Pussy Galore: Bumper Post

Hi y'all! Back from the Big Apple today so I just had to tell you about the recent cake extravaganza I embarked upon 24 hours prior to departure :)

I couldn't really say no to doing two cakes just before I set off on holiday - both were family orders and plus I really really wanted to do them. I was commissioned to make a Hello Kitty cake for my second cousin's first birthday, and a triple-whammy-James-Bond-themed-birthday cake for my other cousin's friends' party.
Phew.

So in a mere 48 hours I took upon the challenge of baking, icing and decorating two cakes, and here's the final results. (I haven't done a progress post this time as I was sooo strapped for time what with packing and uni-working too, so the final product is what you see is what you get.)

James Bond silhouette casino cake - Madeira Sponge with vanilla buttercream and jam filling.

Hello Kitty character cake - Devil Food Cake with chocolate buttercream with edible SPARKLES for decoration (note: no glitter - sparkles!!)

And remember the failed Red Velvet cupcake post I did last year? I tasted my first American-style cupcake from a little cupcakery on the stylish Madison Avenue and oh-my-goodness they are heavenly. Literally velvety, a hint of chocolate, and very frothy frosting! I HAVE to find a good recipe soon!!!

Happy Baking x

P.s I hope to set up a Facebook page soon for my 'Cakes by Kirsten' business. Link to come soon, I'd love your feedback!

When You Wish Upon a Star...

...Little Willow's dream's come true!

Remember the Peppa Pig cake I made a few weeks back? The owner's older sister, Willow, got her dream cake for her birthday on Sunday - a Princess Tiana cake! ( From Disney's Princess and The Frog.) Now, we had a few problems with trying to work out the design of Miss T, and I was originally going to make a doll cake with a cake doll pick pushed into the cake (which is effectively her skirt.) Unfortunately, for some idiotic and racist reason, LOADS of cake suppliers don't stock black doll picks, and the ones that do charge through the roof for them. So it was on to a flat design for Tiana, where my biggest problem was getting proportions right. Disney has the same motive as Barbie, where the ladies are all skinny, tall and gorgeous. This makes cake-making very hard, as skinny princesses are extremely delicate, and frankly won't feed a party-full of screaming kiddywinks. So, yes, she has a bit of a...ahem... full... neck, and my mum decided to tell me later on it would probably have been easier to just mould a head and neck out of cocoform. Thanks for telling me AFTER delivery, mum.

Anywho, despite this, she turned out okay, and the owner was very, very pleased with results - but then again I am my biggest critic. Also, I should make a note of telling people now - edible glitter is not actually edible. It's actually 'non-toxic.' Which in other words means it won't harm you, but it won't get digested either (sparkly poop??)
If you're thinking it looks fabulous on cakes and cupcakes, think again. It's messy, and used incorrectly is a huge pain is the bum. I managed to use it okay for Tiana's flower feature on her dress, but it just gets EVERYWHERE. Think I will make a note of banning it for future use. Hmm. Food for thought...

Look out for a chocolatey post at the end of the week - I'm back on the chocolate roses again for some wedding favour cupcakes! And stay tuned for a Hello Kitty cake next week before my jetset!!

Happy Baking x

If I Ever Made My Own 21st Birthday Cake...

This would be it!

Unfortunately, it's not for me. No one will be making me a birthday cake in 3 weeks time seeing as I will be away in New York (yes, I will mention it again :D). This cake has been made for business purposes! My gorgeous best friend Abby has kindly offered to help me with the advertising side of my 'Cakes by Kirsten' business once it's up and running, and I wanted a logo that would help define the company and myself. This is me all over - pastel colours, girlie, and BOWS! (I have a bow tattoo for a tramp stamp.) So this will be plastered all over my business cards, leaflets and website when I buy a domain.

This cake is also being used as part of my degree. One of the module I'm studying requires me and other group members to create a 32-page magazine from scratch, and then it gets sent to the printers! We're doing an article on independent business women, and who else to interview but moi! So a good friend Jodie will be doing the photography of this cake with me looking spanking in heels and an apron a la Bree Van De Kamp.

Anywho, the cake is entirely covered in white icing, using lilac, baby pink and baby blue ribbons and polka dots to finish. This is the first time I've actually been really pleased with the outcome of my bows. My mum's cake was too thick and didn't co-ordinate size-wise with the ribbon to match. The bow on Grumpy's christmas cake cracked on the knot, making it look silly :( I used the ribbon cutter tool to make everything even, and inserted a cake dowel right through the centre of the three cakes to hold them all together, aswell as the usual dowels in each layer (this prevents them from sinking into one another). The bows are made out of a combination of sugarpaste and Gum Tragacanth which helps harden icing to make it easier to mould into flowers etc. I used a few odds and ends to help keep things intact until they set properly though... Apologies for the crudeness :P

Remember back last summer when I did a few posts on Wedding-related happenings? The bride in one of the pictures, Laura is now pregnant! I wonder if she'd like this kind of cake for her Baby Shower? One can only ask.... ;)

Any questions feel free to ask!

Happy Baking x

Valentine's Day

I'm a bit late on my Valentine's post, sorry folks! But here's the cake I made for my other (not better, mwahaha) half since I'm a little skint these days (blame the holiday in NYC I just booked...!)... I received a sweet little silicone heart-shaped cake mould for christmas and I've been dying to put it to good use, so I googled for inspiration for a V-Day cake. Heart cakes aren't uncommon, but boy is there little imagination used! I saw one designed like this one, where the cake acts as an imitation chocolate box, and then added in a few Milk Tray choccies on top :) All of his family and friends were so amazed by it, to quote his mother "You clever girl, this cake is so beautiful. It'll be hard to beat...I've tasted this perfect perfect cake and it really is soooo perfect!" :P I think I need to set up a testimonials part of my blog haha!

What I'd like to mention about this cake task was the use of silicone moulds... HOW effective are they?!!? If you've never used one, buy one. There's no need for greasing and papering the cake mould, as you literally just turn it out of the mould. They're amazing, can't wait to make another one!

My Valentine's Day: The bottle with the candle in is the bottle of champagne my parent's drank at their wedding. Who say's romance is dead?

In reference to Valentine's Day, I'd like to have my own little rant. I think this year I've come across more "Ugghh I don't do V.D, it's so commercialised..." than soppy stuff and I felt really disheartened by it all. Personally, I love V.D. Jim and I have never gone completely all out for it, this year we stayed in with a rack of lamb and Sherlock Holmes, but it was still lovely to spend that day together celebrating how much we're in love. Yes, you can do that any day of the year, I know that. It's not like the words "I love you" are off-limits for the rest of the year. But I love the flowers everywhere, the candles, the cutesy presents and of course the chocolates. I'm not saying I'm materialistic, I just think it's a sweet day and everyone's all smiley. I saw a guy walk out of a jewellery store a few days before, and he had the biggest grin on his face and a tiny bag in his hand... I bet he was proposing and made someone a very happy and lucky lady. Anyway, I like the day. Some people haven't even been together long enough to celebrate an anniversary or whatever, so V.D is also a way for those people to have a special day, too. Before I met Jim, my best friend and I used to send each other Valentine's cards, just as a little reminder that we were there for each other. Rant over.

Happy Baking x