tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34092786274035228102024-03-12T16:44:26.931-07:00Tales of an amateur bakerTanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-46914519262667739202016-11-19T08:00:00.000-08:002016-11-19T08:00:01.483-08:00Superhero cake<div align="center">
Marvel? DC? Why not represent both!</div>
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In support of my son's Lacrosse club I donated a cake for our annual auction. I ended up agreeing to two cakes (hey if more than one person is interested in a cake and willing to support Woodinville Lacrosse to get it, then I'm willing to bake!) and this is cake #1. The family was having a joint birthday party for their kids (both into superheroes) so we came up with this compromise cake paying tribute to both Spiderman and Wonder Woman!</div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-67107148295721475422016-11-18T18:30:00.000-08:002016-11-18T18:30:07.399-08:0050th Birthday Cake!<div align="center">
Simple, classy look for a 50th Birthday cake:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidqrLBzHIGiO9Jhqby65iQvsRwBWOq0t3Y4sgZFEnOX4sF-WcF7kqE8k20Fz50mXvYyF78M8bG58avR6sr_Pdo3LTCKR6h1Wt35udLO0TuY2kpKfm3KrVNobyfWP4FdIyNduuczGiGUByg/s1600/50th+Birthday+Cake.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidqrLBzHIGiO9Jhqby65iQvsRwBWOq0t3Y4sgZFEnOX4sF-WcF7kqE8k20Fz50mXvYyF78M8bG58avR6sr_Pdo3LTCKR6h1Wt35udLO0TuY2kpKfm3KrVNobyfWP4FdIyNduuczGiGUByg/s320/50th+Birthday+Cake.jpeg" width="180" /></a></div>
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I love how everything turned out.... except the "quilted look" I was trying to achieve on the top tier! But... that's why this blog is called "Tales of an Amateur Baker"... I am still learning! .... so, two lessons I learned on this cake:</div>
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1) DO NOT skip putting dowels in the bottom tier of the cake! Just because you're doing a smaller cake... don't get lazy and skip this step. It's absolutely crucial to provide support for the upper tier or your cake could sag.... mine did!!</div>
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2) Research the quilted look more! There are tools out there and lots of different ways to get this effect. My cake looked ok close up, but I would have preferred a more polished look. I plan to try again, but will do more research before attempting it.</div>
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All in all, I'm pleased with the general look of the cake and it's always a plus when I learn something I can apply next time I'm decorating!</div>
Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-62426025760513072732016-11-18T07:00:00.000-08:002016-11-18T07:00:08.800-08:00Chewbacca Cake!<div align="center">
Happy Birthday Ginger!</div>
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Ok, so this post is very late... Ginger's birthday was back in July... what can I say... I've been busy! I love the variety of interests that my daughter has.... from girly things to Star Wars! Her newest obsession (since seeing "Star Wars: The Force Awakens") is Chewy, so when I asked her what kind of a cake she wanted for her party the answer (very loudly) was "Chewbacca!!"</div>
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I searched the Internet for ideas, but I'm not artistic enough to attempt to do Chewy's face in great detail, so I really wanted something that was very "Chewbacca" without it having to be a headshot... and I found this! I loved that it had elements of Chewy (the fur, the belt) without me having to make a "Pinterest Fail" of his face. </div>
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This cake wasn't super difficult, but it was VERY tedious! All those little brown "fur" triangles took forever to make & place, but I do like the result. I found a little Chewbacca bobblehead figurine on Ebay for under $10 and decided to use that as the cake topper... then Ginger has a cute figurine for her dresser when the party is over!</div>
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She was thrilled with the cake and loves her Chewy figurine, so it all worked out in the end!</div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-28858935601947408792016-11-17T17:00:00.000-08:002016-11-17T17:00:37.300-08:00Falcon Footbal Dessert Dash Cake<div style="text-align: center;">
It's always exciting when I'm asked to donate a cake. It makes me feel good to help the community and I feel honored to be able to participate! Back in September our local High School Football team had a fundraiser going on that included a "Dessert Dash" auction and this is the cake I made to donate to that event:</div>
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To explain the theme a little:<br />
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It's been almost two years since one of our local kids was killed in a random act of violence. Parker Moore, a 20 year old Woodinville High alumni attending Linfield College in Oregon was at a 7-11 store at night and happened to get stabbed. Parker died later at the hospital and this tragedy really seemed to unite our communities (Linfield College and Woodinville). There are shirts with the "Woodinville 44/Linfield 35" logo on them and Woodinville Football uses #44strong consistently in support of Parker. They've even developed a new tradition of passing down the number 44 jersey to a certain selected player each year... someone the coach feels embodies the characteristics that Parker always showed (playing with intensity, generosity towards others, and leadership). </div>
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As a Woodinville resident (and the Mom of a son who played Junior Football here) I think this is a great tradition and a wonderful way to honor Parker's memory. Based on all this I decided to do a "44strong" themed cake for the dessert dash. It was fun to create and knowing it made some money to help out our local Football team makes me feel good!!</div>
Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-67330163527241579052016-11-16T13:40:00.000-08:002016-11-16T13:40:24.199-08:00Golf Tournament Cake<div style="text-align: center;">
Hi everyone.... so this is a cake that I did for a local women's golf tournament. </div>
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I knew what I wanted to do (grass, 19th hole scene, etc..) but wasn't quite sure how to accomplish it on a large scale (the cake needed to feed 70+ people). I ended up doing a half sheet cake for the bottom tier and just covering it with buttercream to look like grass. Then for the top layer I scoured through my old shaped cake pans for something that just looked like an interesting enough shape for the putting green area. I ended up using my "Dora" cake pan and think it ended up working out well!</div>
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I covered the Dora cake in fondant and just used buttercream around the edge for some grass accents. For the small sand traps I used a spoon to make small indentations in the buttercream grass and then sprinkled some graham cracker crumbs in the indents. Other than HATING how my handwriting looks on cakes, I was pleased with how it turned out. </div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-67473091400942600032016-02-05T14:12:00.000-08:002016-02-05T14:12:03.601-08:00Junior Football: End of an era<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My son played junior football for 6 years (since he was 8 years old) and it has become a fun tradition for our family. We loved watching him play! Over the years his passion for Lacrosse has grown & grown so he's decided no to play football at the high school level... instead, to focus on Lacrosse moving forward. I fully support his decision, but it will be sad not watching him play in the fall! So, knowing this last year of 'junior' football would most likely be his last year to play the sport, I decided to go a little bigger, more special for the "end of season" dessert. No cookies or cupcakes this time... this event deserved more of a centerpiece cake... so here it is....</div>
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I ended up making two tiers of cake. The bottom I covered in green fondant to represent the field and using white fondant I made yard lines and cut out numbers for the markers. I covered the top tier with brown fondant and using white fondant I made the football laces. The cake was topped off with a green "W" to represent our Woodinville Junior Falcon Football program and using blue tinted buttercream I piped on "2015 Varsity" (the last level of play for our junior league) and also piped small dots around each tier of cake to finish it off.</div>
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<br />Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-59114436183123862402015-08-27T23:34:00.000-07:002015-08-27T23:34:47.340-07:00Vegas Baby!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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For our friend's 50th Birthday party, we decided to do a casino theme... fun in so many ways! Fun decorations, fun games, fun casino themed food... just fun!</div>
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For my part I did the cake. I'm not super creative on my own, so my favorite thing to do is scour the internet for ideas and either look for a cake to try & recreate or mash some ideas together for my own twist. This 'Vegas style' cake was a lot of fun to do!</div>
