Sugared Productions Blog

Pulling from the Archives

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!
I hope your season is going great and you guys are having lots of fun. What a busy time of year this is! I am so buried in work that I am not making any Christmas goodies this year. So I thought I would pull from the archives and give you guys the links to some older blog posts relating to holiday yummies. Maybe these will refresh your memory and spark some creative ideas you can try out this year.

I wish you all the very happiest of holidays, a blessed time with family and friends, and hope all of your wishes for the new year come true.

 

Sharon
www.sugaredproductions.com

 

 

Poured Fondant Pumpkin Cookies

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Fall is here! Fall is here!
 
Don’t you just love fall? It is my favorite time of year. More than Spring, more than Summer vacation, more than the Christmas holidays. I love the cooler temps and lower humidity (what little of that we get where I live, LOL.) I love fall colors , pumpkins and turning leaves. I love the promise of the time to be spent with family and friends during the upcoming months.
 
I especially love fall baking. I adore fall themed cakes, cookies and cupcakes. Just love everything about it!
 
 
 

Recently I used the pumpkin cutter set we featured in a SugarEd free gift promotion to make some cookies using poured fondant and rolled fondant. I cannot locate this exact set anywhere retail, but set 1872 here looks to be very similar.

 

After baking the cookies, I made poured fondant:

 

6 cups confectioners’ sugar (I often add 1-2 cups more sugar to make it a bit thicker, optional)
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon almond extract ,optional
1 teaspoon vanilla, optional

 

DIRECTIONS:
In a saucepan, combine confectioner’s sugar, water and corn syrup. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it reaches a temperature of 92 degrees F (33 degrees C.) Mixture should be thin enough to pour, but thick enough to coat cookie. Add food coloring to desired color and stir thoroughly.

 

 

Make sure not to overheat. Overheating will cause the mixture to crystallize and show sugar crystals once dried. It may also become too thick to flow well.

 

 

I take it off the heat to pour over the cookies. It will thicken up as it cools. If it gets too thick to flow well, gently heat it back up until it is thin enough again. Again, be careful not to overheat it at any time. If you do it will give you trouble. You will get mad. You will say bad words. You might throw cookies across the room. …..Just sayin’.

 

 

I hold the cookie in one hand over the pot and spoon the icing over it, allowing the excess to flow back into the pot.

 

 

Coat entire cookie. (I do normally wear gloves for this but was so excited to do this tutorial it slipped my mind.)

 

 

Let all the excess drip off and then slide your spoon under the cookie.
 
 
 
 
 
Slide the bottom of the cookie across the edge of the pot to scrape the excess off.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Lay it on wax paper or parchment. I do not like to put my cookies on cooling/cookie racks because the icing hardens and sticks to the rack. Then when you release the cookie from the rack it messes up your pretty cookie edge.
 
 
 
 
 
 
See that pool of icing? No worries. When it is all dry and hardened, you scrape that excess off with a palette or exacto knife and you end up with a perfectly clean edged cookie.
 
 
 
 
 
 
For the big kahuna cookies, the process is close to the same.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Use several spoonfuls to get the entire cookie coated well.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Let the excess drip back into the pot.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hold the large cookie with both hands and tap the sides of your hands on the edge of the pot to get all the excess icing flowing off the cookie.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Slide the bottom of the cookie along the edge of the pot as you take it out to scrape off any more excess.
 
 
 
 
 
 
This is where you get so excited because you have this adorable Jack o’ lantern cookie looking back at you! Place him on the parchment too and leave them alone for a while till fully hardened. I leave them for at least a few hours before I clean them up.
 

                                               Rolled fondant covered:

 

Roll out your orange fondant and cut out the shape with the cookie cutter you used to make the cookie. Smear a little thinned buttercream onto the cookie to make it stick.
 
 
 
 
 
                          I used a large oval cutter to make indentations into the fondant.
 
 
 
 
 
I did this four times to make the indent lines that pumpkins have.
 
 

                                                                  Airbrushing:

Airbrushing adds more depth and dimension and interest to your cookies. It is not necessary to do this, but I like what it adds to the look. I gave it a light overall coating of orange color.
 
 
 
 
 
Then I did more pinpoint lines in the grooves with orange.
 
 
 
 
 
I did the same thing on the poured fondant cookies.
 
 
 
 
 
 
You can vary the colors if you like. You can add some yellow to give it bright highlights or add some brown to make it more rustic.
 
 
                        Let that dry fully and then add your fondant leaves and arrange!

