i heart baking.

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2010-10-17T23:15:00.001-07:00

LA Times- Artisanal LA

2010-10-16T10:42:00.000-07:00

Even the LA Times thinks we are hot! Check it out! http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dailydish/2010/10/4-food-events-you-should-know-about-sabor-da-bahia-at-angelli-caffe-history-of-wine-making-in-san-ga.html

Weekend marketplace: Artisanal LA kicks off on the weekend of Oct. 23. On both Saturday and Sunday the event will host producers of sustainable and handmade edibles in the penthouse of downtown's historic Cooper Building. Expect a local craft beer and spirits tasting; arts and crafts workshops; speakers and chef demos; giveaways and door prizes; DJ Bryan Davidson; and shopping from more than 75 local craft vendors such as I Heart Pies and All Jarred Up. $10 in advance online (tickets are available through Eventbrite) and $15 day of event at the door (cash only), capacity allowing. Part of the proceeds benefit LAUSD Edible School Gardens. 860 S. Los Angeles St., 11th-floor penthouse, Los Angeles, www.artisanalla.com.

-- Betty Hallock

LA Weekly- Artisanal LA article

2010-10-15T22:37:00.001-07:00

Next weekend, I Heart Pies will be a vendor at Artisanal LA!! We are SUPER excited! It's already getting press from LA Weekly!! We are singled out in this article!! And even have the honor to be tagged!! :D

Check it out: http://blogs.laweekly.com/squidink/eat-and-drink-calendar/artisanal-la-fall-show-downtow/

Artisanal LA Debuts: 40 Local Vendors and Counting
By Christie Bishop, Fri., Oct. 15 2010 @ 2:45PM

While there's certainly a place for big-time food corporations in the world -- if not, McDonald's wouldn't have sold its gazillionth hamburger -- we can't help but root for the little guys. The producers of small batch, homemade jams and jellies. The curators of salami and sausage whose garage first served as an aging room. And the chocolatiers who temper and hand-dip their chocolates, one at a time, without assembly lines ala I Love Lucy.

So it should come as no surprise that we've marked our calendar for October 23th and 24th, when Artisanal LA will gather the makers of many of L.A.'s finest local, sustainable and handmade goodies together in downtown's historic Cooper Building.

Come hungry because you're in for a ton of cookies, cupcakes, chocolates, olive oils, vinegars, meats and produce from more than 40 local vendors, including Compartes Chocolates, Cake Monkey Bakery, I Heart Pies, Silverlake Farms, Lindy & Grundy's, Lemon Bird Handmade Jams and Chicks With Knives' Perishable Pickle Shop.

Between bites, get schooled on how to use local and seasonal produce, the basics of beekeeping, the difference between sustainable and organic (and what's more important), and even starting your own local food business during Artisanal LA's many panels, cooking demonstrations and workshops.

If you can't find a babysitter, not to worry; kids are not only welcome, they'll be entertained in pumpkin crafts classes that, lucky for Mom and Dad, run all day. Admission is $10 in advance online (tickets are available through Eventbrite) and $15 day of event at the door (cash only). Event organizers are expecting about 5,000 visitors per day, so pre-buying your tickets online is probably a good idea. Full events details at ArtisanalLA.com.

Tags:

Artisanal LA, Cake Monkey Bakery, Chicks with Knifes, Christie Bishop, Compartes Chocolates, I Heart Pies, Lemon Bird Handmade Jams, Lindy & Grundy's, McDonald's, Silverlake Farms

LA Fashion Week Shopping Party Event

2010-10-15T22:24:00.000-07:00

Last night we had the honor to be apart of the LA Fashion Week Shopping Party Event hosted by Refinery 29, LA Vintage Exchange and Rossmore.

Huffington Post had a blurb about the event - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/15/refinery-29s-la-fashion-w_n_764243.html#s157927

Bachelorette Party!

2010-05-03T12:22:00.001-07:00

A little something to devour for an amazing bunch of ladies!

A yummy trifle (description from the bottom - up):

Chocolate Cake
Vanilla Buttercream
Fresh Strawberries
Vanilla Cake
Peanut Butter Mousse
Dark Chocolate Chunks!

Mango, Strawberry & Blueberry Tart

2010-05-01T01:30:00.000-07:00

Welcome Spring!

All fruit came from the farmers market -
Two types of Mangos, Strawberries, and Blueberries.

