Photo Holiday Cards

If you're starting to think about what type of holiday cards or Christmas cards to send this year then do yourself a huge favor and check out Cardstore.com! They have a fantastic selection of holiday cards and christmas cards and you can personalize each and every one of them with up to 14 photos (both on the front of the cards as well as inside) and you can also add your own text and special holiday messages. The quality of the cards is second to none - (and here's my disclaimer) I know this because I work there :)

There are hundreds of cards to choose from and styles range from modern to whimsical to traditional. And if you're planning a holiday party then check out the large selection of holiday party invitations. Cardstore.com also allows you to upload an address book and they can actually print and address your envelopes and mail all your cards for you. All you do is pay for the stamp!

And the best news of all, if you order now you can save 15% off all holiday cards and invitations with coupon code MERRY15. Have fun personalizing your very own Christmas cards!

Cookies And Cream Cake Recipe

When you think about favorites among kids, cookies and cream is a flavor that always comes to mind. Based on the Oreo cookie, cookies and cream is used in ice creams, candy bars and yes, even in cakes.

Here's a quick way to adapt a boxed cake mix to a cookies and cream cake. Buy a boxed white cake mix and make it by following the directions on the box. Once the cake is mixed, take a large wooden spoon and blend in 1 cup of crushed Oreo cookies. Then pour the cake mix into your pans and bake according to the directions.

And to top off your cookies and cream cake, here's a recipe for cookies and cream frosting.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup of vegetable shortening (Crisco)

8 oz cream cheese

4 cups powdered sugar (sifted)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1-5 tablespoons milk

1 1/2 cups crushed Oreo cookies

Directions:

Beat the shortening and cream cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla and beat until well blended. Gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until blended. Add the milk 1 tablespoon at a time until you get the desired consistency. Finally fold in the Oreo cookies with a wooden spoon. You can use this as both a filling and frosting for your cake.

Happy baking!

Spooky Sweets And Treats

I am absolutely in love with this adorable Halloween cupcake shaped cookie jar. Of course it helps that my kitchen has a green theme to it and so I know that this cookie jar would look amazing on my counter top. Not to mention that it's shaped like a cupcake and I LOVE cupcakes!

I would fill it with my favorite sugar cookies (you can find the recipe in one of my prior posts). And if I didn't have it filled with cookies then I may use it for my teabags or perhaps even sugar or flour for baking.

If you love it as much as I do you can buy it at Amazon.com for just over $30!

Mad Scientist Cake

This bright and colorful mad scientist cake was submitted by Maria from Waldorf, MD during one of our kids' cakes contests and, even though it didn't win, I wanted to share it with you as I really do think it is very clever.

You can replicate this look with a large sheet cake and then use half of a sphere shaped cake for the face (I would use the Wilton sports ball pan). The frothing foam is little colored marshmallows and Maria very cleverly used glitter wands accented with orange frosting to look like exploding test tubes. You could either buy the eye glasses in any costume of party store or make your own from black gumpaste or fondant. Use blue candies for the eyes and red gel icing for the bloodshot look.

Definitely very fun and imaginative. Congrats Maria on a great kids' cake!

Kids Halloween Cake

Here's the cake I made for my mother-in-law for her birthday. She wanted something Halloween themed so that the grandkids would be excited by it. I had already made the little white ghost and so I just added the witch's hat and pumpkins.

The witch's hat was just a circle of black fondant and then I made a cone shape and bent it over to one side at the top. I attached the cone to the base and then wrapped a thin strip of purple fondant around the bottom of the cone and added the buckle detail using a fine tipped black edible food writer. The pumpkins were made from orange balls of fondant, flattened slightly and then scored on the sides to make the pumpkin like ridges. I topped them with little green stems.

I frosted the cake in purple tinted vanilla buttercream and added some black cats and bats to the side. Then I placed my Halloween toppers and used some Halloween themed sprinkles for the finishing touch.

This is a cake that any beginning cake deocrator can replicate - have fun!

Fondant Ribbon Roses

If you've always wanted to try making fondant flowers but are feeling a little intimidated, here's the perfect place to start. Bake Decorate Celebrate! provides a tutorial for making fondant ribbon roses. It simply involves cutting out a long rectangular piece of fondant and the rolling it to create your rose.

One tip of my own - if you want to create a nice top edge to your rose rather than the cut edge of the fondant, roll your fondant a little thinner and then fold the rectangle lengthwise before you start rolling. This will give you the folded edge as the top of the rose and it provides a more finished look. The thinner you roll your fondant, the more delicate your rose will look.

