It's...............ANOTHER CAKE!!

So when we last checked on me...it appeared to the world that I had an incurable case of bread baking addiction. I mean, I made my fantastic rolls about 300,008,332,091 times, tried a variety of other roll recipes, made sweet bread, savory bread, and cinnamon rolls...and loved them!

Today, I realized as I have looked back on recent posts...I am suffering from cake addiction. It might be that there are a million birthdays and celebrations come summer, but regardless, I have made so much cake that I think it may be coming out of my ears.

But...like the bread baking...I LOVE IT! I get really attached to my cakes.

This cake is no different. A "Mountain Dew" cake masked in Legend of Zelda decor for my little brother's birthday!

Now I write "Mountain Dew" as such because this cake was for my 9 year old brother and my mother drew the line at incorporating the actual soda into the cake...which I'm sure would have been delicious. BUT I'm glad she didn't let me, because THIS cake was absolutely FANTASTIC!!!

 I used a lemon cake mix (I'm the QUEEN of lazy baking haha) and a lime gelatin mix to create a lemon-lime poke cake!

You bake the cake according to your package instructions and let it cool. Use a fork to poke holes in the cake but don't poke all the way through! Stop the poking before you hit the pan :)

Mix the 3oz package of gelatin with 1 cup boiling water. Stir. When gelatin is fully dissolved, add 1/2 cup cold water and mix well.

Pour the gelatin over the poked cake and let it soak in. Cover and refrigerate. I let mine sit over night.

 Decorating cakes is my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE PART of making cakes!! This one uses my lovely and reliable butter cream frosting (I gave the recipe in this past post) as a cover base. I lined the outside with Heath and used an orange food coloring with the same base frosting for the writing.

Now...Link looks amazing! You know why?? Because he isn't made out of frosting :/ I'm a little saddened that I "cheated" and printed him out. *sigh* I ran out of time. But it turned out looking better than any measley attempt I would have made anyways. For someone else's birthday, I guess that's more important than my wounded pride haha.

 The cake was rich. Rich rich rich. It's the billionaire of cakes lol. But it was soooo delicious. I felt like I was eating gold. Ok. I'm on the money metaphor and tooting my own horn...but it really was very tasty. I plan on trying many more poke-cake variations with different gelatin mixes. We'll see how it goes!

Graduation Celebration Cake :)

What begins with college and ends with graduate??

MEEEEEEE!!!!

That's right my lovely readers. I have graduated from college! Crazy crazy crazy. I actually graduated two weeks ago and things since then have been mighty hectic. Which is why I haven't posted in a while. I'm still thinking about my Avenger's dessert (the avenger promise). It's HARD! I'm just not on that level if creative genius quite yet...

BUT I did make an awesome cake (yes I made my own graduation cake lol)...and by awesome, I mean totally fantastic...if i do say so myself.

CHOCOLATE CAKE, VANILLA BUTTERCREAM FROSTING, RED M&Ms

           

the frosting recipe: HERE

The cake was made from:

two 18.5 oz devil's food cake mix pckgs

4 eggs

3 cups water 

1 cup oil

red M&Ms

I used two 9x13 cake pans and stacked the cakes on top of eachother to give it about 4" heighth. I used the frosting as a layer filling instead of making an entirely separate concoction. (Less work AND it tasted PERFECT! I win.)








The pictures aren't too spectacular, but in real life, this cake looked and tasted GREAT!!

Life is just the best!
Keep baking, keep creating, and keep reading! :)

~MollyMarie

Molly Marie Plays Catch-up...again...

It's another catch-up day! (I think the theme of this blog could very well be, "better late than never!" Blog title change? haha maybe...) I think so far, I have promised you cake, sugar cookies, and frosting. (If there is another unfulfilled promise floating around on one of my posts, you'll have to let  me know!) So, let's not waste any time here! 

Cake!

