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Cake Decorating

I don't claim to be the best cake decorator out there but I don't think I am the worst. I think I do pretty descently when it comes to decorating a cake. I've always loved decorating cakes for the artistic aspect of it. It all started in high school for me in Home Ec. class. My first cake was a garfield cake, and let me tell you it was the envy of all the other home ec. girl's cakes.


I recently decorated a cake for my son's first birthday. A rubber ducky! If anything, he seemed to like the love, sweat, and tears that I stirred into it.





I also made cupcakes and little duck shaped chocolates:

Snow Covered Mocha Biscotti

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1/2 c. cocoa powder
1 tbsp. instant coffee crystals
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2/3 c. sugar
3 tbsp. butter [room temperature]
2 eggs
Powdered sugar-for dusting [optional]

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350*F.

Combine sugar, butter, and eggs until creamy. Add dry ingredients individually until incorporated.

Shape dough into a log and place on a greased cookie sheet. Bake 25 mins.

Remove from oven, cool 5 mins. Slice into logs as thick or as thin as you would like. Place cut slices back on baking sheet and bake an additional 20 mins.

Reminds you of Mama, Pot Roast

Ingredients:

2 cans of chicken broth
1/2 cup organic peeled baby carrots
1 onion
1 celery stalk [chopped]
2 lb. pot roast

Directions:

In a crock pot combine all ingredients, let slow cook on medium to high heat all day [about 8 hrs].

Side notes:

This recipe couldn't be any easier. This is a great thing to do when you have alot of house work that needs to be done. When you wake up in the morning, through all the stuff in the crock pot and by the end of the day, you have a delicious meal that you didn't have to slave over. This pot roast goes great with mashed potatoes, butter beans, and cornbread to get the whole southern feel.

French-tastic Toast

This recipe came from a suggestion from my friend, Drea. Thanks, Drea they turned out wonderfully.

Ingredients:

2 peices of white sandwich bread
1/4 cup of eggnog [see recipe below-next post]
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 egg
Powdered Sugar [optional]

Directions:

In a small bowl, whisk together egg, cinnamon, and eggnog until blended together. Heat a frying pan on medium heat, sprayed with cooking spray. Soak each side of a slice of bread in egg mixture until coated. Place coated bread in frying pan until browned, flip and brown the other side. When bread is browned on both sides, place on a greased cookie sheet. Pop in the oven at 350*F and bake for 5-10 mins or until when you press the center with your finger it feels firm and not gooey. After you take them out of the oven, immediately dust them with powdered sugar. Serve with your favorite syrup.

E-Z Eggnog

Ingredients:

1 12 fl. oz. can of evaporated fat free milk
6 oz. 1% milk
6 oz. water
1 pkg. instant vanilla pudding
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

Directions:

Mix together 1% milk, pudding, vanilla extract, cinnamon and nutmeg. Slowly mix the evaporated fat free milk and water into the pudding mixture. Serve chilled.

Almond Butter Cookies

Ingredients:

2 sticks butter [room-temperature]
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1/2 tbsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
2 1/2 c. flour

Directions:

Creme together butter, sugar, egg, baking powder, salt, vanilla, and brandy with an electric hand mixer. Add flour 1/2 c. at a time until incorporated. Place dough on a peice of plastic wrap, shape into a log and Refrigerate for 1 hr.

After refrigerated you can either slice and bake or you can roll the dough out and cut it with your favorite cookie cutters. Place the dough on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 325*F for 15 mins. or until lightly golden brown.

Icing:

1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. water

With the powdered sugar in a bowl, slowly mix and add the water till you get the consistancy of salad dressing. You don't want it to be too thick and you don't want it to be too runny or it will go all over the place.

To make the colors, just divide the icing into several different bowls and add drops of food coloring to each one till you get the desired colors you want.

Comments:

To get into the holiday spirit, I made mine into christmas shapes. You can do whatever shape you would like, these cookies are so good you will want to make them all year round.



F.Y.I
Copyright © HLB 2005
All Rights Reserved

Brandy Cookie

Ingredients:

2 sticks butter [room-temperature]
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1/2 tbsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. brandy extract
2 1/2 c. flour

Directions:

Creme together butter, sugar, egg, baking powder, salt, vanilla, and brandy with an electric hand mixer. Add flour 1/2 c. at a time until incorporated. Place dough on a peice of plastic wrap, shape into a log and Refrigerate for 1 hr.

After refrigerated you can either slice and bake or you can put the dough in a cookie press like I did. Place the dough on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake at 325*F for 15 mins. or until lightly golden brown.



F.Y.I
Copyright © HLB 2005
All Rights Reserved

"Poney" Sandwiches

Ingredients:

1 tsp. creamy peanut butter [your favorite brand]
2 tsp. honey
2 slices of your favorite bread

Directions:

Mix peanut butter and honey together in a bowl. Spread on your favorite bread. Enjoy!

Alternatives:

You can use the "poney" mixture as a dip for apples, or you can spread it on crackers instead of bread.

To spice up the "poney" sandwich, after you spread the mixture onto your slice of bread, cut up a banana and put it on top for a "poney-'nana" sandwich.

Thoughts:

I absolutely love these sandwiches. We used to have these for lunch in elementary school. Everytime I eat them they bring me back to my childhood.

*not recommended for children under 1 yr of age- honey shouldn't be given to children under 1.*



F.Y.I
Copyright © HLB 2005
All Rights Reserved