I’ll be the first to admit it… a majority of the cakes I feature here on the blog are pretty girly.  Elegant, feminine and oh-so-cute cakes appropriate for weddings, baby showers and birthdays.  Well today’s cake is definitely ALL BOY!  And we’re not talking about a cutesy ‘snakes and snails and puppy dog tails’ kind of cake either.  We’re talking creepy, crawly, scaly things!  Featuring a serious fondant snake, ginormous spider, worms, snails and a glistening tree frog… this cake will have little boys cheering!  And may have you squirming!  Let’s slither by and check out this ssssssssuper Realistic Reptile Cake created by Jacki Fanto of Blissfully Sweet!

Jacki of Blissfully Sweet shares some insight about her cake:

“My client gave me free reign on design for this reptile themed cake.  All she knew was that she wanted a green tree frog and some other reptiles.  Firstly, I wanted to have the cake as more a realistic depiction of reptiles, as I know that is what boys would like the most!  So, for the bottom tier, I wrapped a giant scaly fondant snake around the base of the cake.  The snake’s skin was all handpainted shades of russet and gold.  This was eerily real while making and was a little freaky.   Then to continue the creepy theme, I had a red-back spider climb up the middle tier with some grubs coming out of the dirt.  The top tier was all about the red-eyed tree frog!  As all of the creatures were all three dimensional, I wanted to add some two dimensional background elements.  I hand painted the green grass onto the tiers for this effect and then for even a little more effect, some florist wire was my interpretation of reeds.  Some cascading leaves and birthday sign posts were the last additions and just made the cake!”

All components of the cake, every last creepy crawly creature, are handmade and completely edible.  (Except for the wire reeds, of course.)  Now, let’s get a better look at this red-eyed tree frog because he is crazy cool!

I can just imagine the reaction this cake created!  You know there was some fun to be had by eating that tree frog!  And the snake!  Oh my!

A special thank you to Jacki Fanto of Blissfully Sweet for sharing her incredibly Realistic Reptile Cake with us today!  It is the perfect combination eerie reptile fun and gorgeous sugar work!  Simply amazing!!

VENDORS & CREDITS:
Cake:  Blissfully Sweet

Let them eat cake!  But not just any cake.  A cake as stunning as…. my dress!  Today’s lovely design by Tessa of The Frosted Cake Shop was inspired by Marie Antoinette and the elaborate dresses of the 18th century.  With vintage metallics and delicate touches, today’s feature is ultra feminine and romantic.  Flirty ruffles join gold buttons and bows to create an intricate display with just the right amount of glam.  Stripes, patterns and billowing create a variety of textures and pretties to enjoy!  Five tiers of gorgeous french blue and gold that would have Marie herself demanding a piece of this cake.  Join me in swooning over this modern Marie Antoinette Cake!

Tessa from The Frosted Cake Shop shares some thoughts about her design:

“The cake design has a modern Marie Antoinette theme. With its french blue color palette with regal gold touches, it is crisp and elegant without being too over-the-top. I love the influence of fashion in my designs, and carried out a variety of textures to include the tufts, buttons, ruffles, and bows of 18th century dresses.”

Special thanks to Tessa of The Frosted Cake Shop for sharing her Marie Antoinette Cake with us today!  It is rich with ruffles, frills and girly goodness!  We are officially swooning!

VENDORS & CREDITS:
Cake:  The Frosted Cake Shop
Photography:  Eleakis and Elder Photography

Our cupcake contributor, Lauren of Crave. Indulge. Satisfy, is here with a fun new recipe…

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate summer than with a big old ice cream cone! Ice cream is one of my favorite summer indulgences and a delicious treat to enjoy after a day full of playing in the hot sun. I’m sure you’re probably thinking this is suppose to be a cupcake post, why are we talking about ice cream? Well, since July is National Ice Cream month I thought it would be fun to put a new twist on the cupcake and make them look like ice cream cones. If you have never seen or tasted Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes before then you are in for a real treat! Growing up my sister and I loved to bake cupcakes in ice cream cones all the time. We would use a box of yellow cake mix and then frost them with my mom’s homemade chocolate icing and add rainbow sprinkles on top. So let’s get ready to have some fun with cake and ice cream…the kind that doesn’t melt!

