Turkey 101: Corn Bread Turkey, that is

It's time! This is a friendly reminder to order your turkey cake pan by Nordic Ware now, so that you can have it in time for Thanksgiving. You may also be able to find one on the shelf of a cake supply store, just call first. You want the 3-D pan made by Nordic Ware.  

The moment that I saw this pan debut on The Martha Show, I had to have it.  It works incredibly well with not quite 2 pouches of Marie Callender's Corn Bread Mix.  Once it is baked, you level off each side of the turkey (cut off excess cake) with a large bread knife and frost the two sides together so that he'll stand and be 3-D.  

I use a few toothpicks inserted on an angle to stabilize the seam and then I prop my turkey in a pie plate full of whole cranberries to help him stand up. It is a darling addition to any holiday buffet and I just love him every time I make him. Do you like super cute theme food? This pan's for you! 

Checkerboard Cake

Tah-dah! The cake I have been imagining is finally brought to life.  My mom (a baking enabler) bought me this checkerboard cake pan when I was in my twenties.  While I was enthralled with it back then and made several chocolate and vanilla checkerboard cakes, it has been years since I have used it!

I started thinking about it this Winter and decided to make a pink and white checkerboard cake as soon as I was back home in my house and ready for Spring.  

My dad stopped by when I was assembling the layers and loved the ingenuity of the removable ring batter divider.   

We were still visiting when the layers came out of the oven and we were both so happy to see them release from the pan so easily.  I had sprayed the pans with Bakers Joy (nonstick spray with flour) and cut parchment paper circles to line the bottom of each pan.  They came out perfectly!

This 3-layer cake is made from 2 boxes of Pillsbury Moist Supreme "classic white" cake mix.  Make one box and leave it white.  Make the second box and add drops of liquid red food coloring until it looks as pink as you'd like.

The frosting is one batch of homemade butter cream.  I beat 3 sticks of salted butter until smooth.  Slowly add 3 3/4 cups of powdered sugar (confectioners sugar), one cup at a time.  Mix in 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and a few drops of liquid red food coloring.  Once the cake has cooled completely, stack the three layers on top of one another without frosting in between, alternating the ring pattern.  Spread frosting on outside of cake.  Voila! 

* I will post about the white chocolate flower decorations on top on Friday, May 3, 2013.

Easter Cake Pans

I'm packing for Florida.  Yes, this is the right photograph.  You see, I have had a few requests for my special Easter desserts and once again I am flying cake pans to Florida!

This year I am bringing the 3-D lamb cake pan and the cupcake-size little lambs pan.  The trick to a successful molded cake is using a pound cake recipe or mix. The dense, egg-y cake is far sturdier than traditional cake and will allow the details of the pan to show up in the final product.

Can you believe how many Easter pans I have?  It's practically a collection! My mom is the culprit - she can't resist cute baked goods (who can?) and has supplied me with these darling options over the years.  

I've often thought that there should be a "cake database," where women can register which pans they own and their friends can see who has what and borrow from each other.  Am I the only one who thinks that would be fun?   

Sugar Shaker

Powdered Sugar is your friend.  A sprinkling of it can elevate the look of a dish or hide a few mistakes, depending on how your day is going.

I wanted to show you the dreamy side of powdered sugar on a Scandinavian lunch (above) that I had one Summer.  The cold fruit soup had an edible fairy rose floating on a mint leaf - all kissed with a bit of powdered sugar.  Gorgeous!

Then there are the bad days, when your Mother's Day cake sticks to the "needs no spray or grease" French Sunflower cake mold that you bought at the rummage sale for twenty-five cents.  I was not happy.  Then I realized that a dusting of powdered sugar would visually "even out" the variations in color and "stuck to the pan" gaps in my simple cake.  It worked like a charm!  I put the cake on a pink cake stand and it looked like I had always planned to finish it with powdered sugar.  Whoosh - what a relief.

From now on, I'll use a non-stick spray in my new pan (I still love it) and I'll keep my sugar shaker full!

Turkey Cake Pan

Last year was our best Thanksgiving dinner ever. 

We made all of the classic dishes, of course, but the star of the show was my Cornbread Turkey!  I am showing him to you now so that you will have enough time to get a pan for yourself!

My "classic turkey mold" is from Nordic Ware. You can order him online or call a shop that sells Nordic Ware to see if they have one in stock.  I followed the directions on 2 bags of Marie Callender's corn bread mix and my turkey baked up sturdy and delicious!

Isn't he fantastic?  I "glued" the two halves together with cream cheese frosting and nestled him in a cranberry-filled pie plate for stability.  He was the centerpiece on the table when we had appetizers and then we cut right into him on the buffet for the meal.

All I can say is, "Gobble! Gobble!"