Livin' Sweet

The Green Party

livinsweet — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 05:04:37 +0000

During my visit to Oklahoma, we had a gathering with some friends to celebrate the birthday of an old friend, Andy. His adorable wife, Victoria, chose the theme of a Green party. A little play on words, if you will! We took it literally….we only ate green foods and dyed any foods that were naturally a different color, to a very bright green. I made the cake, even though I had no tools whatsoever. Not wanting to buy all the needed tools, I spent about $2 on some icing tips and used the smooth end of a serrated knife (that had a curved tip, too!) instead of a cake spatula. I made a white chocolate French vanilla cake with standard buttercream icing….washed down with a cold glass of Coca-Cola Classic. YUM.

Happy Birthday, Andy!

I should have taken more pictures….sadly, I was too busy hosting! Oh, and forcing guests to entertain me with my brother’s guitars!

Cupcake Decorating Classes

livinsweet — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 04:05:42 +0000

The adorable Cami Hutton asked me to teach a cupcake decorating class for a church activity back in October….yes, I realize this is VERY behind! Hopefully, though, this will provide some great ideas for next year’s holidays! Haha – really, I am very sorry this is so late.

Anyhow – the classes went great and were very fun to teach. I may have surprised myself a bit on how much I know about baking and decorating. Not that I don’t have plenty to learn…I certainly have room to grow….but I did have a marvelous time getting to meet the different women in my classes and enjoyed all their delicious creations!

Here I am: My new haircut and my new apron! I have a personal shopper at Anthropologie – if you’re ever shopping at Gateway mall, as for Patrick. He’s only the BEST. He also happens to be my brother in law (insert smiley face here).

We had a few Halloween ideas that included these pumpkins, using a star tip.

Another idea that I didn’t get a picture of is to make the cupcake into a graveyard and use candy melts to make little bone shapes – mine are visible in the tupperware to the right. I also made some little pumpkins that can be used on top of the cupcake.

Here are some examples for Christmas cupcakes: a present, a (very soft) Christmas tree, and a peppermint. There is also another Halloween idea that I posted about last year – the MUMMY! They’re my personal favorite.

Another Halloween idea (this one my friend Lesli made) is the spiderweb!

I hope I get the opportunity to teach again! I had a lot of fun. One thing I appreciate when teaching is how much I learn from my students. There is something to be said for a group of extremely creative people working together on a project. I look forward to doing it again! If you’d like me to teach (or would like to order a cake!), please email me at Livinsweet4@gmail.com.

Here are some cupcake decorating basics I handed out to my class:

Wilton Buttercream Icing Recipe:

(Stiff Consistency)

1 cup solid white vegetable shortening

1 teaspoon Wilton Flavor (Vanilla, Almond or Butter)

2 tablespoons milk or water

1 lb. pure cane confectioners’ sugar (approx 4 cups)

1 tablespoon Wilton Meringue Powder

A pinch of salt

Icing Consistency Adjustments

Stiff: Standard recipe

Medium: Add one teaspoon water to each cup of stiff (one additional tbsp of water when you are using the full recipe)

Thin: Add two teaspoons of water for each cup of stiff consistency icing (two tbsp of additional liquid for the full recipe)

A few baking tips:

I bake everything at 325 degrees, regardless. Your baking time will need to be increased when your temperature is lowered, but this will help your cakes and cupcakes bake more evenly with their edges.
I also substitute milk for water when making cakes, cupcakes and often icing.

My Favorite Homemade Pan Grease:

Blend equal parts of flour, oil and Crisco until smooth and store in an airtight container. When ready, use a pastry brush to coat any pan or cupcake cups and even frying pans. Nothing sticks with this stuff!

Red Velvet Delight

livinsweet — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 03:18:02 +0000

I recently decided to cut my hair. All of it. At first, I hesitated making the big cut because my mom (as you can see in the previous post) has a pixie cut. On my most recent visit to see my parents, I repeatedly heard the phrase “Mirror mirror on the wall, I am my mother after all.” This is true in more way than one. I LOOOOOVVVEEE Red Velvet cake….so does my mother. We delight in tasting different varieties at various restaurants and have done so for years. A few months ago, I found a recipe online that was quite different from others I had seen. Once I altered it a little and combined it with some other recipes, I decided it was ready to be shared.

I was asked to make a cake for our friend, Austin’s birthday party. As it turns out, he also is a Red Velvet fan! I must say, my cream cheese frosting was exquisite. Take a look:

Hippos in a Hot Tub

livinsweet — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 16:34:47 +0000

My mom and little sister both have August birthdays. I normally don’t get to celebrate with them because I live so far away. Consequently, this is the first cake I decorated that they were able to see. We have a running joke in our family, which might sound quite harsh to everyone else…..

But it’s hilarious to us! Yes, these are hippo versions of my mom and sister. (I put my mom in a one-piece…hee hee) Readers, please meet my mother….she loves to wear blush.

