OK - I'm skurd!!!!! I have a project due early October. It's a Topsy-Turvy cake. What's topsy turvy? Well - it's like oh, I don't know, The Grandmother of all cakes!!!!!!!! Think tea-party scene in Alice and Wonderland or Dr. Seuss balancing a whole bunch of ill shaped - non-proportionate stuff on a cane - THAT'S a Topsy-Turvy.....when it looks like it's all gonna just tumble and fall!
It's an archiectual conquest so to speak - EEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!! But I'm brave! I can do this. That or I found a crack-pipe somewhere! Can someone please tell me WHY I decided that I wanted to be a pastry chef again, I forget! I'm heading into Ace of Cakes territory - OH MY GAWD!!!!!! Who can make cakes like him?! No one but HIM - that's who! LOL
I realize that I am rambling - so please forgive my rant. But if you hear cries - or see chunks of hair - you'll know - it's me.
As skurd as I am of this latest challenge, I'm also SO very excited to see how it will all turn out. I mean seriously, this is a cake of epic proportion (in my mind anyway). I won't make light of it, it's a challenge. Back in June I made a cake that looked like an ashtray and cigars. That wasn't too difficult, but I also knew after I had done that, that it would open me up to other architectual challenges. Well - here it is! That was a cupcake in comparison! It will take me about a week to complete - yes a week!
The design hasn't been done yet, but sparing you ALL of the details, each component of the project takes significant time. The embellishments MUST be done way in advance so they can dry and the final day will take me about 5 hours to complete - give or take a couple of hours. Fondant has to be dyed and that takes a bit of time to do.
OK - I actually feel better having vented! Thanks for reading :-) Trust me - there WILL be more posts of topsy-turvy rant over the next several weeks. I'm REALLY looking forward to completing this project and I will definetly post pics :-)
Yours covered in fondat!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Too much Chocolate????
Is it possible to have too much chocolate? Depends on who you ask. Most women will say abso-poso-lutely NO! BUT if you ask a baker (ie....me the perfectionist and perpetually nervous), yes. Paarticularly when you add a WHOLE cup too much - LOL.
I'm actually not a chocoholic by any means. I'm admittedly more of a choco-snobo. I'm one of those rare people who doesn't like Oreos and doesn't crave 'The Great American Chocolate Bar'. I like REALLY, REALLY good chocolate; More than eating, I LOVE playing with chocoloate. Something about it's complexities, its many different forms, all the ways it can be used, the different flavors that enhance its depth.
My favorite chocolate to eat thus far is by a guy named Jacques Torres - mrchocolate.com. He owns chocolate shops in NY (Jacques Torres Chocolates). The store on Hudson street (Soho area) is the factory. This dude MAKES HIS OWN CHOCOLATE FROM THE BEANS!!!! They even let you see the process in the Hudson Street store and he's quite often there working. I've been to the store once, didn't see him though - booooooo! I cannot even begin to say how exciting this is for me. I mean come on, making the chocolate FROM the beans and turning it into luscious gloriousness! WHAT a rush!
Back to the question at hand :-). Last night I joined some girlfriends for a get-together. One of our friends is moving back to her home town and we wanted to show her some love. It was my last minute task to bake a cake. So for sake of time, I opted to do cupcakes. Hot Chocolate to be exact. What makes them hot is the bit of cayenne. I know, I know, wierd, right? WRONG Dee-li-cious-ness!!!!! It's got just a bit of kick. In previous versions I've used a carmel-rum icing - YUM-EEEEEEE! Due to my persnickity-ness about chocolate, it's taken me years to find the perfect recipe. I believe I'm just about there with the one I currently use.
So....I get home, get all my ingredients together, measure every thing to the gram, mix the batter and.......hmmmm...why is my batter so thick? Like brownie batter...hmmmmm...let's look at that recipe - what did I do wrong? The recipe said 2/3 cup Cocoa powder...my eyes saw 1 2/3 cup - YIKES!!!!!!!! Fearing a disaster and not having the knowledge to repair it and bring it back from the thickness of it all, I baked a tester - to me it was CRAP! (of course if you ask my Mom, I say that about almost everything and it always turns out fine) It wasn't the right consistency, MUCH too rich, NOT moist enough and just plain yucky! To my boyfriend, it was fine and he said that the cream cheese icing would balance it all out anyway. So I feign my perfectionism and take them to the get-together.
As with most close knit gatherings, we stayed mainly in the kitchen....laughing.....talking and mostly eating. Our friend's leaving was being comforted by our sisterly love and foods that bind us; GREAT mac and cheese, smack yo-mamma cornbread, Jamaican patties and VERY chocolate cupcakes - LOL what could be better!? The cupcakes got devoured and all was better in my world :-) I'm reading Julia Childs book My Life in France and she discusses the idea of never apologizing for food mishaps...things happen - no explanation - they just do...move on! I'm still learning that lesson, but it is honestly soooooo very difficult for a perfectionist. But alas, I'm not perfect - SO moving on - lol. (kind of)
So to answer the question, can you ever have too much chocolate? NO! NEVER! Especially not when you have great friends and family who love you no matter how much you THINK you've debachled something! Chocolate is comforting, exhilierating, good for you (especially dark chocolate and a glass of red wine) and just plain fun!!
