I’ve got two turntables and a microphone…  Where It’s At!  I’ve got two turntables and a microphone…

I can’t help it.  I know I’m dating myself.  But this old Beck song has been stuck in my head for days, ever since I received an email from the creator of today’s Fab Find.  Made from recycled vintage turntables and audio speaker parts, these cake pedestals are sleek and modern with beautiful lines.  Not to mention pure genius!!  These one-of-a-kind treasures would take centerstage at any event but are especially perfect for a retro theme.  A 70′s disco, an 80′s Prom Shower, a Rock Star Birthday… I could go on!  Whatever the event, your guests would certainly be talking about these Vintage Turntable Cake Pedestals by JT Baldwin.  They might even be inspired to sing!

It’s genius, right?  Honestly, I’ve seen so many cake stands but nothing like this before!  The turntable platter, rubber mat, record spindle, speaker magnets, woofer and tweeter come together in such a natural way.  It seems as though they were meant to form a cake pedestal!  For the icing on the cake, gutted speaker wire trims the bottom to protect your furniture.

Can you imagine serving up your cupcakes and treats on this two-tiered dessert stand?  The best part…. the top platter spins!

JT Baldwin is rescuing vintage audio and photography equipment and paying homage to the past.  With an image in mind, a hammer in hand, and a full supply of used screws and bolts sorted in Ziploc bags, she is creating some of the most clever and unique products.  Be sure to check out the cake pedestals, dessert stands, ottoman trays and more at the JT Baldwin Etsy Shop!

For those of you too young to get my “two turntables and a microphone” song reference, here’s a LINK….. That was a good drum break!

Vendors & Credits:
Vintage Turntable Pedestals: JT Baldwin

Ooh la la! Today’s party is pure girly fun and fashion-tastic!  The catwalks of Paris are brought to life as the birthday girl and her guests play dress up and strike a pose!  From their little black t-shirt dresses to signature lip gloss created from luster dust, this party is a little fashionista’s dream come true.  And the pink and black dessert table with its adorable cake is certainly up our alley!  Created by Summer Stone for her daughter’s 7th birthday, we’re head over heels for Maddie’s Fashion Fairytale!

A few thoughts from Summer about this posh fashion party:

“My daughter Maddie loves the movie ‘A Barbie Fashion Fairytale’, so this year we decided her birthday would be in Parisian Fashonista style. For color, pink and black were an easy bridge between Paris and Barbie. We built wooden Eiffel Tower puzzles and spray painted them black to stand in as icons of Paris. To bring in the fashion world we placed small decorative dress forms throughout and made dress form mannequins out of foam core board covered in muslin which were dressed up in black dresses.”

More from Summer about the desserts:

“For the dessert table, my sweet friend Jessica Harris of jessicakesblog brought to fruition a gorgeous pink and black cake I had sent her a design sketch for. I finished off the dessert table with dark chocolate whoopie pies filled with pink filling, soft sugar cookies with pink buttercream, pink and black cake vanilla cake pops and strawberry whoppers. The table was also decorated with hat and shoe-style boxes with pink and black fashion decor.”

This cake is absolutely adorable!  I love both the design (created by Summer) and the execution by Jessica.  They are both talented cake designers and agreed to trade cakes for their daughter’s birthdays, freeing up time for other baking and party decorating.  What a great idea, right?  Looks like they make a great team!  I love the bottom tier… a scalloped band of stripes with a thin fondant rope border!  Talk about tricky!  Good thing Jessica put up a tutorial on her blog showing how she pulled this one off!  You can find it HERE.

As if the lovely dessert table wasn’t enough, there were oodles of activities for the girls to enjoy.  Here’s the scoop from Summer:

“During the party, the girls sported little black dresses which were custom made by my mother-in-law, Claudia Stone, from men’s, large black T-shirts. The girls wore their dresses as they walked up and down the runway (which Maddie’s two grandfathers built). The girls also decorated dresses to place on paper dolls which were then put on display throughout the party; and they made their own signature lip gloss using luster dust and disco dust, from my cake decorating supplies, to customize the color and sparkle.”

