Looks like Bunny Baker's done it again in helping us in our Chinese specialty cakes series! After Papa's birthday noodles cake a few months back, we were able to come up with this birthday cake design for Gwama (A's grandmother from his mother side).
The cake is composed of 3 major components: plum blossom coin cake base, dragon turtle topper, and the Ginebra San Miguel coin that the dragon turtle is biting.
The plum blossom coin is an auspicious symbol containing 5 characters, chang ming sou fu kui, which means a long life filled with happiness and fortune.
photo from graphicriver.net
The side view of the cake base looks like a stack of 8 coins. To the Chinese, 8 is a lucky number because it sounds like "growth with prosperity" in Cantonese.
Dragon turtles are a symbol of luck and longevity, which is why it is suggested as a gift to be given to older people.
photo from willowsales.com
The younger generations, however, may associate the dragon turtle with games and animation like:
Well, I've never heard of a dragon turtle before I met King Koopa. So now I've realized that I've been trying to beat a lucky character over a video game... bad me! Bad me!
As for the Ginebra San Miguel coin, A says that when his grandparents migrated to the Philippines, they've engaged in distributing Ginebra San Miguel products ,which used to be owned by La Tondeña Distillers. Since it was through this business that their family prospered, we've included this element as part of the cake as well.
The cake, as a whole, was very well received by those who've seen it. Pictures have been taken and we're just happy to offer it to Gwama.
Here's a link to Bunny Baker's album on the cake
