tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28736600716603804202024-03-12T20:30:42.211-07:00Sugar On The BrainSugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-1684738060662998102015-09-07T10:14:00.004-07:002015-09-07T10:24:50.194-07:00Minecraft Diamond Block Cake<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Sorry about the long, long hiatus between entries. My family and friends stopped having a big demand for cake, and i wasn't volunteering, either. You know how life gets off track, life happens, maybe throw in some depression, and there you have it. Long time no see.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I look forward to making my littlest one's cake every year. She always asks for something different (no three years in a row of Princess cake for HER) and it's always something fun, and the bonus is she lets me have free reign for creativeness. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This year she asked for a Minecraft cake. She is so into this game, and i love it. It's like interactive Legos on the screen, which seems more conducive to creativity than my shoot 'em up variety of game.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I looked around and found several ideas i liked. I really liked <a href="http://vivalasugarcake.blogspot.com/2014/05/tutorial-super-easy-minecraft-cake.html">Viva La Cake's diamond block cake</a> and i thought this was a little more different than the dirt/grass block i kept seeing everywhere. The colors are nice and i thought they looked like they'd be easy replicate, since coloring fondant is one of my biggest challenges sometimes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I ordered the special fondant imprint mat that makes blocks from Amazon, using the link on Viva La Cake's blog there.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I wanted to do a special surprise inside the cake, so i also found <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5vOTakaew4">this awesome YouTube video by My Cupcake Addiction</a> to make a checkerboard pattern, which i had never done before.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And while i am linking things, in order to make a Steve figure to go on top of the cake, i <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqfB0fcgoO4">half used this YouTube link</a> and half used my fondant mat (which has 1 inch squares all over it so it makes it easy to eyeball your work).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I made two 9 inch square cakes using a white cake recipe and i tinted one teal, and one i tinted using a sky blue. Then i made two more 9 inch square cakes using a chocolate cake mix, and i darkened one using black, but i didn't end up using one of them, for reasons i will explain in a minute.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In the video i linked where she does the checkerboard cake, she uses 4 layers and each square she cuts out was 1 inch wide. I did not think my cake was going to hold up even after it had been in the freezer an hour to do that. I used toothpicks to outline where to cut on mine and i gave the middle section 1.5 inches and the outside section was 1 inch wide, and the outside section was what wanted to break on me. Thankfully icing was able to weld my cracks shut, but it was a problem. Maybe if i had 10 inch pans it would work better. It would look better her way, but i would have to freeze my cakes for longer than i did this time. In the video she says to freeze them for a half hour before cutting but i recommend much more. Either that or i need a sturdier cake recipe. I don't know how she did this with 8 inch cakes. Lots of practice, i guess.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Here are my cakes after they were outlined and cut.</span></div>
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It just happens that after i cut the tops off and level, they were all just about an inch tall. Which goes well with the measuring.</div>
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After i moved all the pieces around, they looked like this:</div>
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I rolled out a bunch of what turned out to be really purplish grey fondant for my base wall. This is where that problem with coloring fondant comes into play. But i wasn't concerned just yet, i knew this part would be hidden by all my pretty tiles and no one was going to be looking at it.</div>
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Now, i had to do some quick internet searching to figure out how to get the purple out of my grey. Turns out i needed to add some yellow color to tone down the blue. Nice! So i was able to churn out an uncounted number of perfectly grey squares along with my blue and teal.</div>
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To make the tiles stick better, i mixed some really dried out gum paste (it has really been a while since i made cakes) with some water to make a gum glue and i used a little paintbrush to dab on a little (not too much or you will have a mess on your hands) and i stuck them to the walls with no problems.</div>
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I need more practice smoothing fondant edges together but by this time it was almost one in the morning, and i just wanted to go to bed.</div>
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But i soldiered onward and put letters and it before i went to bed because i already had 100 other things to do the next day.</div>
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I don't have any good pictures of Steve by himself. I tried but my camera sucks on macro and my iPhone is about maxed out on memory. Which i am working on fixing. So here here is on the finished cake! He's my first fondant figure and i am pretty proud of him.</div>
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As for the inside of the cake, i probably should have arranged the layers better but they looked pretty awesome and they were delicious. Everyone really liked it, and no one complained about their vanilla and chocolate being in the same piece of cake.</div>
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Also, i think the only way to really enjoy the "checkerboard" part of the cake is to cut it right n the middle and expose it. Which is probably a good idea, because then you could push the outside pieces together and you won't get any stale ends. Hmm. See the things i think of after the fact? Ha.</div>
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Here is a photo from the very corner, where it looks good!</div>
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I already have a friend asking me to make one of these for her daughter's birthday!</div>
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I hope everyone is having a lovely and safe holiday today (it's Labor/Labour Day in the US and Canada)!</div>
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Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-31791736858484381602013-06-17T10:35:00.000-07:002013-06-17T10:35:47.201-07:00Thomas The Train Visits A Birthday Party!<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I have been neglecting my blog a bit lately. My apologies. I had a LOT of stuff going on the last couple of months!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">If you don't know by my infrequent postings, i am a home hobby baker. I am finding my way around cake decorating kind of like a blind person finds their way around an unfamiliar room. I just feel my way, learning as i go. Therefore, it's really exciting for me to see my cakes take form, and every success feels like a marathon with a photo finish.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Back in April, my nephew turned 5. He requested a Thomas the Train cake. My son loves Thomas back when he was a kid as well, so this was an exciting cake for me to take on. I had a kind of visual in my head, and my husband kind of gave his 2 cents, and i was off like a shot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I knew i wanted there to be a tunnel. When i think of trains i think of tunnels into hillsides and long trestle bridges.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I baked a dome shaped cake in my Betty Crocker Bake N' Fill dome pan, and then i cut it in half for my hillside. Then i frosted it in a nice brown shade.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I used Royal icing for the tunnel details and the rails, brown sugar for dirt, and i piped some happy little trees using a star tip.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The toy i chose to use was a Happy Birthday Thomas the Train, and i took cues from how the train was decorated and piped colorful streamers of red, yellow, and blue in Royal icing for a festive border. Next time i would probably use buttercream icing instead because it was brittle and the kids at the party wanted to poke it, but it looked nice until they started messing with it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My nephew was happy, and so was everyone else, because it was simply delicious!</span></div>
Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-14618933606102221922013-03-15T06:50:00.000-07:002013-03-15T06:50:25.912-07:00Hello Kitty Birthday Cake<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I made a cake last week for my friend and yoga teacher. Her daughter turned 6 and wanted a Hello Kitty cake.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I had the perfect idea in mind for the cake. I wanted to try and do an icing transfer! I keep trying new things, because i like to push myself to see what i can accomplish and this seemed like something i could manage.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I went to the store and found a very cute Hello Kitty coloring book. I planned out a 9" two-layer cake, so i found an image in the book that would fit. I took a cookie sheet and put the coloring page on it, already taped to the back of a sheet of freezer paper that i cut to fit. Then i taped both pages to the cookie tray so it wouldn't move around.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When i have seen transfers done on the internet, i have mostly seen buttercream icing transfers, but i wanted a glossy flat look for mine. So i made a batch of royal icing and i portioned out some icing of piping thickness into bowls and colored them black (for the eyes and whiskers), a bit of yellow (for her nose), some pink and blue (for her jumper and shirt), some red (for her bow), and i portioned out a good amount of plain white (for her body outline).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">With my remaining icing, i added a bit of water to make some icing of a flooding consistency and colored portions as i did for the outlines.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This was nerve racking for me, honestly. I hadn't had time for a test on my method, and the flooding icing took ages to set. I was terrified she'd crack and i'd have to start over.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I let it sit overnight and went to bed with a bit of a prayer on my lips.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Now, when i do something for the first time, i always learn something important. In this cake, i learned that i CAN make this method work, but i originally imagined i'd use the side against the freezer paper as my "up side". But when i peeled the paper off of my transfer, i learned that it doesn't work quite that way. The paper side of the transfer wasn't perfect. There were a couple of air holes and it was far too flat and not very glossy and a little... grainy for lack of a better word.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So i had to improvise. I went ahead and laid her, flat and grainy side up, on the cake. I took my icing bags and piped my outline all over again and filled her in. I heaved a huge sigh of relief that that part was done and moved on.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I bought pre-made Wilton posies because i don't have the tools to really work with flowers yet (or any experience in making them for that matter) and arranged them on the cake.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I decided she would look really cute with stars around her, and so i used my freezer paper method and made some stars. I made 7 (the little girl was turning 6 and i wanted an extra one in case one broke) and my daughter poked her fingers in 2 of them when i wasn't in the room. So i placed 5 dried stars on the cake and i crossed my fingers and piped the bottom one directly on the cake. Stars are HARD.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It was a fairly simple design, but it certainly did turn out cute! My little one asked if i would make a cake just like this for HER birthday! She'll probably change her mind before August, but maybe not.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">You can't tell much in the photos, but there are tiny pink candy beads around the bottom of the cake. I need to learn to pipe shell designs. I'm hoping to take some Wilton classes this spring or summer, so i will have some actual training under my belt. Being a hobby baker is hard in the respect that you're constantly teaching yourself and crossing your fingers in hopes that your ideas will work. On the up side, every time i complete a cake, i feel very accomplished. And that's a pretty awesome feeling!</span></div>
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Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-29861339147703206712013-01-26T16:49:00.000-08:002013-01-26T16:56:12.624-08:00Once Upon A Dream<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">One of my all-time favorite Disney movies is Sleeping Beauty. It's one of those movies that makes every little princess-loving little girl sigh with wistful wonder that someday their price will come.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Mind you, i have already informed my older daughter that if she does in fact have a prince waiting out there, she'll probably have to go rescue him from whatever dark forest he got lost in, but hey, not all princes are as perfect as our Shining Knight, Prince Phillip.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">One of my friends asked me if i could make a cake for her little girl, who also adores Aurora. Of course i said yes!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I don't know about you, but my favorite scene in the movie is when Briar Rose strolls off into the forest to fetch berries while her "aunts" finish up her birthday preparations. It still gives me shivers. I love her voice, and the songs, and the owl who steals Prince Phillip's cloak... its wonderful.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">That was the scene i wished to re-create with my cake.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I happened to find the most perfect Disney figurines, and i was all set.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">"I'll love you at once, the way i did once upon a dream...."</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My other figurines didn't really have a place on the cake, so i decided to have them hang around it instead. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I'm also very proud of myself for learning (sort of) how to use my Left #107 tip for the flowery rosette borders. So far i haven't really gotten the hang of making any scalloped borders or anything. I used some Spring themed Wilton sprinkles for the fallen leaves of the forest, the daisies floating down the stream, and the wildflowers and butterflies (none of which i thought to get a good close photo of).</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My friend said it was delicious and i know her daughter just loved it because i saw her face when i brought it over. It made my whole day!</span></div>
