Fondant Madness

Birthdays...is there really anything more fun than celebrating birthdays with friends and family? In my short year of making cakes on a professional level I have realized that, while there is fun in making the cake, the reaction and joy that the cake brings is the real fun. It makes me feel like I have added a little bit of magic and surprise to someones day. I decided that my gift to my friend Shay for her birthday would be a cake made to look like a gift. I bought all the ingredients for a double layer Devils Food cake with chocolate and honey butter cream frosting. I told myself that I had 5 hours to finish the cake from start to finish...and at 8:00pm I was off! I whipped up those cakes and got them into the oven as quickly as I could, next came mixing up the buttercream frosting, and finally I got to start the decorations. First came the pink fondant that I rolled out and cut strips to make the ribbon that would act as the bow on top of the gift. After that I laid them over rolled up computer paper sheets to get the shape. I then dove into my moms 5 jars of cookie cutters to find just the right flowers for the 'wrapping paper'. Thankfully I found what I was looking for after only 2 jars. With powdered sugar in my hair and chocolate dribbles on my feet from making the ganache in the buttercream, I pulled the cakes out of the oven to let cool. I then assembled the cake and decorated it as quickly as I could, because the fondant was drying very quickly. I was so proud of the end result I emailed a picture of it to just about everyone. I could not wait for the reveal of the cake the next day...I felt like an anxious kid on Christmas Eve night waiting for Santa. The cake was a success and most importantly I made it in 4 hours...hopefully a good sign that this hobby could actually become a side career. At midnight I headed off to bed with a very calming sense of accomplishment. Shay loved the cake which made the whole process special. It wasn't just a cake, it was a symbol of celebration for a very special friend.

boy meets girl

Weddings, weddings, weddings...faced with the task of making desserts for a bridal shower, that are more impressive than Sprinkles cupcakes. Not always an easy task as I am a loyal and devoted fan of this designer cupcake, but I got my creative juices flowing. Mrs. Dixon and I decided on small bunt cakes...chic and very trendy. As I got to thinking about the bunt cakes I felt that they needed just a little something special and this is what I came up with...



I made little wedding dresses out of white rolling fondant, painted it with edible pearl powder, and finished them off with little edible pearls. I made them a day before and let them dry overnight. Thanks again to the Dixon family for being my biggest fans!

Dr. Pepper dreaming...

Having had a few months out of the foodie blog-o-sphere, I am ready to come back with vengeance. The holiday season is almost upon us and with the onset of cooler weather finally setting in, I can almost smell the pumpkin pie and peppermint bark in the air. However, lets not get ahead of ourselves…after all Halloween candy and trickery-treats deserve their moment under the cool harvest moon as well.

The Celtic culture found hope in Groundhog Day; the appearance of that one groundhog gives hope to the end of harsh winters and the onset of sweet spring. In a foodie’s world, the spotting of the first pumpkin is like seeing that groundhog. It means the end of hot sticky days of summer and melting fondant are over, thus the real creativity begins.

I have recently been inspired by the idea of homecoming, particularly homecoming in the deep south. Homecoming isn’t just about catching up with old friends; it’s the mums, the parade, the school spirit, the perfect answer to the question “what have you been up to?” (the most haunting question for any recent graduate), and of course the crème de la crème: the football game. Now at my almamater there is an almost sickly obsession with Dr. Pepper; to the point where every Wednesday afternoon there were free Dr. Pepper floats in the student union building. A tradition that we Bears are extremely proud to call our own. I recently have been re-introduced to the Dr. Pepper cake…yes, yes; if we can deep fry Dr. Pepper you better believe someone put it in a cake. Before you knock this slightly odd confection, I will say as a lover of sweets and a pastry chef that the cake is light and chocolaty with hints of cinnamon. The chocolate/Dr. Pepper butter cream frosting is, well, positively mouthwatering. Here is my favorite recipe…



