Tiki Birthday Mayhem!!!!!

My friend ordered this for her husband's birthday and I had an absolute blast making it. The cake is chocolate and coffee.


There have been many sweet things since my last post. More photos coming soon. More cupcakes baking tomorrow.

85th Birthday Celebration

This was a vanilla bean cake with alternating layers of chocolate ganache and cherry conserve. Charlotte, the fun, beautiful, energetic woman celebrating 85 years (!), loves to be outside. A simple cake inspired by her flowers was requested.

Somewhat Hazelnut Cake Makes It's Way To New Jersey

I made a cake for a birthday party in the garden state. Cake remnants, accompanied by champagne, are probably being eaten as I write this.
Or at least I'd like to hope.


On the outside - a wood grain desk with an open notebook and a tea cup on it. On the inside - alternating layers of: vanilla bean butter cake, bittersweet chocolate ganache, chocolate hazelnut butter cream, and hazelnut and almond meringue.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These cupcakes were inspired by my good friend Mandy. Word on the street is that her mom, Marg, makes the best cream cheese frosting this side of the Mississippi. I'm not one to argue fact. I will just say that these were made lovingly, with Mandy and Marg in mind.

Cupcakes
1 -1/2 cups pastry or ap flour
1/2 cup alkalized unsweetend cocoa
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup whole milk
1/2 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Preheat oven to 400. Yield 1 dozen cupcakes.
Whisk dry ingredients in bowl. Mix wet ingredients in separate bowl. Add wet to dry, mixing just until wet and dry ingredients are thoroughly combined. Batter will be stiff. Spoon equally into 12 cupcake liners. Bake until tops spring back.

Frosting
1/2 cup butter - room temp
8oz cream cheese - cold
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 pound confectioners sugar

Beat butter until creamy, add cold cream cheese and beat until well combined. Add vanilla, mix until combined. Add powdered sugar, all at once. Mix on LOW until the mixture is starting to pull together and looking almost dough-like. Turn mixer to high and beat until light and creamy.

Happy rainy Monday.

VD: A Belated Post

Valentines Day  just happened to follow friday the 13th this year. Why didn't Hallmark cash in on that one? I would much prefer to give friends "Happy Friday the 13th" cards than any other kind. Maybe I should make greeting cards instead of cakes and coffee. Good idea, n'est-ce pas? 

Since cookies seem to be the only appropriate way to celebrate VD, I marked the 14th by making a few sweets for the sweet ones in my life. Shiny pink hearts and whoopie pies (of course).

I used to make these whoopie pies at a cafe I baked for once upon a time in San Francisco. I owe, with love, all of the credit for the delicious perfection of these cookies to Ray, my former employer and chef and owner of the cafe. Without his push I'm not sure it ever would have occurred to me to make a whoopie pie. Now I can't imagine a Valentines Day with out them. They are SO good that I avoid making them with out someplace to send them.

Red Velvet, Take 2: Four Layer Cake

My friends Chris and M'lissa are to be married in March. There will be a red velvet cake (or maybe cupcakes?) present to witness the ceremony. Until March 14th, when I have a spare moment to bake, or a head full of snow - it'll be all red velvet all the time.

This recipe is slightly different than the cupcake recipe, which came from Chris. I used a different mixing method, and a heavy cream and mascarpone cream cheese frosting in lieu of the cream cheese buttercream. I think I preferred the cup cakes, but maybe it was because they were pink. I'm not sure.

No, it wasn't because they were pink. The frosting was a little sweeter and a much nicer consistency. I think this cake was equally as good, but I'm going to make Chris' recipe one more time just to be sure. The next incarnation will be an 8" round cake with chocolate sprinkles. Some people call sprinkles jimmies. It makes me uncomfortable. Probably because I don't understand.

From The Ladle To The Grave

I woke up two days ago with a headache. Since I never get headaches I probably should've known something was up, instead I chalked it up to the weather, not enough caffeine, and a possible nanobot infestation. I woke yesterday to a sore throat which I thought could possibly be a result of having slept with my mouth open. Today there's no denying it. A horrible ick is trying to latch on somewhere between my sinuses and tonsils, making my life slightly less pleasant and making my head feel like it's floating ten feet above my body at about twice it's usual size.

I'm fortunate to have a job that I can leave for my bed on days like this. My office-mates are glad to minimize the risk of an outbreak, and I'm glad to have the loving and extra supportive "get outta here, I don't want to get sick" nudge. Besides, I can type from home. Clearly.

I'm also fortunate to be part of a gang. This gang has armed me with the weaponry necessary to produce things like this even though my head feels like it might actually explode:

Ingredients: 3 small onions, 2 stalks celery, 3 cloves garlic, 2 potatoes, 2 large carrots, 1 bunch kale, 6 oz sausage, 16oz great northern beans, stock (I used some vegetable and some chicken as it was what I had on hand), thyme, oregano, turmeric, dill, salt, pepper, parsley. Assemble in usual soup making fashion.

Below is a picture that I came across today of my good friend Steve. 

Steve is a fellow Soup Gang founding member. Nothing says tough like little cheddar goldfish.