Birthdays

Including what counts as "good mayo," how to make the best peanut butter and jelly, and the secret to cucumber salad.

If you’ve ever transported a cake from point A to point B, you know it’s easier said than done. I once tried to bring homemade cupcakes to work. To help me do so, I borrowed a cupcake carrier (which shall remain nameless) from the office. I feel it’s important to point out the fact that said office was a food magazine. You’d think they’d have the best cupcake carrier on the market, right? Nope!

My mom was the Queen of Birthday Parties. I’m not sure it was ever her intention to secure that title but, as an innately creative and exceptionally loving person, her natural inclination is to honor each of life’s occasions with the flair and fanfare it deserves — sometimes even more than it deserves.

What’s cuter than a full-size layer cake and more festive than a cupcake? A mini layer cake! Jordan from Oh Happy Day has a tutorial for making these adorable cakes, which are baked in repurposed tin cans.Clean tin cans are simply greased, floured and used in place of the usual cake pan. These particular cakes took about 25 minutes to bake, then were cut into four layers and frosted. Tiny cakes like this look much easier to handle than the usual 9-inch layers, yet are nearly as impressive.

Cookbook: Surprise-Inside Cakes by Amanda Rettke Overall Impression: This is one of the most creative and inventive cake cookbooks I’ve seen in a long time. Make one of these elaborate, surprising cakes and without a doubt, you will bring a smile to someone’s face. These surprise-inside cakes are the epitome of special. When you flip through this cookbook, it’s impossible not to be amazed.