Spring Sweets
April 1, 2012 Though it already feels like summer down here in sweltering ol' Florida, I'm determined to make the most of this "Spring" thing. (So long as it doesn't involve leaving the house, of course. Have you SEEN the pollen levels out there? HAVE YOU? Poor John is a one-man sneeze machine.)
Ahem.
So, yeah, in honor of Spring I plan to revel in sweet pastels...
;)
And cutey-patootie lady bugs...
;)
And even a little gardening!
;)
Made by Jean D.
FYI: Oreo crumb "dirt" is my favorite kind of dirt.
Oh, and I couldn't decide which gardening cake I liked better, so here, have two:
;)
Mmmm...edible garden tools.
I don't wear heels very often, and to be honest I'm not all that fond of shoe cakes...but this is the exception:
;)
Open mouth: insert shoe.
Seriously, this sweet Jimmy Choo shoe makes me think sugar and spice and everything frilly, girly, and nice. Perfect for a garden party where everyone's sipping tea out of delicate porcelain teacups like this:
;)
Submitted by Emily B. and made by All About Cake
Except these teacups aren't porcelain; they're sugar. WOWZA.
And what garden is complete without a birdhouse?
;)
(I can't get over that weathered "wood" fence and the "metal" roof. Amazing.)
And we can't forget Spring's main attraction: the flowers!
;)
Just when you thought a cake couldn't get any better, you go and learn that the butterflies are made of chocolate. I repeat: THE BUTTERFLIES ARE MADE OF CHOCOLATE.
Man, I love Spring.
And you'll never believe it, but these flowers are made of sugar paste:
;)
Submitted by Alison M.; baker unknown. Spotted at the Sydney Royal Easter Show 2011.
And this is actually cake!
;)
Submitted by Isabella, made by Williams-Sonoma
Well, ok, the missing slice helps make it a bit more believable.
If you follow me over on my other blog, Epbot, then you know I've had cherry blossoms on the brain lately. So naturally, I couldn't resist this slice of heaven:
;)
By the way, for all of you in the DC area admiring the cherry blossoms right now: I am so jealous.
Spring weddings always have the cleanest, freshest style:
;)
Made by Julie D.
And finally, let's go out with a Sweet Spring-splosion!
;)
Those flowers may look freshly cut, but they're actually painstakingly hand crafted from sugarpaste. The cake itself is fondant-free, though, and I have to say I'm really digging that texture. Absolutely gorgeous.
Hope you enjoyed my pollen-and-allergen-free Spring Sweets, guys! Happy Sunday!
Reader Comments (41)
Those are the sweetest sunday sweets you've had in a while :D flowers and gardens make me so happy-I LOVE the veggie garden cake,the ladybugs made me squee a little and the african violet cake is adorable :D
That first cake, those circles. Wow! The time involved making and then placing them all by size and color. Holy cow! And the lady bugs! These are all amazing works of art!
And I didn't sneeze once!
The DC cherry blossoms peaked WAY early because of the warm weather. It was really disappointing to find I'd missed it, and I LIVE here.
Time for some more fondant-free Sunday Sweets I think. I am so sick of those gross rolled fondant balls being used as bottom borders. Get a new schtick decorators!
cherry blossoms AND Jimmy Choos, have I died and gone to cutesy heaven?
Pretty! But no April Fool's prank? :(
The next time I have butterflies in my stomach I want them to be chocolate.
Macon, GA has over 300,000 cherry blossom trees. They have mostly bloomed already but you should come on up for next year's festival. It's something to see.
I think the shoe should be Jimmy Chew. ;-)
@Sharon: I live here too and didn't even hear about it until now!
Wow.. that violet pot cake was just too cute. I followed the link, and thought "Hey, Mom's birthday is coming up next week, I should order one of those for her." Until I saw the price.. $100. It serves 4. That's $25 a slice for cake!!! Yeah Mom, I love you, but not quite that much. :)
Weird. I think this is the first time a Cake Wrecks post made me want cake. I normally see the Sunday Sweets as works of art but today I see them as works of art I want to eat. I'm counting down the days until my Anniversary. UMmm Anniversary cake: almond with fresh raspberries and chocolate ganache.
I'm totally blow away by all these cakes!! I don't think I could make anything quite like those! makes me want to go out and work in the yard haha!
I love that pot of pansies. It's so beautiful and looks delicious too! Win win!
Sharon's right -- the cherry blossoms peaked early this year. And while they are gorgeous when they are blooming, after they start falling they look like snow, and make a mess that tracks in everywhere....
I want to get married just so I can have the blue-roses-with-pansies-and-butterflies cake for my reception! These are all stunning!
So amazing. How does one cut into something so beautiful without feeling guilty?