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Simple two-tiered design... covered in marshmallow fondant with fondant rose accents, fondant coins and an arm for the slot machine too! For the arm I covered a wooden dowel with fondant, capped it with a ball of fondant, and brushed an edible silver glitter powder on it for a metal looking effect. </div>
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<br />Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-87684901489501811142015-08-27T23:22:00.000-07:002015-08-27T23:22:18.980-07:00Life's a Beach!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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For my daughter's 8th Birthday she decided to have a "Teen Beach Movie 2" party. I knew we could have a lot of fun with a beach themed cake so I started scouring the internet for ideas. I found a cake to recreate and put together my shopping list!</div>
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This cake was fairly easy to do and if I'd planned better & started earlier it would have turned out even cooler! This cake was two tiers... the first tier I covered with light blue tinted marshmallow fondant. The second tier I frosted with buttercream and lined the outside with Pepperidge Farm Pirouette cookies. I then sprinkled brown sugar on the top of the second tier (sand), used Milk Duds as coconuts, a fondant surf board, pretzel rods for trees (with fondant leaves) and a drink umbrella just to be cute!</div>
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The thing I was most disappointed in was my trees. If I had done my tree leaves a day or two in advance and let them harden some, they would have looked more natural and I wouldn't have had to prop them up with toothpicks. But... all in all the cake turned out well. It definitely went with our party theme and Ginger loved it!</div>
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<br />Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-90836451767871670892015-01-30T21:20:00.001-08:002015-04-08T19:36:55.753-07:00Spiderman!<div style="text-align: center;">
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I've made a Spiderman cake before... years ago... with a Wilton shaped cake pan and the star tip pattern frosting... but this is the more grown up version of this cool comic book hero! </div>
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This cake was for a Sweet 16 party for a young lady who likes super heroes. I scoured Pinterest for ideas (I'm LOVING Pinterest by the way... aren't you?!) and found this design. I love the simplicity of it... not overdone or too advanced for me and fits perfectly with the Spiderman themed party!</div>
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I am a huge fan of marshmallow fondant ... it's easy to make, easy to work with and actually tastes good... but I find that whether you're tinting fondant or buttercream there are some colors that are just VERY hard to get right... and red is one of them. So, I headed down to the craft store to hit the cake aisle for some pre-made red fondant. </div>
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Now that I had all my supplies in hand it was time to get started. For this cake I did three layers of 10-inch cakes for the bottom tier... did a buttercream crumb coat and then covered it with my marshmallow fondant in blue. I used four wooden dowels in the center of this cake to support the second tier, which was two 8-inch cakes covered in the Wilton red fondant.</div>
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Once both cakes were covered I placed the red tier on top of the wooden dowels and started the webbing. I used a pre-made black Wilton tube frosting for the webbing (black is another color that's tough to tint dark enough).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG53Rpnc0DNJWNXlzRvjkDPtax56tZYq0GgDHG63tK5V6wQLkD0ehdKhMiY7k4pMZZrlW_H2pM6J2faiW-g5ic_eUuOgC360n_yKRcmF1ztekEY5_A6Vs2n6wiGZoYCkXiipLuj2igKYCJ/s1600/20150124_214729.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG53Rpnc0DNJWNXlzRvjkDPtax56tZYq0GgDHG63tK5V6wQLkD0ehdKhMiY7k4pMZZrlW_H2pM6J2faiW-g5ic_eUuOgC360n_yKRcmF1ztekEY5_A6Vs2n6wiGZoYCkXiipLuj2igKYCJ/s1600/20150124_214729.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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I set aside a small piece of the red fondant and rolled it out into an oval/face shape and turned that into Spiderman's face for the top of the cake. This really added a nice detail and also works well to cover up the center of the spider web which can look a little messy/chaotic.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjillNOtPHViOcm3CwB_WM_YEILuS39qmHeIwql7ibpXNh2CwTR59_SaK9fYiZmQq5UbOhxz-chRSuhKLvXLvUEpspcksA0_3SGBfffVXpiyzY4Y6R0ThA4l8H7L1WIOYBuiyrEc42TB0-W/s1600/20150124_220725.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjillNOtPHViOcm3CwB_WM_YEILuS39qmHeIwql7ibpXNh2CwTR59_SaK9fYiZmQq5UbOhxz-chRSuhKLvXLvUEpspcksA0_3SGBfffVXpiyzY4Y6R0ThA4l8H7L1WIOYBuiyrEc42TB0-W/s1600/20150124_220725.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></div>
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For the city effect I had to make a choice here... spend extra money on the pre-made black fondant and hope I can get the buildings to set enough to use on the sides of the cake or save the money and make a non-edible option. I went for construction paper, white paper, a highlighter and a little tape & glue. I was able to make the buildings, attach them together and place them around the bottom tier of the cake for a lot less money and still get a really cool effect.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqhrD7BxZxI10_-amD6CL2RqYiX7p-pI868MEnwEI1y7Zre2I9VTLz1NJGb2bYpdubUxoq-vya3Ove4bXSRD6L6NIzEV1b2y0_Plt5VaupUZjtyY_nTAsc23rjAK2UWmk2GO43T3lX-xPi/s1600/20150124_205954.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqhrD7BxZxI10_-amD6CL2RqYiX7p-pI868MEnwEI1y7Zre2I9VTLz1NJGb2bYpdubUxoq-vya3Ove4bXSRD6L6NIzEV1b2y0_Plt5VaupUZjtyY_nTAsc23rjAK2UWmk2GO43T3lX-xPi/s1600/20150124_205954.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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I really enjoyed making this cake. I'm happy with how it turned out and loved the opportunity to work with fondant again. The more you work with it the more you learn & grow... so don't be intimidated... it's fun and not as hard as you might think! </div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-28789894432742679692014-05-18T20:31:00.000-07:002015-08-29T10:13:24.340-07:00Lacrosse!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYCPYpUoC2zDLZcDRtRd7gG7NYeZH7KkrQpwm0XkhAvt4wd7j3anEM6e4YOqGlCe5bduoPXfAbnte032zVb1Wk5XwE9JgYXEoqOWQ5HT9qrCVdRETq34aDGW_wFsov7Z7XwkPh2XJXvSeE/s1600/DSC00059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYCPYpUoC2zDLZcDRtRd7gG7NYeZH7KkrQpwm0XkhAvt4wd7j3anEM6e4YOqGlCe5bduoPXfAbnte032zVb1Wk5XwE9JgYXEoqOWQ5HT9qrCVdRETq34aDGW_wFsov7Z7XwkPh2XJXvSeE/s1600/DSC00059.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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One of my favorite things is to do cakes for my kid's "end of season" sports parties! It's so fun to do sports themed cakes or tailor a cake to go with a specific team. With Lacrosse season coming to a close it was the perfect time to play with marshmallow fondant a little bit and also </div>
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to try out my alphabet cut-outs!</div>
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I've found it very difficult to cut letters out of fondant... making them all the same size and having them actually look nice... not easy! Then I saw some alphabet cutters at the craft store:</div>
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wilton-Fondant-Alphabet-Number-Cookie/dp/B0009PU010" target="_blank">http://www.amazon.com/Wilton-Fondant-Alphabet-Number-Cookie/dp/B0009PU010</a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTR1ANA-CHXsP1olADDlLAQh6nn_LCgNVb7Z3myEkbdFRtn08FIde-LrnsQ0q5OqR1ocJuinJYFw8NQU9FXz7tEfNlRNO-wKI3PZTr7euwOS54u4fspMSxyciY038Ob9ycsXf4pskqQRGD/s1600/DSC00055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTR1ANA-CHXsP1olADDlLAQh6nn_LCgNVb7Z3myEkbdFRtn08FIde-LrnsQ0q5OqR1ocJuinJYFw8NQU9FXz7tEfNlRNO-wKI3PZTr7euwOS54u4fspMSxyciY038Ob9ycsXf4pskqQRGD/s1600/DSC00055.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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We are the "Woodinville Falcons" so I did a bunch of little green & blue W's to go on the cupcakes. I was worried about denting or creasing the fondant if I tried to pop out the W's with my fingernail, so I decided to try a Q-tip to push them out and that worked great.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaG_hs9-u7FcZF1DlOY5R_HTCGZ_WqFrTx0ycIRoNZYJNJIw_MvjuGj30KSp0_UmPFcBxVThZ6l4ag7smIFkP4gz3j6y1yLH3yfKRb_z-Edts1iJN7IUdlsym7KxNJQ8DHNpX2SfPMOdBu/s1600/DSC00056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaG_hs9-u7FcZF1DlOY5R_HTCGZ_WqFrTx0ycIRoNZYJNJIw_MvjuGj30KSp0_UmPFcBxVThZ6l4ag7smIFkP4gz3j6y1yLH3yfKRb_z-Edts1iJN7IUdlsym7KxNJQ8DHNpX2SfPMOdBu/s1600/DSC00056.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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For the Lacrosse head I used marshmallow fondant to shape the head, shaft and to make a little Lacrosse ball. Then I piped in white mesh and used blue fondant for the shooting strings. It would have been nice to give it a more 3-D affect on the pocket by doing the mesh out of fondant and letting it harden, but I wasn't sure it would work. I may have to try that next time!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNccOpozujROaJVL8vcN_Te6VStljn3BnkDWgu9X4rNvFtj9adcWYlZ84Qj5toDPUKVEgTz-_sRbnodsI0jUb68AKCiObIE5bpBf8dNhacHcWNCMryi9GXkFMB-Whdo3Ahmp2WNAjHwXhx/s1600/DSC00061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNccOpozujROaJVL8vcN_Te6VStljn3BnkDWgu9X4rNvFtj9adcWYlZ84Qj5toDPUKVEgTz-_sRbnodsI0jUb68AKCiObIE5bpBf8dNhacHcWNCMryi9GXkFMB-Whdo3Ahmp2WNAjHwXhx/s1600/DSC00061.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<strong><span style="color: #274e13; font-size: large;">Go Falcons!!</span></strong></div>
