Category Archives for "Specialty Cakes"

Super Mario Mega Mushroom Cake and Cupcakes

By Sharon | Specialty Cakes , Tips

When my grandson was having his 8th birthday he said he just wanted cupcakes. His party theme was Super Mario. We thought it would be fun to make a cake in the shape of one of the mushrooms from the games. He agreed that the cake would be for the family birthday and the cupcakes and a giant cookie for the kids party.

Over the years we found that kids don’t really like cakes at parties and eat the frosting or take a bite or two and are done. The giant cookie has always gone over really well. At Nicholas’ request we studied all the Mario Wii games and their books and collected pictures of the items in each. The cupcakes were decorated with gum paste figures for all the ones we thought we could tackle. Using gum paste does go against my idea of natural ingredients but I haven’t figured out how to do it in something else yet. Maybe next year.
Continue reading

Turtle Shaped Cake

By Sharon | Specialty Cakes , Tips

For our friend Faith’s 2nd birthday she was really into turtles so her party theme was turtles. We thought a lot about how to shape this cake and make it look real.

This was our first cake using Rice Krispy treats to shape parts of the body. They worked really well.

This was also our first time using isomalt. Isomalt is the popular name for Isomaltitol which is a sugar substitute made from beet sugar. Here’s some great information from Make Your Own Molds. We selected this to give a realistic wave and water look. I found it very easy to work with and found it at our local cake decorating supply.Continue reading

Minnie Mouse Trouble – Caitlin’s 2nd Birthday

By Sharon | Recipes , Specialty Cakes , Tips

It’s Caitlin’s 2nd birthday and she still thinks Minnie Mouse is the best thing in the world. Only this year she’s into Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and repeats everything she sees. Of course the fact that we bought her a huge Minnie Mouse stuffed animal at Disney for hear 1st birthday that she takes everywhere with her could have something to do with the attachment.

I originally was going to make sugar cookies with my Mickey cutter and decorate them as Toodles from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse but as time grew closer I had this image of a 3-dimensional Minnie cake. Ken and I started talking about it and I was just always designing it in the back of my mind.  We got what we needed to make this cake and knew we had all week to work out the details and make it.Continue reading

Caitlin’s 1st Birthday – Minnie Mouse Cupcake

By Sharon | Specialty Cakes , Tips

Caitlin is my granddaughter and for her first birthday my daughter found a project plan on the Michael’s online website.  I couldn’t even tell you what the one she saw looked like now but it inspired us to create this one in a Minnie Mouse theme.

The challenge with this one was stacking! I did put a dowel in there.  We had to transport the finished cake about 15 miles, on winter roads filled with potholes! I carried on my lap the entire way with a finger stuck on one of the fondant pieces.

We did a practice run on this cake since the party with guests was a few days after her actual birthday. We used the same techniques on both cakes.Continue reading

Faith’s Finding Nemo First Birthday Cake

By Sharon | Specialty Cakes , Tips

In October of 2009 we flew from Hawai’i, where we then lived, to Dallas to celebrate our friend’s First Birthday.  Just a month earlier Faith became very ill and had to be fed on a feeding tube.  After loads of process and elimination her parents discovered she had a soy allergy.  Not just the easy to eliminate soy products but even the soy lecithin used in a huge amount of processed food products. It is used as an emulsifier and preservative, extending the shelf life of products.  There is a portion of the population that is highly allergic to the soy lecithin.Continue reading