The day has arrived.  That day, every year, when my sanity slips and I seriously contemplate hurling heavy things over the edge of my balcony with wild abandon.  That’s right,  this is the day I frost the Marine Corps birthday cake.  I explained exactly why this is so daunting in yesterday’s post.    As is the case every year, something went a tiny bet askew, namely one batch of the cakes.  I didn’t get the oven rack back in just right, so my last batch of cakes baked up a little bit crooked.  Sigh.  Oh well, I view frosting as a architectural element in this process; it fills in structure where needed.  This cream cheese frosting could not be easier to make.  My one word of advise is that, when the instructions say beat until smooth, listen to them.  Lastly, once you have beaten that buttery, cream cheesy goodness into submission, use a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to break it up and deflate the air bubbles that have developed in the mixing.  For the rest of the process, I’m going to let the photos speak for themselves.

Okay, did I say that year one was the homeliest, most well meant cake ever?  I think this one is definitely in the running for that title.  Can we all just agree that cake decorating is not my forte, and that it is good  to be real and share failures as well as triumphs?  Thanks, glad you all agree!

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

Makes about 10 cups.

40 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

40 tablespoons (5 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, room temperature

5+ cups confectioners’ sugar (adjust for sweetness)

5 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

Place cream cheese in a medium mixing bowl. Using a rubber spatula, soften cream cheese. Gradually add butter, and continue beating until smooth and well blended. Sift in confectioners’ sugar, and continue beating until smooth. Add vanilla, and stir to combine.