Cake…
1 cup butter
1 cup Dr. Pepper (this is no time to use diet)
4 tbsp. cocoa powder
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups sugar
½ cup buttermilk
1 tsp. baking soda
2 cup flour
1 ½ tsp. cinnamon

-heat the butter, Dr. Pepper, and cocoa powder together until the butter melts and you have a lusciously chocolaty mixture
-cream together eggs, sugar, buttermilk, baking soda, and chocolate mixture
-finally add the cinnamon, vanilla, and flour
-makes two round cakes (9x12), bake at 350 degrees F, and bake fro about 25 minutes

Dr. Pepper Frosting…
½ cup butter
½ cup Dr. Pepper
6 tbsp cocoa powder
Confectioner’s sugar (just add enough to get the constancy you want ~2 cups)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)

-heat the butter, cocoa powder, Dr. Pepper, and blend well
-stir in the other ingredients
*you could also blend in a block of cream cheese to make it into a cream cheese frosting
-decorate with nuts on top or on the sides

To my fellow foodie’s I will tell you to always live life filled with sweet notes rich in tradition and history.

Where do you like to shop and eat? London calling...

Disclaimer: The beauty of London is that on almost any street you walk down there will inevitably be a boutique or restaurant you didn’t realize you couldn’t live without. These are just a few of my personal suggestions of places I enjoy.


Le Entrocote-on Maryelbone Lane
(tell the taxi driver the north end; the closest tube stop is Bond Street)
Ok, so, there are 3 of these restaurants in the world (London, Barcelona, and Paris) and they only serve one thing: steak, fries, covered in a secret sauce that will change your life it is so good! The story goes that these two sisters had a big argument about the restaurant and how to run it, so they split up. Their father made up this secret steak sauce and told it to his daughters on his deathbed...the two sisters are the only ones who know the recipe. In a nut-shell that is the story behind the restaurant, according to a friend of mine. There is usually a line and it is a little bit pricier, but if you want a night out with great food go there...trust me its worth it. For 4 of us it was about 35 each Euro for dinner including 1 bottle of red wine and you get two helpings of steak and fries. This is one of my favorites by far in London.

*La Fromagerie-www.lafromagerie.co.uk
A very cute cheese and bread shop, and it is worth a stop in. Great place for a snack if you are anywhere near Oxford Street and they also have tastings parties. According to our cheese connoisseur at Le Cordon Bleu it is one of the best cheese shops in Europe. Hard as it is to believe this guy actually has a degree in food history specializing in cheese, so he knows his cheese.

*Books for Cooks
www.booksforcooks.com
(4 Blenheim Crescent, Notting Hill London W11 1NN)
Just off Portobello Road, this bookshop has hundreds of cookbooks. In the back they have a cafe that only serves one thing everyday: a home-made soup, fresh baked bread, and about 5 different cakes all of which comes from the cookbooks sold in the store. They stop serving lunch at 2pm, but if you are going to Portobello Road it is a great lunch or great coffee break. Books for Cooks is also very affordable.

Royal China Club
www.royal.chinagroup.co.uk
(40-42 Baker St. London W1U 7AJ)
If you are looking for VERY authentic Chinese food this is the place to go. You can eat a lot for a very good price. I have always had great service and the food is fresh. It is also a great place to try something a little different. The pork buns are my favorite.

Tomoe
62 Marylebone Ln. London W1U 2PB
www.tome-london.co.uk
If you go here you absolutely must get the "black cod dish" it will blow your mind!

The Kensington Creperie
2 Exhibition Road South Kensington London SW7 2HF
www.kensingtoncreperie.com
In the highly coveted area of South Kensington this local cafe fills up fast, but the wait is usually not too long (15 min tops). My friends and I would go there every Sunday. This is a wonderful brunch place and is only about a 1-2 min walk from the Victoria and Albert Monument, Hyde Park, and all of the major museums. I would recommend getting one sweet crepe and one savory crepe...they are big and great to share!

