16 Ways to Make a Lamb Cake For Easter

 

 

Spring time means newborn animals, leaves on trees, grass starting to grow, and flowers pushing up in the garden. It is a time for new life and fun food. I enjoy food art. Spring and Easter are a perfect time to make cute food to celebrate. Last week I shared the classic cute bunny cake for spring and Easter. It is made from 2 round cakes with artistic cuts on one cake. The classic bunny cake has been around since the 1950s.

 Today, I wanted to consider some of the different ways to make cakes that look like a lamb. A lamb is a symbol of renewal and has long been at the center of Easter tradition.  

I. Lamb Cake Using a Lamb Mold

This is one of the most popular ways to make a lamb cake. There are numerous posts with a molded lamb cake. Wilton has great instructions on how to make the lamb cake with the Wilton 3D standing cake pan. They decorated the cake with flat white icing first. Then using an icing tip and bag, they added swirls on the body for wool and colored accents. I personally would find this way of decorating hard as I’ve never been great at piping icing details. The face is the flat white icing with colors for lines for mouth and eyes. Their lamb’s face is cute and not hard to make.

 

 

                                                                       Wilton 

 

 Wilton also has a cake iced with a spatula and leaving the face bare. You can make this with white cake or chocolate. I think it’s really cute and Wilton ranks it for a beginner.

 

 

                                                                    Wilton

If you do a search for lamb cakes, you will find hundreds of posts with varying ways to decorate one. The faces often look very different. Some of the cakes show how hard it can be working with a mold. The faces are distorted. Part of the difference in the face is the brand of lamb mold you are using. Nordic Ware‘s 3 D Lamb Cake Pan is another standing lamb cake. Below is their chocolate version with the body covered in icing and the head bare chocolate cake.

 

Nordic Ware 

 

The Farm Wife Cooks has a great post using the Nordic Ware mold pan: 3 Ways to Decorate Your Easter Lamb Cake.

 

 First version: Glaze the cake and garnish with green coconut and jelly beans.

 

Glazed Cake

 

Second version: Dust with powdered sugar and decorate with dusted berries.

 I personally love rustic cakes and this beautiful rustic Easter cake is lovely.

 

Powdered Sugar Cake

The third version is the traditional iced cake.

A glaze was used on the face. Then using a buttercream icing piped rosettes were placed around the body. A straw was used to pop out the eyes and then a knife was used to make the nose and mouth. Finally pre-made cake decorations from Walmart and green coconut decorate the cake.

  

                                                                     Iced Cake

 

No matter the brand of mold you use, the piped icing is probably the most popular decorated lamb cake. An attractive alternative is using coconut on white icing to make a wool coat for the lamb. I really loved this idea as a coconut cake was the first cake I learned to make as a child. It was fun and delicious. Below is a version shared at A Taste of Home with coconut on the body and candy on the face. A lamb cake looks great as a centerpiece for Easter dinner.

 

Taste of Home

 

 

II. A Lamb Cake Using Round Cake Pans

 

I like the idea of not having to spend $20 to $l30 for a lamb cake mold. My small home does not have lots of storage space. There are so many ways to decorate a round cake for Easter with a lamb theme. The easiest is Kraft’s Simple Lamb Cake. Bake your favorite cake and add white icing on the cake. Use miniature marsh mellows to circle the top of the cake once. Then add 2 more rows of marshmallows at the top to make wool coming down to meet his face. Use melted chocolate to make eyes and mouth. A candy is the nose. Cookies are ears. So cute and easy.

 

Kraft Easy Lamb Cake

 

 

One of the most common methods to decorate a round cake is using flat white icing on the whole cake. Then add any decorative piping for a wooly frame for the face. Below is a sponge cake decorated with a cream icing. Melted chocolate was used for facial features. Round small crackers or cookies are the ears.

 

Happy Sheep Birthday Cake

 

 

You can easily decorate a round cake with a cake topper made for the season. Below is a great example from Good Housekeeping. This handmade lamb cake topper is made with a Rice Krispies treat, cotton candy, and marshmallows. Everything is edible and unexpected.

 

Handmade Charlotte

 

Here is a cake topper from Walmart. 

 

 

 Walmart

 

 

This is an Easter Lamb Cake Decoration Set that you use to create an adorable Easter lamb Cake Pop Tops. An edible decoration!

 

 

 

Fran's Cake & Candy

Online there are many toppers and cookie molds to help you decorate your cake. Most would be put on the top, but they can also be added to sides of a cake for a cute cake. Below are a set of two lamb cookie cutters. Bake and decorate your cookies for a colorful display.

 

 

 

  

Etsy

 

III. Make Your Own Shaped Cake

The Food Network has a darling lamb cake you make from 3 round cakes. Complete instructions are givien at How to Make an Easter Lamb Cake. It is a more complex cake design.

