snarkhorse

Almond cookies

2011-09-06T11:00:00.000-07:00

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon almond extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 egg white
1/2 teaspoon water

Directions

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg and extract. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture.
Roll into 1-in. balls. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Flatten with a fork. Sprinkle with almonds.
In a small bowl, beat egg white and water. Brush over cookies. Bake at 325° for 14-16 minutes or until edges and bottoms are lightly browned. Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Yield: about 5 dozen.

recipe from taste of home cookbook.

adaptations- i used honey orange glazed almonds that i just cracked instead of sliced almonds on top. it gave the cookies a little more interesting flavor.

Grilled Banana boat smore

2011-08-21T13:55:00.000-07:00

1 banana (per person)

marshmallows

rolos

chocolate

graham crackers

foil

grill

take the banana and with the peel still on cut down the middle. do not cut all the way through. stick the marshmallows (if you have large marshmallows just tear into bits), rolos, crackers, and chocolate (as much as you like) into the banana. wrap the whole banana and filling in foil and put on the grill for about 5 minutes or until melty and warm. instant banana s'more in its own bowl!

Grilled Orange blossom cupcakes

2011-08-21T13:52:00.000-07:00

1 orange (per person)
chocolate cake mix, mix according to directions
foil
campfire or grill

take the orange and cut the top 1/4 off the top. keep the top. scoop out the fruit of the orange until you just have the shell left. fill the orange about 1/2 full with the chocolate cake mix and put the top of the orange back on. wrap completely in foil and put on the grill for about 10-15 minutes. once done top with whatever you like.

chocolate molten cake

2011-08-08T23:41:00.000-07:00

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

6 ounces (180 grams) semi sweet chocolate, finely chopped

3 large eggs, separated

1/3 cup (65 grams) granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 tablespoon (15 grams) granulated white sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Generously butter four - 6 to 8 ounce (180-240 ml) molds, ramekins, or custard cups and dust the insides with hot chocolate powder. Place the prepared molds on a baking sheet and set aside while you make the cake batter.

In a heatproof bowl, placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate. Remove from heat and set aside while you beat the egg yolks.

In the bowl of your mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the egg yolks and 1/3 cup (65 grams) sugar until thick, pale, and fluffy. (When you slowly raise the beaters the batter will fall back into the bowl in slow ribbons.) Beat in the vanilla extract and then fold in the melted chocolate mixture.

Inanother clean bowl whip the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and continue to whip until soft peaks form. Gradually add the 1 tablespoon of granulated white sugar and whip just until stiff peaks form. With a rubber spatula gently fold the beaten whites into the chocolate mixture, just until incorporated. Do not over mix or the batter will deflate.

Divide the batter between the prepared molds. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until the outside edges of the cakes are set but the middle still looks a little wet and wobbly. You may have cracks on the top surface of the cakes.

Immediately remove from oven and let them rest for a minute or two. You can serve the cakes in their molds or you can run a palette or sharp knife around the edge of each cake and then invert onto the center of each plate. Carefully remove the mold. Sprinkle the top of each cake with confectioners sugar and place a dollop of softly whipped cream, clotted cream, creme fraiche, or vanilla ice cream on top of each warm cake.

Makes 4 Molten Chocolate Cakes.

Peep lollipop

2011-04-21T10:05:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you but i have always been amazed that peeps have stayed around this long. they are super sugary, they would last through a nuclear disaster and are spray painted with more glittery sugar. my stomach hurts just thinking about them. yet, you cover them in something and magically they become the best thing on the planet. i love easter candy!

this year i wanted to do something a little more sophisticated with my little peep friends so i melted some semi sweet chocolate, dipped them in, and then rolled them in coconut shavings. i used the bunny shaped peeps instead of the birds because the bunnies had a better shape. when i tried the chicks they just looked like chocolate lumps, much what i think a regular marshmallow would look like. whats the point of using a peep then?

after i was done dipping and rolling i popped then in the fridge for about 30 minutes. after they've had a chance to cool and harden, its time to eat! i would recommend making these the day you want to eat them, since the peep is nice and fresh. enjoy!

once again, chocolate cookies

2011-03-13T22:14:00.000-07:00

i was looking for inspiration for something to bake, and came across the simple, classic chocolate cookie. i decided to have a little fun with it and use some left over candy for half of them, so they are m&m cookies, but the other half are good old classics. chocolate chip cookies.

