I AM STILL ALIVE.

YES im baaack!
okaaaay... so i know that it has been EONS since I've updated this, but just a little fyi- just because I've put a standby on blog updateage does NOT mean than I've put a standby on baking! the past couple months has actually been full of a plethora of yummy, and not so yummy (michelle if your reading this- that banana creme trifle..... yaaaa NOT SO good! hahahah) creations. i just honestly haven't gotten around to posting them :(
BUTTTT now that its summmmertime (wooot whooot!) i promise there will be tons of updates & pictures comin' your way. pronto.

in the meantime.. feel free to stalk my F A V O R I T E inspiration website:
http://www.bakerella.com/

im so obsessed with every baking idea on there. be sure to especially check out the cupcake & cheesecake pops. hands down to DIE for !!
i have yet to try them out but- cutest thing evvverrrrrrrrrr

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Every Sunday my roommates and I make a legit dinner and usually i am in charge of the dessert. so TONIGHT i had this chocolate cake already prepared and my roommates loved it!  This cake is Paula Deen's recipe, so I had high expectations for it; and i must say, that my expectations were FULFILLED !  It's super easy to make and did i note that it is FLOURLESS? So for any gluten-free folks, you can have seconds! :) Another benefit, is that it turns out looking like it was professionally made no matter what.. so its a really quick easy and not to mention beautiful dessert to make when you are having people over and want to impress them!  Just a forewarning, you will definitely want to have it made at least 5 hours before you plan on eating it. It's fudgy, rich and decadent- IF chocolate cake could be sexy.... THIS recipe would definitely be it!!!  The center of the cake remains moist & it has an amazingly smooth texture that just melts in your mouth.  So if you are craving dense, sexy chocolate deliciousness on a plate... scroll on down the page to get the recipe. :)

Need?

12 oz. high quality dark or semi-sweet chocolate (don't skimp! This is what makes it taste so fabulous! i recommend Ghiradelli)
2 sticks of butter
1 1/4 c. of sugar
6 eggs, separated

Now what?

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place some parchment paper on the bottom of a springform pan so it hangs over. Close the latch to hold the paper in place and secure the sides. You'll also want to generously spray the paper/pan with some non-stick cooking spray. Separate 6 large eggs--yolks in a small bowl and egg whites in a mixing bowl. Set aside.

Combine Chocolate and 2 sticks of butter. Melt in the microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring in between until completely melted and smooth. Whisk in 1 1/4 cups sugar until combined. Then add the six egg yolks to the chocolate and sugar mixture, one at a time, whisking after each addition.

In the mixing bowl, beat the six egg whites on high with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Then, gently fold egg white mixture into the melted chocolate mixture until combined. Pour it in the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour at 325 degrees. It will rise pretty high in the oven, but when you take it out to cool, it will fall. And fall hard. Delish! Let it cool one hour on the counter and then stick it in the fridge for at least four hours before you release it from the springform pan.  

Because it's so rich, i suggest cutting the slices into tiny slivers.  Sprinkle the cake with powdered sugar and then serve with a dollop of whipped cream.  When you try a piece you will have a hard time believing that its only 4 ingredients !!

Corn on the Cob Cupcakes

I made these for Thanksgiving dinner, everyone was dying over them! They really legitimately look like corn on the cob... but if you look a bit closer you can tell that it's simply just a yellow cupcake, topped with jelly beans and a deformed yellow starburst for the 'butter' !!

Piece of cake right?!

(no pun intended)

Chocolate Truffle Cookies

If you are a chocoholic, you NEED to try these cookies!! fyi, they are VERY chocolatey but ridiculously good! I made them for my roomates and some of my new friends here and they were gone by the next day! The recipe uses relatively little flour, which results in dense, fudge-like cookies. mmm SO GOOD! And don't even get me STARTED on the cookie batter... oh my gosh I would say that it's better than the cookies after they are baked! Make them & you'll thank me for posting the recipe:

Need?

4 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate, chopped 
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
6 tablespoons butter
3 eggs
1 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Now what?

1) In the microwave, melt unsweetened chocolate, 1 cup of the chocolate chips, and the butter stirring occasionally on medium heat in 30 second increments until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

2) In a large bowl, whip eggs and sugar until thick (about 2 minutes). Stir in vanilla and the chocolate mixture until well mixed.

3) In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; gradually stir into the chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining 1 cup chocolate chips. Cover dough and chill for at least an hour or overnight. (if you don't chill the dough long enough it will melt in your hands while you try to roll it... resulting in a very sticky and messy situation!!

4) When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll chilled dough into 1-inch balls* Place on ungreased cookie sheets so they are 2 inches apart. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

*because the cookies are so rich, 1-inch is the perfect size. If you go any bigger then it may be too sweet. But if you can handle it, go for it!

enjoy!

Big Game Brownies

So my brother, Matt, plays college football for Stanford. Since he is a lineman, he pretty much HAS to weigh 300+ ... which means that I get the privilege (more like the duty) to make him as many baked goods as possible so that he can keep his weight up! hah. Anyways, so for the 'Big Game' against Cal, i thought that i would show my support for Stanford football another way. These were my

BIG GAME brownies which i cut into the shapes of footballs and topped them off with a thin shell of marzipan and piped icing for the lines. I thought that the marzipan would taste different but it wasn't weird at all!! The sweetness of the brownie overpowered the marzipan so it actually just tasted like a light layer of frosting. As if i hadn't already gone far enough, I ended up crafting together a football field to line the back of the pan. Umm after all that work these brownies were gone within 10 minutes... Thanks Matt! :)

Over the HILL

Believe it or not, this was one of my first fondant cakes... well, that actually turned out WORTH posting to the public. This was also my first official cake that I was PAID to do!! When I was asked to do an "over the hill" cake, I was so torn with how to create a 'hill,' knowing that my experience level was not NEARLY advanced enough to cut a cake in the shape of a hill. Then I got the idea to make a standard 9" cake and use CUPCAKES on top to create a hill ! This idea worked out PERFECTLY and (in my opinion) looked a lot better than a lot of cakes that were supposed to look like hills, but instead looked like an awkward shaped blobs. I used my leftover fondant to make a little stick figure and ladder, to get the point across that it was supposed to be a hill! My favorite part of this cake is the frosting that I mixed to create the textured look of grass. Not only did the cake look cute, but it tasted amazing too!

I guess going over that hill isn't so bad...

well isn't that just the truth....

Everyday is a good day when it involves cake-

especially if its tall, dark & chocolate.