Pumpkin Picking {Halloween Birthday}

Ok, the title of this post might be a little misleading...I haven't even gone pumpkin picking yet this year (unless you count the sugar pumpkins that I picked up in the supermarket 2 weeks ago because the kiddos were begging for pumpkins! Of course those went bad super-fast and we need replacements!) But while I was growing up, and now with my own family, I feel a pumpkin picking trip is the perfect beginning to the whirlwind holiday season of Halloween through Christmas and I LOVE it!

So when I got an order for a pumpkin shaped cake this year I was so excited to work on it!! I LOVED how it came out! Hope you guys do too!

Don't you just want to take this little guy home and make him a part of your Halloween decorations?!?! :) 

The cake inside is devils food (totally perfect for Halloween!), a chocolate mousse filling and vanilla buttercream frosting.

Happy Haunting to you all! :)

Tara

Truly Outrageous! {Birthday Cake}

As a little girl in the 80's I was definitely a fan of Jem & the Holograms.  Anyone whose ever seen the cartoon will have a hard time NOT saying "she's truly outrageous!" after hearing "Jem & the Holograms" spoken out loud! :)

Liz is a major Jem & the Holograms fan and for her birthday this year, she and I designed an outrageous Jem themed cake!  Besides being the lead singer of the Holograms, Jem was known for her awesome fashion sense and wore the coolest 80's clothes ever! So we based the cake design on one of Liz's favorite Jem outfits! Here is the dress:

Here is the cake!

The fondant guitars around the bottom tier were modeled after the different instruments played by the Holograms in the cartoon. And the shoes...oh the shoes...Jem had the coolest shoes for each outfit, so I ordered Jem shoes (non-edible!) online and placed them around the base of each tier.

The inside of the cake was RAINBOW tiers!! Of course I could not get a shot of the rainbow awesomeness because I couldn't cut into the cake...but the birthday girl posted shots on her amazing blog, Duchess in Brooklyn! I've also pinned it on my Heavenly Bites Cakes board on Pinterest - are you following yet? :) Come on over! :)

Hope you had an outrageous birthday Liz!

Tara

Beachy Bridal Shower

Can it really be that the summer is almost over?!? I know it officially lasts until September 21st, but this weekend marks the end of the beach-going season...so I think I better get all of my beachy and nautical cakes from this past summer up on the blog this week! :)

This cake and accompanying cupcakes were made for a bride-to-be in Brookville, NY whose beach themed bridal shower given to her by her family at her aunt's beautiful home was one of the most beautifully set up I have ever seen!

Here is the cake topper:

This sweet little cake was tres leche with caramel buttercream. It was covered in a light pink fondant and decorated with graham cracker sand. The coral was painted on white food color and the shells, starfish and pearls were made of fondant.  The starfish toppers were actually purchased at Michaels (since all the ones I attempted making kept breaking because they were so large!). I added the fondant top hat, bow tie & pearls and used white tulle to make the veil.

The cupcakes were a mix of lemon with cream cheese frosting, s'mores with fluff filling and white chocolate buttercream frosting and tres leche with caramel buttercream.

The cupcakes were topped with graham cracker sand and fondant toppers of shells and starfish, which were dusted with edible luster dust for a little sparkle!

Wishing all the happiness in the world to the bride and groom to be! :)

Tara

Blue & Brown Communion Cake

I made this cake for my adorable cousin/godson James (Jay) Gregory who made his communion this past May.

I was so honored to make this cake for him and was so excited to be able to attend the ceremony at church to see him make his communion! (My husband stayed home with the twins so they could have their nap before the party, so I had the rare opportunity to pay full attention to everything going on at church! Thanks for that dawl*!)  He looked so grown up and serious in his suit and did an amazing job of speaking when it was his turn to read intentions - brought a tear to my eye!! I can only imagine what I'll be like when it's my own kids up there!

Here is the cake,  made to match the colors of his invitation - my aunt wanted something sleek and simple and this was perfect! :)

God Bless Jay! The sweetest cousin/godson anyone could ask for AND a top notch babysitter to my boys at our family parties! :) Love you Jay!

