Where to Buy a Birthday Cake?

2010 - 2012 Reviews

Affordable, Semi-Yummy Birthday Cake for Kids

I was all set to order my 4 y.o.'s bday cake from Raley's, but apparently the El Sobrante store doesn't do custom cakes. Bummer! Where else do you like for kids' cakes with decorations done in-store, half-sheet size that's under $40? I'm interested in recommendations for anywhere else between Pinole and Oakland, west of tunnel, pickup on a Sunday. Thanks! B-Day Mama

Birthday cake, nice than Safeway but not too extravagant

Looking for recent recommendations for a bakery/baker to make my daughter's birthday cake. She has a theme in mind, but nothing too extravegant. I want something nicer than a Safeway cake, but one that doesn't cost as much as my wedding cake did. Can't do it myself this year

What you should remember about the pricing is that each image is $20 extra. I had them put my son's favorite Yo Gabba Gabba character on it. At first, I didn't understand the extra fee, but when I saw the cake, it became clear why they had to charge for it. They did a really artful job. Everyone at the party loved the cake--especially my son! It was a bit of an indulgence, but made my son's birthday really special. The people at Sweet Adeline are great to work with. Very friendly and accommodating. They are a relatively small operation, so weekend orders should be made with as much advance notice as possible. Berkeley Mom with no time to bake

2007 - 2009 Reviews

Delicious cake for daughter's 4th birthday

I am looking for a great birthday cake for my daughter's fourth birthday. I read the archives, but didn't see any new recommendations. I am looking for a cake that is delicious for adults and kids, not a grocery store cake with whipped cream frosting. I would like a cake made with real buttercream frosting. Back when Just Desserts had local outlets, I thought their cakes were the best. I know I can get a Just Desserts cake at Whole Foods, but I need a big sheet cake. As far as decorations go, subtle is better. I would be willing to decorate it myself. Quality is more important than price, and local would be better. (I live in Berkeley) Any suggestions? holly

Custom cake for 4-year-old's birthday

i am looking for someone that makes custom birthday cakes or cupcakes...i need a volcano cake for my sons 4th bday party. Thanks in advance for any recommendations! need a cake!

Good bakery for custom cake for child's birthday

My son's first birthday is coming up, I would like to get some recommendations for a good bakery where I can get cakes shaped liked Disney characters or in the shape of ships, cars, etc. and also have all the qualities of a good tasting cake. Thanks, anon

2004 - 2006 Reviews

Birthday cake for peanut and milk allergic boy

The archives have lots of great recommendations for ''regular'' birthday cakes, but since my son has a peanut and milk allergy (so no milk, cream, butter, etc.) we would love some suggestions about where to go for a cake or cupcakes for his second birthday party. Ideally I'd like one big yummy cake that both the parents and kids will enjoy instead of having to do a separate little cake for my son and a different one for the rest of the guests (plus I don't want to worry about people giving him a bite of the wrong one). Any thoughts? yummy mummy

If you want a dairy-free cake with icing, you can get a nice one from Grand Bakery on Grand Ave in Oakland (as a kosher bakery, they specialize in baked goods with no dairy, since people who observe the kosher laws will not have a dairy dessert after a meat meal). They do round and sheet cakes with icing and decorations Elizabeth

1 1/2 c Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp Vanilla
1 c Sugar
1 tsp Vinegar
3 tbl Cocoa
5 tbl Vegetable Oil
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 c Cold Water
1/2 tsp Salt

Safeway v. Albertsons bakery for bday cakes

Anyone have a recommendation for which bakery location they like best for cakes, between Safeway and Albertsons? I'd like to get my sons birthday cake there but I don't know which one to go to. Thanks! Kim

Photo Image on Cake

Can anyone tell me where I could get a cake with a personal photo recreated on the icing? I may have heard that Costco does it, but I'm not a member so that's not ideal (would have to bug a friend to go with me). Anywhere else? Thanks! anon