Chocolate chip cookies:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup m&m's (or substitute 1/2 cup chocolate chips if you don't want the m&ms.)

preheat the oven to 350 degrees
place the butter in the mixer, and mix for a few minutes
mix in sugars, vanilla, egg.
mix in flour and baking powder a little at a time until mixed in
half the mixture and mix in m&m's and chocolate chips into each half.
place tablespoon of the mixture onto baking sheets.
bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown.
transfer to a wire rack and let cool.

Homemade twinkies

2011-03-13T22:03:00.000-07:00

These guys taste like a grown up version of a Twinkie. The recipe isn't really made to be a twinkie, but the resemblance is pretty close. i changed it a bit by adding chocolate chips. Its a little time consuming, but SOOO worth it.

Chocolate brioche:

pinch of cinnamon (from china)

1 cinnamon stick

pinch of nutmeg

3 tbsp. boiling water

4 tbsp butter, melted

1 3/4 cups bread flour

pinch of salt

i tbsp sugar

1 envelope active dry yeast

2 eggs beaten

6 squares milk or dark chocolate

milk, for glazing

add the spices to the boiling water and let cool completely.
lightly brush a muffin pan with butter
sift the flour, salt, and sugar and stir in the yeast. add the spices (not the cinnamon stick),spice liquid, eggs, and remaining butter to make a soft dough.
knead until smooth, then cover and let stand in a warm place for 1- 1 1/2 hours, or until doubled in size.
knead for a minute and then fill each muffin tin 3/4 of the way full.
cover and seal withe plastic wrap for 1- 1.5 hours or until doubled in size.
preheat the oven to 400 degrees. brush with milk and bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until firm and golden.
once cooled fill with "twinkie" filling. you'll need a filling/piping tool to be able to do this. i think these guys are good even without the filling. so if you dont have the tools, don't worry, you can put the filling on as icing, or have it as a dip along side the cakes.

Twinkie filling:

1/2 cup milk
3 tbsp. flour
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
Salt

Cook milk and flour until thick; cool.
Beat all together until mixture is fluffy and soft. Add sugar a little at a time (8 to 10 minutes).
Can be kept in the refrigerator.

happy valentines day!

2011-02-14T14:50:00.000-08:00

What's better on valentines than red velvet cupcakes? nothing.

maybe a the only thing better is eating red velvet cupcakes in a tent in the living room.

red velvet cake:

2.5 cups flour

1.5 cups sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cocoa powder

1.5 cups veggie oil

1 cup buttermilk

2 large eggs

2 tbsp red food coloring

1 tsp. white vinegar

1 tsp vanilla extract

cream cheese frosting:

1 lbs. cream cheese softened

2 sticks butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla extract 4 cups powdered sugar

red sprinkles

oven- 350 degrees

line a muffin tip with cupcake liners

in a medium bowl sift together flour sugar baking soda salt and cocoa powder. in a large bowl gently beat oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla. add dry ingredients to wet.

divide the batter evenly among the cupcake papers, about 2/3 filled. bake in the over for about 20-22 minutes. test with toothpick to make sure they're done. cool completely before frosting.

for the frosting: in a large bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla together until super smooth. add the sugar one cup at a time on low speed. beat until mixed. increase to high speed until very light and fluffy.

pipe frosting onto cupcakes, garnish with red sprinkles. enjoy!!!

Snickers Chunky cookies

2010-11-08T10:38:00.000-08:00

So what do you do with all your halloween candy that's just sitting around? You mix it into cookie dough of course.

chocolate chip cookies with crunched up snickers bars. Moist, chewy, caramel goodness with a hint of peanut and a nice follow up of smooth chocolate.

snicker chunks:

   1 cup butter (2 sticks)
   1 cup packed brown sugar
   1/2 cup granulated sugar
   1/2 tsp. baking soda
   2 eggs
   1 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
   1 cup sliced or crushed snickers bars
   1 cup milk chocolate chips.

(if you want your cookies to be a bit more soft and chewy, half the butter amount and replace the 1/2 with vegetable shortening.)

