Birthday Cakes

All birthdays are special and just about any cake or dessert can be turned into a birthday cake. This week I have made two birthday cakes, both for thirtieth birthdays. One for my son Liam and one for my neighbours son Jack.

This is Jack’s cake, loosely modelled on Henry, Jacks Dachshund and so much fun to make.

The cake is my favourite mud cake recipe. 

Two layers of cake sandwiched with whipped mocha ganache frosting. The cake then cut into the dog shape and covered with more of the frosting. The frosting sets and the cake can then be iced with commercial fondant. I used  black and then tinted some white to get tan.  This is the recipe for the mud cake. The frosting was made by using half white and half dark chocolate and and adding one tablespoon of instant coffee dissolved in one tablespoon of boiling water.

Henry and Henry.

This is Liam’s cake, not really a cake as such but one of his favourite desserts given the birthday cake makeover. Assembled and ready for some candles to be added 

A baked lemon cheesecake, I prefer no crumbs on the sides and for this one I used a larger springform tin so that the cake was thinner and more like a torte, topped with mandarin cream and some small meringues.

The mandarin cream was made by warming some mandarin jam and straining out the rind, allowing it cool and then stirring the jam through some whipped cream.

Little meringues.

Just add candles.