Caldesi (tuscan restaurant and cookery school)
15-17 Marylebone Lane London W1U 2NE)
www.caldesi.com
Café Caldesi has a casual dining room downstairs and a fancy dining room upstairs. The food is very fresh and authentic. It is a very fun place to take an Italian cooking class and meet people from all over the world. This also happens to be just behind Le Cordon Bleu!

The Fat Duck
If you can get a reservation here then you should definitely go, but when I was in London they had a 6 month waiting list...it is delicious.

The St. James Restaurant at Fortnum and Mason
www.fortnumandmason.com
A great place for high tea...it is a bit pricy. If you go around a mealtime it is more than enough food to be a meal and then some. Also, they do not tell you this, but if you want more of anything just ask because re-fills of tea and food is free. Great atmosphere!

The Golden Hind
73 Marylebone Lane, London W1U 2PN, United Kingdom
The best fish, chips, and mushy peas in London...it is an absolute must if you go to London. The restaurant has been there forever and is practically and institution. Keep and eye out because many famous Londoners tend to eat there. They also have a great Greek salad.

La Duree
http://www.laduree.fr/public_en/maisons/londres_accueil.htm
French Macaroons...if I could eat these every day I would. These are my personal favorite.

The Orangerie
http://www.hrp.org.uk/kensingtonpalace/cafesandrestaurants.aspx
In Hyde Park this place is wonderful for breakfast or High Tea...it is located just behind Kensington Palace. They converted the Kensington Palace green house into a cafe with little orange trees on every table. It’s really cute and very good...it is also close to the Princess Diana memorial. I would recommend coming here for breakfast or high tea.

Beach Blanket Babylon
http://www.beachblanket.co.uk/home.html
Ok don't let the name scare you...this is one of the coolest restaurants in the city as far as atmosphere goes. It is located in Notting Hill and was the official restaurant for London Fashion Week. I would HIGHLY recommend this place, even if it is just for dessert or cocktails. As a side note, make sure to find your own taxi from the restaurant. When I was there, there happen to be some men trying to get us to use their ‘taxi’ service. Something to be careful of anywhere in the city, make sure to only take the iconic black taxis.

Brick Lane Market
I personally have not been here yet, but all of my friends are obsessed with it. Brick Lane apparently has the best Indian curries in the city...all of the restaurant owners will try to get you to come into their establishment, so walk around a little bit to find the best price on dinner.

The Muffin Man
12 Wright’s Lane London W8 6TA, UK
In South Kensington just off Kensington High Street, I would go get a Banana Toffee muffin. It’s also a great place to grab some tea or coffee in the afternoon

Hummingbird Cupcakes
http://hummingbirdbakery.com
The main one is on Portobello road...if you go on a Saturday try the chocolate beetroot cupcake. There is always a long line on Saturday, but it is worth the wait!

HIX
http://www.hixsoho.co.uk
Located in Soho it is the hottest bar and restaurant in the city, it is the place to see and be seen (or it was in March of 2010). I have only had a drink there, but the food is suppose to be great.

Comptoir
http://www.lecomptoir.co.uk/
Great Lebanese food! The atmosphere is fun and vibrant. On my way home from school I would get a Pomegranate Lemonade every night. They also have really neat straw beach bags lining the walls. I know that doesn’t seem unique, but you absolutely must see it in person.

The Lanesborough Hotel
http://www.lanesborough.com/?PS=EAME_aa_Starwood_NWE-1435_Google%20US_lanesborough.com_04/23/10#culinary_experience/afternoon_tea
To be honest this is one of the most fabulous places I have ever been in my life. They have great high tea, a gorgeous garden room for breakfast, a traditional English bar, and a great new restaurant for afternoon and evening. It is directly behind Buckingham Palace and would be a great place to grab breakfast before going to see the changing of the guards.