1) preheat oven to 375 degrees. mix the butter with an electric mixer on medium for 30 seconds. add the brown sugar, sugar, and baking soda. Beat mixture until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer, and then using a wooden spoon, mix the remaining flour by hand. Stir in snickers pieces and chocolate chips until combined. Drop the dough in rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

2) bake in 375 degree oven for 7-10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. once out of the oven, let cool on the sheet for another couple minutes. it will help the caramel cool and harden so as to not fall out of the bottom of the cookie. transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Tracy and Seth's groom cake

2010-10-28T11:23:00.001-07:00

so my friend got married on 10-10-10. they had a beautiful Hawaiian themed wedding and even more beautiful cupcakes made as the wedding dessert. a couple months before the wedding she called me and asked if i would make a groom's cake. something Star Wars since they are such big fans. they both LOVE chocolate so what better than to trap Han Solo in chocolate carbonite. the funniest part is when i brought the cake and gave it to the people in charge. they didn't know what it was or what to do with it so they dressed it up with some flowers and put it on the side of the table.

Bento Box

2010-08-22T17:15:00.000-07:00

My first attempt at a bento box! Matt came home with a present for me and it was a hello kitty bento box! oh boy! what better than to make him lunch in it!

There are two types of sandwiches, roast beef with pepper jack cheese and chicken with cheddar. once they were put together i cut them out in different size hearts. the piggies are rice balls with the snouts and ears made of sliced chicken. i used black pepper for the eyes. the mushrooms are hardboiled egg whites cut in half over a baby carrot. the stars are peeled cucumbers, and the flower is a peach carved into petals. i took the yolks of the eggs and mixed them with a little mayo, salt and pepper, and just a little paprika. i then made little cutout circles out of it. i laid everything down on some green leaf lettuce and TADA! not bad for a first try!

peanut butter chocolate chip cookies

2010-07-26T22:18:00.000-07:00

some i made with chocolate chips, others have a kiss in the middle. either way, they taste amazing!

1/2 cup shortening / or butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/3 tsp baking soda
1 egg
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar (for outer crust)
1 cup chocolate chips/ or kisses

Mix butter (butter makes the cookies more moist and soft, whereas the shortening gives a soft yet crunchy effect, like soft pie crust.) and peanut butter together with a mixer for 30 seconds. next add the sugar, brown sugar baking powder and soda. beat in egg, milk, vanilla until combined. beat in as much flour as you can with the mixer, then finish with a wooden spoon. if you want chocolate chips now is the time to put them into the mix. shape into 1-inch balls, coating each one in the sugar. place the balls on ungreased cookie sheet. the oven should be at 350, bake for about 10-12 minutes or until edges are firm and bottom is brown. if you want chocolate kisses, while cooling, press a kiss into each cookie allowing each kiss to slightly melt into the cookie. let cool for about 10 minutes.

the ultimate pancake

2010-07-26T22:03:00.000-07:00

if pancakes with candied bacon in the middle is wrong, i don't want to be right.

buttermilk pancakes:
1 cup flour
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 beaten egg
1 cup buttermilk
2 tbs cooking oil

In a mixing bowl,, mix dry ingredients together in a bowl, make a well in the center.
In another mixing bowl, mix the wet ingredients together. once mixed add to dry ingredients.
candied bacon:
get the griddle ready, about med/ med-high heat. cook bacon about 1/2 way and then sprinkle each piece with about 1 tsp of brown sugar.
Once the bacon is 3/4 done, pour about 1/2 cup of batter over each piece. no need to use butter of anything to cook the pancake in, the bacon gives off enough to give the entire pancake a nice bacon taste. carefully flip over each pancake . each side should be about 2 minutes.once cooked on both sides, take off the heat, let cook for a few minutes, then serve with maple syrup.

Cat In The Hat

2010-05-26T10:28:00.000-07:00

A totally amazing talented friend of mine called me last week to help her with a project she had. She needed to make a birthday cake for a 2 year old, and this is the idea she had in mind. she wanted to make a cat in the hat! not bad for her first time decorating a cake this big! i gave her pointers, but she did almost everything on this thing! good job Erin!!! xoxox

admiral's birthday

2010-05-03T14:01:00.000-07:00

so Admiral Ackbar had a birthday party and what's the best thing to do for someone's birthday then cut their head off, roast it, shove an apple in their mouth, and serve it to their guests! ok, or make a cake that looks like you did that, and let the Admiral have his birthday!

the cake is chocolate cake with peanut butter filling and chocolate butter cream frosting. rolled out fondant airbrushed with orange and yellow. the collar is rice crispy treats covered in fondant and dried and cracked to look look like cracked crab meat. sticking out of the collar are red and blue light sabers, which are pretzels covered in colored chocolate.

