Summer Time Fun!

 Lately my blog posts haven't really been "topic" related...more along the lines of "Sweet Ivy Tries To Play Catch Up"...haha!

But that's ok!

I'm always excited to share my latest projects!

The cake above was for a co-worker's granddaughter.

She was celebrating her birthday and requested this special design!

I did 40 cupcakes and a small 6 inch cake for the birthday girl.

The cakes were all strawberry in flavor topped with a classic homemade buttercream.

The technique I did on the side of the 6 inch cake made me think of fishy fins...that's why I added that...last minute thought that came to me, ha!

Happy birthday Bella!

 This cookie platter was done for a friend of mine who has been going through a rough time physically lately.  When you're struggling physically, it's very easy to start struggling emotionally.  It's hard to stay positive while everyone around you is going about their usual routine.  I wanted to bring some cheer to my special friend.  I chose these bright cheerful colors and did a buttery vanilla cookie with royal icing décor.

My continued prayers are with you Kim!

 These cake pops were for a coworker of mine.

They were for someone's birthday.

They were done in French vanilla cake and dipped in white chocolate.

I added some pink and green sprinkles for extra cheer!

Happy birthday!

And lastly, I did this baby bouquet for a friend of ours.

We have a sweet friend who, twice this summer, has been our house-sitter, kitty-sitter, plant-waterer, mail-getter, set-out-the-trash-dumperer, and anything else I asked her to do!

She is the SWEETEST ever!

So I not only gifted her with cash, but also a Sweet Ivy Confections gift certificate.

And...being the kind person she is...she didn't even use the gift certificate on herself!

She requested a baby bouqet for her sister-in-law who was expecting a baby!

(I told you she was sweet!)

This bouquet included buttery vanilla cookies decorated in royal icing, and French vanilla cake pops dipped in white chocolate.

Congratulations to the new momma!

And thank-you to our sweet friend Selena!

Well, that wraps up my "Summer Catch-Up"...

I hope you had a wonderful summer!

I'm so looking forward to fall!

Not only the weather, but all of the baking that comes with it!

Beautiful autumn sugar cookies and pumpkin spice EVERYTHING!

If I can ever be of assistance with your birthdays, baby or wedding showers, parties, reunions, or whatever the event...just holla!

TTFN!

Happy Wedding Day!

 When I first began baking/decorating...I started out with cakes.

I took the Wilton Basics cake decorating class.

I had always wanted to learn cake decorating.

 As time went by, I got more into custom cookie decorating and cakes fell by the wayside.

I still had a yearning to learn more with cake decorating, but I never really had any requests.

So I didn't really have the opportunity to grow and learn.

 I also had some fears of cakes.

Then...

I got this request.

A wedding cake.

(aaaaggh!)

Major fear set in.  Could I do this?

Was I capable? 

I decided to go for it.

 After all, it was a fairly simple design and a fairly small cake.

I got this.  I can do this.

I read.  I studied. I watched videos. I asked questions.

I was ready.

 I set to work making the fondant flowers.  Amazingly enough, they were very easy!

It was like being a kid all over again and playing with playdough!

I honestly had a lot of fun with them.  I made homemade marshmallow fondant, tinted it lavender, and once finished...added a little luster dust for a pretty shimmer.

 The cake was a gluten-free vanilla with classic buttercream.

Fondant roses.

 The finished product in my frig.

I think it turned out pretty good for my first wedding cake!

After all, it was not only my first wedding cake...but my first gluten-free cake, my first stacked two-tier cake, and my first with fondant roses!

I'd say it was a success!

Not only did I do the small cake for the bride and groom...

I also did 400...yes FOUR HUNDRED...cake pops for dessert for the guests.

I did 200 chocolate and 200 vanilla.

It was a really nerve-wracking, but overall a great experience and one that I was truly happy with.

Congratulations to the bride and groom!

Wishing you a lifetime of health and happiness!

Cookies And Cupcakes And Cake...My First Graduation Open House!

 My first graduation open house.

My son's.

I survived!
I didn't know what I was doing.

I went into it blindly, but I "think" I did pretty good!

Son says it was a success!

If he's happy, I'm happy!

I thought all of the food and decorations turned out pretty great.

