Happy Easter

A Home for Sugar and Meringue?

I've talked before about my need to find a kitchen space that I can license so that I can sell and market my cookies and cupcakes legally. This has been a huge obstacle. Kitchens aren't easy to find and they don't come cheap. However, without a kitchen, I can't really market my baked goods and I feel like some opportunities could pass me by, 'cause I'm just not set-up like I need to be.

My Options:

1. Rent something- However, kitchen space for rent is almost non-existant in my area.The few places I do know of that might be available would cost an arm and a leg. Even if I quit my job and baked all day every day, I probably couldn't get enough cookies made to pay the rent let alone make a living. I may be able to split the rent with another baker but I'm not too crazy about sharing.

2. Build something- My husband knows how to build things. He's an HVAC guy so he knows how to do the heat, air, electrical and plumbing too. We might even be able to get some lumber from his folks (they tore down an old barn). I've found some adorable plans for some tiny cottages online. Problems… finding the time to build something and finding a place to build something. Finding an inexpensive lot with no covenents might be difficult.

3. Buy something- There's a sweet little house on the market and it's affordably priced. It would cost the same or less than building something and the payments would be significantly less than rent. I know the people who are selling it. They're trustworthy. I could try the cookie thing for a couple of years, if it doesn't work, sell the place and probably recoup most of the cost or rent it out. Problems… This place is affordable because it's 10 miles out in the country in the middle of a run-down neighborhood. Lots of ramshackle houses and run down mobile homes. Financing… do I try to get a small business loan, refinance our house and add this one on, find a grant? I can't tell you how much time I've spent searching for a grant to apply for. My dad has written and recieved many grants for his job so he's been looking too and we're just not finding anything. By the time I figure out a way to pay for this house, it will probalby be gone.

What to do?

Anyway… my favorite junk shop had all their books 1/2 off this weekend and I got a whole bunch of great vintage cookbooks for my etsy shop plus a few other fun things. Aren't those little girl candles sweet? I also got a really cool old metal cabinet for $25. For that price, I couldn't let it go, but honestly, I have no where to put it. (I need to buy another house!)

We were expecting a blizzard this weekend so I prepared by baking cookies… of course. I pulled out my 1963 copy of Betty Crocker's Cooky Book and made cream cookies. They're shown in the mosaic above.

Cookies by Candlelight

I'm not much of an environmentalist. The environment (and my effect on it) is just one of about a million things I know I should pay more attention to. However… we did celebrate "Earth Hour". It was a great excuse to make everyone turn everything off and play cards with me. We lit some candles, played some UNO and ate some of my daughter's fresh baked homemade chocolate chip cookies. It was heavenly.

Anyway… since I'm a cookie blogger, not an environmental blogger… let's talk chocolate chip cookies.

I know the New York Times covered this topic way back in July. Chocolate Chip Cookies are old news. But they're a current topic at my house. My daughter has been baking them almost weekly. She makes a big batch, freezes the dough and whenever her friends come over she serves them a batch of fresh baked cookies. She uses the recipe I've carefully developed through the years.

Here's my Recipe:

3/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. margarine
1/2 c. shortening
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 egg
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 bag of milk chocolate chips

Beat brown sugar, sugar, butter, margarine and shortening until fluffy. Add vanilla and egg, blend well. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Chill dough. (1-36 hours, whatever fits your schedule). Use a cookie scoop to drop on cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for about 8 min.

When I was a kid I remember going to a friend's house and spending the whole afternoon playing in the hay loft in their barn. They had a rope tied to the rafters and we'd swing from it and then drop into a big pile of loose hay. Then we made forts and tunnels out of the haybales. When we finally decided to go inside, her mom presented us with a big plate of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. It was such a fun day, and still one of my favorite childhood memories. Maybe that's why I'm such a fan of chocolate chip cookies.

How to Fake Cupcakes

This tutorial was posted on my .mac account which I've allowed to expire so, I'm re-posting it here. Enjoy and please let me know if I need to clarify anything.

You will need…

• an old muffin pan
• cupcake liners
• plaster of paris
• toothpicks
• 3-inch styrofoam balls
• hot glue
• paper clay
• sand paper
• acrylic paint in desired cake and frosting colors
• lightweight spackling for frosting (1 1/2 - 2 cups per color)
• disposable pastry bags
• # 1 M decorating tip
• cupcake toppers/decorations (optional)

1. Put cupcake liners in pan. Mix plaster of paris following directions on box (I mixed 3 cups plaster with 1 1/2 cups water and had enough for 7 cupcakes). Fill lined cupcake pan with mixed plaster of paris. As plaster sets, place a toothpick in the middle.
2. Cut 3" styrofoam ball in half
3. Pierce the center of the ball with the toothpick you inserted in the base.
   Take the ball off the toothpick and squirt hot glue in the hole created by the toothpick. Put the ball back on the toothpick/bottom.
4. Cover the stryofoam with a thin & smooth coat of Paperclay. Allow the clay to dry thoroughly.
5. Sand
6. Paint dark brown or desired color
7. Put about 1 1/2 cups of spackling in a bowl and add acrylic paint to make it the desired color.
8. Stir
9. Place spackling in a disposable pastry bag and pipe on cupcake as desired (I used a # 1M tip and spiraled the icing on starting on the outside and working my way in). WASH BOWL, SPOON, DECORATING TIP, ETC. IMMEDIATELY!!
10. Adorn cupcake as desired and allow to dry
    

Polka-Dot Cake

This weekend we had a family celebration for my Grandpa and mom's birthdays and I was in charge of bringing the cake.

I'm a confident and proud cookie and cupcake maker but cakes…

Well… I'm not so good with cake.

It's always one of the first questions people ask when they see my cookies/cupcakes. "Do you make cakes?"

no

Honestly… I'm just not all that interested in cake decorating. Maybe it's because there's usually only one cake and one chance to get it right. If you screw up on a cookie or cupcake it's no big deal. I don't know… I'm just not a cake decorator.



Anyway… for the birthday thing, I thought I would just make cupcakes. Then, my son & I stopped at the candy shop when we were at the mall yesterday and I saw these sprinkled chocolates. I remembered seeing this polka -dot cake in one of my vintage Betty Crocker cookbooks and I just had to give it a try.



I tried to show the cake at its best angle for this photo but, it was really a disaster. The top layer slid over, the frosting ran, the sprinkles bled… the only good thing about it was the taste. Thank goodness I went ahead and made the cupcakes too. Saved my pride a little bit.