Sunday Sweets: Anything Goes
March 4, 2012 Every once in a while Jen will ask me to write a Sunday Sweets post, and some creative spark will burst forth from my soul like a wellspring of inspirational inspiration that inspires me.
Unfortunately, this isn't one of those times.
However, since no Sunday Sweets would be complete without a compelling and intriguing theme, today's theme is:
"The First Ten Cakes In Our Sunday Sweets Library!"
Begin!
;)
Submitted by Allison S.
Spotted at the 2011 Connecticut Cake Competition; baker unknown. Photography by Nick Caito of CTNow.
Aaand naturally, it's pillows.
I'm having a hard time believing those are actually cake. I'm also getting all nostalgic for my grandmother's house and her groovy, plastic-covered, 70's-style mustard-yellow couch.
And now, a graceful segue into...
FOOTBALL!
;)
Why do football mascots always have to be so menacing? Why not go with something like the Florida Bunny Rabbits? They could even have 'uge pointy teeth!
Also, Googling "Bunnies wearing Gator's jerseys," doesn't give you many rabbit pictures, IF ya know whadda mean.
Ah, now we're rollin':
;)
By Theresa Gue
True story: I once lost a $100 at a craps table playing with someone who "knew how to win." It was not $100 worth of fun. I haven't gambled since. (Well, unless you count that "house special" triple taco meal the other night.)
This next cake is a fish:
;)
By Cake Or Death
Cakes like this make me wonder what the ordering process was like. Did they ask for a really sad fish cake? Why did they order a really sad fish cake? Who had to cut the really sad fish cake? It's all just so sad.
But you know what's never sad?
;)
Submitted by Janie S. and made by Andrea SweetCakes
Fondant candles and pastel bows and sugar cherries on top, that's what.
And now for something completely different:
;)
Submitted by Kara and made by Roxycakes
Allow me to explain the logic here are Cake Wrecks:
- If a wedding cake is made to look like cheese, it's a Sweet.
- If a wedding cake is actually cheese, it's a Wreck.
Glad we cleared that up.
Moving on to an elegant cityscape:
;)
Submitted by David W. and made by Gateaux
This is the Minneapolis skyline, and I'm digging that recessed lighting. Also, this is actually the second cake from David and Jaime's wedding, the first being the big box o' candy we posted a while back.Which makes me want to marry Jen again so we can have two awesome wedding cakes. (Although even one would be pretty sweet.)
This next cake reminds me of quilling or paper filigree:
;)
Made by Wedding Cake Art
Pretty! And I swear I bought a Ralph Lauren fabric with that exact pattern for some pillows Jen and I made a few years ago.
And yes, Jen and I obviously do too many crafts together. So sue me.
Okay, you ready for some adorableness?
;)
D'awwwwww. Lookit the little bow-tied elephant with the dots and the stripes and the pretty piping. I'm just... I need a moment.
[collecting self]
And finally, the piece of resistance, the cream of the cream, the "shizzle," so to speak:
;)
Submitted by Steph M. and made by Rainbow Sugar Craft
Minas Tirith. Because all Sunday Sweets posts should include at least one Lord of the Rings cake. (Speaking of which, have you seen Peter Jackson's latest vlog from the set of The Hobbit? So. Exciting.)
Thanks for letting me ramble today. And remember, if you have a Sweet to submit, even if it's your own creation, send it to sundaysweets(at)cakewrecks(dot)com.
Reader Comments (50)
So... is the cheese one a cheesecake?
I'm sure that there had to be jokes about cutting the cheese when they cut into the cheese cake!
Scroll down to the end of the post to see the amazing cheese cake my friends had at their wedding.
*facepalm* I've lived in Minneapolis my entire life and I didn't even catch the cherry on the spoon until I read the text. In my defense, I was too fascinated by the lighting.
I feel inspired!
Inspired to sell a kidney so I can afford a Sunday Sweet-like cake (even a sad,sad fish.)
I think that should be if a wedding cake looks like tasty cheese, it's a sweet. After all, it could look like moldy cheese, dry cheese, etc.
How can anyone actually bring themselves to cut one of these? The lesson here is to find a baker who makes pretty cakes, but not stunning ones. Otherwise, you will always run the risk of a guest grabbing the cake knife, threatening the other guests with it and committing a spontaneous cakenapping. Seriously, I'd risk jail time for the unhappy fish. (I want to take him home and feed him caramel corn -- I think that woud make him smile.)
