Cake is Not Required

So when it comes to my girls and their birthday cakes I aim to please! One year my oldest wanted an apple pie, so by golly, that's what I made for her!! As a crafty person I am bound to an unwritten contract (in my head) that says I should do the cakes myself and not order them from a bakery. I have cheated here and there over the years, but I have also had a ton of fun making different cakes. I think one the best cakes I ever did was SpongeBob, that was a real fun cake to do!!

Two of my girls just had their birthdays in September. Natalie wanted a Monster High cake and it came out ok, but I was battling a shoulder injury at the time and I only had use of one arm. I was also a bit limited on time since the injury was a new and unexpected development. I was honestly surprised to receive compliments on it. lol

Thank goodness for sugar sheets...love those things! I can use my Stampin' Up! punches with these colorful sheets of sugar and press them right into the cake...which is how I added the black bats and hearts. The pink "trim" around the top layer is another sheet. I cut 2 inch strips on my paper trimmer and lined the cake with them. It was too easy!

Sydney just finally had her annual costume birthday party last Saturday. She wanted a cake that looked like a blue monster...and no, it's not the cookie monster, but similar. lol I was planning to make a mouth with black icing gel, but got distracted and never piped it on..still cute as is I think.

This wasn't even really cake. I was pressing her for a flavor decision and she asked me if I could make pumpkin bread instead. Hmmm, well, I guess why not! So I mixed up a batch of my moms recipe since it's the BEST, and poured it into 3 cake rounds. 2 of them were 9" pans and my 3rd one is a smaller size that came in a set of 4 layering pans. I was guesstimating on baking time, so I set my timer for 45 minutes with all three pans in the oven. I pulled the little one out with about 4 minutes to go and it passed the toothpick test. Went ahead and pulled the other two pans and they passed too. Baked to perfection!

Once they were cooled I just stacked them up without leveling them or even adding frosting between the layers. The little one was on top and I used extra frosting to round the sides...CREAM CHEESE frosting of course! I sprayed the whole thing blue with decorator spray, put two marshmallows on lollipop sticks and drew pupils with a food marker. Ta-da, eyes!

Birthday girl as Wednesday Addams...all the kids had fun locking each other in the Stocks we made last year!

This cake was a huge hit once we cut it up and the kids got a taste. I was told by 4 different kiddos that this was the best cake ever! Wow, thanks!



Sally's Pumpkin Bread
(makes 2 loaves)

1-1/2 cups sugar
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
1 cup veggie oil (I use olive oil)
1t nutmeg
2t cloves
4t cinnamon
1t salt
2t baking soda
2/3 cup water
3 cups flour (I always use whole wheat flour)
1 can (15 oz) Libby Pumpkin

Combine ingredients in the order given above in a large bowl. Spray pans well with cooking spray and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 75 - 90 minutes. If you do muffins, bake for 25 - 30 minutes and test for doneness. Pan, loaf, or muffins; I always do the toothpick test to make sure the bread is done in the center.