Best Place to Get Birthday Cake

Where is the best place to get a birthday cake in Berkeley, Albany, or Oakland? Lily

2003 & Earlier

With younger children it's easy to get away with making your own cake. I often make mine in a shape that ties in with the theme of the party. A friend of mine usually makes a basic (cake mix/canned icing) sheet cake and tops it with a toy related to the party theme; i.e., for her son's pirate party, she bought a little pirate toy set with plastic people, pirate ship, and treasure chest. This way, the child keeps the toys as a keepsake of the party, and even with a $15 toy, you end up saving money. Once I topped a sheet cake with blue (via food coloring) icing and toy sharks, with each guest getting a shark on his/her piece to take home, but I wouldn't recommend this for young children who may try to eat the decoration!

For one of my kids' sixth birthday, I bought a cake mold that was shaped like a car. (This was about ten years ago; I found it at the now defunct Bill's Drugs for about $5.) I made a chocolate cake from a mix (I'm no baker), and let my son frost and decorate it with M&M's, jelly beans, etc. to outline the windows, doors and wheels. It looked really cool in a funky kind of way, and as you can imagine, it was a lot of fun to do. My son felt very special, everyone enjoyed eating it and it sure didn't cost $50.

Definitely make your own if you're willing! I'm not a baker by any means, but for the last 2 bdays - 3 & 4 - I've rented a cake pan at Spun Sugar on University & made 2 fun cakes. Spun Sugar has everything & they're very kind to people who have no idea what they're doing. The first time I made a half sheet cake with 3 boxes of cake mix (it was quite full, but baked just fine - do not think about making your own cake from scratch, it's not worth it!!) then I made the frosting (this is very worth it & easy - get the recipe from Spun Sugar, and try to forget that frosting is made of only butter, veg. shortening & sugar) & created a construction scene on top w/a dirt (brown sugar mixed w/the frosting) road & hill & toy trucks & road signs (saw it in a catalogue of b-day stuff - we gave away the trucks on the cake pieces for party favors). It was all amazingly easy, really fun, and dirt cheap. Last year I rented the train pan (I think it took less than 2 (or 3? ask them) boxes of mix & I made cupcakes with the rest) & decorated w/little stars of homemade frosting in different colors. This took quite a bit longer than the first year's cake, but it was surprisingly simple. I bought one set of decorating tips that came w/disposable bags. (Hint - slice off the bump on top of the cake before you turn it out of the pan on a platter. After I decorated, a long crack appeared on the top bc the ends bent down.) I put the cupcakes above like puffs of smoke. One key is to use the special colors from the shop, and color the frosting the day before using a little color at a time. It becomes somewhat darker over time, and you don't need to use so much of the color. Keeps well in tupperware for at least a day. The half sheet cake had a ton left over, the train shape was basically all gone along w/the cupcakes, but it fed over 20 people. Cut the pieces small anyway - the concept is much more important than the amount. Have fun!

The first thing to remember is that kids don't judge cakes the same way as adults. So, most of the strengths of a $50 Toot Suits cake are completely lost on kids. The kind of cake that kids like has lots of cheezy decorations on top of icing. The number of layers, quality of the chocolate, virginity of the cream, and politics of the baker simply don't matter.

This said, the place that does the best kid cakes for the price, without a doubt, is CostCo. You can pre-order cakes with your favorite message or you can take your chances with whatever they have the day you're shopping.

Jon

P.S. Now, if I could only convince my wife that the CostCo pies are as good as FatApples for adults then I'll be saving at least $50/year.

I have always baked cakes from mixes for my sons. They don't like store bought cakes. I make one vanilla and one chocolate. I frost and then let them decorate the cakes. They come up with good ideas, like lego decorations or disney characters. They always rave about the cake because they had a helping hand! If you have leftover batter you can make cupcakes. They like that. I would prefer Virginia Bakery or Toots but kids seem to like the simpler things in life. Here's a tip: try Andronico's on Solano for day old cakes which are very good because they keep them refrigerated. I believe they come from the Toot's across the street and are discounted quite a bit. I also think Costco makes great cakes and they are cheap. Good Luck.