<br />Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-86775627175660332942014-01-20T21:49:00.000-08:002015-08-29T10:14:06.991-07:00Leopard Print Birthday Cake - the 'Trial Run'<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnq8grIXj5TaHYKUF4mdHn8FTYHryV6Mn8wDdxXAmvI5lRK0HPZtxyiDw4Y4VW1h7k7gG4iPHpjN13H7lluuqBHKHDT5El6yU3334bbzz0MPA6ojTwN2vGhRf8VGCgQ2CdXWAG_E86B6dj/s1600/20140118_132826.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnq8grIXj5TaHYKUF4mdHn8FTYHryV6Mn8wDdxXAmvI5lRK0HPZtxyiDw4Y4VW1h7k7gG4iPHpjN13H7lluuqBHKHDT5El6yU3334bbzz0MPA6ojTwN2vGhRf8VGCgQ2CdXWAG_E86B6dj/s640/20140118_132826.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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My Best Friend & I are turning 40 this year and celebrating with a joint birthday bash. We're determined to make it awesome ... right down to the cake! I love leopard/cheetah print and my BFF loves pink so we've decided on a combination of those two things for our party theme. </div>
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I've found a bunch of really cute leopard print cake ideas on the Internet, but the thought of attempting to make a leopard print design is a little intimidating! I found a channel on YouTube:</div>
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/laurapoopie">http://www.youtube.com/user/laurapoopie</a> (Laura Varela of Krazy Kool Cakes) and she shows some GREAT tutorials on cake decorating, including a great one on painting </div>
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the leopard print design onto fondant.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimX93Yrb51KPV0NV43-ycrDEeR7buLEZd0lIrM9ZXKVxUXnpU362ZZwjBFDgNv8l57DnGUk1bi9L_Dk9tB66VG8p-A7jg0BPBt_IaFHQgTDtuzaNcTTAdLJiC5qYhuBZFfQOU58YJQCaM2/s1600/20140117_233915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimX93Yrb51KPV0NV43-ycrDEeR7buLEZd0lIrM9ZXKVxUXnpU362ZZwjBFDgNv8l57DnGUk1bi9L_Dk9tB66VG8p-A7jg0BPBt_IaFHQgTDtuzaNcTTAdLJiC5qYhuBZFfQOU58YJQCaM2/s640/20140117_233915.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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For this design you cover your cake with fondant tinted in a light color (I used tan/beige). Once you have your cake covered, mix a little bit of black gel tint with vodka. Using a fine bristled paint brush, paint little C's, U's and parentheses all over the cake (no pattern, just randomly). You don't want them perfectly shaped either... kind of ragged on the edges & slightly different sizes is better.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEbcDkjJUJJI2ZZT5lJ-tHmqLSdQLATVqHa3T0AJI7aPAn_PFS8vu8VMmjDpMHkh3FDZ2mAeDDOzBQMKTOeHNjQDqhXDD9ue-CHn14DI1vJGUUvqsPgNMIJTjyiZLa3QmXnpr_VGkhhubZ/s1600/20140117_233908.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEbcDkjJUJJI2ZZT5lJ-tHmqLSdQLATVqHa3T0AJI7aPAn_PFS8vu8VMmjDpMHkh3FDZ2mAeDDOzBQMKTOeHNjQDqhXDD9ue-CHn14DI1vJGUUvqsPgNMIJTjyiZLa3QmXnpr_VGkhhubZ/s640/20140117_233908.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then you mix your highlight color (in this case I used brown to go with the beige, but you could use light pink & dark pink, lavender & purple, you get the idea....) - mix this gel tint with a little vodka as well and fill in the middle of the C's, U's & parentheses. You can also use lemon juice </div>
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to thin the gel tint, but the vodka evaporates and works nicely with no added flavor.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREsCXdrs4JNIyzomxPBBgrvkkSJuX3DOJ9MV8OX9pO9jDhy6wN2b6jV_OTWzFJfjw0qtTFU_URf2oKci_Gm0AGaFixfjU1XCYrnaDFCLG3uHk31t3-_9RNUvztLqM49S4XPx4qucbiLvh/s1600/20140118_000340.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiREsCXdrs4JNIyzomxPBBgrvkkSJuX3DOJ9MV8OX9pO9jDhy6wN2b6jV_OTWzFJfjw0qtTFU_URf2oKci_Gm0AGaFixfjU1XCYrnaDFCLG3uHk31t3-_9RNUvztLqM49S4XPx4qucbiLvh/s640/20140118_000340.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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To finish off the 'trial run' cake I added a ribbon around the bottom and a bow. When I do the cake for our 40th Birthday bash I will do a couple of tiers in the leopard and I'll use a darker </div>
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pink for the ribbon. I'm SOOOO glad that I did a practice cake... now I have a good idea of </div>
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the areas I want to practice more before attempting our cake (ribbons & bows for sure)!! </div>
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But all in all, the leopard was much easier to do than I expected it to be. </div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-64556820350295505042013-11-19T22:24:00.000-08:002013-11-19T22:26:14.689-08:00Football Celebration Cake<div align="center">
Great Season Woodinville Falcons!!</div>
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My son plays in the local Junior Football league and we here in Woodinville take our Football very seriously! We've got a great feeder program in place for the high school with some wonderful coaches & volunteers that help the boys learn about teamwork. This year my son's team made it to the Semi-Finals and we couldn't have been more proud of them! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzP7c1tTzt9ovcNCbIL8Q03cdw7kqUc9eYRUH-rP-2fftc1p514Efuh2mnKyHP91QBBFRZf8tyX94TuqRuoBRPzojx3UUmZ_lqEuJ93NeeG3Ytia1DuTvgfgksgaX4rVRW8rLxMOmCdI4R/s1600/20131116_235419.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzP7c1tTzt9ovcNCbIL8Q03cdw7kqUc9eYRUH-rP-2fftc1p514Efuh2mnKyHP91QBBFRZf8tyX94TuqRuoBRPzojx3UUmZ_lqEuJ93NeeG3Ytia1DuTvgfgksgaX4rVRW8rLxMOmCdI4R/s320/20131116_235419.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div>
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To celebrate we had an 'end of season' party which included some Dodgeball, snacks, awards & cake (of course). I did a two tiered cake with a football on top. For the tiers I used my 10 inch & 8 inch round pans and for the football I used the Wilton "Mini Wonder Mold" pan and sliced the bottom at an angle so it would look like a football landing in the grass. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI2lO6qYNzdss9UKY9GNXBtdFFx17xEVF6GJUtOxMR0AjdUgMNCNhDllOYuNn0fnVi9Tpb_T-yLW99T-BwzpmhyphenhyphenCMyvtMk3KTy9wNg9u34LuOsJoM6on8xyRVotFCaj2PrfstNkeiBIuKl/s1600/20131117_121657.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI2lO6qYNzdss9UKY9GNXBtdFFx17xEVF6GJUtOxMR0AjdUgMNCNhDllOYuNn0fnVi9Tpb_T-yLW99T-BwzpmhyphenhyphenCMyvtMk3KTy9wNg9u34LuOsJoM6on8xyRVotFCaj2PrfstNkeiBIuKl/s320/20131117_121657.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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I chose to do Marshmallow Fondant on the tiers because I feel it looks nicer, </div>
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but I did buttercream on the football to give it a textured look.... and buttercream for the </div>
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grass of course (I love that 233 tip... so cool!!)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoDS6ZhFXY3p-9dKvvpANLkDXRhxdkSc3pSCponAfR571PM3j0pWL56lGnxs5rc1STpuTkyzw083QoFvraNbiutVB7q2GEYRE7ikbpBJJKHa6LxPsgQX-iMFZ4oPPoF6pqsQ7JZI_f4qc0/s1600/20131117_121702.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoDS6ZhFXY3p-9dKvvpANLkDXRhxdkSc3pSCponAfR571PM3j0pWL56lGnxs5rc1STpuTkyzw083QoFvraNbiutVB7q2GEYRE7ikbpBJJKHa6LxPsgQX-iMFZ4oPPoF6pqsQ7JZI_f4qc0/s320/20131117_121702.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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I hope the boys enjoyed their cake, but most of all I hope <em><strong>my</strong></em> boy realizes that I'm his #1 fan... </div>
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...always will be.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRi1YMTqBz-Nd2GjR1Xbq6qyS2guJx5rsqjl6UKIQls6MJ3vYUnCA-FtA4qa6O5qypELsHNwe6uJPKIgWg8DYJXKrHmcs0_vI9DiVueBOCc41BbZbN54XgFj08HB40NY4WpO_rvnNSM1HT/s1600/IMG_20120911_150242.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRi1YMTqBz-Nd2GjR1Xbq6qyS2guJx5rsqjl6UKIQls6MJ3vYUnCA-FtA4qa6O5qypELsHNwe6uJPKIgWg8DYJXKrHmcs0_vI9DiVueBOCc41BbZbN54XgFj08HB40NY4WpO_rvnNSM1HT/s320/IMG_20120911_150242.jpg" width="320" /> </a> </div>
Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-85211040407692686802013-10-03T19:10:00.000-07:002013-11-19T21:55:40.191-08:00Retirement Cake<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>Congrats on your Retirement Dave & Joanne!</strong></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_wsBy2waYcahy08xln_DOYWW3lPSKfM0zKyRDltOPIrPEHiSIfC29xF_JyBKcuPLvxfTGKfGZUSFYx6jviXEnRx2Bub3GE1ZQuqUdqEAYgMSokV1a0My6dd4bYEXW8O37gociqBOeYjOl/s1600/Dave+&+Joanne+Retire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_wsBy2waYcahy08xln_DOYWW3lPSKfM0zKyRDltOPIrPEHiSIfC29xF_JyBKcuPLvxfTGKfGZUSFYx6jviXEnRx2Bub3GE1ZQuqUdqEAYgMSokV1a0My6dd4bYEXW8O37gociqBOeYjOl/s320/Dave+&+Joanne+Retire.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Dave & Joanne are two of the nicest, most positive coworkers that I've ever had the pleasure of working with. We were all happy for them when they decided to retire (but selfishly sad as well) and I jumped at the chance to make a cake to help celebrate.</div>