Have fun with this!

Petal Shaped Flower Cake

I got a chance this weekend to try out my new petal shaped pans and I just love the result. I had volunteered to make a cake for a celebration my company is having tomorrow. Our company colors are dark brown and a soft green so I decided to incorporate those into the cake. Our logo, which you can see at Cardstore.com, also looks a bit like a flower so it made sense to use the petal shaped pans and flowers as decoration.

The cake is orange filled with a cream cheese buttercream. I covered it in a chocolate fondant since chocolate always seems to go well with orange. Now I just have to transport it safely to work tomorrow :)

Kids' Cakes Contest Winner!

Our second kids' cakes contest has ended and we were again thrilled by all the wonderful submissions we received. It was definitely a challenge choosing the winner but the cake above embodied all we were looking for in a wonderful kids' cake. Plus anybody that can bake and frost a sphere shaped cake so beautifully deserves a round of applause. This lovely teapot cake, submitted by Lauren of Fort Worth Texas, is both creative and technically difficult (because of it's spherical shape) and it also fits the kids' cakes theme perfectly. Congratulations Lauren!

You can also see our honorable mentions here. I'll be featuring some of the cakes we received on this blog over the next few weeks so check back often or, better yet, use the box to the right to become a subscriber.

And stay tuned for our next kids' cakes contest for your chance to win a $25 gift certificate to Michaels craft store!

100 Cake Decorating Tips

I can't believe that I have reached my 100th post...yeah! In celebration, I decided to pull together 100 baking and cake decorating tips from both my own experiences and from across the web. I applaud anyone that has time to read them all but there are some gems buried in this list so it's probably worth your while.

Here goes:

