S'Mores Pie

In culinary school one of the staples that is etched into your memory is how to make pastry cream.  Pastry cream is a basic component that any pastry chef should know how to make on a whim, this stuff uses simple ingredients, but just like ice cream you can add all tops of fun things to it, to jazz it up.  A splash of coconut milk and you have coconut cream, want to make a fancy banana pudding, mash in some bananas and Viola you got yourself an A+ dessert. 

Looking for something simple to throw together I made a simple pastry cream and whipped in some lovely melted dark chocolate and made the most amazing chocolate cream pie.  Filled it into a graham cracker crust and topped it off with toasted meringue and the S’mores pie was born. 

One thing I didn't do before starting my pie making, was to check all my supplies and tools.  I had recently purchased a mini blow torch that I was super excited to test out so I started to piped the meringue on the top with a Wilton 1M tip, then got ready to torch that bad boy and realized I didn't have any lighter fluid.  So I improvised and slide it into the oven on the broiler setting to get it all nice and toasty.  

(NOTE: Sorry it should be 2 CUPS of Whole Milk)

Vanilla Blueberry Swirl Ice Cream

I can openly admit that I have an addictive personality. When I fall for something, I fall hard and kind of become a little obsessive!! I’ve made ice cream a few times, but it was nothing major, until I got my own ice cream machine and become a full blow ice cream stalker. I’m kind of in love with ice cream, I mean full on FATAL ATTRACTION in love with this creamy crack!!

In the last couple of days, I’ve picked up about four books specifically on ice cream and have poured through them. Ice Cream is a fascinating creature to me. It’s a simple, but complex product that is created from pure and simple ingredients, but can be transformed into some amazing and extraordinary!!

Currently these books have become my holy grails.

(Photo Source)

They both offer so much informative information about the process of ice cream and the recipes…WHOA MAMA, the recipes.

Surprisingly ice cream is not that difficult to create; it always makes me smile when people are astonished at the fact that I make ice cream. Kind of makes me feel like a super wizard or something. Truth is, with good products, anyone can become an ice cream wizard.
The above ice cream was adapted from a recipe from from David Lebovitz's book “Perfect Scoop”. The recipe produces such a creamy rich ice cream. It took me all of an hour to make it and he hardest part was trying not to eat it directly out of the machine and actually being patient to let it freeze.

"Mixing the right things, the right way to create perfection"

I'm Back!!!

It’s been a long road, but I’m back!!!  Culinary school was such an amazing experience and one of the best decisions of my life.  It was hard, stressful, but it provided me with that foundation I needed to ensure my success in this business.  After I was done, I was required to complete an internship at a local bakery and then worked at a few different places in town to kind of get my feet wet in the field. 

Dollface Delights has always been my baby, just waiting for the right time to be reborn.  Re-branding was a very important issue to me, because I needed to ensure my company really reflected the direction I wanted to grow in. 

So with lots of late nights, tons of post notes and butt load of hard work…I’m finally up and running and ready to take on the pastry world head on.  If you get a moment, please check out the new website, I am so very proud of it.

www.Dollfacedelights.com

Breads

My first two classes of school are officially over and we are on a 2 week break for the Holiday. I knew things would be intense, but school is a mixture of excitement and stress...which I LOVE!!

The last class we focused on breads and I can say I have found a new love. It amazes me that you take these cheap ingredients, flour and water, and turn it into the most amazing product.

Here a few pictures of things we made the last 3 weeks.

Butter Cookies

My journey into culinary school has begun and so far it’s more exciting than I could have dreamt. I am loving every part of it even wearing my “fancy” uniform each day. We are learning methods versus just recipes, which is really cool.

Last Friday we started baking doing chocolate chip cookies. This was my first time every scaling (weighing them) my ingredients. I thought it was going to be really complicated but it was actually quite easy, and I think I like it better than the traditional method most cooks use. The cookies were very easy to make and we hand mixed everything. This allowed us to get a feel for how the product should actually feel, but it came together really easy.