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I decided to go with a cute clock/retirement theme and work in the company logo & color scheme. This was my first time doing a cake for a larger group of people (most of the time it's smaller birthday party cakes for me) so I did a half sheet cake for the bottom (two layers) and then topped it with an 8 inch round for the clock portion.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic7b9QvHZGyoYxTiW2T8pZcZJs8EF_iEpdBkjyYRqGqxzrAuuyZ-frmVxnjof1cq55AeYcPXlKKrJQ-asymKnN8Wu51d_21-9YTyv1tnqK635WRMycwc06iISPlBTTSA7Q_9dyCv4VbKdB/s1600/100_5877.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic7b9QvHZGyoYxTiW2T8pZcZJs8EF_iEpdBkjyYRqGqxzrAuuyZ-frmVxnjof1cq55AeYcPXlKKrJQ-asymKnN8Wu51d_21-9YTyv1tnqK635WRMycwc06iISPlBTTSA7Q_9dyCv4VbKdB/s320/100_5877.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY00MPf9oNx1E0WIjttDx2M-2lLaEq7Fy4bqPwQ-aNTNZurNeBH-BFcXTCPKT_JjeXu9fLBwKKXoWZTvVTOeCRr0HAP7OKUrdLBkIfpHAe62yKzXNlpOsyQLXDi4EflGBRgaJUxPKgLfN7/s1600/100_5878.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY00MPf9oNx1E0WIjttDx2M-2lLaEq7Fy4bqPwQ-aNTNZurNeBH-BFcXTCPKT_JjeXu9fLBwKKXoWZTvVTOeCRr0HAP7OKUrdLBkIfpHAe62yKzXNlpOsyQLXDi4EflGBRgaJUxPKgLfN7/s320/100_5878.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Wow is a half sheet hard to cover. Trying to estimate the amount of fondant to use, rolling it out the correct size (without being too thin) and then trying to actually get it over the cake without messing it up... very challenging. I was not successful in getting the cake covered without messing up the fondant a bit, but the good news is that I was able to smooth out the messed up parts fairly easily.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyRlBH1Fz1tzimA58FNTBxpYhyphenhyphen3MNRy_RkFO9IPHZRTND2AKLMiSafgKZOfIj9rf0qGTAFlhwA-tEU5YcRBnGuUqHtHzz0LZIoRiELTB81qhP41HNljmCmsQ93QRCUNsiZeQoCCjZKjVGi/s1600/100_5879.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyRlBH1Fz1tzimA58FNTBxpYhyphenhyphen3MNRy_RkFO9IPHZRTND2AKLMiSafgKZOfIj9rf0qGTAFlhwA-tEU5YcRBnGuUqHtHzz0LZIoRiELTB81qhP41HNljmCmsQ93QRCUNsiZeQoCCjZKjVGi/s320/100_5879.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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As you can see by my messy table... my cutting board was not large enough to roll out the fondant for the half sheet cake. So... I cleaned my table very well, scattered some powdered sugar and voila... a work surface big enough for gigantor cakes!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYGVgp3LNaumANHUF-aLQfEkXhNVvAW9H-LIU5tEdVvxfI2BsAXume5UCgzL-DwOSF3OnSHpjoqUSg7t75dk33Q2HkEnG2w4Tb7ltu7ev59ZaQTE_qMxNfD3VYBS5t2qJeoC2eeiDyIKei/s1600/100_5880.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYGVgp3LNaumANHUF-aLQfEkXhNVvAW9H-LIU5tEdVvxfI2BsAXume5UCgzL-DwOSF3OnSHpjoqUSg7t75dk33Q2HkEnG2w4Tb7ltu7ev59ZaQTE_qMxNfD3VYBS5t2qJeoC2eeiDyIKei/s320/100_5880.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinJUNt3NNKTt0-Yz-kSP0ftm3AZYp2MY-0p49LkHs0nh8V68wRoR97-zu9XTkrgEoht55WsnesD4zNBut8maTmOT20aaQg1-Usi1ymcVBIFuPPufp8n1Vlf4fHTA1u1kknZu_fsM_xi0Fy/s1600/100_5882.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinJUNt3NNKTt0-Yz-kSP0ftm3AZYp2MY-0p49LkHs0nh8V68wRoR97-zu9XTkrgEoht55WsnesD4zNBut8maTmOT20aaQg1-Usi1ymcVBIFuPPufp8n1Vlf4fHTA1u1kknZu_fsM_xi0Fy/s320/100_5882.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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So, things I learned during this cake:</div>
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<li>Most imperfections can be covered... does your fondant not go all the way to the bottom of the cake in one spot? Add a ribbon or ball border... now you have a cute/fancy edging and no messy mistake. Have a wrinkle or imperfection in the fondant? Using powdered sugar or cornstarch, gently rub the wrinkle and it will appear much less noticeable.</li>
<li>Bows can be a pain in the butt and should not be rushed.</li>
<li>One of those plastic roll-up mats that measure your fondant as you roll it out may be a helpful tool... I'm going to have to check in to one of those.</li>
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This was a fun cake to do... can't wait for the next project!</div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-11540199613901399672013-07-10T22:50:00.000-07:002013-11-19T21:55:57.728-08:00World's Best Peanut Butter Cookies<div style="text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BjevacY21v8/Ud40xbqGHZI/AAAAAAAAD1Q/RkHDHlmBXus/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BjevacY21v8/Ud40xbqGHZI/AAAAAAAAD1Q/RkHDHlmBXus/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></a></div>
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My husband is a cookie fiend and his very favorite are peanut butter. I think we've all made the packet mixes and they're not bad if you want some cookies quickly, but I've been searching for a while now for a really good, 'from scratch', peanut butter cookie recipe. </div>
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I finally found my starting point: <a href="http://www.cooks.com/recipe/587yl4e0/the-worlds-best-peanut-butter-cookies.html">http://www.cooks.com/recipe/587yl4e0/the-worlds-best-peanut-butter-cookies.html</a> Thank you "William III"!</div>
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I took this recipe and played with it & played with it and came up with my own rendition:</div>
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<strong><u>Ingredients:</u></strong></div>
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1 stick butter</div>
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1/2 cup brown sugar</div>
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1/2 cup granulated sugar</div>
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1 egg</div>
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3/4 cup Jiff Creamy Peanut Butter</div>
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1 1/4 cup flour</div>
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1/2 tsp baking soda</div>
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1/2 tsp vanilla</div>
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1 - 10oz bag Reese's Peanut Butter chips</div>
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Additional 1/3-1/2 cup granulated sugar (for rolling)</div>
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<strong><u>Method:</u></strong></div>
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Cream the butter, sugars and peanut butter together. Add the eggs (one at a time) and the vanilla and mix well. Sift the flour and baking soda together and slowly add to the creamy mixture. Once the dry ingredients are incorporated add in half the bag of peanut butter chips.</div>
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Roll into 1 inch balls and then slightly flatten the balls into thick disk shapes. Roll the disks in the additional granulated sugar (top, bottom & sides) and place on cookie sheets about an inch apart.</div>
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Bake at 350 for 10 1/2 minutes. This size and cook time will give you 3 Dozen nice, chewy cookies. If you like your cookies crispier, you'll want to cook them for 11-12 minutes and this recipe can easily be doubled for events or sharing! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf6zi59pF0cb54LGSTrzGReWQxpumcIR-zB5OyrN7LcWSe7kHIbQvTJ7TAxxX_NYaYpK7TydABpRKaJbyiXpEBqgXQO9-GnMsvHIZMm8_d6I2Y8TYyRfA7aWu4pFIpNqZYeAzgNWYQwfoM/s1600/100_0995.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf6zi59pF0cb54LGSTrzGReWQxpumcIR-zB5OyrN7LcWSe7kHIbQvTJ7TAxxX_NYaYpK7TydABpRKaJbyiXpEBqgXQO9-GnMsvHIZMm8_d6I2Y8TYyRfA7aWu4pFIpNqZYeAzgNWYQwfoM/s320/100_0995.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MTtth_U0Zas/Ud403q8zURI/AAAAAAAAD14/7JhfdwTQ0QQ/s1600/13+-+1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MTtth_U0Zas/Ud403q8zURI/AAAAAAAAD14/7JhfdwTQ0QQ/s320/13+-+1" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixNujN7SO51U4h5NcJqUP875Pf_PBsizDNZ7vWkCNkCsF8YEXi84zCcy-iac0lBG6n8qR6EmtNlT5OuNQs21alCQw_gbrGLtTIM9tOLXegyxWrIzVcu8ufb2h_V3gDzJ1kFnosRUqLyAhw/s1600/100_0996.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixNujN7SO51U4h5NcJqUP875Pf_PBsizDNZ7vWkCNkCsF8YEXi84zCcy-iac0lBG6n8qR6EmtNlT5OuNQs21alCQw_gbrGLtTIM9tOLXegyxWrIzVcu8ufb2h_V3gDzJ1kFnosRUqLyAhw/s320/100_0996.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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These are now my husband's favorite cookies and he's quite the Peanut Butter cookie connoisseur!</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lqqZbkd0kY4/Ud40xhCv6NE/AAAAAAAAD1Q/ZyCkBtRHQ6Q/s1600/71013" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lqqZbkd0kY4/Ud40xhCv6NE/AAAAAAAAD1Q/ZyCkBtRHQ6Q/s320/71013" width="320" /></a></div>
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Enjoy!!</div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-3985414149826665052013-06-24T21:41:00.000-07:002013-11-19T21:56:35.042-08:00Ginger's "Popstar" cake<div style="text-align: center;">
My daughter is a "Barbie Princess and the Popstar" nut! </div>
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For her 6th birthday I created this cake to go with her 'Popstar' party.</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TZSM8SkOcqQ/UckaPP7R9EI/AAAAAAAAD0M/5l8azM-t-6c/s1600/100_0881.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TZSM8SkOcqQ/UckaPP7R9EI/AAAAAAAAD0M/5l8azM-t-6c/s320/100_0881.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I got some ideas online and altered my version of the cake to go with the "Barbie Princess and the Popstar" colors. One of the things I found online that I liked was the idea of draping the cake stand with fake jewels. Easy & super cute! I didn't even have to purchase anything for it.. just used one of my daughter's play necklaces and it really dressed up the cake stand.</div>
