Indoor S'mores Bars

Now that I'm a mom - it's opens a whole new world of food and food prep for me.  When looking to make something Munchkin can help me with, there are different things to think about - what can she help me make that won't make her sick if she eats a little before it's done?  What can we make that can have some margin of error for the amount that will end up on the floor?  What doesn't need a lot of knife work, heat or patience (on both our parts)?

Now, Munchkin is just turning ONE this month (OMG!!).  She isn't really helping me yet, but I came across this recipe as something to make as a give away for her birthday party.  It's a beautiful layered jar mix.  As I was testing it for yummy-ness (as not all jar mixes are as awesome in taste and they are in look in the jar) I found it was the perfect kid recipe!  Simple ingredients - check!  Nothing raw - check!  Easy for little hands - check (she can even use her hands to mix when she is dexterous enough)!  Nothing really hot (except a little time in the oven) and no real knife work - check check!!

...AND it's super yummy to boot!

I made 4 batches of this in one night for an event at work (I got 60+ bars) and hardly broke a sweat.  Even better - you probably already have everything in your pantry.

Indoor S'mores Bars

as adapted from Cookies and Cups recipe for Campfire Bars (visit here)

1½ cups graham crackers cut into 1" pieces (I used teddy grahams to look festive and avoid chopping)

1½ cups mini marshmallows

¾ cup chocolate chips

½ cup plain granola (I've used vanilla bean and honey so far)

½ cup packed light brown sugar

8 Tbsp butter - melted and cooled a little

 

Preheat oven to 350-degrees. 

 

Mix all ingredients with a bowl until all pieces are gleaming with buttery goodness.  Spread in an 8x8 baking pan, making sure to pat down the graham crackers that are sticking up a bit.  Bake for 12-15 minutes.

 

Cool completely before cutting.

 

One batch makes 16 bars.

To make as a give away - layer all ingredients except butter in order listed (graham cracker on bottom and brown sugar on top) into a quart size mason jar.  Print directions and attach to jar.

 

Almost all packaged for party goodies -
just need to add tags and directions!

 

Nigella Lawson's Chocolate Guinness Cake for St. Patrick's Day

My husband is Irish-American. 100% Irish on both sides, so as you can imagine, Saint Patrick's Day is an official holiday in our house. Now, we aren't the green beer and pot of gold Irish, we are the corned beef and shepherd's pie dinner at home type. There must be good beer, of course, but we make sure it's Guinness and Smithwicks with a round of Irish Coffee and Bushmills for an aperitif.

Since I first picked up Nigella Lawson's Feast in 2004, I have been making the Chocolate Guinness Cake religiously in celebration of the Irish Saint’s holiday. My husband and I starting dating again in 2005 (a story for another time), but I have been an avid Guinness drinker since 1997. The glorious elixir which a friend of mine dubbed "steak in a can" has been my beer of choice since I first tasted it when I studied in London for a summer. Chocolate Guinness cake is the perfect combination of chocolate and malt without being too sweet. The addition of a tangy sour cream icing balances cake and stout.

Now, I could have left out the fact that I have made this before (If you were to pick up my copy of Feast, it would open itself to the Chocolate Guinness Cake page) and make this a cookbook challenge post, but I just couldn't lie to you. Try it and you will want to add this recipe to your annual to do list!

Chocolate Guinness Cake
Adapted from Feast by Nigella Lawson

2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup Guinness stout beer
1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons butter, cut into chunks
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 batch Cream Cheese Icing (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease 9" springform pan or grease and line the bottom of two 8" round pans with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl sift flour and baking soda together. Set aside.

In a large saucepan, mix butter and Guinness. Once butter is melted, whisk in sugar and cocoa powder. Turn off heat and set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl whisk together sour cream, eggs and vanilla. Whisk in cooled Guinness mixture. Slowly mix in flour mixture until everything is incorporated.

Pour into prepared pan(s). Bake for 45-60 minutes for the springform pan or 35-45 minutes for the two 8" pans or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Do not over bake.

Cool completely. Ice with cream cheese icing (below) to look like a foaming stout pint of Guinness, pun intended.

Serves 10-12

Cream Cheese Icing

8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup heavy cream

In a mixer, cream the cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add 1/2 powdered sugar then half the heavy cream. Mix until smooth. Add remaining powdered sugar and then heavy cream and continue to mix until smooth and spreadable.

