In previous posts in December and January I mentioned the work competitions which sparked my cake-making craze, and that the first competition I baked for – and in fact the first occasion at all that I baked a cake! – was an Easter one. Now unfortunately this year I did not prepare a cake for the competition (the first work competition I have not been involved in!), but I wanted to show you my previous Easter cakes from the last three years. So it was during Easter of 2011 that I heard about the baking competition at work, and thought it sounded like fun, even though I had no baking experience.. As I had never made a cake before and no idea about the baking side of it, I didn’t dwell on this too much as I knew my friend would teach me, so I let my thoughts turn to the decoration which seemed like the most fun part to me, and I had a clear idea in my head of what I hoped to achieve as far as the decoration went. At this point I didn’t even consider using rolled fondant icing to cover a cake, and so I mixed up icing sugar with water and green food colouring, and used this to cover the cake very roughly, to represent grass. I then made a little vegetable patch with chocolate flavoured fondant icing, with tiny cabbages and carrots, and two cheeky rabbits stealing the carrots! I tried to incorporate other things which reminded me of Easter and spring, and made two little ducks, and some daffodils. I had so much fun making the decorations for this cake, and was eager to taste how my first baked had turned out. The following day at work I was so surprised to hear my cake had won the ‘best decorated’ category! And I was equally as pleased when I got to taste the cake, and was impressed with how it tasted too – I had been taught well! 😉

My first cake

The following Easter, I had to think of a new idea… At this point I had a real soft spot for bunting, and was keen to use this in a cute Easter scene. I then had the idea of an Easter Egg Hunt & created a little scene based around this, with bunting hanging from trees & a sign pointing to the hunt. As I love cute cartoon-like animals on cakes, I again made a rabbit and an Easter chick, and a basket full of eggs, with other eggs hidden around the scene.

My second Easter cake

Last Easter I tried to do something very different from my previous two cakes, and made an Easter bonnet! I baked a smaller cake than usual which formed the main part of the hat, and just used a strip of icing to create the brim of the bonnet. I tried to use colours that I associated with spring, and made a pink ribbon and bow to wrap around the hat, with stitch marks along the long edges of the ribbon. I added spring flowers and butterflies, and two rabbits heading under the brim of the bonnet. So far this is the only entry I have made for the work competitions which has not won ‘best decorated’!

An Easter Bonnet