Madeleine's 1st Birthday

My youngest daughter, Madeleine, turned one at the end of May.  How that's possible, I have no idea.  It doesn't seem possible that she could be a year old and now she's almost 14 months old and I still have a hard time saying she's a toddler and not a baby!

For her first birthday, we planned a "cute as a button" celebration.  Since we all know that 1st birthday parties are really for the parents anyway since one year olds don't really care what they do, I came up with this one early on.  I found a button cake on Pinterest a long time ago -- probably sometime while I was pregnant with my first baby.  I filed it away and thought nothing more of it until I was pregnant with Madeleine.  Then I thought about using it for a baby shower but didn't have an opportunity to throw one and then I decided it would make a great theme for a birthday party as well.

The cakes are both traditional vanilla birthday cake - you can find the recipe on this post, but it's a slightly adapted recipe from the Magnolia Bakery cookbook.

This was a pretty light theme, we had cute as a button cookies, a button cake, and a few decorations but we also just had a great summer birthday party and let the kids play outside and tried not to go overboard on decorations and such.

For the main button cake, I covered it in homemade marshmallow fondant, and then made little button cutouts out of pink and yellow fondant to decorate the cake and add to the sugar cookies as well.  Marshmallow fondant is really easy to make and simple to work with.  You can find my recipe as well as some tips on this post.   If you want another example, check out this post from Aubrey's 2nd birthday party for a look at her Sesame Street cake.

For food, we did a self-serve burger bar and grilled up beef and turkey burgers and offered tons of choices for condiments.  We had the standard ketchup, mustard, pickles, and cheese but also offered more fun toppings like chipotle mayo, sriracha sauce, jalepenos and banana peppers, grilled pineapple, and crispy bacon.

We had a variety of chips and dips - a hot and spicy corn dip, hummus and crackers, and guacamole, because we don't have parties without guacamole.  We had a vegetable platter and fruit salad as well.

For desserts, we had cookies and cake and homemade vanilla ice cream.  The cookies are my normal sugar cookie recipe - these are so easy to make and you can make the cookie dough ahead of time and freeze it to save time for the party.  You can also bake the cookies in advance and freeze if you prefer but I would recommend waiting to frost and decorate until closer to party time.  I always like to do mine within a day or two of the party and then store between layers of parchment paper once the royal icing is completely dry (overnight) in an airtight container.   You can find the recipe in this post.

Of course, I made Madeleine her own smash cake.  She had some fun getting into the icing and cake but wanted nothing to do with the cold ice cream.  A few weeks later she tried it again though and decided it was pretty good stuff so rest assured, she's a normal kid!  For the smash cake, fondant isn't really practical.  It's too hard for the little ones to get through so I always stick with a simple buttercream icing.  I also tend to put it on pretty thin so it's not quite as gooey for them.  Also make sure you don't decorate with anything that could be a choking hazard.  I used the large thin candy wafers on this one.  They basically dissolve in your mouth and break up really easily.

Thumbs up for cake!  

Happy birthday baby girl - I can't believe you're already a toddler.  The first year was so much fun and the days just keep getting better.  You and your sister are the best of friends and you are the sweetest little girl.  I'm so thankful everyday to be blessed with two beautiful, happy, healthy baby girls.  I love you with all my heart sweet birthday girl!

Blueberry Lemon Yogurt Cake

If you've been on Pinterest lately you may have seen a post for strawberry yogurt cake.  I came across it one day and thought it looked fantastic so I repinned it.  Of course, I didn't bother to go to the actual link right then - I hate when I do that - so I didn't realize the pin was no good and went nowhere.  Well when I went back to make it and realized this, I did a little searching and put together a couple of different recipes to make up this one.

I made two different varieties, blueberry and strawberry and added lemon to both.  I also decided to bake this as a loaf cake instead of a bundt cake like the inspiration.  This recipe will make one 8x4" loaf or 2 smaller loaf cakes.  You could also convert this to muffins if you prefer and get 12-15 muffins, make sure to adjust the baking time, I would suggest about 20 minutes.  If you want to do both flavors, bake it in smaller pans or double the recipe, that's what I did to yield this much cake.