1. When preparing your cake pan, only grease the bottom of the pan and not the sides as this assists in creating a level cake.
2. You can use "bake even strips" to help bake a level cake. You simply damp them down and wrap them around the cake pan.
3. If you're greasing and dusting your pans then try using cake mix or cocoa powder instead of flour as your duster. Or try a product like Wilton's Cake Release which is a liquid that you can brush on your pan using a pastry brush.
4. If you're making a cake from scratch then be sure to measure your dry ingredients first and then sift them to remove any lumps.
5. Try adding 1 to 2 tablespoons of meringue powder to your cake mix. This will help your cake rise a bit higher and make its texture a bit lighter.
6. You can help prevent the top of your cake from splitting or cracking by adding 1 envelope of unflavored gelatin to the batter.
7. Always preheat your oven.
8. Bake only on one rack on your oven and place the rack in the center of the oven. This ensures even baking across all layers of your cake.
9. Don't place your pans too close together in the oven as this can cause uneven baking.
10. Don't fill your cake pans more than 1/2 to 2/3 full.
11. Once you've poured the cake batter into the pan, jiggle the pan a bit so that the batter rises up along the sides with the middle being slightly lower. This will help in baking a level cake as the middle will rise to meet the sides.
12. You can test to see if your cake is done by sticking either a toothpick or a piece of raw spaghetti into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean then your cake is done. If you see cake batter on it then your cake needs to bake a little longer.
13. If you cake is stuck in the pan try this trick - put a towel in your kitchen sink and pour boiling hot water over it to soak it (let the water drain out of the sink). Then place the cake pan on top of the hot towel for a few minutes. The heat on the bottom of the pan should be enough to release the cake from the pan.
14. Spray your cooling rack with vegetable-oil cooking spray to help prevent the cake from sticking to it while cooling.
15. Using cake pans in shapes other than round, like square, hexagon or petal shaped, can make an otherwise ordinary cake look really unique.
16. Use character cake pans for kids’ birthday cakes for a fun look. They also come with very detailed instructions.
17. You can change up any cake mix simply by adding different flavor extracts.
18. If you happen to drop an eggshell into your cake mix don’t worry as it will sink to the bottom of the cake while it bakes. When you remove your cake from the pan, simply turn it upside down and remove the eggshell.
19. Real butter gives the best flavor in a made from scratch cake.
20. For a moister chocolate cake, before adding the baking soda to your cake recipe, mix it with a teaspoon of vinegar.
21. It's often useful to place your cake upside down on the cake board because the bottom of your cake gives a nice flat surface for decorating.
22. Make sure your cake is completely cool before frosting it.
23. Dusting your cake lightly with a pastry brush before frosting helps to reduce crumbs in the icing.
24. When frosting a cake, put a thin "crumb" layer on first to hold in the crumbs. Let that sit for a bit and then frost over it.
25. Don’t be stingy with your frosting.
26. When icing the top of the cake use a lot of icing. Don't let your spatula touch the cake. You'll get crumbs in the frosting.
27. If your frosting gets too thick you can thin it with a little bit of corn syrup. If it's too thin just add a little powdered sugar to thicken it.
28. Gel or paste food coloring gives much richer colors than liquid food coloring. Use a toothpick to apply a tiny amount to your frosting and then add more as needed. It doesn't take much with these food colors.
29. Adding a pinch of baking soda when mixing the frosting can help prevent it from flaking or cracking.
30. To get a completely smooth cake, use a frosting or buttercream that crusts over as it dries. Put the frosting on with a spatula and smooth it out as much as you can. After about 10-15 minutes when the frosting has crusted, place a Viva paper towel over the cake and smooth out the imperfections using your hand or fondant smoother. You can see the Viva technique demonstrated here.
31. As an alternative to the Viva technique, try using a hair dryer to slightly melt the frosting. This will give your frosting a smooth and glossy look.
32. If you want to create a picture of something on your cake then the best and easiest way to do this is with a frozen buttercream transfer (FBCT). There are some really easy-to-follow and detailed FBCT instructions here that will help you in perfecting this technique.
33. Only fill your decorating bags half full of frosting to avoid having it squeeze out the back end. You can stand your bags up in a tall glass or measuring cup to make it easier to fill them.
34. Hold your decorating tip close to the surface of your cake and squeeze with an even pressure to get the best results. You can use one hand to squeeze the bag and your other to guide it.
35. Frost the top of your cake first and then spread down to the sides. If you find it tough to frost the sides of your cake, try using Wilton decorating tip #789 that is made just for this purpose.
36. A turntable makes it easier to frost a cake.
37. If you're using a creme, mousse or custard type filling, make a dam first by piping a ring of frosting on the outside of the cake. It will hold your filling in place when you stack the cake layers together.
38. If you’re using two different fillings in your cake such as whipped cream and jam, put one filling on each cake and then flip one of them over and place it on top of the second. This prevents your fillings from mixing together as you spread them.
39. If you don’t want to frost your cake then just sift some powdered sugar onto the top.
40. The most commonly used decorating tip is the “star” tip so buy this one first.
41. Pipe frosting onto your cupcakes instead of just using a knife.
42. If you’re buying pre-made fondant, consider Satin Ice and Choco-pan for good flavor.
43. If you’re making your own fondant, then use the marshmallow fondant recipe because it’s easy and inexpensive.
44. When rolling fondant, sprinkle some cornstarch on the surface to help prevent sticking.
45. Try to roll your fondant to be about 1/8 to 1/6 of an inch thick.
46. Use a thin layer of frosting under the fondant to help it stick to the cake. If you're placing white fondant on chocolate cake, use a white frosting under the fondant so that the cake does not show through.
