:: sweet treats ::

Another year over...

2011-12-30T12:17:00.002+11:00

...and another about to begin!

2011 was fantastic for me. It was the year I:

- met an amazing man...and he asked me to marry him :)

- my sister and her lovely man got engaged

(my sister has the pink nails, mine are au naturel)

- adopted my gorgeous kitten Jett from the pound

- became a mum to Chris' fur babies of the doggy variety, Don the New Zealand Border Collie and Milli the Jack Russell

- I finally got to visit some of Adriano Zumbo's patisseries in Sydney

- learned how to drive a tractor

- learned how to paint the interior of a house

- made some new friends, and lost ones who weren't really friends at all

- starred in a celebrity cook book (I still have some available if anyone wants a copy)

- helped to organise a charity ball that raised $25 000 for our local hospital

- finally sought treatment for sleep apnoea and actually started sleeping like a normal person (not walking around like a depressed zombie is such a good thing!)

- made more wedding cakes than any other year

- conquered stenciling on cakes

- went to five weddings and caught the bouquet at two of them

So there you have it...all in all, a pretty great year! Can I be impatient and bypass 2012? Bring on 2013 so I can become Mrs R already! :)

Happy New Year to you all xx

The best day of my life...so far

2011-12-15T08:30:00.015+11:00

When my partner Chris said to me last month that I had to keep the weekend of the 10th of December free, I immediately became suspicious. All he would tell me was that we had to leave at 4.30am, and that the weekend involved going to a celebrity chef's restaurant.

I pushed the weekend out of my head (after all, thinking about where we could possibly be going was sending me slightly crazy!) until a couple of days before the event. I will admit it; I pestered Chris. A lot. Every day. "Where are we going?" I whined. He tried to convince me we were catching the boat to Tasmania for a day (err...the thriving metropolis of Devonport isn't exactly swimming with celebrity chef restaurants!) Then there was talk of Brisbane. Then I thought we were going to Melbourne (not far from us, but the 4.30am wake up call had me convinced we were hot air ballooning). All in all, I was positively stumped as to where we were headed.

On the morning of our departure I sleepily walked outside to where Chris' dad was waiting in his car. He drove us towards Melbourne (dodging roos along the way!) and it was only when we skipped the turn to Melbourne and headed towards Avalon airport that I knew for certain we were flying somewhere.

As we checked in at a kiosk I saw our destination light up on the screen: SYDNEY.

I was excited! I love going to Sydney. I go at least once a year to visit friends but I rarely spend a lot of time in the city itself, more often spending my time in the suburbs. This was going to be a fun weekend!

After leaving our bags at our hotel at World Square, we strolled down Pitt St Mall and caught a cab to Balmain. Our destination: Adriano Zumbo's patisserie. HEAVEN.

Chris was disappointed that there was no V8 cake (he's obsessed with the idea of it) but we did purchase a few of Zumbo's famous macarons. We then walked up Darling St, stopped in at a local market, and caught the ferry back across the Darling Harbour. From there we walked to Paddy's Market and rode on the monorail. By this stage we were fading fast, and not being able to check in to our hotel yet we opted to go to the movies for some air conditioning and to put our feet up (funny I know, but remember we'd been up since 4am!)

After finally being able to check into the hotel, I had a disco nap and then set about getting ready to go out for dinner. At this stage Chris was still refusing to tell me where we were going. Even when we hopped into a cab he wouldn't tell the driver the name of the restaurant! We pulled up at the end of Macquarie St in Circular Quay and I could see Chris looking around for the restaurant. I asked him which number we were looking for, and when he said "number one" I looked across the road to see Aria, Matt Moran's restaurant.

I couldn't hold my excitement in. Try as I might, I couldn't help but let out a squeal (or five). I was almost hyperventilating and dying of happiness at the same time. I have been a fan of Matt Moran for years, and I never thought I'd be lucky enough to go to his restaurant.

We were early, so we walked around Circular Quay for a little while, looking at the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It was Chris' first time to Sydney so I took some pictures of him posing with the landmarks. As we walked around the restaurant precinct we came across a Chinese restaurant, and Chris (being the prankster he is) tried to convince me that that was actually where we were going for dinner. I don't think so! At this point, nothing was coming between me and Aria!

It was eventually time to head over to Aria, and we arrived for our 6.30pm - 8.30pm reservation (you reserve a block of time - Aria is booked out for months in advance so time is of the essence, it seems). We were greeted by lovely staff (one who saw me about to put my Prada bag on the floor and quickly instructed me that it should sit on the spare chair next to me) and were waited on hand and foot for the time we were there.

So I'm sure you want to know about the food...

When we sat down we were given a 25 page wine list, and the sommelier was happy to assist us in selecting our drinks. I chose the 2010 Chateau Pierre-Bise Cabernet d'Anjou Rose from the Loire Valley in France, and Chris chose Trumer Pils, a pilsener from Austria.

