Birthday Cake Design Ideas You Can Use Easily

Every birthday is a special day that deserves recognition and celebration. These are days that can commemorate the accomplishments of the past year or give good wishes for the year to come.

No matter whether the birthday is for someone who is six or sixty, a magnificent cake will help create an unforgettable memory. Any time you have to create a birthday masterpiece there are a couple of things to keep in mind: the celebrant's interests and your own abilities.

For non-bakers, consider getting yourself a cake decorating kit. These will have tools to help you create many different designs easily with your icing. Instead of simply writing "Happy Birthday _______", try to put some substance around it. A theme is a good idea. Many popular books, movies, and TV shows have toys, cards, and novelty items that can be used on a cake.

It is easy to make a basic rectangular cake, frost it green, make white, regularly spaced lines on it, and with a couple of plastic novelty toys you have a football field for the sports lover.

Another easy sport cake is a round cake frosted white with red, curved, dotted lines to make a baseball.

If you have a bit more baking experience you may want to build the cake up a bit. Creating a completely edible landscape cake can be lots of fun. If your child is interested in science you can bake one rectangular cake, two dome cakes (one baked in a 4-liter pyrex bowl and the other in a 2-liter bowl), and cupcakes. The rectangular cake is frosted green (or any other color to make a landscape).

The dome cakes are placed on the rectangular cake, the largest first and the smaller on top of it, with a cupcake placed on top of the smaller cake. This creates a mountain or volcano that can be covered with chocolate frosting.

If you want it to be a volcano you can scoop out the top of the cupcake and use a red frosting or homemade candy lava to put in the top of the cupcake and run rivulets down the side.

Use toys to place it in a forest or city, or use different colored frosting to put it near a river. If you want to use vanilla frosting, it can become a winter scene with a ski hill. Cakes can be really versatile!

Technically oriented individuals can try to take it to the next level: animated cakes. These cakes have moving parts and work well with a theme based cake. For example, if your child loves fairies you can make a rectangular cake. Using icing and fondant cover it with flowers, or other forest ground cover. A 30rpm motor will work with most things, but double check for yours. Place the motor inside half a plastic bottle covered in fondant to look like a stump. Use paper or light plastic fairies and attach them to the motor with thin wire to spin around the cake! You are limited only by your imagination.

Click here to read the second part of this article where we talk about wedding cake decorating fundamentals.

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Quotes For Birthday Cakes

All birthday cakes has usual message on them that is "Happy Birthday". This is one of the traditional ways in which people inscribe birthday greetings on cakes. If you are looking to make it a bit different then decorate it in your own special way and write a personalized message on the cake that would deliver your feeling of happiness, celebration and humor.

There are a number of birthday cake quotes that are available on the web. You can look for birthday cake quotations or make your own quotation that would bring a big smile to the face of the person who is celebrating his or her birthday. Some of the best birthday cake quotations are mentioned here:

Youth has no age. - Pablo Picasso
May you live all the days of your life. - Jonathan Swift
Life is too short to be small. - Benjamin Disraeli

Putting up a quotation on the birthday cake is the best of sending your message to the person whom you love. These quotes apart from being funny convey the real feeling that you have towards the person. The quotations are written by some of the finest authors and have a true birthday message in them.

So, the next time that you are ready to bake a birthday cake look up for some funky meaningful quotations that can add a punch to your cake and also bring smile to the faces of the people who are present on the occasion and especially to the person whose birthday is being celebrated. Have your own add on to the quotations to make it sound even funnier.

If you are looking for more information then feel free to visit Birthday Cake and Cute Baby Quotes

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The Best Birthday Cake Decorating Ideas in Just 5 Minutes

Your kid is about to have his birthday in just a couple of ideas and you are probably now wondering about decorating ideas for the birthday cake. You are tempted to just purchase the ice-cream cake or mud cake from the local shop to save you time and to not be worried about the cake. However, will your kid really enjoy this? It's unlikely, so here are the best birthday cake decorating ideas for your kid's special day.

1. Decorate the cake based on a certain theme. You probably already know what your kid likes and you can be assured that they will be rapt if their cake is decorated accordingly. For example, if you kid loves soccer, then he will simply adore a cake decorated as a soccer field with goals on either end.