I wasn't lying when I told you I used a cake mix. Just a plain, store-bought vanilla cake mix. I find they make delicious cakes and they don't cost a lot AND I save time (which I can use for making better designs). A small exception with this cake is the strong splash of cinnamon I added. And when I say strong...I mean too strong. I think a teaspoon would have been wonderful. My heaping two...not so much. Haha. When I use spices on the fly...I tend to over do it. Don't make my mistakes. If you want to experiment with strong flavors, just be warned haha.

Wow. I sound like this cake turned out disastrously. It didn't!! But it would have been more pleasant if the cinnamon had been more subtle :)

          

                

                            you can see here the mass of cinnamon lol

         
         
         
         I think it turned out GREAT!! Only...like I said...it was a mite bit too cinnamony for my tastes. Next time I'll measure before thinking I can just wing it with spices lol.

         

 As you can see, I have two layers. One the cinnamony cinnamon  flavor, and one I kept just vanilla

It'd look mighty pretty in one of these :)

"Simplicity Cake Plate with Dome"

SUGAR COOKIES!

Let me just quickly say this: I LOVE sugar cookies!!! And you will too with the cookie/frosting combo I'm going to give you!! Sugar cookies are THE BEST for a recipe that always tastes delicious, but you can easily tweak to fit the occassion! If you take a look at an earlier Christmas post (here) you can see that by just using different cookie cuttuer shapes and food coloring, you can acheieve fantastic results!!

But enough of me going on about how great they are. Nothing I can say will convince you as much as tasting these cookies will! You'll have to make 'em to believe me!!:D

SugarCookieDough:

3/4      cup   shortening

1         cup   sugar

2                 eggs

1         tsp    vanilla extract

2 1/2   cups  flour

1         tsp    baking powder

1         tsp    salt

Mix shortening, sugar, eggs, and flavoring thoroughly. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt together. Blend the dry mixture into the wet. Chill at least 1 hour.

Heat over to 400 deg. Roll dough out (1/8" thick) on a lightly floured board. Cut with cookie cutters (3"). Place on an ungreased baking sheet. BAKE: 6-8 min. (I always go for the lower time) You don't want these cookies golden. They should be a bit puffy when they come out of the oven. If you over bake, they'll be hard. (But don't stress if they do get over done...the frosting fixes EVERYTHING! I'm not even kidding. at all.)

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:

2   cups             shortening
1   tsp               salt
2   tsp               vanilla extract
1   cup              water         
3   pkgs (16oz)  powdered sugar
Combine shortening, salt, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Beat at med speed of an electric mixer until blended. Alternately add small amounts of water and powdered sugar, beating constantly at low speed, until all blended. Beat 8 minutes at medium speed. (I chill the frosting to let it set more, but it isn't necessary).
This can be stored at room temp for several days or in the refridgerator for 2 weeks! NOTE: Prepare icing twice if you want to double. (If you double it will be enough to frost a 3-tiered cake! A LOT of frosting!)

These are so kid friendly it is ridiculous! I mean, as a kid, nothing is more fun than drawing with frosting. It's a bit messy, but in the messes of life we find ourselves. The same is true of sugar cookie messes!

I hope this post has filled you with a desire to make messes in the baking of life!
Sincerly,

One who has found herself within the mess of a kitchen

~MollyMarie

Easter Weekend

Oh Easter weekend :)
It's one of those times when a smile follows a little sigh of satisfaction. Not only is it a time to reflect on the Atonement of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (which really should be a thing we do EVERY day...but not the point) but it's a time to bake! (which also should be a thing I do every day...haha)

Right up there with Christmas, Easter is a holiday that involves a lot of sugar. And butter. And sugar. And umm a lot of eggs haha. I mentioned sugar right??

I know it's a week after the fact, but I wanted to share with you some pictures of the stuff I made!

The Recipes, like seemingly always, will have to wait until next post. I am going to friend's wedding today, so I'm a wee bit crunched on time. I'll have to be posting the recipe next time. But, to keep you interested...here are the yummies I made!