We were presented with glasses of cold tomato soup topped with yoghurt. An interesting flavour, but delicious all the same.

Due to the time we were there we were given the pre theatre menu to peruse (the menu changes after 7.30pm). For entree I chose the peking duck consomme with duck dumplings, shaved abalone and mushrooms.

Chris had the Kurobuta pork belly with pork croquette and caramelised apple. I don't eat pigs (no pork, no ham, no bacon...not for any reason except I don't like it!) but Chris offered me some of his pork and I devoured it. It was amazing.

For main, I chose the beef, a scotch fillet served with lyonnaise potatoes and green asparagus with a bone marrow and cornichon sauce.

Chris opted for the roasted lamb rump with ricotta gnocchi, pumpkin and mustard fruit puree and a sage and balsamic sauce.

We shared a big bowl of truffled potato mash, simply because I always hear everyone banging on about how amazing truffle is, and I was desperate to find out what all the fuss was about (oh, yes, there's a good reason for the fuss...yum!)

Chris knew I was desperate to check out Adriano Zumbo's new shop at the Star, so we declined the dessert menu. Minutes later, a little tray of mini sweets appeared on our table, laden with coconut macaroons, raspberry jellies and chocolate truffles. Heaven. It's the little touches like this that made our dining experience at Aria exceptional.

Regrettfully we left the restaurant and I stopped off at the bathroom on the way out. Chris went ahead and I told him I'd meet him outside.

As I descended the stairs Chris stopped me for a kiss. As we broke away Chris looked into my eyes and said...

"Will you marry me?"

I stood there, unable to process the question. Was he really asking me to marry him? All I could utter was "are you serious?" until he waved an exquisite white gold diamond ring under my nose.

I was in shock. I was finally able to say "of course I will!" and Chris slipped the ring on to my finger. By this stage passers-by had realised what they had just witnessed and were slowing down and smiling at us. I caught the eye of one girl and exclaimed "I'm engaged!" and her and her friends congratulated us. One of the waiters from Aria saw us through the window and came out to invite us back inside. He told us we had to toast the occasion properly, and returned with champagne and canapes 'on the house'. It was in the lounge area that I set about calling mine and Chris' families, letting them know we were engaged. My brother is currently in the US, and not even considering the time difference I called him. Thankfully he's a very social person and he was still up partying despite the fact it was the middle of the night/very early morning over there.

After we eventually left Aria we walked around to the ferry terminal and caught a ferry headed for the Star. Chris struck up a conversation with a couple of guys (shout out to Clarkey!) and we told them about our engagement. Pretty soon half the ferry knew about it and we were congratulated as everyone began disembarking the vessel. Clarkey's mate even rang his wife and told her about our engagement, and he took photos of us with the Sydney Harbour Bridge. He'll never know how much those photos mean to us. Thanks, nameless friend of Clarkey :)

We went over to the casino and made a beeline for Adriano Zumbo's patisserie. His new shop is bigger than its cousins and the macaron displays are much more visually enticing. There is also a 'dessert train' (think sushi train but desserts!) Unfortunately there is no V8 cake left, so Chris leaves mildly disappointed. I leave with an abundance of assorted macaron flavours, Santa Hats and Zumbo's TV series on DVD.

We walked to the nearest monorail station, caught it back to World Square and went back to the hotel.

So there you have it...the best day of my life. I can't wait to marry my best friend :)

Some amusing facts about our engagement:

- Chris thought he'd been dropping hints about where we were going. One of these hints was that he baked macarons two nights before we went to Sydney. While these were most welcome, I had no idea this was actually in reference to Adriano Zumbo.

- Chris was going to propose at Zumbo's patisserie in Balmain; however there was a slight problem. We had a running joke that he couldn't propose to me until he had tasted V8 cake (this was a ploy to try and get me to make it for him - no matter how much I wanted him to propose I couldn't bring myself to attempt that cake!) As the Balmain store had no V8 cake he decided to propose at Aria.

- Chris proposed on the steps outside Aria as he was concerned I would squeal too much inside. Hahahaha. My sister got engaged to her wonderful man three weeks ago and he knows how much I squealed and cried to her on the phone, so he was 'just taking precautions'. Too funny!

- We first started looking at rings on my birthday when we were in Melbourne. Little did I know that the following day he bought the ring. He still took me ring shopping to throw me off the scent. Cheeky bugger! I had actually found a ring I loved and couldn't understand why he wouldn't buy it (it was on sale and heavily reduced). Turns out there already was a ring!

- Chris asked my dad's permission five weeks ago, before my sister's partner asked him the same thing. Daniel almost postponed his proposal to my sister as he didn't know when Chris was going to ask me. When I called dad to tell him we were engaged he said "all these men kept coming to my door asking if they could marry my daughters!" Hahaha. It was pure coincidence that we were engaged within three weeks of each other.

