Sunday Sweets For My Dad

We all know dads' tastes are just as diverse as, well, non-dads, so when it came time to choose today's Sweets I decided to hone in on one specific dad: mine.

By East Coast Cookies

So, here 'tis: Father's Day Sweets for my dad, Jim Yates. But the rest of you can feel free to look, too. :)



Hey, Dad, remember that time the neighbor's little boy snuck in to our house, grabbed your guitar, and dragged it down the sidewalk? Ah, good times.

Also, I don't think your guitar looked quite this cool:

Submitted by Kathy H. and made by her sister, Carol V.

And remember how you'd take me for rides on your motorcycle? The turns always scared me, but I loved having my very own kid-sized helmet, and the thrill of climbing into the seat behind you, hanging on for dear life, and thinking maybe my parents weren't quite so embarrassing, after all.

Although, come to think of it, your motorcycle wasn't this cool, either:

Submitted by Tifany D., made by Charm City Cakes

It's possible you've blocked this from memory, but you really did teach me to drive. In our ancient green Toyota pickup, no less, with a floor stick shift.

By CakeDesigns

Our truck was DEFINITELY not this cool.

It took me years to figure out what you did for a living. All I knew was you worked at a big, intimidating office/factory and you wore a suit every day. (Btw, you're, uh, some kind of project manager/engineer type, right?) I still remember the first time you asked me if your tie went with your shirt; it made me feel so important, that you'd ask for my opinion. Actually, I still feel that way, any time you ask.

By Homebaked by Audrey

And for the record: that tie + that shirt = perfect.

Remember when I came home crying because all the kids were making flashy, expensive models for a school project, and I didn't have anything flashy OR expensive? You sat me down and asked me what I'd like to do. Then we went to Skycraft Surplus (remember that?). In the end, I couldn't have been more proud: my project board's little Styrofoam car had real working headlights!

By pastrychik

To this day, I clearly remember "The Sociological Impact of the Lightbulb" - because my Dad helped me build it.

Remember Starbuck and Midnight, our pet miniature goats? We must have been the only family in an Orlando subdivision with two goats bleating in the backyard. I still can't believe you bought them for us. Heh.

Submitted by Amelia B. and made by Kick Ass Kakes

(Bet you were expecting a goat cake, huh?)

You were forever doing home projects, and I loved weekends when you'd ask, "Shorty, want to go to the Home o' de Pot?"

By justcakinmytime

We'd pile into our old green pickup, and you'd sing "Greasy Grimey Gopher Guts" and "On Top of Old Smokey" along the way. Thanks to you I still love the smell of sawdust and grease that hits me every time I walk into our local Home Depot - and today I rock my own tool belt.

By Highland Bakery

One night I peeked into the living room to see what you and Mom were laughing about, and there on the TV was a curly-headed man in a long scarf bouncing into a blue police box.

By The Mad Platters

Soon we were all watching together, just like we watched Star Trek and Night Court and Monty Python together. The next year you brought us to my very first convention - a Doctor Who convention.

(I like to think my geeky lineage came full circle when John and I brought you and Mom to Dragon*Con last year - thus starting a yearly tradition, perhaps?)

When we were little, you seemed to take sadistic glee in waking Ben and me with loud jazz music, water, or banging suddenly on our bedroom doors - but I'll never forget the time you woke us with "Who wants to go to Disney World?!"

Sub'd by Stacey R., made by nice icing

You never set limits on my future, Dad. When I wrote lousy poetry, you submitted your favorite to a national magazine - and you were more disappointed than I was when it wasn't printed. When I thought I wanted to be a professional clown, you got brochures for Ringling College. When I first introduced you to John, you asked if we'd set a date yet.

You taught me to pursue my dreams, marry only for love, and to always finish my Brussels sprouts.

Hey, two out of three ain't bad, right?

So thanks, Dad. Happy Father's Day.

(Oh, and see you at Dragon*Con.)

By Cookievonster

Happy Father's Day to the rest of you dads out there, too! May all your children grow up to make you proud - when they're not publicly embarrassing you on the Internet, of course.