A couple of key tips - don't skip the lemon syrup step.  This really makes the lemon flavor soak in and makes a great crust for the cake.  Also make sure to let the cake cool completely before adding the glaze or it will just melt right in.  You can use fresh or frozen fruit in this recipe.  I used fresh because it was on sale and looked good at the store.  If you want to use frozen, use frozen blueberries straight from the freezer.  If you are using strawberries, I like to put mine in a strainer over a large bowl and let the water drain out of them first so they don't make your cake too wet.

Blueberry (or Strawberry) Lemon Yogurt Cake
Recipe adapted from several sources

Cake:
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
Zest of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups blueberries or strawberries (roughly chopped)

Syrup:
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
Approximately 2 T lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray loaf pan(s) with baking spray or butter and flour.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla extract, and oil until well combined.  Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt until thoroughly incorporated.  Finally gently fold in blueberries or strawberries.  Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for approximately 50 minutes to one hour until top is golden brown and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool approximately 10 minutes in pan and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Set wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet before adding syrup and glaze.  While the cake begins to cool, make the lemon syrup.  Combine sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir continuously until dissolved, cook about 2-3 more minutes until it begins to thicken slightly.  Use a toothpick or skewer to poke holes in the top of the cake.  You don't want the cake to be right out of the oven at this point, but it should still be warm.  Using a pastry brush or large spoon, brush/ladle syrup over the cake.  Let the syrup soak in and then brush one more time.  Let the cake cool completely.

Prepare the glaze by adding the powdered sugar to a mixing bowl.  Whisk in a small amount of the lemon juice, add more lemon juice until the glaze reaches the consistency of a thick caramel sauce.  You want it pourable but not thin.  Pour/drizzle the glaze over the cake and let it harden for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Aubrey's Elmo Birthday Party

My daughter Aubrey turned two in February.  I still can't believe I have a two year old.  She's grown up so much and changed so fast in these past few months.  Her vocabulary has exploded and she's becoming a little parrot.

Although it took her a while to start saying a lot of the words she knew, one that she's had down for a long long time is "Elmo".  The red furry monster is definitely a favorite for her.  Although Sesame Street is now vying for the top TV request with "the Mouse" I think it's safe to say Elmo will be a favorite for a while.  When it came time to think about a theme for Aubrey's second birthday, there was no question that Elmo and friends would be perfect.

I started with an invitation that my sister, Nikki of Doodle Dog Advertising designed for me.  From there Pinterest and Party City helped me out with a few ideas.  My friend Sarah of Sarah's Shirts made Aubrey's adorable Elmo shirt.  I just love how it turned out and it's one of her favorites in her closet.

Elmo invitations from Doodle Dog Advertising

Aubrey was in awe when she came downstairs the morning of the party to see that Elmo was everywhere.  We had hung a great big mural of Sesame Street characters on the wall and Aubrey loved them.  I made Elmo and Cookie Monster cookies that she loved, all we heard was "cookie pleeeeease mama."  I haven't worked with fondant in a long time and need to practice a bit more, I ran out of time towards the end on the cake but I think it turned out pretty cute although I would have done a few things differently next time.  The fruit and vegetable trays were one of my favorite ideas I found on Pinterest, they turned out so cute!  We made thank you bags for the kiddos... I just picked up some small red paper bags and filled them with some Sesame Street bubbles, a character medal, some Elmo tattoos, a Memory game, and some candy.  I printed out thank you labels on the Sesame Street sign and folded them over the tops of the bags to close them.

Elmo and Cookie Monster Cookies

Sugar cookie recipes can be found here - I used royal icing to decorate these in layers.  I drew the eyeballs on with an edible marker.  Although they take a bit of time, I love decorating cookies with royal icing.

Sesame Street Cake

I baked this cake, it's one of my favorites as it's a very traditional yellow cake recipe.  I think it's perfect for a kid's party, nothing fancy but it's delicious and it stays so moist.  I brush the layers with a simple syrup before frosting to lock in moisture and use vanilla bean paste instead of extract to add even more flavor.  I filled it with a simple vanilla buttercream and used the same to crumb coat and frost the outside before covering it with fondant.  The fondant is homemade marshmallow fondant, see this post for the recipe and tips.  While it's a little more work, it tastes so much better than the storebought kind.

