Thursday, March 24, 2011

Mama's Bitchin' Kitchen

I realize that I haven't written in forever. So I started reading some of my old posts and came to an alarming conclusion: I never blog about my cooking. Those of you that know me know that I am all about cooking and baking. And if I do say so myself, I'm pretty damn good at it. Cooking and baking are basics to learn, and with time, focus, and patience (trust me, I have none); anyone can master it. Baking scares a lot of people, and that makes me sad. Baking is so much fun, and there's nothing better than showing up to an event with some freshly baked goodness and having people ooh and aah over how good they came out. Of course, I get a little offended sometimes when I feel like people doubt my abilities, which usually makes me flex my baking muscles. I was once told that lemon bars were impossible by someone who was a mediocre cook at best. So I went home that night and made two pans. They were fantastic, might I add...

Anywho, the point. I love to cook and bake. From scratch. I don't do box mixes or icing cans. And I've yet to come across a recipe that scares me. (Yes, there was that one mishap, but I've accepted it and moved on.) So I'll do my best to post more about the good eats here. 'Cause if it's one thing I've learned, food will bring people, whether it be to my house or to read my blog. Hey, maybe that's why I've been invited to more events lately?

So, Mama's whippin' up some chocolate, red-velvetish cupcakes. Not true red velvet, because it's too damn hard (and expensive) to find unprocessed dutch cocoa. And really, I just don't have the time. Maybe when I get an assistant, that should be their first assignment. A friend called and asked me to whip up some goodness for a bridal shower, and I was glad to step up. She's actually recommended me to bake, photograph, design, and probably organize other people's lives--so of course I obliged. Like I said, any opportunity to flex my muscles and whip out the Analon pans...

Without further adieu, I give you:

They are a red velvet-like (which is chocolate with lots of baking soda, really) with a cream cheese icing. The bride is having black, pink and white as her colors, so I happened to have these hot pink sugars for a topping. Yes, I am really that nerd that can't walk past anything related to baking without bringing something home. I don't often share all my recipes, but the goodness of this one? The icing. Brace yourself:

2 sticks of butter
8 oz (1 brick) cream cheese--I always use Neufchatel cheese
3-3.5 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

That's it. Beat the butter, beat in the cream cheese, toss in the vanilla, and slowly add in the powdered sugar. Now, I added more sugar to my recipe because I wanted it to be really firm--note the tips of the icing. I did this because the last time I used Cabot butter, it started to fall apart on me like a margarine would.

You're welcome.