My Son lucked out this year for his birthday and has had Two Birthday Cakes. On his actual birthday we made him a Yummy Carrot Cake, per his request, and today I made him a Computer Motherboard Birthday Cake to celebrate with family. See my Son is a Geek and being a Geek these days is what you want – so I am one proud Mommy. Let me also mention I am married to one as well and my son is his Mini-me.  I had seen these Computer Motherboard Birthday Cakes before and thought it would be the perfect cake to make for him.

So of course I documented it to share here on my blog so that you can easily create one for your GEEK on their Birthday. It really is very simple and it does not have to be perfect – it is all in fun.  So let me show you how easy it is to make.

What you will need to create this Geeky Birthday Cake:

• Cake Mix of your Choice
• Vanilla Frosting
• Wilton’s Black Icing Color
• Green Food Coloring
• Ziploc Bag
• Tiny bit of Milk
• Cookies and Candies (see list below)
• A GEEK who will appreciate it

So let me walk you through Step By Step on how to create your Motherboard Birthday Cake just like mine.

I baked my cake from a Cake Mix. I happened to use a marble cake – no particular reason, but I like that flavor.  You can use any flavor you like. Let it cool once out of the oven before frosting.

Then get your Vanilla Frosting ready – I did not use both tubs – just had two in the photo. I always have spares on hand – lol. Take about 3/4 of a tub of the Vanilla Frosting and place in a bowl.

Now it is time to make our frosting Green. Just add in a bunch of drops (I did not count- sorry) of Green Food Coloring, Mix until you get a nice color.

Now take your Green Frosting and Frost the Cake. Now I chose to leave the cake in the pan, but you can take it out as well. I think I was being a bit lazy, but the metal pan worked. Now onto the fun part….

Now here are the things I purchased to decorate my cake: M&M’s~Starburst~Chocolate Wafers~Hershey’s Chocolate Bars~Andes Candies~Kit Kat and Rolo’s. You can use what I did or be creative yourself, but these are the items that appear on my cake. You will have left over candy, but in my house it never goes to waste.

Here is how I laid out all those goodies on the cake.  I did have to cut some of the Chocolate Wafers to create my Processor which is that square in the upper right and has a Starburst Candy in the middle. The large Square to the bottom left is just the Hershey Bar. The rest is self explanatory. At this point feel free to dip into that candy that is not used and have a snack.

Next take your left over Vanilla Frosting and place in a clean bowl. It is now time to create some Gray/Silver Frosting to make those lines on the Motherboard Cake.

To get this color I added a small amount of Wilton’s Black Icing Color to my frosting and mixed it really well. Then I mixed in a tiny bit of Milk to thin it out being I would be using it in a bag. Once mixed well I added this Frosting into a Ziploc Bag and gave it a very small Snip at the corner of the bag so that it would come out thin and not give me a very thick line.

Now take your Frosting Bag and pipe on some Lines and Dots – no right or wrong just have fun with it. After that you are DONE. I think my Motherboard Birthday Cake looks great don’t you?

So there you have it a fun Computer Motherboard Birthday Cake for that GEEK in your life!!!

This is another post  from me being snowed in this weekend from what they call the snowpocalypse of 2010.  So I took the time to do some fun cooking and baking projects. Some of you may have seen the commercials for this Perfect Brownie Pan Set and wonder if it really works. Seems like a great idea, but some are always skeptical when it comes to things like this. I also want to state that I am not being paid in anyway for my review, but yet I also had the same curiosity – Will it really make the Perfect Brownie? So watch as I use it for the first time and document with photos each step of the way and find out.

First let me give you a little background on my Perfect Brownie Pan Set.  Last month was my nephew’s birthday and when we went to their house to celebrate my sister in law was making brownies in this pan.  Seemed she got it as a gift being she has a BIG Sweet Tooth and is always making brownies – perfect gift choice for her. Although I was not there to watch the process I was amazed at how Perfect her Brownies looked.

