Teacher Appreciation Cake :)

Yes, this was the cake I made for teacher appreciation day. It was a little sweeter than sending a thank-you card with the same message :)))) And my guess is- a little more appreciated :))

Brother and Sister Cakes :)

These were cakes for a brother and sister born a few days apart.
One chocolate in pink with white rosettes, one vanilla in blue with white seashells :) Both sweet :)

Squiggles Cake :)

I was just having fun with this one- made it for a friends' party and did whatever I felt like.
It's therapeutic to do this once in a while :)

Birthday Cake with Scrolls

First attempt at scrolls- need a lot more practicing :) But my neighbor was happy anyway. :)

50th Birthday Cake

Lots of flowers (royal icing) in a white basket- this is what the biethday lady wanted because it reminded her of her bridal shower cake :)
Three layers- vanilla, chocolate, vanilla; all buttercream frosting as per customer's request. 

Testimonial:
"Nadia,
The cake was unbelievable....everyone raved!! I can't wait for another piece tomorrow. Thank you so much. S."

Mother's Day Cake

This was a lemon cake with buttercream frosting I made for Mother's Day. It had a basket weave on the side and buttercream roses on top: special, feminine and dainty- just like my Mom! It was worth the extra time I spent on it: Mom loved it!



Lemon Cake

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs

2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable or canola oil

1 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract

zest of one large lemon

freshly squeezed juice from one large lemon

1/2 cup milk

 

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and line two 9-inch round baking pans with parchment paper.

 

In a medium size bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

 

In the bowl of your electric mixer, beat eggs and sugar until thick and creamy (about 2 minutes).

Blend oil and sour cream. Add vanilla and lemon extracts, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Mix to incorporate.

 

Add flour and milk, alternating- starting and finishing with flour.

Divide batter evenly between the two pans. Bake about 28-30 minutes or until they test done. 

 

 

Vanilla Buttercream FrostingIngredients:
1 1/2 cup (3 sticks butter), at room temperature
1/2 cup shortening (I know, it's not the best thing for you, but you need it to give stability to the frosting, especially if you are going to be piping a basketweave, as in this case)
1/2 tsp salt
8 cups (about 2 lbs) powdered sugar, sifted
1-2 tsp pure vanilla extract (or the flavor of your choice)
5-6 tbsps (or more) heavy whipping cream, or half-and-half, or whole milk

Directions:
In the work bowl of your stand mixer, beat butter and shortening on medium-high until very smooth and creamy (2-3 minutes). 

Add sifted powdered sugar gradually (covering your mixer with a towel to avoid clouds of powdered sugar all over your kitchen), and continue creaming until well blended. 

Add salt, vanilla, and  whipping cream/ half-and-half/ milk. Blend on low speed until moistened. Add additional 1-2 tbsps whipping cream if necessary. Beat at high speed until frosting is light and fluffy.                

* Note: This frosting recipe produces a lot of frosting, but if you are going to be piping a basketweave on the sides and roses on top, you will need to have enough, and a little bit leftover. My grandmother always used to say, "In order to have enough of anything, you should really have leftovers". :)

 



My birthday cake :)

This is the cake i made for my own birthday. It was chocolate with buttercream frosting. I decided to do cornelli lace on it and was pretty pleased with how it turned out- seeing as it was my very first attempt at this technique. :) Happy birthday to me! :)))