Bare nogen blomster.../Just some flowers...

Så blev min ældste datter 18 år, og hun gik fra ikke at ville holde en fødselsdag, til lige pludselig at ville holde fødselsdag for hele den pukkelryggede, og når jeg nu havde travlt nok med kager i forvejen, så ønskede hun sig en kage, bare med nogen blomster - hun ville jo ikke være for besværlig. Så det blev til blomster - masser af blomster, perler, flæser, knapper - ja der var jo nærmest ikke én udekoreret plet på kagen til sidst:
My daughter turned 18 and went from not wanting a brithday at all, to suddently wanting a birthday for extended family, and since I am busy enough with other cakes these days, she wanted a cake, just with some flowers on - she didn't want to be too much trouble. So flowers she got - lots of flowers actually, beads, frills, buttons - basically it was difficult to find an undecorated spot by the time I was done:

Det kostede da også lige én nats søvn eller to, men det var lige så meget fordi jeg skulle lave en stakket dåbskage til samme dag, og så havde jeg et mindre problem (ok, det var faktisk et kæmpe problem) med den øverste kage. I et forsøg på at tage hensyn til muslimer ved festen, prøvede jeg at bruge Alaska 666 i stedet for husblas. Det står godt nok, at den ikke trevler, og det gjorde den sådan set heller ikke. Den klumpede bare. Meget. Da jeg endelig havde noget ok fyld, der var stivnet nok til at fylde i kagen, lod jeg den stå og sætte sig på køl i 6 timer inden jeg vendte den ud for at smøre den op. Men så var fyldet lige pludselig ret flydende igen og kagen var umulig at smøre op, så der var intet andet at gøre end starte forfra. Datteren lavede fyld (med husblas), jeg havde heldigvis mudcake i den rigtige størrelse i fryseren, men jeg endte med først at have en overtrukken kage klar til at begynde at pynte kl 1 om natten, og kagen skulle med ud af huset kl 10.30 næste dag...
It did cost me a sleepless night or 2 though. Mainly because I had another tiered Christening cake for the same day, and because of a minor problem (ok, it ended up pretty major) with the top tier. I was attempting to be considerate to the muslims at the party and not using gelatin sheets for the fillings. Instead I was using Alaska 666 (whoever came up with that name?) which is beef based. After issues with clumps, I finally had a filling that was stiff enough to start filling the cake. I let the filled cake set for 6 hours before gtting ready to crumbcoat it, but now the filling was quite liquid again and there was nothing I could do about this cake, except start over. My daughter made the filling using our normal gelatine sheets, I luckily had a mudcake of the right size in the freezer, but I ended up not having a covered cake ready to decorate until 1 am, and I needed the cake ready for 10.30...

Heldigvis havde jeg allerede lavet al pynt, som kunne laves i forvejen, så kagen var færdig kl 7 om morgenen, og så manglede jeg bare at pynte en masse cupcakes, spise og gøre mig klar til festen....
Fortunately I had already made all decorations, that could be done in advance, so I had a finished cake at 7 am, but still needed to decorate a lot of cupcakes, eat and get ready for the party...

Den øverste kage var Mudcake med After-Eight Creme.
The top tier was Mudcake with After-Eight Creme.

Tutorial til pynten på siden kan findes hér.
Billowing tutorial can be found here.

Den nederste kage var Drømmekage-bunde med Blåbærmousse og Hvid Chokoladecreme Dajm. Begge kager var smurt op med Chokolade Smørcreme og overtrukket med Wilton's fondant.
The bottom tier was Dreamcake-layers with Blueberry Mousse and White Chocolate Creme with Daim. Both cakes are coated with Chocolate Buttercream and covered in Wilton's fondant.

Dåbskage / Christening Cake

En tidligere kollega ønskede sig en dåbskage til sin lille søn. Jeg fik frie hænder, så længe den var blå, og jeg valgte at benytte mig af muligheden for at bruge mine patchwork cutters:
A former colleague wanted a Christening cake for her son and the only requirement was the colour blue, but other than that the design was all up to me, so I chose to finally use my patchwork cutters:

Lille Magnus har det fineste røde hår, men da jeg ville male håret på babyen, opdagede jeg, at jeg har alt for få pulverfarver uden glimmer (og så fimset er den lille dreng jo ligesom ikke - endnu i hvert fald), men det lykkedes at få den ønskede farve ved at blande Skintone og Primrose.
Baby Magnus is a redhead, but to my dismay, I  discovered that I have way too few non-glitter dusts (and he is not that into sparkling hair-products - yet at least), but I managed to get the colour I wanted by mixing Skintone with some Primrose.

Kagen indeholdt Lette Lagkagebunde med Hindbær Mousse og Chokolade Ganache. Den er smurt op med Chokolade Smørcreme og overtrukket med Wilton's fondant.
The cake was made with classic sponge layers, filled with Raspberry Mousse and Chocolate Ganache, coated with Chocolate Buttercream and covered with Wilton's fondant.

