Encore Encore - Cake 52 in Week 52

Chocolate Guiness Cake

31 July 2011

With Steve, Arlene and Alex

We are at the end of Week 52, and it's Paul's 51st birthday.

The past year has been a wonderful celebration of "50 Cakes in 50 Weeks" (and two encores). To end the year we had Paul's favourite chocolate cake: Chocolate Guiness Cake. This has been our most enjoyed cake and a real surprise to all who have shared it with us. Absolutely delicious! It is truly an encore cake: called for again and again.

Happy Birthday Paul. A wonderful way to end your 52 cakes in 52 weeks....50 cakes in 50 weeks.... and to celebrate your 51st birthday.

Encore - Cake 51 in Week 51

Devil’s Chocolate Cake

23 July 2011

 
Narelle’s visit was the perfect excuse to continue the celebrations (but really, do we need an excuse for cake?).

 This is Seb’s favourite celebration cake (he made it for Paul in Week 14) and seemed an appropriate recipe for me to use for Cake 51 in Week 51.

Our friends: who celebrated 50 cakes in 50 weeks?

Over 50 weeks we had many parties / dinners / desserts / morning teas / afternoon teas / lunches / breakfasts etc.

The winner was Paul (not surprisingly):  he was at all 50. I was with Paul for 49 events and Seb was with us for 9 of the celebrations, including the one for which he baked devil's chocolate cake.

The roll-call of guests who ate cake at the 50-week party:

Paul (50 celebrations), Amanda (49), Seb (9)

Abby, AlexW (2), Alex (2), AliceH, Alice, Alyson (3), Andy (2), Ann (2), Annette, AnnR, Arlene (3), BenV, BenM, BenK, Bob (2), BobB , BobR, Boyd, Brian, Brittany, Bronwen, Bruce (3), BruceMc, BruceS, Campbell, Catherine, Chloe, Chris, Clint, Corrinne, Darryl, David, Deb, DebW, Dennis, Dorothy, Edwina, Emily (2), Emma, Erik, Frances, Georgia (2), Gill, Graham, Grant , GregF, Greg, Helen, Horst, Ian (2), IanT, Imogen, Irene, Jan, JanB, JanT, Jayne, JayneS , Jeff, Jenn, Jenny , Jim (2), Jimmy, Jo, Joe, John , Joyanne (2), Judyth, Karen, KarenH (2), Kate, Kay , Ken, Lachlan, Lisa, Liz , Louise, Lyndall, Lyne, Lynnanne , Mackenzie, Mairead, Mandy, Margie, Maria, MariaP, Mary-Anne (2), Michelle, Mike (2), MikeKev, Monica, Narelle (2), Nicole (3), Nigel, Nuala, Oliver, OliverL, Olivia (2), Paul’s office team, PennyM, Penny, Perrin, Phoebe, Rebecca, Rick, Rob, Robert, Ron, Rosie, Sarah, Sarah C, Scott , Shane, Sharon (2), Sharon, Simon , SteveP, Steve (3), Sue, Suzie, Tim, Tony, TonyE, Trish , Venessa, Warwick, Wayne, William, WilliamK, Zane.

Thank you everyone - Paul's birthday was memorable.

CAKE 50 - WE MADE IT!

Passionfruit Sponge Cake

16 July 2011

With Ann, Jim, Rosie, Sarah, Mike, Alex, Ian, Olivia, Emily, Georgia, Rebecca, Chloe, Monica and Seb.

The final cake, and a very important occasion.  Paul's mum made his special cake. I asked her to make an extra large cake to hold all the candles.  I collected all the candles from all 49 cakes and of course added the 50th candle for this one. We had quite a bonfire going! Surrounded by some of Paul's family, it was a perfect way to celebrate Paul's 50th, in the 50th week, with the 50th cake.

Cake 49

Dutch Apple Cake

16 July 2011

With Suzie, Rob, Ollie and Sebastian

This is week 50 and we have two cakes today. 

On our way north to Paul's parents, for the 50th cake, we visited Suzie, Rob and Ollie.

It's an exciting day, the anticipation of the final cake, and the joy of seeing our friends along the way for lunch (and cake).   Suzie baked a special treat from her homeland: Dutch Apple Cake.