So this past weekend we exchanged kids  – I took my nephew and she took my daughter for the weekend. Knowing I would be snowed in and doing some baking I asked if I can borrow the pan so I could try it out and see how it works. Ok and also make some treats for the kids. To my surprise she bought me my very own – she even put a Red Bow on top. Now how nice was that? Or maybe she did not trust me with hers? lol.  Either way I was very excited and thankful. So I figured I would document everything from start to finish to show those who may want to buy this for themselves or someone else if it truly works.

So I did just that and I will walk you through Step by Step as I used this Perfect Brownie Pan Set for the very first time – so are you curious? Ok here we go….

Here is what comes with the Perfect Brownie Pan Set ~ Brownie Pan with drop out bottom ~ Rack ~Brownie Slicer ~ 10 Brownie Stencils ~ How to and Recipe Book

So lets get started. I used the Duncan Hines Chocolate Lovers Brownie Mix with Chocolate Chunks – I love extra Chocolate in my Brownies, but obviously you can choose any mix. Follow the directions, add your ingredients and Mix it all up. Then lick Spoon for a nice bit of Sugar Rush to continue on.

Now it is time to break out the Pan (pre-wash with soap and water). Pre-Heat that oven!! There is also an Important Note that came with it that tells us to make sure to spray all parts of the pan to avoid sticking with non-stick cooking spray and to also be sure to place your pan on a cookie sheet in case there is any leakage.  DONE – now add your Brownie Batter. Oh How Exciting!!

Next step is to spray the Slicer with the non-stick cooking spray and add into the pan. Just place in and they are ready for the Oven. Now I wait and get hungry!!!

Beep Beep Beep – my oven timer goes off – I open it up and do the toothpick check – They are DONE. Now I just take them out and let them cool before going any further. So far so good.

Once the Brownies were cool we move on to the next fun step – seeing if our Brownies really did come out Perfect. So I got the Base ready.  I then placed the Perfect Brownie Pan onto the base and the side of the Pan drops down and you are left with the Bottom of the Pan sitting on the base and the Slicer still in. Now comes the truth – will the Slicer pull out and leave me 18 Perfectly Sliced Brownies…. Drum Roll….. I lift out the Slicer which easily came out and Guess What? PERFECT Brownies!!! It worked!!!

Take a look for yourself – They look great and are Perfectly Cut – A Proud Moment, but lets move on we have more work to do….

I then used a spatula and removed the Brownies from the base and placed them on a plate. They came off very easily and each one was all in one piece. Much better than the way they would when I would make them before. Don’t they look Yummy? Now onto decorating them.

Now the Perfect Brownie Pan Set comes with 10 Stencils as you see in the photo above. You use these by placing them onto the top of the Brownie and sprinkling Confectioners Sugar to get your design. I could not have given a review without trying that as well.

So being I was snowed in I decided to try the Snowflake – perfect choice for the situation. I got my Confectioners Sugar and a small Metal Strainer I had on hand.  I placed my Brownie on a Cookie Sheet to help with the mess – it does get messy. I placed the Snowflake Stencil on the top of the Brownie – fit perfectly. I put some sugar into my Strainer and then brought it to the Brownie and gently tapped it.  Do not over do it!!! Then I removed the Stencil to reveal a Beautiful Sugar Snowflake on top of my Brownie.  How cool is that? No pun intended really.

So I did a few more with the Snowflake Design and then I added yummy Red Gummy Hearts to some as well – to show my Brownie Love. I plated them up all nice and now it was time to call in the real Testers to make sure they tasted as good as they looked. That is the real test ya know.

So I set the scene – A nice Big Glass of Ice Cold Milk and a Brownie with a Sugar Snowflake on each plate. Time to call in the testers – My Son and my Nephew.  YES they are as Good as they look. So that says it all – this Perfect Brownie Pan Set really did what it said it would – it made PERFECT Brownies!!!

I give this Perfect Brownie Pan 2 Thumbs Up and I will use it all the time. It was so easy to use and you watched me do it right here for the very first time. So if you are thinking of getting one, but were unsure – I say go for it.  This also make the perfect gift for anyone – mine was a gift and I Love It!!!

