Craving

I have nothing to post regarding delicious goodies. My pantry is bare and I am seriously craving Swiss Merengue Buttercream Frosting.

Seriously.

Bah.

Fall Favorite

Our family has a tradition of making Chocolate Popcorn Balls. They are a combination of freshly popped popcorn (over the stove, not in the microwave!) and ooey, gooey tootsie roll-like confection formed into a sticky crunchy chocolatey ball of deliciousness. Yum!

Here they are in all of their glory!

To make these delightful treats you need the following:

1 cup light corn syrup

2 cups sugar

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 tablespoons butter

1 cup popcorn kernels, popped (any unpopped kernels should be separated and discarded)

extra butter, for greasing your hands (Pam works too, but butter tastes so much better!)

waxed paper, or parchment paper

Divide the popcorn into a couple of large bowls, so that you have enough room for mixing. In a medium suacepan, combine corn syrup, sugar, cocoa and butter. Bring to a boil and cook until they reach soft ball stage. (Test by dropping a bit of the chocolate in a cold glass of water. If the texture is malleable, its ready to go.)

Drizzle over the popcorn and mix. You must move carefully and quickly as the chocolate dries quickly. Grease your hands and form popcorn into balls. Let cool on waxed paper.

 

Do you have a favorite fall tradition in your family?

September

It was a busy month. The first weekend I made a wedding cake. Let’s just say it’s not an easy task with a two month old. Thank goodness I have an awesome family that always jumps in to help out!

I love making wedding cakes. Its so fun to be a part of something so special. Sarah and Cuyler were a darling couple, and it was such a pleasure to work with them.

I was also able to make a birthday cake for cute little Brighton! I love watching kids eat cake.  It’s so fun to watch them discover the deliciousness. It gets EVERYWHERE! For my next birthday, I am gonna eat cake like a kid again.

 

I also attempted my first gluten free cake. Lets just say it was a big FAIL. But I will not surrender to the rice flour, no way! Success will surely follow…

A Year Later…

I realized a couple weeks ago that it has been a year since I started this little blog. When I decided to start, I was looking for something to keep me busy. Good news, it worked! Granted, I didn’t follow my goals to the letter. I didn’t bake and blog about it every week. I probably did more baking than blogging. But, I never would have anticipated that I would have accomplished what I did. I have learned all sorts of techniques and have had a blast trying out new recipes. I have made goodies for all sorts of events, and have even been paid to do it. The best part, people actually like the stuff!

I hope I can keep this going. I have still have projects lined up (a cake in the oven as I type) and really love to do it. Besides, there is nothing like a house that smells like chocolate all the time!

More Catering

A couple of weeks ago, I did another catering job with Dianne. Another wedding, in fact. We served appetizers and desserts, with summertime flavors as our inspiration. I made red velvet and chocolate dipped white cake pops plus s’mores bites, and then assisted with a few other treats.

Here are some shots of the food. I missed the bbq wings (they were gone so fast), grilled veggies, and the salsa bar. Sorry Dianne!

Burger and Fries

BLT Bruschetta

Whoopie Pies

S’mores Bites

Shortcake Bar

Red Velvet Cake Pops

I also did the centerpieces for the tables. The only specification were colors: blue, black and white. So this is what came out. The frames were filled with blue shell photos, as the mother of the groom wanted some beach influences.

I have had so much fun working on these events, and look forward to more in the future!

Cupcake Class

About a week ago, I got to go to a cupcake decorating class with my mother-in-law. We had a great time learning about fondant and gum paste, and tried our hand at creating edible cupcake toppers. The instructor wanted to go with a summer carnival/state fair type theme, so we made mini fondant replicas of fair food. We all made hot dogs, popsicles and cotton candy. Then, we were able to choose our own, so I made an ear of corn.

This is how they turned out:

I really enjoyed the class. I learned a few new tricks and tips, but l loved getting to play all day. Thanks to Dianne for taking me (hopefully we can go again soon), and thanks to my Matthew for watching baby boy.