2. Cover your cake with sweets. There's no cake more delicious and irresistible than one completely covered with your kid's favourite sweets. You can buy packets of sweets from the shops and stick them on top all over the cake.

3. Don't settle for the traditional square or round shaped cake. These days almost all cakes are either in the shape of a square or circle. Why do you have to do the same? Your kid might like dinosaurs, and they will be happy if the cake was in the shape of a dinosaur. This may take more time and effort but it will certainly be worth it in the end.

My only hope is that the birthday cake decorating ideas presented in this article will greatly assist you in making your kid's birthday a special occasion.

Martin Sejas is a guest columnist of http://www.CleverCakes.com/, a website focused on giving individuals practical tips and advice on birthday cake decorating ideas to make amazing cake decorations for all occasions.

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Celebrating a Birthday? Where to Find the Best Birthday Cakes

For many of us the best days of the year are birthdays, and frequently not even when they are our own special day! Birthdays are perfect occasions to get together with friends and family to enjoy each other's company. It's a time where we treasure each other's company in the world that is often chaotic and busy to allow us to do so as often as we would wish. Birthday cakes aren't essential part of this joyous celebration, and for many people their favorite part of the party. Since it's such an important part of the celebration many people give a lot of consideration when it comes time to choosing the birthday cake. One thing is for sure, the quality of the birthday cake speaks volumes, and we have got a couple of suggestions about where to find the best ones!

If the birthday that you are celebrating is during the spring or summer months, consider my favorite the ice cream cake! Of all the cakes, an ice cream cake is the most universally cherished and they come in a variety of sizes and flavors and price ranges making it perfect for large parties or even the most intimate of birthday celebrations. If you are lucky enough to have homemade ice cream shop in your town, you are in for a treat, the gourmet ice cream cakes they make will be worth the little extra you pay. If gourmet ice cream cakes are not for you, you can also find them at your typical ice cream chain stores, or in the freezer section of your local grocery store.

If ice cream is not your thing, then consider supporting your local bakery who make delicious pastries and cakes. These bakeries are often fondly remembered by people in the neighborhood. Why not buy your cake there? Is your birthday girl or boy vegan or vegetarian? Grocery stores like Whole Foods cater to these special dietary restrictions without sacrificing the delicious flavors necessary in a winning birthday cake. If you are making the cake yourself, it's a prime opportunity to add funny sayings, or frost the cake with their favorite colors. While the most important aspect of a birthday cake is to be delicious, just as important is that it is personal and something the birthday person will remember for years to come with a smile on their face and warm, wonderful, cherished memories of their party.

Elysse Biaca pursues numerous hobbies and life passions. Elysse thrives on writing about her experiences and sharing her knowledge with others. Elysse also writes on a variety of topics including one on selecting Baby Bjorn Carriers, which can be found at http://babybjorncarrier.net/.

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Extra Special Birthday Cake Made Easy

When it's your baby's first birthday you will want it to go with a bang and you can not afford to forget a really nice cake. It will be the main focus point that people will remember apart from your child that is. With the internet there is lots of ideas to gather and think about when picking your child's cake. There are now things called cake toppers that will do all the above for you. And with a couple of clicks the topper will be at your door.

When you come to order your birthday cake the online shop that you choose to use should have a really big catalog of topper for you to browse. Once you decide on a topper then it's just a case of ordering a really good shop should allow you to type your own inscription into the website and then apply this onto your item. Then all it will be of choosing what shipping you require I would say order early as this is always a good idea when ever you are doing a party.

It's very easy for the company to send you your product thought the post they should be sending them out in a board back envelope in a plastic food bag with full instructions on how to apply. You should have your product within the week depending on what postage you choose.

Now you have your topper ordered, thought a website of your choice, then there is the job of making a basic sponge recipe that is really easy, you could even buy a ready made sponge cake really cheaply then make it extra special with your cake topper.

For some great cake ideas and to buy a childrens birthday cake or why not try a Photo Cake

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Daring Bakers 9: Dobos Torta

Well I am sure a lot of you are asking the same thing I did when I saw this month's challenge, "what the heck is a Dobos Torta"? Whatever it was, I thought it sounded pretty exciting. Basically it consists of layers of sponge cake and chocolate buttercream, topped with thin wedges of caramel coated sponge cake.