Kolonihavehus Kage / Allotment Cake

Min tidligere kollega ønskede sig en kolonihavehus kage til at fejre sin mormor, så det fik hun:
My former colleague wanted an Allotment Cake for her grandmother, and this is what she got:

Kagen er Lette Lagkagebunde med Chokolade Ganache og Hindbær Mousse, opsmurt med Chokolade Smørcreme og overtrukket med Satin Ice Fondant. Al pynt er spiseligt: Huset er lavet af Cocopops Treats og resten af pynten er lavet af fondant (Wilton's, Satin Ice, Pettinice, PME Sugarpaste og Rød Candymelts Fondant), Wilton's Decorating Icing, Royal Icing og Piping Gel.
The cake is Classic Sponge Layers wit Chocolate Ganache and Raspberry Mousse, coated in Chocolate Buttercream and covered with Satin Ice Fondant. Al decorations are edible: The house is made using Cocopops Treats and the rest of the decorations are made in fondant (Wilton's, Satin Ice, Pettinice, PME Sugarpaste and Red Candymelts Fondant), Wilton's Decorating Icing, Royal Icing and Piping Gel.

Selv flagstangen var spiselig...
Even the flagpole was edible...

Og trellis'en der drillede mig en del, lykkedes da også til sidst.
The trellis was a pain to glue together, but succeeded in the end.

Og så må jeg hellere skynde mig videre med en af de 5 kager mere, som jeg skal have lavet på 11 dage, så enten kommer jeg til at spamme, eller også kommer jeg til at have for travlt til overhovedet at blogge...
I have got to hurry and get on with one of 5 more cakes that I have to make in the next 11 days, so either I will end up spamming, or I will be too busy to blog at all....

Bog Kage / Book Cake

Så blev det tid til at lave klassens-time-kage sammen med den 12 årige igen. Han bagte, jeg pyntede, og det endte sådan her (undkyld dårlig billedkvalitet):

It was time again for the 12 year old to bring cake to school. He baked, I decorated and this is what we ended up with (excuse the poor quality of the pictures):

Kagen er en Chocolate Chip Kage, fyldt og smurt op med Chokolade Smørcreme og overtrukket med Wilton's fondant.
The cake is a Chocolate Chip Cake, filled and frosted with Chocolate Buttercream and covered with Wilton's fondant.

Til den obligatoriske fejlrapport: Jeg lavede 1 1/2 portion af kagedejen, og bagte den i 2 forme. Jeg var forberedt på at skære en hel del top af, da den hæver meget i midten, men jeg var ikke forberedt på at begge bunde var meget højere i den ene ende end den anden. Jeg kunne så vælge mellem at ende med 2 meget tynde lige bunde, eller forsøge at smøre den lige op. Jeg valgte det sidste, da der trods alt skulle være kage nok til alle de sultne klassekammerater. Det var noget værre pangel, og nogen må have fået stykker med en hel del smørcreme (men ingen klager), så næste gang, så skal jeg altså bare spise kagerne og bage nye. Det er trods alt verdens nemmeste opskrift. Og hvis jeg skal lave en sekskantet blyant igen, så skal jeg lige huske at klippe takker i den gule del, der vender mod stiften, for at gøre den mere naturlig, men ellers var jeg meget tilfreds.
My mandatory error-report: I made 1 1/2 batch of the batter and backed it in 2 oblong pans. I was prepared to have to cut a lot off the top, as it raises  a lot in the center, but I wasn't prepared for both layers being way higher in one end than the other. I then had to choose between ending up with 2 very thin but level layers, or having to correct the difference with buttercream. I chose the latter, as we still needed to have enough cake for all those classmates. It was a lot of trouble, and some of the students must have gotten quite a lot of buttercream in their piece (but no complaints), so next time, I really should have just eaten the cakes and baked new ones. It is the simpest recipe after all. And if I ever have to make a six sided pencil again, I need to remember to cut points in the yellow end closest to the writing tip, to make the transition more natural, but other than that, I was happy with the result.

Opskrift på Chocolate Chip Kage / Chocolate Chip Cake recipe:
250 g mel / 2 cups flour
225 g brun farin / 1 cup brown sugar (packed)
100 g sukker / 1/2 cup sugar
3 tsk bagepulver / 3 tsp baking powder
1 tsk salt / 1 tsp salt
1/2 tsk natron / 1/2 tsp soda
115 g smør/margarine / 1/2 cup shortening
3 dl mælk / 1 1/4 cups milk
3 æg / 3 eggs
100 g chocolate chips / 1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 1/2 tsk vanilie essens / 1 1/2 tsp vanilla


Hæld alle ingredienser i en stor skål. Pisk ved lav hastighed i 1/2 min for at blande ingredienserne, pisk derefter i 3 min ved høj hastighed. Fyldes i smurt form og bages ved 175 C  i 50 min i aflang form, 40-45 min i springform. Denne portion rækker til en aflang form 33x23 cm, eller 2 lag i 20-22 cm rund form.
Heat oven to 350F. Grease and flour baking pan 13x9x2 inches, or two 8 or 9-inch round layer pans. Measure all ingredients into large mixer bowl. Blend 1/2 min on low speed, scraping bowl constantly. Beat 3 minutes high speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan(s). Bake oblong about 50 minutes, layers 40 to 45 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out cean. Cool.

