Summer Treats

In an effort to not do another wip post, I thought I'd show you some food instead. I guess it's still something I made, but I was in the kitchen this time and it wasn't for the baby! haha

We finally got around to having a little backyard barbecue a few weeks ago. The weather was beautiful, plenty of people came and it was a wonderful day. I, of course, made way too much food and because of this spent most my time in the kitchen forming hamburger patties because I was behind schedule (sorry about that to those who were here).

I only have pictures of the treats to share with you, I hope you don't mind.

I dug into Martha's Cupcakes again and made the strawberry cupcakes. I went with regular buttercream instead of strawberry. Not being a strawberry fan (and probably the only one on earth), I felt the strawberry on strawberry would be too much! As usual, they didn't disappoint. Nick thinks these might be his second favorite cupcake ever (right behind Martha's maple cupcakes ~ yummmm).

 I also made a batch of marshmallows. It's just ridiculous how easy they are to make! I added a little English Toffee candy flavoring to them & it was just enough to give them some pizazz. These were a hit too, there were only 4 left at the end of the day. No one wants to be the person who takes the last one, right? Here's the recipe I used for the marshies. It's worth buying a candy thermometer if you only ever use it to make your own marshmallows. They'll shock & amaze your friends too.

That's all the food photos I can share, I didn't manage to take any other pictures that day (so typical). The macaroni salad from Cook's Country Magazine (my FAVORITE magazine ever!) was so good too...next time.

Here's my next cooking project:

 Did you know there was a whole book dedicated to Whoopie Pies? {drool}

Now that I've actually located a bag of graham flour, I'm going to attempt the graham cracker whoopie pies.

 Wouldn't it be fun, and a lot of work, to use your own marshmallows for these? Now that's domestic!

I won't be rushing into any baking right away, we've started phase 4 of the kitchen remodel. I want this done before the baby gets here or it'll never happen!

Actually, this should be complete by early next week. All we need now is the new pantry, some tile and a nice new floor. Movin' right along!

Oh, and I finished that little crocheted sweater. Told you I could crochet a sweater way quicker than I could knit one. :) hehe

Pretty good, eh? Only one crafty photo in the bunch! Hope you're having a nice summer too.

Two Spoonfuls: Good Reads

Welcome to another episode of Two Spoonfuls with Ginny & Jenn. We've decided to get the new year started with a little help from Alton Brown of Good Eats fame. Cheesy logo and theme song aside, Good Eats is a great show! Naturally, you can watch the show, but Jenn and I would like to introduce you to a couple of Alton's books. I'll be talking about the baking side of things with "I'm Just Here For More Food" and Jenn's going to tell you about Alton's first book, "I'm Just Here For The Food", a sort of general cooking primer.



First, I'm going to let you in on a little secret about me. I'm not one of those Food Network junkies, so it takes a lot to get me watching a cooking show on a regular basis. I know I have a lot to learn about cooking and baking and the way Alton presents information really works for me. It's one thing to open a box, add some eggs & maybe a little milk and throw it in the oven, but I want to know why. That's what's so great about this book. I'm learning what the difference is between wheat flour & cake flour, and how to measure it properly. Did you know that once you've opened a can of baking powder it's only good for 6 months?! I didn't.


"I'm Just Here For More Food" is divided into sections as follows:

Introduction - All about good baking habits, equipment, measuring and other basics

The Parts Department - The ingredients in the ingredients and the stuff in your pantry like flour, sugar, butter and eggs.

The book is filled with cool illustrations and diagrams that appeal to my visual side.

Then there are the methods of mixing:

The Muffin Method

The Biscuit Method (mmmmmm) and The Pie Variation

The Creaming Method

The Straight Dough Method

The Egg Foam Method

and The Custards

Along the way are tons of factoids, diagrams, notes and other little tidbits that really make this book stand out. I love a cookbook with pictures, but it's even better when you get actual helpful information and knowledge that will help you make the recipe a success.