 

A beautiful bounty of fall pumpkins!
 
 
 
 
 
I love fall stuff!
 
 
 
 
 
Here is the fondant one. I even dusted just a tad of pearl dust on this one. Not too much or it will be ugly; trust me on this one.
 
 
 
 
 
Punkies, punkies everywhere!
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mr. and Mrs. Happy Patch
 
 
 
 
 
 
Mr. Grouchy Gourd
 
 
 
 
 
 
Cuteness factor overload!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Now go make some of these.
 
Now.
 
Hurry.
 
Then send me some.
 
Please.
 
 
 
 
Happy Fall!
 
Sharon
www.sugaredproductions.com

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

NOLA Photography http://bentzphotography.com/

Holy Cake!

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First Holy Communion season has just ended down here in the deep south. Maybe where you live too. So I had the opportunity to do a few religious cakes over the last few weeks I thought I would share with you. I like doing religious cakes. They make me feel good. All religousy and stuff.

I remember my own first communion very well. It was such a big milestone in our young lives. I think we were in the first grade. I was so excited to finally be able to receive the Host. The pretty white dress and veil was such a treat to have in our modest lifestyle. I remember we practiced as a class in the church several times for the ceremony. Where to sit, how to file up to the front, when to approach the kneeler, when to kneel, when to stand. On the very last practice day they even served us unconsecrated hosts, so we could practice accepting it on our tongues (there was no hand communion back then), and to get a feel for its taste and consistency. That day I was SO excited. I mean SUPER excited that we were getting a real host. Of course, as per the curse of those whose last names start with a Z (yes, my maiden name started with a Z too), I was the last one. Last pew, last seat, last in line. I was so very worried that they would run out of hosts before I got up there. As the line moved forward I was just praying… please don’t run out… please don’t run out. Of course they ran out. Story of my life. Another emotional scar I have had to overcome. To this day I practically run out of my pew, knocking people over, to get in line at communion time cuz I am afraid they are going to run out.

But I digress. Let me share with you some of the cakes I made this year:

This one was for a male, and the mom wanted it to be classic, elegant, simple, but no way feminine. No flowers, no colors. This one I iced in white buttercream. I used the diamond impression mat on the sides and put small candy pearls at the intersections.

 

 

I used a stencil to apply the pattern to the ivory stripes. I first rolled out the ivory fondant, stenciled the pattern on with buttercream, then cut the strips with my ribbon cutter. I then gently lifted them, applied water to the back with a brush, and attached them to the cake carefully with the aid of the end of a dowel rod so as not to smear the stencil. A 6 mm bead maker was used for the pearl border. (I show how to use these in Boxes and Bows.)

The same stencil was used with luster dust on the drape and knot. The cross was cut out from fondant with gumpaste, and allowed to dry firm. Later, 4mm pearls were attached to the edge, and the whole thing was airbrushed with super pearl dust after I applied the monogram initial.

                                                                  —————————

 

 

This cake was made for sweet little Elizabeth, a close family friend. Lizzy designed her entire cake from start to finish. This was the first custom cake she had ever had, and she was super excited. I did exactly as she instructed me to.

The cake was iced in white buttercream. 8 mm pearls were used for the borders. Satin ribbon was applied around the tiers, and the monogram was printed on an edible icing sheet and backed with fondant.

The cross was cut from fondant, piped with royal, and airbrushed with super pearl. All the flowers were made from gumpaste using this set.

My hubby delivered the cake, and said she was absolutely thrilled and overjoyed with her cake. She and her cousins and sisters were oogling over it, and they even ate the flowers!

Look at this sweet note she wrote me the next week. Just melts my heart:

 

                                                       —————————–

Here is another one for a young man. He also specified “very simple and nothing girly”. Those boys are very concerned that their cakes be masculine! LOL

Also iced in white buttercream. The lighting makes the cake look as if it is two tone, but it was not. The shaped plaque was molded white chocolate. The chalice and Host were made with a chocolate mold from fondant with tylose, dried and then painted.

 

 

I used this Patchwork impression tool on the stripes; then piped crosses in royal and painted them gold too.
The cookies were flooded with royal icing and sprayed with pearl spray. The letters were made ahead with this cutter, dried, painted, and then applied.
Beau came with his mom to pick up his cake and his face lit up. Yesssssss! Score Sharon!
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This one was for Beau’s first cousin Eva. Hers was actually a kindergarten graduation cake but she wanted a cross too. “A big pink cross with pink icing inside and out, lots of flowers, and sparkly.” All my kids that I have been doing cakes for since they were babes are now getting very specific with their cake requests! Gone are the days of me having free reign!
I saw this design on a google search and loved it. I do not know who the original artist was to give credit. If you know, please let me know.