Oscar and Elmo vegetable and fruit platters

 Oscar is made crispy kale chips, black olives for a mouth, carrots for a nose, and sliced portabello mushrooms for eyebrows.  Some garlic hummus in small plastic cups make up his eyes.  Elmo's face is made up of sliced strawberries.  Sliced purple grapes make his wide mouth and peeled orange slices are his nose.  His eyes are cups filled with marshmallow cream cheese fruit dip.

Opening presents - she had so much fun with it this year!

Pin the Nose on Elmo - stickers are lots of fun for Aubrey and her best buddy Hannah

Aubrey and Madeleine loved the huge "scene setter" I picked up from Party City.  It's actually about 5' by 5' or something huge so it was fun for the girls to see the great big characters in their living room.  Definitely worth the $6 price tag at Party City - I can't believe how nice this was for the cheap price tag.

We had so much fun celebrating with so many friends and family members.  Thank you so much to all of you who came to celebrate my baby girl turning two!

Happy birthday Aubrey!  I can't believe how much you have grown and changed over the past two years.  You continue to amaze me every day with how much goes through your curious little mind.  You are constantly learning and sharing new things.  While these past two years have flown by, it also seems like you've been a part of my life forever.  I love you little girl!

Eggnog Crumb Cake

Have some leftover eggnog from Christmas in your fridge?  Forget about spiked drinks, make this cake.  You didn't really want to start that January diet yet anyway.  And you can't just throw it away, it's eggnog.  Despite a few individual pieces, this cake comes together very quickly and easily.  Don't skip the crumb topping - it gives it that NY-style coffee cake topping.  I don't know about you, but I always fight for piece of coffee cake with the most crumb topping, it's my favorite part.  The spiced rum glaze adds a bit of adult sophistication to this cake to take it to the next level.  But if you are serving it to little ones, you can leave out the rum or substitute rum extract (at least I hear this is a viable option but not one I've tried myself).

This will make 2 regular loaf cakes or 4 mini cakes if you have the small loaf pans.  I made two pans, one to take to a Christmas party with my in-laws and one for our wonderful neighbors across the street.  You may have noticed the much improved pictures of this cake -- well my wonderful neighbor happens to be pretty good with her camera and sent me these fantastic shots.  She does family pictures as well as promotional/product photography - check her out at Willow Tree Photography or visit her Facebook page.  I'm going to have to figure out how to work my camera one of these days so I can step up my game on my own pictures.

Enjoy!

Eggnog Crumb Cake with Spiced Rum Glaze
Recipe adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

Cake:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2/3 cup Greek yogurt (I used vanilla because it's what I had but you could also use plain)
1 1/3 cups eggnog
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 1/2 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Crumb Topping:
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 3/4 cups cake flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Glaze:
2 T eggnog
2 T spiced rum
2 T unsalted butter, melted
1 - 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

For the cake, preheat oven to 325 degrees and spray 2 regular loaf pans or 4 mini loaf pans with baking spray or butter and flour.

In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine butter and sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes on medium speed.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until incorporated and then mix in yogurt. In a measuring cup, combine eggnog and vanilla extract.  In another bowl, combine nutmeg, cinnamon, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and whisk or sift to mix.  Alternate additions of 1/3 of the flour mixture with 1/2 of the eggnog mixture, mixing until each addition is just incorporated, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Divide batter evenly among pans and set aside while you prepare the crumb topping.

For the topping, combine sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and cake flour in a mixing bowl.  Pour in melted butter and stir with a fork, pastry cutter, or your hands until the mixture forms a crumbly topping.  Evenly spread over prepared cake batter.

Baking will take 30-35 minutes for 4 mini loaves and about 40-45 minutes for 2 regular loaves, the cake is done when a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.  If necessary cover with foil if the topping starts to brown before the cake is set.

Once cakes are removed from the oven, allow to cool fully before topping with the glaze.  To make the glaze, whisk together eggnog, rum, and butter in a bowl.  Slowly add powdered sugar, whisking until smooth.  The glaze should be about the consistency of maple syrup when you pour it over the cakes.

Fresh Cranberry Cake

What's on your Thanksgiving menu this year?  I may have to go buy more cranberries so this cranberry cake can be a late addition to mine.  For the most part, I'm sticking with classic recipes this year but adding in a few new items as well.