<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-72659216678795962482013-01-01T12:00:00.000-08:002013-01-01T12:00:06.409-08:00Happy New Year!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Are you making any resolutions? I don't really have any personal resolutions to make, i think i'll stick to my standard resolution of wanting to end this new year a better and hopefully more enlightened person that i began. This year, i published my first blog content here after a looong time debating on it, and i also made a lot of cakes and garnered an enormous amount of experience along the way. I may gank a lot of ideas from here and there and yonder (and Pinterest), but i think we all do... but it's also good to take a recipe and do your own thing with it. Some people i know think baking is so hard but baking comes in two parts: Success and Failure. You have to be willing to fail to make anything worthwhile. If i have any wisdom to impart this year, that would be it. Don't be afraid of failure. It's okay to not meet your goals. It's not okay to give up. Giving up is the only real failure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">On a personal level, i began a journey into yoga and healing my body, mind, and spirit. Although i have only been at it a few months, i am gaining strength and more, and that makes me happy.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I have a lot of plans for the new year as my blog goes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1. I really need to learn how to customize a layout on here. This hummingbird theme is cute, but when i look at other blogs there are so many amazing things happening and i want to learn to do some of them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">2. Bake more, and post more. I started out dedicating this blog to my cakes, but i don't make cakes often enough. I have months where i make 3 in a row, and months where i make none. So i am going to mix it up and add more content and learn more as i branch out more into other creations. I *love* to make candy, and i think i am going to share more of that here.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">3. I want to do a theme post thing on my blog where i pick things from Pinterest and try them out. I would hardly be the first person on the internet doing that, but i have also found that my pins come out differently (sometimes for the better) than other Pinvestigators (i just coined that word, as far as i know). Also, if i do this, i can take the pressure off of myself, since i am ridiculously perfectionist. I need to do things where it's explicitly okay in my mind to make mistakes and fail if need be. Maybe i'll lighten up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">4. Enjoy myself more. I think i started taking myself way too seriously when i started posting to a blog. I have said it before, and i'll say it again for my own sake... i am not a professional, and therefore, it's OK if i screw up. I don't have many people around giving me really harsh criticism (thank goodness) so why am i so hard on myself?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So that's it in a nutshell for me. Thanks for taking the time out to come read my blog, and if you haven't already, follow me here on Blogspot, or find me on Facebook at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/SugarOnTheBrain">Sugar On The Brain</a>!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Happy New Year!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Love, Tracey AKA Sugar</span></div>
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<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-8866510230964576712012-12-31T15:21:00.000-08:002012-12-31T15:21:26.234-08:00The Tastiest Gift Of All<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My oldest daughter turned a whopping *9* years old right before Christmas.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I honestly can't figure out where the time goes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When i asked her what kind of birthday cake she wanted this year, she said "I want my cake to be a present, with a bow made out of fondant."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I told her i had never done a bow before. She said "I know! I am challenging you!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Oh, boy. No more Cake Boss for her! See what i got myself into? A kid who wants to challenge mom's skills! Let's face it, each cake is a new experience anyhow, but she really went for one of those techniques that make me freak out on the inside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I went onto YouTube and started watching some videos on making fondant bows. These ladies make it look so easy.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Turns out, they're not easy at all!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It might help if i had a ribbon cutter. But i don't. I thought it looked like something i could do freehand with my knife and a ruler. Then i came up with the idea to use the guides on my large fondant roller to help me out. I probably would have been better off with a stick ruler. Lesson learned.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was kind of rushed, so i didn't do any pictures of the process. I had 5 kids under the age of 9 in my house all weekend, the youngest being not even 2, so i skipped all that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was semi-pleased with my result. I am a big perfectionist, and the bow was driving me insane. I should have stayed up extra late cutting ribbon pieces to dry overnight instead of assuming a couple of hours dry time would be enough.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It's difficult to see in the photos but i used lustre dust (in gold) all over the cake with a dry brush. I didn't brush the bow loops because they were already wanting to sink and i didn't want to encourage them. The whole cake glittered and it was a really lovely effect, and much nicer than plain matte teal.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I definitely think i could improve a lot of things on my next attempt at bows, but that's what i am all about. You have to try it in order to learn.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I have some new tools to add to my wish list, and a new cake under my belt, and my daughter was happy, and my kids being happy on their birthdays makes every cake i make for them a success!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Ta-Da!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was still cranky about the bow but i did the best i could, and for my first attempt, i think it was decent enough.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I also hope it's awhile before i need to do another one. I need to practice.</span></div>
Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-42028912225440976382012-12-17T08:08:00.000-08:002012-12-17T08:08:29.220-08:00Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My Mother-in-law wanted to move up Christmas this year.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Yes, the whole end-of-the-world thing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Being the good DIL i am, and for a dreamer, rather grounded in reality, i had to poke a little fun at her. It's my job, right? Keep everyone real. Because, honestly, i prefer my flights of fancy as solo trips, or at least i want to bring a good friend with a good sense of humour along.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Originally, i had a whole menu of desserts and appetizers planned. But as the family dinner approached, i lost steam. Part of it <i>might </i>have been guilt. Because i love my MIL and would never hurt her feelings on purpose. To be fair, i ran the idea past her first. I asked her how she felt about it, and she didn't seem to care, but she wondered if anyone would have the appetite for all that after a big Christmas dinner. I also figured this into my plans and i decided that it was a bit overkill, but i had to do <i>something</i>, because it's not every day your family holiday gatherings get moved around for possible cosmic calamity.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Martha always has some good ideas. My Google-fu skills take me to her page quite often. She intrigues me and makes me try new things. She's like my crack dealer, but my crack comes in the form of recipes and food and decor tricks.</span><br />
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<a href="http://www.marthastewart.com/336516/mexican-hot-chocolate-cookies"><span style="color: black; font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies (From Martha Stewart)</span></a><br />
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<li class="ingredient first" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">2 teaspoons cream of tartar</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1 teaspoon baking soda</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon coarse salt</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1 3/4 cups sugar</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">2 large eggs</span></li>
<li class="ingredient" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">2 teaspoons cinnamon</span></li>
<li class="ingredient last" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon chile powder (optional)</span></li>
<li class="ingredient last" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></li>
<li class="ingredient last" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Preheat oven to 400 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down side of bowl. Add eggs and beat to combine. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined.</span></li>
<li class="ingredient last" style="border: 0px; line-height: 16px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 6px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, and chile powder (if using). Using heaping tablespoons, form balls of dough and roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place, about 3 inches apart, on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies are set in center and begin to crack, about 10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cookies cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. (Store in an airtight container, up to 1 week.)</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">(Note: I used ground Chipotle powder as the chile pepper for my cookies, because i was trying to be Mayan-authentic. You can probably use whatever chile powder floats your boat, but this has a nice heat to it without being an overpowering taste.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Just roll your cookie dough around and get it coated.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">They are very similar to Crackle cookies, and were firm. I let them cool on the tray for a couple minute and them removed them to a rack to cool the rest of the way.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Even though my MIL didn't think she'd like them, she asked me to leave her a bag of them when we left.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I also made a batch of <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/hot-cocoa-recipe/index.html">Alton Brown's hot cocoa mix</a>. I brought a canister with me so i could have a little hot cocoa bar. I kind of made i up as i went along with what i had in my kitchen. I brought marshmallows (of course), whipped cream (in a can), peppermint and vanilla extracts, Christmas nonpariel sprinkles, ground chipotle pepper, candy canes, and Hershey's chocolate syrup.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My cocoa pictures aren't the greatest, because for some reason i was trying to take pictures on my phone instead of my camera. But it was delicious, no matter how you chose to have it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This one you can see that we were decadent and had marshmallows <i>under </i>the whipped cream, which was interesting. The girls had to have sprinkles, of course.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My husband went for the more exotic cocoa sprinkled with chipotle powder drizzled with chocolate syrup. Yum!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Me personally, i added a few drops of vanilla extract, added a few marshmallows and a dollop of whipped cream, plus sprinkles.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I have a cute idea for a Hot Cocoa bar for Christmas, when things are going to be quiet and we can spend all day in our jammies playing with presents. The kids will love it, and maybe we'll make the adult cocoa Irish.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Hopefully it helped take the weird out of having Christmas almost 2 weeks early at Grandma's house.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I hope to have more posts coming soon as i complete more of my Holiday treats list.</span></div>
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Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-45231779043906727152012-11-28T10:33:00.000-08:002012-11-28T10:33:01.582-08:00Zebra Striped Belly Cake<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I had the wonderful opportunity to make a baby shower cake last week! As an added bonus, it was for family, which makes it all the more special.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I had a lot of 'firsts' involved in this cake. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">1. It was my first baby shower cake. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">2. It is the first cake i have successfully covered entirely in fondant. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">3. It's the first cake that i had an audience for basically from start to finish.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">4. It's the first cake i ever traveled elsewhere to make.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">All of those things made me a little nervous, but combined... well, let's just say i am glad i do well under pressure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Before i ever left home, i wanted to make sure this cake would WORK. I had to do a test cake.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">When i Googled baby belly cakes, i read on a site (i don't know where) that another baker used a <a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41mbZtCZLgL._SL500_AA300_.jpg">Wilton Mini-Ball pan</a>, and a <a href="http://www.learn-cake-decorating.com/image-files/wiltonballcakepan.jpg">Wilton Ball pan</a> to make the breasts and belly, but when i got them both in the mail, i realized the Ball pan was too small (or at least it was in my opinion). Looking around my kitchen, the only acceptable alternative i had was using my round <a href="http://www.dvo.com/Pics/bakenfill_lg.jpg">Betty Crocker Bake N' Fill pan</a>, and try to bake a cake without using the insert. The hard part about this is you have to experiment with temperature and time. My original cake recipe (a yellow cake) called for a 350° oven and i had to lower it to 325° when i realized that the outside was going to get overdone if i wasn't careful. All total, here and away, i made the belly portion of this cake 4 times, twice per cake, to get my final product right.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The Mini-ball pan was a dream. The cakes puff up rounded, so the breasts of my cake looked bigger and rounder than if they had had flat bottoms. I was very pleased with the pan's performance (and no, i don't get paid to say that, i just like it when stuff works like it's supposed to - or even better). I did trim a little edge off of one but that was probably my fault for either slightly overfilling the pan, or the oven could be slightly unlevel.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Here's a few pictures of my progression on my test cake. I didn't do too many.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Dirty iced and ready to be covered in fondant.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">It draped very nicely along the 'hemline'.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">I trimmed off the excess fondant and smoothed it out over the whole cake.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Then i added the zebra stripes and ribbon.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Now, for the actual baby shower cake, the plan was to make the bodice hot pink. It really added a blast of color, and it matched the decorations and theme perfectly.</span></div>
