Step by step homemade baking recipes
Interested in learning how to make a fondant lily? Well, we have created another YouTube video for you to watch! Thanks Paul for editing (“Oops, take that out.” “Ooops, start again.” “Whoops, I swear I’ll get it this time.”)
I hope you enjoy it, and find it helpful!
As a new cake decorator, you would think that I would know how to:
1. bake the cake (check),
2. decorate the cake (check),
3. cut the cake (. . . ummmm, not so much!)
So before I get asked this question by the brides that have honoured me by hiring me for their weddings (and look like an idiot while I would have stood there stammering “uhhhh, umm, huh . . .”), I thought I would research how to go about cutting a cake that serves 200 people!
I found this helpful serving chart here:
Obviously, if you are having a tiered wedding cake, you (or your cake servers), will need to cut each different sized layer according to the chart.
Hopefully this is helpful to anyone who needs to serve a group of large (or small) people cake!
LET THEM EAT CAKE!
Yes, this post is slightly behind in timing, but, hey, look at the bright side, and it’s 355 days EARLY!
This year, I made my first St Patrick’s Day cake! Keeping with the Irish in me, I created an Irish Car Bomb Cake . . . an exact duplicate of my Irish Car Bomb cupcake, but in GIANT form!
I can honestly say I have never had an Irish Car Bomb . . . the thought of one makes me want to vomit. Curdling cream?? SICK! But, throw some sugar and flour into the mix and you get a delicious cake creation.
For the cake, I made two Guinness Chocolate 6″ rounds, filled between them with Whiskey Ganache, and covered the whole thing with Bailey’s buttercream. Mmmmmm.
Having made this cake so many times, I am absolutely starting to love the smell of Guinness. It brings me back to the time my family and I went to Dublin, and toured the Guinness Brewery! At 10:00 in the morning, when our tour was over, we all got a fresh, free, Guinness! It was my first Guinness that I had ever had . . . and it was my last!
I’ve been dying to use this decorating technique since I first saw it here. So when I got a last minute request for a birthday cake, I had it already planned in my head.
For some reason, the local Superstore has a plethora of strawberries in stock . . . and surprisingly, since it’s March, and not strawberry season, they are in pretty good shape! Having strawberries on hand, and chocolate in the cupboard, I set out to make a Strawberry Chocolate Cake!
I used a cupcake recipe for the cake and it came from Sprinkles via Martha Stewart. You can find it here.
The strawberry puree smelled absolutely outstanding! I immediately made a fresh strawberry daiquiri with the puree . . . no I didn’t . . . but I thought about it, but I had a cake to make!
To make the cake, I baked it in my new 6″ pan (which has come in very handy!). I made two 6″ slabs, and hollowed out each one of them like a well. Inside the “well” I poured ganache . . . mmmm! Between the two layers of cake I layered sliced strawberries. Then, the chocolate excitement was not over! Chocolate buttercream was piped using Wilton’s 1M tip to make the roses. I love the peek-a-boo strawberries on the top!
Yep, it’s Saturday already. Whoops.
Here we go, quickly, and belated:
Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun! Thank you for shining this week . . . I’m so fortunate. Um, where are you today though?
I am fortunate for the initial success of our first advertising campaign! Thank you so much partner in crime for all of your hard work on the website and the advertising! xo I’m so fortunate!
Thank you, thank you, thank you, for all of the fans that have signed up on Facebook! So fortunate! Yay, we’re at 92 fans this morning! I can’t wait to share all of the delicious up coming treats with you in the future! When you place your next order, tell me you read this on CCC and you will get an additional 10% off your order!
Thanks for reading!
What are YOU fortunate for? I’d love to hear from you . . . add your comment in the “comment” box at the top of the post.
Congratulations Christy and Jude!!
My great friends, have decided to take the plunge and tie the knot. Anyone who knows them is not surprised in the slightest. We all knew it was just a matter of time.
Mexico + All Inclusive Resort = Wedding Engagement!
(I’m not sure exactly how that adds up, but that’s what happened! Hmm, maybe a little tequila was involved? Just Kidding!)
What a beautiful spot to do propose . . . what could be better than during a trip to Mexico!
