Applesauce Just Isn't For Kids

Two tears ago I decided to come to culinary school to get some formal training & to expand my culinary horizons. I have learned so much and have gathered new recipes. This cake is extremely special to me because my significant other loves all the flavors in it. It is very easy to turn this cake into a gingerbread cake when the holidays come or keep it simple and serve it year around. For an extra kick you can add 1/2 cup of dark rum or mashed apples that are sauteed in butter & Grand Marnier! If you like to have a slice of cake with coffee in the morning, then add 1/2 cup of maple syrup. Enjoy!

Apple Sauce Cake with Caramel Glaze

Butter 1 cup Brown Sugar 2 cups
Egg 1 Flour 3 cups
Baking Soda 2 tsp Ground Cinnamon 1 TBSP
Apple Sauce 2 cups Ground Nutmeg 1 TBSP
Raisins 2 cups Ground Cloves 1 tsp
Salt 1/4 tsp Walnuts 1 cup ,coarsley chopped

Glaze
Brown Sugar 1 cup Butter 1/4 cup
Evaporated Milk 1/4 cup

Cream butter and gradually add in brown sugar. Beat till fluffy. Add in one egg. Sift 2 1/2 cups of flour, baking soda, salt & spices. Add to mixer by alternating between it and applesauce. Beat well. Dredge raisns & walnuts in remaining flour (so that they dont just fall to the bottom of cake) and fold into batter. Make sure not to over mix. Bake at 350*F for 1hr 15min. for the glaze combine all the ingredients over medium heat and stir constantly till it boils. Remove from heat and beat/whisk till thickened. Once thickened drizzle over cake.

Stop and Smell the Flowers

When I first decided that I wanted to explore cake decorating and add that skill to my culinary resume, I researched the field. I found an awesome cake decorating program at Michael's Arts and Crafts store. The very first lesson was flowers. I love making them, but I must say my favorite is the rose and apple blossom. Flowers are the simplest way to dress a cake up, when the client has no real idea of the design or decoration for their cake. I have posted several pictures below. Enjoy!

Pink Roses

Apple Blossom and a Daisy

A Flower Basket Cake Topper

Must Have Baking Products

This blog post will be dedicated to all of the baking products that I can not live without and all bakers' must have.

The first product that is a bakers' must have is either Crisco or Baker's Joy Non-Stick Spray with Flour. This product will save you time and head ache of having to grease a baking pan, then lightly flour it. Out of the two I recommend Baker's Joy, its a little pricey, but it works like magic. Nothing will stick to your cake pans, muffin pans, or cake pan again.

The second baking product is this great silicon baking mold. I use several of these to create the bite size brownie bites that were in my last blog post. This item is wonderful for portioning out small petite sizes of any baking recipe.

The third baking product must have is special occasion or holiday baking molds. There are baking molds in every shape possible for any occasion. The picture above is one of a turkey for Thanksgiving. I mad a rum cake out of this mold and made it the center piece of the table. Baking molds add a special flare to any occasion or holiday.

The fourth and final baking product that is a must have is plenty of Wilton's cake decorating and recipe books. Everything that i am in the check out line at the grocery store, i pick one up. The Wilton;s cake decorating book you can find at any cake supply store or any art sand crafts store . You can find the small dessert recipe book at any grocery store and they are usually only $3.99 or $4.99 But the important thing is where ever you see a recipe at, take it. It can be on a side of a box or on a can of soup, just buy it and collect the recipes.Enjoy!

Bite Size Goodness

One day my hair stylist, Lencola*, called me about an event she was doing. She was hosting a photo shoot to show case her talent as a wonderful beautician. She wanted to know what would be a good food to serve to the hair models during the photo shoot. I asked a couple of questions about the event and how long it was going to last. Since the hair models will be having their makeup done, while their was getting done and also the photo shoot was going to last anywhere between 5hrs to 8hrs, I suggested small bite size foods and desserts.

Small bite size was good for this event, because it will be able to be eaten quickly and if the hair models already were in full makeup, it would not mess up their makeup. The food suggestion that Lencola went with was my brownie bits. These things are bite size goodness. The can be picked up and popped in your mouth in minutes. To add an extra flare I added designs to each on with colored butter cream icing. Enjoy!

Brownie Bites

2/3 cup Unsweetned butter

5 oz Baking chocolate, cut into pieces

1 3/4 cup Sugar

2 Tbsp. Vanilla extract

3 Eggs

1 cup All-purpose flour

Sift flour and set aside. Beat sugar, vanilla, and eggs in electric mixer on low. While this is mixing start preparing a small saucepan. Melt butter and chocolate in saucepan over medium heat. Stir mixture frequently till pieces of chocolate are fully melted. Once melted add chocolate mixture to the electric mixer. Once fully incorporated stop mixer and scrape down the sides. Restart mixer and add in flour. Spoon batter into greased special baking pans with small squares incorporated in them. Bake on 350*F for about 18-20 minutes. It is desirable to have brownies with a muffin like top. Cool on wire completly before decorating. This recepie yeilds about 2 dozen small brownie bites, depending on how you divide out the batter.

