I can't believe it's been so long since I have posted!  I am still making cakes, but not so many as I used to.  Might have to change the name of my blog!

I posted this photo on Facebook of a loaf of bread I made yesterday.  Several people asked about the recipe.  So I'm posting it here.  Perhaps this blog will become more of a food blog than just cakes!

I set out to make good whole wheat bread for sandwiches.  I didn't want it to be too dry or firm.  Nor did I want it to be too sweet as some WW breads can be, especially if they have honey in them. And my last requirement was that I would be able to make it in a couple of hours instead of days...  I'm not picky or anything, though!!

Over the last few years, I have tried a lot of bread recipes, in search of a loaf that would meet my criteria.  As with many things in life, I learned that if you want something done a certain way, you have to do it yourself.  So, I wrote my own recipe.  Without further ado, here it is!

I hope you make it and that you like it as much as we do!

Minnesota Twins cake and cupcakes

Sam's friend Thomas from nursery school turned 9 on Christmas Eve.  When his family got home from their Christmas trip, he had a sports-themed party.  the Minnesota Twins are his favorite baseball team.

Mike and Sully cupcakes

I just love Monsters Inc. and Monsters University.  I was very excited to make these cupcakes when they were requested!

Flip Flop cake

Amy Rego asked me to make a flip flop cake for the shared birthday of her mom and mother-in-law.

Flower cake for Lolita's mom

Lolita wanted a simple cake with flowers for her mom.

Standing Minion cake

For my boys' birthdays, they get to choose between having a party and getting a nicer, more expensive gift.  They always choose a nicer gift.  I, however, still must make them a cake.  So I make a cake for them and we invite a few families over to swim or play games and eat cake.  This was Sam's standing minion cake.

That's not my dragon cake for Cayden's first birthday

I had never even heard of the book "That's Not my Dragon" before the request to make this cake.  I think it is a sweet book and an adorable theme for a party!

Minion cookies

My Sam turned 9!  He wanted a Minion theme for his goodies.  I like to make cookies to send to school instead of cupcakes.  They are a lot less messy for the kids to eat and the teachers to deal with.  These are Sam's minion cookies:

Schnauzer cake and cupcakes for Alison

Al and Alison, my neighbors, have the sweetest little schnauzer.  She is their baby!  For Alison's birthday, she wanted a schnauzer cake and cupakes.

Bacon pancakes

Okay, they aren't really "cakes."  My boys have been going on and on singing some song about bacon pancakes.  So this morning, I decided to surprise them with bacon pancakes for breakfast.  I cooked the bacon then chopped it really little like Bacos.  Then sprinkled some on while the pancakes were cooking.  They boys liked them but told me I didn't need to make them again.  Guess bacon pancakes aren't such a good idea after all!

Smurfette cake

Happy SMURFday! Smurfette cake with coordinating cupcakes.

Dora the Explorer cake

This cake needed to be three different flavors.  I thought the best way to do that was make three "parts" to it.  This is my 3-flavor Dora cake.

Brianna's piano cake

Brianna wanted a piano cake for her birthday.  For most of my cakes, I just want to know a theme and I develop a cake for each person.  I'm not sure what Brianna had in mind when she requested a piano theme but I wanted to make it "grand" for her!  After all, it was her 13th birthday!

Chelsea Football Club cake

I have done a few logo cakes.  This is my first Chelsea cake. 

Soccer cake for Bryce

Little Bryce's birthday falls during the summer when all his friends are away.  So he has to wait for his party every year...  Soccer is his favorite sport and he wanted something soccer themed.  I was planning to make a sphere cake decorated to look like a soccer ball but I left the day before the party to go to MN and Kyle had to deliver the cake for me.  He was really worried about transporting a ball cake so I had to let the air out and make a flat soccer ball.

Sitting Minion cake

I have had a lot of requests for Minion cakes.  This sitting Minion was the first one I made.  The little boy whose birthday it was for is allergic to a number of foods.  So this cake had to be dairy-free, gluten-free and soy-free.  He turned out cute! 

