Perfect DIY Birthday Cake for Your Child’s Special Day
We can agree that some of the fondest memories of childhood revolve around birthdays. Kids of all ages and sizes are often showered with the most gifts and love on their birthdays. Since birthdays are annual occasions, most moms would want to make the day as special and memorable for their little ones as possible! However, the issue with budgeting for a big and special birthday is always concerning.
Gloomy scenario? Bigger is not always better, and the good news is – small celebrations can be great too! Yes, that’s right! You can make your child’s Big Day bigger without having to burn craters in your wallets. And what’s the best way to do it? Bake your child the cake of her dreams yourself and help her make this birthday one she will remember for life!
Birthday Cake Challenge – How to Deal with It
If you are not a regular baker, the nervous palm-sweating regarding your child’s birthday cake is justifiable. It is even more nerve-wracking if you plan to go above and beyond a regular cake to make it very special for your kid. The most important thing to remember is this: do NOT leave your baking till the night before the birthday. Yes, it would be nice for your child to cut an oven-fresh cake on her birthday, but last minute baking can often lead to disastrous results, such as burnt cakes or ones with no sugar in them!. Also, if you want to put frosting or icing on the cake, you will have to wait for the cake to cool down completely. This mean that you will end up staying up late only to wake up early next morning and be terribly tired for the party. Plus, the accompanying stress is just unnecessary.
Avoid the stress by baking well in advance. You can bake your child’s birthday cake as early as a week in advance and freeze it. You can also make the icing and freeze it so that when the event draws near, all you have to do is take it out of the freezer, defrost it and decorate it!
Memorable Birthday Cake – How to Choose the Recipe
So you want to make this birthday special for your child. Obviously, that calls for a special recipe with exotic-sounding ingredients that you are unlikely to find in your local groceries. A smarter thing to do is opt for the safe option. Once you get the base cake right, you can go crazy with the decoration (but of course, in a way that pleases the birthday boy/girl).
Easy Chocolate Cake Recipe
Ingredients:
- 225g plain, all-purpose flour
- 85g cocoa powder
- 350g caster sugar
- 2 eggs
- 250ml milk
- 150ml vegetable oil or butter
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1½ baking soda
- 2tsp vanilla extract
- 250ml boiling water
- Place all the ingredients (except the boiling water) in a large bowl and beat the mixture using a wooden spoon or an electric whisk till it is smooth and free of lumps.
- Add boiling water to the cake mix (a little at a time) and keep whisking. By the time you have used up all your water, the cake mix should have a watery texture.
- Grease a cake tin and pour in the mixture. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes at 350 degrees Farenheit or till a knife/needle inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
- Now that the base cake is ready, complete the icing and decoration options according to the theme of the party.
Birthday Cake Theme
Think beyond the ‘pink for girls, blue for boys’ mindset. Not all girls like pink and hey, your little boy might want a pink cake instead of blue! The age and preferences of your child are more important than the norm. Take note of what the child is fond of. Try baking some delicious candy cane chocolate chip cookies to accompany your cake, and watch your child’s face light up! Don’t randomly opt for a Barbie cake for your girl if she doesn’t like playing with dolls. Your painstaking effort will go unnoticed. Consider investing in inexpensive piping bags and nozzles, a pallet knife, grease paper, cake tins and cake boards to give your homemade cake a professional finish.
