Sun, Sand, Sea

So it was my fellow beachwhore's birthday - no better prezzie than to bake her beach-themed cupcakes! What's more, we just returned from a beach holiday, so......

Yes, I know, the bears look a wee bit out of place, but I didn't have time to make 'em so this was a good (and fast) alternative! Oh and there were brollies too. They are not in the pictures because they wouldn't fit in the box (for transportation). So use your imagination! heheh

Happy Birthday Vannie!

Cranberry scones anyone?

I whipped up these cranberry scones on the spur of the moment because I had leftover cream and milk. This recipe called for half-and-half, which we all know is half milk and half cream. I only found out a couple of years ago because the actual half-and-half is super expensive. It’s $8.50 or so for a small 250ml pack. Madness!!!

My mum loves these scones and my friend, Sharon, asks for them ALL THE TIME. I remembered making a batch for her. She loved them so much that she refused to share them with anyone, even with her family members!

“I imagine myself in Europe, having tea and your cranberry scones with butter and jam. I am a very happy person now.”

If my scones could make a person feel that way, I would make them 200 times over!

If I had the chance, I’d make these scones for everyone reading this post. Maybe I should start a shop and bring happiness to all. Hmm… that’s something to think about.

Yes, I made my own birthday cake!

This is a brownie chocolate ganache ice cream cake. It was soooo delicious, my nephew and niece both had two slices each during my birthday celebration, one more slice when they woke up after their nap and finally one more slice before heading home. In my nephew's words, "we must eat as much as possible as we won't be able to eat this at home!" What can i say? Kids certainly don't lie when they know its something they like!

I also made this once while I was in Shanghai for a job stint during the summer; everyone there liked it then, and it was no different this time! My mother is my personal 'litmus test' for my creations; when a some one who doesn't like desserts tell you “Mmm.... this is good, the cake has a little salty twist that I like. Nice!” - its definitely an affirmation that its good! Hehe... blowing my own horn as usual.:)

Carrots are good for the eyes!

Wow, the last entry was almost a month ago, sorry for taking so long to blog again. I have been busy baking!

Don's birthday (he's a good friend of mine) was coming up, and i wanted to attempt something new and special just for him – carrot cupcakes! The first trial turned out terrible; I suspect that I either put too much orange juice during the preparation, or that it was the recipe I was referring to was one of the 'healthy ones' that skimped on the fat but usually would turn out short on taste. I told Philie about it, and she remarked that it was really pointless to make that way – cake isn't 'health' food to start with, so what's wrong with putting a little fat into it to make it better?

So on that lead, I looked for and found another carrot cake recipe that had a more reasonable balance of ingredients, and the resulting cupcakes turned out yummy! And, yes - i piped! I needed to boost my courage for this so I hoped over to Sandra's home (she's another good friend of mine), and with her encouragement, I piped cream cheese frosting on the carrort cupcakes Woo hoo!! The cream cheese frosting was super sonic! Tasty, tangy, not too sweet and combined well with cake, totally brining out the flavour of the carrots.

Feeling inspired I went on a spree, and eventually made, devil's food, dark chocolate ganache cupcakes, burnt butter cupcakes, on top of the carrot cupcakes. Yums right? I know!

The Rainbow Connection

Who doesn't love a pretty rainbow eh?

So when Toots 'challenged' me to bake a rainbow cake for her birthday, I did some research and found some rainbow cupcakes instead. Now how could I resist a challenge like that!

I had an hour or so to kill before a lunch appointment on Friday, and I decided to bake half a batch as an experiment.

The result?

The layers could be more even I guess, although I have seen worse. Heheheh I shall keep practising till I get it right! Toots, there is hope yet for that cake you want!

Phillie

An Epic Adventure

So the lot of us decided to get together and have a wee 'experimental' BBQ last weekend. Why experimental you ask? Cos we each made a dish that we had never tried before. Turns out, being experimental is fun! The food was amazing, and the company was great! What more could you ask for?

Presenting our experiments...

Left: Charsiew by KP

Right: B☆stard Lamb also by KP (Don't ask)

Left: Rosemary Chicken by Karen

Right: Good Ol' American Burgers by Matt

Left: Herb Buttered Cod Pieces by Stephen (Hee!)

Right: Chilli Lime Prawns by Phillie

Left: Gazpacho by Stephen

Right: Assorted Desserts* by Karen & Phillie

(*Red Velvet Cupcakes, Chocolate Stout Cake and Margarita Ice-Cream)

Again, thank you everyone for a great night!

(I do apologise for the shabby pix, we were too busy eating to get better shots!)

One for the big kids

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes - made for our little experimental BBQ over the weekend.

Even the non-dessert people approved of this yummy cake!

Chocolate Stout Cake + 16 year old Whisky = Very happy campers

Once again, thank you all for a great BBQ! (Food pix will be up soon)