The Rose Cake

"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet" 
                                                                   - William Shakespeare

Roses are the epitome of romance and love. What better way to show someone you love them than by presenting them with a beautiful cake decorated ALL in buttercream roses. 

The 'Rose Cake' is a technique that took the baking world by storm in 2011 when the Amazing Amanda (aka "I am Baker") introduced it to everyone on her blog: www.iambaker.net 

What a genius way to decorate a cake using a tip that most of us already have in our kitchen. And the end result is pure beauty. 

I've used the technique twice already. Once for my beautiful sister's birthday and then she asked me to make one for a dear family member's birthday. I think both cakes came out beautiful and I have a room full of people to back me up on this... :-) 

Birthday Cake for my Sister

A Birthday cake for a Family Friend

It is quite the show stopper and people always think that it was terribly hard to decorate. And now you know that it is not hard to do. It'll be our little secret. 

Here is the original blog post, from Amanda's blog, for the technique: 
http://iambaker.net/rose-cake-tutorial/

And also the Youtube video that started it all: 

Hope you guys will try this on your next cake. 
Trust me when I say that everyone will love it!!!

Happy Baking! 
Sweet Smiles!

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Sun cookies - Tutorial

I was so happy to have been a part of a set of pretty sun cookies for a Baby Shower my cousin was hosting. 

When I say pretty, I mean, pretty.... Bows and Eyelashes pretty...

My cousin sent me a picture of a gorgeous set of cookies made by The Baking Sheet and I was inspired. 

In order to make these beautiful cookies, I had to sketch them out and then make my plan. 

Items needed: 

• Favorite sugar cookie recipe
• Sun cookie cutter and Circle cookie cutter
• Royal icing for piping and flooding in Yellow
• Airbrush machine with Airbrush color Orange
• Royal icing for piping and flooding in Pink
• Leaf icing tip
• Royal icing for piping in Black
• Disco dust

Thank you to The Baking Sheet for the Wonderful inspiration and to SugarBelle for her great Bow tutorial... 

I'm thrilled with how they turned out! 

Try them yourself!!!!

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Chocolate Snickerdoodle Cake

What is your favorite Chocolate combination?????

Mine are: 

• Chocolate with Raspberries
• Chocolate with Cinnamon
• Chocolate with Strawberries
• Chocolate with Mint
• Chocolate with chocolate.....

For this Pre-Valentine's Day Dessert, I wanted to try something new. 

And, boy, Did I....

This cake is deliciously Moist, Decadent and So delicious...

The blend of Cinnamon in the chocolate cake and in the frosting make it something special. 

After crumb coating the cake and working with the frosting, I decided to put Chocolate Sprinkles on the bottom portion of the cake instead of trying to make a fancy design. 

Those who know me know that I have not mastered a smooth buttercream, so I am always looking for alternative methods of decorating a cake. 

 

To add a little texture to the top of the cake, I decided to use a spoon in order to add peaks to the top. 

Once cut, this cake was to Die For....

If you like Chocolate, then this cake is for you...

Enjoy!!!!

Chocolate Snickerdoodle Cake

- Adapted From: The Cake Doctor Chocolate Cookbook

Ingredients

• 1 package plain chocolate cake mix
• ¾ cup milk
• ¾ cup canola oil
• 1 Milk Chocolate Hershey Bar, Melted
• 3 large eggs or 3/4 cup Egg Beater
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• For frosting: 
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
• 8 Tablespoons boiling water
• ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 4 cups confectioners's sugar
• Dark chocolate candy bar for grating on top (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 9" pans and set aside.
2. Place the cake mix, oil, eggs, cinnamon, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and blend for three minutes, or until well-blended. Add melted chocolate. Mix well
3. Pour evenly into two pans, smoothing with spatula.
4. Bake for 28-32 minutes or until the cake springs back when lightly pressed with your finger. Remove and allow to cool for ten minutes. Remove from pans & then cool for another 30 minutes.
5. Place the cocoa powder and boiling water in mixing bowl. Blend until combined. Add butter, cinnamon, and confectioners sugar, and finally vanilla. Blend until combined and icing looks fluffy. Add an additional ¼-1/2 cup confectioners' sugar if needed.
6. Ice cake and press chocolate sprinkles if you desire.  
   

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Caramel Apple Pie

My husband will be the first to say that he really likes my apple pie, but when he came to me with a recipe he found on Allrecipes.com, I was a little surprised that he wanted me to try something new. 