When I have needed a birthday cake for adults I have sometimes purchased one from Just Desserts or another of the better bakeries around Berkeley. However, for children, I have found that purchasing an expensive cake is definitely not worth it. Lots of kids don't particularly like cake, or they don't like frosting and I've ended up throwing most of it away, because they'll eat only a few bites. For the last few birthday parties I've just made a simple chocolate cake (on the back of the Hershey's cocoa can) with just a thin layer of frosting. The kids usually get a kick out of the homemade decorating -- with lots of tube frosting flowers. We also usually add sprinkles. And the kids love to help prepare their own cake. It adds a lot more time to the whole birthday party preparation, but I think it's worth it.

Good, large, cheap sheet cakes can be purchased at Costco.

I have found the best bakery for children's birthday cakes to be: The Virginia Bakery--located on Shattuck and Virginia, I believe (near Andronico's). I searched all over Berkeley and El Cerrito when we moved here last year. I must have searched and gone to at least 20 different bakeries-- french, gourmet, grocery stores, etc... They do an excellent job, the cakes are incredibly tasty, and they have several choices for decorations for children's themes, i.e. the Teletubbies, Disney characters, princess cakes, etc...Also, their prices are reasonable, around $30-35 for a cake which serves 10. They are very friendly as well.

You can get very nice-- and cheap birthday cakes at Costco. Also Lucky and Safeway have nice cakes for cheaper than toots sweets. Virginia Bakery too but they are also expensive. There are also several bakeries at the Pacific East Mall (old Breuners) in Albany -- off the Central Ave.exit.

I highly recommend the Berkeley Bakery on Solano (527-9616, ask for Harry). They are expensive, but the cakes use more natural ingredients and are less sweet. I opted to go for a slightly smaller cake (for my daughter's birthday party) that had fresh strawberries and an icing that wasn't cloyingly sweet. Everybody, including the adults, really liked it. (We're trying hard to cut down on the sugar my 3-year-old daughter is exposed to because she's already had 2 cavities!)

I know that Virginia Bakery also makes cakes that are very popular and less expensive, but when I've tasted them at parties, I've found them way too sweet, almost artificial- tasting. Of course, kids don't seem to mind that!

When it comes to children's birthday cakes, think ice cream instead of cake. In my experience, most children prefer ice cream and it's easier for a non-baker to deal with. We have purchased ice cream cakes from Baskin-Robbins and Ben & Jerry's which are quite good, but expensive. We bought a plain green loaf shape and added our own plastic figures on the top in keeping with the Ninja Turtle theme. Get the candle holder picks since it will be quite solid and hard to add candles. I made my own ice cream clowns by putting a round scoop of ice cream on a sturdy flat cookie (Lu maybe), adding M&M's for eyes, forcing icing through a garlic press for hair, and inverting a pointed cone on the top for the hat. I also made a doll cake by using a cone-shape mold pan designed for cake and filling it with ice cream instead. That became the skirt when turned over. Then I stuck in a purchased doll top and used icing for the bodice (ice cream didn't stick to the plastic body) and purchased candy flowers to decorate. My kids were able to help add the decorations to both projects, which they enjoyed more than any professionally done cake.

I know many people are unfamiliar with the new Pacific East Mall that jut opened a few months back in the Richmond/El Cerrito/Albany area just off Pierce. There are 3 places in that mall that sells good cakes. One is the Ranch 99 supermarket which has a special bakery section. Their cakes are pretty good and it's light and fluffy and not too sweet. They can put fruits in the middle, custard, buttercream, etc and decorate it. There's also the ShungKee Bakery and Cafe just across from the supermarket. They also have very good cakes. They can do everything Ranch 99 Supermarket can and more. Then there's also the Goldilock Bakery and Cafe. Their cakes are more pricey than the other two places but it's good. For adult birthdays and special people, we often get the cakes from them...