You can read more about the actual open house and see all of the decorations on my personal blog at:
http://www.melodysmuse-melody.blogspot.com/2014/06/lets-get-party-startedmy-sons.html

 I made chocolate and vanilla cut-out cookies.

I flooded them with glaze and did royal icing detailing.

But first I played with my new airbrush and some stencils.

I'm still getting the hang of that thing.

It's gonna be a while before I perfect it, but it's fun to play with!

 Some more of the cookies...

We served cupcakes to all of the guests, but I told my son that we had to have a bigger cake in school colors with his name...even if it were just for looks!  LOL!

We decided it would serve as "back-up" if we ran out of cupcakes, LOL!  With an open house, you never know how many guests you'll end up with!  Thankfully we had plenty of cupcakes.

I did a frozen buttercream transfer for our Chix mascot logo.

 I added his name on the front/side in cookies!

 We did a yellow cake with classic buttercream.

 I thought it was pretty cute!

 I added cookie pops to his graduating year!

We served chocolate, french vanilla, and confetti cupcakes.

I did a vanilla buttercream and a chocolate almond buttercream.

Don't forget to check out the full party post on my other blog!

Congratulations Evan!

We're so proud of you!

Just A Simple Little Birthday Cake...For Me!

February 6th was my birthday.

I hate to say, "The older you get, birthdays just aren't as special"...but I don't know.

It's kind of true.

I mean, I don't have a problem with getting older...

I'm grateful for the life God has blessed me with.

I am healthy and blessed with an amazing family!

But "aging" is quite another thing for me.

I hate the whole aging process...wrinkles, gray hair, sagging skin, gaining weight.

The physical appearance takes A LOT more maintenance, that's for sure!

So, I'm fighting it every step of the way.

I've got a bathroom stocked with wrinkle cream, hair color, tanning and toning lotions.

You name it, I try it, LOL!

But anyway...I am not one to get all depressed about birthdays...I choose to celebrate LIFE instead of getting older.

I have a nice dinner out with my family, eat a piece of cake, and just go on about my day as any other day.  Ha!

This year I didn't really do anything major.

Just made a simple white cake with classic buttercream.

I did it in my favorite colors...pink and yellow.

And made it nice and girly...lots of ruffles.

I also tried something new.

I made flowers out of white chocolate.

I melted it down, and piped it onto wax paper.

After it chilled and dried, I peeled it off and popped them onto the cake!

Voila!

Pretty cute!

I had a nice birthday.

My youngest son had a band concert that night, and I always enjoy hearing both of my boys play in the band.

What is YOUR favorite birthday dessert?

I think next year I'll make a homemade cheesecake! 

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Cake...

I did this cake for the 5th birthday of a little guy last week.

My son's are teenagers now, so it's been a long time since I've been around TMNTs.

I had to do some research and ask a lot of questions regarding colors, names, weapons of each turtle, LOL!  But it was a really fun cake to do.  

I created a frozen buttercream transfer for the turtle.  I don't know why, but FBT always scare me.  Maybe it stems from the first time I ever attempted one.  Years ago, I decided to try my first FBT.  I was making my husband's birthday cake and because he is a Detroit Lions fan, I decided to create a FBT of the logo for his cake.  Well, it LOOKED awesome...ON THE WAX PAPER.  However, when I went to peel it OFF the wax paper and place it on the cake, it became a crumbled mess.  After speaking with a friend and fellow baker, she explained that I made it way too thin.  That was the problem.  I have since learned just how thick they have to be (VERY).  Ever since I started creating them thicker (and adding a layer of plain icing over the back), I have had nothing but success with them!  Yay!  The reveal is always so much fun (and a little nerve-wracking).  But when you see your image come off that wax paper and come alive...it's such a neat feeling!

I did this cake in french vanilla cake and a classic butterceam icing.

I enjoy doing sheet cakes.  I know sculpted cakes and huge tiered cakes are all the rage right now.  But when I'm "eating" cake, there's nothing better than a great moist sheet cake with some good 'ol fashion homemade buttercream.  

Yum-O!
Happy birthday Corbin!

I hope you enjoyed your cake!

Fresh Harvest Apple Cake

I posted the recipe to this cake a while back.

I make it every fall.

Last night was the first night I'd made it this year.

Every year I make it...it's just as good as I remember from the previous year!

