dessert grazing board

As a gift to my loved ones, sharing a little of my professional life, I curated a dessert grazing board to help celebrate my birthday this 3rd of July. The spread went along with an amazing feast of a dinner party hosted by my family at home. I’m never going to forget these precious days of my life.

Take a peek at the details in all that I made, while referencing thoughts about being my mother’s daughter.

the sweets

When I was thinking about all the goodies I wanted to make, I was being mindful about some well known favorites of my family, and some new ideas I knew they’d love. For the look, I decided my cakes and desserts would be inspired by vintage cook books. I’ve always loved them. My Mom and I have been collecting them for decades. I have kept every tab, note, and photocopied recipe-add folded into each of them.

My strategy for the spread, was to focus on the look of a grazing board layout. I wanted to completely fill ever inch of the 3’x2′ board I made, and break up the individual dessert rows with lower-profile cakes for guests to easily slice by hand.

the cakes

I made a total of four cakes. Three for slicing at the dessert board, and one set aside to blow out the candles and add to the table afterwards.

Salted Dulce de Leche Brownie

For my Chocolate Lovers: Dutch Chocolate cake had brownie bites baked into it. The cakes were covered in chocolate ganache. The top was piped with dulce de leche caramel, topped with mini flourless brownie bars, and coarse salt. This was so rich and decadent! The beautiful caramel with unavoidable sweetness was cut with the salt sprinkles. This was the ultimate. My Dad would have loved this!

Cookies & Cream heart

Vanilla-based Cookies & Cream cake, with a whole Oreo cookie crust, was covered in cookies & cream buttercream, topped with vanilla piping, and mini cookies. I think people were afraid to make the first slice, so I went ahead and started it so they could feel comfortable going for it when it was dessert time.

SPiced Apple “BOONT”

My mom and I would always crack up referencing the “Boont”? and “BUND-T” scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Since the Greek mom doesn’t get it, she puts flowers to coverthe hole. For extra smiles (for me) I made my own version of a “Boont.” This brought me so much joy! And the flavor… Ummmmm. So, so good. For the batter, I used chunks of spiced apples using Nonna’s Apple Pie filling recipe, and created a pour over apple pie glaze to flavor the buttercream frosting that covered the bundt cake. To make it extra cute, some Chamomile flowers were placed on the outside, with a small bud vase filled for a center arrangement.

BiCentennial-Baby Red Velvet

I broke tradition this year and made “my own” birthday cake. Red Velvet is not my favorite flavor, but it is so loved! I made a micro three-layered (2.5″, 4″, and 6″ cake) in muted Americana colors – very pale pink and periwinkle for the layered micro piping,

Everything came together easily and for whatever reason I was inspired by my top I bought a few days before so I did match my cake. Why not?! The flowy Farm Rio theme had me topping the cake with fresh summer cherries, blueberries, and strawberries.

about the dessert board

The centerpiece of our 7ft by 3.5ft dining room table was all about dessert. It measured just over 4 feet long by about 3 feet wide. Risers were added to the top and side of the 3’x2′ board to hold of the cookies. I placed the board-cakes first, and then laid out a flow for the desserts placed row by row, including under the cake pedestals. I love how it all turned out!

My goal was achieved! My family and friends tasted and felt my love, and were overjoyed.

I didn’t count how many individual desserts I put out until the day of the party. As I was going, I knew I had more desserts than space on the board I made, so all small-bake cookies were set on three additional risers. It would take the layout to closer to 4′ across by 3′ wide. Not counting the cake slices, all together there were just over 220 individual dessert servings on the table to serve 26 guests in all.

Counting family-style portions of cake slices, there were about 288 servings (over 10 servings per guest). I wanted it to be beyond-abundant and for everyone to take desserts home. They did! I just love treating my people!

the flowers

Kept very simple. Karen surprised me with the most gorgeous arrangement she delivered to my door at home before leaving on a flight to visit her son for the holiday weekend. She always amazes me with her generosity and pure artistry.

Around the house and on tables, my daughter used 20 ceramic bud vases (similar in finish to the one used in the ‘Boont’ cake) she made, and filled them with all Dahlias in white, pink, and orange. Dahlias are one of my all time favorite flowers! I love growing them too!

joy and grief overlapping

On a personal note, these last two years have been incredibly intense, as the full-time caretaker for my precious mom and best friend. Any virtue of fortitude has been fine tuned for my soulmate, who has lived with us and been present as nuclear family for both myself and my children since the days we were born. She has been in home hospice with us since Christmas of last year and took a significant decline in the days before the celebration.

Every breath within these days have been an ‘ I Love You.’ This is the third time she would be considered close to ‘transition,’ so to say this season of my life has been hard or a rollercoaster is an understatement. I am better for it. I have never been stronger or closer to God. I feel successful because I know that my mom knows deep down that I will pour every ounce of love to take care of her as the most important and significant duty as I’ve ever had. I’ve been through a lot in life, but this has been next-level, written for the mature chapter for sure! I’m grateful. She doesn’t want me to cry so I do not around her. She wants and deserves joy.

I don’t share personal anguish in my work at all, because it’s so extremely personal and separate from the joy I fulfill for the best days of the lives of my clients through either Mili’s Sweets or Glorified Hobby florals. Work and creativity are a wanted and happy distraction. These parts of my life coexist. I’m so happy to say, Mom (aka Nonna) made it through my 50th. She is here today! Her family and her friends are so incredibly present. I’m blessed and proud to be her daughter. She is the first love of my life. She is loved beyond measure.

With all of this, my husband and kids wanted to throw me a celebration for pure joy with my oldest friends, and I have never felt more loved, humbled, or more whole in my entire life. I’m grateful to step into being a ‘young’ old lady. I want to live nothing by love.

Thanks for being here. xoxoxo