Because I love birthdays so much, I had a lot to live up to with this one. Bax has had some pretty nice birthdays over the years. Her first will probably always be my favorite. She was my first puppy and only the second dog my family ever had, so I had no idea what to expect when I put presents in front of her. It was nothing short of adorable...
She's always been a curious sort and knew right from the start that the presents were for her
I adorned her in a fun birthday bandanna for the occasion
One of my favorite parts about this birthday was how she opened her own presents
She was really into it
This was another birthday that she got a present that I was super jazzed about. I loved a good polka dot (and still do from time to time)
I did not make this cake, although it's one of my life-long dreams to recreate it. It came courtesy of her favorite puppy boutique in Tulsa, OK
Year 2 brought the passing of her first friend (our family dog Lacie, a sweet border collie mix that bad puppy Baxter drug around by the tail far too often) and the arrival of a new friend, Penny the Labradoodle, who was much more willing and excited to participate in Bax's birthday celebration.
2 year old Bax still retained her child-like wonderment
This was her standard cake for the first three years
And she was thrilled. Such a ham sometimes
She loved that cake
It's a little blurry because Penny wasn't into be still, ever, but I love how she's smiling and enjoying the party
Year three was an interesting celebration. My parents moved from Oklahoma back to the homeland (Maryland) that summer, but Sister, Bax, and I remained in school (college and law school respectively) in the Sooner state. At one point during the semester Sister and I decided Baxter needed a friend since Penny had moved to Maryland and law school was taking up more of my time than she'd grown accustomed to. Enter Clarabella "Bella"Bronstein, the West Highland Terrier puppy (and the last small dog I will ever own). So, when Thanksgiving break rolled around we undertook our first of many cross-country road trips (I've seriously made that drive no less than 20 times in 3 years, evening dragging TF into the fun...but that's a story for another day) to celebrate my favorite holiday with the fam. Since we wouldn't be back until Christmas, the visit also included Baxter's 3rd birthday celebration, complete with her favorite cake, which we schlepped all the way from Oklahoma in a cooler (seriously, this trip was epic).
Adorning her traditional birthday attire
This was Bella's first party, she didn't really understand that the presents weren't for her
Baxter is the best to buy presents for. She gets so excited! (Also, not sure why Penny had to be caged, but I'm guessing it was because she was struggling with the concept of presents not being for her and it was interfering with Bax's day)
1,300 miles later, the cake was still as good as she remembered
Bella's first time with puppy cake. She was in love
They made up and enjoyed some time together (Bax wrapped in one of her new presents, because she doesn't like to be cold) before we hit the road
Year 4 was a small, intimate celebration (Bax, Bella, and I) as I got wise and flew home for Thanksgiving. She still loved present opening just the same
I have no idea what happened to birthday number 5, but that was my last year of law school and around the time I moved to the east coast, so I'm guessing it wasn't celebrated in a big way. But for year 6 I returned to my party throwing ways, even making her cake and some side biscuits from scratch (my inner baker was beginning to emerge).
The gang had also learned how to attend and behave at parties
To help with her adjustment to east coast winters, Bax got a dashing little coat
It's really hard to say who's enjoying themselves more in this picture
Last year, I tried to reprise my role as "baker of puppy birthday treats," but sadly I failed. While the mini cupcakes I created turned out just fine, they did not agree with Bax's stomach. Baker fail.
Despite the end result, she seemed to enjoy the gesture
And that brings us to this year. Hopefully Baxter's birthday photo review wasn't too incredibly boring, although I'm guessing if you're still with me by this point you share my love of dogs :)
For this birthday I wanted to make her a special treat yet again, but shaken by the results of my creation last year, I was a little nervous for how it would turn out. I found a new recipe and dove in.
Banana and Applesauce Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Adorned with one candle as not to overwhelm the birthday girl
Ingredients
Adapted from Barkify
Cake
- 1 cup whole wheat flour + 1 Tbsp corn meal
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 over ripe banana
- 1/2 Tbsp canola oil
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
Icing
- 4 oz fat free cream cheese (softened)
- 1/4 cup natural peanut butter
- **use small amount of unsweetened apple sauce to thin out the icing if needed
Ready to bake
Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Spray cupcake pan or load pan with canola oil (or use cupcake liners)
3. Mix dry ingredients together
4. Mix wet ingredients, including the smashed banana, with an electric mixer
5. Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix well until ingredients are combined
6. Pour mixture into pan and bake for 25-30 minutes (less time if making cupcakes)
7. While cupcakes are baking, prepare icing. Mix softened cream cheese and peanut butter with an electric mixture until well blended and spreadable
8. Add a small amount of unsweetened applesauce if icing needs to be thinned [I ended up adding 2 Tbsps]
9. Allow cake to cool for about 20 minutes before adding icing. I topped the cake with some mini biscuits I had on hand to pull the cake together and serve as pho sprinkles
Waiting patiently for her cake to be finished
She could smell the peanut butter and was determined to wait it out
"Happy Birthday" time
First taste....will she like it
She LOVED it [I cut her a piece of it and didn't let her devour the whole cake]
Gone in a flash!
And then it was present time. Still curious
New bed. She'd had her previous one since her first Christmas (also engraved with her name) and I decided it was time for a fluffier model as she ages
I think she likes it. All tuckered out
And so concludes another birthday for my beloved Shepherd!
No comments:
Post a Comment