Snowflake Sugar Cookies

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

Pre-oven

Some of my army cooling.

 Outlined.

THE FINISHED PRODUCTS:

Design 1 - Royal Icing with White Chocolate design

Design 2 - Royal Icing with Glitter

Design 3 - Royal Icing with Pearls

Design 4 - White Chocolate with Sugar

MERRY CHRISTMAS! HAPPY HANUKKAH! JOYOUS KWANZA!

AND A VERY PEACEFUL WINTER!

Naughty or Nice? Christmas Truffles

Any time of the year where truffles can be made is the "Most Wonderful Time of the Year"..  But these are especially yummy!

THE NICE

Milk Chocolate Gingerbread

White Chocolate Candy Cane     

     Dark Chocolate Raspberry

THE NAUGHTY

Milk Chocolate Whipped Cream Vodka

White Chocolate Eggnog

Dark Chocolate Red Wine

Be naughty & nice! And, have a happy holiday!

Christmas Tree Cupcakes!

These are Martha Stewart's Christmas Tree Cupcakes.  They taste delicious.... HOWEVER, what a pain in the butt! It is next to impossible to get the cones to stand up in the oven, no matter how perfect your "x's" are.  If you plan on making these, I would brainstorm a different technique to get the cones to stand or find a cake pan in a cone shape (that would be awesome!) Also, the whole nut in the bottom of the cone thing does not work so well if there is a legitimate hole in the bottom of the cone.  I used foil instead.

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas..

And if I cannot have it, at least my cupcakes will!

My favorite kind of tree to decorate is an edible cupcake one!

The pictures don't do them justice; the tree has edible glitter on it so it looks like snow glistening in the sun when in the light!

Then, I made my own little trees with the leftover cupcakes!

Yes, that is Mrs. Clause holding my cupcake.

And, if it is good enough for her and her guests, it is good enough for anyone! ;)

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

MAY YOU BE HAPPY, HEALTHY AND FULL OF SWEETS!

John's Birthday Cupcakes

Sour Patch Kids Cupcakes!

I made these cupcakes for my boyfriend's birthday -- he is a sour patch kid fanatic so when I stumbled across the recipe on Ingredients Of A 20 Something I knew I had to make them for his birthday!  It is a basic yellow cake BUT the icing IS SOUR and the flavors of a sour patch kid!!

RASPBERRY!

(By the way, who knew? I always thought the red was cherry.)

ORANGE!

LEMON!

And last but not least, the birthday boy's favorite..

LIME!

I bought the Tart and Sour Flavor Enhancer off of Amazon to make the icing sour.  The icing is a Swiss Meringue Buttercream with the sour flavor & raspberry, orange, lemon or lime extract.  

I just love the way all of the colors look together! So so pretty!  The birthday boy is thrilled with my choice so this should be a good birthday..

Gotta go, time to eat cupcakes :)

Thanksgiving Day

To the left: Peanut Butter, Nutella, Marshmallow Blondies

In the middle: Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes & Chocolate Covered Cherry Cupcakes

To the right: Somoas & "Take 5" Sugar Cookies

I enjoyed my Thanksgiving!

Hope you did too!

Thanksgiving Bake-Fest Day 2!

Here is Day 2 of my baking extravaganza!

Pumpkin Pie Cupcake!

Unbelievably Unbelievable - My new favorite cupcake!

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cupcake!

Shhhh! It has a surprise center!

Struffoli!

A delicious Italian fried dough with honey.

This was the first time I made this (or anything fried) and I am so happy with the way it came out!

I WAS NOT KIDDING WHEN I SAID CUT BACK ON THE TURKEY THIS YEAR!

DESSERT IS TAKING OVER!

Thanksgiving Bake-Fest Day 1!

HOMEMADE SOMOAS<3

For all you ladies who were girl scouts at some point, and those of you who were smart enough not to be (or the wrong sex to be), these are for you!!!  They are even MORE delicious. HOWEVER, unless you have the patience of Mother Theresa and 6 hours on your hand, do not try these at home.

Recipe from Baking Bites

PEANUT BUTTER - NUTELLA - MARSHMALLOW BLONDIE :)

Check out World Nutella Day!