As a side note, I have adapted the Guinness Cake recipe in more recent years by using Jameson Buttercream Icing and Bailey's Ganache instead of the cream-cheese icing to become what I have come to call St. Patrick's Day Cupcakes (also known as the Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes). But... I have to save something for St. Patrick's Day next year! 

#52cupcakes

Cookbook Challenge #5 - Cakes Winning Recipes

This past weekend I hosted Ladies Night for the first time in my apartment. Ladies Night is a night once a month that the local ladies in my husbands family get together (sans kids and husbands) to eat appetizers, munch on desserts and chew on good conversation. Sometimes the cards come out or the quarters are pulled out for a fun game of Left, Right, Center.

We have been holding Ladies Nights as regularly as schedules allow for over 3 years. I previously lived just a little too far away to host at my house, but since I moved back to Queens, I've been close enough to host, but of course, it's taken me a year to do it.

Though I haven't hosted at my home to date, I am pretty regular in bringing a goodie or two. A the host for this month that doubled the pressure to make something yummy to share. With the help of my niece, who, much to her chagrin, is not old enough to be part yet, I made a few simple homemade goodies. We made fruit salsa with cinnamon chips my sister in law found on Pinterest (link) and, this week's cookbook challenge recipe, Blueberry Crumb Cake.

 Blueberry Crumb Cake

Adapted from Cakes Winning Recipes by Favorite Brand Name Recipe

2 cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon baking powder (yes, Tablespoon)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), melted
2 eggs, beaten
2 Tablespoons lemon juice*
2 cups fresh blueberries**
Crumb topping (see recipe below)

* to use fresh juice, use the juice of 1 lemon.
** 2 cups frozen blueberries (thawed and drained) can also be used.

Prepare crumb topping and set aside.

Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Grease 13" X 9" baking dish.

Sift flour, baking powder, salt, and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together butter, sugar, milk, eggs and lemon juice. Pour wet mixture into the dry and mix until combined, being careful not to over mix it.

Pour batter into the baking dish. Sprinkle blueberries over the batter then sprinkle crumb topping over blueberries.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. If there is still a little giggle to the batter, no worries. As long as the toothpick comes out clean the cake will set as it cools, making a nice sponge. Do not overbake.

Serves 12-16

I mixed my blueberries in, DON'T do that - they all fall to the bottom.  

 

 

Crumb Topping Recipe

1/2 cup flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup walnuts, chopped (pecans can be used too)

In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients until mixture resembles coarse sand.

Excuse the blue color - that's my light in my kitchen.

#52cookbooks

Snack Works Recipe Rumble

It was another crazy Thursday in NYC. If you follow me on Instagram, you can see that I spent the day at a recipe contest.

The contest, called the Snack Works Recipe Rumble, was held at the Digitas, advertising agency that handles the account for the Mondelēz International Corporate (Snack Works parent company) and was open to agency employees and their friends. Thanks to my good friend, Cat, I was able to participate.

The rules of the contest were that you had to use at least two of the Snack Work products for an original recipe.  They would be judged and winners would walk away with a variety of prizes.  It sounded like so much fun, I just had to be part!

My recipe was for Premium Chocolate Toffee.  I didn't win, but I had a great time trying.  All the recipes were amazing and incredibly creative!  I'm so glad I got to be part of it.

I'm not going to share the recipe here (I'm going to link to it once it's on their website), but I would like to share some photos from yesterdays festivities.

I used four Snack Works products - Premium Saltine Crackers, Toberlone White, Green & Black's Organic Milk, and Milka Dark Chocolate Confections.

So, from this...

 ... to this!

 Simple, but this was my presentation for judging.

 This was Cat's submission - a wonderful orange, ginger, and chocolate biscuit. She served each judge a cup of STRONG coffee to complement the dense treat.

 All the recipe contestants were whittled down to 6 finalists.  During a final judging ceremony, Digitas set up a bar with three special drinks, each of which had to include a Snack Works product.

This was a Swedish Fish Martini - sweet & pretty much ALL Vodka.

 

This was a Whiskey Sour Patch Kid - sweet and tart with a bit of a burn, but in a good way.

 And the dessert of the drink world, a Chocolate Martini - cool and creamy with a kick.

Though we didn't win and prizes, after the party, there was nothing left but the porcelain.

