The theme continues...

So it's 9:30 at night, but I don't care I had to share. I got home tonight after cake decorating class and waiting for me were packages :)ok there are some perks to getting a birthday. My sister sent me this Bakerella shirt. So, cool I love the Bakerella blog and my sister and I work great together making her red velvet balls and turd lookin footballs ;) lol.

Then, my mama sent me these cuter than anything oven mits. There are little pink bows on them and polka dots, so cute!

Ok, the theme has to stop here people...the pressure is too high now everyone is going to think that just because I have this cool baking gear that my stuff is going to look and taste great (not the case yet) lol

Thank you my lovely family, I really would rather have you guys standing on my doorstep on Wednesday...i'll just have to drown my sorrows in chocolate. You all better make it up here soon so I can practice my skills on you ... and to keep me from going crazy. I miss you all so much ... oh ya here they come, damn tears. Love you guys more than anything and everything-my heart is in your hearts!

House Guests and Adult Food

This weekend we had some amazing house guests...some of my favorite actually. I tried to convince them to move up here with us where Tana and I will open are own store, what was the name Greg came up with "Cakes,Quilts,kids and other stuff",...something like that lol. We figure all of our mildly perfected hobbies could be turned into a Hodge podge store ...lol we will see, maybe one day.

In the mean time we get fun weekend visits; filled with food, gabbing and other stuff...

Basically a weekend with these two means couple time and then separated boy time and girl time, which is fine by me- I usually get a whole lot of my boy time left awaiting girl time. And Tana is a perfect friend to have girl time with, we can be casual, confide in and joke with each other...Plus, poking fun at our "great catch" men isn't bad either (love ya boys)lol.

First off they arrived bearing gifts for the big 25 (major tear, having issues with this number) and I was totally SPOILED.

As, you can tell by the cards-Claudia (Greg's mom) and Tana had a theme going on...

Look how Freaking Cute! Claudia has this supernatural talent of picking out or making the perfect gift and being one of the most thoughtful people EVER! Look how adorable the cupcake and cake plate are... then the apron and pot holders yeah she made them. I wish I took a close up of the print on the material, it has mixing bowls and green kitchenaid mixers on it ...beacsue she knew what I was getting from Greg! I mean this women never surprises me on how creative and sweet she is, but she surprised me I wasn't expecting any of this. Tana , got me a spring foam pan which I am super excited about (anything that makes my life easier Is definitly appreciated), green and blue spatulas (that matched my apron by the way) and super cute silicone flower baking molds for cupcakes. THANKS GIRLS, you really helped make my (pre)birthday special and you both are surely surely special to me!

ok, back to the weekend...we went fishing! Yes the boys got us up and loaded in the boat and it was fun and freezing. Well, the sun finally came out -but how we managed to plan a morning on the Delta on the coldest day of the month is beyond me. Mother nature was playing a trick on us or something, it even rained (I mean sprinkled for two seconds, but still).

We caught some fish!, well 4 and by we I mean Greg (trust me he wouldn't let anyone forget it)lol.

We went to a RiverCats game, Sacramento's triple A team. It was a lot of fun, right after this picture we all scarffed down cheeseburgers and garlic fries-yeah we were a good smelling group afterwards. The game was really fun we were on the right field side one row from the field, so the seats were great and kept us awake for those foul balls to the head...And thanks to my driving skills (staying white on rice huh guys lol) we managed to get out of our packed parking lot and get home safe.

Drew and Tana thanks for enjoying a wonderful weekend with us, we know we will be seeing you a lot shortly - well the guys will be shooting things and us girls will be finding something to do ...don't think it will be too hard ;).

The Adult food part of this post's title, describes some food I made this weekend. Usually if a recipe has too many steps or ingredients I pass it on by, but since I am going to be the ripe ol age of 25 I decided I should refine my palet and cook some mature grown up food. Ok maybe homemade mac and cheese isn't really grown up lol, but there were more steps than kraft easy mac.

OK, these recipes are from the pioneer Womens blog and TRUST me she is far more funnier , talented and amazing at taking pictures than me so please check out her blog of these recipes too.

I am not the biggest mushroom fan, but these stuffed mushrooms were delicious!

I halved the PW recipe (but trust me we could of and would of ate the full amount).

I used 12 0z of white button mushrooms, clean them and take the stems out (save these).

Brown and crumble 1/3 lb of sausage and let cool (I actually didn't read carefully enough and I used the whole lb and it was yummy, so it's up to you).In a bowl combine the cooled sausage, 4oz cream cheese, 1 egg yolk and 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese.

In the pan you cooked the sausage add 1/2 of a whole onion finely diced(I used my mini chopper and it was a medium onion) and garlic -2 cloves. Cook for 2 minutes over medium low heat. (p.s to be honest I didn't follow the measurements exactly just keep adding until it looks right, with all this yumminess you can't go wrong).