A few last thoughts from Summer:

“Finally, the girls were given goodie bags which were decorated with Barbie silhouettes, Eiffel Towers and the individual girl’s name. The images were cut from iron-on transfer sheets using a Silhouette digital cutting machine. The bags contained a notepad denoted as their “Fashion Journal”, a pen and jewelry inside a black and pink box tied with pink satin ribbon. They also took home their dresses, cookies and their custom lip gloss they had made.

This party was so much fun. The girls loved walking up and down the runway over and over again and it was a joy to see them shine.”

A huge thank you to Summer for sharing her daughter’s Fashion Fairytale Birthday with us!

Vendors & Credits:
Party Styling & Decor:  Summer Stone
Cake:  Jessica Harris of Jessicakes
Photography:  Sara Shearer Photography

Summer might be coming to a close but there’s still time to enjoy the fresh berries that the season has to offer!  Today’s cake is a great way to do just that.  It’s a fresh and vibrant take on the oh-so-popular rainbow cakes!  Shaded blue, filled with lemon curd and topped with berries, this cake is the perfect combination of blueberry and lemon.  A treat for both your eyes and your mouth, check out this Blueberry Rainbow Cake created by Lisa Lundqvist of Sockerrus (a Swedish blog named Sugar Rush)….

I absolutely love the bright blue building into the deep dark blueberry top!  You could also do this cake in shades of pink, topped with raspberries for a gorgeous lemon and raspberry creation!

A few thoughts from Lisa about her cake:

“I wanted to create a simple and beautiful cake anyone can make at home. A cake that would take your breath away even though it doesn’t have any fancy decorations. The moist white velvet cake melts in your mouth and together with lemon curd and blueberries, it’s heavenly.  If you like lemon, you’ll love this cake.”

There might be six shades of blue in this cake, but it will make you feel anything but blue!!  A very special thank you to Lisa Lundqvist of Sockerrus for sharing her Blueberry Rainbow Cake recipe with us today!  Happy Baking!!

Blueberry Rainbow Cake

For the White Velvet Cake
135 gram egg whites (about 4 1/2 large egg whites)
240 gram milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
300 gram flour (plain)
300 gram sugar
1 1/3 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
170 gram butter, soft
Blue icing color (I used Wilton sky blue and royal blue)
300-600 grams lemon curd (I used 300 grams for half a batch white velvet cake)
Blueberries

Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F)

1. In a small bowl, whisk together egg whites, milk and vanilla. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the soft butter and mix on low speed. Add 1/3 of the egg mixture and mix until well combined. Repeat twice.

For 3 layers: Divide the batter into three bowls. In the first bowl add a tiny drop of icing color. In the second bowl add two tiny drops and so on. Use 8-inch cake pans and bake in the oven for 25-30minutes.

For 6 layers: Divide the batter into 6 bowls. In the first bowl add a tiny drop of icing color. In the second bowl add two tiny drops and so on. Stir and pour into 6-inch cake pans (about 15 cm). Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean

For 12 layers or 2 small cakes: Divide the batter in 12 bowls. In the first bowl add a tiny drop of icing color. In the second bowl add two tiny drops and so on. Use 4-5-inch cake pans (10-12cm) and bake in the oven for about 8-10 minutes.

Let the cakes cool in the pans for about 10 minutes. Loosen the sides with a small spatula and invert cakes onto wire racks.

Place the layer who only had one tiny drop of color on a cake plate. Spread lemon curd with a spoon or small spatula over the first layer, make sure it’s well covered . Repeat process with the layer who hade two tiny drops of color and so on. Finish with a layer of lemon curd on the top and decorate with blueberries.

Vendors & Credits:
Cake & Recipe: Lisa Lundqvist of Sockerrus

Oh my goodness, prepare yourself for today’s post!  I absolutely loved this cake the moment I saw it and have a feeling you will too.  This non-traditional wedding cake has a rustic, vintage feel to it while still being ultra elegant and feminine.  And I can only imagine how delicious it was!  Over 300 layers of  light golden brown crepes filled with lavender & Madagascar vanilla bean infused cream and dusted with powered sugar.  Is your mouth watering yet?  Stacked high and topped with organic lavender sprigs, we love this 300 Layer French Crepe Cake created by Kate Dunbar, owner of Petite Rêve Chocolates in Ventura. California.

