Oh, Macaron!

Alas, the gods did not smile on me in the beginning of my epic. My macaron adventures have been both exciting and tragic, a tale of great joy and despair, however, I do believe my days of frustration and hopelessness are over. I have begun to understand how my technique influences the final product and I celebrate with great joy. With every batch I get all the wiser. Oh, macaron, finally you are mine.

Pistachio Macarons

Pistachio and Almond Macarons

Stay tuned for my salted caramel macarons....coming up next!

Is it Fate?... Should I Visit the Oracle Now?

I am beginning to think that I have chosen the wrong profession...
Yesterday was "my" day to do with as I pleased and what did I chose to partake in......macarons.
I spent pretty much the entire day making batch after batch of macarons. Purple, Yellow, Green... Pink.
If I didn't have to work today do you know where I would be?...."a grindin' the almonds" is the correct answer.
I drool over the to-die-for dessert stands I see on other's blogs.
I find myself day-dreaming about the copper bowls and food photography books piling up in my amazon wish-list.
When is the next holiday? Cinco de Mayo? Never celebrated it before... I should probably whip up some flan for the in-laws.
The thought of enrolling in pastry/dessert school has actually crossed my mind but that is pretty unrealistic plus think of all the fun I can have in my very own kitchen at my own leisure during the time I would be in class. I like the "trial and error" method. Well...it's more like the "trial, error, scream then research" method.
I really enjoy the science behind dessert making: dessertology? sucrology? It makes sweet sense and consistency out of flour voo doo.
I have truely loved what I call "the blog phenomenon" that has allowed extremeley talented chefs to share their experiences and recipes with blossoming home bakers like myself through the simple click of the mouse. Some of the blogs I often find myself returning to include Tartelette, Kitchen Musings, and My Sweet and Saucy.
They inspire me to create and think outside of the box.... or carton or bag.

My current love is with the French Macaron.
Tricksy little devils they are.
I love their elegance and simplicity not to mention the fact that they are french and everything french is fancy and exotic. :) (Too bad I can't remember my french from many years ago.)
You can expect to see a few posts regarding macarons very soon. (When I get back from vacay!)
J'aime macarons.

First Communion Butterfly Dessert Bar

Nicholas' First Communion was yesterday! After mass, there was a huge party at the Cottonwood Club of course so Erica and I had the opportunity of doing the dessert bar for it. It was a lot of fun to make the desserts as well as watch everyone eat them! Erica made the cookies and rice krispie pops and I made the cupcakes and cake pops! Teamwork is so nice! Enjoy.

I made the butterflies out of chocolate

Butterfly Dessert Bar

Lemon Drops, Snickerdoodles and Rice Krispie Pops

Yellow Buttercream Butterfly Cake Pops

Spice Cake with Buttercream Frosting and Chocolate Crosses

Red Vines, Chocolate Chips Cookies and Gumballs

 

The Dessertologists: Sara (me) and Erica

The Rice Krispie Pops were Dipped in Chocolate and Vanilla

  

Golf Ball Cake Bites

For my dad's birthday (March 29th) I thought I would make him a delicious surprise so I made some golf ball cake bites! They are made with yellow cake and buttercream frosting and dipped in vanilla. They are sitting atop a bed of green coconut as the grass! Mmmmm. They were delicious and cute. Enjoy.

Erin Go Bragh!! Eat Mint Truffles!

St. Patrick's Day Mint Truffles

Eat Me. I'm Irish.

1 pkg. Cool Mint Oreos 15.25 oz + 6 Regular Oreos (give or take)

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese at room temperature

Green vanilla or chocolate melting wafers

Place the cookies into a food processor and crush until it forms a fine crumb. Stir in the softened cream cheese. The easiest way is to just dig in with your hands and mix it up or you can use the back of a big spoon to smoosh it together. The mixture will feel soft and slimy.

Use a small cookie scoop to make 1 inch balls then roll them until smooth. Place them on a piece of parchment paper on top of a cookie sheet that will fit into your freezer or fridge. Cover them with plastic wrap and place in the freezer or fridge for 15 minutes or longer. This will make dipping them much easier.

Melt the wafers according to the package (usually the microwave is easiest) making sure no moisture gets into the melted wafers or it will seize. Using two forks or a dipping tool, dip the mint balls into the melted wafers, let it drip until no more is dripping and place on another cookie sheet covered with parchment paper.

Refrigerate (because of the cream cheese), admire and enjoy.

I made these mint truffles for a St. Patrick’s Day Party at work and got RAVE reviews. Everyone asked for the recipe. I didn’t want to tell them it was made from oreos! A definite winner.

Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler! Mardi Gras Cake Pops!

This Mardi Gras season brings me back to the days of junior high and my French class with Monsieur Erickson. That was the best class ever. We not only learned the language well but we spent a lot of time diving into the culture and celebrations of France....and what kid doesn't love celebrations!

One of my most potent memories is of the King Cake. Mr. Erickson would order a King Cake from a local french bakery and would hide the baby inside. He would pass the cake out to the class and whoever got the baby would get some Francs that we could then trade in for candy or extra credit points and such (He used Francs to bribe us to do good. It worked.) He also hosted a costume contest and would give Francs to the most festive costume. I won every year I was there because I had a jester costume that happened to be gold, purple and green. Haha...I kind of cheated by wearing it every year but it was festive! What can I say. I'll post a picture when I find it. :)

So anyway, I made some mini king cakes. They were tasty.

No hidden babies though.

Then I whipped up some Mardi Gras Cake Pops from some of my previously frozen chocolate fudge cake pops. I ended up giving them to my sister-in-law to serve at her Mardi Gras party. Thank goodness someone is keeping the spirit alive! No one celebrates Mardi Gras anymore.

I'm bringing it back. Next year....you just wait!

I also very vividly remember burning a huge newspaper man named Rex outside the school. I'm not sure what that was about...

Under Construction Baby Shower

I made some desserts for an "Under Construction" Baby Shower. The theme colors were yellow, black and white. I made Chocolate Fudge Cake Pops, Lemon Tassies w/ Rasberries and Orange French Macarons. The original plan was to have an orange macaron tower representing a construction cone but they turned out a little too brittle so I wasn't able to do that. It would have been so darn cute! The desserts were displayed in construction equipment such as dump trucks and loaders. It turned out so cute! Enjoy.

Plain Chocolate Fudge Cake Pops

Orange French Macarons

"Under Construction" Yellow Chocolate Fudge Cake Balls

Lemon Tassies w/ Raspberries