John, you and Jen can never do too many crafts together, as long as you post pictures and instructions on Epbot. ;-)
I love the cheese cake, the adorable elephant cake, and Minas Tirith especially. (Btw, will there be a Sunday Sweets Spaceship edition again? Please?)
You want a rabbit in a football jersey you say? I believe I can help you out..... http://aberdeensports.net/inthehuddle/2010/11/12/birthday-bash-for-sdsu-jackrabbit-mascot/
Can we have a Sunday Sweets "X-Files" theme? Please? Okay, I admit it.....I'm on a major X-Files marathon DVD watching sesh and am possibly brain washed by Chris Carter.
*back to bed to continue with season 3*
I want more pictures of Minas Tirith! That cake is to die for [but not like Denethor, OK?]!
How amazing is the work put into these cakes-love mthe Lord Of the Rings cake. I also want to give the fish cake a hug :(
I get what you're saying Sharyn and Sunshine Mary, but I have to say this. I have made some pretty nice cakes, nothing Sunday Sweets level, but nice enough that people say "It's too pretty to eat!" and refuse to cut it. This always bugs me a little bit, I'm not even sure why. I suppose it's because I put effort into making it taste as good as it looks, and making sure every part of it is edible. If you don't want to eat it, you're rejecting a big part of the artistry. When I cut finally cut it for them and they taste it, it is tremendously satifying to see them enjoy it.
So, go ahead and cut that cake! It was made to please more senses than just your eyes!
BTW, Sharyn, you totally crack me up. Every. single. time.
Okay, now I'm really curious how the artists who create these really stunning cakes feel about having them cut up and eaten.
@zoomom -- ditto (although I'm still trying to shake the Meatloaf with buttercream image...) If I were truthful, I'd admit that, given the choice of eating the cake and not eating the cake, I always eat the cake. (There, I said it.) But I'd make my husband cut it.
My high school mascot was Jonathan Jackrabbit. Pretty fierce dude, since LB Poly sends more kids to national football than any other high school in the US.
Junior high, we were the Hughes Wise Owls, and elementary school was the Longfellow Poets. (They have now changed the Poets to Lions. Unnecessary, I think.)
http://www.lbusd.k12.ca.us/poly/pages/SLC.htm
I loved everything about this post. Well done John!!
Fromage blanc isn't a hard cheese (not a wheel). It's basically the stage before it's turned into cottage cheese. The French like to mix it with sugar, fruit or syrup.
Here is Australia we have a football team - South Sydney Rabbitoh's. Russell Crowe is one of their biggest fans (and faught heavily to keep the team in the compeition when the powers tht be wished to close it down a few years ago). BTW: love that cheese cake. Awesome skill!
Google the South Sydney Rabbitohs :)
well done... to John, to the cake makers and well heck to everyone! lol Lovely inspiring post as always ; )
These are so amazing! It's my brithday today and i totally wish i could steal one with the candles and cherries. i dont care if im 13, my hair is in culry pigtails and i look about 8 cuz of it. Instead i have a chocolate one. that will probably be frosted by kids with the skills of a teenager (me and a couple cousins).
Minas Tirith. As a cake. O M G
I am just so impressed you know what quilling is! Even my very crafty husband wouldn't get the reference.
Happy Birthday Claire! Enjoy your cake, whatever it looks like! And as far as looking like you're 8 when you're turning 13; you just be yourself and let the pigtails curl where they may!
John - you are the King dude! just the fact that you included Minas Tirith - yea. the King. =) love the post.
John, is there a link on the site to your and Jen's wedding cake? I'm sure we would all love to have you share it some Sunday.
And those pillows are amazing. I would not have thought cake at all.
Is it just me, or does John always slip something in his Sunday Sweets posts to make me go...
"Aww he is so sweet, Jen is a lucky lady!"
Go Gators!!!! Loved seeing a Gators themed cake this week :)
All these cakes are so cool! But seriously, when I got to that last one, I literally gasped, followed by gaping and "wow"-ing about a dozen times. SO FREAKIN' AWESOME!!!! I could stare at that Minas Tirith cake for hours. Just wow. And I agree, every Sunday Sweets should have an LOTR cake! :D
That Minas Tirith cake is making my not-so-inner fangirl of all things Tolkien squeal in absolute glee!
