Cake of the Month: April, Part 1

I don't have a picture to share with you, as April's cake has yet to be made. We had planned a birthday gathering tonight for a dear friend who I'll call Ocean Mouse (because she lives near the ocean and loves mice), but she had to have a medical procedure done today, instead. I'm not sure when we'll be having the celebration, but we sent along a homemade card and a promise of cake with Quester and another friend who were going down to keep her company.

I do have some cake news, though, so I thought I'd share some tidbits to tide you over. First, the sad news - when we had our external hard drive failure early this month, I lost the cake recipes I'd created so far this year. Now, there may be a way to get our data back, or there may not. I'm taking it as a lesson in impermanence...and backing up things in multiple places. We already do that with much of our writing, so most of that stuff was saved, but recipes and photos took the hit. Ah well.

In other cake news, ElvenTiger and I recently started watching the show "Cake Boss" on Netflix. We love it! Not so much for the entertainment factor, although it can be pretty funny. But mostly to see the amazing cakes, and how they're made and decorated! I think we'll be doing some experimenting with fondant at some point. Some of the cakes they make on the show are just stunningly beautiful. And they look yummy, too! Actually, I got an idea from them that I may use for Ocean Mouse's cake (it's okay, she doesn't do online stuff, so it won't spoil the surprise). I think I'll make a three-layer vanilla cake, with the top layer bigger so that I can frost it to look like a giant cupcake (she loves cupcakes), and then (this is the part from the show) between the layers it will be stuffed with fudge chocolate filling and fresh strawberries. Sounds delicious, doesn't it? I'm thinking a pink frosting for the outside of the "cupcake." I hope I can pull it off!

And last but not least, I wanted to give kudos to my Mom for making an awesome cake she calls Holy Cannoli Rolly. She makes a thin sheet cake, spreads it with cream cheese filling and mini chocolate chips, then rolls it up and covers it with chocolate drizzle. She used a recipe but then adapted it to make it her own. The slices are gorgeous spirals, the flavor is melt-in-your-mouth delightful, and she assures us that it's fairly healthy. Or in other words, not as richly decadent as it tastes. Go Mom!