Today my baby, my youngest Ellie, turns 6.
Yikes!
Sitting on this side of it, I feel as though time has flown like lightning. I know in another blink of an eye she’ll be off to college. Seriously, isn’t that what it feels like?! You moms of older kids, doesn’t it feel that way? I’m sure my mom would agree, when her youngest will be 40 this year. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves, eh?
Right now she’s in Kindergarten, learning to read and doing so well. I treasure every snuggle and “I love you Mommy, I want to squeeze you!” She’s a cuddly girl, who loves gymnastics, Minecraft and her “stuffy collection.” She recently started taking Hip Hop (like her brother before her.) It’s so super cute to see the joy such activities bring to her as she bops across the floor with a giant smile on her face.
She’s emotional too, and can get embarrassed very easily, but we’ve seen her grow and develop so much this past year. We actually just received her report card yesterday and she is just doing so darn well. Her confidence and pride in her own abilities is becoming more and more apparent, and her teacher has taken note of it. A couple week’s ago they had an library assembly with 100 kids when a book author came to speak to them. According to her teacher, Ellie “raised her hand and asked a thoughtful question” in front of the whole group. If you know my sometimes shy little girl, this is a huge step. I remember having that very same fear of speaking in class so it makes me very proud to know her courage.
When Ronin went to Kindergarten 2 years ago, one of the things that developed in him is a BIG LOVE of the Seahawks, which has been passed down to his sister. So for her 6th Birthday Party this past weekend, Ellie decided that the theme must be Seahawks. My kids are very big on themed parties. Are yours? She made me laugh because she was very decisive, she wanted a Seahawks gymnastics party. I said, “It’s a gymnastics party. How about the theme be gymnastics!?” But nope, it had to be football.
We all had a great time and we even got some cute family photos. What do you think? Ronin looks like he has fun! Sweaty and red faced after an hour of obstacle courses and gymnastics adventures. They even had a bouncy house. I had to smile when Ellie leaned her head back into me as the camera clicked. This little girl loves her family and we love her! I’m soaking it in while I can! Those teenage years are a-comin’!
One of Ellie’s favorite things to do is bake. I was never a baker before she came around. I know I’ve mentioned it before when I posted about other baking projects like this star cake or this Skylanders cake or this castle cake or this flower cake that I’ve shared here on the blog. But during the past few years, her love has transferred over to me. We’ve taught ourselves with books, watching YouTube and scanning Pinterest for caking-making ideas. Our idea for her birthday this year was to create a Seahawks football jersey cake, and I am so thrilled at how it turned out. This was the first time we have ever attempted to use fondant in our caking-making, and it really was a lot of fun. Ellie said “I didn’t know it was like Play-Doh!?!”
I really hadn’t honestly thought about it before, but yes, fondant is just like edible molding clay, and playing with clay is something we do quite a bit. So today, I’m sharing with you our steps to create Ellie’s 6th Birthday football jersey cake. Of course you could create this for any sports team, in the colors of your choice, but we chose to do the Seahawks “away” jersey in White with Blue and Green lettering.
Football Jersey Cake
What You’ll Need:
Jersey Cake Pan (11.5 x 13.5 inches, 3 inches deep)
Cake Recipe of Choice (We used 2 boxes Pillsbury Funfetti Gluten Free Cake Mix)
1 large can of pre-made white icing (or icing recipe of choice)
Wilton Assorted Primary Color 4-Pack Fondant
Large cake board (I used a sheet of foam board wrapped in aluminum foil)
Cooking Spray
Large rolling pin
Knife
Instructions:
Step 1: Bake The Jersey Shaped Cake
Liberally spray the jersey cake pan with cooking spray. After mixing the cake per box or recipe instructions, pour the cake batter into the pan approximately 1/3 to 1/2 full. This is a very large pan and the cake will rise so do not fill to top. This will make it easier to remove cake when finished baking. After baking, immediately remove cake from pan by flipping it gently onto your cake board. I was very happy with how my cake came out of this pan!
After the cake has completely cooled (I left mine in the refrigerator overnight) you will then frost all sides of the cake with a thin crumb coat of icing. This allows the fondant to stick properly to the cake.
Step 2: Roll Out White Fondant
Pull out white fondant and knead until soft. Using a large 20 inch rolling pin, roll out white fondant (or color of choice for main jersey) into a thin square(ish) layer that is approximately 1/8 of an inch thick. Once rolled out, the fondant will appear as though it will not cover the entire cake but once you lift it up to place on top of your cake it will stretch out a bit and should cover your cake. Note: White fondant is actually quite difficult to keep clean as it will pick up everything so be sure that your counter top and rolling pin are exceedingly clean before rolling it out. If you do get any marks or lint, use a slightly wet paper towel to clean the fondant (but do not get it too wet or it will become sticky.) Stretch the fondant to cover the cake and gently press over cake and smooth with hands to remove any air bubbles. Using a knife or bendable icing knife, cut the excess fondant.
Step 3: Roll Number and Letters for Jersey
This was quite simple and fun. Ellie helped a lot during this stage. Using just your hands, roll out a long thin tube of blue (or color of choice) fondant that is approximately 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick. You’ll judge the length by need based on the number you will use for your cake, but the final letters will be approximately 6 inches tall. Roll your second color into a tube that is approximately 1/8 to 1/3 inch thick. Form number(s). For the name, you’ll roll fondant tubes that are about 1/4 inch thick. The name is about 2 inches tall. Lay the number(s), letters and sleeve decoration on top of the cake. The sleeve stripes wrap around the side. Cover with plastic wrap until it’s party time!
I was surprised at how easy fondant was to work with. It can dry out if you’re not careful so be sure to wrap it in plastic wrap when not in active use.
Have you ever worked with fondant? I’d love to her what kind of cakes you enjoy making.
Happy Birthday Ellie! I LOVE YOU!
.
Pin Me!
Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. No compensation was received.
