Jen
06-17-2005, 12:58 AM
As I posted earlier, we held DD's 1st birthday party on Saturday (it took me a few days to get the photos uploaded so I haven't posted until now).
Many, many thanks to Val - she recommended the Bonnie Butter Cake (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=74435&highlight=bonnie+butter+cake) and it was fabulous. It was exactly what I wanted - simple, not too heavy or eggy, but sturdy enough to stand up to decorating. And it was really delicious for a yellow cake - it had a wonderful buttery flavour. I would highly recommend it! I actually made it twice - the first time in a 9x13 pan (see below) and the second time as a batch of cupcakes, with a smaller cake as well for Amanda's "personal" cake.
With the 9x13, I made a "1" cake which turned out really well. I am not a cake decorator by any stretch of the imagination, so I was really pleased with how well this worked! Basically, I trimmed the edges off the cake to get rid of the brown bits and so it was all of even height. Then I cut it in half lengthwise to get two long skinny cakes. One I left intact, and the other I cut in half and chopped up more to get the rest of the 1:
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stbirthday/cakemap.bmp
Not sure if that is clear...I tried to do a simple drawing to map it out. The proportions are all messed up, but it was much better in real life!
I iced the cake with a simple cream cheese frosting that's been posted here before, from Canadian Living (here (http://www.canadianliving.com/CanadianLiving/client/en/Food/DetailRecipe.asp?idRe=3245) is a link). It was quite soft and easy to work with. I tinted it pink, then I decorated with cut strawberries.
I was SO pleased with how this turned out! Not only was it beautiful but it was really delicious. Several people thought we had bought it from a bakery!
Anyway, I wanted to share because this was really easy to do (if I can do it, anyone can!) and I think it would be nice for other occasions too, like a 1st Anniversary party. It also wasn't a huge cake...it was just right for 12 adults, with not-too-big pieces. And the cupcakes left over lasted for several days covered on the counter (we ate the last ones last night).
Here are the photos:
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stBirthday/cake2.jpg
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stBirthday/cake1.jpg
And here was the individual cake I made for Amanda...
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stBirthday/cake3.jpg
As for the rest of the party...as I posted earlier, we were just doing snacks since it was an afternoon party, and we didn't want anything too fancy. We just had chips and salsa with a purchased artichoke-jalapeno dip, a cold Greek pizza my mom made (that famous Pampered Chef recipe), veggie and fruit plates, and antipasto kabobs which I improvised from several ideas on the boards.
To make 36 kabobs:
Marinade - 1/2 cup olive oil (could easily reduce), 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1 tbsp dried basil, 1 tbsp dried oregano, s&p
Whisked together in a 8x8" dish. Added 36 chunks of campari tomatoes; 36 cooked cheese tortellini; 36 cubes (1/2" or so square) mozzarella. Covered and marinated overnight in fridge.
Next day, made skewers: used regular bamboo skewers, cut in half with scissors. On each, put: 1 slice salami, 1 Kalamata olive, 1 chunk tomato, 1 piece tortellini, 1 chunk cheese, and 1 Sicilian olive.
Served on a platter with baguette slices for sopping up the marinade.
They were delicious!! I would absolutely make these again in a heartbeat. They were simple but delicious and everyone loved them. They were also perfect because they were a bit heartier than the other food we had, so people felt like they were getting a substantial amount of food.
Anyway, just wanted to let you all know what we ended up with since I had posted a few questions...and again, a huge thank you to valchemist for her recommendation on the cake!
Many, many thanks to Val - she recommended the Bonnie Butter Cake (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=74435&highlight=bonnie+butter+cake) and it was fabulous. It was exactly what I wanted - simple, not too heavy or eggy, but sturdy enough to stand up to decorating. And it was really delicious for a yellow cake - it had a wonderful buttery flavour. I would highly recommend it! I actually made it twice - the first time in a 9x13 pan (see below) and the second time as a batch of cupcakes, with a smaller cake as well for Amanda's "personal" cake.
With the 9x13, I made a "1" cake which turned out really well. I am not a cake decorator by any stretch of the imagination, so I was really pleased with how well this worked! Basically, I trimmed the edges off the cake to get rid of the brown bits and so it was all of even height. Then I cut it in half lengthwise to get two long skinny cakes. One I left intact, and the other I cut in half and chopped up more to get the rest of the 1:
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stbirthday/cakemap.bmp
Not sure if that is clear...I tried to do a simple drawing to map it out. The proportions are all messed up, but it was much better in real life!
I iced the cake with a simple cream cheese frosting that's been posted here before, from Canadian Living (here (http://www.canadianliving.com/CanadianLiving/client/en/Food/DetailRecipe.asp?idRe=3245) is a link). It was quite soft and easy to work with. I tinted it pink, then I decorated with cut strawberries.
I was SO pleased with how this turned out! Not only was it beautiful but it was really delicious. Several people thought we had bought it from a bakery!
Anyway, I wanted to share because this was really easy to do (if I can do it, anyone can!) and I think it would be nice for other occasions too, like a 1st Anniversary party. It also wasn't a huge cake...it was just right for 12 adults, with not-too-big pieces. And the cupcakes left over lasted for several days covered on the counter (we ate the last ones last night).
Here are the photos:
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stBirthday/cake2.jpg
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stBirthday/cake1.jpg
And here was the individual cake I made for Amanda...
http://www.cabralda.com/amanda/celebrations/1stBirthday/cake3.jpg
As for the rest of the party...as I posted earlier, we were just doing snacks since it was an afternoon party, and we didn't want anything too fancy. We just had chips and salsa with a purchased artichoke-jalapeno dip, a cold Greek pizza my mom made (that famous Pampered Chef recipe), veggie and fruit plates, and antipasto kabobs which I improvised from several ideas on the boards.
To make 36 kabobs:
Marinade - 1/2 cup olive oil (could easily reduce), 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1 tbsp dried basil, 1 tbsp dried oregano, s&p
Whisked together in a 8x8" dish. Added 36 chunks of campari tomatoes; 36 cooked cheese tortellini; 36 cubes (1/2" or so square) mozzarella. Covered and marinated overnight in fridge.
Next day, made skewers: used regular bamboo skewers, cut in half with scissors. On each, put: 1 slice salami, 1 Kalamata olive, 1 chunk tomato, 1 piece tortellini, 1 chunk cheese, and 1 Sicilian olive.
Served on a platter with baguette slices for sopping up the marinade.
They were delicious!! I would absolutely make these again in a heartbeat. They were simple but delicious and everyone loved them. They were also perfect because they were a bit heartier than the other food we had, so people felt like they were getting a substantial amount of food.
Anyway, just wanted to let you all know what we ended up with since I had posted a few questions...and again, a huge thank you to valchemist for her recommendation on the cake!