- When I called Chris' mum (who was in on the whole thing!) to tell her the good news I didn't even say who I was. Thankfully through the 'oh my gods' and nonsense she was able to deduce who she was speaking to.

- The Adriano Zumbo Santa Hats caused a bit of a stir at Sydney Airport on the way home. The baggage security staff oohed and ahhed over them so much that they temporarily halted other passengers going through. Hilarious!

Thank you so much to all the love and support from our families and friends. We have been blown away by the cards, phone calls and messages we have received since the weekend. Thank you all for being such an important part of our lives.

Love Kel & Chris xxx

A sweet surprise

2011-12-09T06:43:00.001+11:00

Anyone who knows me knows that Adriano Zumbo (patissier extraordinaire) is my hero. I love his creativity and passion for sweet treats, and I have pledged to visit every one of his patisseries and cafes.

One of my work friends had spent the last few days in Sydney, and before she left I jokingly told her she had to go to Zumbo's and get me a macaron.

Well...she did!

These macarons travelled from Sydney to Ballarat (no mean feat!) and were still incredibly delicious. Flavours included caramelised pumpkin seed, passionfruit & tonka bean, and cola. I think cola was my favourite, if only for the amazing likening to a glass of Pepsi!

Apologies for the low quality pics and their placement - I thought I'd give the Blogger app on my iPhone a go. Never again!

Festive Chocolate Tarts

2011-12-05T21:51:00.006+11:00

The silly season is well and truly upon us! Between weddings, Christmas functions, social events and family get-togethers I've barely had a spare minute over the last few weeks.

I met Yvette and Matt through my lovely friend Shell, and they invited Chris and I to a BBQ at their place last weekend. I volunteered to bring dessert (as I always do) and seized the opportunity to make these chocolate tarts.

Tart cases
1 1/2 cups plain flour, sifted
1/4 cup cocoa
1/4 cup icing sugar, sifted
180g cold unsalted butter, chopped

Chocolate filling
1/2 cup heavy cream
30g unsalted butter, chopped
200g semi-sweet chocolate (I used Ghiradelli)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Place flour, cocoa and icing sugar in food processor and blitz until fine crumbs form. Add butter and a couple of tablespoons of iced water, blitzing until mixture clumps together. Add more iced water if necessary.

Pour dough on to a piece of non-stick baking paper. Place another piece of baking paper over the top and roll dough out to approximately 1/2 cm in thickness. Push rolled dough into a loose bottomed quiche tin (in this case I used four mini tins). Chill in fridge for 20-30 mins.

Preheat oven to 180 celsius (160 fan forced) and place a piece of baking paper over prepared tin. Fill with baking weights, beans or rice (I always use the same batch of rice - just don't eat it!) and blind bake for 15-20 minutes.
Remove rice and baking paper and bake for another 15 minutes until cases are firm.

To make the filling, combine chocolate, butter, vanilla and cream in a saucepan. Heat over low-medium heat until completely melted and well combined. Pour into prepared tart cases and garnish as desired.

I originally intended to make one larger tart, but for the life of me couldn't find my regular loose-bottomed tin. I could find my giant one (a bit of overkill for a dessert to feed four!) and my small tins. I went with the four small tins and decided to top each with different flavours (clockwise: pistachio & cranberry, crushed candy cane, slivered almond and Peppermint Crisp). To keep with the festive theme I decorated each of the tarts with edible gold glitter and tiny edible stars. Gorgeous.

Experiment with flavours by substituting the vanilla extract for other essences, such as peppermint, caramel and coffee. Serve with whipped cream and berries. This dessert is a chocoholic's dream - you only need a tiny piece to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Tips on baking the perfect cake

2011-11-23T12:12:00.007+11:00

Since I'm laid up with a neck/back injury I thought I'd do something constructive and give you guys some tips on baking the perfect cake.

Check your oven is working properly.
Many people blame themselves when their cakes don't bake evenly, sink, crack or burn. But often the blame lies with the oven. Sometimes ovens develop cold spots, hot spots or they don't heat to the correct temperature. The easiest way to check your oven is to buy an oven thermometer, which are available at any good homewares store. They cost under $10 but will save you a lot of grief.

Line your cake tins.
I don't trust greasing cake tins with butter or oil as these can absorb back into your cake mix, rendering them fairly useless as good releasers. I always grease my tins with butter or margarine and then line the bottom and sides with non-stick baking paper. Wait 15 minutes after taking your cake out of the oven before you turn it out on to a cooling rack, then peel off the baking paper. Using this method I've never had a cake stick.

Sift, sift away!
Don't just plonk your flours in! Sift them - this gets rid of any lumps and other nasties and also incorporates air into your mixture. Air makes for delicious, non-stodgy cake!