We used Callets in our cookies which are basically a chocolate morsel, but it’s made with real cocoa butter, unlike the ones we normally buy from the grocery store, which is almost like an imitation chocolate. They melt much better than Hershey's or Nestle chips. They made a HUGE difference in the taste of our cookie, but those Callets are very expensive. I didn’t get a photo of my chocolate cookies, but we will make them again on Thursday for our practical so I will snap a few then.

Last night we made three cookies.

The Strassburger cookies( a traditional butter cookie) with strawberry baker’s jam

The Brysselkex (a Sable cookie) - Which we turned into checkboards.

Biscotti (twice baked cookie) - They were flavored with orange zest and almonds.


Tonight were are working on a fruit tart and some other goodies, so stay tuned for my info!!

Puff Pastry

I can’t not explain how frustrated I get when I get a recipe stuck in my head and things don’t go as planned. I was at Target and came across the November issue of Everyday Food, and saw a section about savory pies. There was a recipe for a Puff Pastry Pie filled with Ham and Gruyere. After drooling all over the pages I knew this had to be my dinner for Sunday, so I set things in motion.

Ran to the grocery store, got some yummy maple glazed ham, pesto jack cheese and off to pick up my pastry puff. Where is the puff pastry, I walked around the store for 15 minutes looking for pastry puff. I finally found someone who worked there and when I asked what section it would be in, he looked at me like I was speaking a foreign language.

What is this puff of pastry you speak of lady…REALLY GUY… according to the 3 stores I called, Puff Pastry is a seasonal product and won’t be on the shelves for another week or two. In what world is Puff Pastry a seasonal item, I mean I love to stuff my face with that flaky goodness all year round. So my whole dinner plan went down the drain.

Has anyone tried making puff pastry from scratch?

Cream Biscuits

I have a lot of cookbooks, but honestly when it comes to baking this has to be my favorite.

Every recipe I have tried from this book has been easy and come out perfect. Last night I was skimming through and decided to try their cream biscuit recipe, which looked easy.

The whole process took less than 25 minutes and most of that was sweeping up the large amount of flour I had somehow dumped all over the kitchen floor.

The biscuits use a limited amount of ingredients, but they make magic. I slathered mine with tons of honey butter and it was a great night.

Cream Biscuits

(From Baking Illustrated)

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 Preheat oven to 425°F

2 Sift together dry ingredients, then add cream; mix until it holds together.

3 Knead for about 20-30 seconds, then press into 8 in cake pan, turn out and cut with biscuit cutter. (This is important, don't use a glass!!! You need something with a sharp edge to ensure they come out fluffy and high)

4 Bake for 15 minutes. (Better to take them out when they are slightly underdone).

5. Serve immediately

SLATHER WITH HONEY BUTTER, JAM, NUTELLA

Website Issues....

Hi Everyone –

Just a heads up our website is currently going through some construction changes, so access will be denied if you try to pull it up. With culinary school starting in a few weeks Dollface Delights will be taking a hiatus from doing business. When it comes to my business I want to ensure I can give it all the attention it deserves.

Once my program is over, Dollface Delights will be back, Bigger, Badder and Sassier!! I still plan to blog (hopefully on more or a regular basis) my new adventure.

XOXO

Erica B.

Baking List!

With culinary school looming in a few weeks, I’ve actually done less baking than normal. Baking is always on my brain and now after seeing these recipes I am getting the urge to break out my mixing bowls.

Pumpkin Doughnuts

Recipe Source

Banana Bread w/ Nutella Spread

Recipe Source

Mini Apple Pies

Recipe Source

Now my next issue....which to make first?

BIG CHANGES!

So, a few months back I made a decision to make a change in my life…..

I made an appointment ….

Talked to some people…..

Went home and thought long and hard…..

Cried a few times…..

Went into major anxiety thinking about the changes this decision would cause, with my future, my bank account and my free time….

Cried a few more times…..

Got lots of hugs and reassurance from my loved ones (and a few fur baby kisses from Loco)….

Put a brave face on and decided to sign the paperwork….

Got the call today that things were all in order and I was good to go…..

Today I am a fully enrolled student at the Le Cordon Blue Culinary School…

On November 8, 2010, I will start my journey to be more educated in Pâtisserie and Baking…and my life will change FOREVER!!!