Cider Brined Turkey and Gravy

Mashed Potatoes

Sweet Potato Casserole - I'm doing a cross between this recipe and a copycat Ruth's Chris Steakhouse version

Dressing with apples and cranberries

Broccoli Cheddar Quinoa

Stove Top Macaroni and Cheese

Cranberry Sauce

Harvest Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash

Crock Pot Apple Butter Yeast Rolls

Classic Pumpkin Pie

Salted Caramel Apple Pie

Pumpkin Roll

If you haven't nailed down your desserts yet, I've got a new one for you to try.  This takes about 20 minutes of prep time, but with a stand mixer about half of that time is just running the mixer.  It's so simple and likely the only thing you don't already have in the pantry are fresh cranberries.  Take advantage of the cheap fresh berries in every grocery store and make this cake while they are in season.  The tart cranberries are perfect with the sweetness of the cake and the light glaze.  Served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this is a great finish to Thanksgiving dinner.

Fresh Cranberry Cake

Cake:
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 T orange zest
2 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
2 1/2 cups cranberries

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 T milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 10" springform pan or 9"x13" baking pan with baking spray and set aside.

Combine sugar and eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl.  Mix 6-8 minutes on medium speed until pale yellow and doubled in volume.  Add in butter and extracts and zest and mix two more minutes.  Add flour and cinnamon and stir until combined.  Fold in cranberries.  Transfer batter to prepared pan.  If you are baking in a springform pan, put the pan on a cookie sheet and put in the oven.  Bake approximately one hour (about 45 minutes in a 9"x13" pan).  Cool completely and remove ring from pan.

Put powdered sugar in a small bowl, add milk one tablespoon at a time, whisking until smooth.  Add vanilla and drizzle over cake.

Peach Spice Cake

So way back in August, I had a basket full of peaches fresh from the orchard that were tempting me from the counter.  I had many plans for them initially, peach cobbler, peach kolaches, peach pie, etc.  This peach spice cake wasn't on the list but as I was perusing a new cookbook that I picked up at The Lady and Sons restaurant in Savannah, GA while we were on vacation, I found a recipe for Fresh Pear Cake that sounded delicious.  Paula Deen can generally be trusted for baked goods so I didn't hesitate for too long before deciding to make this.  But not with pears and a bit of a doctored spice mixture - mostly because I'm not really a big pear fan and I really like ginger with peaches.  I also subbed applesauce for oil because everyone knows Paula's recipes can usually stand to cut out a few calories.  Yes peach season has passed... but you could sub apples for peaches and this would be delicious as well.

Peach Spice Cake
Adapted from The Lady and Sons: Just Desserts

Cake:
2 cups sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp allspice
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups peeled, pitted, and diced peaches

Glaze:
2 oz cream cheese, softened
2 T milk
1 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a bundt pan with baking spray or butter and flour.

Combine sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and allspice in a large bowl.  Add the oil, applesauce, eggs, and vanilla and mix well.  Gently fold in peaches.  Pour mixture into pan and bake for approximately 1 - 1 1/4 hours until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool about ten minutes in the pan and then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Before serving, combine cream cheese, milk and powdered sugar and whip in a mixing bowl to make a thick glaze.  Pour over the cake.  The glaze should coat a spoon but still run down the sides of the cake.

Blueberry Crumb Cake

My baby girl loves fruit - and sometimes she's a little bit picky when it comes to anything else.  And by a little bit picky, I mean she eats fruit and that's it lately.  So I've been trying to find more fruits that she'll eat to add some variety and also trying to come up with some variety in what I use the fruit in.  She used to eat anything you gave her, up until the past few weeks, now she turns down her former favorites, unless its fruit.

Sure we have plenty of bananas, strawberries, yogurt with fruit, cottage cheese with fruit, melon, pineapple, and applesauce, but I figure at least fruit is good for you, she could have been even more like her mama and decided the only food she would eat for several months running was French toast - yes I went through that phase when I was about the same age she is now.  The quirks of toddlers... she'll move on eventually, everyone does.  For now, I'm making things like banana bread, strawberry muffins, and this blueberry crumb cake.  And hey, it's delicious, so I recommend you try it, fruit addiction or not.

And if you have any tips on getting a picky toddler to branch out a bit or you have some great fruit suggestions, I would love them.