Fun Shops:
Portobello Road:
Things to look out for: micro-mosaic broaches- they are absolutely beautiful and made in Italy in the 1920's; cashmere wraps and scarfs-on Portobello Road you actually get an amazing deal with very high quality

Fortnum and Mason-Things to look out for: picnic baskets, they happen to be famous for their iconic picnic baskets

Walking down St. Christopher's St.: this little oasis is just off of Oxford Street near Bond Street tube station...here are my directions just as you pass H&M you will see a small opening just wide enough for 1 or 2 people to get through, that is the entrance to a very cute little street with great cafes and shops...there is also a clock on Oxford street just in front of the entrance that says "St. Christopher's" on it; from St. Christopher's St. I would walk down Thayer Street, they have great little boutiques and it is the road that connects Oxford Street to Maryelbone High Street

Harrods-its just neat to go in and look at everything
Lulu Guinnes: a famous London based designer, has great clutches and handbags

Jo Malone: great place to get a facial or massage

The Branch: jewelry carved from wood

Shout Out to my Class!

This week my original class in London had their superior cuisine event. Everything looked beautiful and I am so proud of them! Congrats you guys! Lots of love from Texas!

All I can think is to keep adding powdered sugar!

I am very blessed to have my family and friends constantly supporting me in this venture I have chosen to take on in my post-grad years. My dear friend Shay has a work event that she is putting on and being a great believer in me, she asked me to make the dessert. I decided that catering is how I am going to use my culinary skill for now and that I am going to limit that scope to only friends and family until I get more experience and can decide on a name. Trying to seem like a trained professional I sent her an email with different options. I decided to have her over for a tasting of two cakes: 1. orange chocolate cake, which is completely decadent and rich 2. peach and pecan cake with homemade dulce de leche buttercream frosting, need I say more...it is delicious. Shay, and just about everyone else who came over that week, fell in love with the peach and pecan cake...I mean who wouldn't right? So off I went to make 40 cupcakes for the event that was occurring in 24 hours. I think it is important to make things fresh...dry cake is disgusting! That night I stayed up watching old I Love Lucy reruns and made 50 cupcakes. I decided that I could make the frosting in the morning and let the cupcakes cool overnight. I woke up early the next morning to start making the dulce de leche for the buttercream, which isn't hard at all it just has to cook on the stove for about an hour and then fully cool before you can use it. By noon the dulce de leche had cooled and the butter was just soft enough to use. I got out my Kitchen Aid mixer and went to town with butter, dulce de leche, powered sugar, and some vanilla, and praying the entire time that the buttercream wouldn't split causing me to start all over. T-2 hours before delivery and the frosting is not holding, thus not enabling me to pipe the frosting onto the top of the cupcakes. I yell for my mom and all we can think is to add as much powdered sugar as possible to the frosting without harming the taste. Cup after cup of powered sugar and it is still not holding...T-1 hour and 30min! I calm myself down and think about my options...the refrigerator is my last chance to get it to hold! I throw the frosting into the refrigerator for 30min. It is holding much better now, but still not quite the firmness I needed to feel completely confident that the frosting would not melt. T-1 hour at this point and I just needed to go for it. I piped 6 cupcakes at a time and kept the frosting in the refrigerator in between groupings. The frosting is holding! The cupcakes look beautiful and they are safely in the freezer to let them firm up. I kept one cupcake out to make sure it would hold at room temperature and sure enough it did. I whisked over to Shay's parents house to drop off the cupcakes...what a rush of accomplishment! I felt like I was on Food Network Cupcake War's! With frosting in my hair, I had successfully finished my first event. Thank you Shay for putting your faith in me!

Summer Dinner

Mom called and she does not have time to make dinner...which means that is up to me! Being home for the summer has made cooking a lovely luxury for me. I figure that now, when I have the opportunity to cook,

I should pull out all the stops. I am a trained chef after all. On the menu tonight is a salad of Heirloom tomatoes and red onion with salt, pepper, and olive oil. The infamous rack of lamb dish during which I so brutally burned my hand while cooking at school in London and red wine risotto with peas. I may have gone a little crazy at Whole Foods, but the end result was worth it. Everything looked beautiful and we ended up eating off of that meal for the next few days.