Vanilla Pastry Cream, Fruit & Tart Shell

It's A Boy!

2010-05-01T01:05:00.000-07:00

Worked on a Bee Themed Baby Shower!

I created fondant bumble bees for the cake and favor boxes

Made a Bee Hive Cake out of Chocolate Cake & Chocolate Mousse.
Decorated with fondant Bumble Bees

The favor boxes included Honey Marshmallows, Chocolate Chip Cookies w/ Sea Salt, a Chocolate Cupcake w/ Vanilla Buttercream and a fondant Bumble Bee.

The favors were held in our natural brown recycled boxes, tied with a beautiful blue ribbon

Happy 50th Birthday Jean!!

2010-05-01T00:53:00.000-07:00

50 Beautiful Years deserves not one .... but two cakes!
You go girl!

Vanilla Cake with Fresh Strawberry Mousse
&
Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Mousse

Almond Joy Pie

2010-04-30T23:38:00.000-07:00

"We only see the guy eating Almond Joy's!"

This pie was created for a man who only eats Almond Joy candy bars around his co-workers. And come to find out, he actually takes out the almonds and doesn't eat them!!
You should try a Mounds, dude? They don't have almonds!

OR a Bounty Bar! My favorite candy bar from Europe!

But anyways....
I created an Almond Joy Pie for the guy :)

A Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust with a Coconut Cream Custard and Whipped Cream, topped with Toasted Coconut & Almond

Popcorn Mafia Live Podcast with Diablo Cody!

2010-04-23T22:05:00.000-07:00

I Heart Pies catered desserts for Popcorn Mafia's 100th live podcast event
at the New Beverly Cinema!

We provided:

Peanut Butter S'more Pies
Strawberry Almond Pies
Chocolate Chip Cookies w/ Sea Salt

Peanut Butter S'more Pie
Graham Cracker bottom, Chocolate Ganache, Peanut Butter Mousse, topped with a toasted handmade marshmallow

Strawberry Almond Crumb Pie
Fresh Strawberries from Oxnard, CA

And the classic... Chocolate Chips w/ Sea Salt

Haupia Pie!

2010-04-16T10:54:00.001-07:00

Haupia Pie, a traditional Hawaiian dessert, was brought to my attention last year by a dear friend returning from Hawaii. It's one of her favorites, so for her birthday this year... she got it!

A graham cracker crust, filled with a layer of coconut custard and a layer of chocolate coconut custard- topped with whipped cream and toasted coconut!

And to quote her directly, "(it was) Orgasmic!!!"

Chocolate & Stout

2010-04-15T10:32:00.001-07:00

What happens when you combine gooey Chocolate Chip Cookies with Sea Salt & Homemade Irish Stout? Watch and learn.....

= OMG!! Amazing!!

Special thanks to Randy for experimenting! :D

Bungee Jumping Cupcakes!

2010-04-13T16:16:00.001-07:00

Made some kick-ass vanilla cupcakes with chocolate buttercream for our friend's surprise birthday party!

The surprise was a 5 mile hike to the Bridge to Nowhere in Azusa, CA, bungee jump off the bridge, then hike back 5 miles.

By the end of the day we needed some sugar and these seemed to work out perfectly! :)

Super Birthday Cake

2010-04-05T11:39:00.000-07:00

4 layers. 2 tiers. All chocolate.

One very special friend received this cake for her birthday.

Chocolate cake covered (inside and out) with chocolate mousse.

I Heart, You Heart, We All Heart I Heart Pies

2010-04-05T00:10:00.000-07:00

When I phone Emily Kitlas of I Heart Pies at our pre-ordained interview hour, she’s in the middle of what she dubs “a very chocolatey day,” having just put the finishing touches on two orders; a chocolate cake with chocolate mousse and a chocolate flourless cake with chocolate glaze. It’s all in a day’s work for Kitlas and her burgeoning made-to-order pie, cake, tart and bar business which launched just before Thanksgiving three years ago after the sweet treat champion graduating from Le Cordon Bleu.

“Pies are the top,” Kitlas proclaims of her culinary obsession. “Pie and tarts are really what I love to eat myself. You can eat a piece of pie and just be happy. I love that.” Over the years, Kitlas has mastered a multitude of baked delights, from decedent Red Velvet Cake to the most addictive Meyer Lemon Bars imaginable, but asked if she has any personal favorites, she coos, “Apple crumb. Or pecan pie. Oh! A strawberry fig we do. I love it! That’s my favorite.”