Evan's Mickey Mouse cake

Evan wanted a Mickey Mouse cake for his birthday.  I love Mickey so I was excited to make his cake!

One Direction Cake with 1D logo inside

For Lorena, only a One Direction cake would do.  She wanted a cake with the 1D logo inside it.  This was what it looked like on the outside before it left my house:

Her mom was kind enough to send me a photo of the inside after the cake was cut:

I definitely want to make this again to improve on the logo inside.

Another horse cake for Mackenzie

My neighbor's daughter loves horses.  This is the second horse themed cake I have made for her.  The first featured Mimi, her pony.  This summer, she got a new horse (can't remember his name) and I made a fondant "statue" of him for her cake this year.

That is a picture of the first cake... Molly, the wonderful yellow lab that we doggy sit was over.  And she was hungry.  While I was in the shower, she managed to get to the cake on the counter top and ate about 1/3 of it.  Thankfully, it didn't make her sick!

 Happy Birthday Mackenzie, Take Two!  I managed to whip up another cake in short order and I might like the second one more, although they are nearly identical!

Animal print cake with animal print cupcakes

The cake inside is a zebra stripe cake. 

Cupcake bouquet

I loved these little cupcake bouquet "pots" when I saw them at the specialty cake shop!  I have had them for some time and finally made some "flowers" to put in them!

Beach theme cupcakes

These cupcakes were for a beach themed birthday party out on Darrell's Island.

Religious cake for girl

Painted fondant logo shield... Kingdom Chronicles...

I painted the Kingdom Chronicles shield logo on fondant to go on a cake for the opening of VBS at Evangelical Church tomorrow night.  The left is my painting and the right is the printout from online.  The final lettering cannot be done until after placed on the cake.

Hello Kitty in buttercream

A lady from Kyle's office ordered a "Hello Kitty" cake for her daughter's 4th birthday.  She didn't want a fondant covered cake, so I did something different from my usual kitty cake.  This cake is designed to coordinate with the napkins for the party.

Horse cake for Olivia

This horse cake was for Olivia H's birthday.

Derby County Football team logo on cake

Our neighbor Al is a big fan of Derby County.  His wife wanted a cake for his birthday with the team logo on top.  They were very specific about it being very simple.  I hand-painted the logo on the top of a fondant covered chocolate cake with cherry filling.

Joan's wedding cake with red roses... 150 red roses...

My dear friend Joan was married this month!!!  I was very excited to make her wedding cake!

Religious cake for a girl

A great cake for a first communion celebration.

Wedding cake with silk flowers

I love this cake!!!

Donald Duck cake

This Donald Duck cake was for Cole H's birthday!

Drew's Guitar Birthday Cake

My Drew is now a year into his second decade... Saying it that way makes him sound a lot older!  Drew turned 11 on Saturday.  He wanted a guitar cake.  I procrastinated in getting started so I didn't get to do as much with the decorating as I had planned.  Looks like another guitar cake is in my future.

Greta's disco dance cake

Little Greta Gesick's birthday party was last week.  She had a dance party.  This is the cake I created for her special day.

Angry Birds Cake

I was contacted recently by a fellow Minnesotan transplanted in Bermuda.  She was interested in having an Angry Birds cake made for her son's birthday party.  She sent me a picture of a cake she found online and wanted the same cake.  I don't like to copy cakes others have made but I liked this one so much, I couldn't resist! 

Now I want to make some cupcakes with the other "characters."  Looks like another Angry Birds cake is in my near future.

Owl birthday cake

My friend Mae's daughter, Emily, turned 14 today.  She selected a balloon for the decorations and wanted a cake to compliment it.  I was excited to make an owl cake.  My Nana loved owls and I thought fondly of her as I made this cake for Emily.  I think I will make it again and make some tweeks.

The balloon:

The cake:

This is how it was displayed at the party:

40th Birthday party cake

I made this cake and matching cupcakes for a big 40th birthday party.  The "birthday girl" is a friend of a friend (and I have never met her) so I am honored that she put her trust in me to make the cake for her special occasion.  The only specifications were that it have black and gold, but not too much black, and that it have "40" on it.

This is how I set up the display at the party: