Portfolio: Valentine's Day Cakes and Cookies

Ah, for the love of cake...it was Valentine's Day yesterday and I made a lovely batch of goodies to celebrate!  Hannah is the daughter of a former coworker who turned 6 this year and her original birthday plan was for a spa themed Barbie party.   But then she saw an American Girl doll she really wanted instead, so she opted for the doll and a less elaborate cake.  Her mom is an event planner for a huge real estate company and between all the planning for their annual event and her daughter's birthday, I am still amazed at how well Stormi keeps it together.  Here is what we came up for Hannah's party:

The inside of Hannah's cake is pink vanilla - vanilla cake dyed pink.  I've discovered that the majority of kids aren't that adventurous with their cake flavors, but they sure do love color.  Dying cake batter is an easy way to personalize and spice up a cake while retaining the simplicity of a flavor everyone loves!

The roses on the cupcakes were very simple; you cut out strips of fondant and then rolled them.  It took a little bit of practice however, because you don't want to roll them too tightly or they won't look like roses anymore.

We also did two dozen cupcakes, half red velvet and half pink vanilla, to go along with the cake.  It was also Stormi's mom's birthday, so I made her a cake as well that coordinated with Hannah's cake.

I "antiqued" the edges of the hearts a bit to give them some more character and create a more cohesive look for the cakes.  Otherwise, they were very bright and almost out of place with the vines and swirls on the side.

The cakes themselves were covered in buttercream and fondant, and I then attached fondant hearts all over the edges.  The vines and swirls are painted on.  Unfortunately, my red fondant turned more brown than red as it dried, so I used what little bit of red coloring I had to paint in the hearts on Hannah's cake.   I swirled buttercream and cream cheese icing on the cupcakes, then delicately placed the fondant hearts and roses on top. 

Lastly, we also did heart cookies to give to the kids to place in their goodie bags.  Stormi sent me a list of names and I piped them onto the cookies for a personalized touch.  Hannah was so excited as she recognized her friends' names on the cookies and even more so when she saw that got one too.  And how could she not?  I do make a mean batch of sugar cookies!

Happy birthday Hannah! May you have many more wonderful years ahead of you!

In short, I think everything turned out well for everything and Hannah and her mom were pleased as punch.  To all you lovebirds out there, Happy (slightly belated) Valentine's Day!

Happy Caking,
Kelly