This is my birthday weekend (huzzah)! Over the years, my family has graced my with many beautiful cakes. This is an ode to those tasty confections — and to my family.
Growing up in Atlanta, my mother purchased her cakes from Rhodes Bakery. It was founded during the Great Depression by the matriarch of the family, Magdeline, to make ends meet.
The icons on my first cakes were clowns because I loved them so much. (You could guess that by my books, right?) By the time I was sixteen, I'd graduated to cake toppers that complimented my birthday wish list. That year, it was a Princess phone for the new extension in my bedroom.
One birthday cake memory is tied to a mishap. After picking up my cake that year, my mother put it on the back seat instead of asking me to hold it. The cake found its way to the floor when the car stopped short. The good news: it didn't affect its deliciousness.
I loved Rhodes' cakes so much because of its seven-minute icing. Ideally, it was ordered in the shoulder seasons or winter since the region's notoriously hot and humid summers wreaked havoc on this light and airy concoction. It would disappear!
Since Mother's birthday was in August, she opted for the bakery's Orange Chiffon cake, a tart version of angel food! It soon became another favorite of mine.