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Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-84683097886454791562012-10-01T14:35:00.001-07:002012-10-01T14:36:38.500-07:00German Chocolate & Camo Cupcakes<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Something terrible happened last week.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It was actually a day i have feared for a very long time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My son, my oldest baby, my longtime joy... turned 18.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">See, i told you!! It was horrible!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Okay, well it wasn't HORRIBLE. Not really. But i was sad. And i cried. Not like a river of tears, but there were a few. And maybe a sniffle. And chocolate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Speaking of chocolate! (See how my brain switches gears?) When i asked him what he wanted, he was very specific. He wanted a German chocolate cake. It's his favorite! (Mine, too!) So i said i would do that for his actual birthday (which was on Thursday) and i would make him camo cupcakes for when he invited friends over for a cookout. He liked the idea.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This was actually the first German chocolate cake i have ever made from scratch. Every time i said i was making it from scratch, if someone new was in the conversation, they'd say "Even the frosting?" Yes, even the frosting. I don't think anyone i know had ever had one totally from scratch before, so i was interested to see how similar the frosting would be to what you get in a can.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It. Was. Amazing. Heaven on a plate. Seriously. This is the kind of cake that can kill a diet. Or even make you decide cake is better than being skinny and ever getting your butt in those size 7's again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My husband actually hid the rest of the cake away in our bedroom to prevent teenage boys from eating it in the middle of the night during their sleepover. It was that good.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I didn't toast my coconut or pecans because my recipe, which came from my BH&G cook book, did not ask me too. I saw other recipes saying to do it but i hate toasting coconut if i don't have to. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">For his birthday, the camo cupcakes! You make them a lot like you make any other multi-colored cupcake. I got the tutorial i used from Pinterest, and i will link you there. I feel uncomfortable doing things i see on Pinterest and making my own tutorial on it, you know? So, here is the link: <a href="http://thecraftymamablog.wordpress.com/2012/08/03/camouflage-cupcakes-tutorial/">CLICK!</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My icing looks so creamy soft. Normally the edges of my icing fray a little. I have to remember that less sugar is better sometimes.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">These were fun to make and everyone really loved them. I didn't have ANY left when everyone left, thanks to the teenage boys. Not that i really thought i would.</span></div>
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Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-29570392863329201252012-10-01T07:31:00.000-07:002012-10-01T14:36:55.631-07:00A Doll Cake For My Dollface<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This last couple of weeks i have been very busy! It's amazing, really, how much i have crammed into my life lately.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Late August kicks off what i fondly term "Birthday Season".Of course, you may have seen my daughter's Pixie Hollow cake, but this whole thing escalates in September, when birthdays are rampant. Thankfully, not everyone wants me to make cake. I would never leave my kitchen!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Midway through September is my beautiful niece's birthday. She is our gorgeous brunette, the only one in her whole generation (of our tiny family branch).</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">She asked for a doll cake for her birthday. I was a little nervous, but excited!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I have to admit, i had this elaborate vision in my head of what i could do to a doll cake if i had time and tools and, i admit it, a heck of a lot more skill than i currently possess. It was gorg. She would have a fondant dress, and it would cut away in the front for a petticoat, and there would be ruffles...</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">However, that proved to be way more difficult than i expected. Just the dress alone gave me fits and i *finally* figured out a place in my life where math could be useful. That's right. I said it. This one time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Dress logistics aside, it was honestly one of my easier cakes. If i had stuck to icing and not tried to wrestle for 2 hours with fondant, i could have been done a lot quicker, and don't think i won't remember that next time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I chose a Skipper™ doll for the doll portion of the cake, specifically because she looks so very much like my niece. Even so, she was almost too tall for the cake. I had to bend her knees and put her in a semi-chair pose to get her in there, and even then her hips stuck out of the cake by at least an inch. Next time, i won't be afraid to fill the pan even further to make the cake taller. Even so, a regular sized Barbie would probably not fit. The box says the pan dimensions are 5 1/2 inches tall, and that is far shorter than a standard Barbie™ doll's legs. I think i measured a regular doll at at least 7 1/2 inches from hips to the balls of her feet.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">With icing, you can't tell the doll was slightly too tall.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So, she wanted a strawberry cake swirled with white cake. I had an even better idea. Strawberry zebra cake! Yum! It's a <a href="http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/zebra-cake-recipe">King Arthur Flour recipe</a>, but i modified it for my own use here. I made 2 bowls of white cake batter. In one bowl i used a box of thawed and drained strawberries plus a couple tablespoons of the drained juice and mixed it into a strawberry flavored cake.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">You pour a big dollop of one color into the pan. Then you add a big dollop of the other color batter in the middle of the first dollop. You keep doing this over and over and the cake batter spreads, and it creates this zebra pattern on the inside. It's really cool! I did this to the inside of the doll cake as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In order to make strawberry buttercream icing, i creamed by butter, and then added the remainder of the juice from the strawberries i thawed for the cake and beat that and the butter really well. Then i added in my powdered sugar and added in some strawberry flavoring i got at the store because i didn't think there was enough and wanted it to really taste like strawberries.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">See, this is my poof that i CAN work with fondant, at least in small batches. lol</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Fully decorated doll cake. I was trying to go for two-tones ruffles, but mainly all you can see is purple.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I wanted there to be enough cake for whoever might be there, and the doll cake was only about 8 inches in diameter. So i made a dance floor for her to stand on. My writing could still use work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The finished product at the party! Not too shabby!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The inside of the cake:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I learned a lot of lessons with this one. Which is sort of the point. I enjoyed making this cake as much as the birthday girl enjoyed receiving it!</span></div>
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<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-71134227408066712022012-09-03T18:07:00.001-07:002012-09-03T18:08:07.200-07:00Pixie Hollow CakeMy daughter turned 5 years old last week, and a few weeks ago i asked her what kind of cake she would like for her birthday. She said Tinkerbell. We looked around the internet and i saw a definite theme with cakes. She said she wanted one with 'lots of fairies'.<br />
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I looked around in some stores but no one had any fairies i liked. It's really hard to find little Tinkerbell toys right now. You can find lots of big dolls though. So i hit up Amazon and found a really cute set of fairies that i thought would work as cake toppers.<br />
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I had this vision in my head for a BIG cake. Way too big for the amount of people i actually needed to serve. But when i go for it, i generally go big.<br />
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However, i had a series of snafus and fail cakes while i was trying to bake. I learned, for example, how not to not make a chocolate chip cake. Who knew that was going to be so difficult? Twice, even? As if i was so sure it was somehow the <i>cake's</i> fault it failed, i had to do it again to see if it wasn't just a fluke that the first one didn't work. Turns out, it was me after all. Ah, life. Trial and error. Good times.<br />
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My end result turned out nicely, but there were tears and frustration before i was done.<br />
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Making cakes, i have realized that you have to be flexible and take the fail cakes with a resigned determination to succeed next time.<br />
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I ended up going with a marble cake. I took a plain white cake recipe and then i split it in half and put 1/4 cup of cocoa powder in it and mixed it so all my cake would require the same baking temperature and time.<br />
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The finished product! I learned how to make much more realistic rocks for my lagoon and waterfall, which i am happy about!</div>
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I wasn't thrilled about my icing consistency. I need to experiment and find just the right balance for myself, because i wasn't able to get this icing as smooth as i normally strive for. I did get some nice color, however. And this was my first try at edging a cake, but i think i just need some practice.</div>
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I really do love the fairies cavorting about!</div>
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My daughter was SO thrilled. She told me it's *just* what she wanted. And if you Google fairy cakes, you will see a LOT of cakes in this same theme and with pools and waterfalls and stuff. I am just putting my own spin on a cake that gets a LOT of traffic and attempts. My personal goal is to challenge myself with what i can do. It doesn't all have to be original to be awesome.</div>
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This was a really fun cake to do, after i got the shape all figured out!</div>
<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-20262117574774491532012-08-06T16:14:00.001-07:002012-08-06T16:14:27.045-07:00Car Chase Cake<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I have had the busiest summer! Therefore, i have not been as active in the kitchen as i would like. However, we are returning to the beginning of what i fondly call "Birthday Season", and birthdays go from midsummer to mid-April, then i am done again for a few short months.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My friend asked me if i would bake a cake for her husband and his twin brother. Of course, i said yes. One of them is a cop, and one is a Harley-loving biker. So they wanted something like a road with a police car chasing a Harley. Totally a cute idea. I loved it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I had my brain on this for quite a while, but in the end i decided to go for something fairly simple in design. I didn't want it to look anything like the cartoon-y Cars cake i made for my nephew.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So this is what i came up with!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">The trees i simply piped about a million leaves on each one and it made them quite realistic looking, i think.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Here is the part that had me crossing my fingers. When i asked what size the road needed to be, she said "Matchbox car sized." I made sure i made the road plenty big in case we ended up with something not quite so small, so i am happy with the result! We had a good laugh over her chase to find the right sized vehicles in relation to each other.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I was very pleased with this cake, and i think everyone else was, too. Even if my friend's little boy did say my rocks looked like poo. Silly kid. Note to self: Experiment with making non-poo-ish rocks. Heh.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Nothing extremely special on the inside. Just a home made cake with BH&G recipes. Chocolate on one side, white on the other.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I did experiment with store bought fondant this time. MUCH easier to work with, although i like my cheap version too for the most part. But there is no way i was going to make homemade fondant THIS kind of black color, either.</span></div>
<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-34662198948138668492012-06-29T09:21:00.000-07:002012-06-29T09:21:17.708-07:00Plum/Nectarine SorbetThis year, we discovered we have a fruit tree in our backyard! I was pretty sure it was a plum tree but it *could* be a nectarine tree. I want to say i am sure but i'm not.<br />
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Either way, i love plums AND nectarines. I got hooked on nectarines when i was pregnant, and they are one of my favorites.<br />
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I looked up a <a href="http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/plum_sorbet/">lovely recipe</a> for plum sorbet.<br />
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I didn't realize they would be so juicy fresh off the tree. I am learning that grocery store firmness isn't really replicated in your backyard. They were firm indeed on the outside, but i have never had such juicy fruit in my life. I made this sorbet twice last week. The first time, i cut fresh fruit and it made quite a mess. More than i expected. The juice ran down my arms to my elbows and dripped onto the floor, all over my blender, the counter tops, my shirt and pants... it was a huge sweet mess.<br />