Bun out of the oven!

My sweet boy tested done on June 21st! He is without a doubt the sweetest treat I will ever make!

I will be starting a family blog to give little updates on baby Cole. The address is mlgamfam.blogspot.com.

Wedding Cake Follow Up

I mentioned in a post a few months back that I was going to make a wedding cake. Well, I did! And it was so fun! The cake received great reviews. Apparently it was rather tasty!

The MIL and I also catered a great brunch. Crepes, French toast, and mini frittatas were just a few of the items on the menu. Sadly, we didn’t get any pictures of the food, but my hubby snapped a few of the cake.

 

 

I loved being a part of the couple’s special day. It was so wonderful to see how happy they were.

Patriotic Pie

For Memorial Day (yes it was two months ago) I decided to try my hand at a fresh fruit tart. I have always wanted to make one cause they look so delicious! And berries are in season now, so I couldn’t waste the opportunity.

I used a short dough crust, just flour, sugar and butter. You can’t go wrong there. It is the same recipe I use for New York Cheesecake, which I need to make again. Yummy!

I made lemon curd and added freshly whipped cream for a filling. It lightened the curd just so it wasn’t too overpowering.

Then I topped it with strawberries and blueberries. It wasn’t exactly how I wanted it to look, but it sure tasted good. Especially with a dollop of cream to top it off!

Thank you Betty Crocker!

I don’t typically use mixes when I bake, but there are a few exceptions (Betty Crocker fudge brownies are my favorite). But I was seriously lacking energy and needed to take a treat to a barbecue. So I ran to the store and grabbed a cake mix and some frosting ingredients. I can’t buy the can, I just can’t. I perused my cupboards and fridge, and decided I would make strawberry lemonade cupcakes. Delicious!

Here is what you do:

With a regular white cake mix, exchange the water for lemonade (I used Crystal Light). I added the zest and juice of one lemon since my sugar free drink doesn’t pack quite the punch that real lemonade does. Add the other ingredients and bake according to your specific directions. One tip: Use an ice cream scoop to portion the cupcakes.

When I make frosting, my standard go to is an American buttercream: butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, maybe a little milk. For the fresh strawberry buttercream, I finely chopped about six average sized strawberries to add in after beating the sugar and butter together, omitting the milk and vanilla.

Can I just tell you that I hate strawberry frosting or cake or ice cream, but this stuff was so good because it was so fresh. It’s the only way to go.

Here is the result:

Go buy a cake mix, and let me know what you come up with!

Giving into the cravings.

I am pregnant, and I like to eat. It’s a problem, but baby gets hungry. And that’s how I justify eating whatever I want, whenever I want. I have had some bananas aging on my counter now for a week or so, and they have been calling my name. Not to eat in their plain and somewhat healthy form though. I actually won’t touch a banana if it has even one little brown freckle spot on it. Traces of green indicate the ideal stage of ripeness for eating bananas.

Anyway, I have been watching them age and thinking how much I really want a banana cake. Finally, I gave in today. I made my mom’s banana cake recipe. I love it, and will share at the end of my excessively chatty post.

I gave in to the craving partially because I wanted the cake, but also to serve as a practice cake for frosting. Yes, I actually have something to practice for! In May, I get to make a wedding cake. It’s the real deal ladies and gentleman! My lovely mother-in-law has been asked to cater the wedding and has employed me as her assistant and cake baker. Actually, I think bakeress sounds better, even if it isn’t a real word.

So here is the photo that I was sent. This is what the bride wants. And we all know that every bride gets what she wants :)

This is my practice run. It doesn’t look as fancy without the flowers, and I was testing out a couple things. But it’s a start.

I won’t be using the dots on the bottom, or maybe a version of them will end up bordering the top and bottom. Or it will be the ribbon all the way. Not to mention, the cake probably won’t be a banana cake either.

I am really excited about my project, and can’t wait to post the final product!