#reciperumble

Week off the Challenge for a Craft Fair

I don't want to disappoint and I know it's early to be taking a "break" but I swear I have a good reason.

My friend, Cat and I will be sharing a table at the Astoria Craft Fair at the Beer Garden this Sunday, February 10 from 12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.. We will be selling cookies, beautiful handmade toys and tea cozies and handmade earrings. 

For more information on the Astoria Market Craft Fair visit the event page at https://www.facebook.com/events/466477993414803/

To see Cat's beautiful homemade goodies, please visit her Etsy site at http://www.etsy.com/shop/catpenfold

Here is what my oven (and my friend's Sarah's oven) has spent the week doing - 

I Love M&M Cookies - chewy and crunchy at the same time.

Sweet Southern Tea Cookies - sweet and tart and perfect for a cuppa

Sugar Love Cookies - sugar rolled in sugar - um... yum!

Lavender Valentine Cookies - sweet with a touch of relaxing herbal perfume

Choco-Cherry Passion Cookies - rich and almost crumbly dark chocolate with cherry buttons

My week also included a new addition to my cookbook wall.  Talk about feeding an obsession - I know - but I couldn't help myself.

The Little Paris Kitchen by Rachel Khoo

I have seen the show on Food Channel and want to try one of everything on every show.   There is a snow storm heading to NYC and this will be my snowy Sunday retreat!  It's going to be Challenge Cookbook #3.  Details next week!

The Little Paris Kitchen by Rachel Khoo - my Nemo project

#52cookbooks
#nemo

52 Cookbooks Challenge #2: Easy Breakfast & Brunch: Simple Recipes for Morning Treats

When my husband and I moved in together, I realized I was going to have to become the "Queen of the Brunch". My husband worked the 4 p.m. to midnight shift, Wednesday to Sunday. If we wanted to entertain together, it would have to be on the weekend before he left for work at 2 p.m. This means Brunch.  The next logical step to becoming a Queen is to get a killer cookbook, so I hopped online and ordered Easy Breakfast & Brunch: Simple Recipes for Morning Treats by Susannah Blake.

The cookbook arrived and I remember thinking how bright and fresh everything looked. Then, the poor thing went up on my cookbook shelf and became part of the décor. Not because it didn’t have viable recipes (as I have rediscovered) but more that we didn’t host as many brunches as I had planned.  Besides, cooking for guests at that early morning hour usually meant I needed something brainless, like my go-to frittatas or everyone’s favorite, Farmer’s Casserole.

This weekend, my mom was visiting me while my dad was in Brooklyn. I handed her the cookbook and said, "What do you want to eat?" She chose the Pecan and Chocolate Muffins. Given the lack of preparation I had allowed myself for the recipe, we substituted walnuts (my favorite match with chocolate anyway).

Walnut & Chocolate Muffins
Adaptation of the recipe from Easy Breakfast & Brunch: Simple Recipes for Morning Treat

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 1/2 ounces walnuts, chopped small*/**
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 cup milk
4 Tablespoon butter, melted
3 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips*
Chopped walnuts to decorate**

* I use a small scale I got a weight loss meeting years ago. You can get digital scales for $20 and I think when you are dealing with items of strange sizes, it’s better to weight anyway.

** The original recipe called for 2 1/2 ounces of ground pecans and chopped pecans to decorate.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

In a small bowl, sift flour and baking powder together. Add walnuts and chocolate chips and mix to coat. In a medium bowl, mix together brown sugar, egg, butter and maple syrup and beat well. Add dry ingredients to bowl and mix to combine.

Spoon batter into a 12-muffin tin with cupcake liners. Fill them up generously, making sure to use all the batter (muffin will not rise so much that they spill over). Sprinkle with chopped walnuts.

Cook muffins for 18-20 minutes or until light golden brown and toothpick comes out clean. Cool and serve slightly warm, no need for butter.

These muffins can be made ahead of time and warmed in the oven to save time on party day. They are also good for work meetings – perfect with a cup of coffee or nice milky black tea.

Makes 12 muffins 

Everything is easy enough to mix by hand.

#52cookbooks

Gingerbread NYC Style - Gingerbread Brownstone

This is a wonderful post I saw on Facebook today (posted by Etsy) that give instructions on how to make a Gingerbread Brownstone.