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The second time i made it i experimented with freezing the fruit whole and then using a very sharp knife to cut it. On one hand, there was less mess. On the other hand, it is harder to blend up frozen fruit than fresh. I had to use a little bit of water to assist it and i cut some fresh fruit at the end to give it more juice for blending.<br />
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Here's the recipe:<br />
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2 ½ cups sliced plums, pits removed<br />
¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp sugar<br />
1 tsp lemon juice<br />
pinch of salt<br />
1 Tbsp Grand Mariner (optional)<br />
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I used more plums, at least 3 cups. So i increased the sugar, to about 1/2 cup. I used Triple Sec instead of Grand Mariner. The liqueur is basically to keep it from getting too rock hard. It gives it a bit of softness.<br />
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You blend this all up together until smooth. The original recipe suggested that i strain out the large pieces of skin and discard them. The first time i made this, with the fresh fruit, the skins were negligible after blending. Using the frozen fruit, the skins were more prominent but i still didn't strain them out. You can do so if you like but when i eat a fruit i eat the skin, so it didn't bother me to have it in my sorbet. The pieces weren't very large at all so straining it just seemed like a mess and a bother.<br />
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I put the mixture into my ice cream maker and i let it go for about 40-50 minutes (this was with fresh fruit). The frozen fruit takes way less time. Maybe only 20 minutes. Your ice cream maker may be different, so use it according to your own directions.<br />
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The result was surprising. The fruit was so sweet fresh, and i thought the addition of the sugar might have made it extra sweet, but it was actually very tart. I personally like tart flavors, but you can always add more sugar if you like it sweeter. You could probably leave out the lemon juice. I liked it was it was.<br />
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The best part is that it's fat-free, and uses limited resources to make something that is cool and refreshing for this summer heat we're having! It was virtually free for me, since i had all the ingredients in my house and backyard!<br />
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<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-58880978567153054322012-06-20T12:41:00.002-07:002012-06-20T20:53:43.811-07:00Blackberry Pancake & Waffle Syrup<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I mentioned before that blackberries are my favorite berry. This time of year i pick as many as i can over a couple weeks span to bring home and usually i am in the kitchen for days making jams.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This year has been phenomenal for blackberries! We had a 'blackberry winter' as the old folks say, which meant we had a very mild winter. On a few levels, that sucks. I had allergies ALL winter long, and so did one of my kids. On another level, it can be really good for some plants come warm weather.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We went to the patch for the second time the other day and it looked like this out there:</span><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Yea. So we picked and picked and picked... until we had 5 gallons of berries. That's just me and my husband picking. My arms look like i was in a cat fight with the Tasmanian Devil.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This is at least as much as i bring home by myself in a whole season, if not more. I still have loads of jam canned from last year, so i thought, i wonder what else i can make with blackberries besides jam, cobbler, muffins (which is another post entirely) and sorbet.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My husband made a random comment about blackberries and pancakes, and it was like lightning struck. Blackberry Pancake Syrup!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I didn't even know if ti was a real thing but i looked around on Google. I mean, IHOP has boysenberry syrup, so why not? Turns out, it is a real thing!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">ATTENTION: Please have knowledge of how to use your pressure cooker in advance. I don't want this to be your first lesson in how to use one and i take no responsibility if you hurt yourself. There is pressure, there is steam, but there are also SAFETY PROCEDURES. Read your manual.</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">First step, get your pressure cooker and fill it with water, and get that on the stove and boiling with the lid to the side someplace<span style="background-color: white;">.</span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Get out the blender (or food processor) and blend up a bunch of berries. I added a little water to get my blender going and pureed up several cups of berries.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When you want to start measuring, you need to get out a mesh strainer.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I had a nice perfectly sized metal bowl that my strainer fit on.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ate3ZFqOxiI/T-IivAQ4mVI/AAAAAAAAANQ/smRXtHuhma4/s1600/IMG_4396.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ate3ZFqOxiI/T-IivAQ4mVI/AAAAAAAAANQ/smRXtHuhma4/s400/IMG_4396.JPG" width="298" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The puree is really thick and won't just magically separate itself, so i tapped the strainer against the bowl repeatedly until basically all that was left was seeds and all the juice and pulpy goodness had sifted through.</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GcMQjbF1na8/T-Ii2jWF6sI/AAAAAAAAANY/iDGlBKo__rI/s1600/IMG_4405.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GcMQjbF1na8/T-Ii2jWF6sI/AAAAAAAAANY/iDGlBKo__rI/s400/IMG_4405.JPG" width="298" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Do that until you have 4 cups and juice and fine pulp.</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F3MiHXAZzA8/T-Ii86N2dGI/AAAAAAAAANg/je0dRkOjxjw/s1600/IMG_4412.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-F3MiHXAZzA8/T-Ii86N2dGI/AAAAAAAAANg/je0dRkOjxjw/s400/IMG_4412.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You need a good sized saucepan or stock pot preferably (i need a new stock pot) because when this stuff boils, it is going to EXPAND.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add 4 cups of sugar. Turn on the heat, and stir until it's very dissolved.</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fLhwznnMS-s/T-IjBdJhX7I/AAAAAAAAANo/uL0N5Inq1zc/s1600/IMG_4414.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-fLhwznnMS-s/T-IjBdJhX7I/AAAAAAAAANo/uL0N5Inq1zc/s400/IMG_4414.JPG" width="298" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I already had an estimated number of jars and rings sterilized and my canning equipment ready to go. If you've canned before, you know the drill. If not, get your jars/rings in hot soapy water and let them sit for a while, and put your unused lids in simmering water on the stove. When you have your blackberry mixture on the stove, you can start bringing your jars out of the bath and rinse off the soap.</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w2k3Mj_6EBk/T-IjJ136utI/AAAAAAAAANw/PPTSEFS_6gQ/s1600/IMG_4418.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-w2k3Mj_6EBk/T-IjJ136utI/AAAAAAAAANw/PPTSEFS_6gQ/s400/IMG_4418.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Let your blackberries come to a boil. Boil on high for 2 minutes. Keep your spoon ready to stir because it WILL expand and it will feel like molten lava if you end up touching it. Nothing good to be felt there.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When it's done boiling, turn off the heat. Ladle blackberry syrup into jars, and make sure to leave ¼" head space.</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHUENOjzSbE/T-IjPbu7l_I/AAAAAAAAAN4/VZaYGztaeDo/s1600/IMG_4420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-mHUENOjzSbE/T-IjPbu7l_I/AAAAAAAAAN4/VZaYGztaeDo/s400/IMG_4420.JPG" width="298" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Wipe off the jar rims, and put the hot lids on with your magnetic lid lifter, and screw rings on tight.</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XXcXgaiQ4Q4/T-IjUcuRuZI/AAAAAAAAAOA/_BQKUP8ri-E/s1600/IMG_4423.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XXcXgaiQ4Q4/T-IjUcuRuZI/AAAAAAAAAOA/_BQKUP8ri-E/s400/IMG_4423.JPG" width="298" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Place jars in pressure cooker and fasten on the lid. When it pressures up, let jars pressure for 10 minutes.</span></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jMBYNP5UGwc/T-Ija9FnFaI/AAAAAAAAAOI/QatKHugrFrg/s1600/IMG_4431.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jMBYNP5UGwc/T-Ija9FnFaI/AAAAAAAAAOI/QatKHugrFrg/s400/IMG_4431.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When your pressure cooker cools off a touch you can let off some steam so it can be safely opened. PLEASE read your manual and know how to use your appliance.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Remove your jars carefully with your jar lifter and remove to a towel or heat proof surface to cool.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And voila, you have blackberry syrup!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I am soooo excited to make pancakes now!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br />
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Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-56848975368419423842012-06-18T10:15:00.001-07:002012-06-18T10:16:31.456-07:00Blackberry Sorbet & Banana "Ice Cream"<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I got a new appliance! Bet you can't get what that is, heh. That's right. An ice cream maker! It's not a very big one, just a 1.5 quart Rival, but still. I'm excited!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I was looking at this months's Ladies Home Journal, and they had a section of homemade ice cream recipes. Next thing you know, we happen to be out shopping for necessities and we saw our new appliance calling to us.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Of course, i didn't make ice cream my first time around. Instead i decided that instead of going out and buying cream and whole milk and half and half and all the other stuff you need for actual ice cream, i'd start out with some sorbet and sherbet.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I don't know about you, but this is the time of year i really get my fruit on. I love nothing better than to can some jams, and pick fruit (the free-er the better, in my opinion), and experiment with the cheapest fruits in the market.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I already had tons of blackberries at home, and i picked up some bananas while we were out.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I started out with the bananas.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It's not something i invented. I first saw it on Pinterest, but that site has this irritating habit of logging me out and when i go to the home page, i see something AMAZING that i just have to try, but when i go to pin it, i'm not logged in. So then by the time i get logged in, the pin is no longer on the front page, and frankly, i'm more than a little peeved.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">BUT, then the same Ladies Home Journal happened to have the same thing in it this month, and i was like YES!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So, the recipe said take some bananas and cut them into chunks and freeze them, and then when they're frozen, use a food processor to puree them. Well, i don't have a food processor, and i don't know if my blender is badass enough to puree frozen bananas.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Instead, i cut up bananas and put the chunks directly into my blender. I have a Wavestation blender for smoothies and shakes and stuff, and i find it is way better than a plain blender.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I pureed them until they were nice and smooth. For future reference, i think i am going to add a teaspoon or so of a fruit preserving agent in there next time to prevent oxidation, because as the mixture got cold it got a little brown, BUT it did not affect the taste.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After it was in the freezer long enough to get a little slushy and frozen on the bottom (maybe 3 hours) i took it out and i put it all in my ice cream maker. I turned it on and let it go for about 50 minutes or so, then i poured it back in the bowl and froze it until it was hard. It scoops really easily.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the blackberries, i mixed up a simple sugar syrup.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take 2 cups of water and 2 cups of sugar. Dissolve this together in a saucepan until it starts boiling. Make sure and stir it up so the sugar dissolves. When it starts to boil, turn the heat down until it simmers for 5 minutes.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take it off the heat. Let it sit and cool til it's about room temperature.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take 5 cups (2 pints) of blackberries and wash and drain them. Put them into the blender (or food processor) and puree them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Put the blackberry puree into the blender with 1/4 cup of the cooled syrup into the ice cream maker and blend it up. Add the blackberry mixture and about 1¼ cups of the syrup into the ice cream maker and let it go for about 50 minutes or so. Then you can pour the sherbet mixture into another container and freeze it up. It is also easily scoopable.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I am so pleased with how this all turned out that i am going to continue to experiment with more flavors. So be forewarned... i may get addicted to this fast!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The best part is everything is absolutely FAT FREE. You can't beat that with a stick. For me, it's awesome, because i am trying to eat healthier.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i7fuP5ChMwo/T99ht8aEz9I/AAAAAAAAAMc/BhTLcPat0oU/s1600/036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-i7fuP5ChMwo/T99ht8aEz9I/AAAAAAAAAMc/BhTLcPat0oU/s400/036.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The banana sherbet/ice cream alone is awesome. My kids loved it.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v3K3ksYvIsg/T99hyHFnJ4I/AAAAAAAAAMk/fgx_xZajlUk/s1600/039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-v3K3ksYvIsg/T99hyHFnJ4I/AAAAAAAAAMk/fgx_xZajlUk/s400/039.JPG" width="400" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add blackberry AND banana sherbet and you have two kinds of awesome. These flavors actually paired very well together. YUMOLA.</span></td></tr>
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<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-85918940900083985522012-06-15T15:15:00.000-07:002012-06-15T15:15:50.383-07:00Super Simple Blackberry Cobbler!It is blackberry season in Illinois, and i am happy about that! They are my favorite berry! I love them all, whether they be tart or sweet.<br />