She requested a French Vanilla cake with chocolate buttercream frosting. I used Ghiradelli for the occasion. It was to die for…..I can’t even explain how delicious it was! I was happy to see how much they liked it – and that they both thought it was as funny as I did!!!! After all, they did eat all those cheesesteaks in Philly……

Point Shoes

livinsweet — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 16:07:09 +0000

My dear friend, Jennie, took cake decorating with me, therefore, she is normally my sous chef. This time, though, she is the decorative expert and creative mastermind behind this cake. Jennie was a dancer through high school and college and now, her little cousin is following in those footsteps! “Little” just turned 15 and we promised her a birthday cake. While I assisted and contributed here and there, I frequently consulted the dance expert each step along the way.

Jennie had her first experience with gum paste, making the point shoes – and what an amazing job she did!

Little was very surprised to see her cake, and quite pleased at that!

Princess Birthdays

livinsweet — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 06:22:05 +0000

My dear friend asked me to help her make birthday cakes for her two little cousins. It was clearly a princess party from the moment we arrived! We matched Ally’s cake to all of her gifts and her decorations, adding a little edible sparkle to make it extra special.

She may not be much of a smiler, but it is apparent she was pleased with her cake!

It was also little Laney’s birthday, so we made her a small cake as well.

Keeping to the color scheme, we matched the inside of each cake to its exterior. Needless to say, all of the adults and children were all extremely surprised!

I very much enjoy being part of the occasions I make my cakes for! I love seeing my clients’ reactions and being able to enjoy all the fun right along with them! Thanks for having me P & G’s!!!! Glad you liked the cake!

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Mania

livinsweet — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 05:55:12 +0000

I don’t think anyone in the world loves Reese’s as much as my husband does. Each candy-related holiday, I fill our themed candy jars with different varieties of Reese’s candies. I always buy 2 jumbo bags and they are ALWAYS gone within 2 days. I don’t eat any of them. In past years, I have even taken the excess candy to hide at work and in different drawers and compartments around the house. He (and my co-workers) have always found and devoured ALL of it.

SO- what better way to celebrate his and his brothers’ birthdays than a cake made almost entirely of Reese’s and chocolate?

This is a milk chocolate cake, iced with chocolate buttercream and packed FULL of 2 entire bags of Reese’s peanut butter cups. The inside filling is my own very cream cheesy – cream cheese filling.

This cake tastes like nothing I could have ever dreamed. It is amazing.

My Television Debut.

livinsweet — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 05:48:46 +0000

I entered this local contest for Studio 5 the other day….http://studio5.ksl.com/?sid=716740&nid=21

I entered my original recipe for my Strawberry Lemonade Cake. The contest closes tonight, so I don’t know if I win yet (but I have high hopes!), but I did get an email yesterday from Studio 5 saying they like my recipe idea and they want to use it (and my picture) to promote the contest. Perhaps this is the beginning of my path to the Food Network?!?!?! I can dream….

Here is my photo on KSL!

Forgive the bad quality - I took the pic of the TV with my phone...

The winner of the contest wins a $500 gift card to Iggy’s. The dessert will also be featured on their menu!

Winner will be announce on the 8th of June…wish me luck!!!!!!

May is for Cream Cheese Lovers.

livinsweet — Mon, 31 May 2010 00:04:26 +0000

Ashlyn is one of my closest and oldest friends. She was my first friend and roommate when I moved here to Utah, as well as maid of honor at my wedding. She is also one of the pickiest eaters I know! I eat pretty much anything (food), so I am happy to adjust our menus for her, especially for her birthday. When I asked what she would like for her cake, she said she likes anything with cream cheese. Since it’s spring, I wanted to make something that would be cool and refreshing, so I incorporated lemon and some fresh strawberries….

I started with a layer of lemon cake, saturated with my special strawberry lemonade glaze. I then covered the layer of cake with a generous portion of my lemon cream cheese filling.

I covered the cream cream cheese in a layer of fresh strawberries, then started all over again. I topped the entire cake with some old fashioned, home whipped cream – garnished with more strawberries and a little glaze. I wanted it to be just a LITTLE over the top!

Happy Birthday, Ashlyn!

Ooey Gooey Cheesecake – Recipe!

livinsweet — Fri, 28 May 2010 04:10:36 +0000

My mom has made this easy cheesecake for as long as I can remember. A great idea, which I got from my sister, is to use one of those brownie/cookie sheets that have the high lip on the edge. I feel like there is a better crust to cheesecake ratio….there are things I like about using a 13×9 as well, but it just up to you!

Crust:

1 Yellow Cake Mix

1 Egg

1 Stick (1 cup) of melted butter

Cheesecake Filling:

1 lb (4 cups sifted) Confectioner’s Sugar

2 eggs

1 pkg (8oz) softened cream cheese

Mix crust ingredients, press to bottom of pan.

To make filling, mix eggs and cream cheese. Add powdered sugar slowly. Pour filling on top of crust and bake at 350 degrees for approx 30-40 minutes until center is cooked through and just barely beginning to turn golden brown on the top.

Enjoy! These are a major guilty pleasure of mine. I could eat the entire pan myself. For reals.