Saturday, July 17, 2021

A Tale of Two Cakes

The wee one's birthday was back in February.  He likes Sonic the Hedgehog a lot and wanted a Sonic cake for his birthday.  As luck would have it, our two main grocery stores we shop at, Fry's and Wal-Mart, did not have Sonic cakes available to be made.  Avengers, yes.  Mickey and Minnie Mouse, yes.   Paw Patrol, yes.  And so on.  But no Sonic.  Because I spoil him so much and because he really wanted a Sonic cake, I found a person who makes cakes at her home and asked her if she could do a Sonic cake.  She sent me a picture of what she made (below).  I showed the picture to son and daughter in law and they loved the cake.  So I call the lady to order it, not really thinking about how much it would cost.  She told me $125.  I tried not to gasp too much and I ordered it.  (Side note, my wedding cake back in 1980 cost $125).   I had to put a deposit down on the cake (I can see why lol).  We picked it up from her house and it looked just as adorable as the picture.  This is not his cake as his name is not Devin and he turned 5.  Marble flavor is my daughter in law's favorite so that's what we got for this cake.  Oh my gosh, the cake was sooooo delicious.  Better than any cake I've ever tasted.  So moist, so flavorful.  Yum!  Usually I don't eat cake because I'm always watching my weight, but I took a bite of this one from my hubby's plate and I'm like "cut me a piece!"  Everyone agreed it was the best cake they had ever had.  The wee one loved it.  The lady who made it said it would serve 15-18 people.  It was only family for his party so it was more than enough for all there.  


So then his sister's birthday is this month, July.  She turned 16 years old and was having a pretty big party.  Because I try to be fair between the two of them I told my daughter in law we would get the cake for her party.  She wanted this one.  I guess the character with the yellow hair is Naruto .  She is really into anime.  I didn't even bother checking with the grocery stores if they could make the cake and the lady who made the Sonic cake was not available as she was recovering from surgery.  So I went online and found an edible cake topper with this picture.  I could order it and then put it on a cake of whatever size I wanted.  For example, I got a fourth of a sheet cake so we ordered the cake topper for that size.  


I knew absolutely nothing about these edible cake toppers but hubby figured we could get it on the cake.  So we ordered it online from Alabama and tracked shipment, having paid extra to get it there in time for her birthday.  I really didn't know what to expect, but it basically came looking just like above, flat like a piece of paper.  I found out later there are edible ink cartridges and I think these are printed on rice paper.  

Her cake was also marble and had a blue border on the bottom and around the top.  Otherwise, it was white icing with this topper going on top of the icing.  We learned our lesson if we do this again not to have a border around the top because my hubby had to cut a little of the cake topping to make it fit on the cake.  It wasn't noticeable what he cut.  

You basically unpeel the topper from the paper it comes in and place it on the cake.  You have to get it right the first time because it would be hard to remove it and try again.  It sticks to the icing and then infuses in the icing.  

I was amazed at the finished product.  

We also got 36 cupcakes to go along with the cake since there were about 40 people at her party.  We didn't stay for the cake cutting as the party was an all day one and we didn't want to be gone from Winslow that long, but the cake was a hit as well as the cupcakes with plenty for all but no leftovers.  So that was good.  

It was a lot cheaper than the Sonic cake even with the rush shipping.  

We had seen the edible cake toppers we could have ordered for a Sonic cake but I was very hesitant to try them back in February.  Now I would do it again in a heartbeat so if he asks for something unique for his 6th birthday, I would see what could be available online if our local stores don't make it.

Have you ever used edible cake toppers like this? 

19 comments:

  1. I hear you! I think my wedding cake in 1986 was $140 and it was huge! But I know that the cakes these days are more elaborate and not that many people have the skill like that woman who did your Sonic cake. It looks fabulous! My daughter had ordered a whale cake for my grandson’s first birthday and it was something. I didn’t want to ask the price! When my granddaughter’s first birthday was last year, she tried to order a special cake from the same bakery and found out it’s a 6 month waiting list!!! Who orders a birthday cake that far in advance?

    I have never ordered an edible cake topper, but have eaten them!

