Mmmm... Birthday Cake

That was my best Homer Simpson impersonation. I love birthday cake. It doesn't have to be fancy. It doesn't have to have filling. Just a box of Duncan Hines or Betty Crocker cake mix. Preferrably fudge marble flavored. And the frosting has to be buttercream. My mom makes the best buttercream frosting. And since it's nearly the end of the first week of July, and the Nablopomo theme is "Food," and I haven't posted about food yet, here's my first food post. Plus a couple of birthday cake photos.

Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup butter or margerine
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk

Cream butter and shortening with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar one cup at a time, beating well at medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, frosting will appear dry. Add milk and beat at high speed until light and fluffy. Keep icing bowl covered with damp cloth until ready to decorate cake. For best results, keep bowl in refrigerator when not in use.