You can get rather large (and surprisingly good) sheet birthday cakes from Costco for -- I forget how much, but definitely less than $20. There is a choice of designs, and they will write on a Happy Birthday message for you.

To the parent seeking brithday cake suggestions: Price-Costco in El Cerrito off Central Avenue has large sheetcakes in various flavors readymade and takes special orders for custom decorated cakes with kid and adult themes. They are pretty tasty--nothing gourmet but better than Betty Crocker's and quite reasonable and huge (I can't remember exact sizes but they will feed a crowd).

one more idea: make a cake or cupcakes and frost, but don't decorate. Then let the kids do the decorating at the party, with shakers of sprinkles and some small candies (like m&ms). For 3 yrs and up...

How to Make a Birthday Cake?

Angel Food Cake for 2-year-old

My two year old has requested a strawberry cake for her birthday party. I'm no cook, but I thought I could pull off an angel food cake with strawberries and cream...if I could buy a decent angel food cake! Can anyone recommend a good source? Taking it easy this year

Baking a cake really isn't hard. And you can buy strawberry flavored cake mix; using a cake mix takes about as much effort and expertise as fixing boxed macaroni-and-cheese.

If you are really opposed to the idea of baking it yourself, how about a strawberry ice cream cake? Cold Stone, Ben & Jerry's and Baskin Robbins all sell ice cream cakes. Holly

1 1/2 cups egg whites (11 to 12 large eggs) 
1 1/2 cups (150 g) sifted confectioners sugar (sift before 
measuring) 
1 cup (100 g) sifted cake flour (not self-rising; sift before 
measuring) 
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla 
Special equipment: a 10-inch tube pan (about 4 inches deep) with 
a removable bottom

Let egg whites stand in bowl of a standing electric mixer (see 
cooks' note) at room temperature about 1 hour before making 
cake. (They should be about 600F, slightly below room 
temperature.)

Set oven rack in lower third of oven and preheat oven to 3500F. 

Sift together confectioners sugar, flour, and salt onto a sheet 
of wax paper using a triple sifter or fine sieve. 

Beat whites in mixer until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat 
at medium speed until they form soft peaks. Add granulated sugar 
gradually, beating, and continue beating just until whites are 
thickened and form soft, droopy peaks. Beat in vanilla. 

Sprinkle one fourth of sifted dry ingredients over whites and 
fold in with a rubber spatula gently but thoroughly. Fold in 
remaining dry ingredients, one third at a time. 

Gently pour batter evenly into ungreased tube pan and bake until 
top is light golden, cake retracts a bit from pan and springs 
back when touched lightly, and a tester comes out clean, 40 to 
45 minutes. Invert pan onto neck of an empty wine bottle or a 
large metal funnel and cool cake completely. 

To remove cake from pan, run tip of a long, narrow knife between 
outer edge of cake and pan. Tilt cake pan on its side and gently 
tap bottom edge against counter. Rotate pan, tapping and turning 
a few more times, until cake appears free. Cover pan with a 
metal rack or cardboard round and invert, tapping pan firmly to 
loosen cake. Lift pan from cake. (It should come out 
beautifully, like a pillow taken out of a slipcover.) 

Slice cake with a serrated knife, using a sawing motion.