The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.

The sponge and buttercream were pretty simple, but I had never made that style of chocolate buttercream before. To be honest, the thought of whole eggs kind of freaked me out, but it turned out to be delicious. I will definitely make it again. As for the sponge... well I just am not a big lover of sponge cake. I just feel like I'm missing out on something when I eat it! Mind you, I can't really comment on the overall taste of the cake because I never tried it. I did have a lot of trouble with the caramel wedges- I don't think I cooked the caramel long enough and it didn't set very well.

Dobos Torta

Sponge cake layers

• 6 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups (162g) confectioner's (icing) sugar, divided
• 1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (112g) sifted cake flour (SUBSTITUTE 95g plain flour + 17g cornflour (cornstarch) sifted together)
• pinch of salt

Directions for the sponge layers:

NB. The sponge layers can be prepared in advance and stored interleaved with parchment and well-wrapped in the fridge overnight.

1.Position the racks in the top and centre thirds of the oven and heat to 400F (200C).

2.Cut six pieces of parchment paper to fit the baking sheets. Using the bottom of a 9" (23cm) springform tin as a template and a dark pencil or a pen, trace a circle on each of the papers, and turn them over (the circle should be visible from the other side, so that the graphite or ink doesn't touch the cake batter.)

3.Beat the egg yolks, 2/3 cup (81g) of the confectioner's (icing) sugar, and the vanilla in a medium bowl with a mixer on high speed until the mixture is thick, pale yellow and forms a thick ribbon when the beaters are lifted a few inches above the batter, about 3 minutes. (You can do this step with a balloon whisk if you don't have a mixer.)

4.In another bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining 2/3 cup (81g) of confectioner's (icing)sugar until the whites form stiff, shiny peaks. Using a large rubber spatula, stir about 1/4 of the beaten whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the remainder, leaving a few wisps of white visible. Combine the flour and salt. Sift half the flour over the eggs, and fold in; repeat with the remaining flour.

5.Line one of the baking sheets with a circle-marked paper. Using a small offset spatula, spread about 3/4cup of the batter in an even layer, filling in the traced circle on one baking sheet. Bake on the top rack for 5 minutes, until the cake springs back when pressed gently in the centre and the edges are lightly browned. While this cake bakes, repeat the process on the other baking sheet, placing it on the centre rack. When the first cake is done, move the second cake to the top rack. Invert the first cake onto a flat surface and carefully peel off the paper. Slide the cake layer back onto the paper and let stand until cool. Rinse the baking sheet under cold running water to cool, and dry it before lining with another parchment. Continue with the remaining papers and batter to make a total of six layers. Completely cool the layers. Using an 8" springform pan bottom or plate as a template, trim each cake layer into a neat round. (A small serrated knife is best for this task.)

Chocolate Buttercream

• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup (200g) caster (ultrafine or superfine white) sugar
• 4oz (110g) bakers chocolate or your favourite dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons (250g) unsalted butter, at room temperature.

Directions for the chocolate buttercream:

NB. This can be prepared in advance and kept chilled until required.

1.Prepare a double-boiler: quarter-fill a large saucepan with water and bring it to a boil.

2.Meanwhile, whisk the eggs with the sugar until pale and thickened, about five minutes. You can use a balloon whisk or electric hand mixer for this.

3.Fit bowl over the boiling water in the saucepan (water should not touch bowl) and lower the heat to a brisk simmer. Cook the egg mixture, whisking constantly, for 2-3 minutes until you see it starting to thicken a bit. Whisk in the finely chopped chocolate and cook, stirring, for a further 2-3 minutes.

4.Scrape the chocolate mixture into a medium bowl and leave to cool to room temperature. It should be quite thick and sticky in consistency.

5.When cool, beat in the soft butter, a small piece (about 2 tablespoons/30g) at a time. An electric hand mixer is great here, but it is possible to beat the butter in with a spatula if it is soft enough. You should end up with a thick, velvety chocolate buttercream. Chill while you make the caramel topping.