Mine did not do the original justice, but Eva was happy. Here are some progress photos:

 

 

I baked a single layer sheet cake and cut large pieces to fit under my cross template, made from card stock.

 

 

I cut out the cross shape, then torted and filled the cake with lots of pink icing per Eva’s request!
Crumbcoat applied.
Then I put the template back on top and gave it another coat of icing on the sides to refine the shape.
(Note : I do not know if card stock is considered food safe; so do some research before you use it. Wax or parchment paper would be good alternatives to use.)
Final icing base coat done.
I then wrapped a strip of pink fondant around the sides of the cake using the same technique as on my Oz cake.
I used the template to cut the top piece and applied it.
I used my fondant crimpers to seal the seams.
I also used impression stamps to make scrolls on the top piece before I laid it on top of the cake.
I made another template for the white inner cross and cut that from fondant. I used scrap booking stamps to impress her name. (Again: PLEASE make sure all stamps you use are food safe before using them. Not all plastic is safe for food.)
 
I made a frill border using this cutter set. The pink bead border was piped buttercream. The gumpaste orchids were purchased and I dusted them for color. Plunger flowers were made with this. And some sparkle dust to finish it off. Voila!
Eva seemed very please when she picked it up. Yessssssssss! Another score!!
And here are Eva’s cookies to go with the cake. The grad hats were made with these tappit cutters. The cookies were flooded with royal and dry dusted with super pearl.
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So what do you think of my religious cakes this year? Leave me a comment and you will be entered into a drawing to win the script alphabet Tappit cutters used on Beau’s cookies and the cross topper above!
WOOOHOOOO. Another give-a-way! I love give-aways!
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My wonderful Wendy came over and helped me package Topsy orders and the first batch went to the post office today. I will keep working on that all week until they are all out. Please drop me a note and let me know what you guys think of it. I am really proud of this one and excited to get it to you!
Me tired now. Must go rest.
Happy Caking!
Sharon

 

 

Daring Bakers: Cheescake

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Finally!

After a couple of savory challenges, we are finally back to sweets for the Daring Bakers group! Now that’s what I’m talkin bout!

I know I have made no bake cheescakes before, but I do not recall if I have made a baked one from scratch. So if I can’t remember, it really means it has been to long to count anyway. This was a really easy, straightforward recipe that even the kitchen challenged like myself could do. And I am proud to say mine had no cracks on top! Zero. Nada. But I have no pictures to prove it, so you will have to take my word for it.
The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey’s Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.

I dressed mine up with tinted coconut grass and a fondant bunny looking for his carrots. It was one of the desserts for our family Easter dinner.

It was tasty, but not the best cheesecake I have ever had. It was very creamy and mild in flavor. I like my cheesecake to have bit more twang to it. My piece was also very soft from sitting out for for a few hours. I think it would have been better cold from the fridge.

 

Abbey’s Infamous Cheesecake:

Crust:

2 cups / 180 g graham cracker crumbs

1 stick / 4 oz butter, melted

2 tbsp. / 24 g sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

 

Cheesecake:

3 sticks of cream cheese, 8 oz each (total of 24 oz) room temperature

1 cup / 210 g sugar

3 large eggs

1 cup / 8 oz heavy cream

1 tbsp. lemon juice

1 tbsp. vanilla extract (or the innards of a vanilla bean)

1 tbsp liqueur, optional, but choose what will work well with your cheesecake

 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (Gas Mark 4 = 180C = Moderate heat). Begin to boil a large pot of water for the water bath.

2. Mix together the crust ingredients and press into your preferred pan. You can press the crust just into the bottom, or up the sides of the pan too – baker’s choice. Set crust aside.

3. Combine cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand-mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand-mixer) and cream together until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Make sure to scrape down the bowl in between each egg. Add heavy cream, vanilla, lemon juice, and alcohol and blend until smooth and creamy.

4. Pour batter into prepared crust and tap the pan on the counter a few times to bring all air bubbles to the surface. Place pan into a larger pan and pour boiling water into the larger pan until halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. If cheesecake pan is not airtight, cover bottom securely with foil before adding water.

