Tuesday, September 30, 2008

super Q tableau


Super Q is (in his words) "all the way 6 now!" He was so tired of that 5 1/2 gig. As I was washing dishes, I realized a little Super Q tableau had formed on the windowsill including a pot decorated for mother's day at preschool, a jarful of those spongy monsters that come in little capsules and grow in warm water, and a mad scientist test tube with a dried up worm in it. Isn' t that one of the best things about kids? They leave the most random items around. A bag half-full of Cheetos has taken up residence next to the toothbrush holder in my bathroom. I keep forgetting to throw it away. I think Q was eating them in the bath and then forgot about them.

And here is his cake. You can just barely see his tiny smile up top there. While I'm at it, I'll share my no-fail birthday cake recipe that feeds 25 people or so. The yogurt makes it more dense than the typical box cake so it's easier to frost and tastes moist and delicious.



2 boxes Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® cake mix
1 1/2 cups water
2/3 cup vegetable oil
6 egg whites
2 containers (6 oz each) yogurt, any flavor


1. Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans). Generously grease and lightly flour bottoms and sides of two 13 x 9 x 2" pans, or spray with baking spray with flour. Or better yet, line with parchment paper or waxed paper and spray with pam.

2. In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil, egg whites and yogurt with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds; beat on medium speed 2 minutes (batter will be lumpy). Pour into two 13 x 9 x 2" pans.

3. Bake both pans at the same time for 30-35 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Run knife around sides of pans to loosen cakes; remove from pans to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

4. If you have time, put the cakes in the freezer for 1-2 hours before icing them.

5. Assemble the cake as you would a regular layer cake, one cake on top of the other with about 1 cup of icing in between. You will need about 8 cups of icing total to ice the cake and add colorful decorations or words.

High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Increase water to 2 cup and decrease oil to 4 tablespoons when making batter.

5 comments:

Kristi said...

I'll have to try your cake recipe when Genna turns 6 in a few months.

pianogal said...

Okay, that cake looks professionally frosted. You are to be commended both for that and for hosting the kind of party that requires a cake that feeds "25 or so". Looks like Q had fun!

Patty O. said...

Did you decorate the cake? I thought it had to be a bakery cake until you shared the recipe. You are talented.

I agree with the random stuff of kids. It cracks me up what my kids will become attached to. Charlotte will insist on sleeping with the stuffed cats and snakes every night, but wants absolutely nothing to do with the stuffed puppy. Danny is still attached to that pumpkin hat you sent him like 4 years ago and wears it every Autumn, yet will never wear a baseball hat or any other hat for that matter....

beckmarsh said...

Ok, ok, ok. I did decorate the cake, but you guys, it is so easy to do. Use the fat star tip for the big wide black border. For the Star Wars logo (or any picture you want), trace it on waxed paper with a sharpie. Then pipe some colored frosting on the back of the waxed paper, place the waxed paper frosting-side down on the cake, press down lightly, and lift up. So now you have a sort of messy outline on the cake of your design. Outline it and fill it in with colorful frosting. That's it. You can also cut a template out of waxed paper and trace the design on the frosting with a toothpick and then fill it in with frosting. I priced bakery cakes and even the ones on the day-old cart were $9.00! I'm way too frugal (cheap) for that. And I like decorating cakes. About twice a year, that is.

Unknown said...

Q is so lucky to have you.