A few weeks from my birthday, I realized I had a lot to celebrate. I have been struggling with depression and anxiety and have finally made it back to myself.
I wasn’t waiting for anyone to plan something, because well, I’m great at this and I know what I like. You want something special MAKE IT HAPPEN!!! This was one of those times I did not want to cook or prepare anything. I wanted to relax on my day! I went to my go to place. Goldbelly!!! I had been eyeing this cake for a long time so I ordered the Red Velvet PieCaken by PieCaken Bakeshop! (I don’t get any money from these referrals! They really are a life saver when I just want a break from cooking and baking. Totally authentic referral!)

I wanted something different. I didn't want my regular chocolate cake from Publix or homemade cupcakes. I wanted the monster of all cakes!!! It is considered the turducken of cakes. It has chocolate pecan pie, cheese cake and red-velvet layers! Topped off with a strawberry champagne frosting!! Let me tell you it didn’t last! I did save one piece for later in my freezer and it freezes really well. My whole family had a favorite “part of the cake” so no one was left out. The only thing it wasn’t dairy free for my little one so I did make her cupcakes. She not a big fan of desserts just yet.

I like food to be an event. DIY sushi kits from our local sushi joint was perfect. My son who is not a huge fan of sushi or cooking really got into it. I had everyone in my family watch a 1 minute video on how to make sushi and we were off. Don’t skip on the water for your fingers, it really helps the stickiness on your fingers when pressing into the matt. Also make sure when you cut your sushi use a very sharp knife and tip it down. the sticky residue from the rice on the knife makes it hard to cut. I thought I could skip the water, and it just latched onto my fingers and my son in his teenage charm said “didn’t you watch the video!”

We each made our own and shared with each other. I was so surprised at how my my picky eaters loved this experience. It was a great birthday dinner. There is something about making or creating your own that makes you more willing to try. Maybe it is the fact you know and see everything that went into your sushi roll. I remember my first time eating sushi, I was a little scared I was probably 20. I boldly tried everything that was ordered, from eel to seaweed salad. These DIY sushi kits were so family friendly they even came with a bamboo mat to roll the sushi. For those who are not raw fish fans there are tempura shrimp fully cooked and options to make california rolls instead. If you are allergic to seaweed wrappers there was an option for soy based wrappers too. My son started off slow with the shrimp but went from there trying everything but the salmon. I was satisfied!

We are not huge fans of take-out because it always arrives cold or something missing. This kit was so fresh, we will defiantly put this is our list of goto meals.