Ingredients:

For blondies

6 TBS unsalted butter room temperature

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup peanut butter (creamy or crunchy, but don’t use old-fashioned/natural)

2 large eggs

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp kosher salt

For Nutella swirl

1 1/2 oz dark chocolate or chocolate with hazelnuts, chopped 

1/2 TBS butter

1/4 cup Nutella

2 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows

1 cup milk chocolate chips

pinch of kosher salt

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350ºF with a rack in the center position.  Line an 8″ square baking pan with non-stick foil, leaving a slight overhang of foil on the sides of the pan.  (If you’re unsure whether or not your foil is non-stick, give it a quick spray with cooking spray.)

2. For blondies: If using a mixer, beat the butter and sugars in a large bowl on medium-high speed until soft and combined.  It’s just as easy to combine thoroughly with a rubber spatula in a large bowl.  Add the peanut butter and vanilla and mix until combined (on medium speed with mixer).  Add eggs and mix or beat until just combined.3. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.  Add the baking powder and salt and mix until combined.  Add flour and mix just until incorporated – don’t over mix!  Transfer the batter into the prepared pan.  Spread evenly with a rubber or offset spatula. 

4.  For swirl: Combine the butter and chocolate in the Wilton Chocolate Pro (or a micro-wave safe bowl).  Add the Nutella and stir to combine.

5.  Drop Nutella mixture by spoonfuls over the batter in the pan.  Drag a sharp knife through the Nutella mixture and the batter to create a marbled effect.  (Really, it doesn’t matter what it looks like on top because we’re going to cover it up.  You just want the Nutella mixture to be distributed through the blondie.)

6.  Bake for 25-28 minutes until a tester inserted into the blondie comes out mostly clean.  You don’t want it to be completely dry!  Overcooked blondies are no fun.

7.  Take pan out of the oven and immediately sprinkle marshmallows over the top.  Turn the oven down to 325ºF and put the pan back in the oven for 3 minutes.  Cool blondies in the pan on a cooling rack for about 20 minutes.  Refrigerate for 15 minutes to finish setting the marshmallows.

8.  Melt chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl for 1 minute at 70% power.  Stir.  If necessary, continue to microwave in 30-second intervals at 70% power until smooth.  Stir in pinch of salt.

9.  Pour melted chocolate over blondies and spread evenly with an offset spatula.  Refrigerate blondies (still in the pan!) until chocolate is set, about an hour.  If the chocolate isn’t totally set and firm, don’t even think about cutting them yet.  Be patient!

 

DO NOT FORGET WHEN YOU ARE EATING THAT TURKEY,

SAVE ROOM FOR DESSERT!

Daddy's Birthday Cheesecake

Rule # 1 in making a cheesecake - NEVER start late at night.  There is way too much waiting involved around. (My mistake.)
Rule #2 in making a cheesecake - NEVER start the same day you plan on eating or serving it.  Again, the wait.

I made cheesecake for the first time back in August for my dad's birthday.  It is his favorite.  The icing around the edge and the words are (obviously) Cream Cheese Frosting.  I got the recipe from a cookbook compiled of recipes from teachers and parents from my elementary school.  Apparently we did that.. I have zero recollection.

New York Cheesecake


For the crust:

1 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup (half of a stick) melted butter

FYI: for the above measurements, I eyed out a little more for each so I would have enough crust to go up the sides of the pan a little.

For the cheesecake:

3 8-ounce packages of softened cream cheese
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup sour cream

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar (only the 1/4 cup for the crust!) and press firmly to the bottom of a springform pan and up the sides (I did about half way).
3. In a stand mixer, beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until blended.
4. On low speed, beat in eggs one at a time.
5. Add sour cream and pour into crust.

The waiting game:

1. Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes.
2. Turn off te oven & leave cheesecake inside with door open for one hour.
3. Cool completely.
4. Refrigerate overnight.

And, the good part:

1. Enjoy the heavy, creamy, fattiness.


... AND SMILE!

Chocolate.. Cream Cheese.. Peanut Butter.. Nutella.. 100 extra pounds..

I managed to go to Italy for a month and not catch on to the Nutella craze. They put it in everything there.  No joke.  Okay maybe not their pizza and pasta but you cant walk past a gelato place or a bakery without seeing or smelling Nutella. A year and a half later I go to Jamaica and somehow end up loving Nutella? Makes no sense.
These were made for my sister when she moved into her dorm!


I'll cut right to the delicious chase.