But I can’t help but ask what she thinks of Hostess pies.

“What are Hostess Pies?” she asks, genuinely unsure, before laughing at my description of something that comes out of waxy paper from a 7-11. “No, no, no, no, no,” she cries. “I’ve never even had a McDonald’s apple pie! My mom made everything from scratch. I would come home every day and there would be a chocolate chip cookie batch or brownies, and she made it. I was a chubby little kid and I’m proud of it because she taught me so much [about] really good desserts.”

Specially for Easter, I-Heart-Pies has rolled out a dessert that will surely make a mama proud. It’s a Peeps Pie. That’s right, from those florescent chicks that stare you down from the aisles of Rite-Aid, Kitlas has devised a cloud like confection that could make the Easter Bunny green with envy.

She begins by melting Peeps in a double boiler, then folds the rendered golden marshmallow goodness in with whipped cream and bits of chocolate and pours it over graham cracker crust. “You’d think it’d be really rich but it’s fluffy and light,” Kitlas says. The one downside of the pie? Watching the Peeps meet their demise.

“It’s sad. You see the Peep eyes melting. I’m like, ‘I’m sorry I just killed you.’”

Fear not, those Peeps are in a much better place.

I Heart Pies is available through email special order only: orders@iheartpies.com

Large Pie: $20, Four Mini Pies: $10

You can also friend I Heart Pies on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/iHeartPies/178430909521

Or follow them on Twitter: http://twitter.com/i_heart_pies

Via http://myhollywoodbites.blogspot.com/2010/04/i-heart-you-heart-we-all-heart-i-heart.html

Easter Peeps Meets Demise!!

2010-04-01T14:23:00.000-07:00

We got featured on the NBC LA food blog, Feast! Check it out:

Emily Kitlas of I Heart Pies launched her burgeoning made-to-order pie, cake, tart and bar business just before Thanksgiving three years ago after the sweet treat champion graduating from Le Cordon Bleu.

Specially for Easter,I-Heart-Pies has rolled out a dessert that will surely make a mama proud. It’s a Peeps Pie. That’s right, from those florescent chicks that stare you down from the aisles of Rite-Aid, Kitlas has devised a cloud like confection that could make the Easter Bunny green with envy.

I Heart Pies is available through email special order only: orders@iheartpies.com Large Pie: $20, Four Mini Pies: $10

via NBC LA FEAST

JADE

2010-03-31T18:15:00.001-07:00

Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting!
Happy 1st Birthday Jade!

You're GR-R-REAT!

2010-03-02T14:42:00.000-08:00

Made a fun Birthday cake for a client!
Brings me back to my childhood... Best. Cereal. EVER!

Tony the Tiger gets poked into the cake when assembling candles ;)

Nothing's better than Chocolate Chips!

2010-01-26T16:51:00.000-08:00

I received an order for Chocolate Chips ... so I had to make a FULL batch :)

Topped them with Pink Himalayan Salt ... DELICIOUS!!

I made them in three sizes.
Tiny (1/2 ounce), Medium (1 ounce) and Large (3 ounces)!

The large ones are nice and chewy on the inside and crispy on the out!

Strawberry Mousse

2010-01-18T12:06:00.000-08:00

I was commissioned to make this Strawberry Mousse Birthday Cake for a Post Production Company!

A moist vanilla cake filled with strawberry mousse and covered with both vanilla buttercream and more strawberry mousse! Divine!

Only in California can you find fresh strawberries in the farmers market in JANUARY!

Charles Phoenix's Cherpumple & The Cherpumple Trifle

2010-01-08T15:32:00.000-08:00

A couple nights before Christmas, Nick showed me this awesome video created by Charles Phoenix called The Cherpumple (WATCH IT!!)

We were instantly motivated and came up with our own adaption!
We created the Cherpumple Trifle!!

Layers of Spiced cake, Whipped cream, Pumpkin pie filling, Cranberry pie filling, and Chocolate mousse!!

This is me serving the Cherpumple Trifle!

***After Christmas I posted our triumph onto Charles Phoenix's website. They not only created a page for our submission, but Charles Phoenix himself responded to it!!

"What can I say????….I think this is BRILLIANT and truly inspired!" - Charles Phoenix

I Heart Pies Thanksgiving and Christmas 2009 Sales

2010-01-08T14:45:00.000-08:00

I Heart Pies was VERY successful with our 2009 Holiday sales! Thanks to all that ordered!

