I was so honored to be asked by Kelli to make her 40th birthday cake. She told me that every year, throughout her entire adult life, her birthday began with the ringing of her phone and the sound of her mom’s voice bringing birthday wishes. The day ended with her VERY favorite cake in the whole world, her mom's red velvet cake with cream cheese icing. Every birthday, same tradition: start the day with a birthday wake-up call, end the day with mom's red velvet.
People don’t usually order their own cakes, but Kelli lost her mom last year. And she didn’t just lose her mom - it was as though she had lost her best friend. They had that kind of “mother-daughter” thing that most of us can only dream about. (I’m so lucky and blessed that I have a similar thing with my mom.)
In the spirit of keeping important traditions alive (and she didn’t say this, but also, since it’s not every day that you turn 40), Kelli decided to find herself the perfect red velvet/cream cheese birthday cake this year. I don’t know about the perfect part, but I know I was honored and terrified to attempt to “fill in” for her mom. I kept it simple using the rosette method from the brilliant "i am baker" tutorial which you can find here. I don’t usually include this much personal story with my cakes, but Kelli gave me her permission to share a couple lines from a follow-up note she sent me. I think this sums things up.
“Peggy, I just cut the cake and was flooded with emotion. It is really amazing how God works. You made a cake so much like my mom’s. Your icing is just like hers! The icing was great (cake, too)! It was delicious! Thanks for making my birthday special.”
Talk about being flooded with emotion! Who would have ever thought that making cakes could be this fulfilling?
Oven’s on – I’ll be back soon!
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