Ipso Fatto Instant Photo: Lea's Baptism

I had the opportunity to make a cake for the baptism of Lea, the youngest daughter of our friends Jim and Colleen. They didn't give me any particular parameters for the design so I kept it simple with just a peony and a cross. I didn't want the cake to be too plain, though, so I also made ruffles to go all the way around the sides.

I was very happy with the way this cake came out, especially because this was the first peony I ever made. (I followed the directions in this video, except that I used fondant instead of gumpaste.) For the cross I used the same mold I purchased to make a First Communion cake for Jim and Colleen's oldest daughter McKenna. Underneath the fondant it was yellow butter cake with orange-flavored mousseline, and the yellow cake fit in perfectly with the overall color scheme of the cake after it was sliced.

Recipes: "Base Formula for Yellow Butter Cake," "Mousseline Buttercream," and "Classic Rolled Fondant" from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum.

Previous Post: "McKenna's Baptism [Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Filling]," April 22, 2009.