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  2. Wow, custom cake business is booming! Sounds like the Sonic cake was really special - well, it was $125!
    I'd not heard of mail order cake toppers. After reading this, I realize I've seen cakes that had them, but thought only bakeries provided the finished product. Good job, Grandma!

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  3. Ahhhhhhhh Anime! My present post, is about it. -smile-

    You have gotten yourself into a Job now! The "Bringer Of Personalized Birthday Cakes"! I hope it doesn't get toooooo expensive. LOL

    Gentle hugs,
    🌸✨🌸✨🌸

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  4. Gosh, I must be living under a rock. I never heard of an edible cake topper before ... what a great idea! You got yours from Alabama? I don't have anything special in mind, but I'm curious. Ya, when my grandaughter was planning her wedding they asked for recommendations on cakes. I nearly fainted when DIL told me most were $1,000+. (No, they didn't!) Sounds like you're the g'ma with the most-est!

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  5. Thank you so much for the review & how-to for the edible cake toppers. I had absolutely NO idea!! How fun!! ~Andrea xoxoxo

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  6. You could have named your post 'A Tale of Two Cakes' like the famous ' A Tale of Two Cities' by Charles Dickens.
    Anyway, I'm glad your cakes served their purpose well and made the youngsters at the birthday happy.

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  7. I bake and have made cakes for people. A lot of people don't realize the time that goes into making a cake and that's what you pay for. Walmart's cakes come frozen, so they just pull it out the freezer and decorate. I'm a huge fan of those edible cake toppers. I've bought many over the years off of eBay. They are great and SO easy! I've made my girls' birthday cakes almost every single year since they were born and those toppers have made it much easier. Veronica loves anime and was a huge Naruto fan for a while. She's moved on to musicals and now Marvel.

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  8. I have not. But someone at my office used to bake cakes (back when we were all in the office) for all kinds of special occasions and she did amazing work (the cakes were delicious, too. One of my cousins (years ago) worked her way through college decorating cakes. I had never heard of edible cake toppers and now I know how our local supermarket bakery does those lovely decorations you can order. Alana ramblinwitham.blogspot.com

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  9. You are such a wonderful grandma, Betty. So glad your cakes were a big hit with the kiddos!

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  10. You are the sweetest grandma ever. Yes, my daughter has had edible toppers on things. It is amazing what is out there. Glad you found it.

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  11. Wow I would have gasp at the price of the cake too…but it sounded like it was a hit and delicious at that! I have not heard of an edible cake topper. I will have to remember that!

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  12. Wow! That better have been the best cake you ever tasted at that price! But it was worth it to make the grandson happy, right? I will have to keep in mind those edible cake toppers for future use!

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  13. $ 125.00 for a custom, wonderful cake, that tasted great, it was definitely worth it!! i have never used a cake topper, nor did i know anything about these!! i'm happy for you that both worked out!!

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  14. Never had an edible cake topper that I know of. I'm so glad that worked out so well. That is good to know. Thanks for sharing.

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  15. WOW $125 for a cake. At this price I'd expect the real Sonic Hedgehog to visit me at home. To be fair to the lady, the price is reflected in the Copyright she has to pay SEGA or the "maker" of the cartoon product. Same with Mickey Mouse or other characters.

    Glad your gifts were well-appreciated.

    God bless.

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  16. It seems like the people that run cake businesses out of their homes always make the BEST cakes. I don't know what it is, but they always seem better than bakery cakes. They also used to be cheaper than bakeries, but maybe that has changed, or maybe prices are a lot higher where you are. A lady who had a home cake business did our wedding cake and it was amazing, and not something we would have been able to afford from the bakery.

    Both of your cakes look great! I've never messed with an edible topper, but I think the grocery stores here must do something similar. You can take in photos and have them "printed" on the cake. It looks like it might be the same thing. Y'all did a really good job putting it on! I'm pretty sure I'd get it all lopsided.

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  17. My cake are the simplest in the wordl xD

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  18. We've done them for the Boy Scout troop events. They usually turn out pretty good. I have always made the kids cakes for their birthdays... it was never really a big thing. But I'm not gonna lie, they were usually pretty creative, and different. Like a 4 foot light saber cake lined with glow sticks for effect. :)

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  19. it seems you only post once per week, but stop by and see me every day. i just wanted to say "thanks" i enjoy seeing you and reading your kind words!!

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