Yummy Cake!

Tomorrow is my mom's birthday, so I thought it would be fun to bake a cake in celebration. My oldest son, Jacob, loves to help out in the kitchen, so I had him by my side during the cake-making event. On a side note: As a mom, I think it's important for men to be self-sufficient. While my home does have many stereotypical male/female "roles", it's because we choose them not because it's expected of us. My husband and I are very fair and balanced in our lives, and we are trying to teach our boys how to literally be a "Jack of all trades". My goal is for my boys to not only be handy around the house in a handyman sort of way, but also be skilled in cleaning and cooking, along with all the other things they'll need to know to survive the world of bachelorhood without living like a bachelor. Whether or not they carry on with what I teach them is up to them, but I would hope they turn out to be something like their dad who I just can't say enough good things about. I'll support them regardless, but hey, it's something to shoot for, right? I'm just trying to raise up some good men who will love, appreciate and support their wives (wherever that may be). With all that said, we're back in the kitchen with Jacob by my side oozing with excitement about the wonderful world of cakes. It's great to get your kids involved in the kitchen. You can teach them math skills with measuring and counting along with motor skills through tasks. They think it's a blast, and it is also a perfect way to spend some quality time together and enjoy good conversation with them. We started with a boxed yellow cake mix. Boxed mixes are great for the everyday mom. The key is to not overbake it! You can get a delicious moist cake from a box every time if you follow that key rule. Jacob counted out the eggs we needed based on the picture found on the box. I measured out the rest of the ingredients and let him add them in as needed. With the batter ready to go we headed over to our pans. I always line the bottom of my cake pans with waxed paper. It keeps the cake from sticking and (after removing) it gives you a perfectly smooth finish to ice. Once the cakes (2 8-inch rounds) were baked, we allowed them to cool while running some errands. When we got home, we started on the chocolate icing (recipe below). Jacob was my taste-tester to make sure the icing was just right (of course I snagged a few finger licks myself). Once the icing was ready, we sliced up some fresh strawberries and then began assembling our tasty treat. I wanted the cake to have several layers, so after leveling off the tops, I cut both cakes in half with a cake leveler. If you don't have a leveler, you can use waxed dental floss and slide it back and forth through the middle of the cake (although you do have to eyeball it, so just make sure to watch closely as you go). You can remove the waxed paper before moving on. I placed the top of the first cake face down on a plate and then piped a thick layer of icing around the circumference (I just put some icing in a plastic ziploc bag and cut a 1/4 inch hole in the bottom corner for piping). This provides a barrier to keep your strawberries in place and also acts as a glue for the next layer to stick to. I added one layer of fresh sliced strawberries to the inside of the circle then topped it with the bottom layer of the first cake. I then put a layer of icing across the entire top of the cake and added the top layer of the second cake face down on the icing. After repeating the piping and strawberry slices on this layer I topped my cake off with the last bottom layer of cake face down. Cake assembly done...on to the icing. We put a thick layer of icing across the top and let it kind of ooze over the edges before coming back around to smooth the sides over. With the cake iced, it was now time for some decorative detail. Jacob really wanted to put some strawberries on top of the cake, so after adding a border along the top and bottom edges, I came up with a strawberry rose design to top everything off. I took two very large strawberries (you could use 3-4 smaller ones) and sliced them long-wise to create "petals" that we placed in a pinwheel shape leaving a small opening in the middle. I then cut an "X" into a strawberry long-wise, but not all the way through, so the pieces still held together some. I opened the four pieces up and set the strawberry in the middle of my pinwheel. I then took my "star" icing tip that I used for the border, filled in the middle of the opened strawberry and followed along the edges of each petal making a chocolate tipped strawberry rose. It's not the most beautiful cake I've ever made (we were a bit crunched for time), but it was fun to bake and do something creative with my helpful excited 4 year old by my side. And of course, it's yummy cake with delicious rich chocolate icing and fresh strawberries which are a match made in heaven as far as my mouth is concerned. I know my mom will love it, especially since Jacob helped make it. So, get those kiddos in the kitchen, have some fun and make some memories while teaching them some life skills. Happy baking!

Recipe: Chocolate Icing

6 ounces (1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 stick unsalted butter (you can use salted for a richer taste)
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt chocolate chips and butter in bowl in the microwave. Be careful not to burn chocolate. I usually do 20-30 seconds at a time then stir. Pour chocolate mixture into mixing bowl. Add corn syrup, vanilla and sour cream. Mix til combined. Add powdered sugar 1 cup at a time while mixing with electric mixer or by hand with a whisk.