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We went with chocolate on chocolate ... every 5/6 year old's favorite... right?!</div>
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Once the cakes cooled I did a buttercream crumb coat.</div>
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My new favorite recipe is marshmallow fondant! It's easy to make, easy to work with and it actually tastes good! I've never tried a fondant I liked before making this one and now I'll never go back! Some marshmallows, a couple of tablespoons of water in the microwave, add some powdered sugar and you've got a yummy fondant!</div>
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Being the amateur baker that I am... I've found the easiest way to cover imperfections in the edge/base of your cake is adding a cute border (small balls, ribbon/bows, etc...).</div>
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I cut a six out of pink fondant and used a star shaped cookie cutter to make the stars for the bottom tier. I wanted to incorporate Barbie into the cake but didn't feel confident in creating something out of fondant or buttercream so I printed out a color picture of Barbie and her 'Popstar' friend and used it as the cake topper.</div>
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The finishing touches were some music notes and "Ginger" written using black frosting. </div>
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And here is <strong><em>my</em></strong> little Popstar about to turn six years old!!</div>
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Happy 6th Birthday Gigi!!</div>
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<span id="goog_237710926"></span><span id="goog_237710927"></span><br />Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-40705684069825198762012-11-05T21:37:00.000-08:002013-11-19T21:57:09.611-08:00Woodinville Falcons Football Cake<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5aGAVY3CQ7Ni6-7dMWPpYizjkDBvLSeTeHBgXkNTAFYHhGX3VirDXTbxOFNzMXmQbziRl2-2YOtv0-V7vwi6knOHqtc44ZYva1hKSYZLXQGqSkolROOIbt2M93Wsv0QexEheazNqdPCjy/s1600/Falcon+Cake_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5aGAVY3CQ7Ni6-7dMWPpYizjkDBvLSeTeHBgXkNTAFYHhGX3VirDXTbxOFNzMXmQbziRl2-2YOtv0-V7vwi6knOHqtc44ZYva1hKSYZLXQGqSkolROOIbt2M93Wsv0QexEheazNqdPCjy/s320/Falcon+Cake_1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Well, it's that time of year again... time for football season to end. = (</div>
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I volunteered to make the cake for my son's "end of season football party" and ended up with the cake pictured above. I did a quarter sheet chocolate cake on the bottom with buttercream icing. Blue on the side, green 'grass' on the top using Wilton tip# 233, and a white shell border (blue, green and white are Woodinville colors). For the football, I used the Wilton football cake pan, did a vanilla cake, and covered it with marshmallow fondant. White fondant for the laces and a green fondant "W" (for Woodinville) which I outlined with white buttercream icing. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixAa1n5C73jk4Xht1tdznOtUb5M3rsT4Risq8Ugjc7QTnu3Kt1zfX7qVZwMv-stfN6DgihiDjAZT0BOhLJbkIooTrwkLusPtZBgnPsBEiq6rNAHPGxxPm2v8BNm4USsd1AEI3N0qoiO0po/s1600/Falcon+Cake_2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixAa1n5C73jk4Xht1tdznOtUb5M3rsT4Risq8Ugjc7QTnu3Kt1zfX7qVZwMv-stfN6DgihiDjAZT0BOhLJbkIooTrwkLusPtZBgnPsBEiq6rNAHPGxxPm2v8BNm4USsd1AEI3N0qoiO0po/s320/Falcon+Cake_2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I was happy with the result, but the best part was watching the team of twenty-one 10-13 year old boys huddle around the cake with their phones taking pictures. That was a great compliment! Until next year... </div>
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GO FALCONS!!</div>
Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-57891692649483662602012-10-13T20:13:00.001-07:002013-11-19T21:57:44.467-08:00Seattle Seahawks inspired birthday cake<div style="text-align: center;">
My friend Stacy decided to throw her boyfriend a surprise 40th Birthday party! He's very Seattle oriented and very into the Seahawks so we scoured the Internet for ideas and came up with this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrffOyEkJdnPOR3EVtX3TyeAV2kMktEHry6QG6hk-h-ayrMNWw_tcxzOHIsQTgFYYvDVSXpNtOnPx5fj-Gn8z5WQJPDAtiOfVJpgwKHKqsoGabZq3NX55ECvktO0i4m4o7-AUifH_FQ2Km/s1600/100_0522.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" nea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrffOyEkJdnPOR3EVtX3TyeAV2kMktEHry6QG6hk-h-ayrMNWw_tcxzOHIsQTgFYYvDVSXpNtOnPx5fj-Gn8z5WQJPDAtiOfVJpgwKHKqsoGabZq3NX55ECvktO0i4m4o7-AUifH_FQ2Km/s320/100_0522.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I started out with three 8-inch chocolate cakes for the base and two 6 inch chocolate cakes for the 2nd tier. Next I did a buttercream crumb coat to get it ready to cover with the fondant.</div>
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I ran into a small issue with the fondant on the bottom tier that I didn't notice until after the fact. It seemed you could see the shape of the layers/filling under the fondant. After some thought I think I rolled the fondant too thin for that layer. The last cake I made I barely had enough fondant to cover so I think I was overcompensating a little and in an effort to make sure the fondant would cover the cake I think I got it a little thin. I noticed that I didn't have this issue with the top tier (it was rolled a little thicker) so I'll need to be more careful next time.</div>
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We did dark blue & neon green stripes on the bottom tier (Seahawks colors of course).</div>
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Then for the top tier I did "Happy Birthday Donti" out of fondant. I used an exacto knife to cut out the letters.... much harder to do that than I was expecting. </div>
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Then on the sides & back of the top tier I did blue & green footballs.</div>
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I also did a blue fondant "4" and a green fondant "0" for the top of the cake, but they weren't hardened enough to put in the cake before Stacy picked it up (plus I wouldn't have wanted her to travel with them in the cake anyway... better to stick those in at the last minute). So at this point the cake is travel ready... hopefully she's able to use the "40" cake topper pieces. If so (and there's a picture) I will post that later.</div>
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So... lessons for this time around:</div>
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Fondant pieces: Yes, they can really take a LONG time to harden. If you want them hardened in time for your event... make them a few days in advance or use an additive like gum paste in your fondant (I've heard it makes the fondant harden much more quickly</div>
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Covering your cake: Although it's important to have enough fondant to cover your cake... it's also important to roll it thick enough to be a really nice/smooth surface.. watch your thickness!!</div>
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So, hopefully next time the cake will turn out even better!!</div>
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And P.S. ..... Happy 40th Birthday Donti !!</div>
Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-54058027834120625972012-07-22T11:56:00.000-07:002013-11-19T21:58:43.020-08:00Parisian themed Eiffel Tower cake!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
When my good friend asked me to make the cake for her bridal</div>
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shower I have to admit that I was a little terrified..... </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5W3MtZXvB3dlCez0fIjbRR5XOa_G6YgwF-sswEqiA4nRMWh7mY7G1bUUsMK846xLT0PvVvDnfbQvhwR-HKPw7m9uzTgEt3sy6QTS0mmG6eAh3NWxWGA6_nmLcP3Z7iq2n2PYgspj-2tML/s1600/Finished+Eiffel+Tower+cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5W3MtZXvB3dlCez0fIjbRR5XOa_G6YgwF-sswEqiA4nRMWh7mY7G1bUUsMK846xLT0PvVvDnfbQvhwR-HKPw7m9uzTgEt3sy6QTS0mmG6eAh3NWxWGA6_nmLcP3Z7iq2n2PYgspj-2tML/s320/Finished+Eiffel+Tower+cake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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A bridal shower is so special and the cake should be extra special too. I met with her sister to discuss the theme for the shower and see if I could come up with any ideas that would fit the theme (that I would feel comfortable making). The theme was Paris and the color was "Tiffany Blue"... so I started googling away for ideas. </div>
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The only cake ideas that I found (that I liked) all involved fondant... *sigh* I've never worked with fondant before. I've had fondant at weddings and always thought it was nasty... so why learn to work with something that tastes so gross?? I've always thought that the main reason for using fondant was to get that perfect looking cake and I've always tried to make sure my cakes tasted good/moist first and looking cute was the secondary priority. But if I'm going to attempt this cake for my friend then I should do fondant ... which means lots of research (and a couple of trial cakes).</div>
