Let Them Eat Cake

By Kimberly Carrow

Whether you buy an elaborate, store-bought cake or bake and decorate it yourself, the birthday cake is the crowning glory of a child's party. Every child waits for the glittering moment when the children sing and parents present the festive cake, ablaze with candles. But any veteran parent can probably tell you at least one home-made birthday cake disaster story-the pooh-bear cake which became permanently stuck in the expensive pooh-bear cake pan, the kitchen covered in sticky globs of colored frosting, burned cakes, collapsing cakes and just plain ugly cakes.

With some basic skills and advice, almost anyone can create a memorable, custom birthday cake instead of spending a fortune on a store-bought cake. And really, when the cake is covered with lit candles and your child's face is glowing with joy, it won't matter if you spent 5 hours or 5 minutes fussing with frosting designs and funny cake pans.

Before planning a cake, decide on a party theme. Browsing through magazines, books or a visit to a craft or party store can offer all sorts of ideas for themes, cakes and decorations. Unless you really enjoy piping frosting and shaping fondant roses, remember the creed-keep it simple.

Get creative with goodies like gummy bears or worms, jelly beans or other brightly colored candies, sprinkles, plastic animals and characters. One of my favorite (and easiest) party cakes was a sheet frosted in swirling blue, topped with a happy meal toy surfer and Swedish fish.

Sheet cakes are easiest to decorate and serve. Slices from a round cake are too big for small children and don't provide as many portions. Layer cakes also don't offer as much flat surface space for fun decorations. You can also bake a cake in a stainless steel salad bowl for a half-round shape. Use cardboard or a cookie sheet as your cake platter; this is an especially helpful tip for sheet cakes. Cut the cardboard a couple of inches larger than the cake, then cover it in parchment paper or aluminum foil.

Don't feel like you have to bake a cake from scratch! Children cannot tell the difference, and your less likely to encounter problems baking a sturdy cake from a boxed mix. From personal experience, I can tell you that Duncan Hines has special "wedding cake instructions," usually on the inside of the box; using this preparation and adding a box of pudding mix produces a moist, delicious and firm cake which can be easily frosted and decorated. Spend your time on the fun stuff!

Always make or buy extra frosting! Frosting can hide many baking blunders, so lay it on thick. For a professional finish, frost the completely cooled cake with a light coating of frosting (called the "crumb coat"). This first coating will trap all the crumbs.

Let the crumb coat set for an hour, then apply the finishing layer of perfect, crumb-free frosting. For a super-smooth finish, use an offset spatula dipped in warm water to spread the final coat.

Cupcakes can be just as fun as a big cake. You can serve them lined up or stacked on a platter to look just like a cake, and there's no cutting or portioning involved. Consider letting the kids decorate their own cupcakes; set the table with muffin tins filled with goodies like sprinkles, M&M's and sections of licorice whips.

In conclusion, I would like to share some advice from one of my best friends. I was getting ready for my daughter's 4th birthday, and nothing was going as planned. I called her for some inspiration, and she said "Just remember, if it's not going to matter in 20 years, it's probably not going to matter right now." What's going to matter are the memories and the photographs, not the lumps underneath the frosting!

Kimberly Carrow lives in Grass Valley, and is Mother to Shelby, age 9, and Lily, age 5.