I almost forgot! The recipe:

Banana Cake

2 1/3 cups flour

1 2/3 cups sugar

1 1/4 cups smashed bananas (I used four whole bananas today and never really measure this part. Use at least 2)

2/3 cup shortening

2/3 cup buttermilk (or regular milk with a bit of vinegar)

3 eggs

1 1/4 tsp. baking powder

1 1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

2/3 cup finely chopped nuts

Follow the general rule for mixing…bananas, sugar, oil, then the eggs. Add dry ingredients alternating with the buttermilk, or just throw it all in and mix. It will work just the same because its that simple of a recipe. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes (8 or 9 inch rounds).

Yummy, yummy! I want some now!

Hand over the cake…

So, I am really proud of this post. Not so much my words though. Blah, blah, blah! I am really excited about my cake. It was just another German chocolate cake, not really complicated. And the frosting wasn’t even perfectly smooth. But I made a gun! Out of fondant! A fancy fondant revolver! For my dad, because he loves guns, and it was his birthday. And I love my dad. So certainly he needed a gun cake!

I would have attempted sculpting it, but coconut pecan frosting isn’t particularly obedient, and it needed to look decent. So, I pretended I was five again playing with play-doh.

Just a side note, fondant is way better than play-doh, but just as messy!

So this was the result:

 

 

Happy Birthday to an amazing Dad! Love you! 

Eat your vegetables, for dessert!

Vegetables and cake don’t mix, or at least that’s what my husband said on Sunday as I was baking his dad’s birthday cake. He learned yesterday that this is just not so, as he ate a good portion of that vegetable infused carrot cake.

I admit, I am not the biggest carrot cake lover (I think it has something to do with the raisins), but this was a mighty tasty cake. It also helped that the sides were coated with cream cheese frosting, toasted coconut and walnuts.

I used my Martha Stewart Cupcake book again for the cake recipe. This has been my go-to book lately, and it has yet to disappoint.

Here are some shots of the cake:

Happy Birthday Doug!

Taste the Rainbow

Basically, I have been on a sugar cookie baking frenzy! Last week I made over one hundred sugar cookies for a church event my mom was in charge of.

Our church has a program for teen girls called Personal Progress. It serves as a method for teaching young women to set and accomplish goals that will help them to be strong women in the church, as well as in their community.  Last week’s event was a way to introduce the program to the girls and their families.

The Personal Progress program uses eight values that the girls base their projects on. Each value is assigned a color. I decorated the cookies in each of these colors, piping the values on some of them. The eighth value, virtue, was recently added. We used bees instead of coloring them gold. Bee virtuous!

 

I had so much fun making these, and it was really great practice for the piping skills.

Think Pink!

Not for me, or my little boy bun in the oven. We are all blue over here, but my friend is having a baby girl. Last weekend I was able to go to her shower and got to make some yummy little treats. I went with some cute sugar cookies and mini spice (sugar and spice, and everything nice!) cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.

Oh cream cheese! You are delicious!

Here are some photos. I have a habit of forgetting the camera, and so my sister’s had to do. My friend’s shower/baby nursery colors were brown, green and some pink. I got a little carried away with the pink. Oops!

I promise they looked much cuter at the shower, but again, I forgot the camera!

 

 

To frost the cookies I used royal icing. It works best when stacking cookies. To do the polka dots, you use a wet on wet technique. You pipe the edges of the cookies, and then fill with icing. While wet, add in your alternate color dots and then let dry. So easy and so cute! If you want a similar top to the cupcakes, roll out fondant, cut into the desired shape and press with an acrylic stamp. Its incredibly simple to do, I promise.

The shower was so much fun and I can’t wait to meet the sweet baby girl. It also made me even excited for my own baby. I cant believe he is going to be here in only a few months!

It’s Game Time!

Do you have your Super Bowl treats ready?

 

Who’s gonna win? Saints or Colts?

Lemony Sunshine

It has been raining here in San Jose, or at least it was raining. For over a week. We had a tornado watch. Its been dreary and gloomy, and I have missed the California sun. I decided to bring some sunshine into my kitchen by making lemon bread. Nothing screams sunshine like lemons.