Chocolate Cake for 1st birthday

I'd like to make my daughter's first birthday cake, but I don't have a recipe for a good chocolate cake. The icing will be orange-chocolate. I've heard that the cakes with coffee as one of the ingredients are pretty good. Anyone have a good recipe? happycamper I found a great recipe on Epicurious (Double Chocolate Layer Cake) It is the best chocolate cake I have ever made at home. Don't worry if you don't have 10-inch pans. I just use 9-inch pans and pour leftover batter into a muffin pan. I'm sure it will be delicious with your orange-chocolate frosting. http://food.epicurious.com/run/recipe/view?id=101275 Joanna

Mahogany Chiffon Cake

3/4 c. boiling water
1/2 c. cocoa
1 3/4 c. sifted cake flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 c. vegetable oil
8 egg yolks
2tsp vanilla
8 egg whites (1 cup)
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 3/4 c. sugar

Heat oven to 325 degrees.  Combine boiling water and cocoa; 
cool.  sift flour, soda and salt into mixing bowl.  making a 
well, add in order; oil, egg yolks, cocoa mixture and vanilla.  
Beat with wooden spoon until smooth.  in large bowl, beat egg 
whites and cream of tartar to very stiff peaks.  Do not 
underbeat ( a dry rubber spatula leaves a clean path).  Pour egg 
yolk mixture in thin stream over entire surface of egg whites, 
gently cutting and folding in with the spatula until blended.  
Do not stir.  Pour into 10-inch angel food tube pan.  Bake 65-70 
minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched.  Invert 
pan on bottle utnil cold.  Loosen from sides of tube with a 
spatula.  Turn pan over and hit edge sharply on table to release 
cake.

P.S. If you like this recipe, consider buying the awesome cookbook it comes from, called ''Yum!'' put out by El Cerrito Preschool Co-op (professionally published). 350 recipes, lots of award-winners, international stuff, desserts aplenty and kids- stuff. $12 each. Christine

One Bowl Chocolate Cake 
  
Makes 2 eight-inch square or 3 eight-inch round layers 
   
   Unsalted butter, for pans 
1 1/2  cups unsweetened cocoa powder, plus more for pans 
3  cups all-purpose flour 
3  cups sugar 
1  tablespoon baking soda 
1 1/2  teaspoons baking powder 
1 1/2  teaspoons salt 
3   large eggs 
1 1/2  cups buttermilk 
3/4  cup vegetable oil 
1 1/2  teaspoons pure vanilla extract 
  
  1.  Preheat oven to 350B0. Butter two 8-by-2-inch round or 
square cake pans, and line bottoms with parchment; butter 
parchment, and dust with cocoa. 
  
  2.  Into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle 
attachment, sift cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking 
powder, and salt. With the mixer on low, stir in eggs, 1 1/2 
cups warm water, buttermilk, vegetable oil, and vanilla until 
smooth, about 3 minutes. 
  
  3.  Divide batter among prepared pans. Bake, rotating once, 
until tester inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 45 
minutes for 8-inch layers, depending on amount of batter. 
  
  4.  Let cakes cool in pans on a wire rack for 20 minutes, 
then remove from pans and cool completely, right side up on 
rack. 
 

1 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 3/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 1/4 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
2 cups water*
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour two 9'' baking 
pans.  Mix all dry ingredients in large bowl.  Mix all wet 
ingredients in another bowl.  Ad wet ingredients to dry and beat 
until just smooth; do not overbeat. Pour evenly into pans; batter 
will be thin. Bake for approximately 25-35 minutes or until a 
clean toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
* You can substitute up to half of the water with milk, 
buttermilk (makes a richer cake), or even some coffee, if you 
choose.  

NON or LOW sugar Birthday Cake for Toddler

Can you offer a specific recipe for a fruit- or fruit-juice sweetened birthday cake for toddler. I was thinking of applesauce or the like. I'm really looking for a recipe that you've tried and loved, rather than some general ideas. Prefer whole grain flours, too. Thanks so much.

