Easy but Awesome Party Cakes!

Hands up who has ever shed a few tears over birthday cake decorating ?  (I doubt I am alone haha)

I think for a lot of parents (myself included),  birthday cake decorating can be one of the most stressful parts of birthday party preparation.  I think most of us have probably spent a late night or two frantically trying to finish a 'masterpiece' (and most likely cursing said master piece) wondering how on earth a task seemingly as simple as icing a sponge cake can be so difficult and why oh why did we leave the cake decorating until the night before! 

So I thought I would put together some cakes that are easy to create but still look fun & fantastic and are sure to please little party guests.  There are recipes and tutorials included in the links making it nice and easy (and hopefully less stressful) for you to recreate these gorgeous cakes for your little ones! 

If you give any of these fun cakes a try, we would love to see your efforts.  Please feel free to share with us, we love to hear from you :)

Farmyard Cake.  I am a HUGE fan of the basic farm yard cake.  I remember in our childhood Women's Weekly Cake Book there is a section at the back with different style Farm cakes.  So easy but very fun and effective.  This cute cake from Taste.com.au 

The Kit Kat Cake.  Cake and Chocolate, always a winner!

This cake from Recipe Girl. 

Another take on the Kit Kat Cake is this 'Teddy Beach Cake'.  I love love love this cake, it is so cute!

This cake from Lovely Party Things.com 

This basic Marshmallow Cake is still really cute and would be perfect for a little girls 1st Birthday. 

This cake from Kidspot. 

This Construction cake looks awesome and nice and easy to decorate. Milo, malteasers & honeycomb, can anyone say YUM!  This cake from Petticoats & Peplums. 

This is one of the best kids cake ideas I have come across. Cover your cake in white fondant and let the birthday child decorate with food pens.  We planned on doing this for my sons Art party last year though he changed his mind on theme at the last minute.  Definitely one year I will be doing this!  This cake from Sweetapolita. 

Pretty pink icing and sprinkles, so simple but so pretty!  Another gorgeous cake from Sweetapolita.  

The 'Naked' cake.  Layer your cake and ice simply on top and add some fun toppers. 

This cake from Delia Creates.  (includes tutorial to make these sparkly toppers as well.)

The Rainbow layer cake.  Make the inside of your cake the highlight and just frost with plain icing. 

This cake from Betty Crocker. 

Kids would have lots of fun cracking open this Pinata Cake.  This cake from Thirty Nine (using the Women's Weekly pinata cake recipe.) 

Fun Race Car Birthday cake.  This cake from At the Corner of Happy and Harried. 

Pretty Marshmallow Flower cake.  This cake from Kidspot. 

Happy Decorating!

Kate xx

Party Food Recipes ~ Meringues

Hi There :)

My lovely friend Tara from Gluten Free Hart made some amazing meringues not too long ago and she has been kind enough to let me share her recipe with you all today. 

Meringues are an absolute winner in my household and they are a yummy and fun party food.  What I also love is that they can be made completely gluten free (with no comprimise in taste) which is great for all of us who need to cater for children with coeliac disease or gluten intolerance as it can often be tricky to find yummy sweets for parties that are gluten free. 

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Ingredients
4 egg whites (eggs must be at room temperature)
Pinch of salt                                                    
1 cup caster sugar
2 teaspoons gluten free cornflour
1 teaspoon white vinegar
Sprinkles/100's & 1000's if desired

Pre-heat your oven to 100°C  

Method
Make sure your mixing bowl is clean.  Any trace of fat can bring your meringue merriment to a screeching halt. Using an electric mixer, beat your egg whites and salt until soft peaks form, then gradually add sugar.  Beat until mixture becomes glossy and all of the sugar has dissolved.
If you rub a little between your thumb and forefinger and the mix is no longer gritty, you're good to go.  At this point, add cornflour, vinegar & any colour preference (mix until just combined).

Use a piping bag with a wide star tip to create your meringues.  Aim for about 4-5 cm diameter and allow space between each on a lined baking tray.  You can sprinkle 100 & 1000's on the tops if desired (remember if you are needing gluten free to check your sprinkles as some brands do contain gluten.)

Bake for 2 hours until meringues have a hardened shell and sound hollow when gently tapped on the bottom.

Now for the hard part.  The waiting..
Turn your oven off and allow meringues to cool for a couple of hours.  I stick a wooden spoon in the door so it remains ajar whilst meringues are cooling.

Well done! You made it.  ENJOY!               

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You can read Tara's full article here, it's full of laughs :)  I also 
highly recommend Tara's Blog Gluten Free Hart for anyone who needs a gluten free lifestyle as there are lots of great recipes and other tips available. 

Thanks Tara for letting me share your yummy recipe!

Enjoy.

Kate xx