Exhibit A: SUGAR COOKIES

Seriously the best and most adaptable cookie for any holiday! It's all in the frosting baby!

Honestly. People are ALWAYS impressed by these cookies. They can be as time consuming or as easy as you choose. The more intricate the design on top, the more time. BUT these taste amazing. So regardless of whether you replicate Picasso and Rembrant with your frosting, or just slather on anice spoonful, they'll be a hit!



And I can GUARANTEE, you'll have people praising the ground upon which you walk...especially if you accidentally drop some crumbs.

Exhibit B: PEEP WARS

I have been wanting to try this for years. I don't know why I never did. Sometimes, I'm not a very logical person.

 But whatever. 

I did it this year. 

 Haha, it didn't exactly go as smoothly as I had hoped it might,

 BUT. I had a lot of fun. And so did my little brother. (I can't say the same for our Peep warriors unfortunately...)

Aaaaand the end result was delicious!!

 I guess that's all that really matters, right!?

Exhibit C: CAKE

I LOVE decorating cakes. I LOVE eating delicious cakes. And so occassions that allow me to do both...oh beautiful times!

 She turned out purdy, didn't she! And really, all this consisted of...

-a box cake mix (Vanilla!! my absolute favorite!)

-buttercream frosting (I posted the recipe yesterday which you can find **)

-food coloring (for the diff colors of frosting)

I know, I use cake mix. Sue me. I never said I was Betty Crocker. Or Mary Poppins. Besides, cake mixes taste amazing AND are less time consuming. I'd say it's a win-win.

AND

Exhibit D: (D for DELICIOUS) PEANUTBUTTER COOKIES.

Honestly, is any holiday weekend complete without these?? Not in my home. Not in my stomach.

 they just look gorgeous. With their peanutbuttery color and their peanutbuttery taste. And their peanutbuttery smell. Oh the peanutbuttery heaven!! It's quite easy to obtain this peanutbuttery bliss...and I've already posted this recipe!

(click here to begin your quest of peanutbuttery heaven attainment)

I wish you and your loved ones a very delicious and delectable day.

Keep dreaming, keep baking (really it's all the same)

~MollyMarie

April Fools Day!

I have never been one to really get into April Fools Day. I mean, there are only so many times one can say "April Fools!" before your pranks/jokes/whatevers don't work anymore...and I've never been a very clever pranker.

That is, until I discovered the world of April Fools food pranks. Genius. GENIUS!

I really got into the holiday this year!

[*now, you are never supposed to start presentations or conversations or blog posts with disclaimers or apologies because then the audience is already judging you negatively...whether they mean to or not. But I MUST start this off with a lament. I'm still taking pics with my camera phone. And let me tell you. It's hard! Not only am I an amateur to begin with, having the right equipment DOES make a world of difference. That being said, please continue reading and now judging the pictures lol]

Starting with breakfast burritos.
What's so April Foolsie about plain breakfast burritos? you ask with your eyebrows furrowed. Well nothing if they really were plain. Unfurrow them eyebrows my friends! because my burritos weren't plain... they contained green eggs. Haha. Ok. Not so original. But it was fun to see my family's reactions to something they just weren't expecting!

For the next part of our April Fools fun...
I put together a little variation of this wacky meal idea.

Instead of having an entire meal, Jon and I decided to do sandwiches. So we both started with two slices of bread. In a cup we put slips of paper with different sandwich fillings. (peanut butter, jam, mayo, mustard, pickles, bananas, honey, pepper, etc.) Each of us drew 3 slips and had to put those fillings together on our sandwiches.
Lucky Jon ended up with something edible. Me on the other hand...
... not so fortunate lol

Jon's: Peanut butter, honey, and turkey lunch meat on toasted white bread
Mine:...shredded chicken, honey, and pickles on soft white bread
Uhg. It was disgusting lol. But fun! :)

Next: Cake in an Egg.

