An Odd Family Tradition

Are you surviving these winter months? It’s cold in Indianapolis and I’ve been spending time indoors. If you follow me on Instagram, you may have noticed I’ve spent some time at my parents. We have been prepping for a family birthday party next month. My twin uncles are turning 80. Yes, 80.

There is just a small age gap between my mom and her brothers. It makes for an interesting family dynamic. My closest cousin in his 50’s. But my second cousins are closer to my age.

My uncles for decades had dinner with my grandma every Tuesday night. As a kid they would come and do yard work, etc. Then February would roll around. The boy’s birthday approached. There was no question what the dish would be. They always got liver and onions for their birthday.

Yeah, liver and onions. No clue how this tradition got started, but it stayed until my grandma went into a nursing home at 96.

I got the idea to add a small touch of my grandma for the boy’s birthday. Let’s get the boys a smash cake that looks like liver and onions. In my local swap group, a number of cake recommendations are made regularly. I reached out one with my odd request.

The Cake

She delivered. Look at this gem.

liver and onions cake, quiltytherapy

It looks disgusting, which is what I ultimately wanted. While it looks disgusting, it tasted AMAZING!!! The baker made a moist chocolate cake, it was just the right amount of chocolate. The onions are made with cooked apple slices.

At first, I wasn’t sure how the apple slices would work. They look gross but were perfection. There was a cinnamon strudel light icing mixed in. We got to taste test the cake on Monday. Hey, someone had to make sure it would be right for the party.

Check back in February to see how the boys reacted to their surprise. It’s a wonderful personal touch to incorporate my grandma into their birthday.