Blueberry Crumb Cake
Slightly adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours


Cake:
2 cups flour, plus 2 tsp for berries
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
6 T unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp grated lemon zest
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp lemon extract
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Crumb topping:
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 T unsalted butter, cold

Coat an 8x8 baking pan or Pyrex dish with butter or baking spray and preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium bowl, combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and stir to combine.  In a mixing bowl, combine butter, sugar and lemon zest and cream on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing for about one minute after each addition.  Add vanilla and lemon extracts and mix to combine.  Add 1/2 of the flour mixture, mix until just combined.  Add buttermilk and mix until combined then remaining flour mixture, mixing until incorporated.  Finally, lightly toss blueberries with remaining 2 tsp flour and fold into the batter.  Pour batter into prepared dish and smooth the top.

In a small bowl, combine sugars, flour, salt, and cinnamon for crumb topping.  Add butter and cut in with a fork, a pastry blender or your fingers until it forms a crumbly mixture.  Sprinkle liberally on top of batter and bake for approximately one hour, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool slightly and serve warm or at room temperature.  Keep any leftovers covered once it's fully cooled.

Hummingbird Cake

Have you ever had hummingbird cake?  Think tropical carrot cake full of pineapple and coconut.  It may sound weird but this is a quick and easy cake that will give you ridiculously good results.  This works equally well as  a quick bundt cake to serve coffee cake style or as a layer cake sandwiched with layers of cream cheese frosting, just double the recipe.

Hummingbird Cake
Adapted from Annie's Eats

Cake:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp coconut extract
1 cup vanilla greek yogurt
2 ripe bananas, mashed - approximately 1 cup
2/3 cup shredded coconut
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained

Icing:
3 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
2 T milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour a bundt pan.

Combine flour, baking soda, powder, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl and whisk to combine.  Separately cream butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until thoroughly combined.  Add in extracts and yogurt and mix to combine.  Add 1/2 of the flour mixture, mixing on low speed until just combined.  Mix in the bananas and then follow with the remaining flour mixture.  Once combined, stir in coconut and pineapple.  Transfer to prepared pan, smooth out the top and bake about 45-55 minutes until a knife or skewer comes out clean.

Cool in pan for about 20 minutes.  Cover a cooling rack with parchment paper, place on top of bundt pan and invert cake and cool completely.

For icing, whisk cream cheese until smooth, whisk in milk and vanilla.  Add powdered sugar and mix until smooth.  Add more powdered sugar if necessary to reach desired thickness.  Stir in coconut.  Spoon over the top of the cooled cake, cut and serve.

My baby girl turned One!

Yes it was two months ago... and I'm just now getting around to sharing a few of the details.  I know, life has been a little crazy around here as we prepare for baby number 2... can't believe she'll be here in another 6 weeks or so, and try to finish up all the remodeling projects - the new nursery and master bathroom being at the top of the list.  But even in those two months, I still can't believe my baby girl is over a year old, walking, jabbering constantly and really developing quite the personality.

For Aubrey's party - we did a little bit of a circus/carnival theme - I'll admit largely due to the fact that I was slightly obsessed with the pennant flag banners that are popping up all over the place right now.  I just love them and thought they would make adorable party decor.  My sister Nikki, of Doodle Dog Advertising, made some adorable invitations for the party featuring a cute little elephant that I decided to use for the cookies too.

Photo by DoodleDog Advertising

I combined the elephants with some friendly little lions inspired by cookies that I had bookmarked quite a while ago from Bridget at Bake at 350.  I love the way they turned out, but a word of warning, don't ever try to layer your cookies with wax paper when you run out of parchment paper at 10 pm, the wax paper stuck to the frosting in several places and I had to do some minor cookie reconstructive surgery the day of the party.  My go to sugar cookie recipe can be found here.

For the cakes, I knew I wanted to make Aubrey a simple smash cake and I tied the main cake back to our circus theme with a mini-pennant banner strung from plastic carnival stripe straws.

I used a basic white cake recipe (also seen here) from Magnolia Bakery for both to keep things simple and filled and frosted them with a simple buttercream.  Sprinkles and a fun corkscrew candle were all the decoration the smash cake needed and a simple dot pattern adorned the main cake.

Finally I made a 3rd cake (2nd smash cake) for a photo shoot with Dede Holman Photography the following week so we could have some adorable pictures to document the occasion.