See all those candles? They are coming with us for Cake #50

Cake 48

White Chocolate and Coconut Mud Cake

13 July 2011

With Lyndall and Perrin

This is a cake with a great story.  Perrin recently celebrated an important birthday. To include him in a joint celebration meant making a cake that he would love. Lyndall said that coconut would please him.  Coconut cake?  I had no ideas, so I called my expert advisors: Catherine and Imogen. Without a doubt, they recommended this delicious cake.

In the baking process, Catherine and Imogen were with me in spirit (and with photos to remind me that they played a part in Cake 48).  See photo below.

My expert advisors would not have been impressed with my timing: in my rush I frosted the cake while it was still warm, and probably because I was unfamiliar with the frosting.  It cascaded over the edges into a drippy mess.  This did not stop us from enjoying our celebrations.

The recipe. And photos of my expert advisors kept me company

 

 

A drippy mess

The drippy mess was pushed back over top and sides until it stuck

Perrin

Paul

This is a delicious cake, and wicked. A treat for two special birthday boys.

Cake 47

Thai Fish Cakes

11 July 2011

With Tony.

A thai fish cake IS a cake.  Stacked on a plate with a candle makes it the ideal birthday cake after so many sweet cakes these past few days.

However, we did have dessert.  So many cakes recently meant we had left overs from previous celebrations.  Cake, cake and more cake.  We're nearly there!

Still enthusiastic about blowing out the candle. Such dedication.

Cake 46

10 July 2011

Apple, Pineapple & Carrot Cake

With our friends Margie and Mike. 

This is a gluten free, deliciously moist cake.  The recipe called for pineapple and carrot, but I added apple too.  Worked well. Of course, it's even better with the cream cheese frosting.

Cake 45

9 July 2011

"My Mum’s Awesome Cheesecake"

With Abby and Shane.

What a wonderful occasion this was. Abby sent me her favourite recipe, her Mum's cheesecake.  I made it, Abby made it, we all then enjoyed a Skype dessert together, catching up, chatting, and eating our respective cheesecakes. We could have been in the same room together!

The most meaningful and moving part of this was this: with Abby's mum no longer with us, I had a gorgeous photo of Abby as a baby, held by here Mum. This photo was with me in the kitchen while I baked, and was by our side when we enjoyed our dessert together.

In the oven, looking good.

Success!

Paul, Abby and Shane

Delicious.  Will definitely do this again.

Cake 44

8 July 2011

Upside-Down Pear Cake

With Bruce, Mandy....and Karen (again, via Skype).

For dinner we had sushi cake with Karen.  For dessert our friends Mandy and Bruce joined us for the upside-down pear cake.  I found the recipe in the newspaper, so tonight was an experiment to see if we had found the best cake ever.  Karen could not share, but she joined in via Skype for the blowing out of the candle.

Karen on Skype with Paul

The cake looks delicious, tasted yummy, looks great....but did not make the #1 spot.

Cake 43

8 July 2011

Sushi Cake

With Karen.

Sushi cake? Sushi CAKE?  Yes, in our wide acceptance of anything that can become a cake, Sushi Cake became our 43rd cake.  It's simple: buy sushi and pile it up so it looks pretty, and looks like a cake. Or arrange it in a creative pattern and call it 'cake'.

This was another one of our fun Skype adventures. Karen in Sydney, us here at home.  She bought her Sushi and arranged it creatively. We bought our sushi, piled it high.

We went online to show off our creations and to enjoy our meal together, that is, 'virutally' together.

Yum.

This is Karen's arrangement, with us on skype on her Mac

Our sushi, piled high

Our sushi, piled high, with candle lit

Karen and Paul synchronising the blowing out of candles

Karen looking serious, studying her creation carefully

Here's the fun bit: on the table cloth are wind-up plastic sushi things with our brother gave to Karen, so we have Geoff with us in spirit.

Cake 42

2 July 2011

Black Forest Torte

Made with love by Frances. Enjoyed by us all: Paul, Frances. Greg, Penny, Ben and me.

It was a weekend away, to visit our family and to enjoy another cake in our final days of cake frenzy. 
Frances is a very important part of 50 Cakes celebration.  It was less than a year ago in Falls Creek when I shared the idea with Frances and she suggested the blog.  THANK YOU Frances. 

Cake 41

30 June 2011

Penny and Erik who joined us for dinner and brought their delicious Upsidedown Apricot Cakes, beautifully arranged to look celebratory.