Inside Info:
*dawl - nickname my husband and I have for each other, adopted after seeing the movie "What Women Want". It cracked me up that Delta Burke and "Miss Tessbacher" were the secretaries to Mel Gibson in that movie and how they called him "dawl" all the time...Love it!

White & Blue Wedding Cake

This blue and white wedding cake was made for a couple in NJ who desperately needed a wedding cake when their baker backed out a month before the wedding!  I was so happy to be able to help this couple out so they could enjoy their big day!

The bride provided diamond pins and the blue ribbon she wanted around each tier of the cake so it matched her bridesmaid's dresses, as well as the beautiful silver monogram letters on top...the piped flowers around each tier had little blushes of blue luster dust on each petal to add some color dimension to them...and she asked for a few small flowers to be on the cake as well, which I added some blue luster dust to as well and gave them a little pearl center.

Best wishes to the bride and groom - may you have many happy years ahead of you! :)

Sweet Ruffles {Bridal Shower}

This showstopping cake was made for a sweet bride-to-be this past May (she actually just got married a few weeks ago, so the "to-be" part is actually no longer needed! :)  Jane and I went to high school together and were on two swim teams together, so I was so excited when she reached out to me so many years later to make her bridal shower cake!

She knew she wanted something girly, feminine and pink for the cake for this special event and we worked together to find a design that she loved. We found a GORGEOUS ruffle cake made by Maisie Fantaisie in the UK and Jane decided she wanted that exact cake in the colors of her choice.

The cake was vanilla with raspberry fruit filling and vanilla buttercream. The design was so simple and elegant looking, but BOY are looks deceiving!! The ruffles took 5 hours to apply to the cake, but because I was so excited to make a replica of such a gorgeous cake, the energy never dwindled!

Here's a shot taken from the top of the cake...no surface left un-ruffled! :)

Delivering the cake was so nerve-wracking because it was SUPER heavy, but once it was set in place and I could breathe a sign of relief, it was great to catch up with my high school friend and see the "before' of the gorgeous shower about to take place at her mom's house. Everything was set up so beautifully and every detail thought of - so amazing!

Wishing all the happiness in the world to the happy couple!!

Tara

Mickey & Minnie Cupcakes {Twins 2nd Birthday}

A sweet set of twins turned two in May and their mom threw an adorable Mickey & Minnie themed birthday party for them! I had the honor of making their Elmo 1st birthday cake last year, and was so thrilled to be called back for their 2nd birthday!

She loved the idea of cupcakes with toppers with the classic silhouette of mouse ears and for each one to be decorated as either Mickey or Minnie. I also made some Mickey Mouse gloves too!

I loved how cartoonish the hands looked, designed after the picture on the cookie cutter set that I made these with! :)




The cupcakes were a mix of peanut butter chocolate with white chocolate buttercream and yellow cake with white chocolate buttercream...delish!! :)

Happy birthday to Maddie & Zach!!

Yankees vs Red Sox Baby Shower

There's something about the Yankees vs. Red Sox rivalry...everyone loves to "hate" the other team, but I really do love how many friends and family make the rivalry work in their relationships!

My husband and a college buddy of ours always have texting wars during the games - it's really funny hearing the jibes going back and forth as each team has it's ups and downs! A co-worker of mine is a die-hard Yankee fan and his wife is a die-hard Red Sox fan - they go to each other's games and have a fun time "fighting" over which team their 2 year old son is going to align with! It seems like the cities of both NY and Boston come even more alive than usual when the teams play each other - it's awesome!

This baby shower was planned for a mom and dad to-be highlighting their love of their favorite teams...the Yankee and Red Sox cupcakes (and rattle cookies, which I did NOT get a picture of) were made in perfectly equal amounts so that there was no favoritism! :) The cake had a little fondant baby topper and  Yankee and Red Sox baseball caps as decorations!

Hmmm, I wonder which baseball cap the baby will crawl towards?!?!? ;)

Wishing this sweet family all the happiness in the world as they welcome their little one into the world!

Tara

Rattle & Carriage Cookies {Baby Shower}

A short, but sweet post...

