MIA

So, I'm starting a baking program this week, I've had to switch my work schedule around to accommodate - meaning I now only have Sundays off for the next 3 months. I've been mentally preparing for the onslaught of stress and tiresome days which has thus decreased my motivation to run/workout and bake as often as I usually would otherwise. If I seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth... sorry!

On another note, I'm currently working on making some macarons!

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand it's not going well so far.

But practice makes perfect!

Any tips would be absolutely wonderful too!

The filling I made the other day came out wonderful though! Vanilla Bean Buttercream from Brown Eyed Baker. Yum!

Sweet & Saucy Shop

Some say (I don't) that wedding cakes are the pinnacle of any wedding decor.

But who can blame them when you see amazing works like at the Sweet & Saucy Shop in Long Beach?

One of the co-workers received a nice little bundle of cake pops today... and of course the entire office dug right in!

I had the brownie pop. And nibbled on the banana peanut butter pop.

Here is the cute label on the box that "indexed" all the flavors.

And here is the the lollipop I ate. Yum!

My cell phone used to take higher quality pics - sorry for this lo-qual!
More reason for me to carry the digi cam around I guess!

gifting cookies!

so, we've already been over how amazing these salted chocolate chip cookies are - and how these particular cookies are HIGHLY accepted by everybody...

so i bake them for "special occasions" and package them into gifts!

A paper mache flower pot filled with cookies, and hugging an empty Starbucks cup containing gift cards! Happy Birthday Jason indeed!

In the biz...

Some of you may or may not know... I work for a catering and events company. So, in addition to the humdrum of weddings and parties and banquets, we also go out to bridal shows and all that jazz.

Oh. And I eat whatever appetizers and sweets are going around that night from other companies.
A few of tonight's selections (I unfortunately missed on out some stuff - damn actual work.)

crispy fried wonton thing.

duck sandwich thing with oyster sauce

mango pudding! YUM!

eggroll

walnut mayo shrimp on skewer

lemon drops (we NEVER forget to get the booze)

LA Adventures

Headed up to LA for some "errands" - well more like fun times.


Stop #1: Garvey's Nut and Candy
Man, oh man... seriously - I was a kid in a candy store. An insanely LARGE WAREHOUSE candy store that is. Sure the pictures a slightly fuzzy... but that's just about how I looked at everything. I was so overwhelmed at the sight of SO MUCH CANDY. The warehouse also has candy novelty items - clocks, lunch boxes, pillows etc. Oh, and giant Hello Kitty PEZ dispensers.

Stop #2: Paper Mart
While we didn't get the full warehouse experience, it was an aweing experience to just see the size of the operation. Lots of neat paper goods for packaging!

Lemon-Butter Cookies

I guess lemons are in abundance this time of year... co-workers and friends seem to bring buckets around to just give them away! So of course, I snagged a few... with this super easy and yummy recipe in mind!

Lemon-Butter Cookies

adapted from MixingBowl.com special issue magazine

1C Butter, softened
3/4C Granulated Sugar (154g)
2t finely shredded lemon peel (about 2 lemons)
2C AP flour (10.75oz)
Powdered Sugar (optional - for sprinkling)

Preheat oven to 350.

Beat butter for 30 seconds. Add granulated sugar. Beat until combined, scraping bowl as needed.
Beat in lemon zest. Then beat in flour. Mix any unincorporated flour by hand, then drop dough onto baking sheets. (Parchment lined or ungreased). I used a 1.5T cookie scoop and placed them approx. 2 inches apart. Cookies will not spread much and will keep the domed shape.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until edges are light brown.
Transfer to a wire rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.

And since all my friends are my guinea pigs... I worked on some packaging ideas to give some of these cookies away. (If I'm fattening them all up, I should at least present the treats on something better than a paper plate right?)

Brownies again!

Brownies. As much as I've brownie-d myself out over the past few months... I always end up coming back to it. I think I has to do with the fact that I don't have to let any butter come up to room temp but simply melt it. Cuz you know, using cold butter is just a no-no in successful baking (in most recipes anyways).

So, brownies are chocolatized with cocoa powder or melted chocolate - and in this particular recipe - which is what caught my eye - it uses both! This recipe produces an insanely moist and chewy brownie. YUM! And it also uses two different fats instead of just butter OR oil. Interesting no?

Anyways, this all came together in less time than it took for a Simpsons episode to run - then it was into the oven, and out again with lots of cooling time!

Thanks again Michelle for another wonderful recipe! Chewy Brownies from Brown Eyed Baker