Flæse Kage / Frilly Cake

Denne kage har jeg lavet sammen med min ældste datter til en af en hendes veninder. Hun bagte og lavede fyld, og så lagde jeg kagen sammen og smurte den op mens hun var i skole, så den var klar til at hun endelig kunne lære at overtrække med fondant, da hun kom hjem. Jeg havde med vilje planlagt designet, så det kunne skjule evt folder hun kunne komme til at lave på siderne af kagen, men hun lavede slet ikke nogen, men fik bare nogen luft bobler ovenpå kagen. Så nu regner jeg med, at hun selv kan klare kagerne til veninderne fra nu af - så kommer jeg nok bare til at klage over manglen på anledning til at pynte kager...
I made this cake with my daugter for one of her friends. She baked and made the fillings, and I filled and buttered the cake while she was at school, so it was ready for her to finally learn how to cover a cake with fondant as soon as she got home. I had planned the design on purpose to be able to cover any folds she might make in the fondant on the side of the cake, but she didn't make any and only had a few air bubbles on top of the cake. So I guess she can handle all the cakes for her friends on her own now, and all I am left with is my own complaints about the lack of occasions to make cakes...

Jeg blev inspireret til at lave flere flæsekager ved at se alle de romatiske kager, som DafiCake laver for tiden. Jeg bestilte jo for lang tid siden en flæse cutter til en Dåbskage som blev væk i posten, og derfor først nåede frem lang tid efter, så nu fik jeg endelig brugt den.
I was inspired to make a frilly cake by watching all the romantic cakes that DafiCake makes these days. A long time ago I ordered a frill cutter for a Christening Cake, but it ended up lost in the mail and didn't get to me in time, so now I finally had the chance to use it.

Kagen var iøvrigt Lette Lagkagebunde med Blåbærmousse og Hvid Chokoladecreme med Dajm, opsmurt med Chokolade Smørcreme og overtrukket med PME Sugarpaste.
The cake was Sponge Cake Layers with Blueberry Mousse and White Chocolatecreme with Dajm and covered with Chocolate Buttercream and PME Sugarpaste.

Påske kage / Easter Cake

Jeg havde besøg af min lille søster og hendes kæreste i påsken, så jeg ville også lige lave en lille kage. Egentlig havde jeg vilde planer om pynt, men kunne ikke helt beslutte mig for én af de mange (alt for) vilde idéer, og når jeg nu endte med at bruge en hel del tid på cakepops, macarons og cupcakes også, så endte jeg med at det hellere skulle være noget hurtigt, for at jeg kunne nå det hele. En gang imellem er det også rart at lave en kage, hvor pynten tager under en time at lave (ja, jeg er altså langsom):
My sister and her boyfriend visited during Easter, so I wanted to make a small cake also. Originally I had lots of crazy ideas for decorating, but couldn't really decide on one of the many (way too) crazy ideas, so when I ended up using a whole lot of time on cakepops, macarons and cupcakes as well, I finally decided to be reasonable and make something simple, so I would have time for it all. Once in a while it is also nice to make a cake where the decorations take less than an hour to make (yes, I really am that slow):

For ikke at vække mandens vrede, når jeg nu havde gang i kageriet i så mange dage i træk, så måtte det blive hans yndlings: Mudcake med After Eight Creme, smurt op med Chokolade Smørcreme og overtrukket med PME Sugarpaste, som jeg ikke har prøvet før, men helt sikkert vil bruge igen - den er helt vildt nem at overtrække med. Blød som Satin Ice, uden at tørre så hurtigt.
So as not to encur the husband's wrath, after caking for so many days, I decided it was safest to make his favorite: Mudcake with After Eight Creme, covered in Chocolate Buttercream and PME Sugarpaste, which I haven't tried before, but definitely will be using again - it is really easy to cover a cake with. Soft and pliable like Satin Ice, without drying out as fast.

Påske Cupcakes/Easter Cupcakes

Mere leg i køkkenet med den 6 årige. Han har bagt (med lidt hjælp), jeg har pyntet:
More playtime in the kitchen with the 6 year old. He baked (with a little help) and I decorated:

Det er Nati's Caramel Mudcake Cupcakes med IMBC og fondantpynt.
We made Nati's Caramel Mudcake Cupcakes with IMBC and fondant decorations.

Note til mig selv: Vinduet skal ikke stå åbent, når det er så koldt og man laver smørcreme. Flere sprøjteposer gik i stykker under forsøget på at swirle mine cupcakes. Med en "stuetemperatur" der er køleskabskold, så er cremen altså lige lovlig hård :)
Note to self: Don't leave the window open when you make IMBC and it is this cold. Several piping bags ripped as I tried to swirl the cupcakes. With a roomtemperature that was similar to the fridge's, the buttercream gets a tad too hard really fast.