TWINS- A Tale of Two Babies

 

I had the privilege of making a set of baby shower cakes- for TWINS!! One of my dearest friends in the world was blessed to have twins- a boy and a girl. The cakes are opposites- pink and blue, chocolate and vanilla.  They both have hand-piped clotheslines with royal icing baby clothes.  The toppers are hand-cut flags, with puffy-painted signs that say "BABY BOY" and "BABY GIRL."

These are the cakes and cupcakes that I made for this wonderful couple's baby shower.  Oh, and PS- I made their wedding cake too!

That Was a Very Hungry Caterpillar

This was a first birthday smash cake featuring a Very Hungry Caterpillar. This was a very special cake for me to decorate and I was excited to be able to make it.  I also made the cake for this precious little girl's mom and dad's wedding reception.  

Here are some photos of the birthday girl digging in to her cake!  She was so polite and such a lady when it came to her turn to "smash."

Art Party Neon Cupcakes

My niece was turning two and she was having an "Art Party". My sister gave me artistic freedom on this project, so I decided to go with a very colorful and Jackson Pollock vibe. 

I laid a sheet down, put down some cooling racks, and covered them in brightly colored cupcakes that were topped with white buttercream frosting.  I thinned out matching brightly colored royal icing (I used AmeriColor gel food coloring) and dipped a silicone basting brush in each color, then just splattered the cupcakes with the icing.  

To make the cake topper "Smash" cake I used brightly colored "Sixlets" (candy coated chocolates).  The entire top was covered in Sixlets, and a number "2" was made on the side using the candies.

Once the party started to die down a bit, I made "to-go" cups for the cupcakes using plastic cups and a little bit of plastic wrap.  

It has been a VERY long time

So much has happened over the past year and it seems to have been an eternity since I last posted (mostly because it has been more than a year!).  I had a car accident at the end of 2012 and have been through quite a bit to heal from my injuries which included a couple of surgeries and a LOT of physical therapy and chiropractic visits.  I completed a few projects in my down time, so I'll be posting updates that includes those projects in the near future.

Fall Wedding Cake

This Fall-Themed Wedding Cake was made for my husband's best friend and his lovely bride.  They requested a White Vanilla Buttercream rustic-looking cake, with branches and edible leaves.  The cake was very simple and fun to make! 

Rustic Country Wedding Cake

I made this cake in a hotel room, in Las Vegas, NV!  A very dear friend of mine got married in Vegas, and she asked me to make her wedding cake.  Of course I said YES, but then the question of logistics came up- how would I transport a wedding cake to Las Vegas from Southern California (a 4 hour drive) in the middle of summer, and have the cake #1: Survive, and #2: Taste good.  A good friend of both of ours had a timeshare I was able to use, so I had a functional kitchenette, and a table to use for assembly and decoration.

The cake you see is the finished product, without the topper.  I'll have to ask the bride for a photo with the topper, and hopefully a photo with the beautiful couple cutting the cake.  Hopefully more photos to come!!

Maroon, Silver and Black Graduation Cake and Cupcakes

My cousin graduated from high school! I remember when she was born- I was a freshman in high school, and I got to watch her grow up as I went to her house after school.  Her school colors were maroon, black and silver.  The graduation cap on the top of the cake was made out of cookies and cream chocolate wafers in a chocolate mold, and the flowers were made of fondant and each had a black dragee placed in the middle. The 2012 on the top of the cake were sparklers that lit up and really made a fun impression when they were lit!  I also made about 100 cupcakes with a graduation cap and a small silver and black flower adorning the top of each.  What a fun project for a wonderful person!  

Engagement Party Sugar Cookies

This is going to be a quick post- I know, you're thrilled! :)  I just wanted to post my wedding sugar cookies- well, actually, engagement party sugar cookies.  They were made with the most awesome sugar cookie recipe from Cookie Crazie's Blog (this woman is awesome and does her missionary work using the funds she raises decorating cookies- she is truly talented and a real Proverbs 31 woman- inspirational!).  Here they are- I hope the bride-and-groom-to-be enjoy them!

