My Little Pony 5th Birthday Party, Part 2, the Desserts!

More My Little Pony Fun for today's blog post!  This time it's about the sweet stuff--the dessert table.

Let's start with the centerpiece of any birthday celebration:  the cake!

I'd made a rainbow unicorn cake I really loved for my older daughter's 5th birthday a few years ago, and it was kind of hard to come up with a fresh take on the theme.  I wanted something different for Niamh, though, not just a copy of something I'd created for her sister.  

So I sketched up a cool new pony-riffic design, and showed it to Niamh.  But she had a different vision, and she proceeded to describe an elaborate cake that included ponies holding up the top tier of cake, caryatid style.  "Can you do that?" she asked.  "I can try," I replied.  "You have to, Mommy," was her answer.  "It's your duty."

Duty calls, I guess!  I had to try, so I borrowed the cake support system that my grandmother, a professional cake decorator, had her brother-in-law custom design for her (it's the best cake riser system ever invented!).  And I got to work making a gumpaste Rainbow Dash. 

Rainbow Dash, as a pegasus, was the logical choice to hold up our cake tier of clouds and rainbows.  Plus, Rainbow Dash is Niamh's favorite pony.  I only had time to sculpt one of the ponies, and did a quick gumpaste wrap around the other two supports.  Rainbow Dash can totally handle the job on her own, though.  She's tough.

The toy barn and silo are actually family heirlooms.  They were built by my grandfather for my father when he was a very small boy.  He spent many hours playing with the toy set when he was a kid, then it was passed on to me, and now my daughters got to enjoy it.  Not only was it the perfect prop for our version of Sweet Apple Acres, but it has special family significance.

The barn has all sorts of charming and authentic details, including trap doors into the hay loft, and a beam for lifting up the bales of hay.

 I knew from the instant I imagined using the barn as a prop that I wanted Rice Krispie Treat bales of hay, including one being hoisted by a pony in the hay loft.  

Rice Krispie Treats are my baking nemesis, however.  I cannot make them to save my life.  Really.  So I just bought these.  

I found these little chick paper treat buckets on clearance after Easter, and filled them with popcorn.  What an easy, fun addition to our little farmyard display, and the kids loved having popcorn as a snack option.

Ring pops (Spike's Favorite Snacks) were another easy addition to the spread of treats, and were another inexpensive dollar store find.

Krumkake cookies are a family favorite, and they already look like unicorn horns, so they were a perfect choice.  They're delicate, light, and not too sweet.

I had grand plans to make Cutie Mark Macarons, but alas, ran out of time.  Quick and easy gumpaste flowers in rainbow colors were a simple, last-minute substitution.

My grandmother made the little play feed bags.  She died when I was 10, but the second I pulled them out of storage, I recognized her handwriting and a flood of memories of loving letters and birthday cards came back.  Funny how such a little thing can affect you so strongly.

An antique wooden toy truck made a perfect serving dish for the apple sugar cookies.  Of course we had to have apple cookies at our Sweet Apple Acres!

For drinks, we had water and Fizzy Apple Cider (one of Applejack's specialties).  It was just a mix of sprite and apple juice, and the kids went nuts for it.  There was sangria for the adults (which may have contributed to the glitter tattoo tramp stamps from yesterday's post).

Lots of tutorials from this party coming up in the days ahead, so come back for tons of ponyriffic fun!