Lorraine's note: If you're in Winter just now your butter might not soften enough at room temperature, which leads to lumps forming in the buttercream. Male sure the butter is of a very soft texture I.e. running a knife through it will provide little resistance, before you try to beat it into the chocolate mixture. Also, if you beat the butter in while the chocolate mixture is hot you'll end up with more of a ganache than a buttercream!

Caramel topping

• 1 cup (200g) caster (superfine or ultrafine white) sugar
• 12 tablespoons (180 ml) water
• 8 teaspoons (40 ml) lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil (e.g. grapeseed, rice bran, sunflower)

Directions for the caramel topping:

1.Choose the best-looking cake layer for the caramel top. To make the caramel topping: Line a jellyroll pan with parchment paper and butter the paper. Place the reserved cake layer on the paper. Score the cake into 12 equal wedges. Lightly oil a thin, sharp knife and an offset metal spatula.

2.Stir the sugar, water and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over a medium heat, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved into a smooth syrup, turn the heat up to high and boil without stirring, swirling the pan by the handle occasionally and washing down any sugar crystals on the sides of the pan with a wet brush until the syrup has turned into an amber-coloured caramel.

3.The top layer is perhaps the hardest part of the whole cake so make sure you have a oiled, hot offset spatula ready. I also find it helps if the cake layer hasn't just been taken out of the refrigerator. I made mine ahead of time and the cake layer was cold and the toffee set very, very quickly—too quickly for me to spread it. Immediately pour all of the hot caramel over the cake layer. You will have some leftover most probably but more is better than less and you can always make nice toffee pattern using the extra to decorate. Using the offset spatula, quickly spread the caramel evenly to the edge of the cake layer. Let cool until beginning to set, about 30 seconds. Using the tip of the hot oiled knife (keep re-oiling this with a pastry brush between cutting), cut through the scored marks to divide the caramel layer into 12 equal wedges. Cool another minute or so, then use the edge of the knife to completely cut and separate the wedges using one firm slice movement (rather than rocking back and forth which may produce toffee strands). Cool completely.

Angela's note: I recommend cutting, rather than scoring, the cake layer into wedges before covering in caramel (reform them into a round). If you have an 8” silicon round form, then I highly recommend placing the wedges in that for easy removal later and it also ensures that the caramel stays on the cake layer. Once set, use a very sharp knife to separate the wedges.

Finishing touches

• a 7” cardboard round
• 12 whole hazelnuts, peeled and toasted
• ½ cup (50g) peeled and finely chopped hazelnuts

Assembling the Dobos

1.Divide the buttercream into six equal parts.

2.Place a dab of chocolate buttercream on the middle of a 7 1/2” cardboard round and top with one cake layer. Spread the layer with one part of the chocolate icing. Repeat with 4 more cake layers. Spread the remaining icing on the sides of the cake.

3.Optional: press the finely chopped hazelnuts onto the sides of the cake.

4.Propping a hazelnut under each wedge so that it sits at an angle, arrange the wedges on top of the cake in a spoke pattern. If you have any leftover buttercream, you can pipe rosettes under each hazelnut or a large rosette in the centre of the cake. Refrigerate the cake under a cake dome until the icing is set, about 2 hours. Let slices come to room temperature for the best possible flavour.

Tuesdays With Dorie 51: Flaky Apple Turnovers

Just reading that this week's recipe was going to be Flaky Apple Turnovers was enough to get me incredibly excited. Apple turnovers certainly aren't mainstream in Australia, but I just knew I would love them. To me they sounded like mini apple pies (and I love me some apple pie). In fact, I could happily eat apple pie everyday for the rest of my life.

I actually hadn't noticed this recipe before, so thanks to Julie of Someone's in the Kitchen for picking it this week! Like I said before, I just knew I would love this recipe so I made the whole batch (usually I half it at least) as I was planning on freezing them for a quick treat. Well, boy did these live up to my expectations- they are so flaky and so delicious it isn't funny. Truly, it is no laughing matter! Bake these as soon as humanly possible. The only problem is that the rest of the dough is in my fridge right now, waiting to be rolled out. How I loath rolling out this particular dough! It's a nightmare and I am avoiding it at all costs. These little turnovers are too good though, so I will no doubt endure the stickiness of the dough and give my biceps the workout of their life for these little pieces of heaven.

