Now and Then

Left: Denny's Birthday Cake 2019, Right: Denny's Birthday Cake 2020

So much can happen in the space of a year and honestly I'm in some disbelief that a whole year has passed since I stepped off the verge into caking territory! It all started with my eldest child's birthday cake... I mean listen, I've been baking since my early twenties and making my kids' birthday cakes since the first turned one but they were never what we'd call 'Insta Worthy' they were just scrummy, mummy-made cakes.

Then I got addicted to watching YouTube tutorials a little ahead of my daughter's 7th birthday and nervously decided I would attempt a drip cake having been inspired by the account of my once best friend's sister, you might know her as Georgia's Cakes.

I have a confession, I was clueless. I searched fruitlessly for a 'tall' cake pan to bake my tall cake in. I read I needed a 6" pan and assumed that meant height. Yup, totally clueless. I ran into a baker friend in the supermarket and on asking for her help with locating such a pan (I'm surprised she didn't laugh in my face) she kindly told me I would need to bake the cake across several pans and stack them together with buttercream or similar gluing agent.

With a gaggle of schoolfriends on the guestlist, every mum I spoke to in the lead up to the party I did my best to lay the expectations for my impending bake. I was convinced it would be a flop. The day before I was due to decorate I realised I didn't have a scraper which prompted a last minute race across town, baby in tow, to get to a shop I knew would have one. Google said it was closing soon but as I swung in, sweaty and balancing a wriggling toddler on one hip the shop manager calmly informed me they weren't closing for another hour. D'oh! Panic for nothing but anyway I got my scraper.

Somehow the cake materialised and I even mastered a perfect chocolate drip!! I bought all the toppings and was beyond thrilled with the final result, as was the birthday girl! Comments from friends at her party about being so impressed they'd order one made me blush but certainly didn't prompt me to take any relevant action.

However I'd caught the bug for cake decorating and with my son's birthday a few weeks later I set to work on his design. I also set myself the challenge of making macarons, now rather over confident following my drip cake success I was most displeased that this next project was so difficult!! It took me about a month to perfect them (not in time for the birthday party sadly) but once I did (at 4am one Saturday morning) I was obsessed and immediately made another cake to celebrate!

Left: Noah's Birthday Cake, Right: Macaron Celebration Cake

I've learnt so much in this past 12 months and challenged myself again and again. I've conquered striped cakes, macarons, painted buttercream, geode, wrapped cakes, and so much more. I'm so proud of myself and I can't wait to see what this next year will bring for my caking journey and I'm so grateful to all the amazing people I've met along the way who raise me up with likes, comments, and overwhelming support. Thank you for being here with me.

One final note, Happy 8th Birthday to my darling Denny, possibly my biggest supporter of all.

Love Das xoxo