Kate only makes one wedding cake at her bakery, the French Crepe Cake.   The crepes are made fresh from clarified butter, high quality flour, farm fresh eggs and a few secret ingredients.  This cake is completely non traditional and truly unforgettable.  I absolutely love how the layers of crepe create a slightly ruffled appearance!  Here are a few thoughts from Kate about her inspiration for this cake:

“Crepes have a special place in my memory.  My Grandmother would make them and when she would escape to France she would come home telling me all about the amazing crepes she had.  I guess that is why this cake meant so much to me to make, I was given total control with the guidance of “make it look amazing and one of a kind”.  I believe I did just that.

My inspiration three words; Lady M Confections, New York.  I have been a HUGE fan of their creations and I do remember Martha Stewart (yes I love her) showcasing her creation and making a version of it on her show… TADA there it was my second introduction to the crepe cake.”

A few thoughts from Kate about her first attempt at creating her signature Crepe Cake:

“My first attempt was a disaster, I think I should have gone to the hospital.  I burnt my fingers almost 3rd degree burns but it was worth it!!!  Out of the batter that could have made 50 light, buttery and golden melt in your mouth crepes…I had 5 floppy sad things.  But I was set to make it and make it perfect (Martha again). The next day success!  50 beautiful, light buttery golden round crepes and my family’s jaw dropped to the floor when I presented the cake to them.”

Kate describes her crepes as sweet, light, buttery, golden and just delicious.  The fillings range from vanilla pastry cream to Limoncello lemon curd, dark chocolate pastry cream and whip cream with dark chocolate shavings.  Can you imagine indulging in a slice of this cake?  With all of the delicate layers, it looks lovely plated as well….

A few last thoughts from Kate:

“I love creating this cake.  Its a blood, sweat and tears accomplishment and the end result has always been a bride and groom completely speechless and their guests wondering where can I get that cake!”

A very special thank you to Kate Dunbar, of Petite Rêve Chocolates, for sharing her incredible 300 Layer French Crepe Cake with us today!  Thanks also to the talented ladies at Lavender & Twine Photography for sharing their stunning images with us!

VENDORS & CREDITS
Cake:  Petite Rêve Chocolates
Photography:  Lavender & Twine
See the Full Wedding:  Love & Lavender

If you’ve jumped on the Pinterest bandwagon, you may already be familiar with today’s featured cake.  It has been pinned, and repinned!  Most likely because so many of you love it, just like I do!  When I first spotted this stunning cake, I instantly wanted to know more.  Who created it?  What did the wedding look like?  So needless to say, I was thrilled when the bride, Erika Thompson, agreed to share her lovely wedding cake with us.  Created by a family friend, Wendy McClendon, this delightful cake has such a soft and romantic feel.  And it’s no surprise that the rest of the wedding is equally as charming!  Enjoy this Romantic & Ruffled Wedding….

A big thank you to Erika for sharing her Romantic & Ruffled Wedding with us!  We love, love, love it!!

Vendors & Credits:
Cake: Wendy McClendon
Photography: Brian Clay

Do you ever wish you could stop in and smell the sweetness at the cake shops we feature?  If you only lived closer.  Well, our new Field Trip Series is bringing your favorite cake shops right to your door.   Or well, at least to your computer screen!  Last week we started off in Canada and now we’ve hopped over the pond to London!  And let me tell you, the pink exterior isn’t the only thing irresistible at this shop!  Today we’re headed to London’s prettiest cake shop… The Peggy Porschen Parlour!

Peggy Porschen is a renowned cake designer known for her elegant, feminine style.  She has inspired countless brides and cake designers over the years with her delightful creations and three cake books.  I can remember finding Peggy’s book, Pretty Party Cakes, years ago and falling in love!  It was one of my first cake books… so I must admit that this is a bit of a treat for me today!  I squealed slightly when they invited me to physically come in to The Parlour for the ‘full experience’!  Oh my, if I only had wings!!  Definitely the next time I’m in London….