Tru Blood Cupcakes

Last weekend was my sisters birthday so I made her Tru Blood Cupcakes.

She wanted vanilla bean cupcakes, so I dyed them Blood Red and topped them with Chocolate Buttercream. They were a ton of fun!!

I also made a fun beverage to go along with it!! I created a label with a picture I found online and used cranberry juice as the drink!! My sister LOVED it!!

Cake Doughnuts and Fruit Ganache

Over the weekend I got a new Dutch oven and knew it was time to fry something up. When I was younger one of my favorites things to make was a homemade cake doughnuts. I loved that dense cakey doughnut bursting with cinnamon and nutmeg, plus their FRIED!!! I used my old stand by recipe from the Better Homes and Garden Cookbook and set off.

Making these doughnuts is not hard at all, but I love a challenge and wanted to make some type of fruit glaze to top the doughnuts. My first attempt started with some blueberries, milk and powdered sugar. It was looking good until I grabbed the wrong box and dumped almost a cup of cornstarch into it and it tasted like YUCK!!!

So, I moved on to trying a white chocolate strawberry ganache glaze. Now, I understand the basics of ganache and have made it many times. I went searching online for recipes for fruit ganache and pretty much came to a dead end. It seems when it comes to ganache people stick to what they know regular chocolate. I still was curious so I pureed my strawberries, dumped it into my hot cream and then poured it all over my white chocolate.

I think it came out perfect!! It started out very liquidy but after cooling down it started to thicken up. I think I will play around with it a bit more and see if I can make it even thicker, or try other fruit flavors.

White Chocolate Strawberry Ganache

Powder Sugar

The trickiest part of the whole process was making the whole in the middle. I didn't have an actual doughnut cutter, so after cutting them with my biscuit cutter I had to try and find something to poke the hole with. The dough was very sticky and made it way more complicated than necessary. Next on my kitchen gadget shopping list is this!!

Cupcake Wars Audition Tape.

I filmed my audtion tape last week for Cupcake Wars and wanted to share!! Hope you enjoy!.

Cupcake Wars Season 2

So, I am still freaking out a little bit but wanted to share my exciting news. Yesterday I came across a blog posts about casting for Season 2 Cupcake Wars. I’ve watched the show, and talked much trash about how AWESOME I would be on this show. So I took caution to the wind and sent in my information.

Literally about an hour later, I see some strange number on my cell phone and a voice message. It was the FREAKING casting director from Cupcake Wars. She liked my email and liked the pictures I sent (I mean who could resist this face…LOL) and wanted to chat more about the process. So, I literally almost run off the road and start screaming in the car. (Imagine this scene from onlookers driving by)

I called her back and we talked for about 20 mins, she asked me a ton of questions about Dollface and why I started baking and my business. She said she really liked me, thought I was absolutely adorable and had a great personality. (I’m not making this stuff up people) The next step is to film a short video for the producers of the show so they can see why I should be picked for the show.

Yes…I am still Freaking out!!! So, right now I am in stage 2 of casting and will keep you updated. I have to film my video over the weekend and will posts it on Youtube. I will share the link so you can get a good laugh…LOL!!

I would appreciate your blessings, wishes, magical fairy dust, rain dances…this would be more than a dream come true for me!!

Banana and Nutella

After our post on Cupcake Takes the Cake blog, I found out Rachel one of the bloggers was going to be in Austin. We set up a time meet up this afternoon and I brought our yummy banana cupcakes with super creamy Nutella buttercream to share. It was a fun meeting she is super sweet in person!!

We also took advantage of the lovely day we had and did an fun little photo shot this afteroon. This is my favorite photo from the set.

Cupcakes on the Brain

This has been an exciting week for me and I have another special surprise for this weekend, which I can't wait to share!!!!

Has anyone else noticed the abundance of Cupcake stuff going around lately? The other day I caught the new show Cupcake Wars on the Food Network and really liked it.

It’s a high stakes competition amongst cupcakes bakers. I am going to be honest, I don’t know if I would be worthwhile in such a stressful situation. I give those bakers a major high five for having the guts to compete on such a show.