Thanksgiving Menu:
Apple Crumb Pie
Pumpkin Pie
Pecan Pie

Apple Crumbs cooling....

For our Christmas Sale we started offering 9" pies AND debuted our 3" mini pies!!
We also added 2 new pies to the menu!
Chocolate Mousse Pie AND Cranberry Meringue Pie!

Cranberry Meringue is said to taste like "... a cherry pie and a key lime pie made a delicious baby!" - Nicholas C.

Mini Cranberry Meringue pies without the meringue....

Kettle Korn!

2010-01-08T14:41:00.000-08:00

I heart Kettle Korn!

Such an adventure trying to get behind this guy for a picture!

Love it!

KCRW's 1st Annual Good Food Pie Contest

2010-01-08T13:01:00.000-08:00

November 14, 2009

I entered into my first ever pie contest. It was KCRW Good Food's first pie contest too.
They definitely need to improve on a lot of aspects for next year's contest (in my humble opinion). But it was a learning experience for all.

I entered into all four categories:

Fruit/ Nut Pie
Cream/ Custard/ Chiffon/ Mousse Pie
Savory Pie
Interpretive Pie

There was a HUGE turn out. Look at all those PIES!

Evan Kleiman, host of KCRW "Good Food" radio show, hosted the contest.

Here is Eric Greenspan - Chef & Owner of The Foundry on Melrose tasting one of my pies.
All the ribbons.....

Although none of my pies won a ribbon, my Chocolate Mousse Pie came in as a Semi-Finalist! Yay!

Here is Nick's beautiful pie he created. It's a Purple Potato and Red Onion Pie with Homemade Ricotta Cheese!

Here's the classic - Apple Crumb Pie

And for the interpretive, I created a Boston Cream PIE.
There are two layers of Pastry Cream with a slice of vanilla cake between and Chocolate Glaze covering the top! And of course its encased in a pie crust! Intense!

Heidi and Jeff's Wedding Celebration

2010-01-07T15:42:00.000-08:00

140 Cupcakes + One 6 inch Cake = Totally Vegan!

My amazing sister, Heidi and my new Brother-In-Law, Jeff tied the knot on October 10, 2009!!
Their ceremony & celebration overlooked their new hometown of Beacon, New York. It was a cool, crisp and a little windy, but absolutely beautiful day!

Overlooking the Hudson River... just beautiful!
Chocolate Vegan Cupcakes with Vanilla Icing, topped with fresh Raspberries and Blackberries!
That's me standing next to my masterpiece!
(My 91 year old Grandmother is standing to the left!)
Heidi and Jeff cutting into their cake!

Heidi's Bridal Shower

2010-01-07T13:01:00.000-08:00

My sister, Heidi's Bridal shower was just beautiful!
My Mom, Liz and I created a wonderful spread full of food and sweets!

I created an array of fruit tarts with mangos, figs, strawberries, papaya, and kiwi.

And, of course.... savory food!

Liz's divine green bean salad!

Smoked Salmon and cream cheese with cucumber sandwiches!

Mom's famous rice salad in endives!

September 2009

Strawberry Fig Pie

2010-01-07T12:58:00.000-08:00

Strawberry Fig Pie. Just Cause.

August 2009

Chocolate Pavlova

2010-01-07T12:52:00.000-08:00

For one of our many BBQ's during August 2009, I created this amazing Chocolate Pavlova with fresh farmers market strawberries, whipped cream and topped with chocolate glaze.

Rich. Decadent. A must.

Pie, Ice Cream and Wine!

2010-01-07T12:41:00.000-08:00

The best dessert ever has to be an individual peach pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!
Nick and I brought the pie, Ken & Phil provided the wine and unexpected ice cream!
Just perfect!

August 2009

Popcorn Mafia Live Podcast with Andy Dick!

2010-01-07T12:23:00.000-08:00

I Heart Pies catered Popcorn Mafia's Live podcast guest starring Andy Dick!
So much fun! Many thanks to the gal's over at the Mafia!

The official debut of our MINI pies!
Blueberry with Almond crumb mini pies! Divine!

The best Chocolate Chip Cookie sprinkled with sea salt!
May 2009

Easter 2009 Sale

2010-01-07T11:45:00.000-08:00

Easter 2009 Sale!

