What cake to bake?????

[dna13]

I have decided to jump in head first and make DS's 1st b'day cake.
I am pretty useless at baking cakes normally but i am determined to get this one right!!!

My question is:

What sort of cake should i bake? I don't really want to make a sponge cake because i have never managed to get them right. But i need to find a cake that is suitable for babies but still yummy for us adults. Any suggestions????

Oh, and i need to bake the cake in a 13"x9"x2" cake tin- Does anyone have any recipes with the right quantities for this size cake?

[Cupcake]

Why not do a butter cake they are always yummy,I made my DD 1st birthday cake and it was fantastic!!
I willl pop a pic up for you to see(sorry but i was so proud)

[Cupcake]

I can not get the pic up just now
Maybe later!!!

[M O P]

Here's an easy one that I make in a similar sized roasting tray (10&1/2" X 8&1/4"X 2&1/4") but would be perfect for your tin. It's pretty big. I'm going from my mil's recipe.

Boiled Chocolate Cake

8 oz (about 250g) butter
3 cups of sugar
4 tablespoons of cocoa
2 cups of water
1 teaspoon of bicarb soda

Chuck all of the above in to a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Simmer for 1-2 minutes. Preheat your oven to 180C. When the mixture's cool but not cold beat into it:

4 eggs
3 cups of self raising flour.

Put it into your greased and lined tin for an hour (mine usually take a bit longer but your mixture will be a bit shallower)). Is cooked when a skewer (sic?) comes out cleanly.

Ice away til your heart's content! It's a very moist cake and a bit rich with choccy icing but not over the top. I get heaps compliments but then I feed blokes and they eat anything!!

[jembelina]

I jsut had ds's !st birthday last weekend and I cheatedand used a packet mix. I was making a huge amount of cupcakes (4 packets!!), but you could use it in any size pan. I used the Greens buttercake mix and it was YUMMY - plain, but moist and yummy with a delicious icing!! EVERYONE commented on how good they tasted! And we were still eating them on tuesday(party on Sunday, cakes made sat nite) and they were still fresh. So you can def. make in advance too!

[drewid]

Go the buttercake! I am just using a packet mix (although i can make a pretty mean one from scratch!!) and making a big tray of cupcakes and decorating them instead.

Heaps easier for bubs to have a go at eating a cupcake!

[Chickadee]

I was going to suggest cupcakes as well.

Your pan size is pretty standard, or at least it's what I have. But if you can't find a recipe to the right size you could have a look for one that uses two 8x8x1.5 inch square or two 9 inch round ones pans. The two small square or round pans and your big one have the same total volume so are interchangeable.

[kelbel]

Hi,
For my son's 1st birthday (he 17months now), my mum used a Buttercake packet mix and is was so yummy. She actually works in a bakery and told me that she use to make buttercakes for us kids birthdays and knew that they worked.
Goodluck
Ciao

[wattle]

Next time you're in a newsagents, have a quick peek at the womens weekly kids cake making/decorating book (can't remember the name), it's great and will probably give you some great ideas.

Carrot cake is lovely and moist and good for bubs. You could do a nice cream cheese icing and it will still look like a 'normal' cake.

[dna13]

Wow!! So many replies.LOL

I had thought of a butter cake but i don't have a recipe here. The packets sound like a great idea!! Wattle- I had mentioned a carrot cake to DH but he looked at me and screwed up his nose. Thanks for the chocolate cake recipe Kazza. Sounds so easy!!!


I did think cupcakes would be a great idea but i really wanted to try to make a big humpty dumpty cake!! But if that fails....