Chop mushroom stems finely and add to the garlic/onions, cook for 2 more minutes.Add salt and pepper (of course I used suzie Q), then set mixture aside to cool.

When cooled add the mushroom mixture to the sausage mixture (try a bit at this point-YUM!)

Put the mixture into the mushroom cavities and bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Let them cool 10 minutes before eating ... all I can say is yum yum yum!

Fancy Macaroni

So, I just realized that the fancy Macaroni has a lot more to it and steps than the shrooms ... and since the PW wrote it so perfectly the first time here is her link for this scrumptious dish (heart attack waiting to happen, but worth every bite) ;)

http://thepioneerwomen.com/cooking/2009/12/fancy-macaroni/

I'll post my pictures, because I changed some things-like she used goat cheese and 3 other cheeses that I had no clue what they were...so I used Monterey Jack (because I got a whole 2 lb block for $3 at the Save Mart, the dairy man gave me the hook ups lol).

Saute a chopped onion in butter for 12 minutes.

Ok, really get all of the steps from PW-it's worth it I am just getting lazy in my old age ;). This mixture is butter, bacon grease, flour, milk, half & half, egg yolk and salt and pepper to taste.

Then the cheese the glorious cheese.

When the cheese is melted you add the carmalized onions and...bacon oh yeah just give me a spoon right here and call it done!

Look at this beautiful dish... this was my serving the rest were lft to fend for themselves ;) lol You bake this beauty for 15-20 minutes at 350 and can I say it again it's soooo worth it; the calories and the prep work!

Easy and Pleasing...

So, this recipe might not be the healthiest but it is a really quick and delicious Barbeque Chicken Sandwich. Plus, I deserve it because my diet this week has been pudding and mashed taters (had my wisdom teeth pulled friday and now I can ...almost chew lol)! I got this recipe from this fantastic magazine, as you can tell I have like every page marked.

You start with a 12in thin crust Boboli Shell (I got the whole wheat one-see not too bad for you). Cut in half and put on a greased cookie sheet.

Put cheese on both sides, I did colby Jack my favorite (In hind sight, more cheese it definitly needed more cheese-don't be skimpy, oozing is good).


In a bowl mix about a cup cooked shredded chicken (I did two chicken breasts) and some barbeque sauce.

On one side of the crust put the chicken mixture and I put 6 pieces of cooked bacon (I know bad...but oh so good).


Put in the oven at 450 degrees and bake until cheese is melted and chicken and bacon is hot.

While in the oven mix in a bowl lettuce, tomatoes, onions and ranch (had to make home made ranch-another one of those food memories, mom with her homemade ranch in her tan and clear tupperware shaker).


When sandwich has cooled a little put lettuce mixture on and put top on sandwich. Cut into pieces and ENJOY! P.s last time I made it I used the regular thin crust not the wheat and my opinion it was a lot tastier , so go big or go home! lol

It might not look like much, but it is really yummy and filling I only ate one slice and I was full...although I did snitch a couple pieces of bacon when I was prepping lol.

Love me some Cake Doctor!

LOL The cake doctor is in, I recently ordered some new "bakebooks" because a lady in my cake decorating class (by whom already decorates cakes flawlessly) mentioned this lady called The Cake Mix Doctor. Well my cake mix cakes needed to be brought back to life so I HAD to get her book. She teaches you how to doctor up any box cake mix to make it taste like scratch and she has a ton of neat tips-I am in love!

For my last cake decorating class I thought I would spice it up and make a snickerdoodle cake (Gregs favorite cookie, and come to find out his brother's too-perfect they are coming to visit this weekend, I won't have to eat a whole cake by myself- woo hoo can I get an amen for the booty)! So Don't fall asleep, but I'm going to show you step by step how I made my boxed cake so I can share these cool/yummy tricks for your cakes!

First, you start off with a box of white cake mix- The Dr. says that the box suggests adding egg whites and not the whole egg ,do not do this! She says your cake will taste and look better using the whole egg, it needs the yolk. Also, she says do add melted butter to a white cake mix instead of oil it provides flavor,color and texture (see so many tips already-love it!).

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees (tip: pre-heat and have your oven at the right temperature for at least 10 min. before you put your cakes in the oven). Prepare your cake pans-she suggests with shortening and flour ( to get golden sides), but I had this stuff (crisco spray with flour already in it) so I thought I would give it a try.

Place the cake mix, 1 stick melter butter (key is to melt) into mixing bowl...or in my case into my baby! My birthday present isn't it fabulous, awh my KitchenAid Stand Mixer with 3 included attachments and 10 speeds, since I got to open it a smidge early I have been trying to use it every chance I get, which has been A LOT. (Sidenote:When I opened it Greg was like I hope it's not like a husband giving his wife a vacuum...definitly NOT, I have been dreaming about having one of these since 8th grade home ec class. I thought I was going to have to wait until my wedding registry to get the "chance" to get it, I think he did it to hold me over until that day...LOL (hopefully he doesn't read that) ;) ...any hoo back to the cake!