 

Food Network

 

The Food Network has another recipe with instructions that makes a lamb cake from cupcakes. It seems much easier to me than cutting 3 cakes like the recipe above. Who doesn’t love cute cupcakes?

 

 

Food Network

 

 

 

 

Whether you are an accomplished baker or a beginner in decorated cakes, there is a cake just right for you to make. Happy Easter!

 

 

 

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Asparagus & Tomato Quiche For Easter Brunch

 

 

Last week at the farmer’s market, one grower had a little packet of fresh new asparagus which reminded me of a spring Quiche. Fresh asparagus, cherry tomatoes, and basil cooked in a cheesy custard sounds perfect for breakfast, lunch, brunch, or even dinner.  An asparagus Quiche is one of my favorites for an Easter or spring brunch.

I usually use Swiss cheese but have enjoyed quiches made from a variety of cheeses.  Your favorite crust can be used – even store-bought.  If you cannot have grains in your diet, you can oil the pie plate and cook the vegetable custard without a crust.

 

Asparagus & Tomato Quiche

Use organic when available, vegetarian  Serves 7 to 8

Ingredients

•     6 eggs or 4 whole eggs and 2 egg whites
•     1 bunch of asparagus or 7 or 8 stalks
•     1 9" pie shell
•     1/2 cup milk
•     1 cup cream
•     1 cup grated cheese, such as Swiss, cheddar, Gruyère
•     1/4 cup torn fresh basil
•     1 cup cherry tomato halves
•     Salt and pepper to taste
•     optional medium tomato to cut into pinwheel slices for decoration 

Instructions

1.     Preheat oven to 425 F or 218 C
2.     Oil pie pan and add dough
3.     Fork bottom of pie crust and cover crust edges with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning
4.     Bake pie crust for about 5 minutes
5.     Remove aluminum foil and bake pie crust for another 8 minutes until almost done
6.     Reduce oven to 325 F or 162 C
7.     Meanwhile, bring water to a boil in a large pot
8.     Cut most of the asparagus into pieces and save some for top of Quiche
9.     Once water is boiling, add the cleaned & trimmed asparagus into pot & boil for 1 minute
10.     Remove immediately and run under cold water to stop the cooking process
11.     Set asparagus aside
12.     Whisk the eggs in a large bowl and add the milk and cream
13.     Whisk together thoroughly and then stir in the shredded cheese, basil, salt & pepper
14.     Add cooked asparagus and tomato slices to bottom of pie shell
15.     Pour custard mix on top
16.     Adorn top with cherry tomatoes and asparagus (optional)
17.     Bake for 35 minutes or until center is firm
18.     Cover edges of crust with aluminum foil if the crust starts to burn
19.     Let quiche stand for at least 5 minutes before cutting
20.     Can be made ahead of time and served at room temperature.
21.     Optional decorate top of quiche with sliced tomato cut into pinwheels in center of top & asparagus around edge pointing in

Enjoy!

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Easter Bunny Cake

 

 

Today we're making food art for spring and Easter.  It's a classic bunny cake that has been around since the 1950s.

 

You can use cake mix or your favorite cake recipe for two  8" or 9" cake pans.  I like the coconut version with coconut added to a white or yellow cake and patted on the white icing to make a white bunny look.  I've also seen it done without coconut and even in chocolate for an adorable brown bunny.

One cake is the head and the second is cut for other parts.  Above are two ears on the sides and the middle piece becomes the bow tie below the rabbit head.  You can cover a tray with aluminum foil, parchment paper, or even a big doily.    If you like, you can use food color to make some pink icing or coconut for the ears and green to make grass around the bunny head.  You can place bunny ears turning up or down.

 

The easiest decorating is based on white icing, coconut, jelly beans, and other candies like licorice or Twizzlers.  If you are a talented cake decorator with icing, I've seen very artistic cakes cut in this shape and totally decorated with icing for eyes, nose, mouth, whiskers, and even flowers.  This is a great holiday activity with the kids.  Let them decorate the bunny cake.

Easter Bunny Cake

Use organic when available. Makes 12 servings.

Ingredients

• 2  8" or 9" layers of yellow or white cake baked
• 4 cups flaked coconut
• white icing for 2 layer cake
• optional food coloring for coconut or icing
• candy for decorations

 

Instructions

• Cover serving tray with aluminum foil or doily
• Remove cool cakes from pans
• Place one whole cake layer on serving tray
• Cut 2 convex shaped ears from each side of the second layer
• Place ears on each side of head to form ears
• Use concave shaped piece for the bowtie, place about 1/2 inch below head
• Frost each piece of bunny with white icing covering top and sides of bunny.
• Frost bowtie with colored icing such as blue or green
• Pat remaining coconut evenly over top and sides of bunny head and ears
• Use colored frosting, jelly beans, licorice, etc. to decorate cake as desired; licorice can be cut in thin strings for whiskers

 

 

 

 

 

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Tomato Tulips Spring Appetizers

 

 

 I love cute food art.  For the last few years, I’ve been trying some of my favorite pins of Food Art. One of the spring appetizers I love is Tulip Tomatoes. It is shown in a bouquet of tulip tomatoes on chive greenery.  It is so cute.  Below is the photo found all around the internet.