I Heart Pies Table!

The famous Peeps Pie!

This is my family's Easter tradition. A sweet bread with a hard boiled egg in the center! Yum!

The beautiful dyed hard boiled eggs!

Valentine's Day 2009 Sale

2010-01-07T11:06:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day 2009 Sale!
Got together with a couple of local vendors and had a party!

Carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. Garnished with candied edible flowers or lemon peel.

Chocolate Flourless Cake covered in Chocolate Glaze. Garnished with candied edible flower.

The set up!

The original I Heart Pies Apple Crumb Pie!

Yay for all things sweet!

Christmas 2008 Sale

2010-01-07T10:52:00.000-08:00

Set up shop at a friend's Christmas Craft Sale. I Heart Pies sold Rice Krispie Treats drizzled in dark chocolate, Dark Chocolate covered pretzels and Dark Chocolate covered Oreos. So much fun!

iHeartPies.com Thanksgiving 2008

2008-11-28T10:55:00.001-08:00

We had an awesome pie season!! 46 pie orders!! Thank you to everyone! Hope you all enjoyed your pies!! Happy Thanksgiving!!

Obama hearts pies!!

2008-11-11T13:27:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZOxqVl5oP4

Robots

2008-08-03T15:28:00.000-07:00

My friend Elizabeth had seen these robot cupcakes online and asked me to recreate them for her finance's birthday. Check them out!

Chocolate on chocolate!

2008-08-03T15:22:00.000-07:00

My co-worker ordered this cake for her friend's 30th b-day party. Devil's food cake, soaked in raspberry liquor, layered with chocolate buttercream, and covered in a chocolate glaze. One hell of a cake! :D

Happy Birthday Dante!

2008-06-09T12:41:00.000-07:00

Made some yummy cupcakes for our friend, Dante's Birthday and celebrated out in Vegas.

They are vanilla cupcakes filled with chocolate glaze inside and decorated with more chocolate glaze on top and sprinkles.

Brownies

2008-06-03T20:33:00.000-07:00

It was time for a classic brownie... so I made this, which actually looks more like a cupcake. Either way, it was light and delicious!

Liz and Doug's wedding cake!!

2008-04-20T22:40:00.000-07:00

My very first wedding cake turned out wonderful!! I'm so pleased and extremely happy that my gorgeous sister and my new brother-in-law asked me to make their cake for them! Everyone loved it!! Here are some pictures of the final masterpiece!! Enjoy!

The 4 tier tower!

Cutting the cake!

YES!

Ready to serve!

Vanilla cake filled with strawberry, vanilla and chocolate mousse; covered in vanilla buttercream! YUM!!

the wedding cake!!

2008-04-20T22:23:00.000-07:00

Emergency Cake

2008-03-31T13:01:00.000-07:00

I got an emergency cake order from over the weekend for a Chocolate Mousse Pie ... lovely!

Strawberry Mousse

2008-03-28T13:21:00.001-07:00

Preparing for my sister's wedding cake, I made a Vanilla Cake with Strawberry Mousse, covered with Vanilla Buttercream.

It was SO good! I can't wait to see how the wedding cake will taste!!
Not only will there be Strawberry Mousse in the cake, but also Chocolate and Vanilla Mousse!! BRING IT ON!! :D

Happy Bday Samantha!

2008-03-28T13:09:00.000-07:00

What better way to celebrate your 18th Birthday then with a Chocolate Flourless Cake with Chocolate Glaze! YUM!

This is what it looked like when it came out of the oven! SO high ... and then collapsed on itself without the flour to hold the cake up!

Happy Bday Cyn!

2008-03-18T03:21:00.001-07:00

Cynthia, one of the creators of the 'Mighty B,' just had her bday. I was commissioned to make a large Boston Cream Pie for the surprise party at work! It was a hit! :)

Liz's Bridal Shower!

2008-03-18T03:01:00.000-07:00

My wonderful sister, Liz is about to get married! So we threw her a very authentic afternoon tea bridal shower! Everything turned out excellent ... here's a look at the yummy food:

Smoked salmon, cream cheese, and cucumbers on pumpernickel bread!

The display of food on table. 3 types of sandwiches, fruit platter, endives filled with rice salad, the list goes on and on!

The three sandwiches on tiers

The dessert table! (my fav)

I made homemade petite fours! The best for our best!

And of course, homemade cream puffs!