I'm having a birthday party for my 2 year old, and would like to make a fun BEAR shaped cake, but don't want to serve CAKE because i don't want to serve up lots of SUGAR. Several of the parents coming are also interested in finding creative ways to have sweet treats that are NOT filled with sugar. NOR filled with nutra-sweet type products. does anyone have suggestions to make low/non sugar birthday cakes? thanks, from a sweet-tooth lori

Themed Birthday Cakes

Animal shaped cakes

I'm wondering if anyone out there has advice on how to construct a cake that looks like a lion or a zebra? My daughter's third birthday is approaching and when asked what kind of cake she'd like (I was expecting the answer to be ''chocolate'' or ''vanilla''), she very firmly announced ''a lion.'' Since then she's vascillated between a lion and a zebra, but in any case I need help! I'm a fairly experienced baker, but I'm not very good at envisioning things. I looked at cake books at the library, but although there are bunny cakes galore, I can't find a lion or zebra. Has anyone out there made one or does anyone know where I could find a picture/model/directions for how to do so?

Also, there is some sort of recipe for ''Zebra Cake'' I found searching on google.com. It involves putting together oreos with whipping cream and freezing, then when one slices it there is a striped look. Happy birthday to your child! Jeanne

Zebra: These are actually for ponies, but easily adapted by icing in black and white stripes: http://www.birthdayexpress.com/bexpress/planning/ponycake.asp http://family.go.com/recipes/special/cake/cake_pony/

Lion: http://www.cookingvillage.com/cv/recipe/art/0,1684,sLang%3Dus&iObj%3D3237&iCat%3D34&iCatObj%3D5152,00.html

Here's a tiger -- add cookies or coconut around the edges for a mane to turn it into a lion: http://family.go.com/recipes/special/cake/cake_tiger/

Have fun! Holly

Feel free to email me and I will reply with a photo of the cake - - a picture's worth a thousand words, they say! Also I'd be happy to give you some other tips and pass along a few things I learned.

Oh, and as for a zebra... when I was a kid, my mom used to make something we called ''zebra cake.'' My brother and I loved it! It might not be what you're looking for because it won't look much like a zebra from the outside, but maybe you can take this idea and turn it into something that can be decorated to look like a zebra on the exterior as well. Anyway, this cake is very simple. Buy a box of simple chocolate wafer cookies (she used Nabisco ''famous'' chocolate wafers) and make whipped cream. Spread a good amount (I'd say about a 1/8'' to 1/4'' layer) of whipped cream over one side of the cookie. Repeat with another cookie and stack it on top of the first. Do this with the entire box of cookies, eventually putting your tower on its side so that it is a log. Then spread more whipped cream around the entire outside of the log; wrap it tightly in saran wrap, and refrigerate overnight. When you're ready to serve the cake, be sure to cut it on the diagonal so that each piece will have several black and white zebra stripes. The cookies will have absorbed some of the moisture of the whipped cream, so they will be soft and cake-like. If memory serves, it's delicious!

Happy baking, and happy birthday to your daughter - Sarah

Octopus Cake

So my little boy wants an ''Octopus cake'' for his upcoming third birthday. (''with monster candles, too.'') Now, is this something I can make? Anyone out there have a website or an old Good Housekeeping clip that details how one goes about creating the abovementioned Octopus cake? Any moms who've already tackled this particular sea creature and can advise me on which pans and food dyes to use? Or should I just up and buy a big rubber octopus to plop on top of your standard issue cake? I invoke the spirit of Martha Stewart! Julie T.

Use a bundt cake (or rounded metal mixing bowl) for the center part of the octopus (since they're rounded). For the arms, you could either back a rectangular cake and cut in 8 squiggly shapes and/or piece the odd pieces together with frosting; or (and especially if the bundt cake will serve enough people) purchase some long candy snakes or worms and group them together. If you make the arms out of cake, when it's frosted, no one will see where you've pieced it all together. You can also decorate the plate the cake goes on with purchase jelly fish, etc. Don't underestimate the purchased candy pieces' ability to add interest. They can also be used for eyes, suction cups, etc. Catherine

I found a simple idea for an octopus here: http://www.folies.net/images/Sea.gif and one for a cupcake (with jelly worm candy tentacles) here: http://family.go.com/recipes/special/cake/cake_octopus/

That cupcake could be made full-size by baking the cake in a bowl for the head, and using something larger (licorice ropes?) for the tentacles. Or, stack the bowl-shaped cake on top of a regular round cake layer, frost, and then decorate with icing (with the tentacles drawn down the sides, as if the octopus were sitting on top of a rock or something).