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The first trial cake I did was my daughter's birthday cake (the Ariel cake shown in an earlier blog post). I did two tiers, fondant to cover the layers and used buttercream to pipe the accents. I learned a lot doing that cake and thought, "I can do this!". Then a friend of mine suggested that I try marshmallow fondant since I'm not a fan of the <em>taste</em> of fondant. I found a recipe for marshmallow fondant and it turned out to be really easy and it tastes great. Super/sickly sweet, but good.... much better than the store bought fondant. The recipe I used can be found here: <a href="http://candy.about.com/od/fondantcandyrecipes/r/mm_fondant.htm">http://candy.about.com/od/fondantcandyrecipes/r/mm_fondant.htm</a></div>
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I found it easy to make and easy to tint... you just add your tint to the melted marshmallow before adding the powdered sugar... then you don't have to worry about it being uneven. So the next 'trial' cake was a simple two layer chocolate cake covered with marshmallow fondant (just to try out the recipe and try working with it). It was a hit... the kids (who don't like regular fondant) ate it up!</div>
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Next came the research (how to stick fondant accents to the fondant covered cake, etc..) and making the cake topper. From the ideas I found online for a Parisian themed cake a lot of them had Eiffel tower cake toppers. Not only did I not want to spend upwards of $30 on a cake topper, but the cutest one I saw was a hand made/craft item. It seemed easy enough.. so off to the store for supplies.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrcywI-3AkQ_ERQkYZNcpcTrNG7StvzuDkUitqj-uSIEk-s8plovWwNlCPROH7p5jrdGydgn-C_WQR_S9y-LGMvCEDx2MQRYQmrMJq45WvDLYswYvcumMblD-AklvuaJwVekiPfgpUORKp/s1600/2012-07-14_21-22-38_486.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrcywI-3AkQ_ERQkYZNcpcTrNG7StvzuDkUitqj-uSIEk-s8plovWwNlCPROH7p5jrdGydgn-C_WQR_S9y-LGMvCEDx2MQRYQmrMJq45WvDLYswYvcumMblD-AklvuaJwVekiPfgpUORKp/s320/2012-07-14_21-22-38_486.jpg" width="179" /></a></div>
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I got black scrapbooking paper, some Tiffany Blue ribbon to make bows and some stick on sparkly beads for 'bling'. Ben Franklin crafts was nice enough to give me an Eiffel Tower traceable cut-out, but it was smaller than I thought would look good on the cake. I took that cut-out to Kinko's and just made a couple of larger copies of it for tracing. After tracing the Eiffel Tower onto the black paper three times & cutting those out I just glued them together to make a stand up Eiffel Tower. Then I made the bows & added the bows & bling to the tower:<br />
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Now time for the cake. The research I did steered me towards using clear vanilla extract to adhere any fondant accents to the fondant covered cake, so I tried that. I worked well, the only thing I will do next time is hold the accents onto the side of the cake a little bit longer to make sure they don't slide.</div>
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Here are some of the things I learned while doing this cake:</div>
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It's always better to make extra fondant. I was trying to be conservative and barely had enough Tiffany Blue to cover the cakes. It would have been better to have made more so covering was easier.</div>
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Accents that you would like hardened (to hold their shape... like bows) are best if made as early as possible (even the night before).</div>
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Buttercream works well to adhere things in tough areas (like the fondant balls around the base of the cake)</div>
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Measure, measure, measure... when the cake is 4 inches on the side and 10 inches across... you really do need your fondant circle at least 18 inches wide if you want it to reach the bottom of your cake! LOL</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyekI-iXgb7LdImQ1ZvdpPafoy-7oXSBXYqPlWOGzUfOq_hHSFTEyFjQmnB8SeKNwegP349I1lXn-iwMUPxCfyj6Xfr4Z_UQmy1yXX_T_XnQWvnDJb8BEPNQrJHUOFsQZybWRHZBKMcFKr/s1600/Finished+Eiffel+Tower+cake_close.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" hda="true" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyekI-iXgb7LdImQ1ZvdpPafoy-7oXSBXYqPlWOGzUfOq_hHSFTEyFjQmnB8SeKNwegP349I1lXn-iwMUPxCfyj6Xfr4Z_UQmy1yXX_T_XnQWvnDJb8BEPNQrJHUOFsQZybWRHZBKMcFKr/s320/Finished+Eiffel+Tower+cake_close.jpg" width="179" /></a></div>
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I feel more comfortable/confident working with fondant now... I will not be making this my new specialty by any means .. it's super time consuming (at least for this beginner)... but I will not be scared to try it again if the cake design calls for it!</div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-29554884007419387972012-07-07T19:49:00.001-07:002013-11-19T22:00:02.447-08:00The Little Mermaid!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnNne8V0rd9t7-WGan4Nth7UwykjbyGwPHim4wLWRYU0hNJpbn2bZi85ANg_ysdTbkd-jjIFoEwKZNPx9cjYi2hT3EvrXzvQovEQNLBD_wGlmAn0jO8uIBDaTFc7h2sUU-VjTlO7wzRsiP/s1600/Ariel+cake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" sca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnNne8V0rd9t7-WGan4Nth7UwykjbyGwPHim4wLWRYU0hNJpbn2bZi85ANg_ysdTbkd-jjIFoEwKZNPx9cjYi2hT3EvrXzvQovEQNLBD_wGlmAn0jO8uIBDaTFc7h2sUU-VjTlO7wzRsiP/s320/Ariel+cake.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I found some very cool cake ideas online (thanks to Google) and picked out an 'Ariel underseas' type of design for my daughter's 5th Birthday party. From the images I saw it looked like the cake was iced in a light blue tinted buttercream, but having never worked with fondant I thought I would give it a shot.<br />
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I started with my cakes... two 8 inch round chocolate cakes and two 6 inch round vanilla cakes. I put a vanilla custard filling in between the layers of the chocolate cakes, frosted them with buttercream and covered them with the light blue fondant. Then I repeated these steps with the vanilla cakes. I didn't dowel the cakes at all because I'm not transporting this cake, but if you plan to transport yours I would highly recommend putting some wooden or plastic dowels in.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ZM1pqRrBlgpWBKFlrPDwRQo-hy3ki-iazZoNhxUlfaZ15IoY98r1pxGSyRZe9VJ6wA6x7r6hncFbTQ77hKGjk_SHat4vxMAfN7cibUz8TRNYWabUSVNy7KiRU2eC7HKX1YkyMcTTuxIx/s1600/2012-07-07_16-58-29_14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" sca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4ZM1pqRrBlgpWBKFlrPDwRQo-hy3ki-iazZoNhxUlfaZ15IoY98r1pxGSyRZe9VJ6wA6x7r6hncFbTQ77hKGjk_SHat4vxMAfN7cibUz8TRNYWabUSVNy7KiRU2eC7HKX1YkyMcTTuxIx/s320/2012-07-07_16-58-29_14.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I learned some lessons on this cake:</div>
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Watch your cake trimming... LOL. When you're hoping to have the bottom cakes a little bit larger than the top layers don't trim the heck out of them!</div>
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When working the fondant before rolling it out... keep kneading it... I tend to get impatient, but mine could have been worked a little bit longer. It probably would have rolled a tiny bit easier.</div>
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When trimming the fondant... go easy. You can always take more off the bottom, but you can't add it back on.</div>
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Shorter nails make working with the fondant easier. Mine are getting a little long right now and I was constantly worried that I would leave little half moon indents into the fondant.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj929FzQhpAIsHzEvv0zjahYpZF2kH8osyDwu4scb6lt0_vM-RHwiFWD4SDJ52vvBsQp0ZQl5aVQ2-cJr2PJl29-9FSWMEt_347aOIOYcfu0wdyvr84-MpzESylHGvtqtuP4hOiSfOJgGwZ/s1600/2012-07-07_18-05-09_461.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" sca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj929FzQhpAIsHzEvv0zjahYpZF2kH8osyDwu4scb6lt0_vM-RHwiFWD4SDJ52vvBsQp0ZQl5aVQ2-cJr2PJl29-9FSWMEt_347aOIOYcfu0wdyvr84-MpzESylHGvtqtuP4hOiSfOJgGwZ/s320/2012-07-07_18-05-09_461.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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The next steps were adding the ocean accents using tinted buttercream. I used Wilton tip 352 to make the seaweed and the awesome part of using buttercream accents.... it allowed me to cover up any imperfections in the fondant. I had to small tears in the fondant that I didn't have any luck trying to fix so I covered them up with the seaweed! Woot woot!<br />
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And the finished product:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFezMF3FsKYgMaCN-VET61OtL8vtJFDizpl3zzfWKlB-Ghbv-ADJErrPunQy4tEbrM8ZkPEduMc0lAL18zExRtUIsiOlh9XGBIGFWAoRUfYW2h4qHhznyqr5XZtGenNBecAu_ENbuPuRxl/s1600/2012-07-07_18-24-15_176.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" sca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFezMF3FsKYgMaCN-VET61OtL8vtJFDizpl3zzfWKlB-Ghbv-ADJErrPunQy4tEbrM8ZkPEduMc0lAL18zExRtUIsiOlh9XGBIGFWAoRUfYW2h4qHhznyqr5XZtGenNBecAu_ENbuPuRxl/s320/2012-07-07_18-24-15_176.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I hope my daughter enjoys her Ariel undersea adventure cake as much as I enjoyed making it for her!!<br />
