Celebrate!

I find ideas all the time and never have time to recreate them. I'm making a point to try them out on some fun cakes. Starting now!

I've got a lot to celebrate this week, which makes a balloon cake perfect for the occasion. I have also been promising to try out my new camera.  I'm still no good, but I can at least tell the difference between it and my iPhone.

Bear with me as I figure these settings out. (Help Rebekah Hoyt!!) Either way, enjoy some pictures and balloons. Happy Wednesday!

iPhone

New Camera

iPhone

New Camera

iPhone

New Camera

Big News!

I wanted to give myself a few days to make sure it all went through (and to pinch myself a few times!) and tonight I can finally share my big news.

A few weeks ago I was approached by a representative from TheKnot.com who said my cakes were just what they look for on their site.  Considering I used it for my own wedding planning I know what a big deal it is! 

Cakes by Casey started as more of a hobby than anything. I'm so proud that I can still enjoy it as my "extra job" on the side, but that it can be valued by a place like TheKnot. I'm so excited by the exposure and opportunities this will offer myself and my oven!

Below are a few screenshots of my new profile. Check it out and let me know what you think. If I've been lucky enough to bake for you, feel free to leave a review! 

Here's the link: Cakes by Casey

There are a few ways to find me on your own but until I get enough hits, this is the easiest:

Click on Wedding Ideas: Cakes

Find your cake baker 

Washington, D.C.

Type in Cakes by Casey and Reston, VA

Voila! You can check out my contact info, photographs, reviews, etc.  

Soon I'll be linking it to social media so it should be a bit more streamlined. 

Each chance to bake has meant so much to me and I'm thrilled to be able to keep trying!

Starbucks Does Not Equal Homemade

... now before you say something like, "I told you so!" or, "What?!?" please read on.


I received a very kind gift from a first grader this Christmas and I've been excited to try it out. Along with a giftcard to Starbucks for my caffeine requirement (they know me so well), I also got a kit for holiday themed cake pops. We were on sugar OVERLOAD in the Taylor house from the start of December into the new year. It wasn't until a few days ago that I remembered I had the kit and dug it out.

I know my way around a cake recipe and when it says something to the effect of, "Just add water," I have to second guess it. At least these called for an egg. Even if it was all pouched up in instant form, the kit seemed pretty fool proof. As I started mixing I had a few, "this is gross," moments as well as a few, "this might not be so bad," ones.

I'll start with the pros list:

The kit came with everything I could possibly need (except the perishables i.e. milk/eggs)

The box even doubles as a sturdy stand for the completed pops. How clever! 

They even labeled everything for me. Just in case I couldn't tell the difference between "RED SUGAR" and "WHITE CHOCOLATE MELTS." I guess they're producing for the masses here...

 So I started mixing all of my ingredients, and against my better judgement I left the batter in the oven three times longer than it requires. That's a total of 36 minutes versus their recommended 12. (Wait- 12 minutes to cook a cake?)  Finally it was cooked, so I followed the next steps. This can't be good...

Do your hands look like this when you're rolling cake? It's just cake and a bit of frosting. Hmmm.

All was going well and then the whole oily hand thing happened.  Which leads me to the rest of my cons list.

A little grainy compared to a homemade pop.  Extra crunchy shell.  

Forget what I said earlier. This box was my nemesis.
Take special note of the globs of chocolate coating that fell as a result of the tumble.  

 Final product- not so bad.  Dare I say, edible. (OK, I might have eaten a few for lunch the day after.)

Overall I'd definitely suggest going the homemade route.

Happy Beerthday!

I'm back with yet another pinterest inspiration.  For Jared's birthday in December his brother and sister and law came to visit. The can't get Yeungling in NH where they live, so each time they visit we make a trip to get some for their suitcase.  Since I was anticipating a few popped tops over the weekend I decided to spice things up.

I've seen a lot of beer can cakes come up on pinterest. I didn't have to pay for the beer since they were taking it home anyway, and they were practically giving away ribbon at Michael's after Thanksgiving.  The perfect storm for this ridiculous cake!

I did a little research to make sure it would be structurally sound, and I found out that you just need a few simple supplies:

What you'll need: 
1-2 cases of your favorite canned beer
Cake boards in staggered sizes (I started with 6" and moved up by a few inches on each board)
Ribbon... as manly as it comes
Sturdy Tape

And here we go!

I used 2-3 cake boards for the bottom, just in case we had to move it. Fill it from the outside in to ensure a nice round shape from the front. 

Add the next smallest cake board and fill it up with more beer! 

One tier higher!

When all of your tiers are assembled and centered you can start adding the ribbon.

I used a burlap and cream wire ribbon (so manly). It helps hold the shape so the ribbon doesn't have to sit as tightly against the cans. 

Attach a small bit of tape the the ribbon on the back side. A straight pin could work just as well if your ribbon is particularly pesky. 

Fashion a fancy bow (again...manly) for the top and tie it to the highest tier.  Voila! 

The boys loved pulling a layer off the top throughout the weekend, and there was plenty to take home to NH. Mission accomplished!

Long Lost Post: Graham and Moira's Amazing Wedding!

As promised a month ago, the pictures are here! Only, it worked out better than I had ever hoped.  When all of my pictures were deleted after Graham and Moira's wedding I thought I'd never have evidence that these awesome cakes existed.  Fortunately, her photographer Lindsey Walters came through with some pictures that are far more impressive than the ones on my tiny old canon point and shoot. With the powers of vendors combined, I bring you: Moira and Graham's SUPER wedding!

I think I've mentioned more than 10 times how fun this couple is. They do things because it makes them happy, and they have the most incredible sense of style and self.  I knew their wedding would be the coolest. In fact, it was so fun to plan a wedding during the same year as them because I would see ideas and say, "I LOVE this! We can't pull it off, but I bet Moira and Graham will." Sure enough, we saw so many touches throughout the evening that we loved from our own planning.  Did I mention that they invited Jared and I as guests?? We have a lot of mutual friends, and this was so unexpected but so cool. I had the chance to see their whole vision through and party through the night with our crew.

Graham does a lot of graphic design and told me all along, "Do what you want! Try new things! We're cool with anything." I love those words so much, because it lets me step out of my own cupcake comfort zone. It gave Moira and I a lot to talk about to as we planned the cutting cake and toppers. Below you'll see lots of fun new techniques, some of which I shared in an earlier post. . Enjoy!

Their equestrian themed wedding had so many neat touches, including cake table details.

Graham had these flavor listings made up- they were amazing and such a kind way to showcase my brand. 

They registered with Etsy (so cool!) and I surprised them with a custom made cake pedestal from their registry. 

Spice cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting, and sifted G's for Guenther (their new name).

Lemon cake with raspberry buttercream and a fondant stamp of their wedding logo.

Fudgy chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and horse shoe molds.

One of my favorite cutting cakes of all time! 

You two ROCK! Thanks for all you've done as friends, clients, and cake eaters!