Measure your ingredients properly.
I love the UK method of using weights in their recipes. Aussies and Americans seem to use cups more than weighted measurements and I think this is a bit risky. Plus, a lot of people don't know that US cups are different sizes to Aussie cups. Baking is not like cooking to taste - you need to get the correct ratios otherwise you might be in for a baking fail.

Work quickly.
The raising agents in self raising flour start reacting as soon as it is mixed with wet ingredients. Don't over beat your cake batter, and make sure you get your batter in the oven quickly to ensure your cake rises correctly.

Don't over-fill your tins.
Over-filling your cake tin can lead to cakes sinking in the middle, so make sure you don't fill them any more than two thirds full. If you're trying to get a tall cake, you're better off baking two separate cakes and sandwiching them with buttercream or ganache. I do this for almost every cake I make as I feel that thin cakes just don't look as professional.

Consider using heating cores when baking large cakes.
This normally isn't an issue for the average home baker, but if you start doing some cakes that are large in diameter you'll need to think about heating the cake from the inside out. I use flower nails inserted with the flat part on the bottom of the cake. Now, these are usually reserved for piping flowers but because they're metal and have a flat base they are also useful for use as heating cores.

Don't get over excited!
It sure is tempting to open the oven door for a look-see, but when you do this you are letting cool air in. This can affect the way your cake rises, so limit the amount of times you open the door. I never open the door before 3/4 of the cooking time has elapsed to minimise the chance of my cake falling.

Don't put your cake in the fridge.
It astounds me how many people rush to put cakes in the fridge. This actually dries them out. If your cake is covered with fondant it can make the fondant sweat and ruin all your hard work. Ganache and buttercream can be left out of the fridge for several days, so there's no reason to think they must stay refrigerated (unless of course the cake is not in air conditioned comfort). Just keep your cake in a sealed, air-tight container in a cool place.

So...there's some quick tips on how to bake a delicious cake. If there are any other tips you'd like in relation to baking or decorating please let me know!

Emergency wedding cake!

2011-11-23T09:21:00.006+11:00

I had a call from the bride's mum one morning when I was home doing another cake. With only a couple of weeks to go until her daughter's wedding their cake maker had ended up in hospital. The bride is a friend of Jess, who I recently did a cake for, so she asked her mum to give me a buzz to see if I was free to make them a three tiered cake.

It just so happened that I had a very full weekend booked, with a couple of work functions here in Ballarat and also in Melbourne. I originally said no as I simply could not deliver the cake to Geelong, where the wedding was being held. I personally would never deliver a full assembled three tiered cake - there is far too much risk of the cake toppling over or sagging. Some people do it but I'm just not willing to take the risk. I will only deliver two tiered cakes fully assembled, and it takes practice to be able to stack a cake at a venue.

So we had a problem - there were 140 guests invited to the wedding, and a two tiered cake was not going to be enough. The bride's mum suggested that I make a couple of kitchen cakes that could be used to feed all the guests, in addition to the two tiered cake. She was also able to pick it up from me the day before. Wonderful!

The main 'display' cake was dark chocolate mud that had been torted and crumb coated with chocolate buttercream. The cake was covered with white fondant and decorated with elegant Cornelli piping (hand cramps a-plenty!) I then wrapped coral coloured satin ribbon and strands of diamentes around the base of both tiers.

I made the looped bow for the top of the cake, which was colour matched to the ribbon at the base of the cake. The bow incorporated diamente strands for a bit of added sparkle.

So there you have it - a solution for a cake emergency!

Happy Birthday Noah!

2011-11-23T09:04:00.004+11:00

One of my work colleagues is a grandma, and her grandkids often come in for a visit. They are just gorgeous! Noah was turning five, and he requested I make him a Spiderman cake.

This cake was a dark chocolate mud and was torted and crumb coated with vanilla buttercream. The cake was then covered in blue fondant and the spiderwebs were piped with royal icing.

The Spiderman faces were cut out of red fondant and I used an edible ink pen to create the lines.

Happy birthday Noah!

Congratulations Craig and Kirsty!

2011-11-23T08:28:00.006+11:00

Whew! I've been so busy with cakes recently and it's only because I've taken the day off from my day job (my back and neck are causing me much grief at the moment...I should take out shares in my chiropractor's company!) that I've had a chance to update you all on my most recent cake creations.

Craig and Kirsty are friends of my partner, and have now become friends of mine. Chris and I were honoured to be part of their wedding - we were chief petal distributors (haha), I made their wedding cake AND we were seated on the bridal table. How lucky are we!

Kirsty chose a white and dark marble mud cake for both tiers, covered in vanilla buttercream and ivory fondant. The bases of both tiers were decorated with dark brown satin ribbon, with thin ivory ribbon criss-crossing over the brown. I then added some native Australian flowers. I loved this look - it was so effective and fit in with the colour theme of their wedding so well.

