Velvety Goodness......

Tonight we were invited to dinner.... So I asked "what can I bring?" answer... Something sweet.. This is totally up my ally... So I asked the husband what I should make.. He said Red Velvet cake.

He has been trying to get me to make him a Red Velvet cake for... Well it seems like years! But I have been dead set against it because of the amount of Red dye that it calls for... I mean 2 ounces ... 1 whole bottle of red.. And why? To turn a cake red... I don't know, maybe I am missing something..... I told him I would make it if I could change the color... And not use so much dye.


Research began on Red Velvet Recipes... That I would soon turn Purple! Yes purple! I used my gel colors, the ones I use for frosting, and only about 1/4 teaspoon. That seemed much better to me... Still fun... Less fake color.

I found so many different recipes on the right way to make red velvet... I didn't know there was a vinegar and baking soda science experiment involved.... But boy did Nate get a kick out of it! Finally decided on a mixture of two recipes and my own for the cream cheese frosting.

It was sooo good....and I would totally make it again!




Photo by Dana Morand

Chocolate fudge....chocolate mousse....chocolate ganache...

And dark chocolate cake... How much chocolate can one put into a cake... Never too much.

If you read this post awhile ago, you are wondering to yourself.. Is this the same thing? Answer, No! For some reason my other post just up and disappeared... Like it never exsisted... Let's try again!

Since I stared baking and making cakes... In hopes of starting a business, which I am... Slowly but surely! I have been making cakes for family members... Someone has to be the guinea pigs for my creations!

Well, back in October was my moms birthday.. So I asked what she wanted. The answer was chocolate.. Which I already knew, because if you know my mom... You know she loves decedent dark chocolate cakes.

So, my research began into finding the best chocolate cake.... Not 'Death' by chocolate... But...'Bliss' by chocolate. Well I found it 26 oz worth of chocolate! So much so that I emptied the shelf at the store of their bakers and semisweet chococlate! Not only did this cake have a ton of chocolate, but it was labor intensive! Only took 10 hours to make...I know what you are thinking.. That I am crazy! You are right.. Mind you though this was between naps and playing with my children... But still the steps were long and this cake just took forever.. But well worth it!

Enough all ready.. I know... Let's get to the cake!

-bottom layer :dark chocolate fudge brownie
-middle layer :chocolate mousse
-top layer : dark chocolate cake

Drenched in chocolate Ganache!



After this was done.. I had to pack the car with the kids and cake... I put the cake in a carrier and then covered it with everything and anything I could find from the freezer... Thank goodness for Icepops! This had to make it the 3 1/2 hr journey ! Well it made it and was enjoyed by all!

 Did I tell I tell you how good it was???? Delicious!

Scrumdiddlyumptious Cookies...

aka No Bake- Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies with chocolate chips and raisins. The scrumdiddlyumptious came from Nate while eating them.

When looking for the recipe the first time, I noticed that every single one called for at least 2 cups of sugar! That.... Was way too much for my liking... So I swapped the sugar for less maple syrup, added chocolate chips and raisins to the mix... And well they are delicious! By the way.. For those who don't use dairy.. You can substitute soy milk and earth balance butter(not butter)... I love making these cookies when in a chocolate mood.. Especially since we usually have all these ingredients on hand...


What you will need...
1 cup maple syrup (I used grade B)
1/2 cup milk
1 stick of butter
3 Tablespoon of cocoa powder
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup peanut butter
3 1/2 heaping cups of oatmeal (not instant)
1 cup chocolate chips (I used grain sweetened)
1 cup raisin

In a medium large sauce pan combine maple syrup, milk, butter and cocoa powder. Whisk together and heat till boiling. Boil for 1 minute. Turn of heat add vanilla and peanut butter.. Whisk together until combined. Next, fold oatmeal into the mix. At this point, if I notice it is really wet I will sprinkle a little extra oatmeal into it. Fold chocolate chips and raisins into the party.
At this point you can either spoon out onto wax paper, Or line mini muffin tin with cupcake liners. I use a mini ice scream scooper (2 Tbl) and scoop batter into tin. This time I ran out of liners so I also scooped onto wax paper.

This made 62 cookies!

We have made these with chunky peanut butter... Also very good, just a little dry and crumbly.


Enjoy!

Crazy... Crazy Weekends....

Weekends always seem to be jammed packed and not enough hours in the day! For some reason it was almost 65 degrees out on Saturday... Did I mention we are in New England... It should be freezing out with snow on the ground. But.. Well... Something is screwy and we had an absolutely beautiful day. So after naps and lunch.. The fam took a nice long hike... In terms of long... I mean long enough for a two year old to walk the whole thing without being picked up... about and hour and a half. It knocked the kids and the puppy out!

