It just so happened that one week after the Tiramisu Black Forest Cake, I got another birthday sweet request. This time instead of cake I was asked to make mini pies. The birthday boy was more of a pie person and the party was going to be held at a Wii game room, so it seemed smart to make everything easily accessible. To be honest, this was the first time that I made pie with a real crust. Not that graham cracker/oreo crumble crust business, but the real deal with pâte brisée. I’ve always been intimidated by pâte brisée that I think I avoided any and all recipes that called for a flaky pie crust. However, instead of feeling fright, I was surprisingly happy to stand up to the challenge. It was sort of refreshing not coming up with any more excuses. ”Easy as pie,” people say, there must be some truth to that!
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Tags: birthday, mini, pate brisee, pecan, pies, pumpkin
January 31 2010 | Dessert and Pies and Tarts and Recipe and Thoughts | 4 Comments »
Even since it has been made known that I love to bake I have been getting a few birthday cake requests. I am by no means a professional (yet!) and my skills quite limited that I was shocked that someone would ask me to perform such a task! However, I felt very flattered and was most of all excited to have the opportunity to play-ette the role of “baker” to a “client.” I had so much fun planning and researching recipes that I think I probably enjoyed making the cake more than everyone who ended up eating it.
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Tags: birthday, black forest, Cake, cherries, chocolate, genoise, rum, tiramisu
January 26 2010 | Cake and Dessert and Thoughts | 11 Comments »
Happy New Year! Sorry to have slipped away for so long. I really have no excuse but that I unconsciously decided to take a little vacation from cyber-land. However, I’m back and ready to take on the blogging world once again! Although I’ve been absent from Jessica’s Dinner Party for (gasp!) over a month, I’ve actually been pretty busy in the kitchen. The cookie boxes were a success. Despite all the setbacks, I was able to give a box to everyone on my Christmas list and possibly a few more. I do think I’ll make cookie boxes again, but I don’t think it’ll happen annually. I knew it would be a challenge, but the time commitment and stress level were a bit overwhelming at certain times. However, overall I enjoyed the whole experience and next time I will know exactly what I’m getting myself into.
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January 18 2010 | Thoughts | 10 Comments »
It’s been a bit quiet around here, but I haven’t forgotten about this little space! I’ve been baking like a mad woman for a little cookie project I decided to undertake for the holidays. I’m making cookie gift boxes to give as presents and to hand out as favors at various parties. It’s been a lot of fun trying out new recipes, as well as disastrous. I seriously thought I was cursed by the cookie gods, because everything I baked was either too difficult to work with, ugly, or ruined. Luckily, my frustrations didn’t keep me from trying harder, because I did find a few solutions and good recipes that I think are keepers for the years to come.
Instead of a recipe, I thought I’d post a series of photographs showing my failures and mistakes. This is for those who have become discouraged, exhausted, angry, and frustrated, or are in any other emotional turmoil because of baking. Feel encouraged! Holiday baking is so easy feat!
Langues de chat, more like blobs de chat.
Does anyone else find Dorie Greenspan’s shortbread extremely difficult to handle?! Am I the ONE person in the whole world that just can’t follow Dorie??? continue reading »
Tags: christmas, Cookies, holiday
December 16 2009 | Thoughts | 9 Comments »
I knew home baking was starting to become popular in Korea, but I had no idea it had become such a big trend. I realized this when I went to a bookstore last week and found dozens and dozens of books devoted to the art of baking. Everything from cutesy cupcake books to healthy vegan alternatives, I was really surprised and delighted to find such a large variety. I was tempted to buy a few of them, but I decided to fight my book glutton instinct and just buy one.
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Tags: vanilla hazelnut pound cake tea
December 07 2009 | Cake and Dessert and Recipe and Thoughts | 10 Comments »
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