Birthday Cake - Make it Yourself

If there's digit thing that should be said about date cakes, it is that they are sweeter if you attain them yourself. Buying a date block is something that anyone can do. But baking a date block yourself is sweet, and sends a communication to the date girl or the date boy about just how special he or she is.

If you have skill, the block that you made yourself could even be more delicious than the digit you bought at the block shop. But if you don't know the prototypal thing about baking, don't rag because there are a lot of resources that gives you a step-by-step guide to making date cakes. And then there are block pre-mixes too. The trick to making a luscious block is in the decoration. So, if you're working with block pre-mixes, whip up your creativity for some wonderful block decorations.

If you're making chocolate block for the chocolate lover, put some chocolate ganache freezing on top. You could border the block with strawberry halves. If the date celebrant has some allergy problems, essay baking a gluten-free chocolate block with semi-sweet chocolate icing, or dairy free cover toiletries with milk-free icing.

If you want to offer something richer, essay making a cheesecake and crowning it with berries. Also, essay to get more creative with common block toiletries recipes. Tweak cover toiletries recipes by using high-end cover toiletries instead of common cover cream. Or replace frozen whipped toiletries with fudgey whipped cream. Or you could also exchange the fudge topping with something a lowercase more different, same sliced mangoes. And instead of candy toppings, essay chocolate shavings instead. If the date celebrant prefers something lighter, disagreeable making lemon-glazed block or creamy chromatic cake. These cakes are particularly good with champagne. For kids, essay making a stem beer move block or chocolate pudding fudge cake.

For more fun date party [http://easypartyplans.com] ideas, visit the website [http://easypartyplans.com]

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Themed Birthday Cake Decorating Ideas

There are an endless number of ways that you crapper become up with to embellish a block for a date party. This article deals with 4 themes, and what you crapper do to create a rattling pleasant block for your next date party.

For adults you crapper create a block decorated based on an \"Age\" theme. Instead of a single block why not create individualist cupcakes totaling the age of the date honoree. If the person is 50 then you create 50 cupcakes in their honor. You crapper embellish the cupcakes with different objects that are attendant to the individualist much as a small picture of their favorite actor/actress or singer. You crapper get miniature representations of their favorite cartoon or theme tract characters to locate on the cupcakes. Another idea is to simply grace apiece cupcake with the individuals age.

If you are hosting a fount themed date band you crapper do a number of things to make your block standout and be a hit of the party. You crapper use food coloring to turn a regular block into a black block or turn white icing black. Shape your block into a coffin or some other symbol of the fount culture and lifestyle. Go discover and encounter black icing, black frosting, or black sprinkles to use on the cake. You crapper also bake a red velvet block for a little difference too. Go to the stores in your topical area that change in crafts, Halloween, and fount products and by items to help embellish your block for the event.

If you are throwing a child's date band you crapper cut and embellish the block in the form of the child's favorite board game much as Candy Land, Monopoly, etc. Another popular thing to do is to cut the block in the form of a favorite toy much as a chick or a race car and embellish accordingly. Most kids endeavor some type of sport. Cut and embellish the block into the shape of the field that they endeavor on for instance a soccer field, football field, baseball field, sport court, or putting green.

If you have a college older kid that you are throwing a band for then creating a block that is decorated and formed in the form of the schools mascot and colours is always going to be a big hit.

Coming up with date block decorating ideas is recreation and easy. Just simply let your creativity run disorderly with ideas, and encounter recreation and fictive ways to implement them.

Kitwana Akil writes about block decorating ideas at http://BestCakeDecoratingIdeas.com

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Special Birthday Cake Messages

tired of putting up the same \"happy birthday\" message on the date cakes? Try out a new way of desire your loved ones on their birthdays. There are a number of special and queer date messages that are available on the Internet. You can look for these messages and have them to decorate the block and desire your loved a bright birthday.

