Cake Mixes

All this cake-baking is making me wonder which is the best brand of cake mix. Or are they all the same? Do you have a favorite? Check out the poll on the right and make your choice.

Pretty Wild Cupcakes

These lion and bear cupcakes are for my friend Kim. Her kids' preschool and elementary school mascots are the bears and the lions. They, along with some neighborhood kids, are marking the end of the first week of school with these cupcakes.

Brownie Bites

A few weeks ago, I tried making brownie bites for the first time, and I'd say it was a successful attempt. I used a mini muffin tin and got four dozen bites out of a Betty Crocker Fudge Brownie mix. I just sprayed the pan with Baker's Joy, and they popped right out. I baked them for about 18 minutes. I iced half with a peanut butter icing and half with the cream cheese frosting left over from the zucchini cake. The cream cheese icing looked great, but I over-whipped the peanut butter icing so it didn't look so nice and smooth.

I made these brownies for the lifeguards and swim instructors at the pool where my kids had their swimming lessons. They're just college students (and some high school kids) who slave away all summer keeping the community pools clean and looking great while teaching a whole mess of little ones how to swim. I wasn't sure if those kids with the buff bodies would eat them, but Elizabeth peeked into the office on the way out and shouted, "Mommy! Some of the brownies are missing!" So I guess they ate 'em.

They amuse themselves.

Just in case anyone is wondering what my kids do while I'm working in the kitchen....
I like to think he's stepping on her foot for dressing him in a cheerleader outfit and tap shoes. Take that, Witchy!

Order Number One

Thank you to everyone who has placed an order for a cake! The idea is proving to be popular so I think I'll be busy for a while. I hope the experience pays off. I was pretty pleased with the way the first one turned out, but I'm begging you all to not submit any of my creations to Cake Wrecks. Please.

Here's the first cake I made for my friend Laura. I hope she and her boys enjoy this dinosaur cake!

Back to School

School starts on Monday! Yes, it's a short seven-week summer, but the kids get two weeks off in October, December and March. Plus, it's hot as heck out here so the kids may as well be in school.

Our PTO is having a welcome back luncheon for the teachers tomorrow and they're having these apple cupcakes for dessert. They're just vanilla or chocolate cupcakes frosted in buttercream and dipped in sanding sugar. A pretzel stick is the stem, and I piped green melting chocolate onto waxed paper in leaf shapes. That worked out a lot better than my original plan.

The first plan was to cut green fruit roll-ups into leaves. I don't buy fruit roll-ups so I didn't realize that they don't come in green. Probably because kids don't eat anything green. Anyway, my second idea was to make chocolate leaves. I went into my back yard and got 24 leaves. I washed them, and then painted the backs of them with melting chocolate. Nine out of 24 came out.Sure, they looked pretty good. But the process just isn't practical when you need to make four dozen cupcakes. Maybe if I just needed a couple of leaves to garnish a cake.... But I don't know. Those chocolate leaves smelled like the real leaves so they probably tasted gross. And might even have been poisonous. I tossed them.

So, I ended up piping the chocolate on the waxed paper. I've watched pastry chefs do it on Food Network Challenge so I thought I was qualified to give it a try. I got better and better as I went along.

I need your help!

Remember those baby rattle cupcakes from a few weeks ago? As I mentioned in that post, I learned how to make them by watching an online video. Betty Crocker has a whole collection of these how-to videos and, over the course of about a week, Elizabeth and I watched every one of them. I'd love to improve my technique, but I don't want to gain any more weight in the process. In other words, I want to bake and decorate a ton of cakes, but I don't want to have to eat them. (I think I've mentioned my disdain for wasting food.)

So, here's where you come in. Tell me to make a cake for you. Take a look at a few of these creative ideas and tell me which one you want. There are castles, flip flops, dinosaurs, trains, pirates, and more. Or find an example somewhere else and forward it to me. I really don't care where the idea comes from; I just want the practice. This doesn't have to be a cake for a big party. It can just be your family's dessert some evening. Surprise your kids! Surprise your husband! Do it just because.

Now if you still need more persuading, consider this. Because you're helping me practice (and I can't guarantee it will look great), I'll do it for you for free. Of course, I can't ship cakes so you have to live near me and I have to know you. I might be a little crazy but not so much that I go around making free cakes for strangers (unless they are friends of yours). So, please choose a cake and email me your pick! Just give me a few days notice on the delivery deadline.