With it’s signature pink exterior and distinctive canopies, the Peggy Porschen Parlour opened in London in Autumn 2010.  Peggy was kind enough to share a few thoughts with us about her lovely shop:

“Opening the Peggy Porschen Parlour has been a life-long dream come true. There is nothing better than coming to work and opening up the doors to my pretty pink cake shop. It’s like walking into cake heaven, it has such a sense of specialness and nothing pleases me more than the delight on my customers faces when they enter  – especially the little ones!”

Customers can enjoy freshly baked cupcakes, cookies and other treats like their Lemon Limoncello layer cake.  Don’t you wish you could jump into this picture?!  I’ll take two, of everything!

And of course, Peggy still creates amazing cakes like this sophisticated pink anemone design.

While you enjoy the parlour’s dainty surroundings, you can also shop an exclusive line of goodies designed by Peggy herself.   Shelves are stacked with signature oven mitts, cookie cutters, homemade jams and cake accessories.

Brides are treated to a ‘tea party’ tasting and design consult as the select their wedding cake.  What a refreshingly charming touch!  Love it!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this Field Trip to London’s prettiest cake shop, The Peggy Porschen Parlour! A huge thank you to Peggy and her team for helping us make the trip!

You know… I write about cakes all the time.  Each day I feature cake designs that I adore, which were created by others.  It is my privilege to post their images and share their talent for everyone to enjoy.  Normally, my write ups come easily as I oohhh and awe over the details and techniques used…. fully appreciating the time, skill and effort involved in each and every creation.  But when it comes to today’s post, it’s harder to find the right words.

Most of you probably realize that I’m a little obsessed with cake!  What you may not know is that I used to own a specialty cake shop of my own.  It has been almost four years now since my family relocated and I stopped accepting orders… which was kind of a hard thing for me.  But I’m loving the blog life now and wouldn’t trade it for anything.  I still get my fill of cake and get to be a full time mommy to my 11 month old daughter.  It’s actually much easier on the waistline too!!  And every now and then, I have the opportunity to design something new and put my skills to the test.

This post has been a long time coming and I’ve been dying to share it with you!  But I wanted to see it with my own eyes first!  And it’s finally here, in print!!  I am tremendously honored to be included in BRIDES Magazine’s America’s Most Beautiful Cakes for 2011!! I could not be more flattered and humbled to be included with some of my favorite cake icons of all time, like Elisa Strauss of Confetti Cakes and cake experts, Kerry Vincent and Colette Peters .  Not to mention some of my new favorite talents like Erica O’Brien and Eat Cake Be Merry.

Really?!?  Can someone pinch me please?  It’s been a year long process but that’s my cake in the back row!  BRIDES contacted me back in January and invited me to submit some design ideas.  I, along with numerous other cake designers, submitted our best and most original ideas.  Then came a request to submit an example of my sugar work, showing the techniques and colors to be used.  Finally came the invitation to actually create the cake for a photo shoot in NYC!  I so wanted to deliver my cake to the shoot in person, but it just wasn’t possible.  Many props to the FedEx man for delivering the cake safely on my behalf!  Talk about nerve racking!!

Okay, so enough of the back story… here are some of my photos of my Retro Cafe Flowers design.

Inspired by this retro Dandelion Clocks Wallpaper, my design features three extra tall tiers covered in light grey fondant.  Hand-cut fondant flowers in turquoise and bright green recreate the wallpaper pattern.  The flower details and intricately striped leaves are hand-piped using a sugar glaze and a short turquoise spacer adds an extra pop of color.

My favorite part of this design is the leaves…. so many thin lines, hand piped into the shape of a leaf.  Honestly, I must have been crazy!  They took forever and you really can’t even see them in the magazine!  I’m not sure why I didn’t think that through.  But that’s okay, I love how they turned out!  So please indulged me as I show you a close up…

Thanks so much to the editors at BRIDES for this amazing opportunity! I could not be more thrilled to be a part of this feature! Thanks to the many, many cake designers who allow me to showcase their work every day on Half Baked.  You provide us all with such great cake inspiration and this process reminds me all too well of the time and effort involved in every one of your creations!   And a huge thanks to all of you, for allowing me to share a bit of my work with you today.

