It's a piece of cake to bake a pretty cake

Have you realized that cakes are no longer just for eating. They have grown from something you eat on a birthday to a piece of art that showcases a baker's ability.

Even Roofus gets a gourmet carrot cake on his birthday.

Growing up, the baking of a cake signified an important event. If it wasn't my birthday it was probably somebody else's in my family. On the off chance that a cake was baked just for the sake of baking a cake, well that was almost like having a birthday anyway.

I always teetered between store bought cakes and homemade cakes for my birthdays. I loved the sugary icing on the store bought cakes but enjoyed the variety of cakes available from my mom. I could get a trademarked character on a store bought cake but almost preferred Funfetti.

Is that a Gray Ranger? Why are there only three? What is going on?

My dad always wants a chocolate cake with chocolate pudding icing on his birthday. I don't like it. I know it's hard to imagine not liking cake but it's possible. Obviously I still eat it, who are you kidding? I would be scared to eat most of the cakes made today though.

I figure if a cake takes more than a couple hours to mix, bake, ice and decorate then you shouldn't eat it. It would be like tearing down a playing card tower or kicking over an intricate sandcastle.

I haven't counted but a rough estimate of the number of TV shows dedicated to cake totals about 2,000. I'm kidding of course but there are a lot of them. Cake Wars, Cake Boss, Ace of Cakes, Last Cake Standing, cake, cake, cake...

Is that a chandelier on a giant pile of luggage?

I don't want to say that I'm complaining because cake is in my top five foods of all time list but it's a little ridiculous. They don't even put real frosting on most of them. Instead they use fondant. I've never had it so it may be yummy. I think I'll stick with homemade icing...or frosting. Which is it? I don't think it matters.

While the cake game has taken a giant leap forward, the days of homemade birthday cakes are still thriving. In fact, I have four cake mixes at home right now, anxiously waiting to be baked. And in case you think that all cakes are fancy and perfect, check out Cake Wrecks.

Who says you can only celebrate birthdays, graduations and weddings?

Want to learn how to bake your own cake? Follow these instructions.