The date block quotes and messages can either be condemned from the cyberspace or you can create them yourselves. The quotation should revolve around whatever of the funniest habits of the person whose date is being celebrated. If you are looking for date block quotations then here are whatever that can support you in congratulating your loved digit in a special queer manner:

Live for something rather than die for nothing. - martyr Patton
To me old age is 15 eld older than I am. - Bernard M. Baruch
With mirth and laughter let old wrinkles come. - William Shakespeare
The best things in chronicle aren't things. - Art Buchwald

These quotations are just the right ones, that are not only good enough to desire the person a bright date and a long joyous life, but also bring a grinning to their faces. These quotes are not only queer but also have a meaning behindhand them, which has been delivered in a hilarious manner. So, if you have a date approaching, do a quick search on the cyberspace and desire out whatever of the best date block quotes. Design the block in a special manner. These quotes will surely win the hearts of the people who are solicited to the date celebration.

If you are looking for more information then feel free to visit Birthday Cake and Cute Baby Quotes

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Cake Designs Made Easy

rom. They become with high quality ingredients and are completely edible. They can delight some child when they see their special cartoon characters or figures on the design. block designs can make even the most mundane of cakes turn in to a special one pronto. So, be it some occurrence you can opt from the vast block designs that we have. If your heart is set on petals, shapes, farmyards, horseshoes, fairytale or whatever we can design the block accordingly. Cake design in the hands of a professional baker is same child's play.

In years gone by you would need to pay the connector to have a Childs date block done to a high stranded but not some more with a really affordable alternative you can use a block hat and do not intend hung up on the word affordable because these things meet look great on your cake.

In most cases you would be paying £40+ for a block with a block designs of your choice them days are daylong gone. For meet £3.50 you can not decorate a block and make it meet as good as a £40+ cake.

Most places that delude block toppers will do the most favourite cartoons that are around at the time even some of the old cartons but on some really good sites you will be able to make your own and have anything you want placed onto the block topper. These can be even more special then meet a cartoon that you like.

I wish you same this and if you would same a block hat become and see my website Cake Topper

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jane_Clair_Smith

Your Dogs Birthday Cake - A Few Options

When your dog's birthday rolls around you may be asking yourself the question; what kind of birthday cake should I get for my dog? There are many options as far as kinds of cakes and places to get them online and abroad.

One choice for dog owners is to make their own peanut butter carrot cake. This recipe is easy and quick. The ingredients it calls for are: flour, baking soda, peanut butter, vegetable oil, carrots, vanilla, honey, and eggs. Pretty much all you have to do is mix all the ingredients up, put them into a cake pan, and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. You'll have a healthy birthday cake for your dog to eat in little to no time at all.

If you're not the individual who wants to make their own cake then you can search the Internet for companies that make birthday cakes for dogs. After a little research you will be able to decide which company you would like to choose. Most, if not all, of these companies will ship the cakes to you in a very short period of time. They offer a wide variety of ingredients, and styles of cakes to meet your needs. In addition they do sell other items that may be of interest such as treats, toys, and other dog related items.

You may want to check out your local grocery store and see if they have any cakes that would be available for dog consumption. Of course you want to stay away from anything that has chocolate in it. Doing a bit of research on the Internet will enable you to select a good choice in regard to a birthday cake for your dog. You will want to ask your veterinarian what would be okay to give your dog (if shopping at the grocery store) especially if your dog is on a strict or selective diet.

If you don't get your dog a birthday cake then you may just want to stock up on some extra dog treats and or biscuits. A trip to your local pet store should satisfy your requirements. Ask the salesperson if they have anything special for a dog's birthday. They may have items there that are specific for this event, and they may even have some items that you wouldn't have thought of.

There are many other resources to look at in regard to dog birthday cakes and items to buy. Besides taking a trip to your local bookstore, you may want to conduct a search for dog birthday cake ideas online. Research the items that are of interest to you, and try out new and creative things. Your dog will be happy no matter what you choose, and it will be fun to experiment.

