Happy Birthday to John!

John had a birthday yesterday.  Lots of well-wishes, cards, and toys (I mean, tools) for presents.  John's making a stop at Lowe's Home Improvement Store on the way home tonight to spend birthday money and use the gift card I got him (bought because I could not figure out which vise he wanted).



Ah, the cake.  John requested a cake "like Baskin Robbins' ice-cream cake."  So I made an all-natural version with Breyer's Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream and Duncan Hines' Dark Chocolate Fudge cake mix.  Chocolate buttercream icing (Wilton's recipe with my homemade vanilla extract) went on top, and the yellow decorations are made with white buttercream icing that has India Tree food coloring added to it.

Here's how the magic started:  Luci and I made one 9" layer of cake (the rest of the cake mix went into making cupcakes).  We made one layer of ice cream by spooning softened ice cream  into a cake pan lined with plastic wrap.  Both layers were frozen until solid, then stacked and frosted.

Luci wrote "DAD"

and then tasted the leftover chocolate buttercream until she proclaimed, "I am done with dessert!"  She had enough sweet for the day.



It turned out great.  The ice-cream cake was a big hit!

Luci, after having her cake with milk, with her "moustache like Daddy!"