katelyn's 1st birthday cake

2010-03-14T11:44:00.000-07:00

princess Katelyn turned 1! and every good princess needs a castle, especially one that's pink with glitter.

the bottom layer is neapolitan, vanilla sponge cake, strawberry buttercream filling, chocolate butter frosting.

the top tier is chocolate sponge cake, raspberry preserve filling, chocolate ganache frosting.

the towers are ice cream cones stuck together end to end with a sugar cone upside down. covered in fondant and hand painted stripes. the flowers are sugar paste rolled out and cute, covered in pink glitter. the doors are oreo cookie chocolate bars.

Katie's birthday bunnies

2010-03-14T11:07:00.000-07:00

so this year i made something a little different for Katie's birthday. i've never made carrot cake before and i'm glad everyone liked it because i wouldn't try it, i hate carrot cake. however, it was really fun to make something different and it was a good excuse to try a bunny theme.

the carrot cake: oven 350

2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
4 beaten eggs
3 cups shredded carrot
3/4 cup oil
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
8oz. crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup coconut
1 cup crushed pecans
1 tsp vanilla

in a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg. set aside. combine carrots, pineapple, coconut, oil, vanilla. add eggs. stir together with the dry ingredients. add nuts. stir together just until mixed then arrange in cupcake trays or cake pans. cupcakes take about 15 minutes, cake takes about 30.

cream cheese frosting:

i was told over and over and OVER that the most important part is the frosting. it has to be thick and taste like cheese cake or it ruins the cake. no pressure...

2 3oz. packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla
4.5 cups powdered sugar, sifted

start with the cream cheese in the mixer, after about 30 seconds add the butter in chunks. beat on high until the two have mixed really well then add vanilla. little but little add the sugar until completely mixed together. taste after 4 cups of sugar have been put in, add the rest slowly to your desired level of taste.

all of the cupcakes were frosted then airbrushed lightly with pink(it was a pink themed birthday).
the bunny feet are circus peanuts, cut in half using only the bottoms. the pads are pink jelly beans also cut in half, secured with a little frosting. the tail is just a little more uncolored frosting.

the fleur de lys are vanilla fondant with a little pink dye.

christmas wreath

2010-03-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

vanilla cupcakes with vanilla fudge frosting with white chocolate leaves and rolo ornaments.

the white chocolate leaves were made by melting down the chocolate, taking a mint leaf and painting the chocolate onto it. once its set and dry simply peel the chocolate off the leaf and repeat. using a mint leaf gives the chocolate a faint but really yummy taste.

Lanie's birthday cake

2010-02-18T18:12:00.000-08:00

better late than never! so this pretty lady had a birthday a couple months ago, and i was so excited about it i made her cake, took it to her house, and ate it... without ever even thinking of taking pictures of it. someone was nice enough to snap a few shots, so here is her pirate themed birthday cake!

pretty standard round 4 tiered red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. covered in fondant and airbrushed blue and black.

the hard thing to see is the skull is actually another cake made for her to save if she wanted to. its the same red velvet with cream cheese frosting, covered with fondant and hand painted to look like a skull and cross bones. (the patch was added later)

all in all it was a 6 layer, 2 tiered scurvy red velvet pirate cake. and if all pirates tasted so good, i might learn how to swab a deck?

Christmas tree

2009-12-08T09:56:00.000-08:00

Quickie but goodie! butterscotch rice crispy treats colored with green food coloring shaped into a christmas tree wrapped in sour cherry candy rope, big cinnamon gummy bears and about 50 gum drops. a little hard to see but there is a rice crispy star on top.

rice crispy treats:

3 tblspn butter

10oz. marshmallows

6 cups rice krispies cereal

1 cup butterscotch chips

5-10 drops green food coloring

put butter in a pot and cook over low heat.

once butter is melted, add marshmallows and cook down until melted.

add butterscotch chips until they too are mostly melted.

while everything is cooking, put the 6 cups of cereal into a large bowl.

combine all ingredients into large bowl and stir around just until incorporated. before adding food coloring, take out a small hunk of treat, that will be for the star. add green food coloring to the rest if the bowl, incorporate until smooth.

lay a piece of parchment paper on the counter and take out the ball of rice crispy treat.

slowly mold the christmas tree making sure not to pack to tightly otherwise the treat will be to dense.

once the tree is shaped, add decorations however you like! just like a real tree!

take the small hunk you took out, and shape it into as best a star as possible. i like making a disk, leaving it in the fridge for a bit, then cutting the star out. push a tooth pick into the star and place on top of the tree. enjoy!

