All In The Timing...

Timing really is everything.  And when I started my first cake in a jar, my timing was off.  I underestimated the amount of time I had to prepare the cakes.  I underestimated the time it would take for them to cook.  As a result, the first bath ended up in the garbage.  It really pains me to know that perfectly good chocolate has gone to waste.

However, I rallied.  With the short person strapped into the high chair, I was able to bake a second batch.  Using a basic chocolate cake base, I experimented with a marshmallow S’mores cake, as well as a chocolate hazelnut Nutella cake.

For the first year of the short person’s life I managed to keep her completely sugar free.  I dutifully made all of her baby food, making sure that each meal covered the entire food pyramid. When she turned a year she had the requisite chocolate cupcake, at which point all bets were off.  I’m hoping that I can teach her better eating habits than I had growing up, but that’s going to mean taking a long hard look at my own eating habits.  I won’t lie.  When she started to get fussy I did toss a couple of marshmallows onto her tray to pacify her.  She played with them, but decided instead that the Toys R Us Christmas catalog that I had given her to look through/tear apart was much more appetizing.  She either has a vitamin deficiency or she’s hoping for a spot on My Strange Addiction, because the child loves to eat paper.  The sad thing is that I didn’t care, since it was keeping her occupied.  Parenting at its best.

The end result were several jars of beautifully baked cakes.  I was almost giddy when I heard each lid "pop", insuring that they were properly sealed.  The Nutella satisfied my need for icing and the marshmallows were gooey-goodness.  I still need to experiment with cake recipes and how to keep them from falling as they cool.  But I have to say that despite the fact that I didn’t get the laundry folded or the pile of mail on the dining room table sorted, I did go to bed last night with a great feeling of accomplishment...Elyzabeth

The finished product.

The section of the Toys R Us catalog that I feel fairly certain was eaten by the Short Person.