Be sure to pick up a copy of the September issue of BRIDES Magazine to see all of the amazing designs included in the 2011 America’s Most Beautiful Cakes feature!  Stay tuned for some additional photos and behind the scene video coming to brides.com and the BRIDES iPad App!

	Carrie Sellman is the Founder & Editor of The Cake Blog. Her work has been published in BRIDES Magazine, The Bride and Bloom, on DIYnetwork.com, TLC’s Parentables and more. Read more about Carrie on her bio page.

Our cupcake contributor, Lauren of Crave. Indulge. Satisfy, is back with another tempting recipe….

This month’s cupcake recipe was inspired after a recent camping trip my husband and I took to celebrate our 5 year anniversary!  We pitched a tent, started a fire and roasted marshmallows to create the perfect camping treat…S’mores!  I can’t think of a better way to enjoy a night outside under the stars than with this gooey, sticky and messy sandwich cookie.  So I have transformed this graham cracker, marshmallow and chocolate combination into a S’mores Cupcake that is super easy and no roasting is involved.

The base of the cupcake is a simple one-bowl chocolate cake.  Who doesn’t love a chocolate cupcake?  The S’mores factor comes into play with the Marshmallow Cream frosting and graham cracker garnish.  Instead of using actual marshmallows in this recipe I decided on a jar of marshmallow cream, which creates a light and fluffy texture.  This icing is not overly sweet and pairs nicely with the chocolate and graham crackers.  Top off the cupcake with a chocolate square from a Hershey’s bar and you have the ultimate S’mores in cake form!

S’more cupcakes are the pefect treat for a picnic or camping themed party. They are low maintenance and super easy to make so grab your kids and get them involved. I guarantee they will love being your graham cracker crushers and dipping the cupcakes into the crumbs.

S’mores Cupcakes
(makes 30 cupcakes)

For the cake:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Hershey’s unsweetened cocoa powder
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup hot water
1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pans with cupcake liners.
2. In bowl of stand mixer combine dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix until well combined.
3. Add the wet ingredients: eggs, milk, oil, water and vanilla to the dry ingredients. With mixer on medium speed mix for about 2 minutes scrapping down sides of the bowl as needed. (The batter will be very liquidy, but that is ok.)
4. Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full. (I use a 4-cup measuring cup with a pour spout to transfer the batter to the cupcake liners so it is easier to control and less mess.)
5. Bake for 16-17 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
6. Let cupcakes cool in pans for 5 minutes, then remove to wire racks to finish cooling.
7. Once cupcakes are completely cool, ice with Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting and garnish with graham crackers and chocolate.

For the frosting:

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 (7 oz) jar marshmallow cream
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. In bowl of stand mixer cream butter for 1-2 minutes.
2. Add marshmallow cream and mix until incorporated.
3. Add the confectioner’s sugar and vanilla and mix until well combined.
4. Place icing in a piping bag fitted with large round tip (I used 1A) and add a dollop of icing on top of cupcakes.

For the garnish:
1/2 cup crushed graham cracker crumbs
3 Hershey’s Bars, broken into squares

1. Place graham crackers in zip lock bag and crush with your hands until fine crumbs.
2. Take frosted cupcakes and turn upside down into bowl of graham cracker crumbs to cover the frosting.
3. Place a Hershey’s chocolate square on top of each cupcake.

S’mores Cupcakes are best enjoyed on the day they are baked and assembled as the graham cracker crumbs will get a little soft over time.

Hope you enjoy!

	Lauren Kapeluck Lauren is a monthly contributor for The Cake Blog. She is a self-taught baker and lover of all things sugar. Read more about Lauren on her bio page.

There’s no better way to start a Monday than to give away a fabulous prize!!  It’s time for us to announce our lucky winner of the $100 Shop Credit to Sugar Ed Productions!! Who will soon be learning new cake techniques from Sharon Zambito, taking their game to the next level?  Drum roll please…..