But I wanted to take the challenge and when I realized it was a Caramel Apple Pie with a Lattice Top, I was definitely up for the challenge. 

Let me tell you how delicious this pie was. It was not too sweet and had a nice syrup to it that made it extra special. 

I can't wait to make it again!!!!

6 TBS unsalted butter

1/2 C white sugar

1/2 C brown sugar

1/4 C water

1/4 tsp cinnamon

pinch of salt

1 TBS flour

5 apples - peeled, cored and sliced

1 pastry for double crust pie

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
2. Combine butter, white sugar, brown sugar, water, cinnamon, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, remove from heat and set aside.
3. Roll out half the pastry to fit a 9-inch pie plate. Place bottom crust in pie plate; pour in apple slices previously tossed in flour.
4. Roll out top crust into a 10-inch circle. Cut into 8 (1-inch) wide strips with a sharp paring knife or pastry wheel. Weave the pastry strips, one at a time, into a lattice pattern. Fold the ends of the lattice strips under the edge of the bottom crust and crimp to seal.
5. Pour butter-sugar mixture over top of pie, coating the lattice, and allowing any remaining sauce to drizzle through the crust.
6. Place pie on baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C), and bake until the crust is golden brown, the caramel on the top crust is set, and the apple filling is bubbling, 35 to 40 more minutes. Allow to cool completely before slicing.

Adapted from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chef-johns-caramel-apple-pie/

** There is also a video tutorial with the recipe that helps with making the lattice top.

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Picture Tutorial: Blue Ombre Swirl Cake

As soon as I saw the Pink Ombre Swirl cake made by Glorious Treats, I knew that I wanted to make it for a special occasion. 


So when my sister said she was having a very small baby shower, I quickly volunteered to create my first ever DESSERT TABLE and I knew I wanted that cake to be the centerpiece. 


I was so excited to make this cake and so nervous at the same time. Would I be able to create the cake that I had stalked for so long. With a little planning and Glorious Treat's step by step instructions, I crossed my fingers and started the process. 


For the original step-by-step instructions, including her recipe for a perfect vanilla cake and buttercream, click this link: Pink Ombre Swirl Cake

Here is a quick picture tutorial of how I made this great cake: 

1. I separated and tinted the cake batter into five plastic containers with 5 different shades of blue. 


2. I baked the cakes in some 6-inch pans. I only have 2 pans, so I made them in batches of 2 until all 5 layers were baked. I wrapped all five layers and chilled them in the fridge.


3. I made a batch of vanilla buttercream and tinted it into 4 different shades of blue. 


4. I crumb coated the cake and placed it in the freezer to set. 


5. I then started with the darkest color and swirled the buttercream. I worked up the cake with the different shades of blue, leaving the lightest shade for last and also swirled the top of the cake. 

The surprise is the inside of the cake. It was a big hit at the party!!!!!


I can't wait to make it again!!!

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A Picture Tutorial: Brush Embroidery Cookies

I had the honor of being asked to make cookie favors for my dearest friend's mother's birthday celebration. 


As I always give credit to the the wonderful bloggers I follow and take inspiration from, I also wanted to add a few pictures that show you all the process of completing these cookies. 


All I had to do, during my initial research, was 'Google' "65th birthday cookies" and was pleasantly surprised to find a post by 'Haniela' on this exact topic. I almost jumped up and down in excitement. I couldn't wait to see how she made her beautiful cookies.  


Her original post with picture tutorial can be found here: 
Coral Green and Ivory Birthday Cookies 


I followed her instructions and changed the colors to match my friend's request and was extremely pleased with the results.


Here is a photo displaying the process. An explanation of each step is below this picture. 

Picture #1. I started out piping the Royal Icing '65' onto wax paper.I let them dry overnight.


Picture #2. I then flooded the cookies. While the icing was still wet, I carefully removed a '65' from the waxed paper and placed it on the wet icing and let the cookies dry completely.


I had been dying to try 'Brush Embroidery' and thought this was the perfect occasion to test out my skills. So at 10pm, with a strong cup of tea, I started watching Youtube videos and found this great one by "SweetAmbs Cookies" demonstrating how Brush Embroidery is done. 

**A post with her beautiful cookies can be found on her site by clicking HERE


Picture #3. My practice sheet that I made before attempting to decorate the first cookie.


(My hands were shaking so bad because I really wanted them to come out nice.)


Once again, I'm really pleased with the end result and I can't wait to make more of these beautiful cookies. 

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