I'm actually not a chocoholic by any means. I'm admittedly more of a choco-snobo. I'm one of those rare people who doesn't like Oreos and doesn't crave 'The Great American Chocolate Bar'. I like REALLY, REALLY good chocolate; More than eating, I LOVE playing with chocoloate. Something about it's complexities, its many different forms, all the ways it can be used, the different flavors that enhance its depth.
My favorite chocolate to eat thus far is by a guy named Jacques Torres - mrchocolate.com. He owns chocolate shops in NY (Jacques Torres Chocolates). The store on Hudson street (Soho area) is the factory. This dude MAKES HIS OWN CHOCOLATE FROM THE BEANS!!!! They even let you see the process in the Hudson Street store and he's quite often there working. I've been to the store once, didn't see him though - booooooo! I cannot even begin to say how exciting this is for me. I mean come on, making the chocolate FROM the beans and turning it into luscious gloriousness! WHAT a rush!
Back to the question at hand :-). Last night I joined some girlfriends for a get-together. One of our friends is moving back to her home town and we wanted to show her some love. It was my last minute task to bake a cake. So for sake of time, I opted to do cupcakes. Hot Chocolate to be exact. What makes them hot is the bit of cayenne. I know, I know, wierd, right? WRONG Dee-li-cious-ness!!!!! It's got just a bit of kick. In previous versions I've used a carmel-rum icing - YUM-EEEEEEE! Due to my persnickity-ness about chocolate, it's taken me years to find the perfect recipe. I believe I'm just about there with the one I currently use.
So....I get home, get all my ingredients together, measure every thing to the gram, mix the batter and.......hmmmm...why is my batter so thick? Like brownie batter...hmmmmm...let's look at that recipe - what did I do wrong? The recipe said 2/3 cup Cocoa powder...my eyes saw 1 2/3 cup - YIKES!!!!!!!! Fearing a disaster and not having the knowledge to repair it and bring it back from the thickness of it all, I baked a tester - to me it was CRAP! (of course if you ask my Mom, I say that about almost everything and it always turns out fine) It wasn't the right consistency, MUCH too rich, NOT moist enough and just plain yucky! To my boyfriend, it was fine and he said that the cream cheese icing would balance it all out anyway. So I feign my perfectionism and take them to the get-together.
As with most close knit gatherings, we stayed mainly in the kitchen....laughing.....talking and mostly eating. Our friend's leaving was being comforted by our sisterly love and foods that bind us; GREAT mac and cheese, smack yo-mamma cornbread, Jamaican patties and VERY chocolate cupcakes - LOL what could be better!? The cupcakes got devoured and all was better in my world :-) I'm reading Julia Childs book My Life in France and she discusses the idea of never apologizing for food mishaps...things happen - no explanation - they just do...move on! I'm still learning that lesson, but it is honestly soooooo very difficult for a perfectionist. But alas, I'm not perfect - SO moving on - lol. (kind of)
So to answer the question, can you ever have too much chocolate? NO! NEVER! Especially not when you have great friends and family who love you no matter how much you THINK you've debachled something! Chocolate is comforting, exhilierating, good for you (especially dark chocolate and a glass of red wine) and just plain fun!!
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Food as I see (or taste) it :-)
My first post! How exciting! Making my thoughts and opinions publicly known - interesting.
Well - this blog will be as you may have guessed - is about my experiences with food! The good, bad and down right YUCK!
Concurrent with this blog, is my book and anxts about starting my own business. Do I have a business plan, not yet. But what I REALLY want to do is talk about food, make food, teach people about food and travel......about food :-)
For me, cooking and baking is a comfort, an art, a joy, sometimes frustration, but ALWAYS a way of showing love. I did not (unfortunately) get to hang on my matriarchs' apron strings, but during those times we were together, oh how I wish I could've stopped time. My first and last box cake was when I was 14. And I NEVER looked back.
I've ALWAYS been fascinated by the process of doing things. Not only with food, but life. No matter the frustation or pain in doing so, there is such a relief in knowing that I did something. I created it or I took it on head on. When that thing whatever it is, is completed, I...am....proud. In the vein of cooking/baking, I get to take something from it's very basics and attempt to make it more glorious, show off it's assests if you will.
This, the baking of a cake or cooking thanksgiving dinners, is how I show and a way I experience love.
