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The Birthday Series
With two office birthdays coming up this week, I figured it was about time for me to introduce my new blog feature: the Birthday Series! I have decided that for every person celebrating their birthday in my office, I would make them a special Hilary-homemade card and cake (with white buttercream icing, of course). Since I don’t want to wreck the surprise for the two birthday girls, I just thought I would do a quick introductory post showing one of the mini cakes I made, and the fabulous cake decorations I bought. Check back tomorrow night and Tuesday as I upload the other birthday surprises!
Hilary cakes? Also, the BEST buttercream icing recipe on the face of the earth, found, of course, on the Canadian Living website here.
These little candied gems cost $6.99 from Grace in the Kitchen…thank god they’re pretty!
Chocolate Marshmallow Fudge
I was feeling unmotivated last Thursday night, so I knew I wouldn’t be making as elaborate a Friday treat as I usually do. I bought a can of evaporated milk earlier in the month, and knew that I finally had to use it. Not knowing what else you can make with such an ingredient, I made the one thing I knew used it – chocolate fudge! This entire recipe took me all of ten minutes to make, but I think it turned out rather well. It’s not as photogenic as some of my other desserts, but I tried! I still have some evaporated milk leftover, so I’m thinking of this recipe for next Friday’s treat…thoughts?
Blogging Supplies
Instead of making the quiche I was supposed to have for dinner tonight, I went to Ikea with a few of my friends, one of whom luckily had a fantastic minivan to cart us around in. Of course, I didn’t really need anything from the store, but it is just so hard to resist a walk around in the best place ever. Rather than having quiche for supper, I had a glorious plate of Ikea meatballs, which I think is a good alternative to a homemade dinner. At the end of the day, I came away with a few useful cooking things, including some new dishes so I can plate my food in a pretty manner, a pizza cutter, and a cake lifter!
Since Ikea has a bunch of great things, I also managed to pick up a six-pack of watercolour paints, perfect for some craft project that I will be completing at a later date. So much cheaper than buying from an art store. Go Ikea!
One final note: I got a care package in from my mom today, and in it came many treasures, including a souvenir T-shirt from when my dad went to Stockholm (which I wore to Ikea, how Swedish of me) and this …
Thank you mom and thank you Ikea!
S’mores Cupcakes
I’ve started this thing where every Friday (this was my second Friday, it’s not quite a pattern yet..) I bring in a delicious baked treat for my wonderful co-workers. Last week’s baked good was the cheesecake, so I knew I had to do something dramatically different for this week’s surprise. I asked our team leader Kristina on Thursday what she would like me to bring in for the next day, and she eagerly suggested that I make the s’mores cookies I photographed earlier for this blog. Since I didn’t want to start with food re-runs already, I knew I needed to find a new way to incorporate s’mores into a delicious recipe.
Just when I thought all was lost, my favourite dessert blog Bakerellasaved the day! I was just scanning through the pages looking for a white cake recipe when I stumbled on her recipe for “s’more-or-less cupcakes.” The second I saw them, I knew I needed to make them. Two hours later, voila! These cupcakes were decadent, and the recipe made the perfect amount for all the staff in our office.
Just so you all know, I still have leftover s’mores ingredients, so expect a s’mores cheesecake sometime in the near future.
As for tonight’s dinner? I’m going back to my “can’t cook” roots and having soup noodles.
Hilary Makes 