Molly Turns 13 (with a tree branch themed cake)! (Click photos to enlarge.)

 Last year for my little girl’s 12^th birthday, she wanted a “simple” chocolate cake. I felt awful at the idea of making her a “plain Jane” cake when every other cake I was working on back then was getting 20 hours worth of attention... each! This year, as her 13^th birthday approached, I encouraged her to dream up something BIG that we could do to celebrate this landmark occasion. But she didn't want me to have to slave over a hot turntable all week, so she kept insisting she just wanted plain chocolate again. “Nothing fancy; don’t go to any trouble, Momma.” She couldn't be coaxed. But no, I wasn’t having that. I can’t recall my 13^th birthday, and I certainly can’t recall the cake (if I even had one?). No indeed! We were going to make a memory, by God. And we did!  We had a beautiful birthday weekend.  So many things about it were wonderful, cake or no cake. Uh, but yes, we did have cake.

When she couldn’t decide what she wanted, I decided to surprise her by using one of her most cherished possessions as the inspiration for her cake: a serving tray with bare tree branches silhouetted against a brown background that was given to her as a gift by someone she adores. I put the cake together in about three or four evenings, working at least 2 nights until the wee hours of the morning (3 a.m.-ish). But it was all worthwhile. She loved her cake and the look on her face when it was finished was PRICELESS. (But then, who doesn’t love their own birthday cake?)  Double chocolate chip cake, whipped hazelnut-infused butter cream filling and icing, covered in chocolate ganache, and decorated with homemade MMF.  Thanks to my wonderful caking friend, Lisa Randolph-Gant, for the fantasy flower tutorial earlier this week.  I couldn’t have made these floppy “scrap book”-look flowers without her.  

Sorry for the long post, but on a final note, I think karma gave us one last little gift tonight (Sunday evening, April 17, 2011), as right this VERY moment, my cake (fine, Molly's cake) is the #1 “most saved” cake of the day on the home page of Cake Central (only my favorite website in the world).  I know it’s shameful to be proud, but the #1 spot on Cake Central is a spot typically reserved only for my biggest cake heroes. Awesome!

Birthday girl with her cake.

Birthday girl cutting top of cake.  

Yes, that was cake for 50, and yes, the entire cake has been EATEN!!