Or, use the bowl for the head and cupcakes or shapes cut out of a cake layer for the tentacles - curled up.

If your son would be happy with one that looked like those baby toys, you could use ice cream cones (with or without cake baked in them, or filled with frosting or whipped cream) for the tentacles.

Dyes are easy -- just ask your son what color the octopus should be, and use regular food coloring to achieve the appropriate color of buttercream icing.

I also ran across a few sites describing how to make octopi out of hot dogs. Sounds cute. (You just slice into the end of the hot dog before it's cooked to make 8 long, thin wedges (leaving about an inch of the opposite end uncut), and poke holes for eyes, and when you boil it, the 'tentacles' curl up and the 'eyes' pop out.) Maybe you could offer octopus hot dogs, and an (easier) fish shaped cake. :-) Holly

Thomas the Train Cake

We're having a Thomas the train theme birthday party for our 2 year old son. I'm looking for a bakery preferrably in the Concord, Walnut Creek, Lamorinda area to make a Thomas cake. I'm willing to travel outside of these areas if someone has a good recommendation. I know I can't be the only mom searching for a Thomas cake! Thanks.

Blue's Clues cake

A few weeks ago, someone posted the name of a place (bakery?) where a cake pan in the shape of Blue, the puppy from Blue's Clues, could be rented. My daughters 3rd birthday is coming up soon and she has her heart set on having a Blue themed party. I would really appreciate it if someone could tell me where to rent / buy the cake pan. Richa

Bug theme

I'm looking for bug themed cake decorations for my daughters birthday (ladybugs, butterflies, dragonflies etc.). I've heard of edible ones made of sugar and I'm sure plastic ones are available too. All I have been able to find are butterfly shaped plastic rings in many colors. I have checked at Party America and found nothing there. Does anyone know of anyplace where I can find something appropriate?
Thank you,
Going buggy planning a bug-themed party

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/special/specialfeature/cakefinder-birthday/

I decorated the cake with candy from ''Sweet Dreams''. She had licorice whip antennae, blue M&M eyes attached to tiny marshmallows, red wings with flat black candies for her dots, coconut grass that was tinted green with food coloring, etc.

If you'd like a picture, I can try sending it to you, although I have never sent a pix on this website. But the ablove link is a lot of fun to look at. Best, Jerri

Crocodile Cake

My soon to be 3 yr-old son wants a crocodile cake for his birthday. I am not the baking, cooking type of mom so any ideas on how to get pans shaped like a crocodile heads, etc. will be much appreciated. Thanks EA

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/special/cake/cake_crocodile/

If you're mildly artistic, you could probably also cut a sheet cake into a side-view of a crocodile.

This place may also sell a croc cake mold - not sure if they sell retail or not. http://www.lloydpans.com/BakingTools/decorating/

Good luck! Sounds like fun! -- JP Jeni Paltiel

(1) Bake a rectangular cake, frost it with green, brown and blue to look like a swamp, and decorate it with small plastic toy crocodiles.

(2) Bake a rectangular cake and cut a shallow triangle off of two of the corners so that you have something that looks like a reptilian head. Use part of the triangles you have cut off to make 'eyes' that stick up. Frost the entire thing with green, and then pipe brown frosting on for the details of eyes, mouth, nose. Cut a few sticks of gum into triangles and apply to the sides for teeth. (Often for an animal shape, it's easier to do just the head than to create the entire animal.)

I've done a frog, a turtle, a caterpillar, a quail (!), a train and a fire engine so far, and I'd be happy to help you out if my description above isn't clear enough. holly