Make a wish....

Guess who's got a birthday this week?  Me!  

Obviously, that leads me on to the idea of cake!  Though to be honest it doesn't take much!  It is certainly party season as now rarely a weekend goes by without one or other of the children having an invitation to respond to!  Naturally I'm always interested in the cake, though always for the purposes of research!  Purely to find out the most popular themes.

This weekend, has had it's fill of birthdays, each very different but equally blissful!  Those are the occasions which form the memories of children, no matter how young they are.  I love seeing photos from my early birthday parties, with the jelly spilling from the paper dishes, sandwiches and cake.

I was very lucky growing up as my Mum, as any Mum would do, always ensured my brother and I had the perfect birthday cake to accompany our ever changing fascinations and interests!  Fairy toadstools and princesses when I was younger, and pigs in my 20s!  My brother had tanks, trains and even Stay Puft from Ghostbusters.

Looking back, it never mattered to us whether these were homemade, shop-bought or made to order.  All that mattered was that initial thrill of "that's my birthday cake!"

When I had my first son I wanted to make sure I gave him those memories, even if they were relived through photos as he got older.  He doesn't remember his Bob the Builder cake from his 2nd birthday now, but I love that I can show him what I made for him for the party. 

When I mention to people that I make cakes, people sometimes say that they wish they were skilled / confident / creative / brave enough to attempt a birthday cake, and I always want to say that they are!  They are all of those things!  I'd never profess to have any particular talent; just determination, a little bit of eccentricity helps I suppose and lots of practice!

The first birthday cake I made for my son was a chocolate traybake, covered in chocolate icing and plastic toppers.  And he loved it!  Children don't care whether you stayed up to 3am to finish it, or whether you've planned it for months, asked someone to create it for you, or bought it from a supermarket on your way home.  As long as it's theirs, and there are the correct number of candles in it, they will be thrilled!  This goes for grown-ups too! (Hint to other half to take note!)

I know I make cakes to order, but I would never in a million years suggest that that's what people should always do.  My 30th birthday cake was a shop bought Dr Who cake - an edible David Tennant!  What's not lot love about that?!  Make it, buy it, order it; however that cake gets to the "Happy Birthday" moment, everyone will love it!

The cake which launched Curiositea was the 'Gromit' cake I did for my son's 4th birthday.  I loved how thrilled he was when he saw it and I loved the idea that I could help contribute to those moments; create the magic in their eyes and a memory to look back on when they are older.

I forgot to mention an essential ingredient that always goes into birthday cakes, whether homemade, chosen in a supermarket, or made to order; and that is an enormous amount of love.  And the best things about that particular ingredient is, it contains very few calories!