frosting job.

I used Pepperidge Farms cookies for the logs. They have are the perfect color and have brown flecks (plus they are mint chocolate and super YUMMY!). I put the “fire” on like this so it had some dimension. You can add more if you want.

I used to have a Birthday Party Blog. But then this blog took off and the domain got stolen so I shut it down. I am going to have all the cakes from that blog transferred here (and backdating them) :) I still get so many emails about them.

The Alien Cake

Love how simple this cake was to make. I love the bright green. I decided to make his guts green too. I love the neon food coloring! When I baked the cake it came out of the oven with a domed top. I used a long serrated knife to cut it off. Then I turned it over so it would be easier to frost.
I poured two cupcakes and then poured the rest into the circle cake pan. The long part of his eyes are Twinkies.
To get a really smooth frosting job ( because aliens are slimy you know) I crumb coated it and then stuck it in the freezer long enough for the frosting to harden. Then when I put the second layer of frosting on it gets really cold and is easily smoothed out. Use a butter knife that doesn’t have the small grooves or use the other side of the blade. If it isn’t as smooth as you would like, then stick it in the freezer for a few more minutes and try again.
I piped the white on the eye and then smoothed it out. It is so much easier if you at least out line it first.

I think what really made this cake fun was the color. The neon food coloring is found at the grocery store with the regular coloring. They are bright and fun to work with.

I used to have a birthday blog but then this blog took off and the domain of the birthday blog got stolen, so I shut it down. I am transferring the cake tutorials here :)

The Cowboy Boot Cake

This started out a 9×13 cake. I free handed this one but you could easily make a pattern out of paper to help you carve. I did something with this cake I haven’t ever done before. I wanted it to look like leather so after I crumb coated it, I stuck it in the freezer for a long time. Then I frosted it. Because it was extra cold it froze the frosting as I was putting it on and I was able to get it really flat and smooth. I stuck it in the freezer again for a little bit and smoothed it out even more. I really liked the affect!

Once upon a time I had a birthday blog. But then this blog took off and the birthday blog’s domain got stolen, so I shut it down.  I am transferring my cake tutorials here :)

The Popcorn Cake

This cake got a lot of attention. It was pretty easy to make too. Instead of using a cake mix like I usually do, I made a pound cake. Cakes that are dense stack better. I baked it in a 9×13 pan and then cut it into squares. Before I started stacking them I added a dollop of frosting onto the tray so the cake would stick and not topple over when moved.

I frosted in between each layer and then crumb coated it. I stuck it in the freezer for awhile (the fridge would work also) so the crumb coat layer would get hard. It makes frosting it so much easier.

While the cake was in the freezer I made the popcorn. I melted some white chocolate chips in the microwave for 30 seconds. I spooned it into a sandwich baggie and cut the tip off of one corner. I squeezed drops into a pan of ice water. The ice needs to be “pellet” ice. I don’t know what it is really called but if you can’t find it bagged, you can go to a gas station and buy it in the cups by the drink machines. There needs to be more ice than water.

This is what it looks like! Pretty cool, huh?

When you are done with frosting the cake then you can pipe on the stripes. Don’t worry if the cake isn’t straight or the lines are a little wiggly. It is a BAG of popcorn. Chances are a real bag of popcorn wouldn’t look straight either. And kids aren’t going to be critiquing you on your technique. They won’t see past the fun idea of it. I am about to suggest something that I never thought I would. If you are nervous to pipe the stripes on, or you start and can’t get them straight, you could use fondant. I think the stuff tastes nasty and that is why I never use it but it wouldn’t be bad just as stripes. Roll it out and cut the stripes with a knife.

When you are done with the stripes you can add the popcorn on the top. Use frosting as glue. Then for the butter I used yellow frosting that I painted on with one of my kid’s clean watercolor brushes.

I used to have a birthday blog. But then this blog took off and the birthday blog domain was stolen, so I shut it down. I still get emails about the cakes I did so I am transferring the cake tutorials here :)

The Cereal Cake

I was asked to make a groom’s cake for a wedding. The guy is OBSESSED with cereal. As in he eats it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Hopefully that will change now that he is married  :)
Anyway, I don’t like to use fondant because I think it tastes nasty. I want my cakes to look nice, but I want them to taste good too. I am not sure what kind of a party this would go with. . .  sleepover maybe??? Or maybe for a kid who is obsessed with cereal too! I don’t know. But here it is any way.
I was so super stressed about this cake that I forgot to take pictures of how I made it. I doubled my cake recipe. Everything BUT the sugar. So I had to make a new one and was up until 3 am. I baked the cake in a large sauce pan because I didn’t have a glass bowl large enough. The pan had tapered sides like a bowl so it worked. The “cereal” is white chocolate. I melted down some white chocolate chips and added food coloring to them. I spooned the melted chocolate into a baggie, cut off one corner, and dropped it into some ice water. To see what the heck I am talking about, see my popcorn cake. I have pictures showing the process. Make sure when you take the “cereal” out of the ice water that you put them on a paper towel to dry so they don’t get sticky.
To make the spoon, I did the same thing with the chocolate chips. Melted them, added black food coloring, put it in a baggie, and cut the corner. Then I squirted it out onto wax paper into the shape of a spoon handle. I did the same thing with my tea pot cake.
I just had another idea! Yep. Right now as I was typing :)  Instead of making cereal, you could squirt the letters of the alphabet and make it alphabet soup! ( I am totally humming “Animal crackers in my soup”) That would be cute for a toddler’s ABC party. I have one in the works. Yeah! Now I have a cake idea.