A piece of cake!

Well, the summer is here and soon it will be 'Bake-Off' season. I am no Mary Berry, but I do love a bit of stirring, mixing, and cake faffing! The latter being the operative word! I have always tried to make a special effort with the childrens' birthday cakes, since the day I became mum. It's the one thing I love to do for them, because nothing beats the surprise and excitement on their little faces as they puff out those candles! My oldest turned thirteen this weekend...Bear with my while I just sit down for a bit to let that sink in....thirteen...I am the owner of a teenager...Help! Well, of course I had to make a little effort with her cake again, as it's a rather special birthday.

Now, I can't and don't do 'fancy'...My skills don't stretch that far, and smoothly perfected masterpieces is not something I even want to attempt. But I can do rustic! So, with the very popular trend of  'naked cakes' gracing wedding and celebration tables around the world, I thought I'd have a go at making one for my girl. It is a lot easier than having to drape a cake in flawless fondant icing! I merely baked four layers of sponge cake, iced them together with buttercream, and didn't even have to bother with the sides! The idea is to spread none, or just a very thin layer of icing round the sides so that all the layers are visible. Easy..a piece of cake! The fun part was dressing the top. I used fresh roses, daisies, some handpicked sweets, sprinkles, quirky flags and bon-bon toppers. Voila! A very rustic naked cake!

And she loved it...Phew!

Blessings

Another birthday...

And so it happened. Again. Another year older. Sometimes I wish life had a pause button, just so that I could make the good times last a little longer. My children are growing taller, and getting older, and I feel that time is slipping through my fingers. I blinked, and the boy is eleven...

We celebrated with a special family dinner. I cooked his favourite...South African chicken, broccoli and spinach, baked in creamy mayo and mushroom yumminess, topped with a mountain of cheese, and cheese and onion crisps (chips!) for extra crunch! This boy left his heart in South Africa the last time we visited, so we thought a little African celebration would cheer him up on his birthday. We decked the table out with touches from our homeland....Safari place mats sewn by my mum-in-law, bright, bold sunflowers, pineapple fruit punch, and a choccy cake for a centre piece.

Now, the cake was inspired by one of my favourite bloggers, the lovely Alicia Paulson of 'Posy gets cozy'. She made THIS gorgeous cake, and it has undoubtedly become a popular pin in the world of Pinterest! I opted for a chocolate version, topped with a few animals from the play box, all dressed up with cheerful party hats. I added sprinkles to the side of the cake, with the idea that it would resemble African beads...the jury is still out on that one! But my boy loved it!

And so he is another year older. I am very proud of the caring, loving, thoughtful young man he is growing up to be, and yes, I wish I could squeeze his chubby little legs just one more time, and have those 'monkey cuddles' for a few moments once again, but I also embrace the newness of this lanky eleven year old with the gentle nature. For now, he is still my baby...Happy birthday Nath!

Blessings