In addition to that making Brownies for your next Birthday Party will be so easy and each brownie is pretty much the same size.  Think of the possibilities. In addition to the Brownies this Perfect Brownie Pan can also be used for Rice Krispy Treats and Cakes – that is my next adventure.

And once again – I am not being paid to write this review and it is mine free and clear.

Also check out some of the other Fun Baking Pans that are very similar – I did not even know some of these existed:

Cepia Toymakers are not stopping anytime soon with their great success with the Zhu Zhu Pet Hamsters. Recently on CNN Reports Sr. Vice President Bruce Katz said they are looking to introduce 40 new personalities this year alone. WoW. So parents get ready for Zhu Zhu Pet gift buying because they are going to stick around for quite some time. Seems like yesterday that Webkinz were all the craze.

According to Bruce Katz we will be seeing these adorable Long Haired Zhu Zhu Pet Hamsters they are calling their Rock Stars – you know a Hamster with an Attitude. I don’t know about you, but I really like these guys – How fun is that hair? They say we will start seeing these in stores around the end of May 2010. Their names: Ryder, Pax, Kingston and Roxie.

In addition to the Long Haired Hamsters Cepia is going to be also introducing us to some Woodland Creatures around the same time. Hamsters do need friends right? They are calling these the “Wild Bunch”. There will be a Skunk- Stinker, Hedgehog – ZuZu, Bunny- Sweetie and Raccoon – Rocco.

Gosh I cannot wait to see what will be coming next – will we have another Christmas with the Zhu Zhu’s again? I am thinking so. Bring it on Cepia – I think they are great and the kids love them!!!

My Blog Post Resource: Meet Zhu Zhu’s successor

It just so happens that I am snowed in  for the weekend – seems we are in what they are calling the snowpocalypse of 2010. Fine with me I was prepared for once.  One meal we decided to make happens to be a long time family favorite of not only the kids, but the adults as well.  I decided I would document how easy it is to make these English Muffin Pizzas and how perfect they are for the Kids Birthday Parties and really any occasion.

It is funny that whenever I mention  I am making English Muffin Pizzas to others I hear things like, “Oh I loved those as a kid” or “I have not had those in so long” – Come on folks these are so Simple to make, Budget Friendly and you can get the kids involved and let them create their own with toppings they love. Forget ordering Pizzas – Make your own it is more fun.

So I am going to remind you just how easy these are to make with my photos and maybe some of you have never even thought to try them and will thank me when you do .

What you will need to create your English Muffin Pizzas:

• Thomas’ English Muffins (Keep in mind each muffin makes 2 mini pizzas – most kids will eat 2 -4)
• Pizza Sauce or any favorite sauce you like
• Mozzarella Cheese
• Toppings – Anything you like on a Pizza
• Pizza Makers – Kids come in very handy

Here are my ingredients ready to go. We really enjoy Prego’s Traditional Sauce so that is what we used. We also choose to use the block of Mozzarella vs. Shredded, but it is just a matter of preference.  My family loves cheese and the block seems to make a much better layer on the pizzas for them. This time we also just made Cheese Pizza with no toppings, but again you can add ANYTHING you want.

The next thing I do is take two muffins and before splitting I rub them together backside to backside over the sink to get off some of the extra stuff that is on the bottom (not sure what you call it) it is no big deal, but my husband prefers it that way. Then I split them in half.  I then line them up on a cookie sheet to get ready for Pre-Toasting in the oven.

I then Pre-Toast my English Muffins under broil in the oven. I do this because we like ours crispy and they really come out better this way. You can do it in a toaster, but when you are making a lot of them it is not time friendly. Also be sure to Pre-Toast both sides – I hate soggy bottom pizzas.

While your English Muffins are in the oven it is time to Cut the Cheese – ha ha.  Of course you can dip in for a snack or two while you wait – me and the kids do that – shhh.

Now here are my Pre-Toasted English Muffins – mine are extra crispy, but remember when you add on the sauce they will get moist again.  Now if you are having a party then give each guest their muffins and let them add the ingredients they like. It is Pizza Making Time!!!

