Planes, trains and automobiles….

One of my favourite films of all time… have you seen it? Steve Martin and John Candy classic that makes me laugh no matter how many times it has graced my TV screen (a dozen or so at the last count!) Can’t pick a best bit as they are all the best 🙂

Anyway, I digress..

So, I was asked to make a transport themed cake order from a regular client of mine for her young son’s birthday – a birthday cake, some mini cupcakes for the little ones and some cookies for the not so little ones, suitably festooned with little cars, train and plane.

Now, in my fantasy cake land I would make one of those spectacular creations as seen on Ace of Cakes  where the car has an actual engine and drives off the table given half a chance BUT ahem I don’t have welding equipment and also the budget wouldn’t allow!

Instead, I settled for a two tier cake covered with fondant and then sugar paste cut outs and fluffy icing clouds.  It was a vanilla sponge filled with strawberry jam and vanilla buttercream, topped with a pale blue fondant and then sugar paste shapes.

I used mini meringues for the smoke puffing from the steam train and the plane. As a little extra, I cut out some fondant flowers and added them for a bit of extra colour.

The mini cupcakes were of the healthy carrot variety but instead of the usual orange scented cream cheese frosting I would normally use, there was a vanilla buttercream topped with little  fondant planes, trains and cars.

Last but not least, I made some vanilla spice cookies, and rather than using royal icing, I cut out fondant and then added a couple of details such as the steering wheel and door join using edible pen and then wrapped them individually and finished with ribbon.

Overall, I was pleased with the finished result… and more importantly so was the client! 🙂

The one that got away…. 🙂