Mar.
17

What’s this?  Two posts?  In the same WEEK?  Wow – it’s been quite a long time since I’ve done that :)  But all the friendly WELCOME BACK messages really warmed my heart, so, well, here I am again :)

If you’ve followed my site for any length of time or read back thru the archives, you’ll know this is not the first time I’ve posted sugar cookie bars.  What can I say… they’re pretty darn easy, super tasty and rather different.  I mean, yeah, you can buy slice-n-bake sugar cookies, you can go to the market and buy pre-made sugar cookies but cookie BARS are a nifty lil update on an old classic.  And oh, did I mention they’re super tasty, too!!!

(more…)

Posted in Holiday, cookies | 18 Comments »

Jul.
04

Fondant Fourth-of-July!

Posted by Em at: 12:01 am | 12 Comments

Happy Birthday USA!

One night this past week I took a 2hr basic fondant class – since Independence Day was approaching I decorated my cake accordingly. It was my first time working with fondant and I was definitely intimidated before class started.  By the time it was over… I was excited in a whole new way!!!  By the end of the week I’d signed up for a series of fondant classes that will keep  me busy the rest of this month :)  I’m thinking I’ll have a few more fondant cakes to show you along the way.

Whatever your plans for this holiday… have a delicious Independence Day!

Posted in Holiday, cake | 12 Comments »

Mar.
17

Happy St. Patrick’s Day

Posted by Em at: 1:00 pm | 5 Comments

 

These are just standard vanilla cupcakes with vanilla buttercream icing.  The recipe for the cake can be found here.  The recipe for the icing can be found here. 

Have a great St. Patrick’s day. Even if you are into green beer, I won’t hold that against you! LOL

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Posted in Holiday, buttercream icing, cake, cupcakes, recipes, vanilla | 5 Comments »

Feb.
14

Happy Valentine’s Day

Posted by Em at: 10:00 pm | 3 Comments

{waves enthusiastically} Hey there!  Hi there! I’m baaaaa-aaaaack!  Yes indeedy I am :) :) I just flew in last night… and boy are my arms tired {badum-ching}.  Old joke ;-)  But yes, we did just fly back last night in what capped off a 15-hr travel day.  Call it jet-lag if you will but this California girl’s body and soul must still be in the Eastern Time Zone because I woke up way too early this morning… even for me!  We had a fantastic vacation and took close to a thousand pictures but surprisingly enough not many food pictures.   Trust me, we ate lots of OMG-to-die-for fabulous food and decadent desserts but few were photo-worthy.  Seems I really really enjoyed taking pictures of everything else around me… and just eating the food! LOL!!

One of the highlights of our trip was traveling with my dear friend Beth :-) The chocolate soufflé above is the dessert I had as we enjoyed a very leisurely lunch, gazing at the ocean, on our first official day of vacation together.  While I’m not a big chocolate fan, this soufflé was not only delicious but the pool of créme anglaise gently flowing over the side made it truly photo-worthy.  YUM!

Yes, it’s Valentine’s Day and I hope everyone is enjoying it in their own way.  My goal for today is to at some point get caught up enough to venture into the kitchen and make something special for DH and the kids. If I do, I will be sure to post it soon.  In the meantime, feel free to check out last year’s Valentine’s Day post.  It’s one of my favorites and positively drool-worthy :)

Have a delicious day!

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Posted in Holiday | 3 Comments »

Jan.
01

2008 – My Blog In Review

Posted by Em at: 3:25 am | 4 Comments

Can you believe it’s New Year’s Eve!!?!?!  Some of you may have already celebrated in your part of the world but here in Southern California we’ve got about 4 hours left until the ball drops.

I came across a very creative end-of-year post over on one of my favorite blogs today… Quiet Life.  The idea was so good I thought I’d do something similar here on my blog :)  After all, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!  So without any further adieu, please click to see some of my favorite creations of 2008.

 

January – I hadn’t started blogging yet so let’s just skip this month, shall we?

 

February - these “truffles” were so good that every time there’s an eating occasion, I’m asked to make them

 

 

 

March – Bread pudding is comfort food to me.  There’s tons of variations but it’s a timeless classic that’s always good!

 

 

 

 

April – My dear friend Beth’s Orange Poppy Seed Bread is so phenomenal you really must make it!!!

 

 

 

May – I created a tutorial on how to make my favorite Buttercream Icing.  All these months later I’m still amazed at how much wonderful feedback I get about this icing.  While I can’t take credit for coming up with the recipe, I do take credit for giving it wider exposure.  If you’re ever in need of a really good buttercream icing, definitely make this one! 

 

 

June – I made these amazing Red Velvet Cupcakes and paired them with my very own recipe for cream cheese icing that can be piped.  I can’t tell you how proud I was of myself! LOL

 

 

July –  For my birthday I revisited Dorie Greenspan’s recipe for the Perfect Party Cake… my favorite cake!

 

 

August –  These Garlic Knots are so yummy – I could eat them every single day!

 

 

September –  Another bread post… honey yeast rolls… at last I conquered my fear of yeasted bread 

 

 

 

October – My first attempt at making Pots de Créme… and wow was it yummy!

 

 

November - These turkey cupcakes just make ya smile. No, they’re not made of turkey ;-) 

 

 

 

December – These snowflake sugar cookies tasted as good as they looked!

 

And there ya have it! Some of my favorite creations of this year! Thanks to everyone who reads my blog, leaves comments, emails me, etc.  It truly means the world to me.  I hope you all have a wonderful and safe New Year’s Eve!!!

 

 

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Posted in Holiday, miscellaneous | 4 Comments »

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