Enjoy and share if you give it a go!

Build a Gingerbread Brownstone
By: kitchentablescraps

http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-a-Gingerbread-Brownstone/

Holy crap!  This is awesome!!

And...she lights up!

Photos borrowed from instructables.com to show just how awesome this house is.

The Last Few Days of September...

When I think of September, a bright red apple comes to mind.  There is a slight crispness in the air and school is back in full swing.  The leaves haven't turned yet, but football is in the field and on the TV and chili is on the stove.

But in recent memory, September is just as balmy and hot as August.  The AC is still on overnight and it's way to hot to make apple pie in my kitchen (aka The Hot Box).  Grrr...where have my cool September days gone?

This weekend, even though it was 80 degrees in my area of New York, I was able to catch a breeze (aided by an electric fan) and curl up on my couch and break open a fall harvest book with a warm cup of cider and imagine what I would be doing for October (the time when it will get really crisp and chilly).  My book of choice this weekend?  Homemade Harvest by Gooseberry Patch.

Gooseberry Patch was founded in 1984 by Vickie Hutchins and Jo Ann Martin, two women who loved sharing recipes.  They have created a wonderful line of cookbooks (mainly) that are compilations of submission from others who love to share their recipes from all over the country.  They each carry a theme, memories and stories about that theme and/or recipe along with tips and tricks from the staff at Gooseberry Patch.

My first encounter with Gooseberry Patch was Homemade Harvest.  This beautifully simple spiral bound book has beautiful illustrations and fall inspired recipes and crafts.  It covers soups and breads, suppers and a section that focuses exclusively on Halloween.  There is a chapter called Fall Festival Favorites, but it's mainly Friday Night Lights and tailgating friendly recipes and stories and another section that prepares you for a camp out or your next night beside the fire pit (for those of us that don't camp).  There is also a section on fall breakfasts full of eggs, sausage and pumpkins - YUM!

I spend the later half of Saturday afternoon reading this book from cover to cover.  If definitely put me in the fall mood, even if the thermometer was trying to convince me it was still Summer.  I'm sure that everyone could find at least one recipe or craft to try at home.

My New Toy - A Cuisinart Food Processor

One of the gifts we received for our wedding was the Custom 14 Cuisinart food processor. SOOOO Pretty!  It has a 14 cup capacity in a stainless steel robe.  Oh...the places we will go!

http://www.cuisinart.com/products/food_processors/dfp-14bcn.html

And this is what I made with her...

CORNISH PASTIES

When my husband and I were on our Honeymoon, we fell in love with savory pies.  Cornish Pasties is one of the most common of the savory pies.  Their history is connected with the mine workers in Cornwall.  Their wives would make them hand held pastries with meat, onions, and a root vegetable (potatoes, carrots, and/or parsnips usually).  They had a thick crust/rim so that they could hold them with their dusty hands and not touch the part that they planned on eating.

The pastry is a very simple butter and flour crust and my new food processor was the perfect tool to try them with.

My new toy in her new home

There are a lot of recipes for this savory pastry dough, but the ingredients are all the same - flour, butter, salt and ice water.

2 perfect balls of buttery dough, ready for a chill in the fridge

The filling recipes range from ground lamb to cubed meat with the veg and starch.  I went with finely chopped chuck steak, carrots, onion and potatoes.  Best mix, I think!

Next time - an egg or milk wash

Flaky and Tasty!

I downloaded the free Christmas excerpt for the Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook.  The first recipe was for Cornish Pasties.  I can't wait to try the recipes I've found in 3 other cookbooks I own: How to be a Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson, The Tea & Sympathy Cookbook, and the William Sonoma London cookbook.

Foodie Books - On the Light Side

I have to tell you...I am obsessed!! Joanne Fluke writes the Hannah Swensen murders...It's like Jessica Fletcher meets Mrs. Fields.

A few years ago I was searching for something that was a light and easy Christmas read. I love to cook (duh) and I love mysteries, so I picked up The Sugar Cookie Murder, by Joanne Fluke. I started to read it...and honestly, wasn't impressed. I was simple and easy. Hannah's constant correction of her sister's grammar and the long winded descriptions of things that had nothing to do with anything started to bother me. I was about 1/2 way through the book and only pages away from finding out who the murderer was. What was going on? I found out who it was, was pleasantly surprised that it wasn't who I thought it was and that the book had left me all the clues, and then turned the page to find that 1/2 the book was a cookbook! Cool!! It's stayed with the cookbooks in my kitchen first and then my mother's kitchen.