5. Bake 45 to 55 minutes, until it is almost done – this can be hard to judge, but you’re looking for the cake to hold together, but still have a lot of jiggle to it in the center. You don’t want it to be completely firm at this stage. Close the oven door, turn the heat off, and let rest in the cooling oven for one hour. This lets the cake finish cooking and cool down gently enough so that it won’t crack on the top. After one hour, remove cheesecake from oven and lift carefully out of water bath. Let it finish cooling on the counter, and then cover and put in the fridge to chill. Once fully chilled, it is ready to serve.

 

Pan note: The creator of this recipe used to use a spring form pan, but no matter how well she wrapped the thing in tin foil, water would always seep in and make the crust soggy. Now she uses one of those 1-use foil “casserole” shaped pans from the grocery store. They’re 8 or 9 inches wide and really deep, and best of all, water-tight. When it comes time to serve, just cut the foil away.

 

Prep notes: While the actual making of this cheesecake is a minimal time commitment, it does need to bake for almost an hour, cool in the oven for an hour, and chill overnight before it is served. Please plan accordingly!

 

Some variations from the recipe creator:

** Lavender-scented cheesecake w/ blueberries – heat the cup of heavy cream in the microwave or a saucepan until hot but not boiling. Add 2 tbsp of lavender flowers and stir. Let lavender steep in the cream for about 10-15 minutes, then strain the flowers out. Add strained cream to cheesecake batter as normal. Top with fresh blueberries, or make a quick stove top blueberry sauce (splash of orange juice, blueberries, a little bit of sugar, and a dash of cinnamon – cook until berries burst, then cool)

 

** Cafe au lait cheesecake with caramel – take 1/4 cup of the heavy cream and heat it in the microwave for a short amount of time until very hot. Add 1-2 tbsp. instant espresso or instant coffee; stir to dissolve. Add this to the remainder of cream and use as normal. Top cheesecake with homemade caramel sauce (I usually find one on the food network website – just make sure it has heavy cream in it. You can use store-bought in a pinch, but the flavor is just not the same since its usually just sugar and corn syrup with no dairy).

 

** Tropical – add about a half cup of chopped macadamias to the crust, then top the cake with a mango-raspberry-mandarin orange puree.

 

** Mexican Turtle – add a bar of melted dark chocolate (between 3 and 5 oz., to taste) to the batter, along with a teaspoon of cinnamon and a dash of cayenne pepper (about 1/8 tsp.). Top it with pecan halves and a homemade caramel sauce.

 

** Honey-cinnamon with port-pomegranate poached pears – replace 1/2 cup of the sugar with 1/2 cup of honey, add about a teaspoon or more (to taste) of cinnamon. Take 2 pears (any variety you like or whatever is in season), peeled and cored, and poach them in a boiling poaching liquid of port wine, pomegranate juice/seeds, a couple of “coins” of fresh ginger, a cinnamon stick, and about a 1/4 cup of sugar. Poach them until tender, then let cool. Strain the poaching liquid and simmer until reduced to a syrupy-glaze consistency, then cool. Thinly slice the cooled pears and fan them out atop the cooled cheesecake. Pour the cooled poaching syrup over the pears, then sprinkle the top with chopped walnuts and fresh pomegranate seeds.

 

Some variations from Jenny (from JennyBakes):

**Key lime – add zest from one lime to sugar before mixing with cream cheese. Substitute lemon juice, alcohol, and vanilla with key lime juice.

 

**Cheesecakelets – put in muffin tins, ramekins, or custard cups. Try baking 20-35 minutes, or until still a little jiggly, and cool as before.

 

 

 

Overall it was a very good and easy recipe and I would like to try some of the other variations in the future. If you make it, let me know how you like it. And check out the Daring Bakers’ blog roll to see what creations other members have come up with.

Happy baking!

Sharon
http://www.sugaredproductions.com/

 

 

 

Chocolate Bunny Boxes

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It just would not be Easter without chocolate bunnies, right? I just had to share with you these adorable chocolate boxes I made. I got the mold here.

They are so cute filled up with candies. And you can eat the whole box! Gotta love that.

 

 

Paint the accent areas inside the mold with colored chocolate and a paint brush. It’s easier to do if the chocolate is cooled off a bit and a bit stiffer. Don’t be too worried about staying exactly in the lines. If you paint out of the lines, just let it air dry, and then use a toothpick to scrape off the excess where you don’t want it to be. Use a soft brush to brush out all the “crumbs”. Why not pop it in the fridge instead of waiting for it to air dry? Because that will cause the chocolate to release from the mold, and when you try to clean it up with the tooth pick, the whole piece of colored chocolate will pop right out. And then you will cry, and have to start all over.

