a few cakes from this summer

Ok, I know I said I was back and then disappeared for three weeks...but I just moved into a new apartment and life's a little crazy these days (and there always seem to be a million excuses not to blog!)...but now I'm back for real and I have some pictures to share! Nothing fancy, but I made a few simple cakes for various occasions this summer, and I thought I'd share the photos with you all.

This first one was very simple but I think sort of beautiful in its simplicity. I made it for the anniversary party of my dad and his wife. The cake was a standard (delicious!) butter cake and the filling was creme chantilly (sweetened, hand-whipped cream) with fresh strawberries. The light topping and fruit perfectly balanced the richness of the cake, making it a wonderful summery dessert.
The next cake was for another graduation party. Fairly simple again, but a little more fun and decorative. This was a relatively small party, so I just made a 14-inch round cake instead of a multi-tiered piece. I really loved the color of the frosting here (which was vanilla buttercream on a chocolate and yellow marbled cake) and the diploma, cap, and border are made out of rolled fondant.
This final cake was a birthday cake. Again, it wasn't a huge party so it was only an 8-inch round, but I loved this one! The cake was chocolate with vanilla buttercream and the decorations were made with sugar paste that I then hand-painted. I love the artistic, multi-colored effect this gave them.

So there you have it...some of what I've been up to this summer! I'll be back with another update soon and a more in-depth post on my life these days, but for now I'm off to unpack some more...moving in is a never-ending process, it seems :)

I'm back!

Ok, so I know it's been a long while since the last time I posted (even after I said I wouldn't stop blogging!), but I've been adjusting to the new schedule and the new job and haven't really had the chance to even think about writing anything. Until now, that is! I've really missed blogging and I'm going to start it up again...yay!

I'm not sure exactly what direction I want to go with this blog now...but I guess I'll figure that out as I go. For now, I just wanted to say hello again and let you all know that I'm alive and well. I'll be back soon, I promise!

oh, and p.s....the pic is just a random one from the time I got my new camera and was playing around. I was trying to find an image for this post and when I came across this one I thought, "Hey, I kind of have Angelina Jolie lips here," so of course I had to post it. :)

graduation party cake

As promised (what seems like many eons ago), here are photos of the graduation cake I make for my younger sister's party. The bottom layer was chocolate with ganache filling, the middle layer butter cake with vanilla buttercream, and the top layer marble with ganache. The cake was covered and decorated with vanilla rolled fondant.Since the three guests of honor (my sister and two of her friends) are all attending different colleges, I decided to make a celebration-themed cake instead of trying to incorporate the colors and mascots of all three schools (which would have made for a rather ugly, clashing cake). The photos you see here were taken before transport (I didn't get a chance to take any at the event itself), and so they were missing the cake's final touch: a fondant diploma that sat atop the cake and lay through the second "0" in the "2009." (You can see where it would go a little better in this second angle)Sadly, these were the only photos I had a chance to take, but the most important thing is that the cake was a hit at the party. People loved the look and the taste...I already have other people asking me to make cakes for them.

I'm making another cake for a small family party next week, so I'll be back with more photos soon!

I'm not dead (yet)

Hey....I know it's been a few days, but I've been dealing with dealing with job stuff...and then was sick for a few days (still feeling a bit blah....). I know I promised pictures of the cake but it'll still be a couple days. Once I get a schedule down, though, I'll be back to regular blogging! In the meantime, the polls have opened for Maman and Gourmand's Smoothie/Shake Throwdown. Take a look at all the great entries at the link above and vote for your favorite! I entered the Spicy Blackberry-Cabernet and Chocolate Smoothie I posted about a little while ago.

Back soon, I promise!

some news

Just a quick post (back with a more substantial one soon!), but I had some things I wanted to share. First of all, the cake I made for my sister's graduation party this weekend was a great success (pics soon!). I got tons of complements on both the appearance and the taste (it's possible they were just being polite...but I was very happy with my work so I'd like to think they were sincere). I'll write a more detailed post about it later...for now, on to my second bit of news: I have a job! A job I'm pretty darn excited about, too. That's about all the detail I can go into here (talking about your job on your blog never ends well), but I just wanted to update you guys since you all have been so supportive!

Maman and Gourmand Smoothie/Shake Recipe Contest!

Christine over at Maman and Gourmand is holding a smoothie/shake contest (check out her original post here!), and having a little free time yesterday evening, I thought I'd see what I could throw together. The winner gets a HealthMaster (http://www.myhealthmaster.com/), which sounds pretty darn cool, and I'm always up for a smoothie, so I was excited to see what I could come up with. I had just made a huge grocery run that afternoon (buying ingredients for the rather large cake I'm making this weekend), so I decided to limit myself to what was already in my pantry and fridge. It's always fun to see what happens when you're forced to get the creative juices flowing (no pun intended), and last night was no exception.