Me, Hyde, Liz and Momma

Mare's Birthday!

2008-03-18T02:56:00.000-07:00

My friend Mary (aka Mare) asked for a carrot cake for her bday... marzipan carrots and all!
SO YUMMY! :D

IHeartPies.com Valentine's Day Sale

2008-03-18T02:40:00.001-07:00

IHeartPies had a nice variety of sweet treats for Valentine's Day. Here's what was floating around the kitchen:

Chocolate Mousse Pie!

Handmade Chocolate covered Vanilla Marshmallows!

Meyer Lemon Bars!
(lemons straight off our friend's California Lemon trees! SO FRESH!!)

Custom order from a coworker: Black Forest Cake!
(his girlfriend loves cherries!)

Nick's 26th Birthday

2008-03-18T02:24:00.001-07:00

For Nick's 26th birthday I made little individual Dobos Tortes! They came out very well for the celebration. :)

A mixture of chocolate and vanilla buttercream.

The birthday boy freezing and making a wish.

Surfboard!

2008-01-28T16:38:00.000-08:00

Commissioned by a friend to make his 26th Birthday, he requested a surfboard cake!
This is the result: a vanilla cake with chocolate mousse filling and vanilla buttercream covering the exterior. Very yummy!

Thanks to Nick who took these amazing action photos of me finishing glittering the stars!

1st Birthday!

2008-01-14T13:39:00.001-08:00

Commissioned to make a 1st Birthday cake! The party theme was a garden party.
Devil's food cake with Chocolate buttercream icing.
Decorated with an arrangement of pink fondant flowers accompanied by modeling chocolate vines and leaves.

Polka Dot Birthday Cake

2008-01-14T13:25:00.000-08:00

Commissioned to create a birthday cake for Linda.
Devil's food cake with chocolate buttercream icing.

Orange Ginger Vegan Cookies

2008-01-14T13:15:00.000-08:00

Was having a little New Year fun! These came out REALLY well! They are vegan and are made with homemade apple sauce, cinnamon, and freshly grated ginger! The icing is made with freshly squeezed orange juice and zest.

Nick Sale!

2007-12-12T13:34:00.000-08:00

Almost forgot, we set up a little table at the Nickelodeon craft sale!

We took orders, sold slices and whole pies, and also gave away free samples!!
It worked out really well!
That's our table, to the right of us was this crazy lady with all her gross gift wrap... eww!

2007 Pie Sale!

2007-12-12T13:05:00.001-08:00

The Thanksgiving Pie Sale 2007 went SO well!! Thanks to all who purchased and supported us! In total we sold 35 pies!
We are taking a breather until 2008 ... getting ready for Valentine's Day!!
Happy Holidays!!
XO

BOO!

2007-10-31T15:31:00.001-07:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Raspberry Birthday

2007-09-06T10:26:00.000-07:00

Devil's food cake soaked with raspberry liquor and chocolate buttercream!

Bye Bud

2007-09-06T10:23:00.001-07:00

A farewell cake for our good friend Mr. Bud Vana. He is returning to Vermont.

Red Velvet

2007-09-06T10:18:00.000-07:00

A birthday red velvet cake order came in... no inside shots just yet...

Red velvet crumbs on the outside.

engagement

2007-08-07T16:03:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth and Douglas' engagement cake!

vanilla bean cake with italian chocolate buttercream, covered in fondant.

liz matches the cake!
(had no idea she would wear that color!)

gingerbread house!

2007-06-28T10:40:00.001-07:00

for this project, my friend anna and i worked together on a massive gingerbread mansion! we used teddy grahams to for inspiration and went with it :) hope you enjoy!!

the front of the house

too much speed ... and hes down!

fun times on the slopes!

enjoying the hot tub!

in the back, making out!!

the back

chocolate box

2007-06-28T10:35:00.000-07:00

this first chocolate box was my practice, but it came out much better than the second one below...

this second box was graded... wasnt too happy with the outcome... didnt have enough time...

stef's bday!

2007-06-28T10:28:00.001-07:00

My friend stef had her birthday dinner at an Indian restaurant, so I made some chocolate cupcakes and decorated them with a white piece of fondant and some pipping with leftover chocolate cassis filling from the chocolates i made earlier that week... check them out!

chocolates!

2007-06-28T10:10:00.000-07:00

The first try at making chocolates... some have cassis filling, others have orange filling..

wedding cake!!