This is what the outside of the mold looks like after the inside has been painted.

 

 

 

Then fill both cavities with melted chocolate in the color of your choice. Make sure the chocolate is cool to the touch. If it is too warm, it will melt your colored accents and they will run and smear. And then you will cry, and have to start all over again.

Edited to clarify: The above mold is the 2 pieces of the box. One side is the top, and the other side is the bottom part of the box with the cavity for the candies already in there. When you unmold it, the 2 pieces come out as you see in the finished product. I apologize for not getting a photo of the bottom part of the mold empty.

 

 

I put it in my freezer for 12-14 minutes, and then the 2 pieces come right out of the mold with a gentle tap. Let them come to room temp in cool room before you touch them. If not, you will get finger marks on the condensation you will not be able to repair. Then you will cry, and have to start all over again.
Isn’t he cute???
All packaged up and ready to be delivered by the real Easter Bunny.
Wishing all of you a blessed and peaceful Easter with your family and friends,
Sharon
www.sugaredproductions.com

Valentine Flourless Chocolate Cake

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 I had never made a flourless chocolate cake before so this was new to me. It was very easy to do as well. Since I am such a loser wife, and did not get dear hubby a real gift, this was his Valentine’s day treat. And being a double loser, he did not even get it until the day after Valentines. Poor shmuck.

 
 

 
It is extremely dense and rich, soft on the inside, and basically tastes like ganache. I served mine on a pool of raspberry coulis. OK, we all know I did not make coulis from scratch. I used sleeved raspberry pastry filling and blended it with water and some granulated sugar in my food processor. Worked and tasted great!

 

 

 

Hubby, who is a very picky dessert eater, liked this one very much.

 

 

I was way too busy to make ice cream, so I chose the option to use whipped cream (aka Cool Whip). Hey, I am a very busy lady!

 

Chocolate Valentino
 Preparation Time: 20 minutes

 

16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter
5 large eggs separated

 

1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often

 

2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.

 

3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.

 

4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).

 

5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.

 

6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.

 

7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter.

 

8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C

 

9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C. Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.

 

10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.

 

It was easy and delish and I recommend you give it a try!

 

Until next time,
Sharon

 

 

Mardi Gras King Cake

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HAPPY MARDI GRAS EVERYONE!

 

Since it is Mardi Gras season right now down here in the Big Easy, I thought you might enjoy learning about another one of our unique culinary creations. I have recruited my big sister Barbara to do a guest blog entry on making a king cake. Barbara is the inventor of the original King Rock (more on that later). In addition to that, she is just the best big sister ever. She looks after me. She is an accountant by profession, so she helps with my business finances, taxes, and all that other icky stuff I have no clue about. She also comes on some of my cake trips with me to help me out with my demos and my vendor table. She is one of the most energetic, social, and fun to be with people I know. She is a very cool chick and I love her tons. So now I present to you… Barbara…..

 

—————————————-

 

 

Hi, I’m Barbara, Sharon’s sister, and she’s asked me to do a guest blog. This is me getting ready for Mardi Gras, which this year falls on February 24.

 

(Note from Sharon: I have this same outfit and yes we do wear this when we go parading.)

Speaking of Mardi Gras, that brings me to the topic of the day. I am not a cake decorator. I see some of the magnificent pieces of art that you all do and I am in complete awe. But, I am here today to talk about the king of all cakes – the King Cake.

If you are not from the New Orleans are, you might be asking yourself “what is a King Cake?” A king cake is a brioche-style cake similar to a coffee cake that is served throughout the carnival season in New Orleans. The carnival season begins on the 12th Day of Christmas, the Epiphany (January 6), which is the day the three kings visited the Baby Jesus. It is believed that it took the three kings 12 days to find their way to the stable. The carnival season ends on Mardi Gras Day, which is the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.

The king cake is circular, representing the circular path the three kings had to take to ward off King Herod, who was seeking them so that he could kill the Christ Child. The king cake is typically decorated with colored icing and/or sugar. The three colors are purple, green and gold, the colors of Mardi Gras, which represent justice, faith and power. I’ve also heard that the three colors represent the three gifts presented by the Magi (gold, frankincense, and myrrh.) Within each cake is hidden a small plastic doll, which represents the Baby Jesus. (In olden times, it used to be a porcelain doll, or a bean or pea.)

