*Birthday Cake for the Birthday Girl*

Bow-Wow Birthday Cake: 

Bottom Layer~2-layer 1/4 sheet chocolate cake with chocolate frosting covered in lime green and turquoise fondant
Top Layer~chocolate jelly roll cake with chocolate ganache filling and coating, with chocolate chocolate chip cupcakes covered in white fondant 

Since today (technically tomorrow) is her birthday, what better motivation to post the picture of last year's cake before I make this year's cake for the birthday girl!  Last year, the school I taught at held their annual auction and after four years, I felt it was time to make a contribution to the cause. So I auctioned off a cake! 

Even though she had already completed 1st grade in my class and moved on to the classroom down the hall, she told her mom, under no uncertain terms, was she to come home from the auction without having won that cake.  That's a lot of pressure, that and the rather large amount of green her mom put down to bid on this cake. Heaven's be praised, by the end of the evening, the cake was hers and she could return home victorious! And then the real stress began! 

I had never baked for anyone but the members of my family, and even then it was just my annual Christmas cookies-I could not disappoint. I was elated to find that my first cake was going to be one with great character and awesome colors (turquoise and bright green) and that she was having a dog-themed party.  Being that this is a creative outlet for me, and not my actual full-time career, this was going to be a true test of my baking and artistic abilities! With inspiration from her own three dogs and her love of all things chocolate, this "Bow-Wow Birthday" cake was my first HUGE step into the world of custom cake decorating. 

This is the cake that started it all, and so today, a year later, it will proudly have center stage as the first (and thankfully not the last!) cake I made for what has become more than just a creative outlet. 

Happy Birthday K.B!