Race Car Cake

I made this cake for my nephew's 5th birthday earlier this year. It was inspired by the cake I made for my son last year (see below). When my cousin asked me to make a race car cake, I was thrilled, but there was only one problem...I had to figure out how to ship the cake from California to Philadelphia. I was always reluctant about shipping cakes (even fake ones) because there's just soooo many things that could go terribly wrong. But I figured, I'll go ahead give it a try and see what happens.



I decided to make the car cake out of rice krispie treats, just like the Lego Cake I made a few months ago, so it'll be easier to ship. Again, since I've got a bun in the oven, my sweet husband helped me (what a guy!). My cousin was going to order a sheet cake from a local bakery and place the race car on top of it. I took a Wilton 3-D Cruiser Pan, lined it with plastic wrap and packed it with the rice krispie treats. When I unmolded it, I spread a thin layer of buttercream and covered it with red rolled fondant.

I cut three long strips of fondant and placed them on top of the hood, the roof and the trunk of the car. I brushed clear alcohol (lemon extract or vodka) on the strips to glue them to the car cake.



I used petit four cutters to make the headlights. I made the grill by cutting thin strips of fondant (see fondant scrolls post to learn an easy way to cut strips) and used a small round cookie cutter to make the "5" logo (see simple and easy monogram post). I painted the pieces with silver luster dust and a black food color marker.



I colored the wheels, windshield and windows with a black food color marker.



I used two different sizes of round cookie cutters to make the rims of the wheels. I painted the rims and spokes with silver luster dust and made the lug nuts by pushing the black food color marker into the fondant.



I used the same fondant scrolls and simple and easy monogram techniques to make the bumper and license plate.



The good news: the cake made it to Philly in one piece.
The bad news: the bubble wrap I used to cushion the box left bumps all over the fondant :-(
I'm not sure if I packed it too tightly or if the fondant softened while in transit, but I don't think I'll ship another cake across country until I figure out a better way to package it.

A Tale of Two Cookies

From left to right: Coconut-Almond and Chocolate Chip Cinnamon Cookies

My due date is fast approaching and I've been crazy busy trying to get ready for my little bundle to arrive. Can you say nesting? It must be contagious because my husband is doing the same thing. For the past few weeks, while I've been cleaning and organizing around the house, he's been rounding up our son's old baby stuff from the garage and assembling baby furniture. Oh yes, I got very emotional the first time I saw the crib. I never thought we'd be going through this again. I feel very blessed.

In the meantime, my oven's been neglected and I think it's starting to get depressed. So I thought I'd bake up some cookies for the sweet folks at my doctor's office. I made a double batch of my simple shortbread cookies and added different flavors to each batch.

I had an extra bag of shredded coconut from my macaroon experiment so of course I used it for my first batch. I also found some sliced almonds in the pantry. I was thinking about making some almond croissants but I got lazy so I decided to add the almonds with the shredded coconut. Waste not, want not. As for the second batch, you can't go wrong with chocolate. Everybody loves chocolate, right? I tossed in some chocolate chips and I was going to add some dried cranberries but decided to add cocoa powder and cinnamon instead.

The verdict: they really liked both flavors. My doctor even said he kept his box of cookies to himself. Good thing I gave the staff their own box :-)

Hmmm...what other flavor combination can I try out next?

UPDATE (7/14/09): Tried two other flavors: Cranberry-Chocolate-Almond and Apricot-Orange-Chocolate.


Apricot-Orange-Chocolate Cookies. I used a cookie scoop for these cookies and lightly pressed them down.

Shortbread Cookies
Allergy Note: contains wheat, milk and tree nuts
Makes about 4 dozen cookies, 2 dozen of each flavor

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract

for Coconut-Almond:
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup slice almonds

for Chocolate Chip Cinnamon:
1 tsp. cocoa powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 cup chocolate chips

for Cranberry-Chocolate-Almond:
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
1/4 cup chopped almonds

for Apricot-Orange-Chocolate:
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/4 cup chopped dark chocolate
zest from 1 orange
zest from 1 lemon
1/2 tsp lemon extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.

In a medium mixing bowl, sift together flour and salt. Set aside.

Using a separate mixing bowl and an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar till smooth. Add vanilla extract. Stir in the flour mixture and mix until combined. Divide the dough in half. Pick a flavor combination to add to each half.

You can either roll the dough into logs, chill them for an hour, then slice and bake them (see chocolate chip cinnamon cookie above); OR use a small cookie scoop and bake them right away (see coconut almond cookie above). Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly brown. Cool completely.