They’re Growing Up So Fast

Amidst all the Thanksgiving festivities were a couple of birthday celebrations for our nieces, Nahila and Tehvia. Nahila turned 10 and Tehvia recently turned 8. We don’t get to see that that much any more, so we couldn’t do a big to-do for them like we usually do. Instead, we just had a quiet little celebration for the two of them and the family, here at the house. Nahila said she wanted a blue #10 cake. And that is exactly what she got too.

For the most part, both Tehvia and Nahila are vegan, so I made sure I baked a vegan cake for them. Cooking vegan is not a challenge at all, but baking vegan is a totally different story. Usually I pride myself on making things from scratch, but when I am doing vegan baking, I don’t even attempt it any more. The last time I tried to make a vegan/gluten free bread from scratch, it turned out like a brick that tasted like cardboard. Needless to say, it was quickly thrown into the trash. Some people have mastered vegan baking. I am not one of them, nor do I really have much interest in perfecting that skill, because I am not and never will be vegan. So I admit, this cake was made from a box, using vegan egg substitutes and vegan butter and cream for the frosting.

I started off by making a sheet cake. Once it cooled, I stuck it into the freezer to make it easier to frost. “Easier” is a misnomer though, because it was still very crumbly and difficult to work with.

I cut the numbers from the sheet cake.

Then I made the vegan buttercream frosting. It is the same method as making a normal buttercream frosting, only using vegan ingredients instead. At first, the frosting came out fine, but after a few minutes, it started separating, which again made it challenging to work with.

Vegan Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup vegan butter at room temperature

2 cups sifted powdered sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

2 TBSP non-dairy milk or vegan milk

food coloring, optional

Mix all the ingredients together in a mixer or by using a hand held mixer and start spreading it over your cake using a cake spatula or cake spreader.

Have you ever wondered why I don’t do a lot of cake decorating? It’s NOT one of my specialties. Some people are gifted artists. I am not one of them. But, I always use the most important ingredient when decorating, and that is LOVE. So they may not be the prettiest cakes you’d ever see, but they are made with love, and that is all that really matters.

After we enjoyed our cake, we all had bright blue tongues too for awhile, which gave us all a case of the giggles . 🙂

Happy Birthday to both Nahila, our new 10-year old and Tehvia, our new 8-year old. We love you lots. Love always, Aunt Jeanne and Uncle Larry.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone. And Stay forever young. ‘Til next time.

Author: ajeanneinthekitchen

I have worked in the restaurant and catering industry for over 35 years. I attended 2 culinary schools in Southern California, and have a degree in culinary arts from the Southern California School of Culinary Arts, as well as a few other degrees in other areas. I love to cook and I love to feed people.

38 thoughts on “They’re Growing Up So Fast”

  3. Love the blue.
    My mum made a packet mix very similar for everyone who had a birthday at church. She would take it for after church morning tea. Everyone just expected it; at least one a month until she became to feeble.

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  26. Pingback: Another Birthday Celebration, Another Blue Cake – A Jeanne in the Kitchen

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