Our little cub turns ONE

Leo turned one last week, and we celebrated with a “Lumberjack” theme party complete with lots of flannel, buttermilk flapjacks, bacon and sausage—and cakes, of course. At this age though, the parties are really for the adults, right? Still, Leo seemed to enjoy it, too.

Kellie, Kurt & Leo

Kellie requested a “Lumberjack Smash cake” for Leo, and she made a delicious “lumberjack” red velvet cake for us to enjoy. Wait until you see the inside of her cake!

Here’s the inside of Kellie’s red velvet cake. Beautiful! And the chocolate ganache between the layers was scrumptious.

Meanwhile, I made my first ever SMASH cake—and loved every minute.

Kellie shared that she wanted Leo’s Smash cake to look like a stack of pancakes but for it to really be a funfetti vanilla cake on the inside. And she wanted it to be rustic looking (good thing for me!). So I started googling and came up with this…

It was Kellie’s idea to put it in a little Lodge cast iron skillet. So cute!

The birthday boy took some tentative bites at first, then dug right in!

Even though I’ve baked almost since I could stir, this was my first time to work with fondant, and I’m especially grateful to Rose at Rose Bakes for her tutorial on how to make a pancake Smash cake. And for her recipe for marshmallow fondant. So easy! She helped me tremendously! (Thanks, Rose!) Just please don’t compare my cake to hers! LOL

I always love to know the step-by-step process, so here was mine…

After Leo’s bath time that evening, we cuddled up and read one of his new books (thanks, Miss Kim!), and Kelsey got some snuggle time in, too. It was a sweet night.

If you can’t tell, I’m loving being GramTam, which is a good thing since Kellie and Kurt are expecting Leo’s little sister (daughter Ari) in late January. We’re pretty pumped!

So tell me…
Have you ever made a Smash cake or worked with fondant? Are you gearing up to bake for Christmas? If yes, what are you making? A traditional pumpkin pie is on my agenda, along with a pecan pie. I love being in the kitchen. Only thing, I always miss my sweet mom even more during the holidays because we were always in the kitchen together, cooking and baking up a storm. Such precious memories!

Since I won’t see you again until after Christmas, I wish you a warm and wonderful holiday with loved ones—and the peace of Jesus Christ which passes all human understanding.

Much love from Nashville,

Tammy

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