The Blissful Baker: Crazy November

November is one of my favorite months - between all of my friends birthdays and the holidays in this month I can barely keep up. Four of my closest friends have birthdays in November, each of which as the "Blissful Baker" I took it upon myself to bake them some type of dessert. Each of them different (and daring) that I hope inspire you to try in the future.

For Leora's 20th Birthday:

For the longest time I wondered how bakers made their cakes so smooth and soft. I would pile on all the frosting in the world and glide my spatula back and forth until my arms killed but it never looked quite as smooth until I realized their little trick...fondant.

At around $8 a tub this crafty frosting can be quite pricey but definitely worth it. It gave the cake that smooth, clean, and polished finish I've been trying for SO long to acheive! I'll probably only save it to use for special events and such, but I'm really happy I challenged myself with such an intense project and I'm thrilled it turned out so well.

Oh, and thats my friend casually trying to bite into that cake.

For Michelle's 20th Birthday:

Because of Michelle's never ending love for Sprinkles cupcakes, I decided to make a cake of the Sprinkle's classic red velvet with cream cheese frosting.

The double layered cake I made was accompanied by a meal my friends and I prepared for her consisting of a huge and hearty salad, the traditional pasta with tomato sauce, bruschetta, and sauteed yams with cranberries (which by the way has quickly become my new favorite food...)

The cake turned out as pretty and pink as I had hoped, but I must admit I was slightly dissapointed with the flavor of the cake and frosting. Then again, its kind of nuts of me to expect such great results from a cake mix that wasn't even $2, so I think from now on I'm going to make red velvet cake and cream cheese frosting from scratch....god help my kitchen!

This recipe is one that I'll be trying out...

For Liana's 20th Birthday:

Once again, we made a mess in the kitchen but a feast on the table for our Saturday night meal. This time instead of food for four, my friends and I prepared a meal for seven.

My friend in the kitchen: Working hard or hardly working?

Feast...

We made the baked yam and cranberry dish (since we had all loved it before), a caprese salad, pesto pasta, pasta with tomato sauce, bruschetta, and a salad tossed with tomatoes, cucumbers, and corn.

For dessert I was originally going to make Liana banana cream pie (she adores the one from Urth Caffe) but when the idea of making an ice cream cake came in my head I just couldn't say no.

On it's way

The combination of coffee ice cream, chocolate cake, and creamy chocolate frosting was beyond perfect and the best way to close off our meal and stuff our stomachs.