Another successful cake baked!

This last weekend was my husband's birthday. I asked him what type of cake he would like, and he mentioned a German Chocolate cake. My immediate response was no way...pick again. His second choice was a coconut cake. That was a little better.

If you've been following my blog, you know that I'm a "from scratch" baker when it comes to fancy desserts. It's really one of the only ways to bake when you are trying to avoid processed foods and have to cook for a peanut allergy.

After doing some recipe research online, and remembering that I had successfully pulled off the chocolate marble cheesecake he requested last year, I re-considered the German Chocolate cake.  Especially since I found this great recipe that started with a boxed German Chocolate cake mix.  Yes, I was willing to "cheat" just a little, especially this time of year when I'm on over-load.  Well, the problem was, that I couldn't find a German Chocolate cake mix that I was willing to purchase given the list of ingredients.  I did find a Dr. Oetker** organic vanilla cake mix, and after comparing the ingredients thought I'd take a chance.  I also purchased Baker's German Sweet Chocolate bar (unfortunately, no other organic or peanut risk free option in site) to turn my vanilla cake to chocolate.

I mixed the box mix with the buttermilk, oil & eggs per the recipe I found on Barbara Bakes and then had to figure out how to add the chocolate.  The recipe that came with the chocolate instructed to melt the chocolate in the microwave with 1/2 cup of water.  No sooner did I do that when I realized that I just added an extra 1/2 cup of liquid to the recipe.  Already committed, I poured very thin cake batter into my pans and held my breath as I watched my cake layers in the oven through the glass. The cake layers turned out beautifully, but how would they taste?

I did use pecans in the frosting.  Abigail does not have a tree nut allergy, but given the high risk of cross-contamination, the peanut clinical trial guidelines require that tree nuts be removed from the participants diet.  My parents have several large pecan trees in their backyard.  We've talked to our doctor at Duke, and because there is no risk of cross-contamination, Abigail is allowed to eat pecans from their trees.

Here's how the cake turned out.

And how did it taste?  Incredible.  It's the most moist chocolate cake I've had in a really long time!  Yeah, another successful cake baked!  Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband!

**Just a note about the Dr. Oetker cake mix.  There was no allergen cautionary label on the box, and I haven't been able to find any information on their website.  In hindsight, I shouldn't have allowed Abigail to eat a piece until I knew for certain. It's a Canadian company, and they're usually really good about labeling. I'll contact them and find out.

American Girl Boutique & Bistro Experience

This past weekend, Abigail, a friend, her friend's mom and I took a road trip to Alpharetta, Georgia to the American Girl Boutique & Bistro in celebration of Abigail's 8th birthday. What a great experience!

We had lunch reservations at the Bistro. Just a hint, you need to make them weeks if not months in advance. The online reservation system asks about food allergies so I was able to indicate that there was a nut and wheat concern.  Abigail's friend has Celiac disease and cannot eat anything with gluten.  As an extra precaution, the friend's mom also called the Bistro in Alpharetta directly and spoke with the chef.  She felt comfortable that there were going to be options on the menu that our daughters could eat.

After all of us, including the dolls, were seated... late (which is my only negative comment), the chef came out to talk with us personally. He went over the menu to let us know what items were peanut/tree nut free and gluten free. The bakery they use for most of their bread products also produces other products with peanuts. That eliminated several Starters and Main Course sandwiches. No problem there because Abigail had already decided she wanted the Macaroni with Lots of Cheese with a fresh fruit skewer on the side for her entree. She did want the Warm Pretzel Bites with honey mustard dipping sauce for her Starter, but the pretzels were from Pillsbury and had a warning label for cross-contamination. Instead, she got the Cheesy Cheddar Fondue with the gluten-free bread (which was surprisingly very good).  The gluten-free bread came from a different bakery and was peanut/tree nut safe.  Both girls ended up with the fondue. There were other options, i.e, the Very Veggie Platter, the Salad Skewers, the Fresh Fruit with Yogurt Dipping Sauce, etc., but they were deemed too healthy and not near as fun as fondue.

Abigail's friend was able to get the Perfect Picnic Time entree which is a mini hamburger and hot dog.  The chef subbed the buns with gluten-free bread and the curly fries with the fruit cup and yogurt dipping sauce.  For the adult Starters, we got the Fresh Fruit with Yogurt & Mini Muffins and the Warm Artichoke-Spinach Dip and shared it.  We were also going to share a sandwich and a salad for our main course. We managed to eat the Turkey and Provolone Panini, but were way too full to touch the Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing.  If you're wondering why we ordered so much food in the first place, the price for lunch is $14.50 per person and includes the Starter and Main Course.