<br />
For Father's Day, i baked my FIL a blackberry cobbler. It's his favorite. This will buy me DIL Brownie Points for MONTHS.<br />
<br />
I did a quick Google search for blackberry cobbler recipes, and i ended up using a simple one from <a href="http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/blackberry-cobbler/97b86fd2-7588-497b-866d-8a1bd8b2e491">Betty Crocker</a>.<br />
<br />
Ingredients:<br />
<br />
2 ½ cups fresh or frozen blackberries (thawed and drained)<br />
1 cup sugar<br />
1 cup all-purpose flour<br />
2 tsp. baking powder<br />
1/2 tsp salt<br />
1 cup milk<br />
½ cup melted butter (1 stick)<br />
<br />
Heat oven to 375°.<br />
<br />
In medium bowl stir together blackberries and sugar, and let sit for about 20 minutes until a syrup begins to form.<br />
<br />
In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients. Add milk and combine. Then add melted butter and combine again. Spread in ungreased 8x8 pan. Spoon berry mixture over the batter.<br />
<br />
Bake 45 to 55 minutes or until dough rises and is golden.<br />
<br />
Serve plain or with cream.<br />
<br />
My house smells SO good right now!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jEwBnTyrNdM/T9uuEh1nZhI/AAAAAAAAALA/a6WTx3BGOX0/s1600/058.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jEwBnTyrNdM/T9uuEh1nZhI/AAAAAAAAALA/a6WTx3BGOX0/s400/058.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x7GrKSOM3Sk/T9uvzNnNAcI/AAAAAAAAALc/zbwn_0qO1kA/s1600/038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x7GrKSOM3Sk/T9uvzNnNAcI/AAAAAAAAALc/zbwn_0qO1kA/s400/038.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sugar your berries! I added an extra half cup because my father-in-law loves his extra sweet!</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o8fR5hYxC-8/T9uv39DDC9I/AAAAAAAAALk/O1sbkUYrsrk/s1600/041.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o8fR5hYxC-8/T9uv39DDC9I/AAAAAAAAALk/O1sbkUYrsrk/s400/041.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Whisk your dry ingredients together. Add 1 cup milk.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ETc8I_LaTpo/T9uv8HyTH9I/AAAAAAAAALs/-j3GpCRDmzg/s1600/043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ETc8I_LaTpo/T9uv8HyTH9I/AAAAAAAAALs/-j3GpCRDmzg/s400/043.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Add your butter and combine this again.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-utTozgeWoNo/T9uwAWz4WcI/AAAAAAAAAL0/T5tRlW-CFwQ/s1600/045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-utTozgeWoNo/T9uwAWz4WcI/AAAAAAAAAL0/T5tRlW-CFwQ/s400/045.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spread the batter in the pan.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ztzgs3mVeIc/T9uwEwvrNiI/AAAAAAAAAL8/P0-XnMSK1vw/s1600/049.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Ztzgs3mVeIc/T9uwEwvrNiI/AAAAAAAAAL8/P0-XnMSK1vw/s400/049.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Drop berries and sugar onto the batter, covering the whole surface.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pop this baby in the oven!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yum! This looks so delicious!</td></tr>
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And that is ALL there is to it! The hardest part of this is picking the berries! Of course, you don't HAVE to pick them, but i find a certain satisfaction in knowing this beautiful dessert came 100% naturally off the side of the road, and some ingredients i already had in my fridge!Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-71061361296396904062012-06-10T13:09:00.004-07:002012-06-10T20:34:45.292-07:00Would You Like S'more?<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've been on a bit of a hiatus lately, and i apologize if you've missed seeing my posts, but summer is upon us and that means moms become even more busy. It should be the other way around or something. I know i always look forward to summer because that means i no longer have 100 things to remember for the 3 schools my kids are scattered across, and i don't have all the shuttling them around and myriad duties associated with the school year. However, even though i don't have to get up at the crack of dawn or worry about what day Box Tops need to be handed in, i find that my kids require constant attention. That's so annoying. Haha.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've been sitting on this recipe for weeks. I was on a site that i peruse for rewards (because i'm frugal like that) and i was in the video section trying to earn a few extra points when i came across their video recipe section. I was surprised because i didn't know they had such a thing! I had watched a lot of crappy mini-documentaries and they had older clips from The Martha Stewart Show? Wha..? I had been wasting time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Jennifer Shea from <a href="http://www.trophycupcakes.com/">Trophy Cupcakes in Seattle</a> was showing how to make S'mores cupcakes. Actually they call them Chocolate Graham Cracker and Toasted Marshmallow Cupcakes But we all know what that means. As i peruse Pinterest and other sites, i see S'mores are kind of overdone lately, everyone has a version, but i still wanted to give a go at some recipes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The only problem was that i wanted a *reason* to make these cupcakes. I will make cookies or brownies or bars for any old day, but cupcakes and cakes need an occasion. I have my reasons. When i am making something that takes this extra time and effort, i want someone besides my kids (and husband) to tell me what they think. Unless the recipe will only make 12 cupcakes, it seems a waste to make all that stuff for a family of 5, especially since my girls will lick off the icing and then run off to play. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When my friend invited us over for a cookout, i was excited! Perfect timing for a cupcake. She didn't ask me to bring anything, so i figured i would make it a surprise.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Recipe:</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Chocolate Graham Cracker and Toasted Marshmallow Cupcakes</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Cupcake Batter</b></span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Sift together:</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 1/3 c ap flour</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3/4 c + 1 TBSP cocoa powder</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 c + 2 TBSP sugar</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1.5 tsp baking soda</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1.5 tsp baking powder</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tsp salt</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add in mixer bowl :</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 eggs</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 c veg oil</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 c milk</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 tsp vanilla</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>Add wet to dry ingredients in mixer bowl. Scrape bowl sides. </i><i>Mix 2 min.</i></span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add 1 cup boiling water into mixer. Incorporate. Let sit.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Bottom crust</b></span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1.5 c graham cracker, crushed</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/4 c sugar</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/3 c melted butter</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take graham mixture and add TBSP in each cupcake liner. Press down with small juice glass to make crust.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add 1 tsp chopped bittersweet chocolate. (I actually used a sprinkling of semi-sweet chocolate chips instead.)</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Put in oven at 350 for 5 minutes to create crust.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Scoop in cake mixture. Fill up to 3/4 full in liners. Add a bit more chopped choc on top, then a bit graham mixture on top of that.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Bake 18-20 at 350, cool 10 minutes in pan.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><b>Meringue topping</b></span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">8 lrg egg whites</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 c sugar</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 tsp cream of tartar</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take ingredients and mix on stove in double boiler til sugar dissolves til too hot too touch and can't feel the granules.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add vanilla when ready to mix.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">With mixer, beat for 5-7 minutes, until meringue is stff. Pipe onto cupcakes in a cloud.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Use benzomatic torch (industrial strength) and lightly 'roast' the topping. Be careful not to torch paper. Make as dark as you like (not too dark).</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I decided to double this recipe. I knew i'd be taking a lot of them to my friend's house but 2 of my kids weren't going to be there and in case they all got gobbled up, i wanted to reserve some for home.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I will just say right off, this recipe would be better done a batch at a time. It all worked out in the end but i had moments.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So, you mix up your cake batter, just like above. Make sure you start your water boiling somewhere in the process so it's done around the time you need it. I had my husband assisting me with putting the cupcake liners in the pans while i did this part. When the batter was all mixed, i let it sit while i used my rolling pin and crushed up graham crackers in a freezer bag. You only need one sleeve of crackers to make 1.5 cups of crumbs, but i made a double batch. Two sleeves makes just shy of 3 cups of crumbs, and i had leftover when i was done, so don't worry about not having enough.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Find a juice glass (or something) that fits the bottom of your cupcake tin. When i bought my Anchor glass baking pans, this little measuring cup came in the box. It's awesome. My husband loves it for measuring alcohol accurately, and i love it because it's the cutest little measuring cup ever, and it has ML and measuring spoon as well as cup measurements on it. It fits perfectly in the bottom of the cupcake tins.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take a tablespoon and drop some buttery graham cracker crumbs in the bottom. It says use a whole TBSP of crumbs, but i used less and it still made a lovely little crust. So just experiment with what works for you in terms of amount. Take your cup and press the crumbs down and turn it until the whole bottom is covered and pressed down evenly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I sprinkled some chocolate chips on top of the crusts. It's far simpler than chopping and sprinkling bittersweet chocolate, and last time i checked, you don't make s'mores with bittersweet chocolate anyhow. Pop the crusts with chocolate in the oven for about 5 minutes. The chocolate doesn't really melt into a sheet or anything, and i wasn't motivated to mess up my crusts by trying to spread melty chocolate chips all over them either. So my lazy shortcut is to leave the chips alone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When you remove the pans, just set them onto some towels or trivets so you can continue working even though the pans are still hot. If you actually have some time, you can wait until they're cooler but i did not have the luxury.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Take a small ice cream scoop and scoop some batter, which will be thinner than normal batter thanks to the addition of boiling water, and fill the cupcake liners about 3/4 full. You don't want to overfill these, because once they hit the top of the liners, they will spread. If your tins are non-stick coated, a little over spill is not a big issue because they will pop right off with a minimum of effort. Once the liners are all filled, take some more graham cracker crumbs and sprinkle each cupcake as generously as you'd like. I did not sprinkle more chocolate on top of the crumbs as the recipe suggested because i figured they are chocolate cupcakes and that would just be overkill. (Besides, i had run out of chocolate chips, so...)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Some of the graham crackers sunk into the batter a little bit. But we were kind of messy in our execution. ;-)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I don't have a double boiler for the next step, but i can improvise. All you need is a saucepan and a metal mixing bowl that fit together. Don't overfill your saucepan with water. All you need is enough water to hit the bottom of your top pan. There will be steam, and you don't want that kind of mess if it boils out the sides.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This is actually the part where making a double batch became a pain in the butt. The meringue mixture took way longer than it should have to get hot. The recipe says that the mixture is done when the sugar granules are dissolved and the mixture is too hot to touch. My husband thought i was joking when i said this to him because he said that it's pretty stupid to be in the kitchen and have to take one for the team in the form of a scalded finger. However, if you keep whisking with a fork, occasionally just lift your fork and gently touch a drop. Once it starts getting uncomfortably warm, just whisk it for another minute or two and you don't actually have to burn the crap out of yourself. As for the sugar, if you whisk it enough, the sugar WILL dissolve and you don't have to worry about if you can feel granules or not. If you've ever made rock candy or fudge, you'll know what i mean. At some point the stirring takes care of that for you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When it is finally hot, turn off the heat and carefully lift your bowl out of the saucepan using hot pads or oven gloves or towels... and carefully move it over to your mixer and pour it in. You don't need a stand mixer of course, so if you don't have one, just set it onto a surface that won't scald and take your mixer to it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The double batch took what seemed like ages to stiffen in the stand mixer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If you've never made meringue or worked with egg whites this way before, you ideally want it to make stiff peaks. Think mountains. However i think i was working with too much at once, and it never really got quite that stiff for me. Once i was able to lift my mixer and have meringue that would stand on itself, i was ready to pipe. I took a piping bag and inserted my coupler and had it ready to to go standing in a tall glass, and i poured a bit of meringue in it. This was quite messy. I kept the rest of the meringue mixing after i got my bag ready so it would continue to stiffen as i worked. Beware, do not overfill the bag and work quickly, as it WILL come out the end of your bag as gravity works its charm.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My first few cupcakes were rather messy, but the meringue stayed on the cupcakes, so i was happy enough with it. It maintained a gooeyness that i think works in S'mores.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As you can see, it was stiff enough to pile and have definition, but it isn't quite stuff enough to go on top of a lemon meringue pie. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Next was the part that made me a bit nervous. I told my husband several weeks ago i wanted a culinary torch. He was out one day and bought me a small handheld torch that looked a lot like the ones i had my eye on, but it gave us a lot of trouble when we went to use it. We're taking it back, but it did work enough to get this job done, and now i know i need a better quality torch for my next combustible project. On the video clip, they used a really big industrial Benzomatic torch, but i thought that looked too unwieldy for me, personally.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You don't want to get the tops too dark, of course, just enough that it's toasted and has a nice color to them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And here is a shot of one in the middle. You can see the crust on the bottom. These are REALLY tasty.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">They must have looked messy because more kids ate them than adults. I tried to coax one of my friend's friend to eat one and he said he wasn't big on icing. I told him there wasn't any icing, just meringue. But he didn't eat one. My friend's husband, however, said they were fantastic! He said he wasn't big on marshmallow, but he was impressed. I explained there wasn't ANY marshmallow at all, and he said that explained it! I left a whole plate of them so they could be enjoyed after i was gone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">They aren't as messy as they look. I promise. But, after all, S'mores ARE messy business.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I am glad i tried these. They are definitely on my Make Again list. And now i am not nearly as scared of using a torch, either. I had a lot of 'firsts' on this recipe, so i felt like i learned a lot. And that IS why i do this, after all. It's not just for the treats, although that bonus is quite nice.</span></div>
