DOUG FLOATS HIS BOAT

Doug's Afternoon Delite

Better leave the climbing to the Samarai!

This cake was ordered from my most frequent buyer Katie for her step-dad Doug's 70th birthday. She wanted another lemon layer blackberry cake. I made lemonade cake, filled with lemon cheesecake and organic blackberry preserves.  The 70 cake on the top was hand-carved from strawberry cake covered in vanilla buttercream.  The frosting for the bottom tier is lemon butter cream, dusted with graham cracker crumbs.  

Katie chose several elements that personalized the cake: The samarai Doug tows behind his RV, a ladder which must have been an inside joke involving possibly an accident, dirt climbing in the wilderness and Doug himself, slurping a highball and smoking a cigar as he enjoys one of his favorite pastimes, floating the river in his personal raft. We even included a tiny squirrel which was another family secret enjoyed between Doug & Katie. A cake like no other. Katie reported after the party that the kids all ate the trees like lollipops and had tongues of green for the rest of the night. [Cakers couldn't ask for a better compliment then that!]

Ta~Da

I must confess that I had help from my sister, Sandy with this one, she needed quality time with me, so I put her to work (not that either of us think creating is work). I did bake all the cakes and handmade all the fillings from scratch. Katie and I designed all the elements of the cake. Sandy's claim to fame was the Samarai and most of the other fondant decor.  I was spending most of my time sculpting Doug and creating his vices.  I also made a miniature RV that replicated his motorhome, but it wouldn't fit on the cake (just too many elements).  Lets chalk it up to another learning lesson for cake designing.  

 I couldn't have finished it without Sam's help, but time flies when get to do something you love, and between the both of us we did total a little over 21 hours of pure joy together.  The real work is clean up, yucky!!