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-32889939075130351932012-04-10T21:10:00.000-07:002013-11-19T22:00:34.572-08:00Easter Basket CupcakesMy latest project.... Easter basket cupcakes. I scoured the Internet for ideas and decided on two different cupcakes... a rustic, fun basket with a candy handle ....<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinFFsl4K3oQLA5R3CLyywH6ZUPjf8C0H_0jq0yUCOUzJ6W8OK4CKbqSu4bGN1D62dobnyThyphenhyphenfGBgZcCxiqrkUyQ6JXBq78h8MuApY1EyfKslR0DHLESn9bTJuiE2kk3MBuGqwP9Kuz-fGm/s1600/2012-04-08_10-25-57_455.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" qda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinFFsl4K3oQLA5R3CLyywH6ZUPjf8C0H_0jq0yUCOUzJ6W8OK4CKbqSu4bGN1D62dobnyThyphenhyphenfGBgZcCxiqrkUyQ6JXBq78h8MuApY1EyfKslR0DHLESn9bTJuiE2kk3MBuGqwP9Kuz-fGm/s320/2012-04-08_10-25-57_455.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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and a quicker, easier, pre-made basket cupcake wrapper.....<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUg-y1RMoufspSHT5KdB50TrR0Ajv4CT-3VPPHmpb0nxVolGB4tg30x8HB0z7mfrtsMpJnZpdRjs3xB1QLYZMNiVFIs01fZ75RssRnIVRlI9deBMbzP7ewPuRn07Sb9a75VZ5vjTUX6zNv/s1600/2012-04-08_10-24-57_61.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" qda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUg-y1RMoufspSHT5KdB50TrR0Ajv4CT-3VPPHmpb0nxVolGB4tg30x8HB0z7mfrtsMpJnZpdRjs3xB1QLYZMNiVFIs01fZ75RssRnIVRlI9deBMbzP7ewPuRn07Sb9a75VZ5vjTUX6zNv/s320/2012-04-08_10-24-57_61.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Although I do like how each style of cupcake turned out, I have to say that I'm a big fan of the pre-made cupcake wrappers! They're fun, fairly inexpensive and could easily be re-used. I got these ones at Michael's craft store and they were very easy to put together and made my cupcake look cute!<br />
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To make these I cheated a bit.... Betty Crocker French Vanilla cake mix... followed all the instructions and baked about 18 cupcakes (I like bigger cupcakes). Then I used Wilton's boxed buttercream frosting. I do make my own buttercream most of the time, but sometimes find the Wilton boxed buttercream to be a little firmer/easier to work with. I added green tint to the frosting and used tip # 233 to make the grass. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQdX4KyE6unuCCfWVKC-CSG8zbEuXTdI5cNVG-iEQ8wjWHDH7npVbq6CB59fHHuiaPEPFKDVffcDRDdKORc7NQxASUUU80GFi8fyYJ6KNWbiXCThmBZGag0sdoeUuqixrxV0sBDZZfnKCN/s1600/2012-04-08_10-25-44_798.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" qda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQdX4KyE6unuCCfWVKC-CSG8zbEuXTdI5cNVG-iEQ8wjWHDH7npVbq6CB59fHHuiaPEPFKDVffcDRDdKORc7NQxASUUU80GFi8fyYJ6KNWbiXCThmBZGag0sdoeUuqixrxV0sBDZZfnKCN/s320/2012-04-08_10-25-44_798.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Then it's as easy as adding some jelly bean eggs and dropping the cupcake gently into the basket wrapper!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlaaswZOFhEMFBgkO8144unvAqi-94s_OuOw7q82xHPRZj17l_ENLunXCQ1NjDF9ltX34FZtM4yc3DcoXnb7R8owhRyn833SU-cca83TYhfHFpqmFUpFBDPBHkgit5Fzmkyzo5m3FiMNGS/s1600/2012-04-08_10-45-04_78.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" qda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlaaswZOFhEMFBgkO8144unvAqi-94s_OuOw7q82xHPRZj17l_ENLunXCQ1NjDF9ltX34FZtM4yc3DcoXnb7R8owhRyn833SU-cca83TYhfHFpqmFUpFBDPBHkgit5Fzmkyzo5m3FiMNGS/s320/2012-04-08_10-45-04_78.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-89091125597214752582012-04-09T22:09:00.001-07:002013-11-19T22:00:59.141-08:00My Mom's Jell-O Eggs<div style="text-align: center;">
I just wanted to share my Mom's Jell-O Eggs with you. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOAYTyKtXYn2ioqZ2aUMQt3u_gJ_z-8qNK5M_5FzCwycGzZ6jy7Q91hmL8Jc3rZ_vNqVyc2QK3XpCoQYl2LIFAuiMNuLQOM9N3Az6HgbIre4tV8AYV5Dq3yZjlDnPW0nfXr2vVEnf53hf/s1600/2012-04-08_16-26-11_470.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJOAYTyKtXYn2ioqZ2aUMQt3u_gJ_z-8qNK5M_5FzCwycGzZ6jy7Q91hmL8Jc3rZ_vNqVyc2QK3XpCoQYl2LIFAuiMNuLQOM9N3Az6HgbIre4tV8AYV5Dq3yZjlDnPW0nfXr2vVEnf53hf/s320/2012-04-08_16-26-11_470.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This is a long standing tradition in my family. My Mom made Jell-O Eggs for as long as I can remember... definitely before they had fancy Jell-O egg molds! It takes planning to do it this way... it means scrambled eggs for a week or two before Easter, but the end result is well worth it! <br />
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Ingredients:<br />
8-12 emptied egg shells<br />
1 large box green Jell-O<br />
1 small box of each other colors of Jell-O that you'd like for your 'eggs' (I use raspberry for the red, grape, 'berry blue', lemon & orange)<br />
1 tub Cool Whip<br />
1 Basket to display your Jell-O Eggs<br />
Saran/plastic wrap<br />
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You start by taking your egg(s) and tapping the top with a sharp knife until you have tiny hole. Once I have a tiny hole I stick the tip of my knife in the hole and 'pop out' a small piece of egg shell. From there it becomes easier to pick little bits of shell away (either with your knife tip or finger nail) until you have a small hole about the size of a dime (maybe just a tad smaller). Then you shake your egg until it all shakes out of the shell (I usually do this into a little bowl so I can make sure there are no bits of eggshell in there) and you have eggs to scramble or add to pancake or cake batter. I do this for a good week/week & a half before Easter until I have 8-12 empty eggshells (be sure to rinse them very well and let them dry prior to Jell-O time). <br />
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You should plan to do most of the Jell-O prep the night before and the first thing I do is prep my basket. This means taking two sheets of plastic wrap, placing them in the basket, pushing down to form it into the basket, and then using a knife tip (or toothpick) to push the saran wrap into the little holes/cracks in the wicker of the basket (just to make it less obvious). Next comes the Jell-O. I get a big pot of water boiling and just keep it going while I do the Jell-O, makes it easier to just dip the measuring cup in & get water each time. For the green Jell-O, I make it in one big bowl and set it aside to refrigerate later. For all the other colors I have my emptied egg shells lined up in the egg carton (hole-side up), I make the Jell-O, and the using a funnel I slowly pour the Jell-O into approximately 2-3 eggs per color. The rest of the unused Jell-O can be put into little tupperwares for individual desserts. Once you have the egg shells filled with the various colors of Jell-O you refrigerate overnight.<br />
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Once you're ready to serve your Jell-O Egg dessert you'll need to assemble it. This can take up to 15-20 minutes depending on how quickly the egg peeling goes, so sometimes I peel the eggs the morning I plan to serve the dessert (they can be gently placed in a tupperware and stored in the fridge until you're ready to assemble). For assembly: You mix a half cup to a cup of Cool Whip (I just eyeball it) into your green Jell-O (mix this well so you have little chunks of green). Pour this mixture into your basket and you have the 'grass'. Next you peel each egg (this must be done fairly carefully so you get as much of the 'egg' intact as possible). Gently place each Jell-O egg in the grass and you have a beautiful (and yummy) finished product that everyone will love.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5T5-ORyYlSvBUDPFdozxonQ8czv5q0UXskQh4j8clPPvqqiyVTpAqJ_KhzUmpu8Hkd9cZxyACOWF5_rWXxrogvVrW57n9uU6k-G2tLRwe6Axz_rAiedwVAHWSUiTpEuwNOE40ZN-k0Iww/s1600/2012-04-08_16-26-31_312.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" nda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5T5-ORyYlSvBUDPFdozxonQ8czv5q0UXskQh4j8clPPvqqiyVTpAqJ_KhzUmpu8Hkd9cZxyACOWF5_rWXxrogvVrW57n9uU6k-G2tLRwe6Axz_rAiedwVAHWSUiTpEuwNOE40ZN-k0Iww/s320/2012-04-08_16-26-31_312.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Side note: I have tried the plastic Jell-O egg molds and find that they often don't work well. Most of the time my eggs split in half when I attempt to open the container. I've tried several tricks including running the mold under warm water prior to opening it and I always get the same result. Plus, for me.... using real egg shells brings back fond memories of holidays with my Mom. I always had to eat scrambled eggs for weeks before Easter and always 'oohed & ahhed' when she finished with the Jell-O eggs. Now, to keep that tradition going with my children is priceless. Enjoy.Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-14176754238865846762012-02-24T18:05:00.000-08:002013-11-19T22:01:41.210-08:00Coffee Cup Cake BitesMy Father-in-Law is celebrating his 80th birthday and since he's such a coffee fiend, my Mother-in-Law is throwing him a coffee themed open house style party so all his friends can stop by & help him celebrate. She's planning on having finger foods and lots of cookies/desserts ... the coffee theme idea really had me intrigued... what can I make to go with the coffee theme?!? I'm so into cake pops & bites right now that I decided to see if I could do something along those lines and came up with this: <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNeG83Zx6y8dgUVi-zXbuuVgRd5TR_Wt2K2WY3woKaMgXIWhTnAiPlI1bqEaO39eFsXuNevL-3KYPnFxyT9DCA2gLGyFNXYJHGm7DgcHZR-oDSn8r-0xFJkuEaTrJj3IvJ6O7uHPNzNZHk/s1600/2012-02-24_12-18-59_28.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" lda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNeG83Zx6y8dgUVi-zXbuuVgRd5TR_Wt2K2WY3woKaMgXIWhTnAiPlI1bqEaO39eFsXuNevL-3KYPnFxyT9DCA2gLGyFNXYJHGm7DgcHZR-oDSn8r-0xFJkuEaTrJj3IvJ6O7uHPNzNZHk/s320/2012-02-24_12-18-59_28.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I made cake balls just like you would make for any regular cake pop, but I put them in the freezer for about 10-15 minutes (this makes them easier to shape into other shapes besides round balls). Once the cake balls had firmed up I took them out and began shaping them into cylinder shapes (they looked kind of like beige marshmallows). </div>