My favourite part of this cake was the personalised figurines I created for the top tier. Craig is rarely seen without his signature John Deere cap, so naturally I had to include this! Kirsty was carrying a bouquet of native Australian flowers so I ensured her bouquet fit the Aussie outback colour pallette. She is also a keen horse enthusiast so I made a tiny horse shoe to slip over her figurine's arm.

Chris and I had attended three weddings in the space of three weeks...and I managed to nab the bouquet at two of them, Craig and Kirsty's wedding included. Isn't the bouquet gorgeous? The beauty of Australian natives is astounding, and the best part is that they last for AGES. I had no trouble with them wilting on the cake, and I still have the bouquet on my desk at work almost two weeks later. It still looks as good as it did on the day. On a side note, be aware that a bunch of natives hurtling towards you at a million miles an hour HURTS when you catch it. I had a numb finger for about ten minutes afterwards! Haha!
Congrats Craig and Kirsty - I'm so glad life brought us together as friends. You guys are awesome!

Happy birthday to me!

2011-11-03T21:07:00.004+11:00

I recently celebrated my 28th (gulp!) birthday so I thought I'd share a couple of fantastic pressies I got!

After being woken by my amazing man with breakfast (poached eggs on toast, my favourite!) and diamond earrings (I know right!!) we spent the day in Melbourne with my future mother and sister in law at Ikea (new Ikea in Springvale, check it out!) and Costco (ahhh, one of my happy places). It was a magnificent day.

My lovely mum bought me something I've been lusting over ever since I got my KitchenAid...the famous Beater Blade! It's great for lazy bakers like me who cannot be bothered scraping the bowl with a spatula. Winner!

My equally as lovely sister bought me the book I've been wanting since it came out...it was written by my idol, the amazing...ADRIANO ZUMBO! I can't wait to try out the recipes. The whole book is food p o r n. Absolutely divine.

Mum helped me cut my cake...my baking skills are fine, it's the cutting I suck at...haha!

I had a great time celebrating my birthday with mine and Chris' family and felt extremely loved. I can't say I'm counting down to the next birthday...the closer I get to the big 3-0 the more scared I am!

Shell and Ash tie the knot!

2011-11-03T20:05:00.003+11:00

Shell and I have been friends since high school, and I was honoured to not only be the cake maker for her wedding, but a guest as well.

When Shell asked me to make her wedding cake I expected she would give me some ideas and we would come up with a concept for her dream cake. I was a little shocked to say the least when she told me I could do anything I want. ANYTHING I WANT. Err...anything? Yep, ANYTHING!

So...I pretty much made my dream wedding cake. The bottom tier was white chocolate mud, the middle was dark chocolate mud and the top tier was white chocolate and raspberry swirl. All were torted and coated in white chocolate ganache before I covered them in ivory fondant. I used white as an accent colour, which looked amazing against the ivory. The bottom tier was decorated with stylish white stripes, while the middle tier was quilted and accented with swiss dots. The top tier was stenciled and decorated with fresh pink orchids.

The cake was a big hit at the wedding, and I even had a hotel owner tell his daughter that he wanted to have his chef recreate the recipe for his restaurant! Big props to me, woohoo!

This was one of the most amazing weddings I've ever had the pleasure of attending. The day was so full of love and laughter. I was also thrilled to be asked to be part of the 'flash mob' that took place midway through the reception. Shell had organised a group of approximately twenty girls to join her and her bridesmaids in a choreographed dance to Bruno Mars' song Marry You. It was so much fun watching the unsuspecting guests' faces as they watched us sprint to join in the dance.

Congrats Mr and Mrs W - may your lives be filled with joy, laughter and love. Love you guys to pieces!

My most challenging cake yet...Jess and Nathan get married

2011-10-26T20:43:00.004+11:00

My work colleague Karen also happens to own a shoe shop here in Ballarat. When one of her and her husband's employees was getting married Karen was kind enough to recommend me to do their wedding cake.

Their wedding ceremony was held at the famous Kryal Castle, so Jess wanted this medival/gothic theme to carry through to their reception and their wedding cake.

Jess and I redesigned the cake just a week before the wedding and I was absolutely wrapt with the outcome. I had recently bought some gorgeous damask stencils and was dying to try them out. I had also never had the opportunity to try my hand at quilting, so this cake was going to incorporate some new techniques for me. I always love a challenge.

Well...challenge it was. When the colour theme is white, red and...black...well, you know it will keep you on your toes.

For those in the cake making game there is nothing scarier than white and black together. Even the smallest mistake cannot be undone, and often the only solution for a mistake is to pull all the icing and fondant off the cake and start again. I really wasn't keen on doing that, that's for sure!

I did some practice with the stencils beforehand so that when it came time to stencil the cake I felt somewhat prepared. Nervous, but as prepared as I could be.

As it happened, I needn't have worried. The stencilling went on without a hitch. Relieved doesn't begin to describe how I was feeling at this point!