2007-06-04T12:37:00.001-07:00

here she is! the finished wedding cake! hope you enjoy!

pastillage swans

all flowers are handmade out of gum paste and colored with petal and luster dust

piped royal icing decorations

kids chocolate cake!

2007-05-21T11:41:00.001-07:00

check it out! cake covered completely in modeling chocolate! milk, dark and white chocolate.

i went with a magical theme, hope you enjoy!

pastillage painted with cocoa powder! ooo!

celebration cake

2007-05-15T13:33:00.000-07:00

a birthday cake for me! yay!
pretty much a big petite four...

cake covered with poured fondant.

marzipan buds and scalloped edges.

marzipan roses with leaves.

a plated piece.
vanilla cake with cassis italian buttercream

inside shot

centerpiece and cake decoration class

2007-05-10T11:44:00.000-07:00

i started a new class on monday. worked on this french wedding cake called croquembouche.
first picture is what my chefs created, underneath is what me and a classmate created... definitely felt like i was on a food network challenge with this creation. our base broke when we were almost finished with the piece, but it turned out alright even with our set backs. very difficult is all i have to say. :)

final plated exam

2007-05-10T11:27:00.000-07:00

all created and designed by myself. plated on my lovely plates!

chocolate raspberry almond torte

strawberry raspberry frozen souffle

chocolate decadence: layers of chocolate mousse and chantilly creme. topped with tempered chocolate

pirate ship cake

2007-05-10T11:16:00.000-07:00

i helped my friend leigh's sorority with a pirate ship cake for their fraternity-friends bake off. even though the day was extremely hot and sunk the cake. the boys still won the bake off cause the cake rocked! yay!

awesome cake!
blue marizpan for water...watch out for the sharks and fish!

pirates and pirate booty (aka rolos)

skull and cross bones made out of marzipan.

pirate, root beer barrels, and malt ball bombs

candles for canyons.

more plated desserts

2007-05-10T11:04:00.000-07:00

strawberry panna cotta with tempered chocolate and strawberry fan.

phyllo peach tart

vanilla pastry cream in puff pastry with blueberries.

apple tarte tatin. the picture came out horrible.
the apple pieces are shaped as a flower topped with a quenelle of apple cider sobet and apple crisp.

coconut sorbet with spiced pineapple pieces. strawberry dipped in chocolate sprinkled with coconut.

cappuccino mousse

2007-04-19T14:52:00.000-07:00

cappuccino mousse in a chocolate cup with chocolate cake circles.

plated desserts

2007-04-14T17:02:00.000-07:00

onto a new class: fine dining plated desserts. created my first two plates today! enjoy!

orange creme caramel with a caramel covered almond and chocolate triangle.

vanilla panna cotta topped with caramel lace and white chocolate ribbon.

time off

2007-04-06T11:49:00.000-07:00

so even tho its spring break, i had to make something!

chocolate cupcakes with chocolate buttercream and chocolate/kahula glaze!

a whole bunch of them!

love the plate! :D

final exam

2007-04-03T17:40:00.000-07:00

intro to cake formula and assembly techniques is now over. here is my final exam. we had to make dobos torte and carrot cake.

a little rustic. accidentally put in some coffee flavor... but tastes really really good!

beautiful layers!

the ever popular carrot cake.

cream cheese icing. nough said!

spring break is here! wahoo!!

fun day

2007-04-03T17:24:00.000-07:00

a fun/easy day at school. made a wonderful angel food cake and orange chiffon cake!

so yummy. vanilla/almond flavor!

plated piece.

orange chiffon cake.

plated piece.

exam...

2007-03-26T16:05:00.000-07:00

this past saturday i had to make alhambra torte for a practical exam.

layered hazelnut chocolate sponge with chocolate glaze, lined with pistachios.
decorated with marzipan roses.

my beautiful marzipan roses and leaves!! yay!!

inside shot. chocolate!!

slice of richness!

marzipan

2007-03-21T15:05:00.000-07:00

marzipan is amazing. carrots one day, roses the next. i like!

caramel and chocolate

2007-03-21T14:55:00.000-07:00

dobos torte. layered dobos sponge with chocolate buttercream topped with a layer of caramel covered sponge! ooo! chopped almonds on the sides.

inside shot. 7 layers. caramel layer makes 8.

plated shot.

pralinettes. inside the wrapped chocolate pouch are chocolate meringue discs and praline cream.

finished and dusted with cocoa powder and hazelnuts.

whats inside the chocolate wrap.

