[North_Of_60]

DD's 1st birthday is next week, and I keep going back and forth on the whole cake issue. I had thought about doing the watermelon bunny, but I have yet to see any nice watermelons.

If I could find an egg, milk, wheat, and sugar free cake, I'd be in business. My FIL's girlfriend offered to make a cake, which will have 10 pounds of sugar and 8 pounds of cool whip, which even *I* don't want to eat, never mind my daughter. Then my MIL said we can have an "adult" cake, which they will no doubt end up feeding her anyway (like the finger of cool whip FIL's girlfriend fed DD on hubby's birthday

: ).

I feel like I should get a decent cake that I won't be too upset about her eating so that in case someone feeds it to her I won't be too upset.

Any ideas?

:

 

[sesa70]

I am sorry, I am of no help because my dd had a chocolate cake for her first birthday!

But I have heard of alot of moms doing a carrot cake for her first bday. What about an angelfood cake with fresh fruit on top? I dont think it has eggs, wheat or milk, but definately sugar. If you did a homemade recipe you could substitue the sugar for concentrated frozen apple juice. I have done that in cookies and it turns out great!

Good luck, I bet other people will be way more helpful than me.

 

[devster4fun]

OK...this is just my opinion and many will disagree.

It's a Birthday...it's special...she's one. I just don't see the big deal. For us, I want to help my daughter prepare for real life. IMO, real life is having a piece of cake once in a while. Balanced with healthy meals, a glass of milk and piece of fruit, that's what makes life wonderful.

My parents absolutely forbade candy and sweets when I was little. Guess who was OBSESSED with those things as a child? I suppose it's the forbidden fruit idea.

My personal rule for eating desserts/treats is, could I have this anytime? Is it special? Can I make it at home? If not...I go ahead and indulge once in awhile.

Just my thoughts....great, now I want some cake

 

[sesa70]

Quote:

Originally Posted by devster4fun OK...this is just my opinion and many will disagree. It's a Birthday...it's special...she's one. I just don't see the big deal. For us, I want to help my daughter prepare for real life. IMO, real life is having a piece of cake once in a while. Balanced with healthy meals, a glass of milk and piece of fruit, that's what makes life wonderful. Just my thoughts....great, now I want some cake

I want some cake too!

Seriously though, I do agree with this. I dont know, however, if their are food allergies involved? If so thats a different story. I know personally I love sweets and wont give them up. How fair is it for me to be munching on some yummy cake while poor dd watches but cant have any? For us its not big deal.

 

[North_Of_60]

I have no problem with having some treats, and I certainly won't be "forbidding" cake. HOWEVER, we have not introduced eggs (whites), milk, sugar, or very much wheat. I don't think it is wise to introduce so many new foods in one day. Especially something that is prone to giving one belly aches. I get sick when I eat a lot of sweets, and I don't care if it's her birthday, but I don't want to be up all night with a kid who has a belly ache from shoveling her face full of cake all day.

 

[devster4fun]

From the 1-year parties I've been to, very little cake actually makes it to their mouth and tummies

Mostly, it's worn, smeared, smushed and you take a picture. Game over.

And, really...that's a good lesson. There's a time for cake, enjoy and move on. No cake all day!!

This is probably a stupid question....if a whole cake has 2 eggs in it and it's baked, is it still an issue? I wonder if the cooking/baking makes a difference. I really think the specialness of the day overrides the small amount of cake she might actually consume. But, if it's an issue for you, your family should respect that. Like, if she were diabetic....or allergic....there are gluten-free flours and sugar free cakes. Maybe google a recipe.

Is that the bigger issue for you? Your family bringing a cake THEY want vs. respecting your wishes?

We're gearing up for our 1st Birthday too...April 25th! We'll be at Disney with our family. We can't wait!!

 

[sesa70]

Quote:

Originally Posted by North_Of_60 I have no problem with having some treats, and I certainly won't be "forbidding" cake. HOWEVER, we have not introduced eggs (whites), milk, sugar, or very much wheat. I don't think it is wise to introduce so many new foods in one day. Especially something that is prone to giving one belly aches. I get sick when I eat a lot of sweets, and I don't care if it's her birthday, but I don't want to be up all night with a kid who has a belly ache from shoveling her face full of cake all day.

Hmm maybe you could find a cake recipe that doesnt have eggs, milk, or tons of sugar? Maybe you could find a cake with wheat (since she has had some) and small amounts of sugar? That way your not introducing too many new foods at once?
I am sure there are vegan cakes out there that would be free of milk and eggs.