I really hope the baker of the fish cake is an Eddie Izzard fan. I'd go to them just based on their name alone.
"Cake or death?" That's a pretty easy question. Anyone could answer that.
"Cake or death?"
"Eh, cake please."
"Very well! Give him cake!"
"Oh, thanks very much. It's very nice."
"You! Cake or death?"
"Uh, cake for me, too, please."
"Very well! Give him cake, too! We're gonna run out of cake at this rate. You! Cake or death?"
"Uh, death, please. No, cake! Cake! Cake, sorry. Sorry..."
"You said death first, uh-uh, death first!"
"Well, I meant cake!"
"Oh, all right. You're lucky I'm Church of England!" Cake or death?"”
@ladyrockess - Go Gators absolutely! I had the identical thought, great to see a Gator cake on here...Loved all the cakes today, and the commentary rocked, as usual. Love this site!!
For the record, I'd just like to add that I think cheese wedding "cakes" actually made of cheese *can* be well done! For sure, the ones on the previous wreck post are awful- dressing it up like a cake only makes it worse. But I do think that this example is clean & elegant- especially for a couple who may love cheese after dinner and aren't big on sweets! I think it works because it clearly is just a stack of cheese- no ribbons, flowers, "icing", or anything else tacky. Just saying that they're not all wrecks... (but maybe most are).
Theme: subtle Python references.
I make cakes - not professionally but as favours for friends - I made a Barbie cake for my friend's Hen do (one of the kitschy ones with an actual doll shoved into it) as a joke, and she loved it so much she refused to cut it and displayed it at her wedding SIX WEEKS LATER! It wasn't cut then, and to my knowledge still hasn't been.
Now bear in mind this wasn't fruit - it was sponge with buttercream and jam - the only thing standing between that cake and an apocolyptic new virus is the fondant and royal icing detail it had all over it!
Whilst that's pretty funny, I was a little irked that I'd stayed up until 1am the night before her hen to finish that cake - and as tounge in cheek as it was, it still took effort to pipe all the lace detail onto the dress, so the fact I lovingly baked, iced and piped that cake (let alone massacred the Barbie's legs!) did irk me!
I never get upset about people cutting my cakes - all the effort etc is only work it if it's eaten and enjoyed! A lot of the time, people save the sugar characters/flowers that I make anyway!
Me, I'm more like the little girl in the "Lamb-entations" post - the one gleefully sawing off the lamb's head while a red spot of jam pools at the knifepoint.
I am inspired. How about a Darth vader burning to death cake, or a vale of Mordor cake?
That Spoon Bridge with Cherry is freaking amazing! Actually, the entire Mpls skyline cake is pretty cool. I recognize the Foshay tower, the IDS Center... since the cake has lights, I wonder if the Target building had changing multicolor lights at the top. That would be awesome!
The juxtaposition of the person's thumb holding the fish cake makes the thumb look like bait.
@zoomom: I know how that feels, but not from the cake side. I hate when I make pottery (all the pottery I make is meant to be functional) and someone refuses to use it and instead sits it on a shelf. That makes me sad!
I love your posts, John (the hubby of Jen)!
And you're just as charming in person as you are on a computer.
Those are beautiful cakes! I can't pick a favorite!
I just LOVE the pillow cake it looks like it going to fall it must take lots of practice to do that>
Come to Oregon, where the major college mascots are ducks and beavers. VERY cuddly. And I bet they look good on cakes--well, the ducks would, anyway.
The Minas Tirith cake is ok, I've seen MUCH better ones.
Also the pillows one? yeah actually probably not cake, loads of "showcase" cakes at competitions/displays etc. are acually polystrene covered in icing.
Which is partly why I find the program "Ace of Cakes" really annoying since there isn't often that much cake in his creations.
Gina - and if you have a child at each (OSU & UO) you're a PLATYPUS! (that's me!)
Oh Hillary, you must be so confused come Civil War. But funny! :)
Bow ties (on elephants) are cool.
pillow fight anyone?
I am in love with the Minneapolis skyline cake! Being a proud Minnesota native, it was really cool to see!
Two things. Firstly, you and Jen are clearly made for each other. Secondly, my cousin actually had a pile of Somerset cheeses as her wedding cake. But, you know, she's a dairy farmer from Somerset, so I think that makes it not a wreck. Maybe not a sweet, but not a wreck