Then you add 3 whole eggs (I checked them were not going to get salmonilla)!

Then 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (The dr. says don't use immitation extracts, spend the extra $ to get the good stuff, your cakes will be better for it).

Now 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (a scoop of joy).

Add 1 cup of whole milk (dr. says in some cakes you need whole milk because it needs more of the fat from the milk).


Blend with the mixer until smooth and combined and divide batter between prepared cake pans.

Look at my baby at work...tear! lol

Bake the cakes until golden brown and spring back when lightly touched with your finger, 27 to 29 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven cool on wire rack for 10 min. and then take out of pans to cool another 30 before icing.

While these are cooling I made a cream cheese filling...

1 stick of butter, 1block of cream cheese both at room temp.

Add 3 3/4 cups sifted powdered sugar,1 tsp. vanilla and I added a bit of cinnamon.

And a Cinnamon Buttercream frosting for the outside.

Beat butter 1 stick (I doubled the batch and used 1/2 shortening, 1/2 butter to make my buttercream more stiff to hold shape better for decorating) until fluffy, 3 3/4 cups sifted powdered sugar, 3 to 4 tbs milk, 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract and 1tsp. cinnamon.

Cream cheese filled, snickerdoodle layered cake ready to be frosted.

I tinted the frosting Teal, this is after spreading-but not smoothing yet.

By the way, baking is MESSY business-Trust me the other half of my kitchen was equally bad if not worse. I even separated days , bake the cake one day, make the frostings another, and decorate the last .... then the best day eating it!

Ok here it is after decorating it tonight at class, still working on a lot obviously! I learned a lot of neat tricks, had some fun and met some amazing women so it was a successful venture...did I mention I start my next one Monday ;) lol It was my birthday present to myself-can I afford it NO, will it get me out of the house and keep me sane-YES!

A Quicky

A quick little fact...my favorite part of making a layered cake and having to chop off the top to make it level is- having that left over cake to make cake balls!

You just take your extra cake, add some pre-made frosting into it-mix it (with your hands , it's the only way) and then roll into balls. Let the balls freeze for a few hours and then dip them in melted chocolate (white or chocolate chocolate). These are white cake with vanilla frosting and some are covered in white chocolate (left from my flamingo cupcakes) and some in chocolate (some left over chocolate chips from the chocolate gonash filling in my spaghetti cake).

They are so good words can't even describe (my opinion they are the best when they are cold). The best kind though are the red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. I have been known to eat almost a dozen of those after my sissy and I made them (miss you partner). Sad, but true...

Spaghetti and Meatballs!

Ok, so here is my second cake since cake decorating class...and I am so much more happier with this one. Tommorrow at work we are having a Back To School night Spaghetti dinner, so I made a spaghetti cake!

The noodles are buttercream, the "sauce" is strawberry preserves and the "meatballs" (my fave part) are those Ferrero Rocher candies.

Viva Las Vegas!

Boy, this weekend flew by. It seems that once my week hits Thursday the rest of it is a blur! This weekend I went to Vegas for Sherina's (one of my beloved,special, one-of-a kind friends from high school) bachlorette party. I remember when Sherina and I were having pomegranate eating contests on our way to the apples and then bam all of a sudden were getting older and married (well one of us) lol. I had a blast it was a fun, goofy weekend filled with lots of laughs, dancing...and cocktails.

Me and the beautiful bride!

Me and Terra (another one of those special friends)

Ummm, gross I know but fun-at the end of each night we had a dirty foot contest. Really look at the heal of my foot on this one, I won Friday night!

Margaritaville

Pool Time!

In the Party bus, SO much fun-probably the best part. Highlight blaring the Grease soundtrack and ALL of us singing at the top of our lungs.


lol, we were suppossed to be being fierce...all I could do was laugh (p.s mom I had numerous people tell me I had a cute laugh, I think they were just being nice oh man the kackle).

Sherina's sister won Saturday night!


The gang at the Vegas Sign!






VIP Woo Woo!




Mrs. Soon to be Garcia-I love you! I can't wait for the big day. Danny is lucky to have such an amazing wife and friend to spend the rest of his life with.You truly are one of those irreplacable friends that I know will always be there for anyone! Your the best lady, we had a wonderful weekend! xoxo

and... last little bit, remember Terra?

Looks sweet and innocent right?

Not so much, I got this because of her! lol, I guess it's not a successful trip in Vegas unless someone comes home with a black eye. FYI never let your friends have a grape fight after a few cocktails, someone's going to get hurt lol Love you girls!xoxo