These sweet baby rattle and carriage sugar cookies were created for a darling baby shower in May...

Pink & white and flowers - could anything be more girly and sweet! :)

Tara

Holy Bible Communion Cake

This bible cake was made for Cian, who made his First Communion in May! He actually chose the design of the cake - so cute! And his mom chose the perfect verse to display on the open pages!

I have made a number of cakes for this sweet family, and was so excited to do the cake for Cian's communion - such a special occasion!

I remember making my first communion so many years ago, like it was yesterday! As a kid, you feel like such a grownup finally getting to walk up and receive communion - I definitely recall every moment of that ceremony! Such a big and serious moment for a child!!

God Bless Cian!

Hero Cake

This 3 foot hero cake was made for the grand opening of the awesome new bread bakery Cammareri's on Hudson in Hoboken, NJ!  Cammareri's is a family owned and operated bakery, whose Downtown Brooklyn location was in the movie Moonstruck, has been in business since 1921! They recently opened a location in Hoboken, conveniently placed right across from the PATH station! 

They asked me to create a hero sandwich cake to share with their customers for the grand opening - it was so exciting!!  Here it is!

The "bread" of the hero is actually the cake and all the sandwich fillings are made of fondant, all rolled up and then sliced like deli meat and fresh mozzarella to make one DELICIOUS sandwich!

The bakery not only offers freshly baked bread, but also an amazing array of sandwiches & desserts - everything looks so yummy! If you're in Hoboken, make sure you stop in and have a bite to eat!


Wishing Cammareri's lots of luck in their new location! :)

For the Graduate

This cake was created for my dear co-worker's sister who graduated from CW Post this year with a Master's Degree! I've made a number of cakes for this sweet family over the past few years and their favorite flavors are red velvet with chocolate frosting and devils food cake with cannoli cream filling and chocolate frosting...luckily this cake had two tiers, so they could have both!

Congratulations to Melissa on this major accomplishment!!

Come Sail Away!

This cake was made back in March, but I saved it for a summer posting because I thought it was such an adorable theme for any summer party! This was for a nautical themed birthday party and was SUCH a blast to make!!

I LOVE the colors on this cake - so bright and summery! I really liked putting different designs around the base of each tier - I felt that the waves, the circles (sort of like portholes!) and the rope added more flair to the cake without making it seem overly decorated!

What do you think!? Would love to hear your thoughts!

Hoping sweet Brandon had an amazing 1st birthday party and that he's getting the chance to get out on the open sea now that it's finally summer! :) Happy sailing!

Tara

Party Animals

Last year, I had the opportunity to make the 1st birthday cakes for twin brother & sisters - Max & Laia. I was so thrilled to be asked to make their 2nd birthday cake this year! The theme was party animals and their mom wanted some adorable fondant animal toppers for the main cake as well as for their smash cakes!

The main cake had an elephant, monkey and a giraffe and the smash cakes held cutie little lions - all of them dressed up in little party hats! The smash cakes had to be exactly the same, except for the names of course...and as a mom of twins myself, I know why!! Conventional advice says you're supposed to individualize everything so that the children develop their own identities and so on and so forth...but apparently the kids haven't read those articles yet! In my own recent personal experience, different toys, different cakes, different anything could spell disaster if both children gravitate towards one of the items and not the other! And at a party, you just want everyone to be happy! So I took the request very seriously and made sure that everything matched as much as possible! :)

Max's cake:

Laia's Cake:

Close-ups of fondant party animals...

The Giraffe

The Elephant

The Monkey

Happy 2nd Birthday to Max & Laia!!

Yankee Stadium Grooms Cake

This Yankee Stadium Grooms Cake was so much fun to make! The cake was ordered by the bride-to-be, Tara for her husband-to-be, Rosario. She had reached out to me over a year before the wedding with her idea and I was so thrilled to be able to make this cake for them! (I really love the ideas that brides and grooms come up with to surprise each other on their special day - it's so sweet!)

