Alexander's 5th Birthday = R2D2 Cake

Today is Alexander's 5th Birthday - Happy Birthday Buddy!!!  We had a birthday party for him on Saturday and i don't know if the guests had fun, i did and the important thing was, Alexander had the most fun.  With this posting, i would like to thank all the guests for their presence and presents and hope you all enjoyed yourself.  Thank you too to all your food contributions which made the party a success.  This year's theme, Alexander chose 'The Star Wars'  and i made him this R2D2 cake  - he sure was grinning happily at his cake - look at that smile, it melted my heart.

Ingredients:

Chocolate Cake:

3 1/2 cup bleached all-purpose cake
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 large eggs
2 cups sugar
1 1/3 cup oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups milk
2 recipes of Buttercream

 Method:

Grease and line the base of 2 - 9 inch by 13 inch cake pan.

Preheat oven to 350f.

Sieve flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

Put sugar and eggs in the food processor and pulse till sugar has dissolved.

With food processor, add in the oil in a steady stream.

Stop the food processor and add in the sieved flour, pulse until well combined. Scrape the sides if you must.

With the food processor on, add in the milk and process until cake batter is well combined.

Pour into the 2 prepared cake pans  in equal portions and bake for 15 minutes at 350f, then reduce oven heat to 325f and bake further for 20 - 25 minutes.  Check for doneness.

Leave to cool before icing with buttercream

 Serves

Carrot Cake and Cream Cheese Frosting

It was Uncle Bruce's Birthday and he has always wanted a kiddy cake.  He has mentioned it at every kiddy birthday party that he attended.  I know Uncle Bruce loves cars and since i have a mould of a car - it is one of those tear-away silicone mould which made a pretty good cake.  I can't make the cake from a box, you can fool the kids but not the adults, so, i made a carrot cake with all the works and it will not be complete without cream cheese frosting.  Uncle Bruce was delighted with his car but i told him that he can't drive it in the night though cos i forgot to fix in the lights, front and back of his car.  Happy Birthday again, i am not going to tell how old you are!!!!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 cup. sugar
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup buttermilk
3/4 cupvegetable oil
4 eggs
1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups grated carrots
1/2 cup crushed pineapple, drained
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup dessicated coconut

Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Method:

Combine first 7 ingredients in a medium bowl; set aside.

Combine sugars, buttermilk, vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla extract in a large bowl; stir until all ingredients are well blended.

Add flour mixture, carrots, pineapple, walnuts, coconut and raisins, stirring just until well blended. Do not overmix.

Grease 3 (8 inch) round cake pans(one car silicone mould and 2 tiny loaf pans). Line bottoms with waxed paper; grease and flour waxed paper.

Pour batter into cake pans.

Bake at 350°F. for 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool in pans 10 minutes; loosen cake layers from edges of pans with a sharp knife and invert onto wire racks. Peel off waxed paper and cool completely.

Spread Cream Cheese Frosting all over the cake.  Cover and refrigerate overnight before cutting.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

2 egg whites from 2  large eggs
2 tbsp light corn syrup
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
8 ozs cream cheese


Place the egg whites in the bowl of your mixer.

Place the corn syrup, sugar and water in a medium saucepan, with a cast-iron skillet at the bottom. Stir until combined and the sugar is dissolved. Cover the pan and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes, with the pan covered to wash any sugar crystals down from the sides. Uncover and cook to the soft ball stage, 240 f.

Meanwhile, begin to beat the egg whites on slow speed. When they are foamy, add the cream of tartar, Gradually increase the speed to medium and continue beating until soft peaks form.

As soon as the sugar syrup reaches the soft ball stage, remove it from the heat. Turn off the mixer. Very carefully pour about 1/4 of the hot syrup down the inside of the mixing bowl. Turn the mixer on high speed, and beat well. Add the syrup in two more additions, stopping the mixer each time, working as quickly as possible. If the sugar is slightly overcooked and hardens a bit, return it to the heat for a moment to remelt it. Do not pour the sugar syrup into the bowl while the mixer is on; you may splash yourself with hot syrup or the syrup will end up all on the sides of the bowl.

Continue to beat the meringue until it cools to room temperature. This takes about 20 minutes of continuous beating. If you need to hurry it along, place the bowl of your mixer in a ice bath for a few moments while mixing by hand, then return it to the machine. If you attempt to add the butter before the meringue is cool, the cream cheese will melt and the frosting will collapse.

