Birthday Butterflies

A few shots of a birthday cake I made this weekend for my niece. I had never before made a cake or frosting from scratch and I'd never worked with candy-makers chocolate. I would definitely make it all again, but probably with a cream cheese frosting next time. The buttercream was very good, but a titch too sweet for me. As for the butterflies––oh my––chocolate and nonparerils everywhere! Tip: be quick, patient and stay close to your microwave.

On a side note, I was telling my Mom this was the one time I wished I owned a stand mixer, which would have kept my kitchen (and me) safe from the attack of the flying frosting bits. "Really" she says as we trotted down to the storage room. Lo-and-behold, a funky vintage mixer that was their wedding gift. It still works! Thanks, Mom. The next cake adventure will be a little less of a mess.

Kitchen: disaster. Dishes: immense. Birthday Girl: happy.

Cake Recipe from Beyond Toast
Buttercream Frosting Recipe and Butterfly How-To from Annie's Eats