So now it is time to get the Pizza Party started and one of the best parts is creating your Pizza. Add some sauce to each muffin – NOTE: Usually about a Tablespoon to each is enough – if you over do it you will have one soggy pizza – Less is More. Now when it comes to the Cheese – Pile it on – when it comes to the Cheese More is Better – lol.  If you want to add on toppings do it now – you can add on Mushrooms, Pepperoni, Veggies, Meatballs, Sausage etc… Have fun with them. They are your very own Personal Pizzas.

Now stick your Pizza Creations into the oven on Broil until the cheese melts and browns a bit or is done to your liking. Ohhh the anticipation of some good Pizza – no need to worry the wait is short and you will be eating in no time. Whatever you do -DO Not walk away while they are in the oven now – they do cook fast.

And there you have it – Simple Pizzas that are so EASY to make and even better to eat. “Mangia Mangia!!!”

So if you are looking for an Easy Dinner Idea this is it and if you are having a Birthday Party forget ordering Pizza and let the kids have some extra fun in allowing them to be part of the Pizza making fun and allow them to create their very own personal Pizzas they will absolutely LOVE.

Here are some fun Pizza Party Supplies to go along with these Yummy Treats!!

With the new release of the Alice in Wonderland Movie starring Johnny Depp you may find your kids asking to have this theme for their Birthday Party. Our friends at Macdesigns have created some really great Alice and Wonderland Party Invitations that are based on this new movie with many designs and styles to choose from.

One of the design choices are the Alice in Wonderland Ticket Style Invitations. These invitations are designed to look just like a movie ticket, but with all of your party information added on to personalize them.  You can also opt to have detachable stubs just like the ones you get when you go to the theater. In addition to that all their invitations are fully customizable with any Background, Font and Wording. It gets better they also give you the option of printing them at home after they design them for you or shipping them to your home. I love all those options. I also personally love the invite featuring Cheshire Cat – what a fun devious little smile.

The next style they offer are Alice and Wonderland VIP Pass Invitations which are also a lot of fun.  Again they offer many different design choices, I happened to like the Rabbit – he is always so concerned about being late and I think he makes a great choice for a party invitation. Now these VIP pass invites are 2 sided and are completely customizable and they come in a plastic badge holder the kids can wear around their necks when they come to the party. VIP stand for Very Important Person ya know and having one of these will definitely make them feel that way and they are also a nice party keepsake as well.

The next style Macdesigns offers is the Alice in Wonderland Photo Invitation and this one allows your guest of honor to be featured in the party. All you do is send them a photo of your child and they will add them to the invite FREE of charge. Now how cool is that? With this one you also have the option to print from home or have it delivered to you in the mail. I really like this choice.

But wait there is more…  How about a SWEET Alice in Wonderland Personalized Party Favor Candy Bar Wrapper? This is perfect for your Movie Themed Birthday Party.  Again these Candy Bar Wrappers are completely personalized with all your information and you can even add a photo of your child on the back of the wrapper.  You again also have the option to print yourself or have them mailed to you. These wrappers will fit on any standard Hershey Bar perfectly. Now that is one SWEET Party Favor or treat to have out on the table at the party.

Click Here for all your Alice in Wonderland Party Supplies

If you follow my posts you know I love Cupcakes and of course who would not love a Giant Cupcake. It seems these Giant Cupcakes are the new Birthday Cake. Queenvanna a fellow blogger was nice enough to share with me her recent Giant Cupcake she made for her daughter’s Birthday.

They are so easy to make and really make a nice change to your average Birthday Cake.  To make one of these yourself you will need the Big Top Cupcake Set or any of the Giant Cupcake Molds available.

Then choose your favorite Cake Mix, Some Frosting/Icing and your decorations like Sprinkles, Sugar Crystals and of course some Birthday Candles.

The Giant Cupcake Molds come in two parts – Your Top and your Bottom. Mix up your cake mix and pour your mix into the molds and bake into the oven. When your cake has cooled turn it over and your Giant Cupcake should easily slip right out of the mold.

