You Can Call Me The Cake Boss

I'm not exactly the most creative person on the planet. I'm not a great cook, and I certainly don't bake that often. However, for some unknown reason, I have been itching to make a cake, and have wanted to try and make fondant.

Peculiar hankering, I know.

My sister also has had such an urge, so we planned to make a cake together and give it a go as a team. But heaven knows neither of us needed or wanted a whole cake, so we needed an occasion to make this fabled cake. Jordan's family was having a b-day party for my bro-in-law's girlfriend, so I volunteered to make the cake.

I made the cakes (the two layers) the day before we were going to decorate it, to ensure they would be cooled enough to decorate, as I wouldn't have enough time after work to make them, wait for them to cool and then decorate.

It was a nightmare. I'm not kidding, I was frazzled. (Am I allowed to use the word "frazzled" while under 60 yrs of age?) I put them on the center rack of the oven to ensure maximum cooking. When I went to pull them out they had raised up into the top rack. Fantastic, but not a huge deal since I was planning on carving the top off to make it rounded anyway. I pull them out and let them cool before trying to take them out of the pan. Then, I tipped the first one out of the pan. It fell apart into a ridiculous pile of crumbs, while half stayed stuck to the pan. Annoyed, I let the second pan cool further, and took a knife to the edges to make sure it was loosed up. Not that it mattered 'cause that stuck to the pan too.

Not one to let a cake get the best of me, I hurried and washed the pans, and floured the poo out of them, determined that this time those bleepity bleep cakes are coming out of the pans clean. I whipped up another batch, put them on the top rack, thank you very much, and waited (dramatic pause) with much trepidation.

They came out the most gorgeous cakes you have ever seen. And I experienced an exultation only Mohammed Ali, newly elected presidents and transplant recipients could share in.

The next part is less exciting, mostly 'cause it went so well. My sis came over and we decorated the living daylights out of that cake. We tag teamed making the frosting and fondant, which was surprisingly easy on both counts. Although we had an issue with the fondant sticking to the counter.

But hey, a picture's worth a thousand words, right? So here's my first attempt at making a cake:

Adorable, yes?