Strawberry waffles with brown sugar bacon

2009-12-06T15:34:00.001-08:00

so not that this is a dessert, but man were these waffles were good, and just in case someone needs a super easy super tasty recipe for breakfast, well... here's one you can use! not to mention a little candied bacon to go with them...

candied bacon:

cook the bacon as regular, but while cooking, just sprinkle a little brown sugar over each piece to add a little flavor and crispiness.

Strawberry waffles

1 3/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 cups buttermilk*

1/3 cup oil

2 eggs

1 cup chopped strawberries

add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. add the rest of the ingredients into the dry mixture. whisk until mixed. make waffles based on instructions of waffle maker. enjoy!

*if you want a sweeter waffle, you can substitute regular milk for buttermilk. use 1 tablespoon baking powder, and omit the baking soda.

Happy thanksgiving!!!

2009-11-23T19:31:00.001-08:00

thanksgiving turkeys and pumpkins! yeah, i love thanksgiving!!!!

the turkeys are pumpkin spice cake with caramel cream cheese frosting, rolled in chocolate jimmies. there is a ginger cookie with candy corn feathers on it, the head is a mini cupcake the same as the big one, with raisonette eyes, candy corn beak, and fruit by the foot gobbler.

pumpkin spice cake:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoons salt

2/3 cup butter

1 3/4 sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups milk

1 cup pumpkin pie filling

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

mix butter first then mix in sugar, then eggs, one at a time. separately mix all powders together, then mix into wet mixture. add milk then vanilla. finally mix in pumpkin pie filling and spice. mix all together, then put into a ziplock bag and pipe the mixture into cupcake papers. bake for about 13-15 minutes @350degrees. let cool and frost

the pumpkins are the same pumpkin spice cake with orange colored vanilla buttercream frosting, rolled in orange decorating sugar, and topped with a rainbow twizzler stem.

Halloween cupcakes

2009-10-07T21:34:00.000-07:00

Halloween treats!!! vampires with mini cupcake "bites", ghosts and spiders. i won second place in the Cupcake Camp challenge, i might have done a little better if the vampires didn't get tossed around in the car on the way to the competition. still cute though, check out the angry eyes on the ghosts!

the vampires and mini "bites" are black bottom cupcakes with cherry filling, so when you bite into the cake, it bleeds in your mouth! cream cheese frosting, black sprinkle hair, m&m eyes, and hot tamale fangs.
spiders are hostess cakes with pocky legs. the legs are held together with a little melted chocolate. the eyes are royal icing.
almond pocky legs!!! mmmmmm......
the ghosts are devils food cake with a little melted chocolate on top to hold a mini twinkie in place and covered with a thin layer of fondant with black food coloring.

Spicy Dragon

2009-08-31T17:02:00.000-07:00

so today is my "pepper" cupcake challenge. i decided to do two types, jalapeno and serrano. the jalapeno are devils food chocolate cake with a cayenne cream cheese frosting. the serrano is also devils food cake with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting. hopefully the cream cheese will soften the blow of the spicy chocolate cake.

the green dragon is the jalapeno cake with cayenne cream cheese

the red is serrano pepper chocolate cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

the eyes are marshmallows pushed and frosted together with m&m eyes, the teeth are also marshmallows, the claws are Mike&Ikes candy as well as the nostrils. horns and spikes are chocolate cookies cut in triangles.

Elise's baby shower

2009-08-31T16:30:00.000-07:00

trying to decide what to make for this special day was tough. do i go with traditional "baby shower" theme or do something a little different? well being me i decided to do something different, not to mention all my candies i made melted because is was about 110 degrees in the house. so the sunflowers made the cut! because it was so hot i had to keep throwing the pieces in the fridge for a bit to cool them and harden things back up. the petals turned out a little droopy, but i think they all still looked like flowers.

cake- triple lemon layer cake:

lemon sponge cake

lemon curd filling

lemon cream cheese frosting

covered in fondant, airbrushed with yellow

sunflowers: oreo cookie decorated with yellow and orange colored vanilla cream cheese frosting.

