Cutting Up With Cake

Beloved left town to go turkey hunting. Do I miss him? Yes, but not nearly as much as when he left me here with three small children :) Now, I consider it a little “me” time…time to play in the kitchen.

Does anyone remember this book? I found it while going through my mother’s recipes. It is a freebie published by Baker’s Coconut. I’m pretty sure those scribbles are mine….must have been learning to make the letter 8! I remember looking at this book as child. I wanted one of these cakes…I wanted to know how to do it. Anyway, although my mother never made one of these to my knowledge, she must have had good intentions. Time to rectify that.

I must be going through a “buggy” stage of life. Lately butterflies, bumblebees, and fireflies seem to be creeping into my thoughts, food and decor. You may remember I made butterfly cookies for Easter. You can see those here. I had promised a friend a birthday cake and decided to give the butterfly cake a try.

DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT NOW, NOR HAVE I EVER BEEN A BAKER. You’ll soon believe me :)

I started out with white cake mix in a rectangular 9x13 pan. I made two cake mixes and used about 1 1/2 of the batter. One cake mix just seemed a little flat and I wanted a big fat fluffy butterfly. I lined the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. This is one instance where sticking won’t do –I know these little tips because I tried one last month too. It ended up in the garbage disposal :) Cut the cake in five pieces—one at the bottom about one inch wide and four triangles. Be absolutely sure the cake is cool before cutting---another tip from my previous fiasco :) I used a serrated bread knife for cutting.

Assemble the pieces on the tray or platter you plan to use to present it. One of my wings lapped over a bit, but it was no problem. I made two batches of cream cheese frosting tinted with yellow food coloring. You can find the recipe here. Two recipes was a bit too much. However, with a bag of vanilla wafers in the pantry, this presents no problem for me :)

Now for the fun! I frosted the sides first. You will be frosting some cut edges so be sure to wipe the crumbs off your knife or spatula to avoid crumbs in the icing. I decided to skip the coconut (sorry, Baker’s). I bought an assortment of gummy worms and gum drops. These cut more easily and with cleaner edges if you use kitchen shears dipped in warm water. The result is definitely not ready for the food channel but fun and worth the effort. Even a little closure for me-now I can make 8’s and butterfly cakes too :)

Fanny the Fish is next on the agenda!

Michael Lee West is hosting Foodie Friday (on Friday, of course) I’ll be linking up with her. She always has something beautiful and good to share. Join her and a long list of “foodies” by clicking on her button on my sidebar! Thanks for visiting!

Red Velvet …The Easy Way

I’ve been away from Foodie Friday too long..not that I haven’t been cooking. I am glad to be joining Michael again at Designs by Gollum. It’s been a long busy day here. The soup and salad luncheon was a success. The weather was very cold and just right for hot mugs of soup followed by dessert by a roaring fire…the real kind :)

We love red velvet cake and there is nothing more festive for the holidays, but frankly, it’s a lot of trouble. I found this recipe that has all the taste and none of the three layer hassle. It was pronounced a hit by the luncheon group and put in my “keeper” file ! These cookies are slightly bigger than the usual cookie, but you can make them whatever size suits you.

Red Velvet Cookies

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup butter, softened

1 1/4 cups sugar

2 large eggs

2 Tbsp. liquid red food coloring

2 Tbsp. vanilla extract

3/4 cup buttermilk

Parchment paper

Cream cheese frosting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine first five ingredients in a bowl. Beat butter (separate bowl) at medium speed until creamy. Gradually add sugar and beat well. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat after each addition. Beat in food coloring and vanilla. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Beat on low speed until blended. Drop by 1/4 cupsful three inches apart onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Use a spoon to spread into three inch rounds. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or until tops are set. Cool on baking sheets for five minutes and transfer to wire racks until cooled completely. Spread cream cheese frosting onto cookie and garnish. Crumble one cookie into fine crumbs to use for garnish.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 ( 8 0z) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Dash of salt

16 oz powdered sugar

Beat first four ingredients until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar and beat at low speed until smooth.

This recipe is long; don’t be intimidated. It couldn’t be easier!

I thought you might enjoy seeing my co-hostess for the luncheon. I don’t know that I‘ll ask her again. She’s not much of a cook and hates doing dishes :). She does make up for it in her sense of fashion though! Click on the Foodie Friday button for more recipes and fun!