Bug Cakes for Julie's Birthday

Baking with Chef Cheryl

Hello everyone and happy summer to those of our readers here in the Northern Hemisphere! Given how widespread the love of cupcakes seems to be and the readership we've enjoyed, I can't always assume all of you are located up here in the ol' US of A! Like Chef Cheryl said in a previous post, baking during the summer can be quite a chore around here and especially if the heat and humidity is blasting and the air conditioning is not but she did prepare a special treat for our girl Isis and her birthday that I was lucky to be a part of!

Yes faithful readers, I got to bake with Chef Cheryl.

Now I know what you're thinking: what fun! Oh sure, it seems like fun but for a chef like me who hasn't measured something since 1983, I can tell you it was quite stressful! See cooking is more about trying new things, blazing new trails and well... not measuring. Apparently that does not work when baking. It seems to be all about precision - which is precisely the reason why I tend not to bake.

Recipes? HA! Who needs that!

Needless to say I am proud to announce that I did not screw things up that bad. Perhaps I didn't screw them up at all but I wasn't sure as Chef Cheryl is quite intense when baking! Me, I like to juggle, sing and dance around but it seems you actually have to pay attention to get things to come out correctly.

Weird. I had no idea.

So I guess I owe all of you bakers an apology as it was quite difficult and required copious amounts of time which given the rate I scarf down cupcakes seems a shame. 4 hours of work, 30 seconds to eat them - not a great trade in my opinion but Chef Cheryl seems to disagree.

Chef Cheryl let me "mise en place" all the necessary ingredients for the S'mores cupcakes you see in the picture below. I measured everything the best I could, chopped, sifted, cracked and food processed until all ingredients were rightfully lined up and ready to go into the giant bowl of creation known as the Kitchen-Aid Stand Mixer.

I, of course, was not allowed near it. Good call on Chef Cheryl's part. I would have eaten most of the batter uncooked.

However, what was interesting is I actually learned a few things. I learned:

1. Waving a batter-covered spatula over your head while dancing and signing "YMCA" by the Village People is the best way to ruin a white ceiling.
2. Chef Cheryl does not appreciate my version of "YMCA," "The Macarena" or any other such silly dance while baking. I can't imagine why.
3. When you mix all the liquid ingredients together in a glass measuring cup, it looks like a brain. Especially if there is egg or oil involved... Cool!
4. Do not drink the brain as tempting as it looks. Trust me on this one.
   
5. Food processors do not do a great job of chopping chocolate if you fill the entire bowl all at once. Better to add it a little bit at a time. Eat the leftovers that fall on the counter.
   
6. A marble rolling pin can smash the heck out of pretty much anything you roll over it. Including the dog.
7. Do not rolling pin the dog.
8. The dog does not like it.
9. Correction - the dog liked it - Chef Cheryl did not.
10. Butter makes everything taste better.

So as you can see, it wasn't a total waste letting me bake as I actually learned a few things! Oh and I learned one other thing:

Chef Cheryl notices such small details about her creations that not a single other person would ever notice. It is quite humours (some may say psychotic) about her attention to detail but in the end as you can see by the pictures (and the happy faces on the people when eating them) it was all worth it.

Next time I think I'll do the Chicken Dance and see if that goes over better.

Happy Birthday, Isis!

We had a BBQ this weekend to celebrate Isis' 8th birthday and also a belated birthday for Lola, who turned 1 in April and Calleigh, who joined our family this past May.

I made S'mores Cupcakes and Pina Colada Cupcakes for the humans and Pupcakes for the dogs. I wanted something that recognized the birthdays, but didn't need another dessert, so instead, I made a centerpiece with a fondant dog and fondant bones. I have such admiration for Lorraine from Extra Icing (http://www.extra-icing.blogspot.com/) - she is quite an amazing artist and creates beautiful fondant and gum paste figurines. After watching some of her free tutorials on YouTube, I attempted the fondant dog. I was pleased with the end result and am looking forward to finding time to continue practicing this art.

Anyway, here are some photos of the desserts and centerpiece...Enjoy!