Let's Get Physiological

Gather 'round, my child, and I'll tell you a tale.

A tale...of where you came from.

Now, there are a lot of theories out there about how new babies get here.

Some say it's a bird:

...in a trippy oil painting from the 70s.

Some say it's a plane:

"Geronimooooo!"


And some say it's Superman:

Which, if you think about it, makes about as much sense as the stork.


These are all lies.

And I think it's high time you learned the truth.


The truth is, you didn't arrive by bird, plane, or Kryptonian. You arrived by:

Ram.

And by "ram" I mean "Mommy's magic baby bag."


See, it all started with these brave little tadpoles:

Er...

It all started with these brave gigantic tadpoles.


Together the tadpoles ventured through the winding Fallopian Forests of Ovarium, fought the wily Va-dragon, and ultimately joined forces with the mighty She-Ra in the magic baby bag.

(This is all true.)

And that was the beginning of you!


At first you were really ugly. Barely even edible, really:

You just floated around, day after day, flicking your fingers.

(*flick flick flick*)

If you're curious where on your mom you were, here's a handy diagram:

So, right armpit during the day, lower hemline at night.

Over time you grew bigger and bigger, and soon your wee little face was scaring the crap out of all our friends:

"Eeeaaaaat meeee."

Finally the emotional day arrived, and your mother and I were simply overcome at the thought of witnessing such a beautiful spectacle of radiant new life. [sigh]

And then a rainbow shot out of your mom's hoo-haw, tossing you a good 10 feet. Haha! You should've seen it, man. It was awesome!


Oh, don't look so worried. You turned out fine.

Thanks to wreckporters Paula L., Elizabeth S., Cariena B., Reed D., Valerie B., Kate M., Ashlee, Amber M., & Anony M., who will never hear "Rainbow Connection" the same way again.

Sunday Sweets: So Stinkin' Cute

This week we're featuring some of the sweetest, cutest, most adorable, lovable, um... [consulting thesaurus] darling, bewitching, and fetching baby animal cakes you ever will see. Why? Well, if you must know, I'm feeling a bit sensitive this week.

This is john, by the way.

So, let me just get my box of tissues and we'll do this thing. Starting with Jen's favorite:

Found at the 2008 Orlando ICES Convention; baker unknown.

The hand-painted shading here is amazing. And the animals are adorable. And the lion isn't eating the zebra or the giraffe. So it's a win-win-win.

This cake is slightly more realistic:

Sub'd by Hilda F., and made by The Sweetest Thing Cake Studio

See how the monkey and giraffe cower in fear as the mighty tiger stalks his prey? Can you feel the tension? Can. You. FEEL IT?!?! No?

Maybe it's just me.


And now... sweet sleeping dragon!

Sub'd by Amelie B. and made by her sister Helene

Awwww. Okay. *sniff* I'm all verklempt. *sniff* I promised myself I wouldn't cry...

[blowing nose]

Hey! Look! Pandas!

Sub'd by Aljona and made by KralleCakes

And not just any pandas; these are the rare Russian Nesting Pandas. The mostly eat eucalyptus leaves and borscht.

Preeeesenting, the sweetest giraffe ever!

By Suzie's Cake Creations

Literally. I think the lack of neck really adds to the adorabletude, don't you?

And because I have an inordinate affection for tigers:

Sub'd by Jade D. and made by Theresa Gue

So. Cool. Jen says this reminds her of some Lisa Frank folders she had in middle school. Which she claims is a huge compliment. So there.

And you know what else has stripes? (I am the king of segues)

Sub'd by Brenda B., and made by Lilo Taart

I'm digging the bow and the vintage 20's hair part. Just dandy!

And speaking of bows. (I'm on a roll!)

By Aletha B.

Baby Cthulhu!! AAAAAUUUGGHH!! SOOO CUUUUTE!!

And get this: this is Aletha B.'s first cake. Yes, really! Mike, Duff, and Bronwen better watch out, 'cuz Aletha B.'s coming, and she's got a Cthulhu.

And speaking of... cake. (Okay, that one wasn't my best work.)

By Ann N.

