Carrot Cake

Norm and Mikey had a slice of carrot cake before I had a chance to take a picture.  Although Norm thought that the carrots were real, they were actually made from almond paste.   Carrot cake is one of my favs and I can't wait to refine the recipe to my liking.  The cake itself was light but the icing needs to be a tad sweeter.  Once I perfect it, I'll be sure to save you a slice Ev!

Hello Kitty

These cupcakes were a special request from one of my biggest cupcake fans.  Marianne celebrated her 5th birthday with a Hello Kitty theme.  I was a little nervous making these cupcakes because I had the idea all planned out in my head, but as we all know, not everything goes as planned.  This was my first time using fondant. It was fairly easy to use and very forgiving.  I tried to incorporate kitty's whiskers but I decided against it because it looked like a scary kitty.  In the end, I think Marianne was happy with the end result and that's all that matters.  Happy Birthday!

Magic Oven

Di & I decided to check out Magic Oven to try out their wheat-free, gluten-free pizza & pasta. I tried the "Euporia Magic" pizza which had herb tomato sauce, grilled chicken, spinach, mushrooms, red peppers, caramelized onions and organic mozzarella all on a gluten-free rice flour crust. It was...well, what you expect a gluten free pizza to be. The toppings were great but the rice flour crust tasted like cardboard. I guess nothing can compare to a "real" pizza. It was also very expensive but I guess that is also a given for organic mozzarella cheese and preservative-free chicken breast. Di, on the other hand, gave the pasta a try. She quite enjoyed the pasta as she is on Day 6 of a wheat & sugar free diet. Our bill was a tad expensive but I guess we can take their menu ideas and recreate them at home. Good luck Di. I know how hard it is for you to give up bread. I heart bread, too!

Hayden's Birthday Weekend

Friday night was spent at Mega Fun with 14 kiddies.  Five year olds have a ton of energy and we were exhausted after only 2 hours of supervising.  Thank goodness we took a break for pizza and cupcakes.  Hazel helped me make Sponge Bob cupcakes.  They were a hit!  The party continued with a Sunday afternoon barbeque. The weather was wonderful and the steaks were delish!  What a great way to end a week.  Pictured here are clown cupcakes that I made for the Hayden's family birthday celebration.  I made them for the kids but the adults went nuts for them! I guess there's a kid in all of us no matter what age.