Thank you to everyone who entered!  If you’re bummed that you didn’t win, hop on over to Sugar Ed Productions and treat yourself to a DVD!  A very special thank you to our generous sponsor, Sharon Zambito, for offering up such a fabulous prize!

Happy Monday everyone!

Our contributor, Miso of Miso Bakes, is back with another irresistible cake creation.  Enjoy….

I scream.  You scream.  We all scream for ice cream!

Growing up, ice cream cakes were considered the novelty of all novelty cakes.  Fondant covered cakes were almost unheard of and carved cakes were primarily available in 2-D.

From what I recall, most of the ice cream cakes were decorated in a similar fashion.  They had some form of a clown piped onto the cake with a star piping tip in a primary (red, blue, or yellow) colored buttercream.  The clown always wore a clown hat made of an ice cream cone cut in half. Lastly, there was a generous sprinkling of rainbow-colored sprinkles and a cluster or two of plastic balloons (also in primary colors).  Sound familiar?

I think clowns were ‘the thing’ growing up.  They were everywhere.  A birthday party was not complete without clown-themed napkins, plates, plastic tablecloths, favor bags and cups.  Oh, and I can’t forget the crying kid.  Someone had to cry to complete the party.  The reason?  Plenty. Either someone was afraid of clowns, or there was a shortage in cake and someone wanted seconds.  Or, someone’s party favor bag ripped and she no longer had a bag to carry her party hat and candies in.  Or, someone spilled his fruit punch and it got all over another kid’s new party dress.  Oh the fun childhood memories.

As a child I would worry so much about the ice cream cake melting that I would have my mom take the cake out of the freezer as my friends sang happy birthday and have her stick it back in the freezer right after I made a wish and blew out the candles.  My friends and I would play hopscotch or hide-and-seek until we needed to cool down.

I smile in embarrassment as I think of my childhood worries.  Therefore, I created an ice cream-themed cake that is ice cream free!  There is not an ounce of ice cream in the cake so it’s good for those wanting to display the cake on dessert tables, or for those who have a worry-wort child (like I once was).

To make cake:

1. Bake, torte, fill, stack, ice cake to your liking.
2. Chill the cake in the refrigerator.
3. Melt some chocolate (you can add cream to thin it down) and let it cool slightly so it will not melt the buttercream when drizzled on.*
4. Put chocolate in a cornet (piping bag made of parchment) and drizzle around the side of the cake.
5. Sprinkle rainbow sprinkles on the chocolate before it hardens and on the top of the cake.

*You do not want your chocolate to cool too much (like I did) because the chocolate will harden fairly quickly due to the cold buttercream.  If you do what I did, you will not get pretty drizzles and therefore will have to make faux drizzles like me.

To make ice cream cone cake pops:

1. On the flat bottom of the ice cream cones, poke a hole big enough to insert a lollipop stick.  I found using an exacto knife works best.  A sharp paring knife will work, too!
2. Stuff the cones with cake pop stuffing (mixture of cake and buttercream) up to the rim of the cone.
3. Dip lollipop sticks in chocolate and insert into the hole on the bottom of the cones.**
4. Place cones upside down on a small tray and chill in the freezer for a few minutes.
5. Put vanilla buttercream and chocolate buttercream side by side in a piping bag with a medium star tip.
6. Squeeze the bag until you get both chocolate and vanilla buttercream in the swirls.
7. Pipe swirls on the cones.
8. Insert the ice cream cone cake pops into the cake.

** You can do without the sticks if you will not be transporting the cake or moving it around much. Just be careful because the cones will topple over.

What I forgot to do:

1. In between each ice cream cone, using a tiny ice cream scoop, place a scoop of vanilla buttercream.
2. Sprinkle each scoop with peanuts (optional).
3. Top each scoop with a maraschino cherry.

I hope everyone has as much fun decorating the cake as I did.

Happy Caking!

	Miso Bakes Miso is a monthly contributor for The Cake Blog. She is a talented pastry chef with a big passion for cakes. Read more about Miso on her bio page.