Muscle Cake!

First of all, I have to thank my friend Kathy for sharing my blog with others! You're the best!

My friend's colleague needed a custom cake for her husband's 30th birthday. My first official (have done others as wedding gifts) cake order. She contacted me and sent me her ideas along with a photograph of her husband's tattoo that was to be included on the cake! So here it is, vanilla cake with buttercream icing and fondant, entirely edible, even right down to the ink!

I hope the cake was a hit at the party!

Petits Fours

My friend Soo and I decided to make fancy treats for a retirement 'tea party' for one of our lovely colleagues at work. Soo had the brilliant idea of making Petits Fours. What a perfect idea for a tea party! And of course, she just happened to have candied edible flowers in her freezer. These adorable buds were the final touch to make these little gems mini works of art. So pretty, and tasty too!

I Like Big Bundts 2011 - that's right, we did it again!

Well, we've gone and done it again!  It was a Bundt coffee break extravaganza on November 15th.  The challenge was put out by the Food Librarian once again this year to bake a bundt cake for National Bundt Day on November 15th, and of course, my colleagues and I took it on!

Five of us brought bundt cakes, and others supplied the whipped cream (shown in lower right image) and tea for everyone.

From one side...

...to the other.  Don't forget the whipped cream!

Pascal's Kentucky Butter Bundt

Mary Margaret's Chocolate Bundt with Vanilla Glaze

Joanne's Sour Cream Coffee Bundt with Maple Caramel Walnut Glaze

Shannon's Tabasco Orange Bundt

Melissa's Pumpkin and Carrot Bundt served with whipped cream

Of course we all had to sample a piece of each bundt cake...delish!

Apple Pie à la Crisp? Anyone?

What can I say? I love fall.  I also really enjoy going apple picking with friends.  My intentions are always to only pick one kind, Cortland apples, because those are the best for apple pies.  But somehow, I end up with 3 or 4 kinds every year and then I have to do something about the overload of apples in my kitchen.  So, I bake....and I bake.  I'll eat the empires every day but the rest of the apples (Lobo, Macintosh and of course the Cortlands) have got to get into the apple crisp or pies.  I decided to be lazy this year, well I'd rather call it a stroke of genius myself, and use my apple crisp recipe and just throw it into a pie crust (easiest and fool proof pie crust ever).  It's basically and apple crumble pie, and delicious.

Giant Donut? À la Simpsons?

And there's always room for a Giant Donut Cake, with pink icing, of course.  My friend has always wanted a giant donut (think The Simpsons), so ask and ye shall receive!  A chocolate cake with chocolate and butterscotch chips and buttercream icing...yum.  Oh but first, I know this is not a dessert, but it's just as delicious...we shared a homemade cheese fondue as well as a broth fondue (for the meat) as part of my friend's list of favourites on her birthday.  No complaints here!  Hope you had a fabulous birthday!

That's One Giant Cupcake!

Well, it had to happen one day...why make multiple little cupcakes when you can make one great big giant one?!
This giant cupcake was made from a chocolate chip pound cake recipe with vanilla creme cheese icing.
It seems my friend thoroughly enjoyed her birthday cake, and so did everyone else for that matter.  Happy birthday to you!

Speed can be delicious...

...in the shape of an F1 race car that is!
I made this for my colleague's retirement party.  He is a huge fan of F1 racing so we decided to inject a bit of F1 flavour to the party by making a big signing poster with checkered flag as well as a fast car cake.  It's a simple vanilla cake with buttercream icing.  He loved it!  It could have been much nicer but this is what you get when I make it in the morning before work.  I still think it looks pretty cool.