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<br /></div>Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-89425195108801715602012-05-20T14:17:00.002-07:002012-05-20T17:00:08.418-07:00Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've had my eye on this recipe for a week or so, but life is busy right now, with the end of school hoopla. I think teachers are every bit as excited to get rid of our kids as the kids are for summer. The last week of school is filled with kiddie pool parties, Olympic and Field Days, movie afternoons, and parents are trying to cram in those last birthday parties. Plus, i've had three weekends of graduations. I'm excited summer is nearly here. Not that my life will become less crazy, but perhaps less scheduled.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Today i happen to be home with the kids without boys or men of any kind. The kids are happy to run off and play, and i knew the time had come to have my kitchen to myself.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I found the recipe on Epicurean.com.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Fruit topping:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 can (20 oz.) pineapple chunks (i used pineapple rings)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/3 cup packed brown sugar</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cake batter:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cup all-purpose flour</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¾ cup sugar</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ tsp. baking powder</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup reserved pineapple juice or milk</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 egg</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Preheat the oven to 350°. Generously grease a muffin tin with shortening.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Drain the pineapple, reserving the juice. Lay pineapple on a plate layered with paper towels to drain completely.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a small bowl mix together the brown sugar and melted butter for the topping. Divide evenly between the cups. Arrange the pineapple on top of the topping decoratively. Set aside.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a large bowl mix together your dry ingredients. With an electric mixer, beat in the pineapple juice and the butter. Beat for 2 minutes or until batter is smooth. Add egg and beat it in well. Spoon (or use an ice cream scoop) to add the cake batter to the muffin cups. Bake for 30 minutes or til a toothpick comes out clean.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Cool cupcakes for 5 minutes and then place a wire rack over the muffin pan and turn them out onto it. Let cool completely.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Makes 12 cupcakes.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">If you choose to use pineapple rings, which i did because i think it's nicer, please note that you will have to cut sections out to make them fit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The recipe itself did not warn me this was going to be such a hot mess. Be warned. I had to loosen each cupcake from the sides of the tin with a spoon. I did turn out a few onto a wire rack once cool, but i don't recommend it. The pineapple tends to want to slide off. So i used the same spoon to lift each one out and turn it over to the rack after that.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">They turned out well though, after i figured that last part out!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I don't have any fancy way to get natural light photos, nor do i have fancy plates and all that good stuff yet. Don't they look delicious? They are too. I have already eaten two. These won't last 5 minutes once the boys get home.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Right after i popped these in the oven, i doubled up the recipe and made a 9x13 cake with this recipe. It's taking longer to bake but YUM. I love pineapple upside down cake!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">ETA: A photo of my cake!</span></div>
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<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-21948785157171776212012-05-18T07:22:00.003-07:002012-05-18T07:24:38.040-07:00Low-Fat Oatmeal Banana Bread<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I've had some bananas slowly going downhill on my counter for a few days. You know how it is. I figured if i didn't make bread or something, then it would just be another waste.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Instead of going with my stand-by banana bread recipe, i thought i would try something different. Once upon a time i made a kickass pumpkin bread with oatmeal in it and i can't find the recipe anywhere. It's really annoying. No one in my family except me will eat oatmeal AS oatmeal. I'm always trying to find ways of putting it into their food so it's just there, but in a tasty way. I grew up on oatmeal, and i love it, and don't understand any of them at all as they turn their nose up at it.</span><br />
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<a href="http://joythebaker.com/2009/04/low-fat-oatmeal-banana-bread/"><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I found this recipe which was adapted by Joy the Baker from the Weight Watchers recipe.</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Lately, i run back and forth from my kitchen to my computer as i read recipes. I'd write them down but that takes longer. I find writing them down doesn't really help me in the long run because i just lose it and have to do it again later if i want to make it again. That's what happened to my oatmeal pumpkin bread recipe. I'm awful about it. I have recipes all over the place.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Well, the down side to this is sometimes i just throw things together and then by the time i read the recipe again, i think 'Oh, crap... that's not what i did!'</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So, i will now hopefully entertain you (or not) with the method to my madness.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The recipe goes like this:</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour.</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ cup packed brown sugar</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ tsp. salt</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ tsp. baking soda</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">¼ tsp baking powder</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">½ tsp cinnamon</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 tsp canola or walnut oil</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 large egg, beaten</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 egg whites</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 large ripe bananas</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cup uncooked old-fashioned oats</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour loaf pan and set aside. In a large bowl stir together the dry ingredients, including the oats and cinnamon.</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">At first, this was all i read of the recipe. I was like 'Gotcha!' and ran off to the kitchen.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So i combined my dry ingredients in one bowl (i used allspice since i couldn't find my cinnamon anywhere!), and mashed my bananas in a 2nd bowl, and then i threw my egg, egg whites, and 3 Tbsp (not tsp.) of applesauce instead of oil into one bowl together and kind of beat the hell out of it with a fork.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And then i came back and read more of the recipe, to make sure i wasn't forgetting anything.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a smaller bowl, mash bananas with a fork. Add oil and whole egg and mix thoroughly.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Add wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. Batter will be fairly thick.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In a medium sized bowl, with an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites until medium stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the batter in three additions.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pour batter into pan and bake until top of bread is firm to touch, about 40-50 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit 5 minutes in the pan. Then flip out and let cool completely on a wire rack.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Loaf makes about 10 slices, 4 WW points apiece.</span></i><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Hmm. Well, obviously i didn't follow the recipe. So i got my electric mixer and mixed the egg/applesauce mixture for a couple minutes. No way i was going to get stiff peaks but whatever.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And i didn't fold it into the mixture either. I dumped everything together and mixed it with my mixer for a minute.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I slid my loaf pan into the oven.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I looked around and i thought to myself... I have 2 bananas left. I wonder if it would make a difference to make another loaf with just those two bananas? The first loaf came out and as it cooled i noticed it was a shallow loaf. The photo Joy the Baker has on her page looked the same, but i also wondered if there would be a difference in the loaves if i actually followed the recipe like i was supposed to.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So i made another. Same as before, i used 3 Tbsp applesauce (i thought the original recipe used 3 Tbsp canola oil, but i misread it) and i subbed allspice for the cinnamon. 2 bananas. I also added a couple handfuls of walnuts. My kids hate nuts in their breads and cookies, but i love them, and so does my husband and son.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I did a side by side comparison of the loaves. On the left is the first loaf, and on the right the one i followed by the recipe and added nuts. There's a slight difference in size but it's really negligible.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So my husband and i did a taste test for comparison after dinner.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My husband said it was okay, but drier than my usual breads. Basically, he's asking me not to do this again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And he's right. They are not as moist as i expect my quick breads to be. But it could be the oatmeal. Old fashioned oats probably suck up some of the moisture that would normally be present in the bread.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Well, i decided that my final decision would be based on the age old question:</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">How does this go with coffee?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It's better with coffee. Not really the best bread, but it IS low-fat. I mean, i warned you in the title of this blog. I didn't want the fact that it originally came from Weight Watchers to weigh in on my decision, and i think i am being fair to say i didn't. I also did not warn my husband it was low-fat before he took a bite because i didn't want him to be biased.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I would say that if you're looking for something low-fat for either a breakfast bread or a snack, this would be good. Hey, with the oatmeal, it's also heart healthy! And that's always good, right?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">After all the cake i have made lately, it's probably good to eat something like this once in a while.</span></div>
<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-28111421672609438862012-05-14T06:28:00.002-07:002012-05-14T06:30:35.909-07:00Margarita Cupcakes<div>
Today i am sharing something that was ridiculously easy. Anyone can throw this together and look awesome.</div>
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My sister was graduating on Friday and i wanted to do something special but i have to admit, this was one of those weeks. You know, when all your bills get paid so you're broke, you're out of cocoa powder, Mother's Day is in 3 days and your kids are driving you bonkers.</div>
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We all have those weeks, don't we? Maybe you don't have kids to drive you crazy. But you have something driving you slowly to the brink. I know you do.</div>
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I was poking around the internet looking for a recipe. I knew what i wanted to make. Margarita cupcakes. I may not have cocoa powder, but we generally always have the makings for margaritas.</div>
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<a href="http://cookeatshare.com/recipes/margarita-cupcakes-cyndy-s-debut-recipe-271694">I found this recipe.</a> She adapted this recipe <a href="http://www.recipegirl.com/2007/05/01/margarita-cupcakes/">from RecipeGirl, found here</a>. The picture is what grabbed me. I love beautiful cupcakes. My cupcakes never look like the photos i see, but i like to keep trying.</div>
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I scrolled through it, and to my dismay, it calls for a boxed cake mix. For a while, i just sat here, contemplating it. I hadn't used a boxed recipe in a while. I finally decided to give it a go. I felt like i was cheating, but i figured if i drank a margarita while making these cupcakes, the guilt might fade away. And since the recipe actually called for me to drink the leftover margarita, i was all set.</div>
