Disney/Pixar Cars Cake

Last week I made this "Cars" cake for my friend's son who turned two! He loved it! It was a 6 inch chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting and all the decorations were edible including the Lightning McQueen, the Cactus plants, etc. 

Under the Sea Birthday Cake

For my son's first birthday I wanted to make a really special cake! He LOVES fish and sharks and sea turtles and pretty much anything else that we see at the aquarium. So, I thought he would love this "Under the Sea" cake that I made for him! The cake was rainbow inside with vanilla swiss meringue buttercream filling. I covered it in fondant and decorated it with fish and bubbles and seaweed. I made an octopus and crab out of fondant to put on the top. It was a big hit with all the kids!

Simple Buttercream Cake

For my student's music recital I made a mexican-spiced chocolate cake with chocolate ganache and vanilla swiss meringue buttercream.

Blackberry-Raspberry Pie

Finally! A berry pie recipe that I really, really love! I compared lots of recipes and the ratios of sugar to berries to cornstarch (or flour for some). And, I came up with one that is everything I was looking for!  I have been making berry pies for years and although it always turns out delicious, the pie never seems to thicken up enough during baking and cooling. 

I think part of the problem is when a recipe calls for frozen berries. Frozen berries and even berries that you freeze yourself might be the reason the pie turns out runny even after cooling. This recipe calls for fresh berries and also the cornstarch amount is almost double what other recipes call for. It thickened up really nicely and was still so juicy and delicious. 

I always use my mom's amazing pie crust recipe too, which is incredibly flaky, tender and exactly what a pie crust should be. It pairs wonderfully with the berry filling which is the perfect balance between sweet and tart. I just love it! You'll definitely want a dollop of sweetened cream or vanilla ice cream to go with. 

Enjoy!

We picked these berries ourselves, just a day before making the pie. Blackberries, red raspberries and golden raspberries.

Pie Crust: Yield: 2 crusts (one top and one bottom)

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/4 cup shortening
1 egg, beaten
1 Tbsp. vinegar
1/4 cup cold water

In a medium bowl, mix the flour and salt together. Add the shortening and cut, using a pastry cutter, until the shortening pieces are pea-sized and the mixture is crumbly. Mix together the egg, vinegar and cold water. Add to the flour mixture and stir together until a smooth dough forms (I usually reserve a little liquid just in case I don't need it all). Separate dough into two equal pieces, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.


Berry Filling:

3 cups fresh blackberries
3 cups fresh raspberries
*Feel free to use any berries you want as long as you have a total of 6 cups. Blueberries would be a delicious addition. I used blackberries, red raspberries and golden raspberries.
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch

Preheat the oven to 400º F.

Gently rinse your berries and let them dry on a clean towel. Toss the berries with the sugar and cornstarch and allow mixture to sit for 10 minutes or so while you roll out your pie dough.

Take the first piece of pie dough and begin rolling out on a lightly floured counter. Lift dough from counter and rotate 90º and continue rolling, adding flour to counter when dough sticks. Continue this process of rolling, rotating and adding flour to counter until your round is large enough for your pie pan.

Lightly spray your pie pan with cooking spray. Lay the crust gently inside. Pour berry mixture over the crust. Roll out the other piece of pie dough. Lay the crust on top of the berries and seal all the edges by tucking the top layer under the bottom. Cut a few small slits into the top crust.

Bake until golden brown- about 50 minutes. Allow pie to cool for 30 minutes before cutting and serving. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or at room temperature if desired.

Homemade Marshmallows

If you have never had a homemade marshmallow, then you are missing out! Seriously. They are little pillows of sugary delight that don't even closely compare to their store bought sisters. In a good way. 

Some people might feel intimidated to try making them because they seem a bit technical. But, honestly, as long as you have a candy thermometer lying around and you don't mind making a little powdered sugar mess in your kitchen, then you will be just fine! Scouts honor. ;)

Variations:

You can cut them with cookie cutters to make cute shapes if you don't like the classic square. You can also add flavors (just don't over do it because the flavor will get stronger as the marshmallows set) like orange extract, almond, coconut, etc. Then you could dip them in dark chocolate (or a lower class chocolate if you can't handle the good stuff) and voila! The most scrumptious and adorable little sweets have just been created in your own kitchen. You will be so impressed with yourself. 

Homemade toasted marshmallows on chocolate and homemade graham crackers made an awesome s'more!

You can find my homemade honey graham cracker recipe HERE.

