I had a request for chocolate cake and mint chip ice cream.
My daughter “made” this cake.  I measured and she put those ingredients in the bowl.
My little chef was excited to help and very proud of the result.

I’ve been wanting to buy those cake leveling strips for a long time, but I saw a technique I thought I’d try out instead.  Amanda, from one of my fave blogs, I am baker, said she uses old, damp towels to make her cake level (refer to this post).  She speaks the truth.  The cakes turned out great.

I used Amanda’s ideas again on the sides of the cake.
I looked at this post and learned this simple technique is done with an offset spatula.

I topped it with some shaved chocolate and sighed with relief.

But my daughter said, “That’s just a cake, not a father’s day cake.”
And since she is a fondant fanatic, she suggested using some.
I cut out the letters, let them dry for a day, then propped them up with some straws.

I made sure he had his dessert request,
and my kids’ showered my husband with about 54 homemade cards.

I’m pretty sure he couldn’t ask for more.