Because it was Abigail's birthday, we also had to have a special dessert.  All of the cookie and cake desserts used ingredients from Pillsbury and were not peanut/tree nut safe.  There was one chocolate cake that was gluten free, but I chose to order each girl a Celebration Milkshake with birthday cake flavored ice cream, whipped cream, sprinkles and a cherry on top.  I was not expecting them to bring Abigail's out with a candle, but they did.  The waitresses also all gathered around and sang "Happy Birthday" to her which was really nice.  Abigail was more than a little embarrassed by the special attention.  I was pleased that they did so without me asking.  FYI, you can order a special birthday package meal that includes a tiara, certificate and special white "signature" cake and ice cream, but the cake is neither peanut/tree nut or gluten free so I didn't pay the extra.  I think that lunch runs $28.00 a child and $18.00 an adult.

We shopped, we ate and the dolls even got their hair done and ears pierced in the salon.  When we finished at the American Girl Boutique, we checked into our hotel, and the girls spent the evening swimming in the indoor pool.  What a fabulous adventure.  We've made memories to last a lifetime.

Happy Birthday & Get Well Soon

Today is Abigail's birthday.  She's had a fever off and on for the last two days.  It's put a real damper on the birthday festivities.  She also had a Father/Daughter dance that she and her dad were supposed to attend tonight.  Tomorrow both sets of grandparents were coming for cake and ice cream...and presents, but we don't want to expose them to whatever bug Abigail's picked up.  She's pretty disappointed, but been a really good sport about it.

I've tried to make her day as special as possible.  This morning we made waffles and pancake puffs...with candles.  We've rented movies and video games.  We've decorated a cake that is too big now that family is not coming tomorrow to help eat it.  We've opened presents and painted fingernails with a new nail polish set that she got for her birthday.  And, we let her have her choice of take-out which was McDonald's.  That's how much I was trying to make her day great.  I let her eat a McDonald's Happy Meal.

We put those allergy safe jelly beans to good use on her birthday cake.  Abigail asked for a chocolate cake decorated with a rainbow, peace signs, hearts and stars.  She had a good time making the rainbow and peace sign "clouds" and instructing me where to put the hearts and stars. It turned out pretty cute, and she was thrilled with the end results.

Happy Birthday dear Abigail!  Love you!  Hope you feel better soon.

Allergy Friendly Jelly Beans

I was out shopping this morning and came across a brand of candy, Gimbals, that is free of all 8 of the top allergens, peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, gluten, soy, fish and shell fish.  Considering that doesn't happen very often, I just had to share my find.

Abigail's birthday is next weekend, and she wants a chocolate cake with pink frosting.  She also wants it decorated with all of her favorite symbols...rainbows, peace signs, hearts and stars.  I'm actually getting off quite easy with this one.  To avoid mixing so many colors of frosting, my original plan was to use the Rainbow Twizzlers Twists to make the rainbow on the cake.  However, on the shelf right beside the Twizzlers was a bag of gourmet jelly beans, in 41 flavors and a ton of colors.  I was pleasantly surprised to see this allergen label on the back:

I think Abigail is going to really enjoy sorting through the colors and to help form a large multi-flavored rainbow on the cake.

I found the bag of jelly beans at Wal-Mart for a little over $3.00.  It doesn't meet my healthy food standard of non-GMO, no artificial flavors or artificial colors, but it is for a birthday cake after all.

P.S.  I was able to find organic, peanut/tree nut safe jelly beans online from both Surf Sweets and The Jelly Bean Planet if you're neither in a hurry or on a budget.

Not your normal birthday cake!

Today is my husband's birthday.  With it being so close to Christmas, his birthday is often spent doing holiday related activities and today was no exception.  It's a very busy weekend with both kids participating in a holiday music concert last night, our community Christmas parade today and tomorrow both kids are singing in two different church services, we have an Advent festival to attend and a Christmas tree to purchase.  Somewhere in all of that, we have to find time to have a family birthday party.

I spent this morning making a special request cake.  It wasn't your normal birthday cake.  He asked for a chocolate marble cheesecake.  I've never made a cheesecake before, but because I often feel like I short-change him on his birthday, I figured it was the least I could do.  I also don't think he realized what an undertaking it would be.  I chose a recipe (here's a link) that called for Irish Cream Liquor, a special dark chocolate wafer crust, a chocolate sauce topping...and of course, was peanut safe.  Three grocery stores later and an early morning trip to the ABC store this morning, I had all of the ingredients.  I enlisted Abigail's help to crush the cookie wafers and to do lots of stirring.  We were up against the clock because the parade started at 1:00 and the cheesecake had to bake an hour and an half.  But, we did it.

Here it is.  It's so pretty that I had to take a picture.  Frankly, I'm quite impressed with myself.  Of course I'm saying this without having tried it first.  We're going to try to work in eating a piece tomorrow between getting a Christmas tree and being at the church for an afternoon event.  We couldn't eat it tonight because it has to be refrigerated at least 6 hours after baking.  I've got candles, party plates and napkins ready though.  Can't wait to cut into it.  I just hope it tastes as good as it did in the bowl this morning.

Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband!  This cheesecake is definitely a gift from the heart!

Happy Birthday Abigail!

 

Happy 7th Birthday Abigail!

Yesterday was Abigail's 7th birthday.  It was a big day involving sweet treats, gifts, parties and lots of little girls running around our house screaming!

The day started by taking treats to school.  This is always tricky because the sweets have to be store bought.  I've found a grocery store that carries cupcakes from Freed's Bakery which are peanut/tree nut safe.  However, due to a conflict, we had to bring our treat at morning snack.  Abigail wanted doughnuts.  Well, as already posted, neither Krispy Kreme nor Dunkin Doughnuts are safe.  I was stumped at what to bring, but finally remembered the "Sweet 16" powdered doughnuts.

After school, Abigail got her first American Girl Doll.  I'm glad she's not too "old" for dolls yet. We invited 6 of her friends over for a pajama party.  They each came in their PJ's and brought their doll and pillow.  I put down a bunch of quilts and pillows on the floor, made a canopy of streamers, pink, of course, and had hoped that they would hang out, have a fashion show with their dolls, watch a movie, do a craft, eat some pizza and cake, and so forth.  Boy, was I wrong!  Seven girls, aged 6 and 7...whew..they were way too hyped up to "hang out".  It was crazy!  And, quite frankly, I was glad when the party ended, and everyone went home.

As usual, I made her birthday cake, and as usual, didn't finish it until about an hour before the party started.  Having a peanut allergy means that stopping by a local grocery store and purchasing a cake is not an option.  Nor is ordering a cake from most specialty bakeries.  Luckily, my mom used to decorate cakes so I have her expertise and a lot of her old cake supplies at my disposal.  Given the pajama party theme, I made "sleeping bag" cakes for each of the girls and a larger cake for the family.  I couldn't bear to buy a boxed mix after all our new eating changes so I made a scratch chocolate cake using organic ingredients.  It was the first time using the recipe, and it tasted great, but it was a disaster trying to get the cakes out of the pans.  They all stuck, and I had to "glue" them back together with frosting.  Every year as I struggle to make the perfect cake, I think...why?  I don't think that Abigail is old enough to appreciate the work that goes into her cakes.  Every year I'm wishing I could just order a cake and be done with it.  But then I think that even if she wasn't allergic to peanuts, I'd still want to make her cake.  Maybe one day, I'll have the opportunity to make that choice!

So, darling Abigail, Happy Birthday!  I love you!

 

                                       

Celebrating a 40th Birthday!

No, not mine.  At least not yet.  This weekend, we celebrated my husband's 40th birthday.  Actually, we celebrated it last weekend too.  After Thanksgiving, we spent several nights in the NC mountains.  One afternoon while there, Abigail and her brother helped me surprise their daddy with a party complete with cake, 40 candles, a banner they made and party hats.  And, this weekend, the kids stayed with my parents (thanks mom and dad!) so that we could have a kid free weekend.

Purchasing bakery cakes is pretty much out of the question when you have an allergic family member.  I make all of our family's birthday cakes.  For my husband's birthday, I traditionally pick up a box cake mix (Pillsbury or Betty Crocker because of their good allergen labeling practices), a can of frosting and a jar of sprinkles.  This year, I'm making a serious effort to try to eliminate the additives and other junk ingredients from our diet, so I thought I'd bake a cake from scratch.  It turned out so good and was so easy to make that I wanted to share.

I found a recipe for an Old Fashioned Gingerbread cake on www.allrecipes.com.  After reading through many of the reviews and recipe suggestions, I found a version that sounded fabulous.  Here's the recipe:

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup butter

1 egg

1/2 cup molasses

1/2 cup pumpkin puree 

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a 9" square pan (I used a 9" springform pan).  In a large bowl cream together the sugar and butter.  Beat in the egg and mix in the molasses and pumpkin puree.  In another bowl sift together the flour, baking soda and spices.  Blend this into the creamed mixture.  Stir in the hot water and pour into the prepared pan.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pan before serving.

I used organic butter, flour and pumpkin puree.  Because we were heading out of town, I made the cake in advance and froze it which made it easy to transport in the cooler.  I thawed it in the refrigerator and then heated it for a few seconds so that I served it warm.  For an extra treat, I even made the whipped cream topping.  I will continue to make our own now that I know how easy it is.  It's so much better for you than the frozen whipped topping and canned whipped cream at the grocery store.

My husband and kids loved the gingerbread cake.  I even let Abigail eat a piece several mornings for breakfast thinking that it was better for her than a frozen waffle or bagel.   I'll definitely make this cake again...maybe even for Christmas morning!

Enough about the cake.  I want to wish a Happy 40th Birthday to my wonderful husband!  Here's to another 40!  Thanks for being such a fabulous guys!  Love you!