Strollerderby : cake

Store Refuses To Make Cake for Toddler Adolf Hitler

Kelly Mills — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 20:31:00 GMT

Oh, the hardships of being a white supremecist. Heath and Deborah Campbell tried to get ShopRite and a local grocery store to make a birthday cake for their three-year-old, named Adolf Hitler. And they actually wanted the cake to say "Happy Birthday Adolf Hitler" (I guess just using "Adolf" was out of the question, hmmm?) But apparently they are so persecuted that the stores refused, though the grocer did offer to leave room for their own inscription. The story has some awesome quotes, like Deborah lamenting how sad it is the store can't make a cake for a kid, and Heath saying, "Other kids get their cake. I get a hard time. It's not fair to my children. How can a name be offensive?"

Um, yeah. I have no idea. Oh, and believe it or not, ShopRite won't make a cake for their two-year-old either. Her name? JoyceLynn Aryan Nation Campbell. Oh boy. By the way, Wal-Mart is willing to do the cake.

A psychologist quoted in the story says he believes the names will cause problems for the kids later in life. Hmm, ya think? But he also points out that the parents' views are kinda likely to damage the kids too. Oh, and that any problems they face in school later "would be icing on the cake." Get it? Icing? Riiiight.

Of course Adolf and siblings live in a house decorated with swatstikas, but the Campbells insist the swatstika "doesn't really have a meaning. It's just a symbol." Just a name, a symbol, and a few kids who are gonna have a rough road. Seems like an inscribed cake might be the least of it.

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Kitchenista: About the "Wow"

Adrienne Martini — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 14:00:00 GMT

Sometimes, it's not how good the cake tastes; it's how cool the cake looks. And in this case, the cake looks cool indeed.

How did Nicole at Baking Bites make her zebra cake? The batter itself is fairly straightforward. You could probably get away with two boxed mixes. But what makes it special is the technique for layering the batters in the pan, which requires more concentration than you might imagine.

Still, it looks cool. And if you mess it up, you'd also wind up with a (less attractive) cake that would be perfectly yummy.

Keep this in mind for your next jungle-themed birthday party.

Photo credit: Nicole Weston

Happy Birthday kids. Have some carrots.

Brett Singer — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Despite what Adrienne pointed out about chubby kids having fewer cavities, a school principal in New Zealand isn't taking any chances.

Megan Bowden of the Oteha Valley primary school has issued a decree: no more cake. With a large number of kids having birthdays in September and October, every day was a birthday cake day, and that's just too damn much cake! The New Zealand Ministry of Education (ooo, sounds ominous, doesn't it?) has been trying to reduce the amount of sugary snacks being served at school, but they also issued a statement that, "schools did not need to monitor food brought in from outside." So they're probably cool with the cake.

As much as the principal's policy seems draconian, I have to admit that a part of me agrees with her. I'm far from a health nut, and Kelly is right when she tears into the London lunatic who criticized a heavyset beauty queen. But it does sometimes feel like kids are given a tremendous amount of junky food during the school day. I know of two elementary schools that have "sundaes on Friday" once a month at lunch, and I've seen lunch menus that offer waffles and bacon, with chocolate éclairs for dessert. According to the article, parents began to think that bringing a cake for the child's birthday was a school rule. Then there's the issue of allergies, which means checking the cake for nuts or another offending substance, and whoever brings in the cake might be expected to provide an alternative for any child who can't partake of the treat. Maybe it's not completely unreasonable to say hey, have your cake at home.

Kitchenista: 20-Minute Strawberry Log Cake

Madeline Holler — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 17:55:00 GMT

Sometimes, you just need cake.

My go-to easy cake, especially during strawberry season, takes no more than 20 minutes and is just so good. It's one of those foods that tastes great the next day, too.

This strawberry cake is like angel food cake, without the wasted egg yolks. And without the wait. It's also pretty (rolled up), delicious (containing whipped cream as it does), and hard to ruin (it's thinner and more golden than the cake in the picture). Did I mention it's fast?

Here's what you need:

3/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 eggs, separated

1/2 cup sugar

Another 1/2 cup sugar

Another 1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Another teaspoon vanilla

Powdered sugar

1 pint heavy cream (or a container of Cool Whip ... if you go this route, don't worry about that last 1/4 sugar and the second teaspoon vanilla listed in the ingredients)

2 pints strawberries, cut into bite sized pieces

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. Line with wax paper or parchment if you feel like it (I frequently don't).

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.

In the bowl of an electic mixer, beat egg whites until foamy (high speed). Add 1/2 cup of sugar a little at a time and beat until you have stiff peaks.

In another bowl, beat egg yolks and another 1/2 cup of sugar. Beat in 1 teaspoon of vanilla. Then fold the flour and yolk mixture into the egg whites using a rubber spatula until just blended (don't go crazy with the mixing here -- just make sure everything looks fairly evenly distributed.)

Spread this in the cookie sheet. Bake 15 minutes.

Spread a clean dish towel on the counter and dust with powdered sugar. When the cake is done and cooled for a few minutes, slip a knife around the edge of the cookie sheet and then turn the cake out onto the dish towel. (Peel off the paper if you used it.) Roll the cake and the dish towel together and let it cool the rest of the way. (This is so it holds its form and also so it doesn't break apart, as it would if you rolled a completely cooled cake.

Whip the cream and 1/4 sugar and teaspoon of vanilla until peaks form. (Or break open the Cool Whip.) Stir in the strawberry pieces. Then unroll the cake gently, spread the cream and strawberries and reroll it. Sprinke the whole thing with more powdered sugar.

Slice into thick pieces. It's kind of messy, but who cares, right? You have cake!