47. Knead your fondant really well before rolling it out so that it's workable and rolls easily without tearing.
48. If your fondant rips, you can use a little bit of shortening on your fingers to gently repair it (don't use water because it dissolves the sugar in the fondant and will make it sticky).
49. Use a rolling mat that is marked in inches so that you know how wide you've rolled your fondant. This will make it easier to know when you've rolled the fondant enough so that it will easily cover your cake.
50. Drape your fondant over a rolling pin to move it to your cake.
51. Smooth your fondant over your cake starting at the top and working your way down the sides.
52. A round cake is the easiest to cover with fondant if you’re just starting out.
53. Gel food colors won’t make your fondant sticky as long as you don’t use too much.
54. If you want a true black fondant then it’s probably best to buy pre-made black fondant rather than using a ton of food coloring. If you do use food coloring then Americolor Super Black is the best for getting a true black.
55. Wear latex gloves when coloring fondant to avoid coloring your hands.
56. If you stop kneading your fondant before all your coloring is blended you can create a cool, marbled effect.
57. It just takes a dab of water to attach fondant decorations to a fondant cake.
58. A pizza cutter makes a great fondant cutter also.
59. Want to make some little pearls to use as cake decoration? Just roll some small fondant or gumpaste balls, let them dry slightly so they’re not too soft and then place them in a Ziploc bag with some pearl dust and shake them until covered. Then remove to dry completely. You can attach them with a tiny dab of royal or decorator icing.
60. If your writing skills in frosting aren’t great then consider getting some alphabet fondant cutters and use them to create messages on your cake that look professional.
61. A fondant ribbon cutter and a fondant embosser are useful tools.
62. Use edible food color pens to draw fine details on fondant or gumpaste.
63. Toothpicks can be used to help hold fondant figures together while they dry.
64. Wrapped fondant can be stored for 1-2 months at room temperature.
65. You can make gumpaste decorations weeks ahead of time and store them in a dark, dry and dust-free place.
66. Gumpaste rolls thinner and dries faster than fondant.
67. Use a pasta attachment on your KitchenAid stand mixer to roll out smaller pieces of modeling chocolate, gumpaste and fondant.
68. Use cake decorating tips turned upside down as small circular fondant cutters.
69. If you need to dry gumpaste into a curved shape, drape it over a cylinder covered in wax paper. If you use a can, make sure it doesn’t have a lip edge as that makes sliding the gumpaste off more difficult.
70. Wax paper is great for drying fondant and gumpaste decorations with no sticking.
71. If you buy pre-made dark chocolate fondant from brands like Satin Ice or Choco-pan, it tastes like Tootsie Rolls…yummy!
72. It takes 36 oz of fondant to cover a 10 inch round cake that is 4 inches high.
73. You can add flavor extracts to your fondant to liven up the taste.
74. Using a plastic toy or cake topper is ok and often a clever way to really bring the theme of your cake to life.
75. Edible glitter is a great way to make your cakes sparkle.
76. Sprinkles are not cheesy – they are fun!
77. Small candies make great cupcake toppers.
78. If you live in certain states (such as CA), be aware that the little silver balls (known as dragees) are not sold or shipped there due to lawsuits involving the small amount of real silver used in the product.
79. Consider buying pre-made frosting flowers to decorate your cake or cupcakes.
80. You can made fun chocolate decorations with chocolate molds and coating chocolate wafers (they melt more smoothly than real chocolate).
81. Fancy cupcake wrappers can turn regular cupcakes into beautiful works of art.
82. Cover your cake boards in aluminum foil or rolled fondant for a more professional presentation.
83. You can use wide plastic drinking straws instead of wooden dowels when stacking cakes. They’re easier to cut!
84. Don't leave your finished cake in the sun as the colors will fade.
85. Don’t refrigerate cakes covered in fondant.
86. Do refrigerate cakes frosted with buttercream or covered in modeling chocolate.
87. A cupcake carrier makes transporting cupcakes easy.
88. Always transport cakes on a nice flat surface like the trunk of a car.
89. Heat your knife before cutting your cake for crumble-free slices. Run the knife under very hot water then wipe dry with a clean towel.
90. Use un-waxed dental floss to slice through your cake (this is great for really sticky cakes).
91. CakeCentral.com is one of my favorite sites for cake photos and also great recipes.
92. GlobalSugarArt.com is one of my favorite sites for buying cake, fondant and gumpaste supplies.
93. Wilton.com has some great ideas for kids’ cakes.
94. YouTube.com can be a valuable resource if you want to visualize things rather than read about them.
95. You can often generate some great ideas just from looking at pictures of other cakes online or in books.
96. Sometimes it helps to sketch out your ideas first before you dive in. That way you have a clear plan of attack.
97. Taking just a couple of cake decorating classes can be really worth the time and cost.
98. No cake is a failure, it is a learning experience.
99. Don’t be afraid to experiment.
100. And last but not least, practice makes perfect!

Cherry & Vanilla - A Heavenly Cake Combination

I love the combination of cherry and vanilla and was so excited to find a recipe at FamilyOven.com that sounded so easy. I always look for recipes to share that start with a boxed cake mix as they are often easier for beginners to work with. This recipe turns a plain vanilla cake into a cherry vanilla surprise.

Ingredients:
1 (18 oz) French vanilla boxed cake mix
1 (21 oz) can of cherry pie filling (you can choose sweet or dark cherries as you prefer)
2 eggs
2/3 cup of vegetable oil
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of almond extract
2/3 cup of chopped almonds

Directions:

Blend the boxed cake mix with the the oil, eggs, vanilla and almond extracts until smooth. Then mix in the cherry pie filling and almonds by hand so that they remain somewhat intact. Pour into your prepared pans and bake for 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees. This cake is yummy both with and without frosting.