 

King Cake parties where all the rage when I was growing up. Whoever was lucky enough to get the doll in their piece of cake would be named king (or queen) of that party and had to throw the next party. Today, this tradition is very prevalent in offices throughout the city where the person who gets the doll must bring the next cake. King cake sales are so prosperous that many bakeries in New Orleans are more profitable during the carnival season than they are for the entire rest of the year.

 

The making of a king cake should not be taken lightly. Since this is a yeast sweet bread, it has to be kneaded and left to rise twice, and is a day-long commitment. There are many bakeries that make excellent king cakes, so why in the world would anyone want to make their own? Just for the fun of it!!

My introduction into making home-made king cakes came many years ago. I found a recipe and tried it out on my family. Geez almighty, it was horrible. It came out heavy and hard as a rock, so much so that they called it the King Rock. My other sister, Janice, told her office mates about it and they accused her of exaggerating – that it couldn’t possibly have been that bad. So, they asked me to make a cake for their office party. Much to my dismay, it was just as horrible, but everyone was so polite and complimentary so as not to hurt my feelings, but I knew it was a bomb. I hope to think that I have gotten a little better at it over the years, but it is still tricky. I continue to try out new recipes and techniques, as I continue my search for perfection.

The recipe below is a really good one. It produces a light, but moist cinnamon cake. A few pointers for success: You have to get the yeast at just the right temperature (105 to 115 degrees) and let it foam for at least 10 minutes. You have to be careful not to add too much flour and not to over knead it. The dough should be slightly sticky, but elastic and able to hold its own shape, but never firm.

 

You have to be careful not to over bake it or it will be dry. I now use an instant-read thermometer, which should register 195 to 200 degrees for doneness.

 

The recipe is below. Basically, this is what you do. It’s much like making a bread dough. Let it rise till double in bulk and then roll out into a rectangle.

 

Here’s what it looks like rolled out with the cinnamon sugar sprinkled on:

 

 

Then roll up each piece into a long string.

 

 

Pinch the edges together so that the filling doesn’t ooze out. Flatten down the pinched edge afterwards so that it lays flat.

 

Twist the two strings together.

 

 

Form into a circle on a baking pan.

 

Let rise until double in bulk.

This is what it looks like right out of the oven.

 

 

Let cool and then decorate with a glaze and colored sprinkles.

 

 

See the baby’s head?

 

 

 
 

And that’s me with my cake.

 

 

You can do these in a variety of ways. You can divide the rectangle of dough into thirds and braid it like this. I rolled these strings in the cinnamon sugar to get it on the outside, rather than on the inside.

 

This is what it looked like after it was left to rise, baked and decorated. This one raised a lot and was very light and airy.

 

 

This one was filled with cinnamon sugar, raisins, and pecans. If you put a lot of “stuff” in your cake, it won’t rise as much.

 

You can also use other fillings, such as cream cheese filling, apple pie filling, lemon pie filling, cherry pie filling, etc. But I don’t like those. They turn out too sweet for my taste and the filling overpowers the taste of the cake. I’m a purist and like just a little cinnamon sugar.

 

So, that’s it. I hope that you all give it a try and bring a bit of New Orleans to wherever you might live. Also, if you ever have the chance to visit New Orleans during Mardi Gras, the city would love to have you. Let me just say that Mardi Gras is not only what you see in the media. Yes, there are some unmentionable things that go on in the French Quarter, but that is a very small piece of what our carnival season is about. Mardi Gras outside of the Quarter is very family oriented. The parade routes are filled with kids and families having fun. When we were little kids, my family did not miss a parade. We loved every minute of it. We would lift Sharon, the youngest, smallest and spryest of all of us, over barricades to get that all-elusive string of beads, trinket or doubloon out of our reach. Police were all over the place supposedly monitoring such infractions, but because she was so cute, the police would just look at her and us, and just shake their heads. We trained her young; you should see how she still scoops up the parade throws.

 

Happy Mardi Gras!

 

KING CAKE RECIPE:
(This recipe makes two medium size cakes.)

¼ cup warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
1 tablespoon (1 package) dry yeast
1/3 cup sugar
5 ¾ to 6 ¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons salt
½ cup warm milk (105 to 115 degrees)
1 cup sour cream
3 large eggs
finely grated zest of 1 lemon or orange
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into small pieces

Cinnamon Sugar:
1 cup sugar
4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

 

Frosting:

4 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons butter, melted
7 tablespoons hot water, more as needed
1/4 teaspoon almond flavoring

 

1) Pour warm water into small bowl. Sprinkle yeast and a pinch of sugar over the surface. Stir to dissolve and let stand at room temperature until foamy; about 10 minutes.