Also, how cute is this silcone cupcake mold. The "Teacupcakes" allow you to bake and serve your cupcakes in style! Its $20.00 fo a set of four and you can order them here.

How Exciting!!!

I am literally jumping for joy. Dollface was featured on the AWESOME cupcake blog Cupcakes Take the Cake.

Check out the post here!

Dollface Fans!

I am to proud to say we have some GOOD LOOKING Fans!!! These lovely ladys are enjoying are Red Velvet "Sweetie Pies".

**Photo Source - Vintage Flair **

Butterfly Graduation cake w/ Marshmallow Fondant

After I completed this cake, I had to give myself a pat on the back. The client wanted a fun girly cake for their daughter who was graduating from her senior year in high school. My concern with butterflies was trying to keep it girly, but age appropriate. I also wanted to incorporate her school colors in the design. To make things even more challenging (because I love to stress myself out and make things much harder than they have to be) I decided to try my hand at making my own fondant.

I found a recipe online via CakeJournal’s blog and set in motion. It was surprised how easy the recipe and process was and how much better this fondant taste than store bought. Here is the final cake.

The cake was vanilla bean filled with fresh strawberry mousse with a vanilla buttercream and marshmallow fondant.

I would highly recommend giving marshmallow fondant ago. It’s not as terrifying as it sounds. Below you will find the recipe I used.

Marshmallow Fondant (MMF)

• 1 bag of white marshmallows (8 oz)
  
• Water (2 tbsp)
  
• Powder sugar sifted (1 to 2 pounds)
  
• Crisco
  
• Heatproof bowl
  
• Spoon
  
• Sift
  
• Food colors or cocoa powder
  
• Flavoring optional

Put the marshmallows in a heatproof bowl and add the water. Put the bowl in the microwave oven and heat it for approx. 2 mins. until the marshmallows puff up like on the photo.

Stir the marshmallows until they get smooth. This is the time where you can add your chosen food color/cocoa powder or give it flavour.

Note: Color the mixture a bit stronger than desired. You can always make the color lighter afterwards by mixing it with white marshmallow fondant.

Now add the powder sugar and stir the mixture with a well greased spoon. Keep adding powder sugar until it looks like a dough. Turn out the “dough” on a greased work board and with your hands greased with Crisco start kneading the marshmallow fondant. Keep adding a little powder sugar at a time until it is not sticky anymore.

Be careful not to use all the powder sugar as to much powder sugar can makes it too dry. It is ready when it feels pliable and ready to roll. If you are not using the marshmallow fondant straight away then rub a bit of Crisco on it and wrap it in cling-film and seal it in a airthight bag.

Recipe adated from CakeJournal

MY NOTES - **I didn't use a microwave and instead use the double broiler method to melt my marshmallows. I also used 1 and 1/2 bag of Jumbo marshmallows and used my bread dough hook to mix the dough in my Kitchen Aid. Just make sure to oil your bowl and hook when mixing the dough. I had a TON of fondant leftover so I next time I will only use one bag of marshmallows.

S'MORES Cake

I love when clients give me the freedom to create something special for them. I was asked to make a special birthday cake and told to include chocolate and fun. I knew they were going camping over the weekend as part of the birthday weekend, so immediately S’MORES jumped out to me. I created a Chocolate Cake and slathered it with Marshmallow Buttercream, sprinkled crushed graham crackers all over it and topped it with toasted Marshmallows and chocolate chips. I literally had to stop myself from trying to eat the whole thing.

I think this cake could be turned into the cutest cupcakes. I thought I would share the recipe I used to make the Marshmallow Buttercream.

Marshmallow Buttercream

3 - Sticks Room Temp Butter
2 - 7.oz containers of Marshmallow Fluff
1½ Box Powdered Sugar
1 Tblspoon milk

Cream Butter and Marshamallow Fluff until fluffy.
Add 1 half Powder Sugar and Mix
Add Milk
Add 2nd half Powder Sugar (You can add more milk if needed)

*Enough to frost 2 9- inch cakes.