This cake is so moist and tender.

Your house will smell just like autumn while it bakes.

So if you've been apple picking, or just have the taste for a good apple cake...this is the recipe for you!

You can find it in my previous post "here".

Let me know what you think!

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

A "Toy Story/Buzz Lightyear" Birthday Theme...

I was super excited when one of my daycare clients asked me to do the desserts for her daughter's birthday party.  However, a little apprehensive when I found out it was "character" cookies and cake.  It's not that I dislike character cakes/cookies...I really love them and they're a lot of fun.  However...there is a lot of pressure to make the end result look identical to the character.  People have expectations as to what the character should look like...as do I.  This means that I am VERY critical of my work.  I am constantly critiquing my work.  It's a tough balance.  But I have to say, in the end, for an amateur...I was happy with the results of this cake and cookies.

 

 This was a chocolate cake with homemade classic buttercream icing.

 

 I made a frozen buttercream transfer for Buzz.  I have to admit, I was terrified.  I have only done 3 or 4 FBTs since I started cake decorating.  The first was a total flop (if you remember the Detroit Lions story).  But I have since learned the tricks of the trade thanks to several of my baking buddies and the last several I've done have turned out great!  As I peeled the wax paper off of Buzz, my heart was pounding...my stomach was in knots...but alas...SUCCESS!

 This was the transfer I piped before freezing it.

Next came the cookies!  I am never satisfied with my character cookies.

And although I got loads of compliments on them when I posted the pictures on Facebook, I still am my own worst critic.

Jessie gave me the most trouble.  Her mouth was very difficult to master for me.

And then of course, my husband had to point out, that I gave her blue eyes instead of green!  Oh my gosh...how in the world did I screw that one up!?!

Hopefully no one else noticed...except that I just told everyone on the world wide web now, LOL!

Hopefully the birthday girl enjoyed her treats.
I had a blast making them.
Happy birthday Addison!

Recipe...Coconut Poppy Seed Cake

This recipe is a simple one that's great for potlucks, family gatherings, or any time you need an easy dessert!

I got it from my friend Shelly years ago, and I'm sure she won't care if I pass it on (right Shel?)...hehe!

Because recipes are meant to be shared!

I've never been a huge fan of "top secret" recipes.

Now that's no fun, is it?

This recipe is great because I love coconut.  It also has poppy seeds in it which give it a nice little "pop" when you bite into it.

Disclaimer:  If you have to take a drug test in the near future for a physical or a potential job, you may not want to eat this cake, LOL!  It's FILLED with poppy seeds!  Ha!

Ok...here we go...

Coconut Poppy Seed Cake

1 pkg. (18-1/4 oz) white cake mix

1/4 cup poppy seeds

1/4 tsp. coconut extract

3 1/2 cupcs cold milk

2 pkgs. (3.4 oz. each) instant coconut cream pudding mix

1 carton (8 oz.) frozen whipped topping, thawed

1/3 cup flaked coconut, toasted

Prepare cake according to package directions, adding poppy seeds and coconut extract to batter.  Pour into a greased 9x13 pan.  Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.  Cool completely.  In a mixing bowl, beat milk and pudding mix on low speed for 2 minutes.  Spread over the cake.  Spread with whipped topping.  Sprinkle with coconut.  Yield 20-24 servings.

I hope you enjoy this recipe!

This is a great addition to your Easter dinner, a springtime brunch or any potluck!

Hope you like it!

Dirt Bike Themed Birthday Cake!

This order came from a local friend of mine for her little guy's birthday!

I had never done a dirt bike theme, so I was a little nervous!

What I ended up going with was a simple 1/4 sheet cake.

Piped A LOT of green grass...

A dirt path with chocolate buttercream...

And some "hills" with "cake pop" mixture!

(crumbled cake and icing)

And for texture used cookie crumbs!

My friend gave it the finishing touch by adding the two little dirt bikes, as you can see in the first picture.

Happy birthday little one!



Milestone Birthday...For My Hunny!

I made a birthday cake for my hunny.

It was a milestone birthday.

Shhhhh...

I'm not allowed to say "which" milestone it was though, LOL!

But I will tell you the cake was good.

A moist yellow cake with lucious homemade chocolate buttercream.

Ummm...good!

Happy birthday hubby!