For this lovely little trick, I baked cake INSIDE an egg shell and placed the shell back into a carton. So when my dear daddy went to make us some dessert for after watching General Conference  (which was FABULOUS by the way!), hahaha he ended up cracking a cake shell!

These weren't even that difficult to make! All you need:

about 12 eggs

a cake mix

muffin baking tin

aluminum foil

you can find the directions here!

AND

For the FINALE: meatloaf cupcakes!

Using Pioneer Woman's Recipe for meatloaf with some little tweaks, which you can locate here, these turned out DELICIOUS!! (The tweaks: instead of wrapping the entire loaf in bacon, we put the meat mixture in large cupcake tins and put slices of bacon on top).

After cooking the meatloaf, we used Pioneer Woman's mashed potato recipe (located here) for our "frosting". Oh so goooood!!!

And of course. A cameo appearance by my delicious rolls!

The end result...

A wonderful April Fools Day Dinner :)

I suppose the moral of my story is this...there is no such thing as too much butter. Or don't cast judgement on a holiday that you just don't understand. I think each lesson has its own merits.

The Sky is FALLING!!!

April Fools!

~MollyMarie

You're the Snicker to my Doodle

Here it is. The long awaited "catch-up" post!! Get yourselves ready for two scrumptious recipes!! The lemon-coconut frosting....aaaaaaannnnddddd....SNICKERDOODLES!!! I am so happy for two reasons. First: Sharing these recipes is like sending little bits of joy into a world. Second: I made and ate said recipes :)

This frosting recipe really was a bit of an experiment. I started brainstorming by a typical icing base-powdered sugar and butter. Add honey and milk and a squirt of lemon and you are well on your way. The frosting this way was delicious...but needed something. Coconut, shredded sweetened coconut.

1/2 cup   butter
1    TBS  honey
3    TBS  milk
*combine these ingredients in a suacepan over medium heat. When simmering remove.
2+  cups  powdered sugar
*When contents of saucepan are simmering, remove from heat and sift in powdered sugar.
*Add squirt of lemon to taste
*Add coconut (as much or as little as desired. We put in about a cup)
I found that adding the lemon required adding more powdered sugar to thicken the frosting.



This tasted fantastic over a strawberry cake :)

...
!!!!!!!!
The best cookies deserve the best names. And how can anyone say that "snickerdoodle" is not the funnest and coolest name for a dessert??

Fer realsies though. I LOVE snickerdoodles! If made right, they top chocolate chip AND peanut butter cookies.

Not even joshing you on this one.

I mean, one of my favoritethings to do is make snickerdoodles and sit by a fire. In fact. I think I'll be taking the snickerdoodles I just made and going to sit by the fire with some hot chocolate as soon as I'm done posting! ...well maybe it's a bit warm for that here in sunny San Diego on a March afternoon...but still, don't think I'll be sharing these!!

Snickerdoodles
1       cup           shortening
2                           eggs
1 1/2   cups         granulated sugar
2 3/4    cups        all-purpose flour
1         tsp           baking soda
1/2     tsp           salt
2         tsp           cream of tartar
*cream shortening, sugar, and eggs together
* in a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cream of tartar.
*mix wet and dry mixtures together.
BAKE @ 350°F for 8 min. 

~The baking part is always the tricksssiest part of this cookie. Don't leave them in too long or they'll be too hard and stiff. You might have to experiment a bit to find the perfect timing for your tastebuds :)

Happy snickering to you!
~Molly Marie

Mt. Chocolate Monster

I just avoided cake disaster. And by avoid, I mean Matrix like action maneuvers Oh man. It was bad. I have never really messed up a cake before but I guess when I do things...I go all the way. All or nothing. And this time, it was an all out FAIL!

This cake was for my brother's birthday party. We had invited extended family, so my reputation was on the line. I don't know if anyone realizes how much effort went into getting that DISASTER to look not so DISASTROUS.

Meet...

Mt. Chocolate Monster!!

Chocolate fudge cake, a creamy Peanut Butter-esque filling, about every frosting you can create as an attempt to fix this sucker and Reese's Cups (chopped and whole).