It's really interesting how I came to that realization, I didn't always know that about myself. I was dating someone and one day made his favorite dinner (this was not the first time I cooked for someone, but the most poignant). I LITTERALLY worked and agonized all day on the meal. The meatloaf (which I used 3 different meats), the mashed potatoes, the vegetables AND the pecan pie. Now, I am SEVERLY allergic to all nuts, can't have 'em...they'll kill me. But because it was his favorite, I had no quoms about baking it. I just wanted everything to be perfect for him and I made enough food for him to have lunch for a week. Well, when he got to my place, dinner wasn't ready yet...he complained. When we finally did sit to eat.....he complained. He asked me why I'd made so much and I explained that I was making enough for him to have lunch for a week. When I gave him the pie.....he complained. He asked why I had made him alll that pie. He NEVER ONCE said Thank You. I....WAS.....HEART-BROKEN! I just wanted to curl up and cry.
After we broke up (much too long after that), I realized that this was a love language for me. I was exposing my heart and he rejected my love. It was a VERY valuable, yet completely hurtful experience. BUT knowing that about myself has given me so much power. I'm glad to say that I have someone now who not only accepts this foodie thing about me, but more than anyone else (except my parents) knows that it is my passion. Being in the kitchen for and with him is a true joy and I am so very blessed!
I say all of that to say, that I don't believe I'm the only one who feels that way or had that experience. Cooking is naturally nurturing and when it's rejected, it can be un-bearingly painful. I hope through these posts, you (whoever you are) will come to love or love again....food. Love food in all of it's beauty.
Food is as much cultural and familial as it is personal. We all have our ways of eating and experiencing food. For some it's a comfort and for others, it's merely a means to an end. Whereever people are on this pendulum, I am so very glad to be a conduit ;-)
Thank you sooo very much for taking the time to read my blog, I realize it is an investment.
In blogs to come, look forward to my own version of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, recipes success and disasters and of course - pictures and a video now and then.
HAPPY FOODING!!!!!!!
-Kimberly
Well - this blog will be as you may have guessed - is about my experiences with food! The good, bad and down right YUCK!
Concurrent with this blog, is my book and anxts about starting my own business. Do I have a business plan, not yet. But what I REALLY want to do is talk about food, make food, teach people about food and travel......about food :-)
For me, cooking and baking is a comfort, an art, a joy, sometimes frustration, but ALWAYS a way of showing love. I did not (unfortunately) get to hang on my matriarchs' apron strings, but during those times we were together, oh how I wish I could've stopped time. My first and last box cake was when I was 14. And I NEVER looked back.
I've ALWAYS been fascinated by the process of doing things. Not only with food, but life. No matter the frustation or pain in doing so, there is such a relief in knowing that I did something. I created it or I took it on head on. When that thing whatever it is, is completed, I...am....proud. In the vein of cooking/baking, I get to take something from it's very basics and attempt to make it more glorious, show off it's assests if you will.
This, the baking of a cake or cooking thanksgiving dinners, is how I show and a way I experience love.
It's really interesting how I came to that realization, I didn't always know that about myself. I was dating someone and one day made his favorite dinner (this was not the first time I cooked for someone, but the most poignant). I LITTERALLY worked and agonized all day on the meal. The meatloaf (which I used 3 different meats), the mashed potatoes, the vegetables AND the pecan pie. Now, I am SEVERLY allergic to all nuts, can't have 'em...they'll kill me. But because it was his favorite, I had no quoms about baking it. I just wanted everything to be perfect for him and I made enough food for him to have lunch for a week. Well, when he got to my place, dinner wasn't ready yet...he complained. When we finally did sit to eat.....he complained. He asked me why I'd made so much and I explained that I was making enough for him to have lunch for a week. When I gave him the pie.....he complained. He asked why I had made him alll that pie. He NEVER ONCE said Thank You. I....WAS.....HEART-BROKEN! I just wanted to curl up and cry.
After we broke up (much too long after that), I realized that this was a love language for me. I was exposing my heart and he rejected my love. It was a VERY valuable, yet completely hurtful experience. BUT knowing that about myself has given me so much power. I'm glad to say that I have someone now who not only accepts this foodie thing about me, but more than anyone else (except my parents) knows that it is my passion. Being in the kitchen for and with him is a true joy and I am so very blessed!
I say all of that to say, that I don't believe I'm the only one who feels that way or had that experience. Cooking is naturally nurturing and when it's rejected, it can be un-bearingly painful. I hope through these posts, you (whoever you are) will come to love or love again....food. Love food in all of it's beauty.
Food is as much cultural and familial as it is personal. We all have our ways of eating and experiencing food. For some it's a comfort and for others, it's merely a means to an end. Whereever people are on this pendulum, I am so very glad to be a conduit ;-)
Thank you sooo very much for taking the time to read my blog, I realize it is an investment.
In blogs to come, look forward to my own version of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, recipes success and disasters and of course - pictures and a video now and then.
HAPPY FOODING!!!!!!!
-Kimberly
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