Sunday's usually end up being throw the kids in the car and see how many things we can get done in one afternoon. Tiring... Yes... But we need to do it. Today's quest, besides the usual stop to Target to get everything, was a hunt for a Juicer. Saturday night Kamal and I watched Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead... A wonderful documentary about a man who...well..was Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead... He turned to juicing, veggies and fruits! In a matter of months his whole life turned around and he became better. Totally recommend the documentary. Right now it is streaming on NetFlix .. So you should totally check it out.

What I am getting at is is that we want to start juicing.. Especially to get more veggies into the kids! If we can hide it in a drink.... Well that works for me! When our new Breville Juicer arrives... We will start experimenting and I will give out the kid approved recipes!

When the day has flown by and it is really late for dinner, we turn to kid friendly meals... Tonight consisted of quesadillas filled with sharp cheddar cheese and left over chicken, carrots on the side.... Then for those still hungry.. Tortillas filled with Hummus and pickles... Yes you heard me right ...Hummus and pickles... The combo is amazing!!!

Let's talk Fondant.....

Fondant... That sometimes thick gross layer of chewy sugar on top of cakes that usually gets pealed off and left on the side of your plate... Well I don't like it! At least that version.

Awhile back I started doing research on how to make my own, in hopes that it would taste better and I wouldn't have to buy it.

After hours of research .... Reading recipes, watching YouTube and actually testing it out... I finally came up with the best version that works for me... And it actually tastes Good! It happens to be a Marshmallow Fondant!

It takes marshmallows...vanilla...tons of sugar... And kneading... lots and lots of kneading! Did I mention kneading?


The result... Defiantly worth it!

This was my daughters 4th Birthday cake.

-Strawberry cake(with over 1lb of strawberries) with a layer of chocolate ganache, covered in chocolate buttercream, then covered in homemade Fondant.

-The cupcakes were chocolate with vanilla buttercream. Decorated with Oreo sunflowers and M&m ladybugs!


I absolutely love working with fondant! I think it can become something beautiful... And now that it can taste good.. Well we definitely have a winner!

Leftovers for dinner tonight.... So let's look at some Cake!

About a year ago I started to take cake decorating classes. Oh how I loved it... There is something so calming and relaxing to me when baking and decorating. Here are a few of my earlier cakes... This was a vanilla cake with chocolate buttercream frosting. Decorated with handmade sugar flowers(made with royal icing).





This next cake I made was for when the Vikings played the Pats last year. Unfortunately the cake did not help the Vikings at all.... They still LOST! Chocolate cake with vanilla buttercream.


This last cake today was my first experiment with Fondant. This was not homemade Fondant so the fondant tasted... Well kinda gross... In a later post I will share my recipe for Fondant... So yummy and not too hard to make. This was a Red Velvet cake with cream cheese frosting covered in Fondant. Decorated with gum paste Daisies.





A few of my firsts. Next to come birthday cakes. I absolutely love how with a few ingredients you can make something beautiful and edible!

Black bean Soup - another one pot wonder!

It is freezing out! This weather makes me want to stay inside curl up on the couch under a blanket and just relax.... But ... That can't happen! Not with a 4 year old a 2 year old and a Puppy and because of said puppy I am outside in this freezing cold a LOT more then I want to be.
So... this then makes me want to make warm comforting easy meals for the family. This soup is super easy and I had on the table within a half hour.
The kids really liked it! Annie, the oldest, said it was 'tacos in a bowl'... Who doesn't like that?
Black bean Soup

1 med sized onion chopped fine
3/4 cup celery chopped fine
3-4 cloves garlic minced
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1 lb chicken breast cut into bite sized pieces (1/2 in)
2 cans black beans drain and rinsed
1 cup cooked rice (brown or white)
1 jar 16oz of salsa
1box 32 oz of chicken stock
1 tsp cumin
2-3 TBL olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
-For toppings
Shredded extra sharp cheese
Sour cream
Avocado
Tortilla chips

In a 5 quart Dutch oven or heavy bottom pot, heat olive oil on med high heat. Season chicken bits with salt and pepper and brown.. May take a few batches. Remove from pot and set aside in a bowl.
Turn heat back to medium and add onion, celery and garlic. Sauté until translucent. Add black Beans and cumin and stir until combined and smelling delicious :)
Stir in salsa and stock until mixed together.
Add corn and rice.
Return chicken to pot with all juices.
Heat on med high until bubbly and yummy... Stirring occasionally for about 10 min.

Serve with any toppings you like!

This soup is not very soupy... If not enough liquid for your liking... Add 16oz more of stock.

For a vegetarian version.... Replace chicken stock with veggie stock and instead of chicken add another can of beans.

This recipe also works well with a mixture of black beans and pinto beans.

Enjoy;)