Christening Cupcakes for a Sweet Girl

I love doing cakes for repeat customers. It's so special to get to celebrate major events in their lives by making milestone cakes for them.


A year ago I made a Golf Theme Groom's cake for this couple and this weekend, Christening cupcakes for their new baby girl. Congratulations to the new and very happy family!

Purple & Silver Bridal Shower Cupcake Tree & Monogram Cookies

Bridal Showers are always so much fun. All the excitement and frill of a wedding without the stress. And this was a sweet order for me since I babysat for the bride when she was a child... Amazing how quickly time flies and how easily others can make us feel old just by celebrating major events in their own lives.


Congratulations Stephanie!

Let it Snow..... Chocolate Cutout Snowflake Cookies...

Projects that just sort of happen and aren't planned out are sometimes the most fun. Especially where children are involved. After all the baking during the holiday season, we actually had some cookie dough left over! So while working on a cookie project for a client, I let my kids go to town with the leftover Christmas cookie dough.


The kids got to eat half the cookies they cut out and since they did such a fabulous job on their cutouts, I snagged the remaining half for a dinner party we are having this weekend for my parents. (Did I mention it's supposed to snow again soon! YEAH!!) The most difficult part of this whole process was trying to keep my children from eating all the dough (that tastes much like the chocolate cookie part of an Oreo) before we could bake the cookies. But the end result was worth it and these amazingly simple cookies are striking and tasty!




I used my Double Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe. (Not the healthier one)

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees

1 cp butter
1 pkg Chocolate Pudding
3/4 cp Sugar
3/4 cp Brown Sugar
2 tsp Vanilla

Combine the above ingredients and mix.

2 Eggs(room temperature)

Add Eggs and mix

2 cps. All Purpose Flour
2/3 cp. Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa Powder
3/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/4 tsp Salt

Combine these ingredients in a separate bowl and whisk together lightly to incorporate. Then gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients just until they are thoroughly combined. Do Not Over Mix.

Chill for at least 4 hours. Then roll between two sheets of parchment paper and cut shapes. Bake on parchment lined cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 6 - 12 minutes depending on the size of the cookie. These Snowflakes are less than 2" so they only took about 6 minutes to bake.

Decorate with Royal Icing, a single Silver Dragee, and Sanding Sugar.



Happy Baking!!!

A moment in the spotlight on AllRecipes.com

It's silliness I know but that doesn't change the fact that I'm excited and giddy! My Marshmallow Melted Snowman Cookie with a link to the tutorial is currently on the home page of AllRecipes.com! A special thank you to EVERYONE for helping make this cookie what is! And a special thank you to Meaghan Mountford for her ingenious idea!

Merry Christmas!!!!

Wrapping up. My final cake of 2010.

Another melting centerpiece candle cake. I have to admit I really love making these cakes. There's something about mimicking wax with chocolate that is fun and very creative.

Merry Christmas and Have a Safe and Happy Holiday!

To see the Candle Cake Tutorial, visit this LINK.

A story about a little "Crunch".

Tradition had always been that on Black Friday, I'd spend the whole day making my Christmas Candies. I made Turtles, my mom's version of a thin mint, chocolate covered raisins (my husband's favorite), almond bark, toffee, truffles, peanut butter cups, etc. etc. etc. Every year the box evolved a little and I was always on the lookout for new ideas. A few years earlier I'd had a product that was delightful but no longer available. So...


I started researching and soon came up with a "test" recipe I could try. Thankfully with a little tweaking Truly Custom Crunch was born and from that point on, it was a staple in my holiday candy packages.

Then the recipe requests started. "But what will I give you for Christmas?", was always my reply. The next question kind of surprised me. They started asking me to sell it to them since I wouldn't share my recipe, because they wanted to give it to their friends and family as well.


So what is it you ask? It's my special toffee caramel recipe cooked "just so" and then poured over pecans, almonds, and popcorn, after which it is coated with a rich dark chocolate drizzle. It's a wonderful blend of salty sweet with a touch of chocolate. The nuts add an extra burst of texture and flavor, the popcorn is perfectly crisp, and it truly does melt in your mouth!


Curious what people have to say about Truly Custom Crunch? You can read customer reviews HERE.

And although we can't get anymore orders out before Christmas, it's not too late to order for your New Year's Eve parties!

Meet Meaghan and Mr. Melty!

Back in the winter of 2008 I saw a cookie on the Cake Central Website (Mr. Melty above) and fell in love. true to form, if I see something I like, I use it as a launch pad for creativity.

So, using what I saw as inspiration, made those cookies and brought them to Christmas parties and gave them out to my nieces and nephews for Christmas. I used a marshmallow because a ball of fondant didn't sound appetizing to me but I could just picture kids eating the marshmallow off the top of the cookie. I did post pictures of them on my blog, but they weren't all that impressive and nobody really paid any attention.
Fast forward to 2009 and I decided to make those cookies again. They turned out soooo cute this time and when I posted them, there was quite a fuss. Everyone wanted to know how I got the marshmallow on and made it look like it was also melting. After receiving an over abundance of e-mails, private messages, and comments, I decided that rather than sending one message at a time explaining the process, it would be easier to put together a tutorial showing how I made them.