Photo: HappyHomeBaking.blogspot.com

Fun Birthdays Despite Recession

Madeline Holler — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 22:36:00 GMT

In all this talk about economic downturns and recessions or "recessions" and whatnot, politicians are overlooking one very important thing when calculating rebates and tax cuts and interest rates freezes and economic stimulation: what the hell is a parent to do about birthday parties?

Listen, party-planning expert Lisa Kothari, author of Dear Peppers and Pollywogs...What Parents Want to Know About Planning Their Kids' Parties knows your pain and she wants to help out with her three-part series on recession-proof children's birthday parties. Thank God, because I was worried we'd have to leave it up to our kids this year to create their own fun.

For Part 1, she counsels to "think outside the box," but goes on to give some cool ideas, so stick with me. The first is a Messy Party, with these sugggestions.

Invitations stamped with handprints.
Make a mess out of balloons and streamers; hang them all over the place in no set pattern.
Have the kids paint pictures with chocolate.
Let the kids decorate premade sugar cookies.
Set out paint, roller brushes, and butcher paper for the kids to make fantastic creations.
Have a bunch of stamps and water-soluble ink out and have the kids stamp their arms and legs all over and stamp one another!
Place a pile of dirt in one area of the yard and have the kids make dirt creations using twigs, rocks, and other natural elements.
Make a traditional round cake, ice with vanilla frosting and then drizzle different colors of icing into your own messy masterpiece. Add candy toppings as an added bonus.

Outrageous Cookie Party

Make plain cookie dough and then set out these ingredients for kids to get creative with. Bag them up to take home. Be sure to warn parents in case the kids decide to share.

Ketchup
Mustard
Chocolate Syrup
Ranch Dressing
Steak Sauce
Cherries
Yogurt
Cheese
Peanut Butter
Balsamic Vinegar
Jam
Pesto Sauce
Tomato Sauce
Relish

Don't forget to request all birthday gifts in cash. (Who's going to pay for all that wasted pesto? We're in a recession!)

So what are you doing for a cheap birthday party this year (or any year)? Canceling the tiger cub rental? Yeah, me too. Me too.

Photo: Once Upon a Bash

LEGO Cake Looks Just Like LEGOs!

Madeline Holler — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 11:48:00 GMT

I am very opposed to exerting more than pleasurable effort for children’s birthday parties. I think parents owe it to themselves to hold back, especially early on, because the inclination to ramp up a little more each year will leave you with no other options than to bus in strippers for Junior’s 13th birthday celebration.

This goes for cakes too – keep it low-key, keep it simple, keep it cheap. Granted, I’m religious about homemade cakes around here (read: saves money while faking maternal devotion!). But my lack of patience, talent and odd-shaped cake pans limits the outcome.

Thanks to Swiss Miss for pointing me to Betty Crocker (I'm as surprised as you are): the LEGO Cake. Hey! It looks just like a LEGO! All you need are square pans (check!) and cupcake pans (check!) and probably some skewers to hold everything in place until it’s frosted.

Think the cakes actually interlock?

Kitchenista: Because Mondays are for Giant Cupcakes!

Karen Murphy — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 19:27:00 GMT

My cakes are legendary in my house: stunningly ugly, but at least they taste good. One year I forgot to let the cake cool completely before icing the multiple layers (to hold more icing, of course), and no number of toothpicks unskillfully placed could keep the layers from sliding off and becoming the Leaning Cake of Pisa. Martha Stewart, I am not. Though I do make everything from scratch which almost makes up for the ugliness of my cakes.

My kids made a cake this past week at their dad's house. I'm pretty sure he had never made one before, either, and even though they used a mix I am told that the project took about 4 hours. They brought the leftovers over this morning,and you know what? It was pretty good.

And it's totally got me thinking about this huge-ass cupcake. Doesn't this picture make you want one? I mean, like RIGHT NOW? Forget icing 3 dozen tedious little things, why not just slather on a can of frosting (or make your own!) on this baby and you've got a delicious heart attack all ready to happen!

Cake. What a way to go.

Kitchenista: Lake Cake

Patti — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 16:01:00 GMT

As you read this, I'm on an airplane from San Francisco to Minneapolis, knitting something, drinking terrible wine, and changing DVDs every hour and a half or so. Then I'll ride in a minivan for two hours, at the end of which I'll tuck my kids, then myself, into bed at my in-laws' cabin in Wisconsin where I'll be spending the week. Jealous? You'll be even more so when you get a load of one of our family's favorite summer-at-the-lake traditions, the annual Lake Cake.

My sister-in-law Susan introduced this cake to the family when her daughters were just old enough to help decorate, and it's been on the menu every year since. It's just not summer until we find some new twist: Swedish fish to embed in the Jello lake, gummi inner tubes for the Teddy Grahams to float in, a replica of our floating swim dock made out of part of a candy bar, a graham cracker cabin. It's the summer version of decorating a gingerbread house, and we expect it will be something my nieces and my own girls will probably be orchestrating for their own kids in a couple of decades, when they'll hopefully be serving it on the deck at the same cabin.

The original recipe comes from Woman's Day and is presented as a layer cake, but in the interest of having more to decorate, we make it as a sheet cake. I have yet to eat a piece of "lake", but the rest of the family fights for those slices (*shudder*). It's ripe for variation—swimming pool, ocean, Mediterranean—blue Jello is incredibly versatile (*shudder again*).

YouTube Goodness: Baby Cake How-to

Stefania Pomponi Butler (CityMama) — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 13:06:00 GMT

Remember when this creepy cake shaped like a catatonic newborn baby was making the rounds? Well, now, thanks to the power of time-lapse video and YouTube, you can see how it was done.

My observations are two fold: 1. I didn't realize you could put that many layers of fondant on a cake. 2. I don't want to eat something that's been touched that much. (One more: 3. Still creepy.)