lady bugs: red m&ms with handpainted chocolate design

Pepper

2009-08-23T23:02:00.000-07:00

Next week I have another Iron Cupcake challenge in San Francisco and the theme is pepper. I couldn't decide to go with spicy peppers, or regular black pepper. so, I decided to make both! The spicy came out super SPICY but really GOOD, the black pepper came out yummy, but I don't know if you really taste the pepper, and I'm not sure if I want to put in anymore, as it might be overkill. I have a week to tweak the recipes, here are my first attempts! After the competition I'll post the recipes!

mixing in Serrano peppers, Cayenne pepper, vanilla soaked buttermilk, and cinnamon.

dark chocolate Serrano pepper cupcake with chocolate cayenne pepper ganache

Hazelnut, lime, and black pepper cupcake with lime butter cream frosting, rolled in colored sugar (to "look" peppery?)

Lola's 1st monkey party

2009-07-05T19:43:00.000-07:00

What do you get when you mix a baby monkey and a baby Lola?... party monkey cupcakes of course!!! the cake is vanilla, the frosting is a chocolate buttercream, the hair is chocolate jimmies, the face is a white buttercream frosting piped, the eyes are m&ms, the nose are strawberry jelly beans, and the ears are banana chips!

4th of july BBQ

2009-07-04T18:08:00.000-07:00

What do you bring to a barbeque? corn on the cob and some veggies maybe... just don't tell anyone at the party the veggies i brought are made of candy and sugar!

the corn on the cobs are vanilla cupcakes with orange vanilla frosting with a little yellow food coloring, multi colored jelly beans for kernels, yellow starbust for butter, and colored turbinado sugar for salt and pepper.

the peas and carrots are the same vanilla cupcake and frosting as the corn on the cob but with green food coloring, green skittles as peas and cut up orange starburst for carrots.

jack skellington cake

2009-05-07T00:05:00.000-07:00

Jack Skellington cake. Tailor's 16th birthday came up and i know she loves nightmare before christmas so i thought Jack's head would be a nice touch to her birthday. seems like she liked it too cause she stuck a candle in his head and happily ate his brains out! a girl after my own heart!

Matt's Totoro birthday cake

2009-04-27T15:08:00.001-07:00

So Matt turned 28! Being that he LOVES Miyazaki films, Naturally he asked for his favorite character. TOTORO!!! I thought i would throw in a few soot balls as well

i started out with a normal, round cake. Devils food cake with Cream Cheese Caramel filling.

then i made another square vanilla cake, also with cream cheese caramel filling.

then i quartered the vanilla cake to make the ears and leg/feet.

i stuck a skewer on each side to keep all parts together.

next everything was coated in vanilla buttercream frosting, followed by white Fondant.

airbrushed with a light gray, pink for the mouth and ears.

the whiskers are toothpicks painted black. the eyes and teeth are molded fondant. the teeth are actually one long strip with teeth cut into it.

these are soot balls, they are rice krispie treats rolled into balls and then coated in chocolate. the eyes are white royal icing, with painted black dots.

Totoro is sleeping in a bed of flowers and grass. all faux grass from michael's cut and shaped. it all sits on floral foam

i think next time i'll make the insides red, just for a little added authenticity. :)

Root Bear Floats!!!

2009-03-26T20:06:00.000-07:00

root beer cake with vanilla buttercream frosting! a whole lot cleaner than the real thing.

Porcupines!

2009-03-26T19:40:00.000-07:00

1 cup pecan halves

1 tblsp unsalted butter, melted

2 1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

1/2 cup dried apricots

1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate pieces

7oz. condensed milk

preheat oven to 325degrees

on parchment paper lined cookie sheet, drop the pecan halves coated in the butter, in the oven for about 10 minutes to brown the pecans.

once the pecans are out of the oven, let cool then mix with the rest of the ingredients. put about 2 tblsp worth of batter in balls on the cookie sheet. bake for about 10 minutes, or until the coconut turns a pale golden, do not over burn. let cool completely.

should make about 20-24 cookies.

unicorn 2.0

2009-03-21T18:15:00.001-07:00

so my WONDERFUL mother in law sent me the candy i actually needed to make these horsey unicorn cupcakes. i can't tell you how hard it was to find circus peanuts, they don't exist in california that i've found so far. send me your peanuts!

cupcake: french vanilla cake

frosting: vanilla buttercream frosting

neck: vanilla wafers stuck together with white chocolate.

head: circus peanuts

mane/eyes/ears: chocolate and sprinkles

magic horn/tail: twizzler

sometimes, even the most magical of herds lose a fellow rider...
godspeed old friend, you'll be missed...

lollipops!!!