A special congratulations has to go out to Jude who managed to hide the ring from Christy for an entire week . . . as well as keep it from being stolen! I’m sure that was a stressful week for Jude.
I love holidays! It’s a good thing that I’m a Kindergarten teacher, because we celebrate every holiday that we possibly can! Except right now . . . I’m on Spring Break. I’m not complaining (I LOVE my breaks . . . baking everyday!), I’m just simply saying, “Sorry world, instead of celebrating with 22, five year olds, I have to send my happy holiday baking creations out to everyone!!”
As it turns out, it’s a good thing that I’m a cupcake baker too, as I can celebrate every possible holiday as a baker too!
I’ve been working on a new flavour over the last couple of weeks . . . Salted Caramel! It’s a vanilla cupcake base, filled with dulce de leche, and topped with caramel buttercream and pink himalayan salt.
It. Is. So. Good. I can’t express that enough.
When I first tasted the icing with the salt on top . . . oh god, it was ‘O’ worthy (if you know what I mean!)
For St Patricks Day, I’m calling these “Pot o’ Gold”. They are definitely what I would want to find at the end of a rainbow!
I have also spent the last couple of months perfecting a fan favourite . . . the Irish Car Bomb cupcake!
I’m not a Guinness, or a Whiskey fan and this cupcake has both in it, but upon first bite, I knew it would be with me forever.
In case you missed my first post back in November 2010, the Irish Car Bomb is a Chocolate Guinness cake, filled with Whiskey Ganache, and topped with Bailey’s Buttercream! YUM!
Here it is dressed up for it’s Nation’s special day 🙂 March 17, 2011.
To finish up my St Patricks Day celebrating, I made a special order holiday cake!
You guessed it, fan favourite Irish Car Bomb is the cake inside!
Here it is . . . the looooonnnngggg awaited Cardio post. It has been way too long, but hey, I’ve been busy teaching the cardio spin classes, making new routines, and of course, baking up a storm! I hope you enjoy 🙂
This spin routine received positive reviews from my regulars, and I know they wouldn’t steer me wrong 😉
Spin N– (Duration 60 Minutes)
1. Forget You – Cee Lo Green – 3:43 Warm Up- get that body ready to get moving!
2. What the Hell – Avril Lavigne – 3:39 Jumps- getting going right away today! Seated to Standing, counts of 8, 4, 2, 1.
3. Left My Heart In Tokyo – Mini Viva – 3:47 Pyramid Sprint. Starting at 1 minute on, then 45, 30, 15. Rest for 20 seconds in between sprints.
4. Not Ready to Make Nice – Dixie Chicks – 4:01 Sitting climb/standing climb with freeze on chorus 1:00-1:24, 2:24-2:50
5. Fading Like a Flower – Roxette – 3:51 30 second seated sprint , 30 second standing sprint , 30 second standing climb (8/10), 1 minute standing, 1 minute seated climb (8/10)
6. Yeah 3X (Explicit Edit) – Chris Brown – 4:01 Run. 30 seconds seated, add one tension, 30 seconds standing.
7. Coming Home – Diddy Dirty Money Feat Skylar Grey – 3:59 Standing flat with a get low run (30s)
8. Rope – Foo Fighters – 4:19 1 min seated, 1 min hover, 1 minute stand (Hand pos. 3), 1 minute sitting straight up no hands on handlebars
9. Born This Way – Lady Gaga – 4:20 Jumps on own
10. Firework – Katy Perry – 3:48 Standing climb
11. L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. – Noah And The Wale – 3:47 Turn up tension – every time he sings L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N.
12. We R Who We R – Kesha – 3:25 Hover 20 Stand 20
13. Higher – Taio Cruz Feat Kylie Minogue & Travie McCoy – 3:23 Open Road
14. Livin’ On A Prayer – Bon Jovi – 4:10 Stand and freeze/slide when “living on a prayer” adding tension with each set.
Cool down and Stretch
I hope you enjoy using this spin for your own workout!
Music is so important to me when I work out. If I have new tunes loaded up on my iPhone, I definitely find myself with an extra jump in my step. I love to teach my spinning classes based on feeling the beat of the music. Trying to keep up to the beat while adding tension turn, after tension turn is an awesome motivator!
Do you have a favourite song to workout to?
