Memorial Day Cake


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With Memorial Day weekend here at last it’s time to think about dusting off the grill and getting everyone together for some outdoor fun.  This strawberry and blue berry cake would be the highlight to any party.  I used the flower pan for this cake.

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Bicycle Cake for Dad


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If your dad loves to ride his bike, this is an easy cake to make.  For the road I used chocolate icing in a can and added black food coloring gel.  To make the smooth, surface dip you spatula in water and shake off any drops.  Then with one swipe straight across the black icing, you will have a nice smooth road to ride on.  To stand up the bike up I hot glued two skewers to one side to help keep it up right.

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Dump Truck Cake


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This dump truck is great for Father’s Day or a boy’s birthday party.  I used chocolate from a can I bought at the store and added black gel food coloring to make that dark black coloring.  The rest of the cake is buttercream.  Surprise dad by adding caramel or rum extract to a yellow cake mix.

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Mini Race Cars & Rocket Ship Eggs


mini cars and rocket eggs

Mini race car and rocket ship eggs.  These are really tiny as you can see their size next to a 3″ bottle, they are 1″ tall.  The wheels are mini buttons and the drivers are Squinkies.  You can use the little clear bubbles for the top covers.  The flames on the mini rocket ship are cellophane with puffy paint.

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Chocolate Tool Box and Tools


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For the father who loves tools this chocolate tool box and tools will be quite a surprise.  He might even forget that you sold his cat to get money from the ice cream truck and it cost him twice as much to get it back.  My dad loves to bring up all the crazy things we did to him over the years when we get together for Father’s Day.

You can get the mold for the chocolate tool box and tools from KitchenKraft.com.

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Construction Cake for Dad


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The ultimate cake for any guy that knows his way around a construction site.  The dirt is crushed Nilla Wafers.  The boulders are Milk Duds.  Add some construction equipment and this will bring a smile to any little boy no matter how old he is.

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Father’s Day Idea


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For the father that is a super guy you can make this superman cake.  The jacket is fondant along with the tie.  The superman logo is piped in.  I make this cake as a groom’s cake for a friend’s wedding.

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Sport Car for Day on Father’s Day


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Every year when we went on vacation my Dad liked to listen to the Indy 500 on the radio when he was driving.  We would go out to the Hover Dam and the road had a lot of hills, curves and wide open highway. As he listened to the race, his foot would get heavier, and he would take the turns in the true race car style.  The only thing was that we were in a station wagon and my Mom would hold on for dear life.  My brother and I loved it.  Maybe that is where I got my lead foot from.

If you can’t afford a real race car this Lightning McQueen cake should get a smile from any Father. To make red icing you need to use “No Taste Red” food coloring gel.  If you use regular gel or liquid food coloring it can turn the taste of the icing bitter since you have to use quite a bit to get the bright red color for this car.

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Father’s Day book just re-released on Amazon


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My parents were blessed with three high-spirited teens.  Each year we would try to find the perfect gift for my Dad in hopes that he would not dredge up all of our past indiscretions.  We would put our heads together and see what we could get my dad that might get us out of that dog house once and for all, but it never worked.  Over the years it just became a tradition and Dad loved telling everyone about our crazy stunts.  So here are some of the crazy gifts, favorite food recipes, cakes, baking tips and stunts we put him through in our younger and wilder years.

This is released in paperback for the first time.  There are even more funny stories, crazy gift ideas and for the first time some of Dad’s favorite food recipes, i.e., chili, baby back ribs and deviled eggs.  Hopefully this will give you some great ideas and a few good laughs along the way.

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Walking on Dinosaur Feet


Dinosaur Feet

For my grandson’s birthday I found these dinosaur feet at Michaels.  I didn’t know if he would like them or not.  Anyway my granddaughter demonstrated how to use them and soon all the other children took turns trying to walk on them.  I had more fun just watching them.  Who knew a $3.00 plastic dinosaur feet would be the hit of the party.