 

I like that tulip tomatoes are a healthy side dish perfect for any spring or summer occasion. Everyone says this food art can be created in less than 30 minutes. It took a little longer for me.  This post is a little different from most of my food posts.  Have you ever tried to replicate a pin and wondered what happened?

 

 

Above are more of the original photos on making tulip tomatoes.  They must have originally been on a blog or social media that no longer exists.  I’ve found over 12 blogs with the same photos and instructions on this food art.  My recommendation is to first decide if you just want a decoration for your table, or if you want appetizers to eat.  If you just want a decoration, go with the idea of a tied bouquet. If, like me, you want pretty finger food, I’ll try to give you easy ideas.

 

 

The tulip tomatoes are made with mostly fresh ingredients like cucumber, cream cheese, tomatoes, and green onions or chives.

 

 

 

 The original instructions say to make a cross on top of large cherry tomatoes, going 3/4 way deep. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon; a grapefruit spoon is suggested.  First, DO NOT GO 3/4 DEEP!   The little tomato becomes too flimsy and you will have cream cheese everywhere. I know as I did it.  I suggest 1/2 deep. Then you use a toothpick or skewer to make a hole where the stem was on the bottom. Push a green chive through the hole to make a stem.  

 

 The original recipe uses a filling of cream cheese, cucumber, and dried parsley.  It really sounds a little bland to me, and I added lemon juice too. It was still too bland.  I think the dried parsley would add more flavor if it is added to the cream cheese and put back in the refrigerator for a day.  The original recipe says to use a teaspoon full of cream cheese mix in each tomato.  I bought large cherry tomatoes, and they are still small for 1 teaspoon.  I saw another blogger piped the filling in which probably makes it easier to fill the tomato.  It is a messy procedure filling the top with a spoon and keeping the chive in the bottom hole. I had lots of leaks from both ends. Use a clean paper towel to clean the outside of each tomato.

 

 

I believe a better filling would perk up the taste of the  little appetizer.  I was tempted to just buy garlic and onion cream cheese when I went shopping for the ingredients.  I think that or the herb flavored cream cheese would be tasty and so easy to use.  I think that adding minced or processed cucumber makes the cream cheese too watery. Cucumbers are pretty much water in composition.

You could try your favorite dip as long as it is firm enough. Over on One Little Project, Debbie makes a whipped Feta/cream cheese filling. It sounds interesting.  Then I made my tomato flowers on a plate. Originally, the recipe said to tie the green stems with a chive like a bouquet.   If you want appetizers, don’t tie the bouquet and make a single layer of flowers. If you want a decoration, then tie the bouquet.

 

 

 

I know that trying to pick up the little flower tomato will make the eater’s hands messy.  I think serving them with toothpicks is a better idea. Below you’ll notice that the green stems do not go into the bottom of the tomato.  I tried both ways (above and below) and believe not all the guests would want to eat the green chive.  Placing the tomato on the top of the chive gives the same look, but the tomato can be lifted from the plate with a toothpick without chives.

 

 

 

I started thinking about serving them at the dinner table.  I like Roma tomatoes for a good size to make tulips.  I again cut a cross on the top and scooped out the seeds.  If the tomato does not have a flat bottom, cut the bottom to level it.  This time I used hummus as the filler; there are so many flavors I can try.  I served the tulip tomato on a saucer with romaine lettuce for leaves.  I think it’s a great first course or snack. I ate two of them with whole grain crackers for lunch. I cut the tomato into pieces with a knife and fork and ate it with my fork. It was yummy, and my hands were clean.

 

Whether you want small tomato tulips on an appetizer plate or larger Roma sized tulips, choose your filling of choice, make the tulips and arrange with chosen greenery.

Tomato Tulip Appetizers

Use organic when available. Makes 16 tomato tulips.