The cake itself was a s'mores cake - seriously yummy stuff! Graham cracker cake, marshmallow fluff filling and chocolate buttercream...oooh so heavenly! The cake was only for 30 people, so the whole top tier of the stadium was fashioned out of rice treats and covered with fondant. The colorful "fans" in the stands were made of round sprinkles, even the bleacher creatures are hanging out in their spot in right field! :)

Here is a birds eye view of the stadium:

Wishing Tara and Rosario all the happiness in the world as they start their life together as husband and wife!!

Best,

Tara

Pink & White Baby Booty Christening Cake

This cake was made for a friend of mine who was celebrating the christening of her adorable daughter, Amelia Grace.  I had the pleasure of making the elephant cookie favors for her baby shower as well as mini cupcakes for her work baby shower, so to be asked to make the cake for the christening was such an honor!

The cake was decorated in an eye catching fuschia and white with sweet little fondant roses, a name plate, a cross and baby booties on top.  The bottom tier was quilted and little fondant beads surround the base of each tier...I'm in love with the ruffle around the top of the cake!!

I was about to post this and realized...I forgot about the cookie favors that went along with this cake! Sweet little angels, with a little cutout in the center for the initial "A" for Amelia! A sweet treat all individually wrapped for guests to bring home in rememberence of the special day...

God Bless Amelia Grace!

Spring Christening Cake and Cake Pops

For her sweet little girl's christening, mom Stacey ordered a cake to match the theme of her adorable invitations - pink, white and brown, with flowers...so beautiful!  The cake was covered in a delicious dark chocolate fondant and decorated with pink and white blossoms and small pink beading around the base of each tier.

The cake itself was a "S'mores" cake - graham cracker cake, marshmallow fluff filling and chocolate buttercream frosting...YUMMERS!!

For party favors, she ordered cake pops dipped in chocolate and decorated with a little fondant "K" initial, representing the baby's name.  Individually wrapped and tied with a little pink ribbon, these were the cutest little favors for guests to take home as a sweet reminder of the celebration they attended! :)

God Bless!

Tara

Client Testimonial:

"Ok. So everyone was crazy about the cake and pops. They all assumed you do this for a living. And delicious doesn't even begin....,.. Someone said better than cake boss. OMG. Thank u sooooo much. People asked me so many times. They were pissed you aren't from down here!!!!!!"

Martini Cupcake Toppers

These cupcakes and cupcake toppers were ordered by one of my co-workers for her sister's birthday - they were celebrating with a party bus and trip to Atlantic City!! Now that's the way to celebrate a birthday!! :)

The toppers were made to represent cosmos and green apple martini's - so fun!

Happy Birthday to Melissa!

Small, but Sweet!

A small, but ever so sweet cake...this was created for a birthday girl who celebrated her special day by throwing her friend a farewell party! How sweet is that?!? Julie was one of the masterminds behind the NY to San Francisco party and her co-party planner sneakily planned a birthday surprise for her by ordering this cake!

Light pink fondant covered a red velvet cake with vanilla filling and frosting. It was topped with a large fantasy flower and dark chocolate fondant beads...delivered alongside it's buddy cake to Dublin 6 in NYC! :)

Happy Birthday Julie!

Tara

From NYC to San Fran!

A sweet friend and an awesome client of mine (she ordered the Broadway cake for her parents) recently accepted a new position with her company...on the west coast!! Her friends planned a goodbye party for her and reached out to me for a cake to represent the city she was leaving and the city she was heading to...NYC to San Fran!

Here's the cake!

 Details:

The NYC portion of the cake included fondant skyscrapers, a Statue of Liberty, yellow cabs, and a Broadway show sign.

The San Francisco portion of the cake included the iconic Golden Gate Bridge as well as the Fisherman's Wharf sign.

Topped with well wishes, the cake was delivered to Dublin 6 in NYC for the farewell party!

Missing you in NYC already Lauren!! Hope you're having an awesome time in San Fran! :)

Tara

Client testimonials:

"Tara, the cakes r beautiful!! I jut got here to the bar! Thanks again!!! Xoxo Danielle"

" totally in LOVE with my cake!!!!!! speechless once again :) thank you!!!! - Lauren"