Fast forward to last month. I was looking for something to grab my attention. I needed an escape. My mom is my source for my books. She had picked up another one of the Joanne Fluke books and had read through it in just a few short days. She's fast, but not that fast. She had gotten so caught up in the serial aspects of the books that she has gone out and bought three more the next day. She passed them off to me and sure enough, the same thing happened to me!! In less than a month I had read 4 books (rereading the one Christmas book) and was hungering for more.

Hanna Swensen is a 30 year old cookie shop owner. She has a knack for finding the bodies of those that meet a murderous end. I liken the books to a good Sunday afternoon Lifetime Movie Channel 2-hour mystery series, like Mystery Woman or Murder 101. In fact, when reading, I have thought about how to stage the whole thing and if I was a movie maker how I would do it!

Fluke welcomes you into a world of county fairs, small town cops, snow up to you eyeballs, and a cat that has more personality than my cats combined. This being said - YOU WILL GET ADDICTED!! Reading one on it's own you can enjoy it, but when you read the series in order, you see that she starts to develop plots 2-3 books ahead of time with subtleties. I'm usually surprised by who did it, but not in the Murder She Wrote way where there was something Jessica knew but noone else did until she revised it. She leaves you all the clues, you just have to figure it out.

There is also a bonus - EVERY BOOK HAS RECIPES IN THEM!! And they are good!! They average about 10-15 recipes per book (except The Sugar Cookie Murder which was 1/2 a recipe book)

So the short of the long post above - I recommend the Hanna Swensen murder mystery series, but with a warning - you will want to read them all! Just start at the top and work your way down. I promise you'll be done before the Apple Turnover Murder is available in February!

A Challenge!

In my search of an image of the book I'm reading currently (Key Lime Pie Mystery) I came across the blog post by Bloggin' 'bout Books (http://www.blogginboutbooks.com/2009/05/my-light-fluffy-fluke-thon.html) Her experience was so similar to mine that I had to reference her. She has decided to start a FLuke-A-Thon for herself. Now, I don't have anywhere near the following she has (Is anyone reading me?), but I thought why not, right? I have added to the sidebar my own Fluke-A-Thon tally. I'll keep you up on how I'm doing. If you want to...please join me!



My Fluke-A-Thon official starts today! The ones I have read are in BOLD

1. Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder
2. Candy for Christmas (a novella that appears inside special editions of Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder.)
3. Strawberry Shortcake Murder
4. Blueberry Muffin Murder
5. Lemon Meringue Pie Murder
6. Fudge Cupcake Murder
7. Sugar Cookie Murder (I reread this one)
8. Peach Cobbler Murder
9. Sugar and Spice (novella/short story - part of a collection)
10. Cherry Cheesecake Murder
11. Key Lime Pie Murder (currently reading)
12. Carrot Cake Murder
13. Candy Cane Murder
14. Cream Puff Murder
15. Plum Pudding Murder (released September 2009 - only in hardcover)
16. Apple Turnover Murder (to be released in hardcover February 2010)

Employed and Making Cakes When I Can

I'm embarrassed! It's been 9 months since I have posted anything. What a terrible Blogger I am!

In the last 9 months I have looked for a job, found one and loved it. I also completed all of the Wilton's decorating classes and even taught for a couple of months. Not as easy as it looks (which didn't surprise me) but the joy on a student's face when they create something they love is priceless! I'm just sorry that my schedule didn't let me teach any more.

December was a good cake month. I new I was starting a new job in January, so with that stress off my back, Christmas was a super creative month for me cake-wise. Here are three of the creations I made for the holidays:



I have been engulfed in starting my new job, so not until a dear dear friend of mine requested I make the cake for her son's first birthday party did I get my fingers back into the clay like fondant. She asked me to do a NY Yankees cake. What do you think?



I also made sure to make the birthday boy his own little confection to enjoy and destroy...and that he did!



I hope to keep the creativity flowing and the confections rising! Happy Summer (what's left of it, at least!)

The Decorating Class, Part III

It seems that this set of classes has taken over my life. Without a day job at the moment, this really seems to have become my world. It’s been a lot of fun!

