Church Lady Hat Cake

Happy Birthday Ms Essie !

ShoeBox Cake

Modern Design Cake with Wafer Paper Ranunculus

Happy Birthday to Meeeee !!!

Lemon Blueberry Cake

Key Lime Pie

"Along with a bit of grated lime rind swirled in, sour cream is blended with condensed milk and lime juice for this pie 's very rich and creamy key lime filling."
Recipe adapted from http://allrecipes.com

Ingredients:
1 (9 inch) prepared graham cracker crust
3 cups sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup sour cream
3/4 cup key lime juice
1 tablespoon grated lime zest

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a medium bowl, combine condensed milk, sour cream, lime juice, and lime rind. Mix well and pour into graham cracker crust.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until tiny pinhole bubbles burst on the surface of pie. DO NOT BROWN! Chill pie thoroughly before serving. Garnish with lime slices and whipped cream if desired.

Perfect Vanilla Cupcakes

Recipe by Glorious Treats

Yields- 15-16 cupcakes

1 1/4 cups cake flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup oil (vegetable, canola or extra light olive oil)
1/2 cup buttermilk
(or  1/2 cup milk plus 1/2 teaspoon white vinegar or lemon juice- add acid to the milk then set aside for 5 minutes before using)

Directions-
* Preheat oven to 350*F.
* In a medium bowl, add cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Stir together with whisk, and set aside.
* In the bowl of an electric mixer, add eggs and beat 10-20 seconds.  Add sugar and continue to beat on medium speed about 30 seconds.  Add vanilla and oil, beat.
* Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add about half of the flour mixture.  Add half of the milk, then the rest of the flour and the rest of the milk.  Beat until just combined.  Scrap down the side of the bowl.
* The batter will be thin.   Pour batter into a muffin pan prepared with paper liners.  Fill liners about 2/3 full.
* Bake cupcakes in pre-heated oven for 12-14 minutes.
* Cool in pan 1-2 minutes, then remove cupcakes from pan (carefully) and finish cooling on a wire rack.
* Frost as desired when fully cool.  I love to use my favorite Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting recipe.  

* Feel free to use this recipe for a cake as well.  The recipe above will work for a 6" cake.  Double the recipe for an 8" or 9" cake.
* A note about Cake Flour-  Cake Flour has a lower protein content than traditional all-purpose flour, which results in a more tender, delicate crumb in the finished product.  If you can not find or access cake flour, feel free to substitute as necessary, but your results will vary from the original recipe.

Neapolitan Sponge

 All my cakes are made from scratch !!
http://www.cakesbyzana.blogspot.com/2014/03/neapolitan-cake.html

Edible Gelatin Sequins

 Tutorial adapted from

http://karascouturecakestheblog.blogspot.com/2014/04/edible-gelatin-sequins-using-powdered.html

4 x.25 oz. packets Knox Unflavored Powdered Gelatin
3 oz water
...................................
 In a microwave safe bowl, pour in 3 oz. (or 3/8 cup) cool water. Sprinkle each of the packets individually over the surface of the water evenly.

The gelatin will get weird and wrinkley looking when it begins to absorb the water. It's normal. Let it absorb as much as possible; there should be little to no dry, light powder left one the surface.

Microwave in short bursts of about 15 seconds until the thick mixture becomes very liquid. Give it a stir in between each burst in the microwave break up the solid areas and evenly distribute the heat throughout.

If the gelatin is liquid but still looks grainy when dripping from your spatula, heat it just until there are no more little grains. Do not over heat it, it should feel barely warm if you dip a finger in-- never hot.
After another 7 seconds in the microwave it was completely smooth and without a grainy texture.

And now, your ready to pour it into your little bottle fitted with a number 1 tip and start making sequins!

Neapolitan Rose Cake

http://www.cakesbyzana.blogspot.com/2014/03/neapolitan-cake.html

Wafer Paper Flowers

Isn't it beautiful ?!! My first wafer paper flowers ! :)