Recipe:

1/2 cup (1 1/2 ounces) cornstarch
1/2 cup (1 3/4 ounces) powdered sugar, sifted
3 T. plus 2 t. unflavored gelatin powder (4 packets)
1/3 cup water, plus 1/2 cup
2 cups (14 ounces) granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 vanilla bean (optional)
3 large egg whites
1 T. vanilla extract
pinch of cream of tartar
1/4 t. salt


Lightly coat a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray. In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and powdered sugar. Dust the bottom and sides of greased 9 x 13 with mixture and tap the excess back into the bowl. Save the bowl of extra cornstarch and powdered sugar for later use.

In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the surface of the 1/3 cup water. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine the granulated sugar, corn syrup and 1/2 cup water. If using a vanilla bean, cut the vanilla bean open and scrape the seeds into the mixture. Cook the mixture over medium-low heat until it reaches 246º F (use a candy thermometer clipped to the pan).

While the mixture cooks, combine egg whites, vanilla extract, cream of tartar and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Once the syrup reaches 230º F, turn the mixer on low speed. When the mixture reaches 246º F immediately turn off the heat and whisk the softened gelatin into the hot syrup until there are no lumps.

With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour the hot syrup and gelatin mixture into the egg white mixture in a thin stream. When all of the syrup has been added, raise the speed to high. Continue to whisk until the mixture has cooled down to room temperature (you can tell by feeling the sides of the bowl) and stiff peaks have formed.

Scrape the mixture into the prepared 9 x 13 pan and smooth the top as best you can. Dust the top with some of the cornstarch and powdered sugar mixture. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and set aside. The marshmallows need to set for at least 6 hours before you cut them (you can also leave them over night if you want).

Once they have set, use a knife or an offset spatula to gently pull the edge of the marshmallow away from the pan. Invert the slab of marshmallow onto a cutting board dusted with the powdered sugar and cornstarch. Using a lightly oiled knife, cut the marshmallows into desired shapes. Dust the marshmallows in the bowl of the extra cornstarch and powdered sugar so the edges aren't sticky anymore. Store in an airtight container or bag.

Advanced Cake Decorating Final Project

For my Adv. Cake Decorating final we had to have a fake cake consultation with the instructor, Chef Sharyl. Chef was the pretend client and I had to present her with a consultation form that I created and discuss what she wanted for her cake. She gave me a picture of exactly what she wanted and I had to create it as best as I possibly could. 

I had to hand carve all the layers, cover them all with homemade fondant, stack the layers, make all the flowers, pearls, etc. to decorate it with, make the wire cake topper, etc. It took a lot of hours! haha. But, I matched her picture almost perfectly! I was really happy to have it finished and to please my client. ;)

Rachel with her final project and me with mine. We spent hours working along side each other and almost cussing out our stupid cakes a few times. haha!

Old Fashioned Sour Cream Cake Doughnuts

Doughnuts will always remind me of my sweet, hard-working Grandpa. He owned a small doughnut shop in Dallas, Texas where my mom remembers falling asleep on bags of flour after a long day at school. I will never forget the amazing smell of sweet glazes and freshly fried doughnuts upon entering his shop and getting to wake up in the middle of the night to help him start doughnuts for the early morning deliveries. I don't think I have ever eaten a doughnut without the most wonderful memories of him coming to mind.

My favorite doughnuts, if you absolutely MADE me choose... :), are cake doughnuts. I love any type of cake doughnut, really. But, old-fashioned are definitely near the top of the list.

These old-fashioned sour cream cake doughnuts are crispy on the outside, tender on the inside and incredibly moist! I absolutely love them! This recipe will forever more be a favorite of mine.

Recipe:

Doughnuts:

2 1/4 cup (255 grams) cake flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 cup sugar
2 T. butter, softened
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup sour cream
canola oil

Glaze:

3 1/2 cups (350 grams) powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. corn syrup
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup hot water

In a small bowl whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl with a paddle attachment, mix the sugar and butter. Add the yolks, one at a time, scraping the bowl often. In about 3 increments, add the sour cream and flour mixture, alternately, ending with the flour. Scrape the bowl between each increment. When the dough comes together, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Pour about 2 inches of canola oil into a dutch oven or a really heavy pot (cast iron works great). Heat over medium heat. Use a candy thermometer to get the oil to about 325ºF.

Lightly flour your counter. Roll dough onto counter to about a 1/2 inch thickness, picking up often to make sure it does not stick to the counter. Use your doughnut cutter or a large round cutter and a small round cutter to cut dough into doughnut shapes.

Place a few doughnuts in the oil and cook for 2 minutes on each side (about 4-5 minutes total) or until golden brown. Use a slotted spoon to remove from oil and place on a brown paper bag to cool. Cook the rest of the doughnuts.

To make the glaze, mix all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Fully immerse each doughnut in the glaze and place the doughnuts on a cooling rack. Allow the doughnuts to sit for about 20 minutes after glazing so that the glaze has time to set.

Eat them all! :) Or, you can place the leftovers in an airtight container for a few days.