My partner Chris came with me to help me set up, and once we had all three tiers together I stood and marvelled at my handiwork. I was so proud of this cake! Chris literally had to confiscate my camera as I just couldn't stop taking photos of it. Unlucky for him, I had my iPhone at the ready to take more snaps.

Congratulations Jess and Nathan - thank you so much for allowing me to be part of your special day.

Carn the Pies!

2011-09-16T20:48:00.004+10:00

My sister's boyfriend's dad Steve is a mad Collingwood supporter, just like the rest of their family. I mean, they have a cat named Pies. You don't get much more dedicated than that!

The family recently held a surprise 50th birthday for Steve at a local Ballarat restaurant. I'd never been to a surprise party before, but it sure was fun being able to jump out and yell 'surprise'! Just as well there was no one to waste the 'good surprise' on, haha!

This cake was chocolate with chocolate buttercream, which was then covered in white and black fondant. I sculpted the magpie on top out of sugarpaste.

Happy 50th Steve!

Quick and easy lemon meringue tarts

2011-09-16T20:24:00.004+10:00

I love being in my kitchen, and I love nothing more than spending hours in there creating delicious food for my family and friends. However, sometimes you just need a quick treat and that's when these tasty treats come in really handy.

My friend Ann and I were at the Bannockburn Farmers Market recently and I came across a stallholder who made savoury tarts and other various morsels in Maude, a nearby town. I picked up a large jar of lemon curd from her with the intention of saving it for a sweet dessert.

1 packet Arnott's Butternut Snaps

100g lemon curd

1 egg white

pinch cream of tartar

1/3 cup caster sugar

Heat oven to 180 celsius and place biscuits over the holes of a mini muffin/pattycake tin. Bake for 3-5 minutes until soft. Using a teaspoon, lightly push the centres in to form a dip. Work quickly as the biscuits harden after being out of the oven.

Spoon a little lemon curd into each and place in fridge for half an hour until curd is set.

To make meringue, whip egg white and cream of tartar until mixture has doubled in volume. Beat in one tablespoon of sugar at a time. Beat until glossy and no sugar can be felt when a little mixture is rubbed between your thumb and forefinger.

Spoon meringue mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip. Pipe on to prepared tarts and brown using a kitchen blowtorch. If you don't have a blowtorch, you can pop them in the oven for a few minutes to brown the tops.

I took these in to work and I got asked by three people for the 'recipe' - imagine my embarrassment when I had to admit all it was was store bought biscuits and lemon curd!

Princess-Themed Baby Shower Cake

2011-09-16T20:15:00.005+10:00

My friend Michelle asked me for a last minute baby shower cake, with the only stipulation being that it be pink and have a 'tiara' theme.

I was running through a few ideas in my head on how to construct a tiara. I've done a crown before, but as this was a baby shower I wanted it a little more petite. While Chris and I were in Melbourne after a day of attending specialist appointments (I'm on the mend now, don't worry!) we stumbled across a small homewares store on Elizabeth St. I happened to see a tiara cookie cutter and snapped it up in readiness for my cake.

This cake was vanilla bean with raspberry buttercream, which was then covered in pink and white fondant.

Congratulations Megan on the birth of your baby girl!

White Chocolate and Pear Cake

2011-09-16T19:55:00.005+10:00

My sister decided that she would host us for my dad's birthday in early August. A first for my little sister, she fretted about having a number of lunch guests at once. I volunteered to bring dessert; I did want to make things easy for her but I also wanted to try out the pear liqueur I purchased at the Chocolate Apple Factory in Shepparton.

This cake is delicious. No other words needed. Everyone went back for seconds (even thirds!) and it was a hit all round. Here's how you make it:

300g white chocolate

200g butter

1 cup milk

3/4 cup sugar

1 tbls pear liqueur

2 small pears, diced

2 eggs, lightly whisked

1 cup plain flour

2/3 cup self raising flour

200ml whipping cream

Flaked almonds, to decorate

Preheat oven to 160 celsius (140 fan forced) and line a 20cm cake tin with baking paper.

Place chocolate, butter, milk and sugar in a saucepan and stir over low heat until melted and well combined. Set aside and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.

Sift flours into a large bowl. Add liqueur and eggs to chocolate mixture and stir until combined. Pour a little of the chocolate mixture into the bowl of flour and stir until a paste forms. Keep adding small amounts of the chocolate mixture and keep stirring to ensure mixture remains free of lumps. Stir in diced pear.

Pour batter into prepared cake tin and bake for 50-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

When cake is cool, whip cream until medium peaks form. Spoon on to cake and decorate with flaked almonds.

Enjoy!

A lovely weekend away

2011-09-16T19:24:00.005+10:00

In July Chris and I had a spontaneous weekend away. When we left the only destination we had in mind was Shepparton, as Chris had bought a bullbar for his ute and we had to pick it up.

