Pumpkin angel food cake

This is my absolute favorite fall and holiday desert. Pumpkin Angel Food Cake.

It is guilt free (take the low calorie count and fat free-ness of angel food cake and add the vitamins and fiber of pumpkin...). I love to serve this with cranberry cool whip or plain cool whip, cinnamon and freshly ground nutmeg. Delicious! Here, I garnished it with cranberries, both sugared and plain, and fresh mint.

You, too, can make this at home!

Not much cakeage going on at our house the past two weeks, but here is a nectarine topped Mascarpone Cheesecake that is oh, so tasty. I posted the recipe here a few weeks ago. It was so good, I made one for my handsome man to take to work with him. It was all gone before he could get to it to snag a piece, so my guess is it was a big hit. Look! No cracks! (I just had to post this one to prove that the fruit was not a cover up for a cracked cheesecake...this time)
Birthday week at our house is coming up. (three b-days and Halloween all in the span of 5 days) I will hopefully have some fun "real" cake pics soon!

Chocolate lover's birthday

A cake for my sister's Mother-in-law's 60th. She loves chocolate, so that is what she gets. 3 layer chocolate cake with strawberry filling and chocolate frosting...so yummy.

This is what you get at 2 am.

I made this cake at 2 am after I finished the cake for Bryan and Lindsay. It was for my Aunt Cristie. Bryan got married on his mom's Birthday, so we had to make a little something to mark the (other) occasion! Since I finished at 2 am, I did not take a picture. I just stumbled upstairs to my bed. I went to take pics the next morning, and DISASTER!!! Okay, not disaster, but disappointment. It was pretty perfect when I put it in the fridge...not so much when I took it out. The cake and frosting are sugar free (or at least drastically reduced sugar) and the fondant on the outside is not. There must have been some chemical reaction between the two, because it was eating through the fondant! And the cakes were leaking some sort of carmel looking substance (the cake was all chocolate). I have never had that happen before! I was so embarrassed to take this.
It just got worse during the 2 hour car ride. I stuck it in the freezer when we got to the reception location, but it was too late. They did bring it out later that night, and my Aunt seemed to love it and as long as it made her feel special, that is what matters. (but I would have been happier if it was perfect...)
Anyway, Happy birthday, Aunt Cristie! I hope you had a great one, and that the cake tasted good!

Bryan & Lindsay's Cake

Finally, pictures of my cousin's wedding cake. This one was an adventure to make. My sink clogged on baking day, and no amount of super duper ultra professional strength kitchen drain de-clogger would fix. (I don't think I have nose hairs anymore, though...) So, I washed all the dishes in a giant bowl in my sink, and would run out back and dump the dirty water on the weed patch. Thankfully, my amazing husband came home and dismantled the garbage disposal in the sink and fixed it so I could clean a bit faster. The Front

The Back

All Set up with the "honeymoon box". (I always put a big chunk of cake, or in this case 3...one of each flavor.. in a box with two forks for the couple to take with them, in case they don't get a piece or need a late night snack)

Congrats Bryan and Lindsay!

A Real Cake...

Sort of.

I realize I haven't posted a cake cake for a while. Sorry. What can I say...I am like a little bird. I get sidetracked easily.

Now that I am focused, Here is a cake I did for a local Chocolate show last November. It is a dummy cake covered in chocolate fondant and handmade chocolate pine cones and pine needles. I also made the meringue mushrooms (the white ones) and the gum paste toadstools (the red ones) Chocolate cookie crumbs for dirt and real peat moss.These photos are not the best... The lighting was terrible and my little point and shoot was on it's last leg. Just pretend it looks even better than what you see :)

Want s'more?

After the huge success of my banana boat cupcakes, I decided to try another campfire classic in cupcake form...S'mores! I know this concept is no new, but it is delicious! I made chocolate cupcakes and stirred in a few graham cracker goldfish into the batter. Topped them with a fluffy marshmallow frosting, and torched those babies with my blow torch. (okay, it is just a little brulee torch, but that sounds wimpy) Here is the marshmallow frosting I used: (it is Jennifer Shea's from Trophy Cupcakes)

Makes enough for 2 dozen cupcakes
8 large egg whites
2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Directions
Place egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in the heatproof bowl of an electric mixer. Set over a saucepan with simmering water. Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and whites are warm to the touch, 3 to 4 minutes.
Transfer bowl to electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat, starting on low speed, gradually increasing to high, until stiff, glossy peaks form, 5 to 7 minutes. Add vanilla, and mix until combined. Use immediately.

Don't be intimidated! It really is easy! Make sure to toast them with a torch or under your broiler just before serving so you get the crispy outside!