Now comes the fun part – Decorating. Queenvanna said she cut off any of the bumpy parts of the cake so they meshed well together.  Now place the bottom your Giant Cupcake on a plate and add some of your frosting to the top as sort of a glue for the top. Then Place your Cupcake Top on and you are ready to add your frosting.  You can do this anyway you like, but Queenvanna used Wilton’s 1M Decorating Star Tip along with Wilton’s Decorator Icing to get that very pretty design which she piped on. She also tinted her frosting to get that pretty Lavender Color and added on some Sugar Crystals to give it some sparkle. Even though Queenvanna was not feeling well at the time she made this she seemed to keep a steady hand when it came to icing that Giant Cupcake because she did a great job.

Happy Birthday to Queenvanna’s Daughter who definitely loved her Giant Cupcake Birthday Cake this year thanks to mom.

As you can also see Queenvanna has some regular size cupcakes surrounding her Giant Cupcake with these Tinkerbell Cupcake Toppers on them. Some little Birthday Girl is a Tinkerbell fan!!!

Again I would like to say Thank You to Queenvanna for sharing her Yummy Giant Cupcake!!!

Check some of my other Posts and Pages featuring more Giant Cupcakes:

Make a Giant Cupcake for your Party

Giant Cupcake Birthday Cakes

I am so excited to share these Chocolate Covered Rice Krispy Treats that were made to resemble your favorite Zhu Zhu Pets.  These are going to be one great party favor the kids will sure love to take home from your Zhu Zhu Pets Birthday Party. I am also happy my supplier took my idea and brought it to life and did a great job as they always do. These are definitely SWEET!!!

So let me tell you about them:

These Chocolate Covered Rice Krispy Treats are HUGE weighing in at Approx 4-5 ounces each, they come individually wrapped and on a stick and of course they are made fresh to order.

Currently Available are Hamsters that resemble the following Zhu Zhu Pets: Num Nums, Chunk, Mr. Squiggles and Pipsqueak. If you are looking for any of the others just ask and it can be done.

When I give these out at a party all I do is add a ribbon on the stick with a Thank You Tag attached and that is it – they are so big in size you do not need to send the kids home with anything else. If you want you can add a Juice Box so they have something to wash it down with. You can take a look at my Chocolate Covered Penguin Rice Krispy Treats HERE to see how they look with the tags.

So how do you order them?

Normally you can order direct through my website www.ThePartyAnimal.org where I feature so many other great designs to choose from, but at the moment my site is going through a HUGE renovation and I am unable to add them at this time. So if you would like to order these send me an email or call me by Clicking HERE and let me know how many you need, which ones you would like to order and the date you need them by. I will then send you an invoice via my business through PayPal.

The cost is $4.50 each and feel free to mix and match them to offer a nice variety and don’t forget to order one for yourself because they are sooooo YUMMY!!!

and here is a photo of my daughter holding some of the other designs so you can see truly how large they are:

Also stop by my post to see How to plan a Zhu Zhu Pets Birthday Party from start to finish……..

Last year I did a post on Giant Lawn Games which are a perfect addition to any party especially outside. Well I just came across this Jumbo Inflatable Bowling Set that looks like it would be so much fun and not just for the kids either!! Does this look like fun or what?

This Bowling Set includes six 42″ tall bowling pins and one 25″ diameter black Bowling Ball. WoW the pins are almost 4 Feet Tall – can you imagine? Not only would it be fun to bowl with this, but even funnier to watch those who are taking their turn. I am sure it is harder to get those pins down than it looks.

Just inflate, set up and play. The Durable PVC pins withstand heavy use so you can Bowl with these over and over.

Visit HERE for more details and pricing. Fun Fun Fun!!!

When I was a child I absolutely loved to order a Shirley Temple Drink when ever we were out at a restaurant.  It was my very own fancy drink that was alcohol free obviously, but fancy and made me feel a bit grown up.  My kids now get them and also love them. They are the prefect drink to serve at your next party -  They are so easy to make as well.