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The only thing i changed was using applesauce instead of vegetable/canola oil, and instead of Grand Mariner in the cake, i used Triple Sec.</div>
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The buttercream recipe calls for a lot more sugar than i normally use. I thought i'd try it since i wasn't spreading it on a cake. It turned out lovely and creamy. I was surprised. For the lime icing, i used maybe a teaspoon of orange extract in addition to lime juice for a more citrus-y kick. Her recipe calls for Grand Mariner in the frosting, and i didn't have any of that, nor did i want to risk having my icing too soft for piping.</div>
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Up next i made some cupcakes for the kids. I made another box mix white cake and topped them with standard frosting which i added a bit of caramel liquid flavoring to. They were really good.</div>
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My sister loved the cupcakes and said they devoured them overnight. In the end, i can't be too grumpy at myself for my shortcut since they turned out so well. Sometimes compromise is good, and it's the icing that really set these apart.</div>
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<br /></div>Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-40236409026677010532012-05-08T07:21:00.002-07:002012-05-08T07:28:00.369-07:00Hats Off To My Grads!<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It was a very busy weekend around here. Friday we had a wonderfully unique evening ahead of us. I knew for a couple months that one of my best friends was graduating from nursing school (again!), but it wasn't until the beginning of last week we found out my husband would also be walking in the same graduation ceremony! You see, he was getting his degree after 4 years of grueling night classes in Building Trades, but the college had our address wrong and we didn't get any of this information until someone called him up to personally find out if he was coming! Of course we wouldn't miss it for the world!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Both of my beloved graduates deserve a nice cake, don't you think? I thought so!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My friend wanted a chocolate cake. She had pinned an interesting nursing themed cake on Pinterest with a big hint that she would really like one like it several weeks ago. <a href="http://scrubsmag.com/nurse-cakes/3/">You can click here to take a look at it.</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">A lot of people would be like "Aww, hell no, i can't do that!" I'm one of those weirdos who think, "Well... i don't know about that, but let's see what i can come up with." (By the way, to the people who know me, this is not a challenge to find something more difficult for me to do. Haha. Thanks.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In order to end up with a cake of a decent size, i knew i needed to start out with a large cake. I had to go out and buy a new pan. I chose an 11x15 Wilton's pan that i found at WalMart in the cake decorating aisle. I also picked up some cake boards and a cake box.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Again i used the <a href="http://www.easy-cake-ideas.com/pound-cake.html">pound cake recipes on this website</a>, as i did for my last cake. For my friend's cake, i used the double chocolate recipe, and i added chocolate chips this time instead of grated chocolate. Mainly because it was quick and easy and i knew i was going to be trimming this cake down quite a bit from the original size.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I baked my cakes and filled them between with standard vanilla buttercream icing. My buttercream icing is very simple. It doesn't vary much at all from any other recipe out there. I don't use shortening at all. I did once, but it was too greasy for my taste. You can get a nice buttercream by following this short recipe:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 sticks butter, softened</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">3 ½ - 4 cups powdered sugar (icing sugar)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Put your butter in your mixing bowl and beat til smooth. Add sugar a bit at a time. I usually add about 1/3 cup at a time and beat it smooth in between to get a nice consistency. Since i'm spreading this as smoothly as i possibly can (which i am still practicing at), i generally don't add more than 3 ½ cups total of sugar. You can add your vanilla anywhere in the mixing process. I usually add it after about the first full cup of sugar has been mixed in.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I thought about how to get a uniform shape on the cake. I had no template to go by, and one of my biggest worries was getting it all lopsided. I like symmetry. It drives me nuts if things aren't symmetrical when they should be.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I looked around my kitchen and saw these thick wooden skewers that my husband uses for corn on the cob and inspiration struck. I'd use one like a pencil/stylus! So i sketched the edges of my shape with one and when i made a mistake, i could correct it. All my mistakes would be covered in frosting when i was done.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Once i had the entire outline drawn out, i used a piece of aluminum foil i took off the cake and got a straight line for the bottom of the cake. (I waited to draw the right side of the 'shirt' because i was afraid my perception of that line would throw off my bottom line. If that made sense.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Then, a nice crumb coat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I asked her what color she liked best. She said she didn't have a favorite, but she'd like something bright. Well, i like purple. I looked online to see how bright the violet gel coloring i had would get, and i thought it would look nice.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I used my Wilton's #47, flat side up, for my sleeve and collar details. I was very pleased with how smooth i got the frosting on the top of the cake. It's my best job yet.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now, the cake seems about half done, doesn't it? I wish. This was all easy-peasy lemon squeezy, as my daughter would say.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I had done some experimenting with fondant earlier in the week, preparing myself for war. I knew i would never approach the real look of the materials in the example cake from Pinterest. Some of them i am certain are actual products, and not made of fondant or modelling chocolate at all.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I did manage a reasonable cartoon-y facsimile of some of the items. I think i did a pretty good job, considering i haven't worked with fondant much. This was a huge challenge for me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Voila! Finished!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">She loved her cake, and i was pretty pleased with the end result myself!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now, for my husband. He got his cake a little late, because the nursing cake took up a huge chunk of my time and i was just exhausted over the weekend. We had so much going on. But i finished it on Monday while he was gone to work. Well, i almost got it finished. He came home extra early and i had to make him leave while i finished up the final touches.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When he asked me for a graduation cake, he told me he wanted a big pipe wrench on it. He's a journeyman pipefitter now (since graduation) and they have this HUGE pipe wrench outside their local union hall.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I don't have progression pictures of the cake, because i was totally done trying to document my progress. I just wanted to get it done and made and have time to get laundry done. But it turned out pretty nice. He was very pleased! It was exactly what he wanted!</span></div>
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<br />Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-55604281070756745532012-04-23T12:45:00.005-07:002012-04-23T13:31:33.394-07:00Vroom Vroom! Racing To The Party!<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My nephew's birthday was last week, and my sister had him a little family party over the weekend to celebrate. She asked me (on quite short notice) to bake him a cake. I hit Google for some ideas on how i could pull it off almost immediately. I came up with a vision in my head, and hit the internet for some new cake recipes. My BH&G cook book doesn't have a pound cake recipe, can you imagine? I knew the cake i made would have to be sturdy, and i worried that regular cake wouldn't take the abuse.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I found some promising looking <a href="http://www.easy-cake-ideas.com/pound-cake.html">pound cake recipes on this website</a>. When i scrolled down and saw there was a chocolate variation, i was sold! Same recipe, just add chocolate? Score!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">One of the best parts of this recipe it it called for two 9" cake cans, and i didn't have to convert a tube or loaf pan recipe into round pans. I'm not lazy or anything, i just didn't have time for all that nonsense.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I made it exactly as stated in the recipe in the original vanilla flavor. It's also important to use the wax paper or parchment paper circles in the bottoms of your cake pans and grease the bottoms and sides well. I use shortening on a paper towel to grease my pans. It's cheaper than using spray and vegetable oil spray leaves a nasty sticky residue on my pans no matter how many times i wash them which really tweaks me off.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I was impressed that these cakes came out so perfectly even that i didn't have to trim the tops or anything. I always have to trim the tops of my regular cakes, plus my oven sort of leans forward a bit. My husband hasn't gotten around to adjusting the legs on it. These cakes didn't even have that forward 'slide' to them which shows my oven does lean a few degrees forward.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I wanted to do another layer, and i had 12" round pans to use. I finally decided to double the cake recipe, and fill the pans evenly, and bake the same amount of time to the 30 minute mark and keep checking every 10 minutes, as in the original recipe.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I REALLY tested the limits of my 5 qt. stand mixer with this one. As i mixed the batter, and the level kept rising, my husband and i were debating on whether or not it was all going to fit in there and mix or not.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In the end, my mixer looked like this:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Then it was time to add the chocolate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I divided up the batter and slid them into the oven and once again, they came out PERFECT. I am totally in love with this recipe now. Check it out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Once all 4 cakes were cooled, it was time to wrap them and put them in the fridge. The recipe says cling wrap, but i didn't have cling wrap. I have aluminum foil.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">See how studded the chocolate cakes are with bits of dark chocolate? Yum!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I use family birthday cakes as a way of having an excuse to do new things. Previously i had only made fondant to use for cutting out small decorative pieces on cupcakes, and once i did 24 cupcakes with 100% fondant tops. But that was easy peasy compared to what i was about to attempt. My goal was to cover the bottom 12" layer cake with fondant.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">First i had to do a crumb coat or 'dirty ice' it as Buddy Valastro calls it. I slide pieces of wax paper under all my cake edges so i don't get icing all over my cake plate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Then i added a nice thick layer of frosting that will go between the layers and finish off the top layer with a crumb coat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I made a batch of fondant and added color and rolled it out large enough to cover the whole bottom of the cake. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And then i realized i had a problem. My rolling pin is only a regular sized rolling pin and i do not have a large fondant roller. On my favorite cake show, <i>Cake Boss</i>, they roll their fondant around a large pin and then unroll it over the cake.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So now what was i going to do? I had over 20 inches round(ish) of fondant.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It was my son who came up with a solution. We laid sections of waxed paper over the top of the fondant and rolled the wax paper and fondant together around my rolling pin. And then we unrolled it over the cake.... backwards. That's right. Wax paper side down.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This is where i wanted to bang my head against the wall.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">So we lifted it all back up off the cake and i smoothed out the frosting, and i took the fondant off the paper and rolled it out again. New wax paper over the fondant. Roll it back up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We managed to get the fondant onto the cake this time, properly, but not without some tearing. I had to patch it all up and smooth it out the best i could. I was dismayed. And a little peeved. And i might have wanted to cry a little bit.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Hey, i never said i was perfect. But i took a deep breath and i thought... i will cover all that crap up with icing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I also decided that the top layer would NOT be covered in fondant. It might look a little strange, half in fondant and half in frosting, but my sanity would remain intact, and that's really what's important.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My next challenge was trying to figure out how to frost the top layers and then transfer them to the top of the first cake.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My son is the one who came up with a solution once again! What would i do without him?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We decided to use an 8" cake pan as our icing base. Putting the 9" cake on top of it, i had just enough overhang that i would be able to lift it off of the pan and onto the cake when i was finished.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In the cake recipe, it says to take the thicker cake (we poured 1/3 of the batter into one pan and 2/3 batter into the second pan) and cut it in half with dental floss. Yea, i tried doing it with dental floss, but that was going to take a coon's age. My husband took a bread knife and sawed it in half for me while i was doing some frosting.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Pretty.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">One layer of white frosting, and a second layer of frosting in blue, and we're ready to assemble a cake!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I had to get serious from here on out. I bought some Disney's Cars toys to put on this cake, so instead of putting the top cake in the very center of the bottom cakes, i slid the top cake back to the edge of the top of the bottom cake, so it kind of made a "mountain".