The month of October seemed to fly by really fast. I was constantly busy with my internship with the FHWA-Iowa Division, online class, traveling back home, and cake orders. I also celebrated my 24th birthday this month, but didn't have time to make a fancy cake, so I settled for delicious cupcakes instead. I'm hoping the next few months won't be as busy so I can catch my breath and prepare for my last semester at Iowa State University.
So the first cake I made in the month of October was a TARDIS cake from the TV show Doctor Who. The TARDIS is a time machine and spacecraft that can transport its occupants to any point in time and any place in the universe. This cake was made for a big fan of Doctor Who for their birthday. I decided to make the cake extra special by placing a working LED light on top of the cake since the TARDIS in the show has a light on top that glows. The cake is German Chocolate with Chocolate Ganache. When I first started making the cake, I stacked all the square layers of cake on top of each other with the ganache in between each layer. I noticed the cake started leaning to the side, so I decided to stick a wooden dowel in the middle of the cake tower. This really didn't help with the leaning. I didn't want the cake to topple over when I was transporting it, so I decided to cut a wood base and glue a PVC pipe in the middle for stronger support. I then threaded the cake through the PVC pipe and the leaning went away. Once I had the cake in place, I squared up the edges of the cake, frosted the outside, and placed the fondant detail. To make the cake look more authentic, I used edible black paint to add shading and dimension. I finished off the cake by placing a battery operated LED light on top.
So the first cake I made in the month of October was a TARDIS cake from the TV show Doctor Who. The TARDIS is a time machine and spacecraft that can transport its occupants to any point in time and any place in the universe. This cake was made for a big fan of Doctor Who for their birthday. I decided to make the cake extra special by placing a working LED light on top of the cake since the TARDIS in the show has a light on top that glows. The cake is German Chocolate with Chocolate Ganache. When I first started making the cake, I stacked all the square layers of cake on top of each other with the ganache in between each layer. I noticed the cake started leaning to the side, so I decided to stick a wooden dowel in the middle of the cake tower. This really didn't help with the leaning. I didn't want the cake to topple over when I was transporting it, so I decided to cut a wood base and glue a PVC pipe in the middle for stronger support. I then threaded the cake through the PVC pipe and the leaning went away. Once I had the cake in place, I squared up the edges of the cake, frosted the outside, and placed the fondant detail. To make the cake look more authentic, I used edible black paint to add shading and dimension. I finished off the cake by placing a battery operated LED light on top.
The next three orders for the month of October were for cupcakes. The first cupcake order was for my co-worker's 40th birthday, which happened to be one day away from my birthday. His favorite food is bananas, so naturally I made banana cupcakes. For the frosting I made a lemon buttercream and topped the cupcakes with a banana chip.
The next cupcake order was for my birthday cupcakes. I love Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, so I decided to replicate the flavor combination in cupcake form. I used my chocolate cake recipe for the cupcake. I then filled the cupcake with chocolate ganache, topped it with my peanut butter frosting, and placed a Reese's Peanut Butter cup on top. I finished the cupcake off with a drizzle of chocolate ganache. The cupcakes tasted exactly like Reese's Peanut Butter cups and were delicious.
The last cupcake order was for a Halloween party I helped host. I cheated and bought pre-made Wilton royal icing knives I saw in the store (which tasted horrible). I used red piping gel for the "blood" and made my peanut butter frosting to top off the cupcake. If I were to make these cupcakes again, I would probably make the knives myself out of my tasty fondant so at least you could eat the topper without breaking your teeth.
The last cake for the month of October was for the son of my Physical Therapist. I had made red velvet cupcakes around Valentines Day for my Physical Therapist as a thank you to help get me back in shape after my back surgery, which he then brought home to his family. His son really loved my cupcakes and wanted my red velvet cake for his birthday this month. I made a simple 1/4 sheet cake covered with my cream cheese frosting and decorated the cake with fondant cutouts of a few of his favorite things.
Well that's all the cakes and cupcakes I made for the month of October. Coming up next month I have two cow cake orders and a few other cakes, so stay tuned.
~Mary
~Mary