It just so happened that myself and a couple of girls from work had passed through Shepparton on the way to our office in Albury a few days before. I had to work hard to keep the work car on the road when we all craned our necks back to do a double take at the 'Chocolate Apple Factory' sign. I didn't think the boss would appreciate it if we spent work time investigating what this factory actually sold (chocolate apples?! Huh??) so on I drove, making a mental note to visit the factory when Chris and I were up there a few days later.

The Chocolate Apple Factory sells chocolate apples. Well, not apples made of chocolate, but Pink Lady apples dipped in chocolate. The apples are put on sticks and dipped in a gooey caramel before being dipped in decadent chocolate. They are then decorated or flavoured with other delicious toppings.

They also have a variety of other gourmet goodies and are very quick to offer samples of the chocolate apples and apple juices on offer.

I spent up big, buying a rocky road apple (apple dipped in caramel and chocolate, topped with marshmallows and peanuts), a fancy white chocolate apple for my work colleague Karen (she was one of the original 'discoverers' of the factory so it was only fair I bring her back a sample!), some white chocolate & pistachio rocky road, a bar of white chocolate and raspberry chocolate, some pear liqueur, and a couple of juices (apple and passionfruit, mmmmm!)

Every single item I bought was absolutely delicious. The apples are huge, so it took Chris and I a few sessions to get through a rocky road one. They'd want to be, as they aren't cheap (they range from $7 to $10 per apple) but they were surprisingly amazing. Yum!

Our spontaneous road trip saw us driving from Shepparton to Wangaratta, where we drove in to a motel without a booking (a first for control freak me!) The next day we had breakfast in Beechworth, we then drove to Bright, and stopped in at Glenrowan on the way home before heading home to Meredith. It was an amazing weekend and I'm glad Chris was able to get me to step outside my comfort zone and take each day as it comes :)

Happy Birthday to my Shrek

2011-07-25T23:17:00.004+10:00

When I first met my boyfriend I was a little apprehensive going to his house for the first time. I knew his nickname was Shrek (he is about as far from a crotchety old ogre as you can get, but anyway...!) but when he told me to look out for the ogre-related signage at his house, I got a little concerned. How far was this Shrek thing going to go?!

You see, Chris owns a 45 acre property, fondly referred to as 'The Swamp'. It is a perfect bushland oasis and I adore spending time there. And while his nickname is still Shrek (and mine is now Princess Fiona, according to all of his friends) he is closer to Prince Charming (the storybook one, not the evil one featured in the Shrek movies!) than a mean ogre.

It was his birthday earlier in the month, and though I was strapped for time I managed to churn out a Shrek related cake. This was a white chocolate mud, iced with vanilla buttercream and fondant. I tried to stick to a Shrek-esque font in the message - check out the little ears on the letters :)

We celebrated my man's 32nd birthday with a huge bonfire, surrounded by his friends and family. It was a fabulous evening and the cake got rave reviews. I even scored a couple of wedding orders on the night! :)

Happy 21st, Josh!

2011-07-25T23:12:00.005+10:00

My housemate's sister Clare asked me to make a 21st cake for her boyfriend Josh's birthday earlier this month.

This two tiered cake was chocolate on the bottom and white chocolate/raspberry on the top tier. The cake was decorated in blue, silver and black to match the decor of the party. Unfortunately I don't have a picture of the finished product as Clare decorated the top tier when the cake was at the venue. Just use your imagination! :)

Happy birthday Josh - I hope you enjoyed every second!

Happy 1st Birthday, Leni!

2011-07-25T23:06:00.003+10:00

My work colleague's granddaughter Leni was turning one last month and I was asked to create a bright and colourful cake for the occasion.

Leni comes to visit our office sometimes, and every time I see her she is beaming from ear to ear. I've never seen such a happy little tacker! She is just gorgeous.

I loved the colours used on this cake, and judging by the looks on the kids' faces when they saw the cake, they did too.

This was a chocolate and vanilla cake iced with vanilla buttercream and fondant.

Happy 1st birthday, Leni!

A birthday surprise for a special friend

2011-07-25T22:49:00.006+10:00

I've been fortunate that in every place I've ever worked, there has always been at least one person who I've come to call a friend. You know, those people that, although you spend 40+ hours a week with them already, you're happy to see them outside of work as well.

Karen and her husband have become fantastic friends of mine, and we also have the added bonus of them living just around the corner from me. I'm desperate for Winter to end so that we can share more cheese and wine on our deck.

Recently it was Karen's birthday, and though I've made a rule that I don't make cakes for colleagues (before you know it it's costing you a small fortune!) I made an exception for her. She has become more than a work colleague to me; Karen is a confidante, a person to share a laugh with, and a very trusted friend.

For Karen I made a chocolate and pear mud cake. And it was pretty damn delicious.