Making choices when it comes to your dogs birthday cake can be difficult. There are so many options to choose from and some people don't know where to begin. If you would like more information in reg

ard to your dog's birthday then visit http://dogbirthdaycake.org. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joe_Adams

birthday cake source of happiness

paced modern life makes people think all the more creative the better life of the community life and the lives of individuals in the lives of most of the human mind in all his life was in when he was born until the moment he still remembered by adults conducted in an event called the re - years and usually in the prepared cake that was so much variety and very interesting to bring happiness

My Camera Birthday Cake

When I was looking for a new camera last year, I thought it would be nice to buy a green one. Unfortunately the camera that I wanted didn’t come in green. Luckily birthdays make everything possible and wishes come true. I decided that on my birthday this year I would have a green camera. A green camera birthday cake.

Actually, I first decided on a camera cake because my camera is so constantly in use with blogging and Sylvia. Green frosting seemed like fun as well as wish fulfillment. I usually make a walnut fudge cake for my birthday but this year seemed a good one for a novelty cake. However, with the rest of the preparation for the birthday lunch, my energy was limited. I looked on the web for some ideas. It had to be fairly easy so I preferred the camera flat on its back rather than standing up.

As my own camera is a Canon PowerShot SX110IS, I decided I would make one that looked a bit like it. Though the writing on it is so small that I didn’t even attempt to get that on the cake, just a few representative symbols. While it is not perfect (I miss the viewfinder), one of my favourite features is the flash only goes off when you flip it up rather than when the camera feels like it. Blogging has taught me the beauty of photos without the flash and this camera is so good that I rarely need to use the flash. In fact, if I need to use it, it is very dark and it is not worth taking a photos. This is all very well with food, which always stays still, but less easy with people especially babies who just keep moving. For every gorgeous picture of Sylvia, I have many blurred ones. Thank goodness for digital photography. Ah, bloggers love camera talk, and if you want more discussion on photography, check out this post by Melbourne Gastronome with all the comments. But I digress. Though I rarely use my flash, I chose to have a flash up on my cake because it helps represent a camera.

It was not my finest moment in cake decoration. I was so busy thinking “mmmm… green white chocolate cream cheese frosting”, that I didn’t do much further planning for decoration. Fortunately I forgot to buy cream cheese, and had to make a quick trip to the supermarket on the morning of decorating the cake. While I was there I decided to buy a packet of liquorice allsorts.

I did think about buying fruit leathers but couldn’t see any in green (why?), though there were ones with green stripes that I could have chopped up. Later I thought, if I had been more prepared I could have bought some coloured chocolate buttons from the Victoria Market. I love how liquorice looks but am not sure it is the right taste on the cake. I could have piped icing but was not sure I had the patience while watching Sylvia chase Zinc.

As it was, the frosting was delicious and was much easier to spread than the usual plain icing sugar and water with a little butter that I often use or the ganache I recently used. I was inspired by the white chocolate ganache on Dash’s airplane cake but wanted it to be less rich. I also decided to make mud cake, because it held its shape well for Dash’s cake. However, because there would be a few kids about, I decided to make it without alcohol.

It seemed a good decision to leave out the alcohol when I gave Sylvia a wee taste. I wasn’t sure she would take to the chocolate but she is her mother’s daughter and loved it. The other kids did too although Grace was not keen on her gf cake. Susie didn’t comment on the gf cake but did say how much she loved the frosting. The frosting was fantastic - even better than the white chocolate ganache - but the recipe made far more than I needed. I still have a couple of cups of it in the freezer.

Although the cake was enjoyed by everyone, small pieces were quite sufficient and we had a lot leftover. I confess I wasn’t too upset. It was delicious and I was pleased to still have some when my actual birthday came around. Below is what I did.

How to Make a Camera Cake

What you will need:

• 1 rectangular mud cake baked in a lamington tin (20 x 30 cm)
• 1 flatter 20cm diameter round mud cake
• 1 small gluten free mud cake, optional
• about 1½ to 2 cups of white chocolate cream cheese frosting

NB: See below for recipes for these

For decoration:

• liquorice allsorts and bullets

or

• green and brown chocolate buttons

or

• green and dark purple or red fruit leathers

• yellow sparkles
  

Cover a large oven tray with foil (or use a large cake platter or tray if you have one that is large enough). Place large rectangular cake on the tray.