</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I wanted the cars to be racing up to the top of my mountain. So i had to devise a road or highway.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I used a Wilton's #47 tip, flat side up, to make the asphalt. I was stressing over the road coloring because it came out kind of uneven. That's when i realized i'd been using milk in my buttercream, which i never used to do. I omitted milk from the rest of my frosting, and i made a LOT of frosting with this cake. To make the yellow lines, i simply put some yellow icing in a Ziploc type bag and nipped the tip off with scissors.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In my previous blog for the Easter Basket cookies, i mentioned how much of a pain the grass tip was. Well, i bought a new one. The first one was crappily stamped, and some of the holes have bits of metal partially covering them. I used my new grass tip and some green icing and put shrubby grass around the highway on both side, and around the seam of the two cakes. It was a LOT easier this time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I used a brown icing in a sort of desert-y color that fairly matched the color on the Cars toy boxes and i piped rock formations and hills and buttes all around the bottom layer of the cake.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Then i took a nice white buttercream and piped a bunch of clouds all around the cake. Some of them were in formations. I thought it was a nice touch. I also took the same icing i made the yellow dotted line on the road with and i piped in a couple road signs. I just took a bit of frosting and colored it black and piped the sign decorations on. I also put a finish line on top of the cake.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Then i added some rocks and grass to the top of the cake. And a cool Cars logo with his name on it. My writing could still use some work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">All that was left was to put the Cars on.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">And it was DELICIOUS!!!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I was very happy with this cake, and everyone loved it! I have like 7 more requests for cake soon. I'm going to be getting a LOT of practice! =)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As a sidenote, you can of course substitute milk chocolate or chocolate chips in this recipe for the chocolate bits in the chocolate cake. Don't be afraid to try something slightly different if dark chocolate isn't to your taste!</span></div>
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<br /></div>Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-47534536752215454492012-04-14T11:18:00.001-07:002012-04-14T11:20:37.424-07:00Bake Sale Magic<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For years now, i have struggled with making the "perfect" chocolate chip cookie. Once in a great while, they'd come out just right.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">"Just right" to me means a lot of things combined. I don't want cookies that are too dark. My old oven was notorious for uneven baking. Maybe because it was a piece of crap. I want my cookies to have just the right shape across the top. I don't want everything except the chips or nuts to be flat because they spread too much. I would even refrigerate my dough and still get them. I also don't want my cookies to be too cakey. I want just the right amount of chew, substance, and moistness. This is a very difficult combination for me to get.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You know how Soft Batch™ cookies look so perfect? Well, i wanted to get something close to that, visually, but without all the corn syrup and preservatives.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">In fact, baking chocolate chip cookies has become such a frustrating endeavor for me, that i had almost given up.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My son came home earlier in the week and said his Art Club was having a bake sale this weekend, and he'd like to contribute. He asked if he could borrow my baking stuff. I asked him if he even thought he could bake. He said "Well, i thought i'd borrow you, too. You're part of the baking supplies! I can't do this on my own!"</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Isn't he cute how he "asks" me for things? Teenagers are so much fun.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I thought all week about what i could bake. I thought about shortbread, but when i think bake sale, i always think about things with chocolate. I just so happened to have several bags of chocolate chip varieties in my freezer. I didn't quite bake as much through the holidays as i expected. He had already asked about Heath bar cookies. So i thought i would give chocolate chip cookies a whirl again and if i had to be up all night with a backup plan, so be it.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Wouldn't you know it... my cookies came out PERFECT. Of course, since i don't get to eat them, they would be. That's how the universe works.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I made Heath Bar Chocolate Chip Cookies for my first batch, and the second bath were what i will just call Chocolate Chip Combo Cookies. I added both white and semi-sweet chips into them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now for pictures. So you can drool.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Heath Bar Chocolate Chip Cookies!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Chocolate Chip Combo Cookies!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">All packaged and ready for the bake sale!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now, for the recipe.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I did adapt the recipe for chocolate chip cookies from my Better Homes & Gardens cook book.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">This is not my base recipe. I didn't invent it. I just tweaked it. I'll write the recipe out as written in the book, but add my 2 cents in parenthesis.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 butter, softened</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 cup shortening or veg. oil (i adapted this to use 1/2 cup applesauce instead)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 cup packed brown sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 cup granulated sugar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon baking soda</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 teaspoon salt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 eggs</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1 teaspoon vanilla</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The recipe calls for 1 12-ounce package of chocolate chips and 1 1/2 cups chopped and toasted (optional) nuts. But i think that's a lot. And i didn't want nuts. So i added approximately:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the Heath cookies i added:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 bag (or about 3/4 cup) of Heath Bits</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 - 3/4 bag of chocolate chips (i had a partial bag and i just dumped it all in)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For the Chocolate Chip Combos i added:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">1/2 - 3/4 bag of chocolate chips</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Approximately 1/2 bag of white baking chips</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Preheat oven to 375°F. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter and shortening (applesauce for me) with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking soda and salt. Beat until mixture is combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in remaining flour. Stir in chocolate chips and, if desired nuts. (I beat in everything with my stand mixer. Best small kitchen appliance ever.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Drop dough by rounded teaspoons (i used a small sized ice cream scoop which i read estimates about 2 Tablespoons but i didn't fill it all the way) 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. (I advise against using ungreased cookie sheets. I prefer to line all my cookie pans with parchment paper. It will save you mega amounts of frustration. Seriously.) Bake for 8 or 9 minutes or until the edges are light brown (i took mine promptly out at 8 minutes but ovens vary). Cool on cookie sheets for 2 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">We taste tested them (of course) and my husband was over the moon, my daughters were begging for another, and my son will probably buy some of our own cookies at the bake sale. I have to admit, i was rather impressed with them myself.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I think i will make a whole new batch of the Heath cookies today. Not that i need them. But i want them.</span>Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-84630601972844679242012-04-10T14:31:00.000-07:002012-04-14T11:21:29.262-07:00Peeps Sunflower Cake - Cute And Simple<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">On Easter Sunday, i invited my whole family (including in-laws) to dinner.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I wanted to have a nice dessert that was kid-friendly, because between my sister and myself, we have a half dozen kids running around.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My wrist still isn't taking a whole lot of action without me paying for it the next day, so i decided to make a Peeps Sunflower cake. I've seen it on the internet for the past few years, and i just thought it was so cute!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I used a standard yellow cake recipe from my Better Homes and Gardens cook book. It's my husband's favorite cake color/flavor. (You can use any cake you would like for this.) Honestly, it didn't come out too yellow so next time i make one i need to look for a new recipe. I've been using my cook books more than the internet for recipes lately because <i>sometimes </i>internet recipes just don't come out right. It's not always the case, but i find myself having to tweak more recipes i get from the web... and when i need to bake something and don't want to screw it up, i know my BH&G book won't fail me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I went for a chocolate frosting. I used the butter icing recipe from my book as well, and i think next time i may try something different, like a cooked icing.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I did one coating with a thicker icing, and i made another batch of icing a bit easier to spread for the finishing layer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I used semi-sweet chocolate chips and patterned them out in circles, just like a sunflower.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">When it was time to put the Peeps on, i used some extra frosting to cement them onto the cake a little better.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It was really cute and my family loved it! My teenage son loves Peeps, and he got a real kick out of it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">My only complaint is that it was difficult to get the Peeps on there and make them look ROUND. Maybe i should have tacked them down with toothpicks or something. Oh well, Sunflowers are perfect either, are they? Haha.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2873660071660380420.post-56092035856352742652012-04-10T11:42:00.000-07:002012-04-14T11:21:54.845-07:00Easter Basket Cookies (Or Bird Nests. Whatev.)<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Now that the Easter hoopla is over and the kids are back in school (finally!), i can get this ship underway!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I recently spent 2 months in a splint and brace due to a broken wrist and surgery. For those long weeks, i realized how terrible it is to have your mobility cut down. Unfortunately, it was my dominant hand, so i did a lot of ordering pizza and drive-thru. It sucked big-time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">As Easter approached, i was very eager to get back to feeling like my old self again. I spent a lot of time on Pinterest while laying broken on the couch. While diddling my time away re-pinning really neat things, i got some inspiration of my own.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I decided to make some cookies. I had seen some links on Pinterest where they made ice cream bowls using the bottom of a muffin tin and cookie dough.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I grabbed my mini pan and made some of Alton Brown's sugar cookie dough. I used a round cookie cutter and cut my dough out, and draped and shaped the dough around my muffin tin cups. I went every other cup around the edge, because otherwise the cookies would have touched and welded together as they baked. Also, I advise against using any of the inside cups, as the finished cookies pop off easier around the edges.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I did not grease my pan. I thought about it. But i baked 3 test cookies on my dark nonstick pan to see how it was going to work out first. All pans are not created equal, so test yours before you fill a whole pan full of cookie dough.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">It worked well. I used a butter knife to pop the cookies off my pan. I held it flat under the bottom of my cookie and gently lifted until they came off.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I made some royal icing and a grass tip for the first cookie. I wondered if the icing was going to be too soft, and it really was. It wanted to meld back together bit. You know how royal icing is. So i made a batch of buttercream icing for the rest of them.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The grass tip was kind of a pain in the butt. I had never used it before, and it kept getting clogged. I used a toothpick to poke into the holes when it got bound up, but by the time i was done, i was pretty annoyed. I don't know if there's a secret to using this tip or not. I guess practice makes perfect.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I will say that PMS and baking do not go well together. For my first baking project out of my brace, it was a rather frustrating endeavor.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">But they were cute! I used little mini Cadbury eggs (my favorite Easter candy). I call them Easter baskets, but they kind of look like bird nests to me. I wasn't about to attempt putting handles on them or anything.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">For something i kind of came up with on my own, i think they came out very cute. I was pleased.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">You can find <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/sugar-cookies-recipe/index.html">Alton Brown's cookie recipe here</a>. I used the butter icing recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens cook book. I don't know why it calls it butter icing when most websites call the same icing buttercream. It's the same basic recipe you can find anywhere. I think the cookie dough was perfect. It baked up very firm and solid instead of crumbly. I always worry about crumbly cookies if i am going to do more to them than bake them. It's impossible to ice a crumbling cookie.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">Enjoy!</span>Sugar On The Brainhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12532230769635630265noreply@blogger.com0