 

2) Place 1 ½ cups of the flour, the remaining sugar, and the salt in mixer bowl. Make a well and add the milk, sour cream, eggs, and zest in the center. Beat until smooth on medium-low speed, about 1 minute.

 

3) Add the yeast mixture and beat for 1 minute more.

 

4) Stop the machine and add 1 cup more flour. Beat for 1 minute.

 

5) Add the butter pieces and beat on low speed until incorporated.

 

6) Add the remaining four, ½ cup at a time, until a soft, smooth dough that just clears the sides of the bowl is formed. Switch to the dough hook when the dough thickens, about two-thirds through adding the flour.

 

7) When all flour is added, knead with dough hook for about 5 minutes on medium speed. (If you don’t have a dough hook for your mixer, you’ll need to turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5-10 minutes.)

 

8) Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and just able to hold its own shape, under 1 minute if you used the dough hook (6 to 10 kneads to smooth it out), dusting with flour only 1 tablespoon at a time, just enough to prevent sticking to your hands and the work surface. This dough will be very smooth, with a definite soft elastic quality, a little sticky, but never stiff, and will hold its shape.

 

9) Place the dough ball in a greased deep container, turn once to grease the top, and cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until double in bulk, 2 ½ to 3 hours. Do not allow the dough to rise over double.

 

10) Punch dough down with fist. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Let rest 10 minutes.

 

11) Divide the dough in half with a bench scraper, pizza cutter or knife, never tearing the dough.

 

12) Divide each half into thirds. Roll out to a rectangle approx. 20 x 12 inches.

 

13) Divide in half with pizza cutter. Brush with melted butter keeping edges dry. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

 

14) Roll up and pinch ends together so filling does not ooze out. Flatten pinched edge.

 

15) Twist two long rolled pieces together. Form into a circle and fold edges under.

 

16) You can insert baby trinket into cake at this point or wait until after it is baked. (I like to wait after it is baked if it is plastic.) Insert from underneath. (If you don’t have a baby trinket, use a whole pecan, walnut or other object; just be careful it is big enough that it cannot be swallowed whole.)

 

17) Cover with greased plastic wrap or light cloth towels and let rise in a warm place until double in size, about 1 to 1 ½ hours.

 

18) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake 20-25 minutes. An instant-read thermometer will read 195 to 200 degrees.

 

19) Let cakes completely cool.

 

20) To prepare frosting, mix melted butter, powdered sugar and flavoring; add hot water 1 Tablespoon at a time until glaze reaches desired spreading consistency. You don’t want this too thin because it will run right off the cake or too thick because it won’t drip down the side of the cake.

 

21) Pour frosting over cake; sprinkle with purple, green and gold colored sprinkles or colored sugar.

 

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Sharon again here. WOW! Was that great or what? Thanks Sis for showing me up on my own blog. Dang overachiever.  (Just kidding.) But seriously, I have been trying to convince Barb for months now to start her own food blog. She is a good cook, and photography has been a hobby of hers for a long time. What do you guys think? If you think she needs to start her own blog, leave a note in the comment section below ……
 

 

Then you can pretend you are down here with us having a great time while you sip your Mardi Gras martinis.

 

Mardi Gras Martini:

 

This festive concoction will add color to your celebration and your cheeks. To make purple sugar, add a few drops of red and blue food coloring to granulated sugar and mix. Rim glasses with a cut lemon and dredge in colored sugar, add a lemon twist and enjoy this purple, green and gold treat.

 

 2 ounces vodka
1 ounce triple sec
1 drop creme de menthe dark
Lemon twist, optional

 

In a martini shaker, combine vodka, triple sec and creme de menthe with ice and shake until well chilled. Strain into a martini glass, preferably one rimmed with purple sugar. Garnish with a lemon twist.(*from acj.com)

 

Happy Mardi Gras Everyone!

Sharon
PS We’ve got a full video tutorial on making the King Cake in our online school:
Visit our online school

 

Santa Dropped His Drawers

by 10 Comments

Ouch. That hadda hurt.
Remember my guy I made in the Bronwen Weber class? Well I loved him so much I did not have the heart to disassemble him. Since November he has gotten more saggy and a little leaky. But this is what I found this morning when I got up. Before I had my coffee too.
Rest in peace dude. I will miss you.

