Ube Velvet Chiffon Cake

Here's a twist on our favorite ube chiffon cake... made even more special with ube buttercream trimmings...

Here it is in the box, ready for delivery...

Isn't it pretty?

Special Ube Cake

Another Ube Cake, by special request!

♥ ♥ ♥

Lime Margarita Chiffon Cake

A special request for a boozy cake got us to bake this one -

Another view...

Doesn't it look good???

Loaded Strawberry Shortcake

This is a cake inspired by something I had a taste of on an out-of-town trip.  That particular cake was a 2 layer strawberry chiffon cake, filled with whipped cream and chopped strawberries, and frosted with whipped cream, topped with slices of fresh strawberries.

Now, I don't particularly like strawberries, unless they are really sweet, and only then if they're dipped in a specific blend of cream, but when I saw the (really) big, plump, really red strawberries at the local market in Baguio, I bought 2 kilos!!!  Price be dxxxxd,  I was determined to make MY strawberry shortcake!  One that is chock-full of strawberries!  From the cake itself, to the filling, frosting, topping... EVERYTHING!

So here are the (2 kilos) strawberries, hulled and cleaned - the smaller ones got chopped, while the larger ones were reserved for the cake topping.

Presenting...  my creation - which I fondly call THE

Loaded Strawberry Shortcake...

3 layers of strawberry chiffon cake (no added flavorings or color!), filled with strawberry cream, with chopped (fresh) strawberries, frosted with strawberry whipped cream, and topped with fresh strawberries!

A peek inside the cake -

And, as usual, I did not add any preservatives, artificial flavors or colors.  So, the cake layers did not have a pink hue, rather the cake layers were more yellowish.  The strawberry cream filling had pureed strawberries as well as chopped strawberries.  The whipped cream is strawberry as well (you can see the strawberry bits) but both filling and frosting are pale pink due to the "natural coloring" of the strawberries.

The only "problem" with this cake?  The lack of supply of fresh strawberries in the local market.  This cake was made with about 2 kilos of strawberries!  Talk about being loaded!!!  But the cost really is  prohibitive!!!

But I would like to offer this cake.  It's just too yummy not to share... I just have to figure out how (and without skimping on the strawberries!). :)

Caramel Cake

A cake that took me a year to make...

Lemon Chiffon Cake, with Custard Cream Filling, frosted with Caramel Icing, with Vanilla Buttercream borders, and decorated with (off-the-shelf) sugar flowers.

While we do not add artificial colors, a birthday cake (or any occasion cake) would look drab.  So while we DO NOT ADD artificial colors, there are times when we use ready made cake toppers or decorations that (obviously) used coloring.  And while, technically, such decorations are made of sugar (and hence can be eaten) we discourage eating them because (really now) all that sugar is really not good for anyone, and there's plenty of sugar in the cake and the icing to begin with!

Anyway, here's a peek inside the cake...

If only the cake was easier to make... took a whole day!  Baking the cake, cooking the filling, making caramel then cooking it to make the icing, then making the buttercream until finally filling and frosting the whole cake!  Imagine if I had to make the flowers myself, too!!!

Anyway, the birthday boy (who requested this cake last year!) was very, very happy.  In fact, he was so happy that within 15 minutes of finishing the cake, a fourth of it disappeared into his tummy.  Some hours later, only half remained.  And as of this writing (technically 12 hours after the cake was finished), only a small slice was left!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what I consider the greatest measure of (my personal) success!

Ube Chiffon Cake

This one is a MaBelle specialty!  and a personal favorite!

special mocha chiffon cake

For a dear friend's birthday...

Everyone was raving about it!!!  One of the guests even said that it was better than the "famous" one...

Woohoo!!!

Birthday Cakes

As of a year ago, we decided to give home baked birthday cakes to our friends.  By far the most requested is the Ube Chiffon Cake (which I am seriously thinking of renaming as Ube Velvet), followed closely by Mocha Chiffon Cake (we are open to suggestions for a name that has a bit more impact and appeal...)

In the past year, we've had requests for these:

60th birthday:

mini mocha cake:

50th birthday:

and, just another birthday...

Other designs are possible, as are other flavors for the chiffon cake - orange, lemon, lime (or dayap) chocolate, walnut, cheese, and even durian!

Our favorite, though, will always be mocha!