Ingredients

Cherry Tomato Tulips

• 16 large cherry tomatoes
• 16 stalks of chives
• 8 oz flavored cream cheese or favorite dip

Roma Tulip Appetizers

• 1 or 2 Roma tomatoes per person
• romaine leaves or other green vegetable for each Roma
• 8 ox flavored cream cheese or favorite dip

Instructions

Cherry Tomato Tulips

• With stem side down, cut a cross in the top of each cherry tomato (about 1/2 down the tomato).
• Using a spoon (grapefruit spoon works very well) to gently scrape out the tomato seeds.
• Option 1: Take a grilling skewer or toothpick and make a hole where the stem currently is. You may need to twist the skewer in a circle a few times to make room for the chive to fit through.
• Option 2: Do not make a hole in the bottom of tomato.
• Starting with 1/2 tsp of filling, fill tomato top. Adjust amount according to size of tomato.
• Option 1: Insert a chive into the hole at the bottom of each tomato.
• Use a damp paper towel to clean any excess filling from outside of tomatoes.
• Option 1: Make a bouquet of chive flowers and wrap last chive around the green chive stems and tie.
• Option 2: Place green chives on plate or platter like stems of flowers.
• Option 2: Place tomato flowers on top of green chives. Add tooth picks.
• Cover and refrigerate for several hours.
• Serve on plate or platter chilled.

Roma Tomato Tulips

• With stem side down, cut a cross in the top of each tomato (about 1/2 down the tomato).
• Using a spoon (grapefruit spoon works very well) to gently scrape out the tomato seeds.
• Starting with 1 tsp of filling, fill tomato top. Adjust amount according to size of tomato.
• Clean outside of tomatoes with damp paper towel.
• Shape romaine leaves to look like flower leaves and place on saucer.
• Add 1 or tulip flowers on green leaves.
• Add whole grain crackers to saucers.
• Cover and refrigerate for several hours.
• Serve as first course of dinner, snack, or lunch.  

I hope you enjoy the tulip spring appetizers.

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My New Spring Photos For My Roku TV Backdrops

 

                                                    Photo by Gary Bendig
 

No, this is a new post and not a replay from my old blog.  Surprise!  My Roku large screen TV has a backdrops function. If you're not familiar with that, it's a photo shown on the screen when the TV is on but you're not actively watching.  You know, these smart TVs will ask you if you're still watching when you're in the middle of a long movie. You haven't touched the remote or made a change.  If you don't reply, you can be bounced.  This happens to me on streaming TV, which I watch a lot. I run to the bathroom or kitchen and sometimes come back to a backdrop photo.  Oh, well.  

 

                                                 Photo by Gary Bendig on Unsplash                                                     My favorite backdrop year round! 

 

I take time each season to select new photos appropriate for the time. (You can tell I'm not overworked in my retirement.)  I went through holiday winter photos and then just winter photos.  I know that we're still in the midst of a cold winter. Boy, do I know.  It went to 28 degrees F last night. I'm sitting here in sweatpants, sweat shirt, fuzzy socks, plus a cover on my legs.  Yes, I'm fine and cozy. You couldn't blast me out of my place today.  There were light snow flurries on the Gulf coast of central Florida in the early hours of this morning!

  

 

 

                                   Photos via Facebook, creator unknown
 

 

 

                                                    Photo by Daniil Silantev on Unsplash

 

For fun, I need some spring inspiration. Enough of the beautiful snow scenes, elk photos, white owl close-ups, arctic fox in the snow portraits. I need pretty spring to get me through  the current winter weather.  I didn't move to Florida in the 1970s for snow. I choose spring photos from the selection offered by Roku. They tell you the name of each photographer. I did an online search for them, and every one of them has an account at Unsplash! That's where Roku got them for free, and you can too.  Therefore, I will credit photographer and you can find them on Unsplash.  The nice thing about Unsplash, like Pixabay and Pexels, it is free to join and is a community of creative people who like to photograph the world.

 

Here are my favorite choices as of today, Sunday, February 1st for the coming few months:

 

                                                                Photo by Andy He

 

 
 

 I must admit, flowering tree blossoms are my favorite photos for spring, especially cherry blossoms in  all that pink loveliness.

 

                                                    Photo by Crystal Kay
 

 

                                                        Photo by Mark Tegethoff

 

Let's not forget the beautiful spring flowers pushing up from the ground. 

 

                                                  Photo by Christiana Bohorquez

 

 

                                                Photo by Marivi Pazos

 

 

I just love the idea of folks around the world taking photos and sharing them with us.

 

 

                                                         Photo by Sam Carter

 

She has a sweet face, doesn't she (he?).

 

 

                                                            Photo by Pedro Sanz

 

 

                                                     Photo by Yusheng Deng

 

 

Lambs and other baby animals are cute.

 

 

                                             Photo by Erik Jan Leusink

 

 

                                             Photo by Svetozar Cenisev

 

 

 Isn't he cute with his rump in the air on the budding tree?

 

 

                                                            Photo by Peter Muscutt

 

The last photo of the day takes us back to green grass and trees with leaves.  This photo is the only one that isn't on Unsplash.  Peter Muscutt has an Unsplash account but the photo is not included in it.  I found it on his Pexel account, go figure. I hope you have a good week no matter the weather.  

Until we talk again, I'm your friend Carol, living on a lake in central Florida.

 

 

 

 

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