Archive for the ‘baking’ Category
**Please excuse these photos. The lighting was all over the place. I was shooting inside at 7pm. Not the best light for photos. Sorry. Carry on with your reading enjoyment. Thank you!**
Hello. My name is Jessica. I am a member of a wine club. I don’t like wine. Okay, I feel better now that I’ve confessed. What’s a girl to do when it’s her turn to host wine club and she doesn’t even like wine?? Naturally, I hosted the party! Since my favorite thing to make are desserts, I thought that would be an appropriate “menu” of sorts. I have little knowledge of wine, but did know there are dessert wines and told everyone to bring a bottle.
I had a ton of yellow and orange decor left over from Linc’s Surprise 30th Birthday Party. I thought I could somehow incorporate all the items into my wine club night. I added hot pink to the color palette and was ready to start planning!! Yay! My favorite part of party planning is doing the research and finding as many inspiration boards/ideas as I can. I love the planning!! I know, I know. I am a total nerd. What can I say?
Before every party I throw, I get some ideas and sketch them out on a sheet of paper. Yes, I really draw them out and label them. Someday I will include my awesome little sketches. Did I mention that I can’t draw at all?? Then I make a ton of lists. Without lists, I wouldn’t be able to function or keep anything straight. I wouldn’t be able to sleep either. All my ideas keep me awake at night if I don’t organize them! Stop bugging me ideas, I’m trying to sleep!
I also created a “logo” that I included on all of my party decor. What? Did you expect something else? Planning. . . check. Paper decor. . . check. Now, onto baking!
I spent a few days baking and dipping various items into chocolate. It was like a chocolate lovers haven. I don’t really love chocolate either, but it sure looks pretty. Okay, I take that back. I do like chocolate a lot more now! Plus, anything is better if it’s dipped in chocolate, right?
Here are some photos of the dessert table! Enjoy. . .
A dessert party wouldn’t be complete without cupcakes now would it? I made these Pink Champagne Cupcakes (thanks Jen for the tip on the recipe). I thought they were fitting. I found this cute cupcake “paper” at Paper Zone. I couldn’t resist it!
I also made cream filled macaroons, brownie pops, marshmallow pops, peanut butter bon bons (get these at Costco around the holidays. No baking required and they are like heaven rolled up in a ball. Unless you are allergic to peanuts and then they are like little balls of death.), chocolate covered strawberries and more. See for yourself.
I tried my hand at Double Stuffed Oreo Pops. Let’s just say, I will probably leave this one up to Kim at Sweeties By Kim. They tasted good, but they didn’t look very pretty!
I saw this awesome idea in one of the party planning books. We did this for Lincoln’s party too, but didn’t get a photo of it. You put cupcake liners in your muffin pan, pre-scoop the ice cream, and leave it in the freezer until you are ready to serve it. Genius. Isn’t that the best idea ever? Then there is no waiting while you are dishing it up! Just grab a muffin liner full of ice cream and eat away. I also made homemade cake batter ice cream. Yummy!
You’ll notice that the oranges are “recycled” decor from Lincoln’s party!
It was a super warm day and I figured that we could always use some non-alcoholic drinks on hand. This was the first time I’ve made water bottle labels. They were so easy and I think it was a wonderful touch. This is going to be a must at my future events.
I saw these adorable Chinese-style take out boxes at Paper Zone and I’ve been dying to incorporate them into one of my parties. I always make way too much food and if I had to-go boxes ready for my guests then I wouldn’t be stuck eating all of this yummy food, right? Well, that plan worked out better than I had expected and my guests cleaned me out! I have pictures to prove it. Thankfully, they left the kitchen sink 🙂 I put different labels on the boxes. It was my attempt at humor.
Okay, you’d think these people had never eaten before. They were like hungry animals. This is how they left the place. Maybe to-go boxes were a bad idea? I kid, I kid! It was a great idea!!!
Off to bed I go. I’ll be dreaming of all of these yummy treats and gaining weight while I sleep!
Jessica
***Warning!!!! Many photos to follow. May not be suitable to be viewed on your portable electronic devices. Hope you enjoy all the little details!***
Let’s start at the beginning. A month or so ago, I decided that I MUST throw my adorable husband a surprise 30th birthday party! He was less than excited about turning 30. Personally, I don’t see what the big deal is. It’s just 30! We had attended one of his friends surprise parties a year or so ago and he mentioned that he never thought I could throw him a surprise party. I’m not sure why, but you know me. I am always up for a challenge! Que surprise party step one. The invitation. Here it is!
I decided to go with a cassette tape theme which was very reminiscent of the 1980’s. I remember mixed tapes so fondly. In fact, I think Lincoln even made me a mixed tape. Maybe I have that backwards? At any rate, I thought a tape in orange and teal would be a great theme for me to run with.
Here is a photo of the birthday boy himself! Happy Birthday Honey!
Without further ado, here are more photos from my husband’s 30th Surprise Birthday Party! I have a ton of photos, but here are the ones that I think are worthy. Check out the food. . .