WOW!

2007-03-19T11:22:00.000-07:00

i was very impressed with saturday's products! the carrot cake was to die for and the sacher torte was absolutely delicious! :D

wonderful carrot cake with cream cheese icing, walnuts lining the sides, and of course marzipan carrots topping each piece.

piece for you!

inside shot.

sacher torte. chocolate sponge with apricot spread and chocolate glaze!

piece.

inside shot of glory.

triangle - pineapple

2007-03-14T14:32:00.000-07:00

some fun foods for your pleasure:

triangle cake.
layers of sponge and chocolate buttercream with chocolate glaze.

nice layers!

the whole cake!

pineapple upside down cake!

yum!

decorating exam

2007-03-14T14:28:00.000-07:00

for our practical exam we had to make another cake. needed a bit more time, but was still pleased.

boston

2007-03-12T10:53:00.000-07:00

boston cream pie!

PEEPS PIE!

2007-03-09T09:49:00.000-08:00

my friend leigh loves peeps. so for her birthday i made a chocolate and peeps pie!! who knew melting peeps and folding in whipped cream could make such a wonderful pie!!

lovely!

they are so adorable!

what a slice!

welcome to the cakes!

2007-03-07T10:56:00.000-08:00

crazy times with cakes! these first couple are for practice, and practice is definitely needed for those flowers!

buttercream frosted genoise

my flowers. got to practice, practice, practice.

we didnt have to cut into the cake at school, chefs just wanted to see our decorations.
so this is my slice at home...raspberry filling!

inside shot.

black forest cake...cherrylicious!
devils food cake with kirsh (cherry brandy) whipped cream!

inside shot.

slice.

end of custards.

2007-03-05T01:09:00.000-08:00

my final practical for my custards class was on saturday. created a passion fruit mousse cake. very tart, but pretty ;)

pretty in pink.

plated design.

inside.

my friend, loren with his creation! came out so great!

crepes suzette.
wheres the nutella?

chocolate souffle

2007-02-27T10:33:00.000-08:00

imagine with some homemade vanilla ice cream. yumlicious!

lunch!

2007-02-26T16:45:00.000-08:00

lunch. yum!
photo by bignick style

happy bday mare!

2007-02-26T14:38:00.000-08:00

my lovely friend mare's bday was on friday!

i made her a cake!

chocolate chip cookie base.
homemade chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream in center.
covered with chocolate glaze on top.
lovely.

side shot.

there she is! mare eating some cake. glo in the dark mini golf takes a lot out of a girl!

my man, bignick style socializing.

practical exam

2007-02-26T14:30:00.000-08:00

on saturday we had a practical exam. charlotte royal was on the menu.

plated dots.

raspberry center.

the dome.

looking down from my station. the cool and clean side of the room... and class!

in between exam time, we teamed up and made some tiramisu!

it's so yummy! sorry, all for me! haha!

frozen goodnesses

2007-02-21T11:32:00.000-08:00

finally we are getting into plating desserts and creating some fun looking products! enjoy!

charlotte royal.
sponge cake with raspberry filling on the outside.
vanilla bavarian cream with a passion fruit and mango bomb on the inside.
lined with chopped pistachios.

inside shot.

plated design.

riboon sponge with cassis mousse.

inside shot....still frozen.

plated design.

happy valentines day!

2007-02-14T02:15:00.000-08:00

so much going on in class tonight, only presented one item; the rest are in the freezer for saturday.

cassis souffle. finally some color on the plate!

some suggestions as to what cassis tastes like:
1. sherbet!
2. push pops!

leaning tower of souffle!

hugs and kisses to everyone!

birthday!

2007-02-13T14:18:00.000-08:00

for nick's 25th birthday, i made a hazelnut chiffon cake!

the inside!

the outside!

yay!

2007-02-13T02:01:00.000-08:00

welcome everyone!
yes, im very very new at this blogging thing. i never ever thought i would do such a thing. but what the heck. check back later for more yummy postings!

paris brest. pate a choux circles, chocolate lined, praline pastry cream folded with chantilly cream, topped with powdered sugar. just divine!

vanilla panna cotta. imagine some raspberries around them!

rice pudding. we were told to use short grain rice without pre-cooking it. big mistake! one hour standing at the stove trying to soften the rice and still came out hard. so sad