I’ve completed 2 of 4 courses and taking the band-aid and ripping it off in one swoop and taking the last 2 class this month. It’s a lot of icing and cake, but with the weather cooler, I think my kitchen can take it.

Here are a few more examples of the new tricks and techniques I’ve learned.



This is my Course 3 final – it was a tiered cake (as you can see, duh!) and the layers are covered in fondant. The top layer is store bought fondant and the bottom is homemade marshmallow fondant - (http://whatscookingamerica.net/PegW/Fondant.htm). The roses are fondant and lilies and petunia’s are royal icing.



I did things backwards and am just now taking Course 2. Here are the products of the first two lessons – (clockwise) mums, violets, apple blossoms and daisies.



Fondant and Gum Paste (the fourth class) is going pretty good too! Here are the daisies that came out of the first lesson along with the carnations we made this week. Pretty!

For anyone who's interested - it's fun and after supplies, costs about as much as a regular cooking class, but you get to keep the stuff. Here's the Wilton's Class website - http://www.wilton.com/classes/local_classes.cfm.

The Decorating Class, Part II

The class was a success! I have figured out that the rose is something that I will not soon offer up to do for free, but it was a great experience. So great, in fact, that I have decided to take another class with my friend again, Course 3.

We decided that basket weaves and more flowers didn’t interest us as much as fondant and royal icing flowers. Week one has passed and we had a whirl win class of garlands and borders reminiscent of Meredith Willson’s The Music Man, as the band gathers around the gazebo in the park (they would look really good on a 4th of July cake). Other’s included a hand contorting fabric looking border and a ruffle garland that took us 20 minutes and two icing tips to master only to find out that our kit included a tip that does both steps in one shot. That was a little annoying.

All in all, this class is much more intense than the one previous. It is nice though, it is only the two of us and the teacher. My baking buddy and I are both quick to pick things up, so I think that we will walk out of this one with a plethora of information (oh, and of course $100 more decorating paraphernalia).

Next time is fondant. This is what I’ve been waiting to play with the whole time! I have dreams of a Tiffany & Co. blue box cake and actually figured out what I need to tint the fondant the color I need. YEAH! That will be soon to come, promise!

Ladies and Gentleman! – My final project for Course 1 (pre-discoloration – a topic for another time).



My Course 1 final homework, THE ROSE! These are the ones that I made at home for the final class.




Some shots of more of my prep for the final class - it was a bit of overkill with the amount I made, but these I LOVED making. So easy and so pretty! I used them on cupcakes too.

The Decorating Class Part I

So, I am taking a Wilton Decorating Class at Michael's with a good friend and baking buddy. It's interesting. The decorating style of Wilton's is very "Women's Day" and "Soccer Mom". I put these is quote becuase I don't know reallly how to describe it. It beautiful, don't get me wrong, but it's very "Mom". Because of this style, this class has given me an additional challenge.

My personal style is a clean line, contemporary look or at the opposite end of the spectrum, a very rustic, made in a wood burning oven in 1600's English country side look. This class takes me beyond my comfort zone and into an area I'm not so sure about. The techniques are good and easy to pick up, but this class, as any good class does, is giving me the additional challenge of creativity. I don't automatically think like the buttercream roses and scalloped boarders that I am learning to do. What do I do with this new knowledge and how do I integrate it into the creative thinking that I already have going?

This is my first class project. Everyone did the same thing. I don't think it's too bad for a first try, though I do know that I need to keep practicing if I want someone to pay for something I made someday.



My homework is done for tommorow (all frosting made) and hopefully I'll have a few great roses to show next time!

Taking this class has also sparked an interest in fondant (something close to a sugar fabric that you can use to cover cakes for a smooth finish - VERY popular on wedding cakes these days) and wanting to try that for it's clean lines and flexability. The challenge in that - finding a fondant that tastes good as well as works well. Traditionally, fondant takes like, well, nothing. It can have flavor, but it's usually very gummy and most eat around it. I'll keep you posted on my search.

For anyone who's interested - it's fun and after supplies, costs about as much as a regular cooking class, but you get to keep the stuff (including the creepy clown heads). Here's the Wilton's Class website - http://www.wilton.com/classes/local_classes.cfm. I'm taking Course 1! You can also take them and eventually teach them. That's what I think I'm going to work towards!