 

[lucyem]

Personally I think a little piece of chocolate or vanilla cake or even carrot cake I made with a little bit of frosting is not a bad thing. A cool whip cake really scares me.

Do you have access to any good bakery's or recipies? My MIL always buys a gluten free cake for her birthday at a bakery near her. King Arthur Flour online has some good gluten free mixes she loves. Also see www.cherrybrookkitchen.com/items.asp You can order online. I have not tried the cake version but we do get the chocolate chip cookie mix which is fabulous.
They also have a cake mix with no gluten and no dairy.

 

[North_Of_60]

Quote:

Originally Posted by devster4fun From the 1-year parties I've been to, very little cake actually makes it to their mouth and tummies Mostly, it's worn, smeared, smushed and you take a picture. Game over.

Not in my house. She eats very well, and if she likes the taste, very littles gets wasted. She eats anything I put in front of her (or anything she can get her hands on for that matter).

Quote:

This is probably a stupid question....if a whole cake has 2 eggs in it and it's baked, is it still an issue?

Why would I want to find out on her birthday? Seriously, this isn't the day I want to experiment with new foods. Sure, I'm probably being over cautious, but I have enough things to worry about on that day instead of food allergies.

Quote:

Is that the bigger issue for you? Your family bringing a cake THEY want vs. respecting your wishes?

The issue is that I don't want her having certain foods. At least not on her birthday. When I get around to introducing these ingredients then I'm sure she can have some treats (like at Christmas or next year's birthday) but I'm not going to rush it for the "specialness" of this years birthday.

My family is pretty good about respecting my wishes, but I think I'd like to find a cake (or a cake alternative) that she can have that does not contain egg, wheat, milk, or sugar. If such a cake exists.

Power to those who do tradition sugary cakes on the 1st birthday, but it ain't gunna happen here. Guess I'm a big meany. I'll get over it.

(And honestly, is a 1 year old REALLY going to know they aren't getting "cake" on their birthday? No. This is an issue for the adults, not the kids.)

 

[HeyJoe]

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=634513

I thought this was funny because I just posted on the topic this morning at the above link. Good luck finding something that will meet your needs!

 

[devster4fun]

I hear ya...stick to your guns.

There MUST be tons of recipes out there that would fit your bill.

I am, however, very mad at you now.

I mean...all this talk of cake has stirred up my obsession...CUPCAKES!! When I was pregnant, I would spend days searching for the perfect cupcake. Not too much frosting, moist, etc... I swore them (and all desserts) off to lose the extra baby weight. And, I've lost 11 lbs during the last 5 weeks. Yeah for me!! But, maybe just one.........mmmmmmmmmm.....cupcakes.

 

[North_Of_60]

I know, getting pregnant turned me from a salty savory person to a sweets person. Anything that has chocolate in it is fine by me. And I secretly really would like some cake.. hence this post. A watermelon and yogurt just won't cut it.

 

[lalaland42]

Try the Cherrybrook Kitchen cakes. You can get them at Target (at least here) and Whole Foods. They are pretty good, I've made them. They are allergen free except some have soy in them. DD seems slightly allergic to eggs so for her first b-day, I made a cake and replaced the eggs with a little bit of sour cream (two egg sized scoops).

They still have sugar in them (and I am anti-sugar too) but I tend to agree that a birthday is one time DD can have a little sugar.

 

[AlbertaJes]

Quote:

What about an angelfood cake with fresh fruit on top? I dont think it has eggs, wheat or milk, but definately sugar.

Angel food cake is made with egg whites and wheat in the form of cake flour. The only thing there you'll be able to stay away from is the milk.

Quote:

Originally Posted by devster4fun This is probably a stupid question....if a whole cake has 2 eggs in it and it's baked, is it still an issue? I wonder if the cooking/baking makes a difference.

I have a sister who is allergic to eggs, and no, cooking the food doesn't make a difference. She reacts to any tiny bit that might be in there.

 

[crunchymamma]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lalaland42 Try the Cherrybrook Kitchen cakes. You can get them at Target (at least here) and Whole Foods. They are pretty good, I've made them. They are allergen free except some have soy in them. DD seems slightly allergic to eggs so for her first b-day, I made a cake and replaced the eggs with a little bit of sour cream (two egg sized scoops). They still have sugar in them (and I am anti-sugar too) but I tend to agree that a birthday is one time DD can have a little sugar.

I LOVE cherrybrook kichen here!!! That is a MUST in our hosue with Mikey's milk allergy..I make the chocolate with the vanilla icing and they are wonderful!!!

