Lettuce Give Thanks : Hello Baby Shower Goodies!

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Hello Baby Shower Goodies!

Pastel Layer Cake with Buttercream Roses

This afternoon I celebrated a dear friend's soon-to-arrive baby girl. Another friend and I had the privilege of hosting this party and I must say, I love hosting parties! Beating, mixing, whipping, baking, frosting, decorating and prettily packaging cakes and goodies are some of my favorite hobbies. So it was sheer pleasure being asked to provide the treats for today's gathering.

A few weeks ago, I decided that I'd finally make Martha Stewart's famous pastel layer cake and chocolate whoopie pies (think giant oreo cookies with fluffy creme filling). Yum. Or, in the words of my brother-in-law upon opening his cookie care package I sent, "Nom, nom, nom."

Regarding the roses I made, I have to smile as I think about how much time I spent trying to teach myself how to pipe icing flowers out of soft buttercream frosting earlier this week. Every time I molded the flowers, it didn't work. The icing wasn't stiff enough. So, if you are going to make roses out of icing, please make sure that your icing is stiff enough to support the petals. Also, it's best if the icing hardens within a few hours for easy transport (if you are taking your cake to a friend's house, a party, etc.) I recommend freezing the individual roses and then applying them to the cake when you are ready to leave the house or an hour before serving. Good luck.

Here are some photos and ideas for your next baby shower or celebration. I thought of making the "whoopie!" toothpick tags as a last-minute idea this morning and I'm proud of how cute they turned out. Thanks goes to my husband for helping me cut the paper and glue it onto the toothpicks while I was frantically racing around the kitchen finishing the cake and pies. You're the best!

I hope you enjoy trying these recipes! See below for links.