I survived birthday baking season!

The whipped cream frosting has gelatin in it
to keep it stable. 

Right after the holidays, our family goes directly into birthday season. Jim's was in January. In February, Sam and Ethan celebrated their 9th and 8th birthdays, respectively. For me, it was like a non-stop bake-a-thon. When I was growing up, I got one birthday cake that we ate after a family dinner. Nowadays, the kids have it made—family cake, school cupcakes, another cake for a party with friends. For me, this is five cakes in one month! Thankfully, the boys still are okay with combining their friend parties, or it would have been six.


This year, Ethan, whose birthday comes first, opted for alternative desserts. He asked me to make trifle for his family birthday dinner and lemon bars to take to school. At their friend party (they each chose 2 kids to take skiing--too fun!) they agreed on a lemon poppy seed bundt cake (egg free). Then came Sam's turn. He chose a four-layer coconut cream cake, filled with coconut pastry cream, and topped with coconut whipped cream frosting. He also chose coconut cupcakes with coconut cream cheese frosting to bring to school.


Well, that was a whole lotta baking, I must say. And, while I love to cook, I would not call myself a baker. Do you all do this same crazy multi-dessert scenario for kids' birthdays or am I just particularly insane?  Luckily, it all turned out okay and the boys were happy.  Now, I have until next January before the birthdays begin again.


Really, though, what 8/9 year old asks for trifle? ... or a four layer cream cake?  Where is the great American love for Betty Crocker?

I forgot to take a pic of ours. Although, it is not hard to make an
impressive looking trifle. This one's from Yum Sugar.

ETHAN'S BIRTHDAY TRIFLE BAR

Not only did Ethan want trifle, instead of cake on his birthday, he wanted a make-your-own-trifle buffet. The boys and their friends are big fans of the make-your-own spread, which we often do for tacos and crepes.

In case you have never eaten it, trifle is an English dessert generally consisting of layers of pudding, jams, fruit, pieces of cake, and whipped cream. It is usually served in a glass bowl (we used wine glasses) so you can see the lovely stratification.

The spread for Ethan's birthday was fairly extensive (as is called for on such occasions as one's 8th birthday):

The pudding—chocolate and/or vanilla. I have been using this pudding recipe from Martha Stewart for many years. Just as easy as the box, but much tastier.

The cake—I cheated here and bought madeleines and chocolate pound cake from the supermarket bakery.

The sauces—warmed homemade rapsberry jam and melted nutella.

The fruit—sliced bananas and fresh berries.

The toppings—chopped pecans, peanut butter chips, mini-marshmallows, toffee bits, chocolate chunks.

And, whipped cream, of course! I used the trusty whipped cream whipper for this. It is a must-have kitchen tool in our house.

Photo from Simply Recipes.
Mine actually looked nicer!

Here are some of the other recipe links:

Coconut cupcakes with coconut cream cheese frosting from Simply Recipes. I added a little coconut extract to the frosting, and a little extra powdered sugar since it seemed too thin.

Low-fat lemon squares from Cooking Light. These are a go-to favorite. Sooo lemony. I made a triple batch so we could keep some for home.

Photo from MyRecipes.com

Allergy-free lemon poppy seed bundt cake adapted from the Allergy Free Baker cookbook by Cybele Pascal. One of our guests can not eat eggs so I used this recipe but used regular milk and flour (without xantham gum). 

Coconut cream cake with coconut pastry cream from Zoe Bakes. Instead of the meringue topping she suggests, I topped it with whipped cream frosting. This cake is best eaten soon after frosting as leftovers need to be refrigerated, which makes hardens the cake. Actually, this combo would make a lovely trifle, perhaps with some fresh mango thrown in.

Whipped Cream Frosting from Taste of Home. It does not get great ratings but it works well for me. Double the recipe for a layer cake. I added some coconut extract too.