my cake in progress.....

[2sdae]

O.K. A little background here.
I am making a carved cake for my brother who loves cucumbers...eats them everyday, grows them and always snuck them as a kid from our gardens or neighbors!
So he asked for a apple spice birthday cake.....I said ok...and thought to myself "it has to be a cucumber shaped carved one though!"

So I used the wasc cake recipe modifies to this:
the mixes were spice cake
no water as I used 1 can of spiced apples for baking in pies
I did add 1/2 cup of cream to help with liquid.
and I added 2 teaspoon s of pumpkin pie spice:for that spicy apple pie type flavor
and 2 tablespoons vanilla bean paste to help bring out the flavors.


I made the rest of the recipe as is. I parchmented the pan, and used 5 inverted flower nails one in each corner area and 1 in the middle. I am using 11x15x4 inch fat daddios pans. I didnt use the wet towels or the pan wraps as I wanted to see how well the pans baked a leveled cake with out them. This one will be carved on so no big deal there.
It's been baking at 327-329 my oven fluxes a bit, but no more than that, as I have an alarmed oven temp gauge I am using also.
So let's see how this goes. I am writing this to keep my motivation up and keep me focused on cakes too. Plus thought you might wanna read as I go and laugh with me...

I was also wondering, should I dye the icing or airbrush it to avoid green mouths? Or should I dye the icing green a lighter shade then airbrush darker colors on to give it that striped type effect? How should I do the prickles you see on cucumbers? I thought maybe let the icing crust then use a pin to prick out the prickles?

[Amanda]

What a fun cake! I can't wait to see the pictures. Are you doing fondant or BC? I would do the icing green and then airbrush some dark green on top of it. I don't know about the little prickles though....

[2sdae]

I am using cream cheese butter cream which is his fav. Here is the cake baked.
1. I only filled it 1/2 full due tot hat's all the batter the recipe made and I wanted to see how high it would bake with this amount.
2. It did dome a little but not much.
took 1hour 24 minutes almost on the nose to finish baking.
3. I will be heading to the store for more eggs and sour cream and make another layer too. I'll use the pan strips on that one and see if there's any difference. I'll post those pics too.

http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t...l/DSCF1437.jpg
http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t...l/DSCF1438.jpg

[Pootchi]

that recipe made me drool just by reading it! spice cakes are a fav of mine, with the apples...yum oh that cream cheese bc icing!!! omg.....

I'm taking a break while dh is sanding the floor, after patching the holes, and I came accross this thread.... makes me hungry!

Can't wait to see the final product! Personnally I'd do a light green icing and airbrush with a darker color. when you cut the cake it would look amazing

[2sdae]

well got it baked, frozen, simi thaw then filled and stacked, now to pop into freezer to toughen up a bit and into a cucumber he will a go...I HOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:c razy:
PRAY FOR ME GUYS!

[jeri]

Best of luck. Are you putting a smily goofy face on this cucumber to add some humor?

[2sdae]

: angry::sad :
I am so upset.
I was carving my cakes everything was fine. Hubby came home early and oldest is home too. The oldest has a date at 530 so she showered and went to dress. Hubby was supposed to watching 2 little ones watch tv as he played a game online......
Well just as I had finished carving and was transporting the cake from 1 counter to other for better height, they hit.
A almost 3 and almost 4 year old go running through the kitchen and around me!
The cake? It fell on the floor into 6 pieces...cucumber cakes dont bounce in one piece.
Oh and while carving I chunked a good portion of my left pointer finger.....

It's going to be a long night....so I am drinking me a energy drink and I guess going to bake him something else, same cake flavor...but what now??? Oh please someone help me with ideas..

He's 27, likes organic food, organic gardening, wants to open a greenhouse, going to school for a masters in ecology and loves to frizzbe-golf? What ever that is!!!

[Amanda]

I'm so sorry!!!
How about just a round (or square cake) with a garden or greenhouse on top? Little fondant veggies aren't too involved....just a little time consuming. Or.....a garden with no veggies, just him bending over it planting. That way you wouldn't have to make any little things and the figure would be fairly easy since it doesn't have to dry long enough to stand or anything.
That's all I got for now....Good luck!

[2sdae]

Thanks Amanda. I was thinking around those same lines...hubby ran to store for as he put it "ANYTHING YOUR LITTLE HEART DESIRES NO MATTER WHAT IT COST!"
I only gave him a grocer's list and a request for my fav wine and for him to pick up dinner for himself and the kids. I took a 2 mile run and a shower and in my "comfy" clothes preparing to bake the best darn cake I have ever made!!!!!!!

[2sdae]

Oh and he mopped the floor, bathed the little ones and took them to store with him.
Guilt is a heavvvvvvvvvvy thing.