*If you would like to get in touch with my hair stylist, she can be found on facebook under Lencola Urhairstylist Mungin. Pictures of her work can be found below. She is located in Jacksonville, Florida.

Cupcakes Fit For A Princess

I love all of my clients, but the ones that hold a special place in my heart is the children clients. The way kids face light up when they see their birthday cake is amazing. This one client had her granddaughter turning 3yrs old. The theme was princess and the colors were pink and white. She wanted me to make 3 dozens cupcakes and tie the theme into the cupcakes.


The result where these beautiful pink and white vanilla cupcakes with butter cream icing. The cupcakes with white icing had pink dots added to them and the cupcakes with pink icing had white dots added to them. To add an extra flare I found these candy rings and adorned the top of each cupcake with one. The client, her granddaughter, and the workers at the daycare center where I delivered the cupcakes to, were in awe of them. I was so happy and over joyed. Enjoy.



Vanilla Cupcake Recipe*

1 1/2 cups Self Rising Flour

2/3 cups Softened Butter

3/4 cups Superfine Sugar

3 Eggs

2 Tbs Vanilla Extract



Sift flour and set aside. Cream butter ans sugar together till nice and fluffy. Start adding in eggs, one at a time. Next add flour and vanilla extract. Spoon batter into cupcake lined muffin tin pan. Bake on 350*F for 20 minutes. Cool cupcakes completely before decorating with icing.

* Recipe yields a dozen cupcakes. Double or triple recipe depending on how many is needed.



It is important when you are coloring icing to use colored piping gel and not regular food coloring. This is important because regular food coloring will water down the icing and make it become loose, instead of keeping it stiff. Colored piping gel can be found at any arts and crafts store and any cake supply store.

Semi-Homemade....Nobody Will Ever Know

I love to get into the kitchen with my favorite CD and slave away. Afterwards my shoulders and feet be hurting, but when I look at the creation I made, it makes the pain a little easier to deal with. Now, I know that not everybody feels the same way about this, like I do! This is one reason why I absolutely love Sandra Lee.


Sandra Lee has a show on the Food Network called 'Semi-Homemade,' where she takes already premade,packaged or canned food and mix them with a homemade recipe. This concept allows working moms or people who don't like to slave away in the kitchen a chance to create a beautiful meal in half the time and work. In spirit of her, I have added a simple lemon pound cake recipe, that is of course semi-homemade! Also encourage you to google Sandra Lee and read her inspirational story of coming from the trailer park, to a bad marriage and now to having her own cooking show. Enjoy.


Lemon Pound Cake
1 box Duncan Hines Lemon cake mix

1 box Lemon Instant Pudding mix or Lemon Jello


1/4 cup Sour cream


1 Tbsp Lemon zest


1 Tbsp Lemon Juice


1 cup Water


1/2 cup Oil


4 Eggs







Lemon/Vanilla Glaze
1 cup Confectioner's Sugar

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice


1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract



Combine all the ingredients together and mix on medium speed till well combined. Pour batter into a floured fluted cake pan or bunt cake pan. Bake at 350*F for 45-55 minutes. Let cake stand for about 15 minutes. While cake is cooling start making the glaze. Once glaze is complete, invert cake, onto a plate or cake stand, right side up. Drizzle glaze onto cake as desired.


For glaze combine all the ingredients together till the mixture is milky in color and then drizzle over top of cake. If you want the glaze all over cake, take a pastry brush and brush inside and outside of cake with the glaze.

Strawberries and Bubbles

The beginning of this year was very hard for me because I was trying to get out of a bad domestic violence marriage that was getting worse by the day. The one thing that brought me a lot of comfort was baking and cake decorating. My favorite thing to do was to have a night out on the town with my favorite fabulous divas.

To start the night off, we would meet up at somebodies house to start the festivities. One would turn the music up, the other would bring the alcohol, and I would provide the chocolate covered strawberry's. We would have some laughs, eat some delicious juicy chocolate strawberry's with a glass of wine or campaign and all while walking around the house half-naked trying to get dressed! These are the times I will cherish always. When I didn't have enough strength to leave, they provided me an outlet to help me to just get through to the next day.

This recipe for simple dipping dark chocolate and white chocolate is my favorite. First you will need to start of by picking out some very good size strawberries. I love going to my local Farmer's Market for the best strawberry's. If strawberry's are out of season, then the local grocery store should have a good selection. Make sure that they are of good size and none of them have any mold or soft spots. You will need to wash them in cold water and lay them out on a paper towel to dry. Enjoy.

Dark Chocolate Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup Water

1/4 cup Granulated Sugar

2-3 Tbsp Hershey's Baking Cocoa

1 candy bar Hershey's Chocolate

First break up the Hershey's candy bar into small to medium size pieces. Next bring the water to a boil and add the sugar, while stirring constantly. Take pot off of heat and add in cocoa,then stir in candy bar a little bit at a time. While hot put mixture in a glass or stainless steel bowl and dip strawberries immediately and lay covered strawberry's out on wax or parchment paper and refrigerate.

*To make white chocolate dipping sauce follow same recipe as above, but use a white chocolate candy bar and omit the cocoa.

To create the swirls, put some left over sauce in a squeeze bottle or dip a toothpick in the sauce and drizzle or strawberry.