Here is what I did – I took a ruler and measured a photo of a camera cake and then multiplied it to be about the same size as my cake. It helped me to work out the proportions. You could even measure your camera if you wanted the cake to look like it.

Take a ruler and measure the long side. Use a sharp knife to mark the flash at the top of the camera. It should be about 8cm wide, about 4 or 5 cm long, and be about 8 cm from the right edge of the cake. Before cutting, take the round cake and place it on top of the rectangular cake so that the flash is lined up with the centre of the cake. If this looks right, cut away the flash, if not move it so it does look right.

Once you have cut the flash, you should now cut the long off cuts to make a bar that is about 4 cm wide along the left side of the cake. It took me a bit of trimming the off cuts so that they all sat together uniformly.

Now check your decorations look right before you put on the icing. It took me a few goes to get mine right and is easier to do without the icing or frosting. I chopped off the green ends of liquorice allsorts but you could also use chocolate buttons or fruit leather or even pipe firm darker coloured icing. If I did it again I think I might go around the outline of the whole camera not just the flash and lens but this would have taken more planning so it depends on of you are reading this as you are about to decorate the cake or a week beforehand!

Use a pastry brush to brush away as many crumbs as possible. If desired you could sandwich the round cake onto the rectangular one with some frosting, but I don’t bother. Cover the cake with green frosting and smooth it over with a butter knife as much as you can.

Place your decorations on the cake. I used black liquorice to outline the flash and lens and then green to do swirls to represent the opening of the lens. I used yellow sparkles to fill the flash. I chopped up liquorice to make marks where there is writing on my camera. It doesn’t actually just say canon along the side but this was the easiest thing to write with liquorice. (Hey, if you want to try writing PowerShot SX110IS along the side, you are welcome – though in retrospect I think I might write SX110IS rather than a brandname.)

Finally ice and decorate your gluten free cake and place candles on it, if you are doing a gf cake. Now you are ready to display the cake to your guests.

Mud cake

330g butter, chopped
200g dark chocolate, chopped
1⅓ cup hot water
2⅔ cups sugar (I used both castor and raw sugars)
⅓ cup pomegranate juice
½ tbsp ground wattleseeds (or coffee granules)
2 cups plain flour
½ cup self raising flour
⅓ cup cocoa
3 eggs
1-2 tbsp gluten free flour and pinch of baking powder (optional)

White chocolate cream cheese frosting:
adapted from Fabulous Foods
makes about 3½ cups

750g cream cheese, at room temperature
180g white chocolate (I used Cadbury)
¼ cup butter, at room temperature
2½ cups icing sugar
food dye, optional

Grease and line a lamington tin and a 20cm round cake tin.. Preheat oven to 160ºC.

Combine butter, chocolate, water, sugar and cranberry juice in a large bowl and microwave til melted – it will be a watery speckled mixture but will be smooth once flour is in. Cool slightly. Sift in cocoa and stir in eggs.

If you would like a gluten free small cake for gf family and/or friends, take a small amount (about ¼ - ½ cup) of the mixture and place in a separate bowl. Mix in gf flour and baking powder. Pour into a small greased and lined cake tin – I use a ramekin but I have used muffin cups before. This will be the cake that the candles go on.

Now sift flours into remaining mixture. Mix til mixture is smooth but it will still be runny. Pour into prepared cake tins. The batter in the lamington tin should be twice as high as in the round tin.

Bake 40-50 minutes for the large cake and I think about 30 minutes for the round cake – mine was on a lower rack in the oven so it took a bit longer. Ditto for the small gluten free cake. Times will vary for each cake so check early to see if the middle is firming up quickly or not. Don’t worry too much if it is a little undercooked but for this cake you don’t want it sinking in the middle so test with a skewer in the middle to check it is cooked before removing from the oven. Cool for at least 30 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool or cool in the tin.

To make frosting:
Melt white chocolate in a large bowl together. Cool to lukewarm (I didn’t cool as much as I should have and had a few little lumps of white chocolate in my mixture). Rather than beat cream cheese and butter separately, I beat them with the melted white chocolate, using an electric beater. Gradually beat in icing sugar. Frosting will be quite fluffy and easy to spread.

On the Stereo:
The Love Songs of Burt Bacharach: Various Artists