Tommy's 4th birthday cake

It is one of my life's major aims to become a good cook/baker. I'm very very slowly getting there - as they say, practice makes perfect and practising is what I've been doing a lot of. Baking and cooking is something I have always really enjoyed. It's the only activity I really do that could qualify as 'me' time. Being a teacher, I have always had very little free time to pursue any of my hobbies, baking included so I've enjoyed being on maternity leave and having a little bit of time to devote to it.

I would really love, in particular, to master the art of cake-baking and decorating. For Tommy's 1st birthday, I ordered him a cake. It was beautiful and something I could have never attempted to make myself. When it came to his 2nd birthday, I decided to try and make my own. I have made his birthday cakes ever since and will continue to do so. My first attempt was extremely arduous and stressful; it took more than a whole day in total, there were plenty of tears, the cake wasn't particularly appetising and the finished cake was very disappointing. I was ready to throw in the towel at that point. Getting someone to make me a cake would be so much easier. I perhaps wasn't cut out for it myself. I didn't have the equipment, the skills, the knowledge, the talent necessary to do it. I did have the passion and enthusiasm though.

When it came to Tommy's 2nd and 3rd birthdays, I decided to have another go at making cakes myself - this time, buying more professional equipment and doing a little more research into techniques, ingredients and the tools needed for certain aspects of cake-decorating. This year, though, I feel I'm finally getting somewhere with it for the first time.

The first mistake I've made every year is to ask Tommy what kind of cake he would like. He would then peruse images of cakes on the Internet and inevitably pick the most intricate, extravagant and difficult-to-make design, which I would then (hopelessly) try to recreate. This year was no different. Tommy initially requested a 'Dusty' from Planes cake in the shape of an aeroplane. I explained this would be a step too far for me and so we finally settled on a round Scooby Doo cake. This would be more within my technical ability. Just about.

I've always used a Madeira cake recipe for birthday cakes. Madeira is a good choice for novely cakes, as it has a crumb structure that makes it easy to shape and cut without falling apart. But I always found the cake too dry and bland so I opted for a moist chocolate cake instead this year.

When I'm making chcolate cake, I ALWAYS use this recipe. It's the most easy recipe you'll ever use and it's guaranteed to make the most deliciously-moist and scrummy chocolate cake you'll ever taste. Trust me, you just HAVE to try it! You will not be disappointed.

Ingredients:
225g plain flour
350g caster sugar
85g Cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 free-range eggs
250ml milk
125ml vegetable oil
2tsp vanilla extract
250ml boiling water

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees/350degrees F/gas mark 4 and grease/line two 20cm/8 inch sandwich tins.
2. Place all of the cake ingredients, except the boiling water, into a large bowl. Using a wooden spoon or electric mixer, beat the mixture until smooth and well-combined.
3. Add the boiling water to the mixture, a little at the time, until smooth.
4. Divide the mixture between the two sandwich tins and bake in the oven for 25-35 minutes.
5. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely before icing.
That's it! REALLY! And it turns out brilliantly every time.

For the filling, I melt 50g of good quality dark chocolate in a pan and allow it to cool completely. I beat 100g unsalted butter and add 200g of icing sugar, a teaspoon of vanilla extract and the cooled chocolate. If the mixture is a little stiff, I add a little splash of milk to loosen it. Before icing a cake, I add a layer of buttercream icing to the middle, top and sides of it.

Tommy's Scooby Doo cake was relatively simple. I covered a cake drum in green icing and the cake in blue. Then I added white fondant bones to the sides and top of the cake.

 

I cut out a Scooby Doo design in brown fondant using a template and then added fondant details on top. To make the design stand out I then outlined it with black writing icing.

To finish the cake, I added some lettering to the cake drum with some funky letter Tappits. I was pleased with the overall finish of the cake and it tasted delicious too. By all means, it's not perfect but it's probably my best birthday cake attempt to date. At least things are going in the right direction! This month, I new cake shop has opened up in my town and the good news is that they are advertising cake-decorating classes. So guess who's got their name down? I WILL eventually have this birthday/celebration cake-making thing sussed. It may not be until Tommy reaches his 21st birthday but one day it WILL be happening! In the meantime, I'll keep you posted on all my cake-making and baking exploits.