**So many people have asked for the modern cheese ball recipe. Here it is: Modern Cheese Ball Recipe. I made it with goat cheese, and I must confess, it wasn’t very good. Anyone know of another soft cheese that you could substitute it for? I think they would be better with another cheese. This recipe and several other ideas came from In Style Parties (The Complete Guide to Easy, Elegant Entertaining). Also, the recipe for the Sweet and Spicy Mac and Cheese is one of my all time favorites. It’s super easy to make and feeds a crowd. Here is the recipe for the Paninis in Paper. There are three different varieties and they are so yummy. This wonderful recipe came from Fabulous Parties: Food and Flowers for Elegant Entertaining.**
Doesn’t that all look so good? You can’t have good food without good drinks!!
You know my favorite thing to make is dessert. There was plenty of dessert there from candy to cookies. The cookies were designed by me and printed by Hello Frosting. The amazingly yummy Oreo Pops were done by Kim with Sweeties by Kim, another fellow etsy seller.
We had guests write messages to the birthday boy. An easy idea that is so fun and decorative too.
I made this cute little dessert stand from the dollar tree. Check out this tutorial for more instructions (thanks Julie for the great find). I don’t like it when things are all the same size, so I did my own variation. Super cheap and it added a nice touch. Who knew you could spray paint glass?
Here are some up close photos of the cookies. Always a good choice. . .
My awesome cousin Jena packaged up some cookies for our guests to enjoy at home (if they even made it home and were not devoured in the car).
Here’s a closer look at the Personalize Oreo Pops. They were also ready for the guest to grab-and-go! What a tasty treat and a great way to remember the fun times that were had by everyone.
Here are some other details and some behind the scene photos that you might like to see.
Laura and Kristen were nice enough to help out. Thank you guys so much!!! They were preparing Paninis in the garage!!! Hey, you do what you’ve got to do, right?
A Surprise Party wouldn’t be much of a party without guests, right? Well, there were plenty of people who attended Lincoln’s party. In fact, we even had some of our dear friends, Dan, Heather, and their adorable daughter Skylar, drive out from Utah to surprise Lincoln. You will never know how much that meant to both of us. Thank you guys so much. Thank you to all the guests who attended both near and far. All of you are very dear or our hearts.
Oh! My Laura! Isn’t she cute? If you follow my blog, you probably remember her from the engagement photo cookie post. Thank you for all of your help from planning, to the execution and set up, and for letting me borrow your fabulous party planning books where many of these wonderful ideas came from. You’re the best.
Lincoln also received many amazing gifts for his birthday!! Sorry we don’t have a photo of those, but you are just going to have to trust me on this one! However, my gift to Lincoln was also a surprise and didn’t come until a few days later. Sorry, it was the best I could do. Here is his cute, overjoyed, face!!!
I found a PERFECT matching case on etsy too. It was destiny!
Now, here I am post surprise! I’m so happy that I was able to pull it off and he literally had NO CLUE! Hahaha! I got you honey!! I don’t ever want to throw another surprise party again!! It was so much work and really hard to keep my big mouth shut.
*My headband was courtesy of Mia at Dolce Vita Mia. Check out all of her amazing headbands. I’d love to work with Mia on a giveaway soon. What do you think Mia???
SPECIAL THANK YOUS!!!!
I couldn’t have done it without so many incredible people. Since this is my blog, I am going to take the opportunity to thank them all now! First to my wonderful parents for providing us with the perfect place to have the party. Thank you Mom and Dad for all of your help and hard work to get the house ready! Jamie, thank you for spending countless hours helping me get ready for the party! You really saved me this time!! Laura, you’re the best. I will totally be paying you back helping get ready for your wedding next summer. Jena, thank you for shopping with me and helping me set up! You’re a life saver. Dan, Heather, and Skylar too. Thank you so much for driving all night to come to Linc’s party. Dan, thank you for dipping all the pretzels, picking up the balloons, and everything else you did for me that day! Heather, thank you for helping wrap all the napkins, put together the sucker container, and all the other millions of things I demanded that you do. You were so great! Skylar, thank you for loaning your Mommy and Daddy to me and for putting up with the long car ride. Nancy, thank you for keeping the boys so we could set up in peace. Kristen, thank you for helping make paninis, watching the boys, and everything else you did to help! Ryan, thank you for dipping the orange slices in chocolate. I am pretty sure I ate the majority of them. Tiffany, thank you for taking many of these photos and making the awesome “mixed tapes.” Thank you to anyone else I may of forgotten! Really, I appreciated all the help that I received. I really could not have done it with out you guys and I know that Lincoln was so thankful that you all donated your time and energy for him!! We love you all!!!
Mmmm. . . pudding! For some reason, I love pudding in the summer time? It is a quick yummy snack. Lately, I’ve been buying/eating a ton of Jello pudding. You know the kind with the chocolate, then a layer of vanilla, and another layer of chocolate? You know! I’m not the only one that likes these pudding cups, the boys think they are yummy too.
So, recently I saw an adorable post that Ree wrote on her blog ,The Pioneer Woman about Dessert Flower Pots. Do you follow Ree’s blog? If you don’t, you definitely should! It’s one of my favs. She made super cute dessert flower pots. Here is the recipe and instructions for Ree’s Spring Flower Pot Desserts. I’m sure you’ve made/seen something similar.