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I took pretzels (tiny twists) and cut them so I could use only the rounded sections. I placed one rounded pretzel piece into each cake cylinder to create the handle of the coffee mug:</div>
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I used a popsicle stick to dip the coffee mugs into melted white candy chips, used a toothpick to help get the excess candy coating off of the mugs, and then using the toothpick (pushing down on the top of the coffee mug) I gently pushed it off the popsicle stick onto wax paper to finish setting up.</div>
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I attempted to use special cookie/candy gel (black) to make the coffee in the top of the mug but the color didn't turn out right so I ended up using melted chocolate.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheem08ctZO-c4leONPreg4-YJWlrOU-LQBlK-hKZwxEHELM8sMsB-FVyRnSb5KEK2s4sz6mK0uABb7srA4jGBziO6mYnW8ECqdJt1UJfGBj0yTYJFrWSznP2LdM5WWP0ctiOWXCW3be4q_/s1600/2012-02-24_17-26-31_361.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" lda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheem08ctZO-c4leONPreg4-YJWlrOU-LQBlK-hKZwxEHELM8sMsB-FVyRnSb5KEK2s4sz6mK0uABb7srA4jGBziO6mYnW8ECqdJt1UJfGBj0yTYJFrWSznP2LdM5WWP0ctiOWXCW3be4q_/s320/2012-02-24_17-26-31_361.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I had previously purchased a cheap candy writer at Michael's for writing on cake pops and found when trying to do the baby shower cake pops that it didn't work very well. I did some research online and discovered that 'Gourmet Writers' was one of the most highly rated edible writing products so I found some on Amazon and after this project I HIGHLY recommend them:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyphenhyphenQ-fBN01agXVbGSXyq8oLtN2lho6NrWmi1haGOEetKwbBR5icpwwVWDQPfNYeY9IxKR3oJoAkbe0ODAqXCEOUNhAzrrJUk-n9tZk6nuITUk2DTWKAsKhRe6QFWVnRTm1DemeVRFzmmyv/s1600/2012-02-24_17-17-43_528.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" lda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhyphenhyphenQ-fBN01agXVbGSXyq8oLtN2lho6NrWmi1haGOEetKwbBR5icpwwVWDQPfNYeY9IxKR3oJoAkbe0ODAqXCEOUNhAzrrJUk-n9tZk6nuITUk2DTWKAsKhRe6QFWVnRTm1DemeVRFzmmyv/s320/2012-02-24_17-17-43_528.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEcSQRyLV3Rkgqwy8J30qGXGFvlPffC1Z1OlcuL7yErLLFMGhGaHfjDgWBw3yJyEvctDGbNKoA5XBChlWX2-qnSxohssV2KjprOiGh4bX2sZD9vETEUx0HtA7PaktNG1MKsA2wiiDPVnoq/s1600/2012-02-24_17-18-08_437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" lda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEcSQRyLV3Rkgqwy8J30qGXGFvlPffC1Z1OlcuL7yErLLFMGhGaHfjDgWBw3yJyEvctDGbNKoA5XBChlWX2-qnSxohssV2KjprOiGh4bX2sZD9vETEUx0HtA7PaktNG1MKsA2wiiDPVnoq/s320/2012-02-24_17-18-08_437.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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What a fun project this has been! I hope that all of my Father-in-law's friends enjoy the coffee cup cake bites! I can't wait for the next opportunity to make cake bites!!</div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-56806232284168406452012-02-18T18:15:00.000-08:002013-11-19T22:03:28.955-08:00Cupcake Bites!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a alt="Cupcake Bites" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe9cY0QAdffaS17bgPgs9e4JF12J3SD2fF2uHsspJiLsYZ7IQk59LVYt11rrsSuDLtupBE-sYGvG7eWserLXVmO8va218zeESCr7IyUTqZ9LXniTd4Syxes6jwWxDRnsqVxWHOoDIrQmKN/s1600/2012-02-18_17-36-57_162.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe9cY0QAdffaS17bgPgs9e4JF12J3SD2fF2uHsspJiLsYZ7IQk59LVYt11rrsSuDLtupBE-sYGvG7eWserLXVmO8va218zeESCr7IyUTqZ9LXniTd4Syxes6jwWxDRnsqVxWHOoDIrQmKN/s320/2012-02-18_17-36-57_162.jpg" width="320" yda="true" /></a></div>
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I tried making Cupcake Bites for the first time tonight... very fun! I think I either need a larger candy mold or I need to make smaller cake balls though. Here are some pics from tonight:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSZANa7GMbzytnq6Mv0G93Jf4heRqTu64K247V4yQVJtmMyyWZ6G-MUWcBPjoVQSq54hm4lGJQxhAOE3Grqlyb_Cg9Jwcuxxb3lyVzkbFvWdSjhiosGj_Y6dBXngI10b0tdKjYgWrcyh-6/s1600/2012-02-18_15-55-22_26.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSZANa7GMbzytnq6Mv0G93Jf4heRqTu64K247V4yQVJtmMyyWZ6G-MUWcBPjoVQSq54hm4lGJQxhAOE3Grqlyb_Cg9Jwcuxxb3lyVzkbFvWdSjhiosGj_Y6dBXngI10b0tdKjYgWrcyh-6/s320/2012-02-18_15-55-22_26.jpg" width="320" yda="true" /></a></div>
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<br />Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-46229241261891163252012-02-11T15:40:00.000-08:002013-11-19T22:04:35.526-08:00Previous cakes & cupcakesHere are some of my previous cakes & cupcakes:<br />
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This was a Tinkerbell cake I made for my daughter's 3rd birthday<br />
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This is the start of a bridal shower cake I did for my friend who got married in Vegas...<br />
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This was the final product of the Vegas bridal shower cake:</div>
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The next three pictures are a cake I made for my son's 'end of season' baseball party:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoFpyqnRqYUygf3d8evSwTxwK_ZJVRlo-F5D_QrqSc8cbdpAxKLSpoUQntzu5Lvk_65PlusM49XJNl8LpmyjduFqq8hhYKdKoH7aU_GJkeaiv5FtUhx0BPVvzj3EyoVnjncLawOtzD3lSP/s1600/Baseball+field.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoFpyqnRqYUygf3d8evSwTxwK_ZJVRlo-F5D_QrqSc8cbdpAxKLSpoUQntzu5Lvk_65PlusM49XJNl8LpmyjduFqq8hhYKdKoH7aU_GJkeaiv5FtUhx0BPVvzj3EyoVnjncLawOtzD3lSP/s320/Baseball+field.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This cupcake was also part of an 'end of season' baseball party. I incorporated little chocolate baseballs and did green grass frosting... I thought they turned out pretty well.</div>
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This was a GI Joe birthday cake for my son's 8th birthday:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRzJyuZQJQrkmOv3QiMhD5O3fZelZKQMqOn3HpBGkZTUJnM6ueZ70E-BvAx3AVZDwZAPFltVog5LUyzqQBeMwXdqpDnuKc2nJNlHxbgxoAlrshVqppzQfCkUcVajrHzjDrttaIGqx_R1-M/s1600/GI+Joe.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRzJyuZQJQrkmOv3QiMhD5O3fZelZKQMqOn3HpBGkZTUJnM6ueZ70E-BvAx3AVZDwZAPFltVog5LUyzqQBeMwXdqpDnuKc2nJNlHxbgxoAlrshVqppzQfCkUcVajrHzjDrttaIGqx_R1-M/s320/GI+Joe.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This was for my daughter's first birthday:</div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3409278627403522810.post-75977763261900077742012-02-11T12:19:00.001-08:002013-11-19T22:05:09.701-08:00Christmas Cake Pops<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I am so grateful to Bakerella for creating cake pops! If you don't own her book ("Cake Pops"), you should get it. She also has a website: <a href="http://www.bakerella.com/">http://www.bakerella.com/</a> and in my opinion is a creative genius!<br />
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Since receiving her book as a Christmas gift (thank you Honey!!) I've had so much fun trying to recreate some of her wonderful treats!<br />
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These are the Snowman cake pops I made at Christmas time. My mother-in-law loves snowmen, so I thought this would be a fun treat to share with her.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIq8WaXdu0-P2iqz1K7j_7UovpknWw4xFMKlnRe8vRkSx-IlmPEwEjK3wz-HZ9QdCbpagAPn4ZxsvZAtXOES9f6Y6prh8PeADcZZSYTBR8q2-s3T1E_N4ArmHAyt1DNw3a1DqK0IcGLL4E/s1600/2011-12-19_22-18-13_301.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIq8WaXdu0-P2iqz1K7j_7UovpknWw4xFMKlnRe8vRkSx-IlmPEwEjK3wz-HZ9QdCbpagAPn4ZxsvZAtXOES9f6Y6prh8PeADcZZSYTBR8q2-s3T1E_N4ArmHAyt1DNw3a1DqK0IcGLL4E/s320/2011-12-19_22-18-13_301.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I found this cute little basket that looks like a top hat at Michael's craft store and thought it would make a perfect way to display the cake pops. I placed a piece of styrofoam in the bottom of the basket, added some green gift bag grass and stuck the cake pops in!<br />
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This was my first attempt at making a cake pop. I wanted something super cute for our Christmas cookie/treat exchange and decided on Christmas tree cake pops. The candy coating ended up being a little thick for my taste, but not too bad for a first try! <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBPwcQNBNndjroQGzSYQZHL7nr0oXpDlFE4LfzkbobRSxQpFGHdRxOfIqPkw3-g5RX44NcQ8Ual-WINhts5at_I1FJThjc1BqMatYZD4BQVt0mOj6-eYqxqdZiOyni_LpNTFjfepivc-Ed/s1600/2011-12-10_20-09-52_437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" sda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBPwcQNBNndjroQGzSYQZHL7nr0oXpDlFE4LfzkbobRSxQpFGHdRxOfIqPkw3-g5RX44NcQ8Ual-WINhts5at_I1FJThjc1BqMatYZD4BQVt0mOj6-eYqxqdZiOyni_LpNTFjfepivc-Ed/s320/2011-12-10_20-09-52_437.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Tanya Milbrodthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03212835436292127641noreply@blogger.com0