KONNICHIWA!

When I was first asked to make a "Sushi" Cake for a birthday party........although I am a sushi fan, my first reaction was......Oh Moses, how am I going to pull this off? But after a few rough drawings, I had a plan, and it went something like this.......

I used a carrot cake baked in a 9 x 13 pan. After leveling it off, I covered it in white fondant and let it dry and "set up" for about 12 hours.

I took white foamboard and cut it to about 12 x 16, then used edible food markers to decorate the board in a grid.

Then I mixed a "potion" of brown food coloring with vodka. Yes, you heard me....vodka, and using a an inch wide paint brush, I painted on the color. The goal was to eventually end up with something that looked like wood. When dry, the vodka remains very shiny and has a nice lacquered quality.

The next step was to create "sushi" pieces from fondant. In looking back, I think the pieces are a bit too thick and I'll remember to roll out the fondant a little more thinly next time.

The ginger and wasabi........also made of fondant.

The chopsticks were made from fondant and allowed to dry for about 4 days. Then I used black food coloring and........yes, you guessed it......vodka, to paint a black lacquered finish.

Tanjoubi Omedetou !

(Happy Birthday)