Since I was instructed to bring a dessert for the fourth of July and I am on a pudding kick, I thought using pudding in the pots, instead of ice cream would be a good alternative that wouldn’t melt! I basically followed the above tutorial, but substituted the ingredients.
The majority of my last weekend was spent trying to track down flower pots that were a good size, but were also as close to “food grade” as possible. I originally bought terra cotta clay pots at Michael’s. Then I re-read through Ree’s post and there was a ton of references about there being LEAD in terra cotta pots. Of course, I didn’t want to put the food directly in them. I bought several different sizes and styles of cups to line the pots with. None of them fit!
I thought about creating parchment paper liners, but I didn’t want the kids to eat the paper, and frankly I was being a bit lazy. I just wanted something easy! What to do? What to do? Find new pots! I looked high and low for the perfect pot! It had to be cute and functional. Oh, and LEAD FREE!!!
Finally, we stopped by Fred Meyer’s and I found the perfect little pots. They were cute and eco-friendly! They were made from bamboo husks and other all organic material. Okay, now we’re talking. The pots were made by Rosso’s International. You can also plant them in the ground once they get cracks in them and they are biodegradable. Cool, huh?
I removed the labels from the pots, washed them in the dishwasher, and then we were ready to rock!!!! I made a few batches of Chocolate, Vanilla, and Oreo Cookie pudding. I also made a batch of brownies and used my circle cookie cutter to cut the right size of brownie to place in the bottom of each of t he pots (Ree used pound cake, but I thought brownies were more appropriate). Then I used the Chocolate OREO Sippers in the center of the pots. I just jammed them into the brownie. Next, I did like a 1/3 cup or so of chocolate pudding. I’m really not the cleanest baker/cook. I seriously just slopped it in there. Pudding was every where.
Next, I added a layer of vanilla or oreo pudding. I mixed it up! I didn’t add as much as the chocolate pudding, probably only 1/4 cup or so. Just eyeball it or use as much as you’d like. No one will care! Then I did another 1/3 cup or so of the chocolate. Almost done!
I put several OREO cookies in the food processor and crushed them up. Once they were all blended, they really did resemble top soil! Before I put the crushed OREOS on, I added my flowers. Remember the OREO Sippers I inserted into the brownie? Just put your flower directly in the center of the “straw.” (I used fake flowers, but if I was going to use real flowers, I would use a real straw too.) Then add all of your luscious “top soil.” I added a ton of it! Ta-dah!!! You’re done!
**Don’t forget the best part, the gummy worms. Of course, they are optional, but they are so good. I’m sure your kids will appreciate them too!**
Make these your own. Make ONE or TWENTY! Have fun with these and enjoy!
Sincerely,
The Pudding Monster
P.S. I had to brag about how ADORABLE Julie’s cupcakes looked! Didn’t she do a wonderful job? I love her little patriotic flags and cupcake liners. Oh, and they tasted amazing too! You know me and cupcakes. We go together like bread and butter, like cookies and milk, like salt and vinegar, like. . . well, you get the idea! Great job Julie!!! You’re super talented!!!!
Jul 08
Dessert Stand DIY Favorite
Many months ago, I saw a tutorial on Givers Log about Interchangeable Cupcake Stands. You know me by now. Anything with the word cupcake in it and I come running!!!! I had been meaning to make several for myself, but hadn’t found the time. Well, this past weekend, I finally went for it. I had purchased these plates at Target. I think I paid around $5.50 for all three. I’d say the hardest part is finding three plates that are different sizes. AmberLee shows hers with just two plates, but I thought they should have three. Here are the cupcake stand directions so you can create your own too! It’s super easy too do. It looks like she just created some new ones that you can also see here.
The “middle” rod or supports were found at Goodwill. I must admit that I had never purchased anything at Goodwill (our local thrift store) until this project. Who knew it could be a crafters treasure chest? Since then, I’ve purchased several things at Goodwill and I am constantly going to find unique, different, ornate pieces for my dessert stands. Each candle stick was purchased for around $1.99.
I got the beautiful knob at Anthrapologie like Amberlee suggests in her post. They have a ton of beautiful knobs!!! I wish I could buy all of them! It is so fun looking at all the beautiful knobs. It was a really hard decision too. I probably have 3-6 different styles that I’ve collected. Plus, the knobs are about the only thing I can afford in the store 🙂 Each knob is roughly $6-$14.
Make sure you check out Amberlee’s amazing blog for detailed instructions!!!
Next, I will be looking for some beautiful ceramic plates to try out. I have another set I got at Easter to make as well. I will post photos of each one that I create so you can see all the different styles. I’d love to see the ones you do too. Seriously, these are too easy not to make. Oh, wouldn’t it be cute to make these to match your party decor for birthday parties, weddings, baby showers, etc.??? You know that’s on my list for my next party too!!!
Here it is with actual food on it. I made these yummy mini Amaretto Cheesecakes!
See those flowers in the back? Stay tuned for a post about another treat I made for the Fourth of July!!!
Okay, it’s hot and I’m sleepy! Good Night or Good Morning!
Me