When the meringue is cool, beat in the cream cheese a bit at a time. If the frosting starts to separate, continue beating without adding any more cream cheese until the frosting looks fluffy again.  Beat in vanilla and almond extract, if using.

Serves

Easy Cupcake

It's Mother Nature's form of March Madness in Colorado! Heavy snow fell overnight, leaving more than a foot of heavy snow.  I am glad it was not yesterday, cos i had to make and bring these cupcakes to Renee's school, so that her classmates can have them during recess.   A double-dose of lemon extract and lemon juice-- in the cake and in the buttercream frosting -- gives these cupcakes great lemony taste and just the right amount of sweetness -- and they were more than irresistible. 

Ingredients:

2 cups self rising flour or 2 cups bleached all-purpose with 2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 cup fine granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter/shortening(very soft but not melted, Crisco is best)
3/4 cup water with 1 tbsp lemon juice(any juice of your choice)
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp lemon extract(pair with the juice of your choice)

Method:

1 Set oven to 350 degrees F.

2 In a large bowl, mix together the flour with sugar and salt until combined.

3 Add in the butter/shortening , beat on medium speed of an electric mixer until all the flour/sugar are coated.

4.Add in eggs and lemon extract to the juice and beat lightly.

5.Add liquid to the dry ingredients and beat until well combined and blended, scraping the bowl constantly. (the batter will be thick, if desired you may add in a few more tablespoons juice).

6. Pour into paper-lined regular size muffin tins filling under just three-quarters full or half full.

7.Bake for 20-22 minutes or until the cupcakes test done (do not overbake as they will be dry).

8.Immediately remove from pans.

9.Cool completely before frosting.

Buttercream:

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine softened
1/2 tsp lemon extract
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar (approximately 1/2 lb.)
1  tablespoons milk

Makes: About 1 1/2 cups of icing.


Method:

In large bowl, cream butter/shortening with electric mixer.

Add lemon extract..

Gradually add sifted sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often.

When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.

For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use.

Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

For thin (spreading) consistency icing, add 1 tablespoons light corn syrup, water or milk.

Serves

Renee's 8th Birthday Cake

Today is Renee's 8th Birthday and i am still busy although her birthday party for her friends was on Saturday last weekend, i have to make cupcakes for her class, now and the sooner i get this posting done, the faster i can get started with the cupcakes.  There were so much prep for her Birthday Cake, her theme was Art and Craft and she wanted so many impossibles which i am not capable of.  I had just wanted to make the figure 8 and put in sweet girly things.  In the end, we compromised, i had my figure 8 and she had her paint palate, with paint brushes, paints etc.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY RENEE.



Ingredients:

2 x 8 inch cake of choice
Buttercream
Modelling paste - 1/3 cup water
                            2 tsp powdered gelatin
                            3 tsp glucose/corn syrup
                             4 cups confectioner's sugar
 -

Method:

Put water into a small saucepan, sprinkle the gelatine on to the water.

Heat gently until the gelatine dissolves, do not allow to boil. 

Remove from heat, stir in the glucose /corn syrup and allow to cool.

Place confectioner's sugar into a bowl.  Gradually pour in the liquid, mixing till the paste forms a plastercine-like consistency.

Turn out onto a a clean board dusted with a little cornstarch and knead till smooth.

To make different colours, divide the dough and tint each piece with food coloring, kneading well with the colours you wish to use.

Serves

Scooby-Doo Cake

OMG, a year already?  It is like just yesterday that i made Spiderman Cake for Jordon who turned five.  Happy Birthday Jordon, hope you liked this cake.


Ingredients:

1 box cake-mix of your choice
1 recipe Buttercream


Method:

For the cake, follow the instruction at the back of the box

Get a picture of Scooby-Doo and enlarge to fit a 9 x 13 inch cake.

Coat the cake with buttercream and coat the sides of cake with chocolate sprinkles.

Cut the shape of Scooby-Doo and place on top of cake, using a toothpick, trace the outline.

Pipe melted chocolate along the outline.

Color enough buttercream with blue food coloring for the collar.

Color enough buttercrean with yellow food coloring for Scooby-Doo's badge and pipe SD with blue buttercream.
Serves