I was thinking about these recently because my maraschino cherries fell off of my fridge door and broke – the smell of those cherries brought back the memories of the Shirley Temples I love so much. Yes I was sad to see my cherries go to waste as they laid on the floor in a big sticky mess – that was no fun to clean up – but it smelled good.

First some History from WiseGeek:

A Shirley Temple is a sweet, non-alcoholic drink named after the child actress Shirley Temple. The drink was invented for Shirley by a bartender in Beverly Hills, CA. The bartender worked at Chasen’s restaurant, a place Shirley Temple often frequented as a child. Since she clearly could not drink alcohol, Chasen’s sought a drink that would appeal to Shirley’s young palate, and the Shirley Temple was born.

The original recipe called for two parts ginger ale, one part orange juice and about a teaspoon to tablespoon of grenadine. It was usually garnished with a cherry and possibly an orange slice. While the cherry remains, and is many children’s favorite part about the Shirley Temple (definitely mine and I always added extras),  most modern versions of the drink don’t include orange juice.

I also do not remember Orange Juice being in mine either and this is the recipe I like:

Have a Fun Cup or Glass Filled with Ice

Add in some Ginger Ale or Lemon Lime Soda

Approx. 1 1/2 tablespoons Grenadine Syrup or till it looks and tastes good

Add in some Maraschino Cherries – one will not do – Don’t be stingy!!!

The number one must have in any Shirley Temple besides Cherries is a Paper Drink Umbrella and of course a Straw.

So give this a try at your next Birthday Party or Pool Party – Ok any Party for that matter or how about just for Fun. Be prepared to make more and more the kids really do love them and so do I!!!

It was just my son’s 12th Birthday (not sure where the times goes) and he loves Carrot Cake. So he requested that his Birthday Cake was a Carrot Cake this year. Being my sister is the one who is the real baker in the family she made him his Carrot Cake from scratch and I photographed the step by step process to share right here. So if you are looking for a great recipe for Carrot Cake that is moist and delicious than this is the one. It was so yummy and it even had real Cream Cheese Frosting to top it off (recipe here too!!)

Sometimes you do not need a super fancy Birthday Cake to make someone happy. This was not at all the fancy kind, but yet ABSOLUTELY moist, delicious,sweet and full of flavor and it made my son very happy – Mission Accomplished.

Of course this cake would be great for any occasion and even great for Easter!!! The Bunnies would love it!!

The Ingredients Needed for this Carrot Cake are:

* 4 eggs
* 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil
* 2 cups white sugar
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 teaspoons baking soda
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
* 3 cups grated carrots

Frosting Ingredients:

* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
* 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

So now let me walk you through how to put that all together with some fun photos:

First make sure to preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Grease and flour a 9×13 inch pan.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

Peel your Carrots. It is ok to have a nice Carrot snack at this point – we did. Next you need to grate them, but watch those fingers!! Make sure you have 3 Cups ready to go. Now eat the left over Carrots for another snack!!!

Then Mix Carrots into batter – it is not pretty, but the end result is well worth it. Pour your batter in your baking pan and stick into your pre-heated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Enjoy the aroma of your Carrot Cake while it bakes!!

Now while you wait lets make the Cream Cheese Frosting…..

In a medium bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Stick your finger in and taste – shhhh. My sister usually does not use all the sugar called for in the recipe because she thinks it is too sweet – so if you do not want it that sweet add the sugar in until you think it is to your desired sweetness – another excuse to keep tasting!!!

Make sure your Carrot Cake is cooled before frosting. You can also take the cake out of the pan and set on a plate, but this time my sister got lazy and decided it was easier to frost in the pan – so that is what she did. Ok let me explain or she will kill me for writing that – she made this at her house and it was much easier to transport to mine and less dishes she would have to clean – lol.

Now dig in and enjoy!!! This Carrot Cake was so moist and delicious and went very well with a big glass of Cold Milk.

I hope you try it for yourself – Please share with me if you do!!

Someone got their Birthday wish before blowing out those Candles!!!