The bunny cake

Hello, and welcome. Today's post is just to show off the cake I made for my daughter's birthday at the beginning of September. Of all the cakes I've made so far, I think this was one of the easiest, but also the most successful.

Summer emoji cake

Remember the "A Day at the Beach" cake I shared last week? That was the one I made for my son's birthday party with friends and family. In addition to that one, I also made another cake for him to celebrate with the few of his school buddies which were not on vacation yet. For that "party" my son wanted an emoji cake - as I wanted something to do with summer as well, we settled for this: 

A "Day at the Beach" cake

Hello, and welcome. A couple of years ago I decided to add cake decor to my list of crafts. Not because I have a special talent for baking, but mostly because I was spending way too much money on the cakes for all of my kids' birthday parties - in between celebrating with close family, taking a cake to school for their classmates and then organizing a party just for the kids, I was buying two to three cakes a year for each of them. The solution? DIY, of course. 

I started with easy decor ideas from Pinterest but, as they say, practice makes perfect, so this year I ventured into more elaborate designs.

Simply orange cake

Sometimes simple things are just what you need. I'm all for making complicated cakes when the need arises - check out my chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling or my strawberry layered cake, or even my adventures into cake decor. But there are days where you just want to taste a great homemade cake without having a lot of trouble to make it - and the simply orange cake ticks all those boxes!

Scroll down to find out how I make it:

Chocolate Layered Cake with Chocolate Mousse Filling

This is probably one of the most decadent cakes I've ever made. And, unsurprisingly, it's always a hit. Because it's soft, moist and, let's be honest, it's chocolate on chocolate. Enough said.

And, for a layered cake, it's also surprisingly easy to make and fail proof.

Scroll down to find out how I make it:

Apple cake for picky kids {recipe}

Do you have picky kids? Well, then you need this cake recipe!

Let me share a bit of background: some time ago my son told me he would love to have some apple cake, but he didn't want to find any apple chunks mixed in it. Or on top either. It would have been much easier just to make apple cake without apples, but I do love a challenge.

And so, I've came up with a recipe for apple cake with no visible apple anywhere. The apple is there, the cake tastes like apple cake. But you can't really see it. Yep, perfect.

 

Scroll down to find out how we make it:

Cabbage & smoked ham quiche

This cabbage and smoked ham quiche is deliciously easy, and it can be made in advance, which is a huge plus when you're planning a party and don't have enough time to cook everything just before serving. It can be used as a side dish or as a main dish, paired with a great salad.

Want to make one too?

The easiest cinnamon cookies ever!

I love baking cookies, but I usually have problems with most recipes. They either require some time in the fridge before I can use cookie cutters successfully (or, rather, my kids can, as they are the ones who love to cut the cookies to shape) or they just turn out too dry and hard.

Finally I managed to perfect a recipe that doesn't require any fridge time - which means it's easier, quicker and less messier. My kids are happy, and so am I.

Scroll down to find out how we make these cinnamon cookies:

Sweet Potato Veggie Burgers

These days I'm eating less and less meat. I still love meat and I'm not planning on turning a full time vegetarian (at least not for now) but as I get older I just don't feel the need to eat as much meat as I used to. In exchange, I'm trying to increase my intake of vegetables, and these sweet potato burgers are the perfect excuse for that.

Scroll down to find out how I make them:

Coffee cake

I'm not a coffee drinker but, surprisingly, I love the taste of coffee in almost anything else. And this coffee cake is one of my favorites.

Scroll down to find out how I make it:

20 foods that get better with age

Aging food is, to be honest, a concept that never crossed my mind before. I obviously knew about cheeses or wine being aged, but other foods? No so much. 

So when I was approached by Oldest.org with their list of 20 foods that get better with age, I jumped to the chance of learning more about the subject, and now I'm sharing it here too: 

And this is really the perfect time of the year to learn about it, as the Holidays are (not so) slowly coming around the corner.

Chocolate mousse with chocolate chips

Chocolate over chocolate is my daughter's definition of heaven. And while this chocolate loaded mouse isn't something I make very often along the year, it is definitely a staple at our house during the festive season. Because, of course, holiday calories don't count.

Scroll down to find out how I make it:

Tips on How to Create a Beautiful Plate of Food

I'm the queen of quick and easy, mostly because I'm always pressed for time. But sometimes you need to slow down a bit and take the time to learn something new. For a while now, food photography and the amazing ways I see people plating food have appealed to my artistic side. I can't help but think that a pretty plate should be an extension of a great meal and, as such, you should take time to do it properly. Cooked with love, plated with love.

So, when I was offered the opportunity, to learn and share here some great tips  about plate presentation, I just couldn't pass it up.

Easy & Healthy Salmon Burgers

These salmon burgers are very easy to make (and they need to be, because I rarely have time to cook anything complicated) and a healthy alternative too. Even my picky kids love them - which, believe, me, is a huge bonus.

Scroll down to find out how I make them:

Cauliflower soup with boiled eggs

Comfort food is something I crave every year when the cold and the rain settle in to haunt me until the following spring. But comfort food doesn't have to be difficult to cook (otherwise half the comfort is gone) and doesn't need to be overflowing in calories either. This cauliflower soup is just proof of that.

Scroll down to find out how I make it:

Smoked Ham Roll

This smoked ham roll is super easy to make and works really well as an appetizer. If you're a bit more talented than me cutting the slices, you will have lovely pinwheel shapes that are perfect for parties too.

And, to be honest, I also like to eat the slices as a main dish, especially at this time of the year, together with some wild rice or steamed vegetables.

Scroll down to find out how I make it:

Almond oats apple crumble

Fall is already well under way, and this is the perfect season to cook and bake with apples. This almond oats apple crumble is an interest twist on more traditional apple crumble recipes and so easy to make there is no reason not to try it out.

Scroll down to find out how I make it:

My adventures in cake decor - part 2

Last week I showed off here two of the cakes I made this summer for the birthday parties we celebrated in our family. Well, here's part 2 of that post, with two more cakes:

My adventures in cake decor - part 1

For a long time I've been wanting to enter the word of cake decor. I'll never be the Cake Boss, but spending too much money buying fancy cakes was beginning to irk me. If you've been visiting for a while, you already know that I always prefer to do things myself. 

This summer, when the birthday season began in our house, I took a deep breath and decided to run the risk of serving guests a mess of a cake. Luckily, while there were a few hiccups in the process, I (and the cakes) made it almost unscathed.  

10 Free and Simple Slow Cooker Recipes

When school starts up and schedules become fuller, it can be difficult to get a home cooked meal on the table during weeknights. That’s why slow cookers can be a lifesaver when it comes to feeding hungry mouths.

My friends at YourBestDigs recently created 5-ingredient slow cooker recipe cards that make dinners so much easier. Simply add the 5 ingredients to your slow cooker in the morning, and you have a meal at night!