Photo by Dede Holman Photography

For other food at the party I stuck with some simple spins on carnival food - spicy whiskey BBQ sliders (slightly modified from Pioneer Woman - I used ground turkey instead of beef and cut out the majority of the butter and served them on Hawaiian roles), kettle corn, fruit skewers on a stick and animal crackers with a vanilla honey yogurt dip (a simple combination of vanilla yogurt, a little honey for sweetness and some lime zest), nachos with cheese dip and guacamole, mini corndogs muffins (recipe found on Iowa Girl Eats) and veggies and dip.

Traditional White Birthday Cake
Recipe slightly adapted from Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

Cake:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups self-rising flour
1 cup whole milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 egg whites

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 3 8" baking pans baking spray and line the bottoms with parchment rounds.

Cream the butter on medium high speed until smooth. Add the sugar gradually, beating until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Combine milk and vanilla in a measuring cup. Add flour in 3 parts, alternating with the milk, beating well after each addition, beginning and ending with flour. Set batter aside.

Add egg whites to a clean mixing bowl and begin beating on low speed, gradually increasing speed to high as egg whites thicken. Beat until the egg whites make soft peaks. Gently fold into cake batter, 1/3 at a time.

Bake 22-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in pans for about 5 minutes, loosen the edges with a knife if necessary, and turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.


Note: this recipe will make 2 2-layer 6" smash cakes or 1 3 layer 8" cake, so double the recipe if you want to make the 2-tier cake and a smash cake.  In the pictures above, the smash cakes are each built with 2 6" cakes cut in half horizontally to make 4 total thin layers and then torted with buttercream.  The 2-tier cake is done the same way with a 6" cake over an 8" cake.  I did use small wooden dowels for stability when stacking the tiers.

Buttercream Icing

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 lb powdered sugar

Beat butter in a large mixing bowl for 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy, add in vanilla and cream and mix on low speed until incorporated.  Add powdered sugar in a several additions to prevent it from making a giant cloud of sugar all over your kitchen.  Mix on low speed until incorporated and increase speed gradually to medium high and whip an additional 1-2 minutes.  Icing should be thick but easily spreadable. 

Note: this will make enough icing to torte and ice at least one smash cake but you will need more to do all of the cakes above.

A Little Leprechaun's Pot of Gold Cake

So having a new baby has been an excuse to celebrate all the little holidays, "it's her first..." has commonly been my rationale.  So making a St. Patrick's Day cake - for a 1 month old baby who can't eat it - didn't seem at all over the top in my mind.  Especially when I had a great idea for a cake to try.  Now if only I could celebrate with things like baby carrots and salad maybe I would be more prepared for Aubrey's first trip to the beach but we'll get there -- and let's be honest, cake is way more fun than carrots and salad. 

  

This cake was a spin off of this cookies and cream cake I made for my husband last year for his birthday.  I tried these Golden Oreos at my in-laws house a couple of months ago and thought they were delicious.  When I saw the spring Oreos in the store the other day, I thought they were cute with the green filling but my mind went back to these.  

This yellow cake recipe isnt the usual one I use, simply because I wanted something quick and this one didn't require beating the egg whites and folding them in separately and also used buttermilk and all purpose flour rather than cake flour.  The result - a quick easy yellow cake recipe, it works great in this instance because its not too soft to hold up to the filling.  

Pot of Gold Cake

Cake:
Recipe from The Modern Baker
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray two 8" cake pans with baking spray or butter and flour and line with parchment paper and spray paper. 

Cream together butter and sugar in a mixing bowl on medium speed about 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, mixing about 1 minute after each addition until well incorporated.  Add half of the flour, half of the baking powder and the salt.  Mix on low speed until just incorporated.  Add buttermilk and mix until incorporated and add remaining flour and baking powder.  Increase the speed to medium and beat an additional 2 minutes. 

Divide batter evenly between pans and bake about 25 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool about 5 minutes in the pan and then turn out on wire racks, flip them over so they are top side up.  Cool completely then slice each cake layer in half horizontally to make 4 thin layers and assemble.