What I've Learned So Far:

I'm only in the Parts Department section but I already know enough to notice that when I tried a recipe from my new Ben & Jerry's cookbook last week, something was wrong. I followed the directions for Blonde Brownies to the letter, I used the pan they said to use and this is what I got.

A big cookie. Not brownies. There was definitely a lack of moisture in the batter and the pan they suggested was obviously way too big. Perhaps the 1 egg should have been 2? Maybe there should have been milk? Anyway, the big cookie was really tasty, it just wasn't brownies. My point is, that now that I'm reading Alton's book, I feel confident enough to try adding something next time to make the dough into batter. I knew there needed to be more moisture in the recipe. I hope to get a lot of knowledge out of Alton's book and I plan to read it cover to cover.

Now I'm anxious to see how Jenn's doing with "I'm Just Here For The Food", because it's next on my reading list!

On My Desk

Here's what was on my desk today...

I had a custom order to make for the farmer's market tomorrow. Just sayin', it's gonna be in the 30's when I get there....I can't wait for that! Maybe next time I'll show you what the bag looks like.

I made myself a yummy cuppa decaf. Yes, I like whipped cream and sprinkles on my coffee. Don't you?

I can't wait to try some recipes in the new cookbook I bought last night. There are some good ones in there just calling my name.

I may start with this one. Chocolate + Caramel + Butterscotch = yes please!

This Sunday will be my last farmer's market (yay!) and then I can really start thinking about Christmas and crafty things I want to do for myself and baking and lots of other fun things. Cool.

Food Fetish

Inspired by ChickenGirl's post about Re-Ment, I had to tell you about my strange fascination with fake food and food that looks like something. I know, I'm kind of weird. But when I'm browsing Etsy and I come across stuff like this or this, I can barely keep myself from buying it all. Do you think Nick would notice if these were in his lunch, rather than the real thing. Yeah, maybe.

Anyway, on to the new book I got this weekend. I think many of you know what a fan I am of the cupcake. I love 'em. This book is just too cool for words. It's filled with pictures of the greatest cupcakes that you can make with ordinary candy & everyday stuff.

Check out the TV Dinner cupcakes. Oh my gosh. These are first on my list. I love the mash & gravy cupcake, and the peas & carrots. Isn't that hilarious?


Take a look at this cupcake vegetable garden. haha Whenever I see a patch of veg I can't help but think of my favorite gardener, Gromit. Which reminds me of another excellent book I already have on the shelf.

I got this one when we lived in the UK. Naturally, I haven't used it yet, but I really do enjoy the lovely photos.

See? There's the Were-rabbit surrounded by veg. Can you believe that's a cake?

Next week's my birthday. If I was going to be home, maybe I'd try to make this one for Nick & I. Look at little Gromit with his knitting. So cute.

Oh if I only had the time to bake all day and run around in my bare feet and an apron. Some day.

Get Cooking

So here we are, approaching a 3 day weekend, and I've got no plans. Nick & I might do a little quicky road trip tomorrow, but that's all that's on the books at the moment. I was thinking about breaking in the quintessential wedding gift....

Yes, I got a KitchenAid stand mixer, thanks Mom. I got a food processor too (thanks Bob!). How cool is that? And I don't want to leave out my Le Creuset from Amanda, something I've wanted for a long time but would never buy for myself. But do you see how that wonderful stuff is all packed into the cabinet above the fridge?

I just got my very first Barefoot Contessa cookbook, and a lovely breakfast cookbook from the Bed & Breakfast Nick & I stayed at in Victoria. I might try making some scones with the food processor this weekend, but I thought maybe you guys could give me some great recipes or tips to go with my new kitchen wonders. We're itching to get that mixer out of the box, so bring on the ideas please!

One more thing, my Aunt Kathy has been working on JPL's Phoenix Lander project for the past 4 years and it's scheduled to touch down this Sunday at about 4:53pm PST. So, if you're in to space & Mars etc. you might want to check it out on CNN. Have a great long weekend.