Christmas Goody Baskets

by 15 Comments

They are finally done! Hooray!
I finally got the baskets all done. Whew! I did 18 of these babies in total, mostly for hubby’s employees and colleagues, and a few for friends and family.
Here is all the loot lined up ready for the assembly line. I was so pressed for time that I did not have time to set up the lights for really good photos. I apologize for the quality of these shots.

Heather and I searched and searched for hours for a good basket supply source and she found them here: Baskets. I absolutely love this place. They have the largest selection of baskets and colors I have ever seen, great customer service, reasonably priced and the baskets were great quality. This is now my go to place for baskets.
In addition to the things I already showed you, I also made some candy cane cookies covered in textured red fondant, some large square transfer cookies, dipped pretzel rods, and small squares with a candy cane sugar lay on top.
I also added some purchased items: Hershey’s candy cane kisses, and choc covered peppermint sticks ( hard to see in pics). I think the baskets would have looked better had I not bagged everything, but live and learn.

I always use shrink wrap on my bags to get a professional gourmet basket look. Coordinating bow and it is done!

 

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Here are some pics of the baskets from last year, a snow theme:

 

 

 

Sugar cookies, snowman cookies, marshmallow sticks, rock candy sticks, decorated sugar cubes, snowflake Oreo molds, chocolate coffee spoons, and hard candy snowflake suckers.
The little mint candies are made with a personalized candy mold that says The Zambitos. You can get them here.
You can get the Oreo molds here.
Sugar cookies were fondant covered and over-piped with royal icing.
Shrink wrapped and ready to gift!
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So now I have to do a cookie order, and get my house ready to host Xmas dinner. No rest for the weary, and boy am I weary! Please send me pics of the goodies you guys made this year.
I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year!
Hugs and love, Sharon

 

Twas the Week Before Christmas

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When, what to my wondering eye should appear
But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer.
OK, so the reindeer went off to graze …..

Here is the big project I have been working on for weeks. I made this for my sister’s office party. She challenges me to raise the bar every year. I try to resist, but she gets me every time.
When she saw the Santa cake I made in Bronwen’s class, she asked for that for the party. Knowing that was not enough servings for 50 people, I had to think of a coordinating way to add servings.
Late at night in bed it came to me. I knew it would be very labor intensive and stressful, but I knew I just had to try. I would have never been able to live with myself if I did not.

I thought and thought and thought some more about how to go about doing this. I used dried fondant panels for the sleigh and cake made up the seat.
The loot bag was made from piled up cake scraps. Wendy made the packages for me from styro, and I threw in a few of my goodie basket candy cane cookies too.

I searched the Internet for sleigh images and clip art, and decided to use this as my template and model: Sleigh

 

 

 

I made my own template on card stock using this image as a guide. I cut 2 of each piece. I wanted to have extras in case of breakage. I cut them out about 10 days before I assembled the sleigh. I flipped them over every few days to enhance them drying.

 

 

After about one week, I put the scroll work on using layers of clay gun strings. (My arms and chest are still sore.) Then I painted it with gold highlighter mixed with vodka. ( Yeah, that took a while too, LOL)

 

 

My wonderful Wendy came over to help me assemble the sleigh. I was very nervous about breakage. I had invested way too much time and effort by this point to lose it all. And it certainly took 4 hands and 2 brains to get it together. We carved the cake and placed it on the bottom piece, then attached the back piece. (Melted chocolate was our glue for everything.)

 

 

Here it is just put together. I decided to double the side panels for strength, which was a very good idea. They may not have made it had I left them single. You can see the hole in the board in front of the sleigh where Santa’s stand will go down into. ( Thanks to Wendy’s dad for cutting the board for me.)
Wendy came with me to deliver it and assemble it. When we got there, we dropped Santa down into the hole, applied the buttercream snow and added the doo dads.

Here is my template. You can adjust the size of this, keeping the ratio proportion the same, to make any size you want. You could make cute little gumpaste or gingerbread sleighs too.

Side panels.
Back panel
Bottom panel (excuse the typo)
Front panel
Everyone at the party was just amazed and awed. It was a lot of work, and worrisome, but I am glad I rose to the challenge. I am also very glad it is over! LOL

Next on tap is assembling the goodie baskets I have been working on. I will post those pics over the weekend. Have to get my house clean for company tomorrow night. I could use a cocktail!

Happy Holiday Caking,
Sharon

 

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