Demons in the Kitchen

So, you know how sometimes you just don't have anything new to share on your blog about baking because pretty much everything you've tried lately as ended up like this:

Or this...

Or this???

Yeah, so, I call that demons in the kitchen. And that's what's going on lately around here.

Even though I did succeed with this:

The icing still isn't right enough for me to share it with you.
But I'm still working. I have a few more ideas coming soon... hopefully.

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Egg White Royal Icing Recipe

Royal Icing is the icing that dries hard for cookie decorating. I usually make my Royal Icing with Meringue Powder. But sometimes I'll get questions about making royal icing with egg whites instead of the powdered version.

So, I made some with egg whites for these gingerbread houses. It's really quite easy, you just want to be sure you don't use the egg whites raw, to avoid any potential for food poisoning.

What You Need
3-4 egg whites (about 1/2 cup)
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
4-5 cups powdered sugar

Fireworks Cookies - (If you squint)

You know, sometimes, things turn out great. Just like you plan. Perfect...

And sometimes they don't.

I don't hate the cookies, they just didn't turn out quite as well as the last time I made firework cookies:

Hearts-Inside Cake... Or Not

After I had so much fun learning how to make the Polka Dot Cake...

I decided that I wanted to try it with hearts for Valentine's Day. It seemed so simple... and really, the hearts-inside part actually turned out pretty well...

It's just the rest of the execution that failed... miserably.
I'm hoping to give the hearts - or maybe another shape - another chance some time soon. But, if you want to try it yourself... and certainly get better results... let me tell you what worked, and what decidedly did NOT.

How NOT To Make a Polka Dot Cake (and How-To)

Oh, Pinterest... you evil, evil website, you.

I saw a cake like this polka dot one on Pinterest from a blog called Once Upon a Pedestal. It's beautiful, and an awesome idea.

However, she uses a cake pop pan to make the polka dots. I don't have one of those, and the last thing in the world that I need is another cake pan! So, I decided to try some other options.

It took me four cakes, and five days, but I finally got it! (Well, mostly.)

Cake Trial #1
The mini-cupcake pan

I thought, oh, sure, I will just pop some multi-colored mini-cupcakes into the batter... they're round, it will be perfect.
Not. So. Much.

Gingersnap 'Whoopie Pies'

Whatever you do, if you have some gingersnaps, and a bit of leftover Swiss Meringue Buttercream icing in say, vanilla or ooooh... caramel...
Whatever you do... DO NOT, under any circumstances, spread a little of that buttery yumminess between two gingersnaps... do NOT refrigerate them for 10-15 minutes.

Then, whatever you do, do not eat them!

.... Okay, do it! Just don't blame me when you gain five pounds... in one sitting.

Merry Christmas!

Click the Links Below to See:
Gingersnap Cookie Recipe
Vanilla Swiss Meringue Buttercream Recipe
Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream Recipe

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Easy Homemade Caramel Sauce {Recipe}

I have always been intimidated by anything related to caramel and fudge making.
There. I said it.
Candy making... it scares me.

But I love, love, love this Caramel Buttercream Icing. And I really wanted to get the caramel sauce going better for it. The times I've made it, I've struggled, and not done so well on the sauce.

So, I asked some friends who've touted their caramel-making abilities to me... and consulted Chef Google. I failed... again... but then... I succeeded, and now, I think I can share some of that success with you!

What You Need:
2 cups sugar (not brown sugar or natural sugar)
1/3 cup water
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter - at room temperature
1 cup heavy cream - at room temperature
Helpful equipment:
Candy or Instant Read Thermometer
Wire Whisk
Silicone Spatula or heatproof spoon

Chocolate-Vanilla Tuxedo Cheesecake

Sometimes, things don't turn out as you'd planned. This cheesecake is a perfect example.
But I was able to take a very imperfect dessert, and turn it into deliciousness, even if it wasn't as pretty as I'd hoped.

What You Need:
For the Crust:
2 pkgs graham crackers (crushed)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2-3 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1/4 cup butter, melted
For the Cheesecake:
4- 8oz. bricks of cream cheese (at room temperature)
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 whole eggs plus one egg yolk
1-2 Tbsp. vanilla
1 cup sour cream
For the Chocolate Topping:
4 oz. dark chocolate
4 oz. (1/2 cup) heavy cream

Cake Decorating Should Not Be Intimidating

I hear so often from students, friends, even my mother-in-law...
"I was intimidated by..." fondant, swiss meringue buttercream, ganache, making cake pops... "so I never tried it."

Don't be intimidated! I know, easy for me to say, I do this every week. (Definitely not every day.) But you have to try. Most of the time, you'll be surprised by how great things turn out.

Here's the truth:
- It always looks better to everyone else than you think it does!
- You have to mess it up in every way before you get it "just right."
- You'll never get it right if you never try!

Why Do Cakes Fall?

I know that there are a zillion answers to this question, but for me, the answer is always the same.

You are not patient, Beki! Stop checking on your cake 15 minutes before it is ever done! You know this cake takes an hour to bake. Why are you checking it at 45 minutes?!

From my experience, taking the cake out-- or checking it-- too early is the biggest reasons that cakes fall, sink, dip, or cave-in. When you open the oven before the cake is set enough, you change the temperature too much, and it falls. It doesn't help that I not only open the oven, but pull the rack out a little, then poke the cake with a toothpick or cake tester.

I've found that I'm worse about it with dark-colored cakes: Banana Cake, Pumpkin Cake, Chocolate Cake. I think because they are already dark, I can't tell just by peeking through the window of the oven if they're getting close to done. And the banana cake always bakes dark on the outside. It's just how the cake works. You'd think after making it a zillion times, I would know this!

Thankfully, all hope is not lost if your cake falls. You can still make a great dessert out of it.

"Icing-tastrophy" or How to Save Separated Icing

I may not have admitted to the world yet that I do, indeed, love Swiss Meringue Buttercream Icing... just like everyone said that I would.

I love it because of how many different flavors you can make it. So far, I've done vanilla, chocolate, caramel, pineapple, coconut, and my favorite, strawberry.

However, re-using the icing can be a challenge. Once you refrigerate it, to reconstitute it, you have to whip it again. BUT you have to make sure it's at the right temperature to bring it back to life. If you don't... you get this:

Soupy, separated, mess.

March Madness Cookies - My Bracket

Update 3/16:
I hereby quit the bracket-guessing-game. It's a sad, sad day in Tiger Country. 

Here it is:

I'm not going to lie... I did choose a few teams simply based on how easy or hard it was to write their name in icing.

And my alma mater may have a little influence on how I made my other choices.