200g unsalted butter, chopped
100g dark chocolate
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
1 cup caster sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cup self raising flour, sifted
1 pear, chopped into 1/2 cm cubes

Preheat oven to 160 degrees celsius (140 fan forced) and prepare a 20cm cake tin with non stick baking paper. Place butter, chocolate, water and vanilla in a saucepan and stir over low heat until melted and well combined. Allow mixture to cool for 10 minutes.

Combine sugar and eggs and mix with electric beaters until pale and creamy. Pour chocolate mixture in to egg mixture. Sift in flour and add chopped pear, mixing until well combined.

Bake for 50 mins - 60 mins or until a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

I baked two smaller cakes and sandwiched them with chocolate chantilly cream and white chocolate shavings.

A mini high school reunion...and a Hoot cake!

2011-06-07T21:31:00.004+10:00

Hayley and I went to high school together, but lost contact in the ten years since we graduated. Recently she found me on Facebook and asked me to make a Hoot cake for her son's first birthday. I jumped at the chance - I love this little guy.

The cake was chocolate with chocolate buttercream under the fondant. Hayley said that the cake was a big hit at her son's party and that it was 'really yummy'!

I'm becoming a pro at Hoot now so if you have a hankering for a Hoot cake, give me a holler!

I went to a dog's first birthday party.

2011-06-07T21:09:00.005+10:00

Yep, I did.

My housemate's sister's dog, Lucy, is our adopted neice. Our fridge is adorned with photos of Lucy by herself, Lucy doing cute things, Lucy with Nicole (housemate), Lucy with me...yep, our fridge decor is centred around this gorgeous little dog. Here's a pic of us...nawww!

Claire and Josh rescued Lucy from the RSPCA when she was just under a year old. She's such a great dog and I really wish we could have one. Unfortunately we don't have a backyard and we haven't got the house fenced properly yet, so it's not an option. Until I can have a dog of my own, I am just adopting dogs all over the place. There's Lucy, then there's my boyfriend's two dogs Milli and Don, and there's his parents' pugs (all three of them) and a pugalier, and two pug puppies. Yep, I am doing well on the dog front!

Anyway, I digress.

One day I came home and there was an invitation to a 1st birthday party. It was for Lucy. Claire had planned quite the soiree, complete with balloons, fairy bread and streamers. All that was missing was a cake!

I make a chocolate cake for us humans to share, and I carved it into the shape of a couple of bones. I had to girl it up a little with a pink collar and a couple of roses, of course.

Little Lucy had a fabulous day, as did we :)

A very belated happy birthday!

2011-06-07T20:54:00.004+10:00

My dear friend Charlotte emailed me at work in a flap because the bakery that was supposed to be making her fiance's 30th birthday cake had decided to close over Easter, despite them having taken orders already. Wow, way to treat your customers!

So even though I was off to Adelaide for the Easter break, and I already had a cake to do before I left, I agreed to make a cake for Andrew's 30th. It was a mammoth effort to get both done but I'm alway happy to help out where I can!

Charlotte opted for a chocolate mud cake iced in fondant and decorated in a blue and white theme. I really liked how the sides looked - I love the effect and I will definitely be using it again the future.

Sorry for the lateness of this post but I'm a bit technically challenged and had somehow taken the photos directly on my camera instead of my SD card. I then had to locate a cord to plug the camera into the computer because I usually use a card reader. Then I had to work out how to find the damn pictures. I am a bit special, haha!

A Baa-utiful Wedding!

2011-04-30T18:16:00.003+10:00

Ahahaha. The title of this post made me laugh more than it should. It's been a big couple of weeks.

Pauline and Trevor are friends of my family and have been for several years. My mum and Pauline met when my sister and Pauline's daughter became best friends about 10 years ago. When Pauline asked me to do the honour of making her wedding cake, I had to double check her request.

"You want a sheep, a cow, an alpaca, a dog, some chickens and bride and groom figurines?"

"Yep!"

Pauline and Trevor met while they were both working in the stock industry and she wanted to incorporate cows and sheep into the cake. They now live on a property where they keep chickens, alpacas and dogs. This cake was very much about their lives together, which I thought was very sweet.

I'm disappointed I didn't take more photos of the figurines as I thought they were very cute...but sometimes life just gets in the way.

Congratulations to the happy couple! Thank you so much for asking me to do your cake and for inviting me to your special day.

High tea with the Royals

2011-04-30T18:09:00.003+10:00

I love weddings. I'll admit it. It seems I'll never get to have one of my own so I live vicariously through my engaged friends and customers.

When it came time for the Royal wedding I was excited that my friends Ann and Belinda were arranging a high tea for the big event. To go with the club sandwiches that Ann made and the truffles, macarons and after dinner mints that Belinda made, I contributed mini chocolate cupcakes iced with pink vanilla buttercream, pink edible glitter and a little fondant crown.

Congratulations to Waity Katie for finally getting down the aisle and snagging her very own Prince :)