I have several new recipe books that were given to me over the Christmas holiday, one being a Williams Sonoma baking cookbook. So I thought I would test Mr. Williams, or Mrs. Sonoma, or whoever managed to create such a name for themselves, and try their lemon bread. The recipe is pretty basic:

Cream shortening and sugar.

Add eggs.

And lemon zest.

Add dry ingredients followed by wet ingredients.

Bake for an hour.

And devour!

Congrats Mr. Williams or Mrs. Sonoma. You make a mean Lemon Bread!

**Note: Williams-Sonoma was founded by Charles E. Williams, though I am not sure this is his actual recipe.

Happy Birthday Mom!

My mama had birthday. She is 29 again, and looking fabulous! I decided I wanted to make her a special cake for her birthday. She has a favorite truffle from See’s Candies. Key Lime. Its delicious. Key Lime buttercream coated in white chocolate. Sounds kinda cakey. So I thought I would make a cake that had some of the same flavors.

I made a simple white cake. I should have added a bit of lime zest, but I didn’t want to overpower with lime. The cake was filled with a lime curd. Oh my goodness! Lime curd is fabulous. Don’t buy it. Make it! I used Alton’s recipe again, but changed a couple things. Here is the recipe:

5 egg yolks

1 cup sugar

4-5 limes, zested and juiced (It’s about 1/3 cup juice, its ok if its not enough, and wont hurt it if there is too much. Don’t add extra water…bleh!)

1 stick butter, cut into 8 pats

In a small saucepan, boil a small amount of water. In a metal bowl (that will fit over the saucepan without the water touching the bottom), whisk egg yolks and sugar. Add lime juice and zest and mix well. Place over boiling water, and reduce heat to low. Stir until yolk mixture has thickened. It takes longer than you think, about 10-12 minutes. It need to get thick, especially for a cake filling. I didn’t cook it long enough, and had to start over. Once it has thickened, remove from heat and add the butter, one pat at a time. Stir each pat until its melted and then add another. Cover and refrigerate your curd for up to a week.

To cover the cake I made a white chocolate ganache with 1 cup cream and 1 1/2 cups white chocolate, just to thicken it a bit. I didn’t frost the cake, but rather let the ganache fall over the top. Photographically, it was not the prettiest. But it tasted really, really good. Next time, more ganache to cover the cake well.

 

Happy Birthday Mom! Love you!

It’s about time…

I admit it’s a little sad that I lasted for 2 months with my little blog, and then suddenly stopped. Let’s just say that things have been a little out of the norm for the Goody Goddess. My desire for cooking and baking and eating hit an all time low when I discovered I was baking something extra special…a baby!

After what felt like an eternal hiatus, as I have been horribly distraught that I have no desire for sweets, I decided it was time to return to the baking.

I made a few things in December that really deserve some posting. My grandparents celebrated their 50th Anniversary with their children and grandchildren in mid December. It was a perfect opportunity to make a cake. Here are a couple shots of the German Chocolate decadence: That’s my sweet grandma and the love of her life. They are a wonderful blessing in my life. The magnolia flower is handmade…a first attempt. It gave me some struggles, but I am determined to conquer the art of sugar flowers!

Right before Christmas, I had another project. My mother-in-law has started a catering business, and I was able to help out with one of the events. She catered a luncheon for about a hundred missionaries from our church serving in the area. There were a lot of hungry young men, and she did a great job. I was assigned to make a cake to look like the badges that the missionaries wear. Apparently the newest missionary, and probably one of the oldest since he has been around for a thousand years or so, is Santa Claus.

It’s a little more embellished than the traditional badge, but it desperately needed some Christmas cheer. Sadly, I left the good camera at home. My dear sister-in-law was kind enough to take a picture with her phone. Technology is amazing!

That is pretty much the Goody Goddess up to date. I made some fleur de sel caramels for Christmas that were pretty delightful, but forgot to snap a shot. Next time I will add my own flair and make sure to post the recipe!