To make these cupcakes start by placing cake cones inside each well of your muffin pan. Using a yellow butter cake recipe fill the base of the cones with batter and bake. The cake cone is like an edible cupcake wrapper and will still be crunchy after baking. I love the extra texture of the crisp cone that you get to enjoy with your cake and icing.

Making the icing for these cupcakes is the fun part. When it comes to ice cream I always have a hard time making up my mind which flavor I want. By starting with a vanilla buttercream frosting as the base you can easily adapt the recipe to create some of your favorite “ice cream” flavors. By simply adding toppings, extracts and food coloring you can create: Chocolate, Chocolate Chip, Strawberry, Cookies & Cream and Mint Chocolate Chip.

To decorate the cupcakes you can go for the hand scooped look and use an ice cream scoop to dollop the icing on top or the “soft serve” look and use a large round tip and piping bag to swirl on top. My personal favorite is the soft serve look as it reminds me of summer trips we often made to the Dairy Bar for dinner. This was a little road side stand where you could order burgers and fries and all kinds of ice cream treats. I would end every meal there with a vanilla soft serve cone covered in rainbow sprinkles and a pair of candy eyes.

These cupcakes are such a great idea for a kid’s birthday or summer time party. You can have the cupcakes pre-baked and then set up a decorating station with icing flavors and toppings and let the kids go to town creating their favorite ice cream cones.

ICE CREAM CONE CUPCAKES
recipe by Lauren Kapeluck
(makes 30 cupcakes)

For the Yellow Butter Cake:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 Tbsp vanilla
30 cake cones

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place cake cones upright inside each well of a muffin pan.
2. In medium bowl combine dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt.
3. In bowl of stand mixer beat butter and sugar until creamy about 3 minutes.
4. Add vanilla and mix well.
5. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Gradually add in the flour mixture and milk alternately, starting and ending with flour. Scrape down sides of bowl as necessary.
7. Fill cake cones with batter.
8. Bake for 26-27 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
9. Once cupcakes are cool frost with your favorite “ice cream flavor” icing.

For the Vanilla Buttercream icing:

3 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups vegetable shortening
1 Tbsp vanilla
9 cups confectioner’s sugar
1/4 cup milk
pinch salt

1. Cream butter and vegetable shortening until smooth.
2. Mix in vanilla.
3. Gradually add confectioner’s sugar 2 cups at a time and mix until combined.
4. Add milk as needed to reach desired consistency.
5. Add pinch of salt and continue mixing icing for about 6-7 minutes until light and fluffy.
6. This recipes makes 9 cups of icing.

TO MAKE “ice cream flavor” icings start with vanilla buttercream and add the following ingredients for each flavor:

VANILLA:
3 cups vanilla buttercream

CHOCOLATE:
2 cups vanilla buttercream + 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

CHOCOLATE CHIP:
1 cup vanilla buttercream + 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

MINT CHOCOLATE CHIP:
1 cup vanilla buttercream + 3 drops blue, 1 drop green food coloring + 1/4 tsp mint extract + 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

STRAWBERRY:
1 cup vanilla buttercream + 3 drops red food coloring + 1/4 tsp strawberry extract

COOKIES & CREAM:
1 cup vanilla buttercream + 1/2 cup crushed Oreos

Additional toppings & tools used:
-rainbow jimmies
-chocolate jimmies
-Wilton candy eyeballs
-large round decorating tip 1A
-piping bags
-ice cream scoop

Obviously the possibilities are endless for ice cream flavors. These are some of my favorites but feel free to experiment and create your own cupcake icing after your favorite ice cream flavor!

Wishing you all a wonderful summer filled with lots of ice cream & cupcakes!

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.