I didn’t actually set out to do a cooking segment here, but about halfway into birthday cake production I decided it needed to be documented, so there you go. Unfortunately I didn’t come to this realization until the cake was already baked, but at least I got to photograph the fun part: decorating!
Cake decorating is kind of like surgery, sort of. You need knives, precision, and someone else to help clean up the mess. It is a match made in heaven.
I started with the recipe for Peanut Butter Bulldog Brownie cake from Kerry at Georgia’s Legacy, which she graciously agreed to let me share. I’ll post it at the bottom.
Here it is, ready for a little cake-o-suction.
I split it into two layers. Then, I traced a bone on the layer in front. See the crumbs?
Commence cake corner-ectomy. Surgery is so much easier when you don’t need to worry about a sterile field.
This was actually a really easy cake to carve. I’ve done lots of cake stuff over the past few years, and the denser the product, the easier it is to cut. This recipe makes a very dense, brownie-like cake. I used a serrated steak knife to do the cutting and it was easy-peasy. Soon, the shape started to emerge.
Obviously in a surgical setting you do not feed the castoffs to anyone.
Here we go. That shaped up pretty bone-like, I’d say.
Then, you just place the cut layer on top of the other layer and trace. It’s a piece of cake. ha ha!
No, that is not my shrunken misshapen hand on the right- it’s little 4 year old fingers sneaking in, deciding that dog cake doesn’t taste so bad after all and maybe he will actually try a piece.
I lack the patience to document each individual addition to the mixing bowl in true Pioneer Woman style, so let’s just skip to the good part: cream cheese peanut butter frosting. You didn’t want to see a picture of me unwrapping a package of Philly’s cream cheese, did you? Plus I was in too much of a rush to finish so I could taste it.
Top your bottom layer with some filler icing, then add some zing. Raisins do nicely.
Yeah, that’s weird vet humor for ya. Don’t use raisins. DO NOT USE RAISINS. Use bananas.
Plop on the top layer, then cover in frosting. Stick it in the fridge to make the crumbs adhere a little more.
Then comes my favorite part: add MORE frosting.
You’ll probably have leftover carob powder from the recipe. If you stir it into the leftover frosting, you can make some dark brown icing for embellishment.
If your edges aren’t as smooth as you’d like, cover them up with dog biscuits. If you haven’t left your carob chips in the car on a hot day like I did thus reducing them to a large congealed mass, you could use those, too. You can pretty much do whatever you want, really. Except raisins. Don’t let me dictate your style.
Recipe: Peanut Butter Bulldog Brownie Cake with Banana Filling
courtesy Kerry Malak, Georgia’s Legacy
½ cup shortening or oil
3 Tbsp. honey 4 eggs (or egg substitute)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup whole wheat flour
¼ cup carob powder
½ tsp. baking powder
Cream shortening/oil and honey together thoroughly. Add remaining ingredients. Beat well. Divide batter between two lightly greased 6” round cake pans* and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool completely.
Frosting:
2 packages cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese
2 tsp. honey
2 Tbsp peanut butter
Filling:
1 small banana
Finishing directions:
Beat the cream cheese and honey together until it reaches desired spreading consistency. Add a small amount of milk if needed.
If you will be decorating the cake beyond just frosting it (to add lettering or other decorative touches in a different color) reserve up to ¼ of the frosting for later use. You can add food coloring or carob powder to this frosting and then use with decorator tips.
Add peanut butter and continue to blend until frosting can easily spread.
Spread a thick layer of frosting on bottom cake layer and then top with thinly sliced bananas. Spread bottom of other cake layer with frosting – just enough to help it stick to the bananas – and place on top. Then, you’re ready to frost the outside of the cake & enjoy!
Optional: Decorate using bone shaped dog biscuits along side of cake or crush dog cookies finely and press against sides of frosted cake for a finished look.
*For fast and easy decorating, you can also cook this cake recipe in an 8 x 8 square cake pan and frost as is, without the filling, using only 1 ½ packages of cream cheese.
**I multiplied this recipe by 1.5 in order to bake it in a 9×13 pan. -Dr V
Thank you! I will be stealing this for Puzzle’s birthday in July.
Ok I have to ask, why no raisins?
Raisins have been implicated in renal failure in some pets. So no raisins! Or grapes, for that matter!
Yeah, ummmmm, you scared me there for a second!
Good recovery on the “raisins do nicely” comment! You had me wondering about you there for a second! I’m thinking, like your 4 year old, that dog cake doesn’t look so bad after all and might be worth a taste! Honestly, that icing sounds awesome! Did the whole family have some?
I may have to deviate from my usual dog cake recipe and make this for Cookiegirl soon. I actually have a bone shaped pan that I bought for Blade’s second birthday. It gets loooooots of use. 🙂 Awesome cake Dr. V and we know Brody LOVED it. 🙂
Wow! That looks great! LOL on the raisin part–good job! I have a comment about not allowing the cast offs to be eaten during regular surgery. Growing up I helped the farm vet and believe me, the cast offs were fair game for the farm dogs during the pig castrations–way different world than small animal medicine and way different now (in most parts of the world). Me–I love a sterile surgery field!
I think I might have to try this for Akira, as her 2nd birthday is at the end of the month! I ordered a cake last year, but maybe I’ll venture in to making it this year! (and I about fainted when I saw the raisins too!)
Thanks for sharing ” Baking With Brody” I was hoping you would share. My pups will get cake on their birthdays. Yeah!!!!:-)too cute.
I’m going to try this for my pups’ b-days. And thank you for not doing 100 million photos ala PW! I had to delete her from my google reader to save my sanity.
Went to a birthday party last for “Lady” a German Shepherd turning 10 yrs old at our neighborhood “Dog Bar” Cool place run by volunteers. They had a cake similiar the one you made , Banana in the middle etc shaped like a big dog bone. Made me think of your puppy party only with more pups. 30 to be exact LOL. This place is so cool.
What’s a Dog Bar? That sounds awesome!
The “DOG Bar” is a place in . Everyone brings their dogs , have a beer or two.Not the dogs LOLOL. Let their dogs run free , have fun , play games ,get petted, have treats , walk on the bar if they want ( tiny dogs only ) sit in chairs , mingle,, sniff , play . , with an attached lot for frisbee and ball play. Its an open air bar with attached to a small building, They even have water and baths for all who want. Friday and Saturday nights are wall to wall pups , big and small and in between. No butt heads allowed. first time you show up , you must bring proof of vaccinations etc and all dogs must be fixed so no unexpected hookups happen … LOLOL . Its run by volunteers and the proceeds go to local shelters and rescue orgs. They host Birthday parties and adoption events. There is a dogfood donation night. Everyone brings a bag of dogfood. There is no admission fee. The Dog Taxi ia available in case anyone gets tipsy and needs a ride home , but have never seen that happen yet . Sorry for the long note
Can cats have a sliver of this cake too?
There’s nothing in it that should be harmful to a healthy kitty, though they might find it a little bland being meatless and all. 😀
Cool! I’m gonna keep this recipe for my kitteh’s 1-year-old bday! 😀
Thanks for the tutorial. You can be the Pioneer Woman of dog baking! The Georgia’s Legacy recipe is awesome, thank you for sharing. I am definitely going to make this for Hamlet’s second birthday in August.