2009-03-16T00:12:00.001-07:00

i found these awesome lollipop molds today at Michaels, soooo... i went a little crazy

the 4 flavors are:

dark chocolate

white chocolate

strawberry lavender

peanut butter

i made so many i broke the microwave reheating the chocolates, oops.

Katies tiffanys cake

2009-03-16T00:01:00.000-07:00

cake: devils food cake

frosting:

super chocolate buttercream

melt down 3oz chocolate, cool

1/2 cup butter

3-4 tblsp cream

1 tsp vanilla

16oz powdered sugar

beat all ingredients together for about 5 minutes, add a little milk if needed for easy spreading.

filling: homeade raspberry filling-

10oz fresh raspberries,

4 tblsp. cornstarch

2 tblsp. light corn syrup

bring the 3 ingredients to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently

take off stove and put in fridge for at least 2 hours, for maximum thickness, over night.

the flowers, bows, blue box, and pearls are all fondant.

unicorns!

2009-03-15T23:55:00.000-07:00

my first attempt at making animals. i had nothing i wanted to make them out of so i improvised with WAY to much frosting... but they still got a photo shoot and they still got eaten, and they taste good... and they're magical, its all i can really ask for!

the cupcake is a vanilla cake with toffee chips

the frosting is a vanilla buttercream with pink and purple mixed in for the mane

the unicorn is vanilla cookies with cream middle

the horn and tail is red vines shredded

Vitas flower cake

2009-02-28T11:15:00.000-08:00

orchids, lilies: stargazers and peace, roses, baby's breath. the whole cake is edible, even the flowers.

bottom cake: super moist chocolate cake, caramel filling, buttercream frosting

top 3 cakes: flourless chocolate cake, chocolate ganache topping dripped from the top onto the bottom cake.

Caramel filling:

3 cups sugar, divided

3/4 cups milk

1 egg beaten

pinch of salt

1/2 cup butter(cut up)

sprinkle 1/2 cup sugar in heavy saucepan: place over medium heat. cook, stirring constantly, until sugar melts and syrup is golden brown.

combine remaining 2 1/2 cups sugar, milk, egg and salt in bowl, stirring well: stir in butter. stir butter mixture in caramelized sugar. (the mixture will lump, becoming smooth with further cooking.) cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until a candy thermometer registers 230 degrees (15-20 min). cool 5 minutes. beat with a wooden spoon to almost spreading consistency and spread between layers and on top of cake.

buttercream frosting:

1/3 cups butter, softened

3 cups sifted powdered sugar

2-3 tblsp half & half

1/2 tsp. vanilla

cream butter at medium speed of an electric mixer; gradually add sugar alternately with half&half, beating until light and fluffy. stir in vanilla.

5 minute chocolate cake

2009-01-15T21:09:00.001-08:00

so how come if you want a a piece of chocolate cake you have to make the whole cake? why not just make a slice? no mess, only a cup, a spoon, and a microwave.

4 tblsp flour

4 tblsp sugar

2 tblsp cocoa

1 egg

3 tblsp milk

3 tblsp oil

splash of white vinegar

splash of vanilla

3 tblsp chocolate chips

works best with an oversized coffee mug

mix all the dry ingredients well

then add each wet ingredient one at a time mixing well after each

add chocolate chips last

you are making this directly in the coffee mug

pop it in the microwave for 3 minutes on high

DONE!!! 3 minute chocolate cake (5 minutes with prep)

neapolitan and hot chocolate cupcakes

2009-01-13T21:10:00.000-08:00

when one flavor isn't enough, go for 3. Neapolitan ice cream is wonderful, why not make it in cupcake form. comfort me with apples has one of the best recipes i've found.

i found a recipe for these amazing things on Comfort me with apples.

you can take it one step further and sprinkle some hot chocolate mix and cinnamon on the top along with chocolate pocky (crushed almonds are my favorite), and some small marshmallows.

surprise cupcakes

2008-12-08T21:22:00.000-08:00

i found the BEST!!! cupcake recipe ever.

meatloaf and mashed potatoes with green onion sprinkles! best dinner ever!