Adorable. And hip. Oh. Yeah.

Another of Jen's favorites:

Sub'd by Orna G., and made by Odelia

Hand-painted rosebuds, cuddly teddy bears, and a miniature cake on cake? I can bearly stand it!

And finally, for your viewing pleasure, allow me to present...

a unicorn with a comb-over:

Sub'd by Elizabeth A., and made by Sachi Swick

You're welcome.

Now, who wants to WIN SOME FREE BOOKS?!? Huh? Awwwww yeeeeeeaaah.

Zooborns, one of our favorite so-cute-it-hurts websites, has given us two of their new books to give to two of you loyal wreckies!

One's for little kids:

And the other's for everyone else who likes cute:

(Click on the pics for more info)

We'll be giving away one copy of each, so feel free to tell us in the comments which you'd prefer. Two winners will be randomly chosen from the comments tonight at midnight EST, so stay tuned on FB or check this spot again tomorrow for the announcement of the winners!

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UPDATE!!!! The random number generator hath spoken! The winners are:

GrammaR @ 2:20 PM for the first book and
Ai @ 8:51 PM for the second!

Please email your addresses to comments (at) cakewrecks.com so we can mail out your prizes. And thanks to everyone for your great comments!

Wreck On!
-john (the hubby of Jen)

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Have a Sweet to nominate? Then send it to Sunday Sweets [at] Cake Wrecks [dot] com.

Project Wreckway

Cake expert, Tom Gann: "Pastry chefs, I am leaving you with five minutes to finish your cakes for this week's show. I'm egregiously consternated that some of you might not finish in time, but I am confident that you all have the Sturm und Drang to 'wow' me. Your desserts to this point have consistently been astrudently bralifiscent! So, make it work!"

{moments later}

Hilga Flan: "Designers, welcome to the runway. Your challenge this week was to design a cake where your only limit was your imagination. As you know, in baking, you're either thin or you're stout. Let's start the show."

Kelly: "I wanted my design to be whimsical and childlike, but still fashion forward."

Judge #1, Editor of Gourmet Cake Monthly, Mia Gonzales: "I don't get it. We wanted a high fashion cake, not an arts and craft project."

Judge #2, Founder of Cols Frosting, Daniel Cols: "Butterfly flotsam is SO last season."

Judge #3, Supermodel, Hilga Flan: "It's a hot mess."

*

Mikeal: "I'm not afraid of colour, and I love to stand out."

Mia: "Mikeal, I don't even know where to begin. I'm really beginning to question your taste level."

Daniel: "I agree with Mia; this is just painful to look at. There's way too much going on! The swirls... the ribbons... the flowers... the horses... the swirls... pick a theme and GO WITH IT!"

Hilga: "It's a hot mess."

*

Lindsay: "I love couture, so I wanted to keep my design elegant and chic."


Mia: "Lindsay, it's like you've never decorated a cake before in your life. This is... It's just... I am speechless."

Daniel: "I'm really not getting it. Is any of this even edible? If this is couture, get me out of the cake business, NOW."

Hilga: "It's a hot mess."

*

Frederick: "My design was inspired by my mother. She was a florist."


Mia: "More like, she was a BORIST. What a snoozefest."

Daniel: "I see how it was inspired by your mother. It's like, mother of the bride meets the spray paint department at K-Mart. And it's so matronly! What's with the stripes? I... I just don't get it."

Hilga: "I kind of like this one. It's like it's had a kiss from a rose."

Daniel: "Ugh... you would like this one."

*

Santiago: "I spent last summer in China, and it inspired me."

Mia: "Santiago, this is outstanding. I would take this cake to a party right now."

Daniel: "I agree. This is just stunning. I think the dragon is now, it's modern, it's hip. The kiwis and cherries are what's happening in cake decorating... it's really well thought out. Bravo."

Hilga: "Santiago, it's really hot. You're this week's winner! Congratulations! You will have immunity in next week's challenge, where you will all have 20 minutes to decorate a wedding cake while hog-tied and blindfolded."