Chocolate Nutella Cupcakes:


Ingredients:
Makes 36 cupcakes


2/3 cup Nutella
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
2 1/2 cups buttermilk


Directions:


1. Preheat the oven to 350 and line pan with cupcake liners.
2. In a stand mixer, beat the eggs and sugar until pale and thick.
3. Add in butter & mix.
4. Add in nutella and buttermil until combined.
5. Mix together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add this mixture in in 3 incriments.
6. Divide batter between cupcake liners and bake for 20-25 minutes.


Frosting #1:
Cream Cheese Frosting


Frosting #2:
Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting


Ingredients:


6 ounces cream cheese
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
4 cups confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract


Frosting #3:
Nutella Cream Cheese Frosting


Ingredients:

6 ounces cream cheese

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup peanut butter

4 cups confectioners sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Cream together butter and cream cheese in a stand mixture.

2. Slowly incorporated the confectioners sugar and then add the vanilla.

3. For Peanut Butter and Nutella frostings - Add Peanut Butter or Nutella and mix until fluffy.

Icing the cupcakes:

I iced some with cupcakes with each frosting.  

I also mixed the three together.  To do this load a piping bag with no tip with each frosting.  Tie the top of each bag.  (You should have three tipless bags - one with each frosting.)  Put your desired tip into a fourth bag.  Load the three bags into the bag with the tip.  Squeeze frosting onto a paper towel until all three colors are coming out.  Then decorate!

Tip: for a more drastic color differential, add dark brown food coloring to the nutella frosting.

 

Thank God for World Nutella Day

Halloween "Cakes In a Cup"

Never waste excess cake.  Instead turn it into cake pops.  That is pretty much what this is minus the stick.  The cake is a basic vanilla cake crumbled into fine crumbs.  I mixed in chocolate icing with the cake crumbs and formed the mixture into balls in the palm of my hand.  Yay for dirty work!  The cups are made out of white chocolate, dyed orange for Halloween! I used a mold for these.

The tops are frosted - half with chocolate frosting, half with vanilla frosting and adorned with spooky Halloween sprinkles - spiders, skulls, oh my!

Truffles, Truffles, Truffles, I am in love.

Admittedly, I am not much of a cake person.  Me and frosting are infatuated with each other.  I could live without eating cake although not without baking it.  I love the baking process, the smell and making other people happy with my baked goods.  Chocolate truffles, however, I am in love with.  I can eat 20 in a sitting, which is why I do not make them often... I would be super fat.  They have a hard shell and the center melts in your mouth.  Glorious.  Proudly, the recipe is my own.  I currently have about 20 different flavors and combinations.  Most have a chocolate ganache center.  I know there are molds for truffles and I have used them a couple times but I love the homemade look about them.

The one's photographed are
(1) chocolate ganache with malibu rum covered in dark chocolate and toasted coconut
(2) chocolate ganache with almond extract covered in milk chocolate and home honey roasted almonds, and
(3) chocolate ganache with raspberry extract, some covered in white chocolate and some covered in milk chocolate


Some of my other Flavors include:

• Chocolate ganache with dark roast coffee covered in dark chocolate
• Chocolate ganache with tea covered in green "white" chocolate
• Chocolate ganacche with honey covered in dark chocolate sprinkled with cinnamon
• Chocolate ganache with strawberry extract covered in milk chocolate with a bow
• Chocoalte ganache with orane liqour covered in milk chocolate
• Chocolate-hazelnut ganache covered in dark chocolate coating, topped with a hazelnut
• Chocolate-caramel ganache covered in dark chocolate with caramel glaze
• Chocolate-vanilla ganache covered in milk chocolate with a cherry topping
• Peanut Butter ganache covered in milk chocolate
• Cookie dough covered in either milk chocolate with yogurt chips or white chocolate with dark chocolate glaze

For the Holidays:

• Chocolate ganache with Pinnacle Chocolate Whipped Cream Vodka covered in milk chocolate with Christmas sprinkles
• Chocolate ganache with ginger and crushed ginger cookies covered in milk chocolate with gingerbread man sprinkles
• Chocolate ganache with creme de menthe covered in white chocolate with finely crushed candy cane pieces
• Chocolate ganache with eggnog covered in white chocolate and a Christmas tree
• Chocolate ganache with red wine covered in dark chocolate and edible gold dust