Not Much New

Things have been a little quiet on the baking front but I"m ready to kick it up again this weekend! I have a very busy weekend with a baby and a bridal shower. I'm going to try to make Lemon cookies for the bridal shower along with the rest of the chocolate chips that are in my freezer. I find that instead of buying the ready made dough, it is just as easy (and less expensive) to make the dough, roll it into balls, and then stick them in the freezer. Then, you can just take them out and bake! This allows you to make as many as you need without waste.

Here is a link to the Lemon cookies. I will post a picture and update as soon as its completed! http://www.womansday.com/Recipes/Lemon-Dimples-Recipe I was in a rush when I went to the store (with both kids in the cart) so I just bought lemon pie filling for the centers. Otherwise, I plan to make them as stated. I first saw this recipe and knew I had to try it. The only problem: My husband HATES lemon. So, I figured this would be an ideal time to make them, without myself having to eat the whole batch!

Weekend Full of Baking

My birthday cake roll was so yummy!! The filling was not quite as thick as it should have been, but the taste was excellent. My oldest son ate two pieces!

I made some interesting cupcakes this weekend. I used a basic yellow butter golden cake recipe and my basic chocolate chip cookie recipe to create chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chocolate-Chip-Cookie-Dough--Cupcake--The-BEST-Cupcake-Ever/Detail.aspx?prop31=3 I then topped them off with some homemade chocolate buttercream frosting. When you looked at the cupcakes, they looked normal, but they were so rich you were left running for a drink after you were done. I definetely will make them again!

My Birthday Cake

Every year my husband makes my birthday cake for me. This year, I could not decide what I wanted! I seriously looked for days, until I finally decided on the Strawberry Mallow Cake Roll from the taste of home magazine http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/Strawberry-Mallow-Cake-Roll.

Unfortunately for my husband, the process to make this was a little difficult. However, the cake turned our great. The only downfall was that I told him to use less strawberry cream cheese b/c I wanted to save some for Jase's lunch (he loves it on his sandwiches). Well, I'm not sure if this was what caused it, but all of the filling came out of the roll! Perhaps, we should have added more confectionary sugar to "thicken it". But, it looks yummy! I can't wait until tonight to try it!

Pictures

Well, cookie favors are already done and I'm finally getting to post a picture. All in all, they came out well. I used royal icing for these because I had some left from a previous job and wanted to use it up. I haven't tasted any yet because I've got just enough for the shower, but I will be sure to make a post about the taste at a later date. Enjoy the pictures!

Cut Out Cookies

Well, I tried a new cutout cookie recipe yesterday. I have a couple that I usually change between, but the one I use for my decorated cookies calls for 3 whole eggs and 5 egg yolks, which seems like such a waste of egg to me. So, I decided to try another recipe. Here is the recipe I tried:

The Best Rolled Sugar Cookies
INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

I made a couple changes in that I used 1/2 tbsp. of vanilla and added a 1/2 tsp of butter extract. And I used butter flavored crisco in place of 1/2 of the butter. The cookies weren't bad, in fact I think I will use this in place of my other recipe. However, they were a little hard on the bottoms. On another blog, I saw this same recipe, but 1/2 cup of the sugar was replaced with 1/2 cup of confectionary sugar, and then the cookies were rolled in confectionary sugar. I think I may have another task set aside for me to see if this does help not make them so tough on the bottom.

New Twist on Pie

This weekend I made my triple berry pie. This pie is always a favorite of mine and everyone who tries it. Basically, I converted a recipe for strawberry-rhubarb pie, into a strawberry, raspberry, blackberry pie. I entered this pie into a baking contest at the fair this past year, but unfortunately, it didn't win. So, I'm trying to improve on it. Usually, I use a bought pie crust, but decided this time to make one from scratch. As I was searching through my recipes, I found a pie that used cream cheese. That was when I got the bright idea to use up the strawberry cream cheese I had in the refrigerator. This was one of the best pie crusts ever -- and it especially complemented the strawberry pie without really taking over. It just melted in your mouth. And the best part, it only contained three ingredients, flour, the cream cheese, and butter. I will definetely make this again. It rolled easily and was just perfect!

Just Starting Out

Well, I decided to try this whole thing out. Now, what to say. I'm going to use this blog to discuss all of my "crafting" adventures, including my baking. Right now I"m working on some cookies for a friends shower and trying to finish Logan's Easter Scrapbook page. I bought a new sewing machine over the weekend and really want to make a purse. Where to find the time to do all this????