2008-11-30T15:17:00.000-08:00

today, i have found a bacon treasure chest. first, bacon vodka. made by infusing bacon bits into vodka for a really long time, draining, and then drinking... mmmmm..... second is bacon ice-cream, which is part of a cook book by David Lebovitz. he has some of the most amazing recipes that are super different.

the other thing i want to learn how to do, not like your creepy aunt used to make them, but updated candied fruit. not so much for eating, but for decoration. if i can candy bacon, i can candy apples, right?

CUPCAKE CARS!

2008-09-28T19:20:00.000-07:00

so who wouldn't want to drive around in something like this? i know i would~ i would drive it to work everyday, park it on the sidewalk, and be the coolest person on the planet.

so far, without knowing how to make one of these, i figure i should start with 1) a rascal. 2) plenty of chicken wire to sculpt. 3) silver siding stuff. 4) tons of frosting (cause mine would also be edible!).

ok its a start.

Muffin morning!

2008-09-14T12:57:00.000-07:00

so i woke up this morning with muffins on the brain. i have a really easy generic muffin recipe that i use, and then just add in other things. this morning... cheese breakfast muffins and cranberry orange muffins.
the basics: (oven at 400 degrees)

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour.

1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp. baking POWDER

1/4 tsp. salt

1 beaten egg

3/4 cup milk (you can also sub with buttermilk, adding 1/4 tsp. baking SODA to dry mixture.)

1/4 cup cooking oil

1) grease muffin tin, or line with baking cups

mix together flour, sugar, baking POWDER, salt.

make a well in dry mixture.

2) in another bowl mix egg, milk, and oil. add all at once to the dry mixture. stir just until moistened ( over mixing the batter can cause peaks, tunnels, and a tough texture)

3) spoon batter into muffin cups, bake for 15-20 min. or until golden. cool for 5 min. serve warm....

1)to make cheese muffins, just add 1/2 cup shredded cheese to your dry mixture. i like cheddar or jack.

2) to make cranberry/orange muffins, combine 1 cup coarsely chopped cranberries, 2 tblspn. sugar, 1/4 cup orange zest. mix and fold into muffin mixture.

YEAH! MUFFIN MORNING MANIA!

2008-08-24T18:00:00.000-07:00

Strawberry shortcake:

2 cups all-purpose flour.

1/2 cup finely ground pecans

1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter

1 beaten egg

2/3 cup milk

1 tablespoon finely shredded orange peel

1 teaspoon vanilla

6 cups sliced fresh strawberries

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup whipping cream

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1. for shortcake. in a large bowl, combine flour, ground pecans, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. in small bowl combine egg, milk, 2 teaspoons of the peel, and 1 teaspoon vanilla: add all at once to dry ingredients. stir just until moistened.

2. drop dough into 8 or 10 mounds on an ungreased baking sheet; flatten each mound with the back of a spoon until about 3/4 inch thick. bake in a 450 degree oven about 10 minutes or until golden. cool shortcakes on wire rack about 10 minutes.

3. meanwhile, in a bowl stir together strawberries, the second 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 teaspoon orange peel; let stand about 20 minutes.

4. in a chilled medium bowl combine cream, the 2 tablespoons sugar, and the 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Beat on medium speed until soft peaks form.

5. using a sharp serrated knife cut shortcakes in half horizontally. lift off top layers. spoon half of the strawberry mixture and half of the whipped cream over bottom layers. replace shortcake tops. top with remaining strawberry mixture; spoon remaining cream onto berries. if desired.

meet... the snarkhorse...

2008-08-18T21:03:00.001-07:00

so why snark horse? well, he's an imaginary animal used to refer to someone or something that is difficult to track down. Lewis Carroll coined the term in the hunting of the snark, but i doubt any one ever had my snark horse in mind.

Think of a seahorse, tired of being beat up by other animals in the sea. Smaller than the others, kind of slow, peaceful and just wanting to blend in. Finally a rogue thinker thought of a way to get everyone off his back. He created a disguise, a camouflage outfit of sorts... a pole with a shark fin on it. Now wherever he goes, people don't see him as cowardly seahorse, they see him for what he really is... life threatening SNARKHORSE! He's kind of like the superman of the sea, mild manored by day, mysterious and unexplainable by night. Some try to find such a creature. Others just live on by his legend. I try and create such characters with my desserts. Welcome to my snarkhorse site, filled with goodies and all things amazing to set your seahorse desserts soaring!