Chasity B., Sue M., Alex N., Shawn B., Shana C., I recommend that you accessorize your designs thoughtfully; perhaps by adding some piping and a few more layers? (Get it? Cause there are layers and piping in both cake and clothes?) Seriously, make it work.

Sunday Sweets: Dreaming of Dragon*Con

As you know, John and I were at the ultimate geek gathering, Dragon*Con, last weekend.

[wistful sigh]

Ah, how I miss my people.


Fortunately, I have this week's awesome Sweets line-up to help heal the hurt.

By Nicole D., an amateur baker. (!!) Found here.

Beware the Cthulhu, a monstrous creature of gargantuan size which evokes terror in all it encounters!!

He also likes ice cream.

Made by Rebecca H, another hobby baker, and based on the artwork "Cthulu's Day Out" by Ursulav.

You score 10 geek points if you can correctly identify this next cake:

By Jane's Cakes

A better angle:

Did you get it? Did you guess Disc World?

Yes?

Wow, you guys are GEEKS. Yeesh.

:D

Here's a close up of the top:

That's all sugar! Oh, and it was a wedding cake.

Yep, these are my people, I tell ya.

Who out there remembers these?

By Cakes By The Pound

Excellent.

If you're familiar with my other blog, Epbot, then you know one of my current obsessions is steampunk. Steampunk was also huge at Dragon*Con this year, with a fashion show, exhibition, and enough costumes to make this geek girl giddy.

So, imagine my glee when I saw this:

By Pastrygirl

Awww yeeeeah.

I'm not sure who this next chibi character is, but she's fondant-free and absolutely adorable:

By Don Buciak

I still can't get over the fact that Don uses nothing but icing to get that incredible shading. Wow.

[Update: I'm told this is "Saber from Fate Stay Night." Here's hoping that means something to somebody out there. :)]


And finally, a fitting homage to Dragon*Con:

By Sugar Madness

Detail shot:



And that's it! Thanks very much to all of you lovely readers who found us and said hello last weekend; it was a blast meeting you! I can't wait to do it all over again next year.


Have a Sweet to nominate? Then send it to Sunday Sweets [at] Cake Wrecks [dot] com.

Sunday Sweets: Eastern Elegance

As you may know, Jen and I are at Dragon*Con this weekend, which means we are geeking out with the geekiest geeks in all of geekdom. Which is exactly why today's Sweets are the most elegant, Eastern-inspired cakes we could find. (See, I'm actually having nightmares about being chased through cavernous hotels by roving packs of storm troopers in kilts. Which is not only possible, but actually likely.)

So, onward and upward!

One of the things I most admire about Eastern tradition is the art of Henna, which works amazingly well on cake. Check it out:

By The Evil Plankton

I absolutely love the detail. And the elephants. (Which are edible.) But really, who doesn't love elephants? I mean, think about it. When is the last time you saw an elephant that wasn't doing something absolutely lovable? See? Never!

By HennaLounge

Look closely. See how the chocolate is glass smooth on the top? No way to scrape off a whoopsie here!

By Mahutch

The bead work on this is fantabulous.

By Celebration Generation

Hey, speaking of elephants... This cake was actually called the Ganache Ganesh. [Badump bump!]

And for a little bit of structural goodness...

By I Dream of Cake

You can never go wrong with cobalt blue and gold. Beautiful.


Next, going a little further East for inspiration:

By Pattykakes

I love the texture on this cake. It's so... fabricy. (not entirely sure that's a word)

Some fabulous hand-painting:

By JollyBe Bakery

And a fabulous fan:

By Short n' Sweet Bakery & Cafe

A Kimono-inspired beauty:

By Whimsy Cakes

And a tiara:

By Pink Cake Box


Finally, we were invited by the lovely folks at Highland Bakery to stop by while we're here in Atlanta, but I don't think we're gonna make it. Which is a shame, because they do stuff like this:

By Highland Bakery

Wow.

Yeah, I think we'll have to come back here some day.

Well, there it is! Next week we may be fully recovered from geek overload, so we'll probably do something really geeky with, I don't know, gears or capes or something. Until then, please send your nominations and ideas to sundaysweets (at) cakewrecks.com. And Wreck On!