buttercream

Operation Wedding Cake…

July 21, 2012 by Peabody · 21 Comments

Today I started what I am calling Operation Wedding Cake. Many a person asks me to make them a wedding cake. I laugh. They look puzzled. I tell them I can’t decorate a cake. They don’t believe me. I then ask them if they have ever eaten a layer cake that I have made. And no one can really say that they have. Because I don’t make them often and if I do it’s never full size. I can’t frost. I can frost cupcakes just fine because there is a piping bag to help. But cake. Cake is my nemesis. I feel so bad about the fact that I can’t help people out (and I hate disappointing people) so I decide to start Operation Wedding Cake. I have zero desire to go into the wedding cake world. But I would love to help my friends out who are on a tight budget and ask me to make a cake for them. So I am giving myself a year to practice cakes. The first thing I learned is that I need proper tools which I don’t have. I needed cake rounds and I didn’t have those just a square … [Read more...]

Filed Under: cake, Cookbook Review, Operation Wedding Cake · Tagged With: buttercream, cake, Operation Wedding Cake

The secret life of buttercream…

June 12, 2012 by Peabody · 70 Comments

There is a saying about people live three lives: their public life, their private life, and their secret life. I’m here to talk about adding a subclass to the public life: their Facebook/Pinterest life. I am not immune to this at all. I mean if people only followed me on Pinterest they would have expected me to show up to the conference in a Burberry trench coat and Louboutin heels. But what they got was a tennis shoe wearing gal dressed out in jeans and a hoodie…and oh yeah an Optimus Prime t-shirt (I’m more than meets the eye :P ). I’m not really talking about the surface stuff. Surely I don’t believe that people who pin the 400 square foot laundry room with miles of shelves and a sink in it are planning a redo of their home anytime soon to add that. They just WISH they had that. Who doesn’t? Well, really if we are wishing, I wish to have someone just come do my laundry…screw having a nice laundry room. :D I’m talking more about the people who post stuff about … [Read more...]

Filed Under: caramel, chocolate, Frosting · Tagged With: buttercream, caramel, chocolate

Lucky number 7….

June 11, 2012 by Peabody · 88 Comments

Happy Birthday little blog! Or anniversary I can never really tell which it is. Pick one I guess and go with that. 7 years ago today I decided my new hobby should be food blogging. I’m freshly back from BlogHerFood12 and can tell you that nothing makes you know how insignificant you are in the blog world like going to a food bloggers conference these days. Wow. Hundreds and hundreds of people with what seems to be two things as their objectives: how do I get a cookbook deal and how to get sponsors. I however was there to meet people. Two years ago when I went to IFBC here in Seattle it seemed like more people were there to meet other bloggers. Now it seemed like people just consider other bloggers competition. Let me tell you folks I am in competition with no one. I write my blog for me. If others think it is good and want to read it all the better. :) I felt at times as if I was in a really bad speed dating conference. All these people who were *dying to meet me* talked to me … [Read more...]

Filed Under: baked goods, cake, Fun Food · Tagged With: bars, Blog Birthday, buttercream, cake, Funfetti

Spending what you don’t have…

May 23, 2011 by Peabody · 37 Comments

I have a couple of people in my life I would like to run my hand across their face and slap some sense into them (I’m sure you do as well). But right now I mostly want to slap the people I know who are living above their means but then are complaining all the time that they don’t have the money to cover things…you know like rent. Even though as a general rule I don’t like summer and hot weather, I really don’t want it right now. Know why? I don’t have any shorts that fit. All the ones from last summer are a size smaller. Didn’t know I would be back on prednisone this last year and those are the breaks. Go buy some right? Don’t have anything in the budget to do that. Then my friends pipe in with just get a couple cheap pairs at Old Navy. Um, what part of not in budget do you not get? Even if they are $15 a pop, and I buy two pair, that’s $30…that I don’t have. Stop justify buying stuff because it was on sale. For the record last year’s swimsuit cost me … [Read more...]

Filed Under: baked goods, cupcakes, fruit · Tagged With: Blackberries, buttercream, cupcakes, lime