Considering the day it is, I'm surprised you didn't out up one of those "Which one of these is NOT a cake?" thingies.
Oh, the wrecks that would result if someone were to print one of these, take it to their local grocery store 'decorator' and say, "make me a cake just like this." Of course, the grocery store decorator would say, "I just decorate the store -- it sounds like you need a metaphysician. Unless you want someone to make a cake for you, in which case you need to head on over to the bakery."
Those daisies are amazing -- they come in so many shapes, sizes and colors! I know not all flowers are daisies; some are roses. Roses have thorns -- I think that's why they cost more. A lot of labor goes into attaching all those little pointy things every place one is likely to try to pick it up.
Even I could probably make one of those flowerpot cakes. I'll just need to go to the store and then to the nursery...
Yay, for fondant-free!
The flowerpot cake, I wants it!
Today's Sunday Sweets post was the most beautiful ever, no April foolin'
Oh, the pastels. I LOVE this cake. I want this cake... any occasion will do!
As for the spring-plosion, I can see a wreck-copy happening any time now.
That first cake with the perfect circles....that shoe....those ladybugs....the amazing teapot and cups....the color combination of the cherry blossom cake...all the flowers are simply beautiful and the last cake with the beautiful fondant free texturing....I agree with Crydrynn...while it can be super pretty and creative...I can't stand fondant....I can't eat it so it seems like a big waste to me....I'm not terribly fond of buttercream icing because often it tastes greasy....my favorite icing is a whip cream icing...light fluffy and super yummy!
Lovely Spring post.....Thanks!
Those are fabulous! I think that the first one is my favorite and if I trusted any baker enough, I would be begging someone to make it for my daughter's First Communion later this month.
I am not a flowerey foo foo type person, but I have to say these were some very pretty cakes. I loved the bird house one and I loved the lady bug one. Those were my absolute favorites. Oh and I liked the one with the butterflies on it.
Amazing and beautiful.
I think my favorite thing about this post, is the red rose on the last cake. The fact that it looks slightly bruised and wilted... And you're telling me that's SUGARPASTE? Holy detailing, Batman! I have got to check out the rest of her cakes... 'cause that is amazing.
Did anyone check the ingredients list of the pot cakes? It could explain why they were so expensive :-)
That last one inspires me to bake a cake and slather on the icing good and thick so I can texture it just like that... and then poke in some plastic flowers for the finishing touch! XD
I agree with Brooke, it is a little strange to see a post that actually makes me want to eat cake. Most of the ones on Cake Wrecks are just too hideous or gorgeous.
Are we sure that teapot is actually a cake, though?
@Craig: Ha!
Those are beautiful, but regarding number 9. Yes I can believe those flowers are made of sugarpaste, my mum used to make those.
It's a real skill to make proper sugar flowers, one I fear is sadly dying out. To many bakers just slap real flowers on a cake or make fondant roses (sorry those things look stupid to me, roses do not have flat bases!)
Another Washingtonian here, and the cherry blossoms started blooming,y reached peak bloom, and then were washed away by some rain, all in about a week, three or four weeks earlier than they normally bloom.
But that's ok, because we have some super-awesome photos of perfect cherry blossoms seasons from years past to make up for it.
And now, cherry blossom CAKE to also help with the cherry-blossom-withdrawal symptoms.
Mmmm, now I want chocolate.
That bird house is excellent. And I heart dogwood flowers as much as cherry blossoms, too. : )
Thank you for sharing these beautiful cake images. I love cake. I always wonder, however, if these designer cakes taste as good as they look.
a bit late to the cakes... but the Portland, OR cherry blossoms are still very, very, very, very much in bloom. :)
I love the dogwood cake!!
1) That first cake is AWESOME. Those who haven't worked with these media might not realize why, but seriously...those circles all being so perfect, not at all saggy or indented...WOW. That is some serious talent and effort. Bravo.
2) You know how I am always nagging you guys to come to Austin more? Well here's proof of how much I heart you: totally do NOT come now. Allergens will do things to your face that I can't describe in comments or else you won't approve it on the basis of obscenity. Flee, flee from the Pollen Cloud of Doooooooom!
February would've been safe, but March and April? Nu-uh.
The good professional cakes usually make me quite jealous, but OMG! I would die to be as talented as these people! These cakes are gorgeous!
These are some bee-YOU-tee-ful cakes.....I just wish the yellow cirlces on cake #1 didn't look so much the Nuva-Ring!!
Sorry---professional hazard!
The flower pot cake is actually made by Perfect Endings, but sold through WS.
Beautiful! does anyone actually eat cakes as perfect as these? Where would you start on something like the shoe or the teapot? Does anyone eat the flowers of sugar? The teacups?