THE STORY:

First: For the first time EVER...the middle of my cake sunk. 

I thought it had finished baking. I had inserted my toothpick and IT CAME OUT CLEAN!! Silly me. My toothpick wasn't long enough to find the patch in the middle bottom that was still a pool of batter. Ugh. So, it sunk. AND I didn't want to put it back in because I was scared of burning it. This is why I HATE baking with chocolate stuff. I can never tell if it's burned or not :/ So i had a sunken-top cake. Fantastic.

But I wasn't too worried. I would just put a little extra frosting to fill in the top and make it appear even. Oh gee. How I wish it had been that simple.

For this cake, since my brother adores Peanut Butter so much, I wanted to incorporate it into the cake. A Peanut Butter filling! Genius. *sigh* Using my fishing line...I made a nice, straight cut (the best cut I've ever done) separating top from bottom. But upon lifting the top off, I discovered not only the pool of batter mentioned above...but that the middle of the tope had not accompanied the sides in removing itself nicely from the bottom. Oh, well. No biggie. And even when the top managed to break itself into four awkward pieces, I wasn't sweating it. 

I continued to fill my cake splendidly and placed the four pieces back on top. Yes, there was still a gap from the removed middle...but I thought "I'll just fill it with more frosting" If you haven't caught on, I view frosting as a cure all for cake mistakes. *stupid* 

EQUALS HERO!!

FROSTING

Now I bet all of you cake experts are asking yourselves when I flip the cake to hold the broken pieces in place. 

I don't.

Not for a while anyways. BUT I continue to frost a thin PB crumb coat...and here's where it get messy. The pieces kept sliding, the cake was ripping and the more frosting I added to attempt to "glue" it together just made it worse and worse. I had frosting pushing the pieces further out, I had frosting in my hair and I had frosting in my mouth a good portion of the time. DISASTER. (there are no pictures of this. I was a bit preoccupied. When saving/destroying a cake, one doesn't usually reach for a camera...or at least I don't haha)

Now, by this time it is 2:00am and I'm staring at the most horrendous chocolate mess. The top is in all reality a warzone of frosting. I have no more chocolate cake mix, no energy to make batter from scratch. I'm tired, frustrated, and sick from all the frosting I've consumed. And so...I go to my mother.

My dear, wise, loving, all-knowing and beautiful mother tells me to flip the cake. Flip it. And that, my lovely readers, is what mothers do best. Give what should be obvious advice to dim-witted blonde children.

I flipped my cake, frosted the top, decorated with Reese's Cups and compared to what it could have been...ended up not so terrible.









So now, I have a cake sitting in a pool of warring frosting stabilizing on four awkward sliding pieces of top layer, and covered with a "ganache" frosting which I experimentally created.

Yup. Many would still consider this ^ the epitomy of a "cake disaster". In fact, this would probably be the picture in the dictionary next to the term...but I consider it slightly less. More like a cake flop. Eh. you'll have to decide an accurate title.

Mt. Chocolate Monster...Death by Chocolate!

My Family's Reaction: I offered this cake unapologetically. I wanted themto think I made it like this on purpose! It's SUPPOSED to be lopsided with bumpy layering and uneven frosting!! It's a volcanoe of chocolate!!! Lol.

Top view :)

AAAAANDDD!! It was a SUCCESS!! They didn't even suspect that the cake wasn't supposed to look or taste like that. I got sooooo many compliments on it! I told you. FROSTING IS THE ANSWER TO EVERYTHING!!!!!!

Reese's crown this epic disaster! 

Mt. Chocolate-Monster-PeanutButterLava-Volcano was a BEAST to create. Happy Birthday Brother!! Enjoy the last cake I EVER attempt to make at 2am in the morning!!

Ah, but what is life? Is it not a testing ground? A time to learn and grow? In the kitchen of life, it's necessary to mess up a few cakes to gain experience for our masterpieces :)
~MollyMarie