In the end I was really happy with my smoothie. It's fresh and fruity with a kick; a little tart, a little spicy, and a little chocolaty (because, really, chocolate makes everything better!). Some of the ingredients I used are pretty specific (for example: blackberry cabernet sorbet), but I included brand names to make them easier to find and suggestions for substitutions in case they cannot be found (and that's the great thing about smoothies...they take substitutions so well!). Anyway, I hope y'all enjoy this recipe!

(oh, and one more quick note...due to an uncharged battery I couldn't use my usual camera and out of desperation I took a few shots with my old one. The picture quality isn't great and there was no way to get a focused shot without the flash...but oh well.)


Spicy Blackberry-Cabernet and Chocolate Smoothie


First, I made 1 cup of hot chocolate. I used Cadbury Drinking Chocolate, which is made with hot milk instead of hot water (so much better, in my opinion).After that was made, I added a good-sized pinch of Cocoa Chile Blend powder (made by McCormick). You want the hot chocolate to have a good kick without making your eyes water.
The hot chocolate needs to cool to at least room temperature before it is added to the smoothie, so I set it aside for a minute. It can also be placed in the fridge.

In the meantime, I put 1 cup of Ciao Bella Blackberry Cabernet Sorbetto in the blender. If you can't find blackberry cabernet sorbet, plain 'ol blackberry sorbet can be substituted. (You could probably add a little cabernet to the smoothie if you want, too, but that would make this a very different kind of drink).
To the sorbet I added 1/2 cup of Bom Dia Acai Berry Juice with Pomegranate. If you can't find this juice (I didn't buy it myself, so I'm really not sure how difficult it is to find), you can substitute pomegranate juice or blackberry juice.
After that I went and got the hot chocolate (now technically "cool" chocolate) and added it to the other ingredients, blending until combined.

The last (and my favorite) ingredient was none other than a 3.5 oz Lindt Chili bar (in dark chocolate). I believe several brands of chocolate make similar spicy chocolate bars that might be substituted. I broke the bar into smaller pieces and threw them in with the rest of the ingredients, blending until the chocolate bits were about the size of large sesame seeds.


The finished smoothie is a beautiful dark fucshia color (though not quite done justice in the photo below). As I said before, it's tart and sweet and spicy all at the same time, and I absolutely loved it! The ingredient amounts given above make two very generous glasses...but if you're drinking this as a snack or dessert (and not a full meal!) you could easily get 3-4 portions.

Yummy!

I'll keep you guys updated on the contest...I believe the poll opens on May 10. I can't wait to see what other delicious shakes and smoothies people have created!

coffee cake cupcakes

I made these while I was in NYC, I just never had the chance to post about them. But I came across the photos on my computer and realized I had to share the recipe with you guys because these cupcakes are seriously amazing. They are so buttery and crumbly (don't even try to eat one of these without a plate...you will make a mess) they seem to melt in your mouth, and you can totally justify eating them for breakfast because they are basically coffee cake (the most scrumptious, fantastic coffee cake ever!). But that's enough gushing. On to the recipe...

These are adapted from the recipe for Crumbcake Cupcakes from Cupcakes by Shelly Kaldunski.

Coffee Cake Cupcakes (makes 12)

ingredients

for cupcake batter:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 tbsp unsalted butter (room temperature)
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup A.P. flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup buttermilk

for crumb topping:
1 1/2 cups A.P. flour
1/2 cup dark brown sugar (firmly packed)
2 tsp cinnamon sugar (no exact ratio of cinnamon-to-sugar here, just mix to taste)
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)


procedure
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners.

2. For the batter, cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla and continue mixing until the mixture is homogeneous.

3. In another bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.

4. Alternately add the buttermilk and dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture, allowing each addition to incorporate completely before adding the next. (You should aim for 2-3 even additions of each the buttermilk and the dry ingredients, 4-6 additions total). You might need to scrape down the bowl between additions.

5. For the crumb topping, put the flour, dark brown sugar, cinnamon sugar, and salt in a bowl. Cube the butter and add it to the bowl. Here's where you get a choice of procedure. The original recipe suggests cutting in the butter with a pastry blender or knives, but I prefer doing this part with my hands. Sure, it's a little messy, but that's part of the fun, right? Mash the crumb around in your hands until it's moist and clumps together. If you're doing this by hand, you probably won't be able to perfectly distribute the butter and be left with a few larger pieces, but that's ok...believe me, those will be the tastiest bits of the crumb after the cupcakes are baked! (I guess I have a little Paula Deen deep down inside me)

6. Divide the cupcake batter between the paper liners. It will seem like you have WAY too little batter, but don't worry...you should only be able to fill up the liners about halfway. The rest of the room in the liner is for the crumb topping (the best part, of course!). Split the topping between the cups and pop the cupcakes into the oven for about 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

7. The original recipe suggests letting the cupcakes cool completely before consuming (5 minutes in the pan, 1 hour on a wire rack) but I ate one while it was still warm and it was fabulous, so it's up to you whether to eat them warm or at room temp. (I personally like them both ways).

As I said, I loved these cupcakes...I hope you enjoy them, too!