 

 

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Dirt Bike Volcano Cake


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My grandson at first wanted a dirt bike cake but changed is mind and wanted a dirt bike volcano exploding cake.  My daughter found the little lego guys for the cake.  I made this a two tier cake, the volcano being the second tier has support under it.  The lava was made with candy melts on toothpicks.  I piped the lava in different shapes with toothpicks on one end which were inserted in the top of the volcano.  The cake was a hit and when we pulled all of the toothpicks out of the top of the volcano before cutting the cake, the kids all had to taste the lava and came back for more.

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Two Tier Cake for Mother’s Day


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This two tier cake is perfect for a formal occasion or large get togethers.  My daughter and I took the tier class at JoAnn.  The instructor told us to relax and just remember you are making two cakes.  One question and the reason I took the class was I wanted to know was when you take the tiers apart the icing always sticks to the bottom of the cake board.   The solution was so easy, dust the icing under the area you will be putting on the next tier with confectionary sugar.  She also show us how using dowels to help support the additional tiers.  The class was in the middle of the store and customers would come by and watch as we decorated our cakes.  There was one little boy that we had seen at a previous class and he came by to watch us work.  His Mother finally told him that he had to go and we said goodbye until we take the next class which he smiled from ear to ear.

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Breakfast in Bed for Mother’s Day


Breakfast in Bed

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Take your Mom to a class for Mother’s Day


If you want to surprise Mom why not take her to a case for Mother’s Day.  I surprised my daughter with a cupcake decorating class.  This was the starting point to my cake business.  We arrived at class and the instructor showed us how to put together piping bags and attach tips.  One the first that we learned was how much pressure to use when squeezing the icing bag.  My daughter put too much pressure on the bag and not only did the tip shot across the table but the icing followed it.  We all had a great laugh.  Then she did it again which got us all laughing again.  Not five minutes later I shot the tip across the table and icing went everywhere.  After the hour was up we were covered with icing, had decorated 12 cupcakes each and had a great time.

My daughter surprised me the next year with a class at a local store that you can paint pottery and the shop will fire it after your are finished.  I was able to pick my own project and we went to work.  We both worked for an hour and left our masterpieces to be fired.  I painted a jug with yellow sunflowers on it and Kelly painted a cookie jar that matched her kitchen.

Since those classes we have taken additional classes together on cookies and two tier cakes and jewelry making.  There are many arts and craft projects that you can sign up for classes.  I went to the Wilton classes at Michaels and JoAnn craft stores.  I have also taken classes on Locker Hook rugs, making scarfs with looms.  Let your mom learn a new skill or hobby for Mother’s Day and she will cherish that day for years to come.

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Gem Show for Mother’s Day


For the last couple of years it has been a tradition that my daughter, granddaughter and I attend the Gem Show at the Orange County Fair Grounds in Southern California.  They had a show that last for three day and the bargains are close to wholesale pricing.  You can buy finished pieces or just individual jewelry parts.  My grand daughter has a hard time making it past the first few table.  They have bracelets for $1.50 to $2.00 just her budget for a 6 year old.  She is an old pro, we have been taking her to the shows from the time she was born.  Kelly and I only take a certain amount of money with us and when we are down to $5.00 we leave and drive through Del Taco on the way home.

I normally work in HR and we were trying to think of a team building exercise, I suggested we go to the gem show on an extended lunch hour.  To my surprise my boss said yes.  There were 7 of us that went and they couldn’t believe their eyes.  Over the years I’ve learned where different vendors are and tried to show them the ropes.  That only lasted for the first two rows and everyone scattered.  Over the next two hours it was more fun to watch them discover all the bargains.

If you live in the southern California area and don’t have plans, take you mom to the gem show.  This show is all over California.  You can type in the search engine gem show, Costa Mesa California to get the schedule for up coming shows.  You won’t be disappointed.

 

 

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