It took off and my marshmallow headed snowman cookie has gone bonkers all over the internet. BUT if you will remember, I mentioned at the very beginning that I originally saw a cookie that inspired all of this. At the time, I was not aware who the creator was, that she had a blog, or that she had a tutorial for the original. Had I known all of that, I may have handled things differently.

When I was made aware, I made sure to give her credit but I get the feeling that nobody really reads that part of the tutorial because the comments keep coming back about "how clever" I am. Maybe you are all referring to the marshmallow... But I really think that it's important for you to recognize that I'm not really all that clever. *wink*

Meet Meaghan...

...of The Decorated Cookie. Your Mr. Melty was ingenious! Such an adorably clever idea and one that has created a most adorable cookie craze. I have never had a cookie or treat strike a creative chord in me like he did. In fact, I get the impression that there are LOTS of ladies out there that feel the same way I do. So thank you for giving me the desire to whip out the royal icing and have some winter cookie fun.

Chewy Cherry, Walnut, Chocolate Chip Cookie...

As if I don't have enough things happening in my kitchen right now, I had to test a recipe that's been playing in my mind for a while. Lately I've noticed that I have been craving more complex flavors and textures. Not sure if that is a sign of my age or the broadening of my horizons, but either way, I'm stretching myself.

I have a basic chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe that I've tweaked to my version of perfection. To make it even better, I added Walnuts and Dried Cherries. In excess!!! I promise, you need to add LOTS of hunks of yumminess to make this a "gourmet" cookie.

I could only fit 8 on a cookie sheet at a time and I rolled them like meatballs. And I'm not kidding you, there were not little meatballs! Yea... we've already determined I like my sweets! Whatever you do, don't give me a cookie that's gone in 2 bites!

So here it is! My recipe for a YUMMY spin on a Chocolate Chip Cookie. These delicious cookies will grace the treat boxes I'm handing out to family and friends this year.

Happy Baking!


Chewy Cherry, Walnut, Chocolate Chip Cookies
By: Stacey Hill, Truly Custom Cakery, LLC

Ingredients:

* 4 1/2 cups bread flour
(I use bread flour for a chewier cookie due to the high gluten content)
* 2 teaspoons baking soda
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* ½ teaspoon of salt
* 2 cups butter, softened
* 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
* 1/2 cup white sugar
* 2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
* 4 eggs
* 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
* 4 cups semisweet chocolate chips
* 2 cups of dried cherries
* 4 cups chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a large bowl, combine the flour and baking soda, baking powder, and salt then set aside.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the instant pudding mix until blended. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips, cherries, and nuts. I roll big balls of cookie dough to meatball sizes and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

3. Bake for 12 - 16 minutes (depending on size) in the preheated oven. Edges should be lightly golden brown. DO NOT OVERBAKE or you will not have a chewy cookie!

Centerpiece Melted Candle Cake Tutorial is UP AND RUNNING!!!

Here it is, the tutorial you've been waiting for! The Centerpiece Melted Candle Cake Tutorial! Happy Baking!!!!

http://www.trulycustomcakery.com/tutorials/31.html

Candle Cake Tutorial

How would you like to be able to make this cake as a centerpiece for your holiday table? There are no special tools involved, no fondant, and no previous cake decorating experience necessary.

The tutorial should be up on the website tomorrow! Happy Baking!

Christmas Candle Cake

Candle Cakes are such a great way to decorate with your dessert. And the possibilities are endless. A tutorial on how to make them is coming soon so stay tuned!

This particular cake was made for my display at Taste of Willow Grove. It was the perfect topper for my Sample Tree. Oh... and did I mention that my display won 1st Place and a gift certificate to Kremp's Florist! Yippie!

Calling all Bloggers, Webbies, Foodies, and Big Shots!

Do you like getting stuff for FREE? Do you like getting YUMMY stuff for FREE? Do you have an online presence? Do you have a following? Do you get in front of lots of people on a regular basis who listen to what you have to say?
If so, then I would love to hear from you! I have something that I'd love to send you 100% FREE of charge. BUT in return, I need you to use your outlets to share your review/feedback/thoughts on the product.

If you are interested, please send an e-mail to Stacey@trulycustomcakery.com with your name, blog/website/outlet, address, and any other information that might help me decide why I should share with you!

I'll e-mail you information on the product I'm going to share and we can decide together if this is a good fit. There is NO compensation associated with this offer. This is solely a product being shared in return for feedback. We reserve the right to choose who will participate as not all requests will be honored.

I look forward to hearing from you!