 

[mommy2abigail]

Another vote for the cherrybrooke cake mixes. And I must be a big 'ole meany too because I didn't let dd have a sugary cake for her first birthday, and I wont have one for her second either! We had fresh fruit and veggies, little finger sandwiches, bottles of water and homemade muffins with homemade frosting. The muffins were an apple cinnamon mix with the cherrybrook frosting on top. The muffin mix had no milk or eggs but it did have wheat (I think) and some sugar. Maybe you could substitute applesauce for the eggs in a mix? That would sweeten it up a bit, without using as much sugar? Or maybe use Agave syrup or maple syrup if you've tried those? Kudos to you for having a healthy alternative party. Everyone made fun of me and someone even brought an 'adults only' cake, because they heard about my homemade organic muffins idea and were bound and determined to give dd some 'real cake'.

: Guess what, NONE of the kids complained about the 'cupcakes' I made. They all LOVED them, and the 'adult cake' was left untouched. HA HA HA!

 

[mcamy]

I stressed about the first birthday cake too, and it was all for nothing. I ended up just getting a bakery cake and DD would not touch it. She still won't touch sweet stuff and she is almost 2.

DD was also egg and milk free for her first year due to allergies, so I understand where you are coming from. Just make it a special and fun day, believe me the last thing a one year old is worried about is what type of cake you put down in front of them.

 

[AmyC]

I had the same anxiety about all the careful introducing of foods, then Wham! I'm supposed to give her cake full of (even "healthy") ingredients all mixed together when she turns one? How arbitrary is that?! (Especially if you happened to delay solids, or if you've been going slowly.) It was really hard for me to get a sense of what to do.

I ended up making her a cake with frosting (I did a carrot cake recipe from the Super Baby Foods book.) We had invited one family over but there was a big snowstorm that morning, so it was just us. She experimented with the cake; I think she enjoyed it. I didn't make a cake at all for her second birthday (nor did we have anybody over--no family in the area, and we just kept it mellow) and for her third birthday last week, I made a yellow cake that featured cooked millet. It was so yummy; I was really pleased. But it had millet and orange juice and eggs and maple syrup and whole wheat pastry flour, so not really a simple selection of ingredients that would work for you. But maybe you could do something with millet, or even oatmeal (you could run it through the food processor to make an oat flour; I've done that for cookie recipes, before.)

I think you can find what you're looking for (look for gluten-free and vegan recipes?) and the Super Baby Foods book and Whole Foods for the Whole Family both feature lots of recipes with alternative sweeteners. I know there's at least one recipe in the latter book that includes no eggs; I think that one does have buttermilk.

We have an older cookbook called Cooking With the Stars (put out by the Center for Science in the Public Interest) that has a sugar-free, egg-free, dairy-free recipe for a lemon poppyseed cake that features ground flax seed. I've made it. I bet your daughter would like it, but I'll warn you: your other guests might not think it tastes like "real cake." That one does use whole wheat pastry flour.

Why don't you pursue some of those gluten-free options people have mentioned? (Are the Cherrybrook Kitchen cakes mixes? Sounds like it.) Or seek out some gluten-free and vegan recipes and you can control what sweetens your cake...

 

[Vicitoria]

A lot of my friends made a special carrott cake for their kids 1st birthday. They actually made it just for their kid and everyone else had regular cake. I don't know where the recipe is.

But, honestly, it's a first birthday. The child will now know or remember it. My son only ate a bite of his first birthday cake and his second birthday cake because we slipped it in. He really could care less.

As I recall, the carrott cakes were simply demolished and pictures of happy, messy babies were taken.

 

[Ilovelife]

I understand. I'm not as concerned about foods since my guys have had pretty much everything, but I just got off the phone with my sister who was going to bring a birthday cake to my parents house this weekend for them. Then dh's parent would probably buy one for them. And keep in mind we plan to celebrate their birthday here as a family on Tuesday, which is their birthday. I said NO! I do NOT want to have 35 birthday parties with sugary cakes for my one year olds. Bring a present if you must, but please don't bring a cake! Loving relatives just think it's the cutest thing to see a baby eat cake. Admittedly, most of them DO enjoy it & it is cute to see their reaction to one of their first "treats". As a pp mentioned, the treats in life are what makes life sweet. Just a long way of saying--stick to your guns. Sometimes you just need to tell people how it's going to be! Just tell them you're all set with the cake and if they'd like to contribute maybe they could bring some decorations or whatever. Then you can make muffins or whatever you think IS appropriate for your baby. Sure, some people will probably grumble/snicker/overreact in other immature ways, but that's THEIR problem. It's your baby, after all. You know what's best for her.