Batman and Iron Man Cake

I don’t consider myself a necessarily girly-girl.  I love to camp, spend time outdoors, watch baseball and hockey, listen to loud rock and roll, love crime shows, etc.  I have to admit, however, I seem to be missing the superhero gene!  I appreciate a good superhero in the occasional movie or great costumes at Halloween, but if you ask me about Bruce Wayne, it may take a second before I figure out if you are referring to Batman or Superman.

I am always up for a birthday cake challenge, so I thought I would attempt Mason and Alex’s favorite superheros: Batman and Iron Man.  Despite my superhero ignorance, I am fairly confident with Batman.  Iron Man, on the other hand, is where that ignorance returns in full force!  I tried my usual hot spots for cake inspiration: blogs, Google image searches, Pinterest, movie/cartoon clips, etc., but Iron Man continued to elude my creativity.  This creativity block continued for several days and as the birthday approached, I began to fear that stifling creativity might, in fact, be Iron Man’s ultimate super power.

I unleashed a few of my decorating superheros, and the gold and silver pearl powders ultimately saved the day by kicking up the Iron Man mask and power supply.

I welcome any suggestions for future superhero cakes!  It can be difficult to find that delicate balance of awesome… that remains within my ability to execute!

Batman and Iron Man Cake

Confession of a *Wannabe* Foodie… Boxed cake mix, layered with pudding, and frosted with homemade icing can be pretty fantastic and great for kids’ birthday cakes.  The kids get way more excited about the decorations than homemade cake!

Isaac's Superhero Cake

I have always loved to bake, and in honor of being a wannabe foodie, I always decorated my desserts using simple and complimentary ingredients to enhance the flavor of the dessert (fruit, chocolate, nuts, herbs, etc).  Although intrigued by serious cake decorating, I quickly judged fondant covered cakes as adult play dough.  I would never subject my taste buds to such mediocrity, when I could cover my cakes in rich butter cream, tangy cream cheese, or dark chocolate fudge!  Who wants a cake that looks good, when you can eat a cake that tastes good?!?

In November, however, my nephew Isaac requested a Super Hero cake for his 4th birthday party.  I had a feeling that a super hero cake, using chocolate chips and raspberries, wasn’t exactly what he had in mind, so I decided to embark on a full out fondant adventure!  I searched the Internet for some general ideas and sketched a design that I thought would be Isaac-approved and Annie-able.

As I started to work with the fondant, I quickly confirmed that it is totally edible adult play dough, but then…  I remembered just how much I love play dough, and I was an instant fondant convert. Fondant cake decorating is like ultimate edible arts and crafts!   I am still a fondant newbie, but I am having a blast as my adventures continue!

Confession of a *wannabe* foodie… I love decorating cakes with fondant! (you can have tasty cake and delicious icing underneath that blanket of sugary goo!)

Isaac's Superhero Cake

Batman eating Batman!

Blues Hockey Cake – Thanks for the tickets, Dave!

Maddie's Princess Cake

Sean's Racecar Cake

Elise's Minnie Mouse Cake

Elise's Minnie Mouse Cake