Sunday, July 7, 2013

Curious George Birthday Cake

Sydney and Kami, my two three and almost three year old granddaughters, are HUGE Curious George fans. So Sydney, who turned three yesterday, ordered a "monkey" cake.

Earlier this summer, I came across this blog post and filed it in the back of my mind to try someday.  I decided this was that day!  I followed her instructions exactly and it worked!!  Not perfect, but a great first try.  I'm sure I'll be making Kami a "monkey" cake in a couple of months, so I'll get another chance to make it perfect.

First, here is the backup George, or Plan B, if the first one didn't work out!  This shows a bit of the process.




And here's Plan A, just before going in the freezer.




Things I learned:
1) Make sure the frosting is thick enough and filled in tight.  Notice the belly and face.  It improved some after it sat for a while, but I don't think it would have done that had I really packed the frosting in there.
2) When filling the design, it is important to cover the outline as well, or else there is nothing supporting that line and it will break off when you invert it and put it on the cake.
3) Don't worry if it's not perfect!  Once it's on the cake, it will look great!
4) I used a buttercream made with real butter.  It softened very quickly when I took it out of the freezer.  I'm wondering if a buttercream made without butter would work better??? I'll have to try that sometime.

Overall, I love the way it turned out and it was big hit with the three year olds!


 

Happy Birthday, Sydney & Emily!!

Monday, July 1, 2013

Silver Wedding Anniversary Cake

My sister and brother-in-law (who is also my husband's first cousin; cousins married sisters!) celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary this past weekend.  Here is the cake I made for the occasion!



I had planned to use the topper from their wedding cake, but it looked like it was twenty-five years old so I opted for the topper from my daughter's wedding cake instead.  It matched better anyway.

I used a frosting with real butter, so that's the reason it's not pure white.  Decided to go for taste over looks, I guess!  The cake flavors were Dark Chocolate, White and Red Velvet.

Congrats on 25 Years, Becca & Terry!!