No Organic Ingredients Were Harmed in the Baking of this Birthday Cake

No, the message on this cake is not written in a secret language created by Nicki and I when we lived together for four years. Inverted and below the shiny saran-wrap, the message says in "elegant" yellow-red letters, "Happy 28th Birthday Nicki!"

Last week while with my little friends Sami and Jo, we read the children's book, "The Bake Shop Ghost." The story follows a baker whose cakes are much loved. Upon her death, the baker returns to haunt her bake shop and its unworthy new inhabitants. One new baker finally takes on the ghost's challenge to bake a cake that will bring tears to her eyes. After a year of baking impressive but non-tear inducing cakes, the new baker discovers that the ghost's birthday is approaching. She bakes a birthday cake for the ghost and it brings tears to her eyes. Long story short - no one bakes birthday cakes for the baker.



With Nicki's birthday approaching, this book struck a chord and I decided not to let my friend (who always bakes cakes on my birthday, and other yummy things year-round) go without a cake on her birthday. My first idea was to try to bake something really fancy and use every ounce of domestic energy I have been saving up all year on this one cake. But then, we all have our gifts, and baking is not mine - anyways, I still have two scars on my hand from the last time I baked (I burned myself baking Swedish rolls for the Chrismukkah party), and Nicki wouldn't want me to harm myself in the process of showing her I care ;-)

So I decided to bake the old-fashioned way, with a box mix. Now that's more like it! But this wasn't just any box mix, it was funfetti - the white cake has food coloring inside to make it colorful! Then I covered it with a jar of "fudge" frosting, topped it with sprinkles, decorated flowers with purple, green and yellow sugar gels and my birthday greeting and wa-lah! - the perfect birthday cake for my foodie friend who appreciates slumming it every once in awhile ;-)

Happy Birthday Nicki! In honor of your birthday I decided not to blog about how months ago you gave me gift suggestions to relay to your boyfriend if he was to perchance ask me for gift advice - and how he now thinks I am materialistic for pointing him towards the Coach and Tiffany websites.