I also made a set of wedding dress and tuxedo chocolate covered strawberries for the same event :) 

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Wow- it has been a while- sorry for the delay in posting everybody- life has been crazy busy but crazy good too :)

Tonight I started practicing a Red Velvet Cupcake with Cream Cheese frosting.  For the cupcake I used the standard WASC recipe, but used Red Velvet mix and added a 4th egg to try a new texture (which I must say I like better than the normal 3 egg recipe).  Instead of Almond extract, I just added an extra teaspoon of vanilla. I got a thumbs up from hubby which is a good thing- because he hates red velvet.

The cupcakes were great- but the reason I REALLY made this post was to highlight the cream cheese frosting.  I scoured the Internet for a cream cheese frosting recipe that would be heat-stable (due to the fact that this wedding is Mid-July in California- what was I thinking?! Lol) but still tasty and not over-sugary.  After reading MANY blog, forum and website recommendations (too many to even count at this point)- I decided to branch out and try my own mixture in hopes that something stable yet tasty would come out of it.  I think I might have something worth keeping- but I'll know better tomorrow after the cupcakes have been sitting out for a day on my table in this lovely California heat-wave we're having (tomorrow should be 91 F, so that will be a good test I hope).
 
Cream Cheese Cupcake Frosting Recipe
2/3 Cup Shortening
1/2 Cup Butter (Unsalted, room temperature)
8oz Cream Cheese (I prefer whipped)
1 teaspoon clear vanilla
1 teaspoon lemon juice
4 drops concentrated Cheesecake extract 
4 Cups powdered sugar (you can sift after measuring to avoid lumps)

Steps:
1) Blend together all ingredients (except the powdered sugar).  Mix long enough to get the lumps of butter/cream cheese/shortening out of the mixture- but not so long that the mixture starts to break down- approximately 45 seconds on high using a stand mixer- about 1.5-2 minutes using a hand-mixer.
2) Sift the powdered sugar, if desired, into another bowl.
3) Mix in the powdered sugar in 1/2 cup at a time with the mixer set on low, until all powdered sugar is incorporated.
4) Pipe onto cupcakes immediately, or cover and refrigerate until you are ready to pipe.

I hope this one holds up to the heat- I'll let you know what my findings are tomorrow!

Creme Brulee Cheesecake Bars

For those of you who loved the Creme Brulee cupcakes- you HAVE to try this Creme Brulee cheesecake bar recipe- mixing fired up crunchy vanilla sugar AND cheesecake- talk about a winning combo!

Here is the recipe for Creme Brulee Cheesecake Bars

Crust:
1.5 boxes (about 115) crushed Vanilla Wafer cookies
1/2 Cup melted butter
4 Tablespoons granulated sugar
2-3 teaspoons vanilla extract

(Note- you can cut the crust recipe in half if you prefer a thinner crust- this recipe gives about a 1/3"-1/2" crust).
Step 1: Mix all crust ingredients together and press into the bottom of a greased 9" x 13" pan.
Step 2: Bake at 350 F for about 6-8 minutes.
Step 3: Allow crust to cool for 5-10 minutes before filling.

Filling:
4- 8oz Packages cream cheese
1 Cup sugar
1 Cup sour cream
2 Whole eggs
4 Egg Yolks
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2-4 Vanilla beans, scraped (optional- I just love the look of vanilla beans in pretty much anything dessert-like)

(Note- you can cut the filling recipe in half if you prefer a thinner cheesecake- this gives about 1" of filling on top of the crust- just make sure to decrease the baking time if you decrease the filling amount.)
Step 1: Mix the cream cheese, sugar and sour cream together until smooth.
Step 2: Incorporate the eggs, egg yolks and vanilla extract and beat until well incorporated.
Step 3: Pour mixture onto cooled cookie crust.
Step 4: Bake at 350 F for 40-45 minutes until the cheesecake mixture is firmly set in the center.
Step 5: Allow cheesecake to cool for 1-3 hours by refrigeration or longer if time permits.

Topping:
1/2 - 1 Cup Vanilla sugar (lightly pulsed in a blender or food processor for up to 30 seconds)

Step 1: Just before you are ready to serve, put a light coating of vanilla sugar (or regular granulated sugar that has been pulsed a couple of times in the blender if vanilla sugar is not available).
Step 2: Cut into Bars or slices before torching the sugar.
Step 3: Using a kitchen torch (this is the fun part!) - torch the sugar until it turns a darker brown color by melting the sugar and allowing it to form a crystallised layer on top of the bars.