My First Attempt at a Lambeth cake

Well, I told you that when I finished my Lambeth cake I would post a picture of it.  So, here you go.  I realize it looks a little rough.  The piping was much more difficult then I thought it would be, but actually creating the design for it presented more of a problem then the piping.  It was interesting to try and make it all look cohesive.  Hope you like it.

Where do I go from Here?

This is the first question the new cake designer is asking themselves when they make the decision to try out cake designing.  If you are fortunate enough to have the resources to take classes or attend some type of pastries/culinary institute, you are pretty much in there.  But, if you just want to do this as a hobby for family and friends, you really don't want to invest that type of money into it.  So you check the internet.

There are many valuable resources on the internet.  Hobbyists have never had it so good.  You can get information on virtually any type of hobby at your fingertips.  You have access to social forums like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace.  You also have access to specialized forums for cake decorating (my personal favorite: cakecentral.com).  You can get online video tutorials via youtube.  There are people willing to share their knowledge around every corner.

When I decided that I wanted to learn cake designing, I first went to google search.  Through this search, I found various cake related websites, including cakecentral.  I quickly realized that if I was going to get into this seriously, my most valuable piece of equipment was going to be a notebook with dividers.  This will be more valuable to you then anything and probably the least expensive thing you will need to get started.  This will help you mass your knowledge in one central location, so when you ask yourself "what was it that that said again", instead of having to re-search the web all you have to do is open your trusty notebook.

This website is an accumulation of some of the knowledge that I have learned in a very short time.  Invite others that share your interests to a Facebook or Twitter account.  Share the tidbits that you pick up here and there.  Honestly you can learn loads from books from the library, magazines, the internet, cake designing clubs, classes and cake decorating conventions like ICES.

Whichever medium you choose to invest your time into, I hope you enjoy the journey as much as I have.  I've made a lot of online friends through this hobby...maybe you will be one of them.  Feel free to friend me on Facebook at cabescakes, maybe we can teach each other something.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Dream

This recipe has been passed down as far back as I can remember from my grandmother, my mother, myself and hopefully my kids.  It is a very rich dessert, and it will satisfy any sweet tooth.  It is called Peanut Chocolate Dessert.  It is made the following with the following ingredients:

Peanut Butter Chocolate Dream

1/2 cup butter
1 cup flour
1 cup peanuts
8 ounces cream cheese
1/3 cup peanut butter
1 cup powdered sugar
12 ounces whipped topping
1 box instant vanilla pudding
1 chocolate bar

In a bowl, cut butter into flour.  Stir in 2/3 cups of the peanuts.  Press the mixture into a 9x13 inch baking pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  In another bowl, combine cream cheese peanut butter, and powdered sugar.  Beat until fluffy.  Gently fold in 1 cup of the whipped topping.  Spread this mixture over the cooled crust.  Chill.  Prepare the instant pudding according to package directions beating for 2 minutes.  Spread the instant pudding over the cream cheese.  Spread on the remaining whipped topping.  Shave any type of chocolate bar or pulse in a food processor (you can use any type of chocolate bar you like, but chocolate covered toffee bars are my favorite)  Sprinkle candy bar bits onto whipped topping and sprinkle on the remaining chopped nuts.  Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

This is my little piece of heaven on a plate.  Hope you enjoy it too