"Cars" making a kid's Birthday Cake ... step-by-step.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Here’s a follow up article to my “Lynn’s Luscious Chocolate Cake, step-by-step idiot-proof cake”  article  of 16th February.

Once you have you cake successfully baked, then what?

For me,  one year ago, my about-to-turn-Four-year old wanted a “Cars” cake.

Ackkk ! What did I know about cake decorating? a few well meaning attempts make not a professional cake maker.

First I go to Google and see that might be out there for inspiration, I find a cake, decide I like it, but fail to see how I can construct it as good as they did.

Ok, improvise.

First,  I mix a little icing sugar (powder sugar) and orange flower water and water to make a not too thick glaze, with this, I sandwich the two halves of my cake together.

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Then I cut a slice of each edge of the cake,  the cuts run parallel to each other, one each side of the cake. This forms the main body of the car. The “spare” bits that I cut off get cut a little shorter and joined up to make the roof of  the  car.  (I’m keeping it very simple)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

I made a super-thin glaze that I  use to “crumb coat” the  cake and let this set. This seals in the crumbs so that the next layer of icing can be applied  cleanly without all the crumbs falling off the cake constantly and muddying the icing.

Then I coat a biscuit (cookie) with icing and place it at the read to make the back spoiler,  ice the cake in red, adding some white for the windows and some  M&M’s for the “eyes”. I use some shop bought biscuits for the wheels and decorate the “trailer” with sweets.

I was working  in a freezing cold  January kitchen with the heating on so that my fingers could actually function, so keeping my icing from either going solid or melting into a soppy pool was hard work.

Luckily Little Mr. was ecstatic with the result despite the flaws…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

Here are some other cakes I have decorated using the same chocolate cake base…

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

.. and finally one that the kids decorated themselves ( there’s a line down the middle because their definition of “half” was a bit too greedy at first)

(photograph © Kiwidutch)

So, Now you have a great cake recipe, and a few ideas for decoration… get the kids involved and have fun, believe me, even if it’s less than perfect your kids will still love it (and you) to bits !

[Via http://kiwidutch.wordpress.com]