Rowena's Castle

The purple accents, detailed doors and windows, and piped flowers take Betty Crocker's castle to the next level. Thanks Rowena!

The Latest Betty Videos

The new Betty Crocker Videos are now posted on BettyCrocker.com

Here are the direct links:

Strawberry Cream Cupcakes
http://www.bettycrocker.com/videos/videolibrary/desserts/strawberry-cream-cupcakes
Let’s Party Cake
http://www.bettycrocker.com/videos/videolibrary/celebration-cakes/lets-party-cake
Flower Cupcakes
http://www.bettycrocker.com/videos/videolibrary/celebration-cakes/flower-cupcakes
Jack-o-Lantern Cake
http://www.bettycrocker.com/videos/videolibrary/celebration-cakes/jack-o-lantern-cake
Ganache Minicakes
http://www.bettycrocker.com/videos/videolibrary/desserts/chocolate-ganache-minicakes
Praline Pumpkin Dessert
http://www.bettycrocker.com/videos/videolibrary/desserts/praline-pumpkin-dessert
Warm Caramel Apple Cake
http://www.bettycrocker.com/videos/videolibrary/desserts/warm-caramel-apple-cake
Turkey Cupcakes
Coming soon…

AMAZING cookie card!

A very modest decorator, and reader of our books, sent me these photos of her first attempt at a cookie card. My mom and I were wowed. Not only did she make the card but she added a chocolate portrait as well. Lucky Darren!

To make your own version of a chocolate portrait or a cookie card check out our latest book Kids' Cakes, pages 76-79 and 150 respectively.

New Whimsical Bakehouse Books

Kids' Cakes from the Whimsical Bakehouse and Other Treats for Colorful Celebrations will be available June 1, 2010.

And our first book, The Whimsical Bakehouse - Fun to Make Cakes that Taste as Good as They Look has been released in paperback.

Karin Slaughter's Cupcake Contest

A few weeks ago my mom and I had the pleasure of meeting Karin Slaughter, crime writer and author of the recently released book Undone, at the Random House Book Fair. We got to spend some time with her, hear her amusing stories, and laugh often. After trading books with us she came up with the idea of having a cupcake contest for her fans. I loved the idea, so, hoping to inspire others, I came up with 5 new cupcake designs. The directions for each design will be posted in Step-By-Step on the whimsical bakehouse decorate page by the end of the week.

For more information on Karin’s contest visit: http://www.karinslaughter.com/cupcakes.shtml

Betty Crocker, Take 3

I just got back from Minneapolis, home to General Mills and Betty Crocker, where we filmed the latest installments of Betty's How-To videos - 8 videos in all, including some cute and simple cupcakes like the one above. They should be posted in about a month. I'll let you know...

More Great Cakes from YOU!

I haven't gotten a chance to update the blog lately, but here are some great cake images people have sent me over the last couple of months....

Upcoming Events

My mom and I are scheduled to "appear" on Everyday Food with Betsy Karetnick (Martha Stewart Radio on Sirius) on Tuesday, February 9th at 12:15. The theme of the day is chocolate; we'll bring in some of my mom's yummy chocolate recipes and some of my chocolate method designs to talk about.

On March 6th we will be attending The Random House Book Fair in Westminster, MD. We'll be signing books, judging a decorating contest, and I'll be giving a decorating demonstration.

Cook for Love Videos

I just shot a series of three decorating videos for Cook for Love, a culinary non-for-profit dedicated to the PKU community. Brenda, the co-founder, has taken numerous of my decorating classes and always went above and beyond, often bringing in her own cakes and cookies, just so she could learn how to decorate them.
This series highlights cookie decorating, cupcake decorating, and cake decorating for the holidays. Whether you are on a low protein diet, or not, these videos take you step-by-step through some of my basic decorating techniques, including the chocolate method. There are plenty of ideas to work with.
The site http://www.cookforlove.org requires registration, but is worth visiting. You can see that Brenda put her heart into it.
The videos are linked to the pages below or can be accessed through What's New on her homepage:
http://www.cookforlove.org/recipe/royal-icing
http://www.cookforlove.org/recipe/buttercream-frosting

Michele's Mermaid Treasure Cake

I love all of the details on Michele's cake; the raised sandy island, the multitude of mermaids swimming and dancing, seashells, palm tree, pirate, and treasure chest.

NOTE: For a template and step-by-step directions on how to make the treasure chest visit the Step-by-Step link on the Decorate page of whimsicalbakehouse.com.