Of Mice and Men, the Kind That Make Cake  

Posted by Heidi in



Tomorrow is the Little Guy’s birthday. He’ll be seven. He wanted to come on 9/11 but the nurses and doctors said it was a terrible day to be born and that we should “go home and come back tomorrow”. So, very obediently, he stopped whatever it was he was doing and started up again in the morning. That’s just the kind of guy he is. And, the truth is, our little family was not so adversely affected by what happened that horrible day because we were just so glad that our Little Guy came safely into the world after three life-threatening traumas during pregnancy, a risky delivery (he came three weeks early) and a few more life threatening situations within the first 24 hours of life.

Because of the Little Guy, we were solely focused on life while the rest of the world was focused on, ahem, death. So, we have the Little Guy to thank for many things, his large and thickly-lashed eyes being but one of them.

The trouble is that the Little Guy wants a blue cake with flowers on it, "lots of flowers". What’s a mother to do? Of course, I want him to be in touch with his feminine side. It will make him a better father and husband. I really believe that. (I really do!) Still, I can’t help but think, later on, during those awkward teenage years, he might be embarrassed by his flowery cake. So, we’re going to do it Mom’s way. (We always do it Mom’s way but this situation was much better justified than some of the others, don’t you think?) Because I have been audibly salivating over this cake for over a month now, this is the one I am making:



(please ignore the fact that I was trying to get rid of a large light blotch and made it worse by attempting to use my new photo shop program to which I have still not adjusted . ..)

but without the chocolate curls. We are going to add a bit of blue frosting on top, sprinkle flower shaped sprinkles on top of that and on top of THAT we are going to put some great little hot rod cars. Yes? Yes!

Now, this is a Paula Deen recipe so that means there are 4 cups of heavy cream and tons of butter and chocolate required. It is a six layer cake made, of course, from scratch, with chocolate mousse between each layer and the frosting is not just chocolate, it’s chocolate fudge. I can either follow the recipe as outlined or use the following products to achieve the same affect.



And yes, I can see that the frosting pictured is "fluffy white", not chocolate. The chocolate frosting was taking the day off. Or got eaten. Or something. Tune in tomorrow for a picture of the final cake. How will it compare to Paula's? I think we can pretty much safely say, not so good, but if the Little Guy is happy, so am I.

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 11, 2008 at Thursday, September 11, 2008 and is filed under . You can follow any responses to this entry through the comments feed .

12 wise, witty and wonderful comments

Could I have this exact recipe? Maybe I should go to the food network site.
Yummmy!!!
OH, I went to the blogger annex...loved your letter...loved the comments too
Debbie

September 11, 2008 at 9:05 PM

Yes, I will be happy to post the recipe--I don't have your email address, Debbie. I can send it to Roxanne or something, though. Thanks for the comment!

September 11, 2008 at 9:11 PM

Looks soooo good! I wish I was still close so I could come "help" you make it :) Can't wait to see the photo finish!

September 11, 2008 at 9:30 PM

Heidi, your little guy shares a birthday with my Big Guy, and since I'm no baking goddess like you I'm getting his cake from Safeway :-) But if by chance he wants to know where the home baked cake is I'll send him over to check your post if you don't mind sharing. So make sure you post a picture of the finished product :-)

September 12, 2008 at 12:20 AM
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September 12, 2008 at 9:02 AM

You are back in my good graces again. I started to feel Mommy guilt when I began reading about the Paula cake. All I could think was my poor kids always get Costco cake because Rice Krispy treats are as fancy as I get. Then when I saw the second picture I realized you are back on my team again.

September 12, 2008 at 9:05 AM

Oh yah, totally on your team! Only, I have to say, that I have been lusting after this cake for a month and since I have been off wheat for five months, I am wanting this the way it was meant to be. However, I did buy items so that I could go either way should I just not make it to the finish line. We'll see what happens--convenience over culinary nirvana, which one? And, yes, Marivic, I will definitely post a pic because this is a humor blog and this is sure to turn out funny. Or funny looking.

September 12, 2008 at 9:11 AM

That boy is going to break hearts left and right someday. WOW, those lashes!

and thank you for the "audibly salivating" term. I will steal it and use it now. :)

September 12, 2008 at 12:01 PM

You don't really know what audible salivating is until you have spent some time with my Big Guy. You can actually hear the saliva glands kicking in and getting to work. You can actually hear the saliva gathering steam and working its way through every cell of the inner mouth--it's really something. And audible. Feel free to use. :)

September 12, 2008 at 12:48 PM

I made one of her cakes for my hubby's birthday, to rave reviews! And it looked spectacular.

(And if worse comes to worse, Costco does blue roses!) haha

September 12, 2008 at 2:10 PM

My mouth is watering! Good luck on the cake. And thanks for the life-affirming reflection on the birth of your son one day after that horrible one seven years ago.

September 12, 2008 at 7:48 PM

Thanks, Kazzy, that's totally sweet! He has been such a blessing for us!

September 13, 2008 at 10:57 AM

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