Golden Oreo Cream Filling
2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 package Golden Oreo cookies, crushed

Process cookies in a food processer until they are fine crumbs.  Add heavy cream to a cold mixing bowl (putting the bowl in the freezer for a few minutes prior to mixing will speed up the process) fitted with the whisk attachment and beat 2-3 minutes until cream forms stiff peaks.  Add vanilla extract and blend until mixed.  Gently fold in crushed cookies.  Add 1/3 of the cream mixture in between each layer of cake.

Frosting:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
3-4 T heavy cream
3 cups powdered sugar

Cream butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.  Add vanilla and cream and mix until well incorporated.  Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time, mixing on low speed until frosting reaches desired thickness.  Increase speed to medium and whip about 1 minute until smooth.  Tint with gel food coloring as desired and frost cake.  Cover and refrigerate cake if not serving within a couple of hours.

King Cake

First of all, I want to say thank you if you are still reading my blog - sorry for the three week interruption in posting but we've been a little busy.  Three weeks ago we welcomed our daughter, Aubrey to the world.  She was born at just over eight pounds the night before Valentine's Day.  Since then life has been an amazing mix of staring at our beautiful baby girl, family and friends visiting and a little sleep deprivation so I haven't spent much time in the kitchen.  I promise I won't turn this into a blog about Aubrey but I have to share a couple pictures to introduce my little girl. 

Photo by Dede Holman Photography

Photo by Dede Holman Photography

As for a recipe - I finally got around to making a king cake yesterday... something that's been on my list of things to make for at least two years.  I always seemed to run out of time during Mardi Gras "season" but got one made just in time this year.  We get a few king cakes delivered to the office every year at work which is where I originally discovered this treat.  It's essentially like a giant cinnamon roll but baked into a ring-shaped cake and decorated with bright purple, yellow and green sugars for festive Mardi Gras flavor.

The dough itself is an easy yeast recipe but it does take a little time.  The initial mixing is very simple but make sure to allow about three hours total for rising time.  The filling is a slightly modified cinnamon and sugar mixture spiked with a little bourbon and raisins.  The icing adds a tart lemon flavor which is a nice mix with the sweetness of the powdered sugar.

King Cake

Recipe adapted from All Recipes

Dough:

1/2 cup half and half

2 T butter

1 package active dry yeast (.25 ounce)

1/3 cup warm water (approx 110 degrees F)

1/4 cup sugar

1 egg

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour plus more for rolling
Zest of 1 lemon

Scald half and half over medium heat, remove from heat and add butter.  While mixture cools, stir together warm water, yeast and 1 T of the sugar in bowl of a stand mixer and let stand until foamy.  When half and half mixture is cooled, add to yeast mixture.  Add remaining sugar and egg and beat until well incorporated.  Add salt, nutmeg and flour one cup at a time.  Stir in lemon zest and switch to dough hook attachment.  Knead with dough hook for about 5-7 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic.  It will still be fairly sticky.  Oil a deep bowl and transfer dough to bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours until doubled in size. 

Filling:

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 T cinnamon

1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup melted butter
2 T bourbon
1/2 cup raisins

Combine bourbon and raisins in a small bowl and set aside.  Mix together brown sugar, cinnamon and flour and then stir in melted butter. 

Punch down dough and turn out onto a heavily floured surface.  Roll dough out into a large rectangle about 12x16 inches.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.  Spread filling mixture over dough in a thin layer leaving about a one inch edge free around the whole rectangle.  Drain raisins and sprinkle over filling.  Begin rolling dough like a jelly roll from the wide edge.  Roll tightly and transfer to baking sheet.  Form dough into an oval, seam side down and pinch edges to seal.  Using a sharp knife or cooking scissors, cut slices into top of dough about every two inches approximately 1/3 of the way through dough.  Cover with a towel and let rise an additional 45 minutes in a warm place.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake approximately 30 minutes until golden brown. 

Icing:

2 cups powdered sugar

2 T lemon juice

2 T half and half

3/4 cup demerara sugar

Food coloring in green, yellow and purple

Whisk together powdered sugar, lemon juice and half and half until smooth.  Pour over cooled king cake.

In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup sugar and a couple drops of yellow food coloring and stir together.  Transfer to a small bowl or plate.  Add 1/4 cup sugar and a couple drops of green food coloring and stir together.  Transfer to a small bowl or plate.  Add last cup of sugar and purple food coloring and stir to combine.  Sprinkle sugar over icing as desired.