Pumpkin shaped Teacake Cookies

I made these for my company Halloween party.  My Russian teacake cookie recipe dyed orange with green candy melt chocolate stems to look like pumpkins.  I could have added pumpkin pie mix to the recipe but I didn't think of that until the next day.  I shall have to try it next time.  This is my favorite cookie recipe because they are easy to make, takes very few ingredients, and everyone loves them.  

Russian Teacake Cookies

• 1 cup butter (2 sticks) room temperature or softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Mix that all together.  Then add:
• 2 and 1/4 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
• Use a small ice cream scoop to make them all uniform in size.  I scoop and roll to make them all into little balls.  This recipe makes about 50 balls.  I like saying the word, "Balls".  
• Bake 400 degrees for 8 - 12 min. 
• When cool enough to touch, but still warm, roll in powdered sugar.  I put my powdered sugar in a gallon bag and drop about 5 balls in at a time, shake them around a bit, then take them out all evenly sugar coated.  They may need two coats of sugar.  If the cookies are too warm the first coat of sugar melts and they need to be dusted again. 

Enjoy.

Pumpkin Cupcakes

I made these for my brother Richard's homecoming dinner.  He just returned from serving a mission in Romania.  There be vampires and gypsies in Romania so I thought these decorations would be appropriate, and it is Halloween season.  

Pumpkin Cupcakes 

• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup canned pumpkin.  Mix that all together then add
• 1 and 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1/4 tsp pumpkin spice
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Mix that all together.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes.  Makes 12 - 16 cupcakes.  

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter at room temperature, softened
• 1 8 oz package of cream cheese or 1 cup, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 5 - 6 cups powdered sugar
• Whip together butter, cream cheese, and vanilla.  Slowly add powdered sugar one cup at a time until it is at the right consistency.  If it gets too thick add heavy whipping cream to thin it out some. 

Steampunk Costume

I love Halloween.  I get free candy and I can dress up.  I dress up every year.  This year I went as a Steampunk Aviator.  I am just getting into Steampunk this year.  

It was an easy costume for me to put together.  The only thing I had to buy was my aviator hat and goggles.  I had everything else.  I am wearing my Civil War corset, boots, and socks, J's Civil War spats, pirate belt, bag, holster, and replica 45 Colt revolver.  I got the short punk skirt last year for my witch costume.

Every year at work we have a Halloween party with a Chili cook-off and Costume Contest.  I work at a Biotech company.  Our sciencey biotechy convention posters are on the wall behind us.

Me, Animal, Waldo, and Lance Armstong.
Group photo.

Animal aka Jeff won because he broke his hand playing the drums last month (hence the blue cast) so everyone at the lab started referring to him as Animal.

Carving Jack-o-Lanterns Halloween 2012

As was the tradition in my house growing up J and I carve pumpkins every Halloween.  J is an artist (majored in History, minored in Art) so it is one of the few times a year I get to see him exercise his talent and do something creative.  These are the two fine pumpkins I rescued from the local shelter down the street.

Before.

After.

As was the tradition in my family growing up we always roasted pumpkin seeds during or after carving and snacked on them throughout the week.

 Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

• Wash pumpkin seeds
• Spray down a pan with cooking spray
• Lay out the seeds evenly and sprinkle with seasoning
• I used salt and garlic powder for this batch.
• Bake 350 degrees for 15 min

I did what I am calling an Undead Viking, inspired by Skyrim.

J tried his hand at 3D face sculpting.

What they looked like All Hallows Eve.  

Since it was a few days between carving and Halloween they kind of wilted and deformed.

We do so little decorating.  Aside from the pumpkins this flag was our only Halloween decoration.  I give the excuse that because we do not have kids and not many kids in the neighborhood we do not decorate, but mostly I think it is because I am lazy.  I do love Halloween.  This is J's pirate flag in the window.  His permanent home is the toy room.  Yes, we have a toy room.  

Lit up on Halloween.

J's face looks particularly scary I think.  We got a few kids compliment our pumpkin carvings.  That is always nice.

 We ran out of candy by 8pm.  I bought 6 bags on candy and had them only take one piece and we still ran out.  I guess we have more kids this year than last year.  I should buy more candy for next year.  I didn't get any left overs to eat.  Sad.

Halloween Chocolate Marshmallows

Halloween Chocolate dipped Marshmallows on a STICK!  J and I have a philosophy.  Anything on a stick is good.  As we have yet to come across a food item on a stick that is not good, so far our philosophy holds true.

I love Halloween.  Screw you Christmas, Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year.  I get more free candy from trick-or-treating then that which comes in a Christmas Stocking or Easter Basket.  Yes, I am 31 and I still go trick-or-treating.  When you are 5 feet tall you can get away with it if the costume is right.  I get to dress up and people think it is normal.  I would dress up every day in various costumes if I did not have this social phobia which prevents me from doing so.  I have a costume drawer.  I can be artistic with my foodies and pumpkin carving.  I love pumpkin flavored everything.  I like going through haunted houses and getting scared.  I'm a screamer.  I scream well.  This year we did Fear Factory.  It's no Rocky Point, but I got a few good scares out of it and the old cement factory building itself is an amazing piece of architecture.  Also, well worth it just to go down the 3 story pitch black slide at the end.  I love make-up, special effects, and crazy costumes.  I boast quite the collection of scary movies.  I am married to a werewolf.  J has many wolfy attributes.  I should list them one of these days.  

 Marshmallows

• 3 packs of unflavored gelatin (3 Tbs) found in the baking aisle at grocery stores.  Not Jello, gelatin.
• 1/2 cold water
• Add gelatin packs to 1/2 cup cold water in a mixer and let sit while boiling the rest of the ingredients.  To a large sauce pan add:
• 1 and 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Cook on medium high heat until candy thermometer reaches about 240 degrees.  It takes about 10 minutes to boil.  Once it reaches temperature immediately remove from heat and slowly add to the mixing bowl, mixing on slow with the metal whisk attachment.  Let the syrup run down the side of the bowl.  
• Once it is all in turn the mixer on high and whip it, whip it good for 12 - 15 minutes.  It will begin to get fluffier.  At the last minute add:
• 1 Tbs vanilla extract.
• While mixing grease a pan with shortening or butter and cover in a light dusting of powdered sugar.  
• Pour the marshmallow goo into the pan (quickly before is hardens) and spread it out with a buttered knife or spatula.  Dust the top with powdered sugar again.  Let the marshmallows sit uncovered for 4+ hours or overnight.  
• Scrape along the sides of the pan with a knife and dump the pan shaped block out on a powdered sugar dusted table top.

 When cutting the marshmallows out dip the cookie cutter or pizza cutter in powdered sugar.  Once the marshmallow is separated from the rest of the block coat the sides in powdered sugar to keep it from sticking.  Insert stick at the bottom base of the marshmallow.  Cut up the scraps into tiny marshmallows for hot chocolate.

 Get your Candy melts ready.  I am using Orange, Light Green, and Black.  I also have sugar eyes for the Frankenstein Monster.  Victor Frankenstein was the scientist who created the monster, not the monster itself.    To the best of my knowledge the monster has no name.  The book was very boring so I did not read it.

Microwave candy melts 30 seconds at a time and stir until it is smooth and melty.  Dip the Marshmallows into the candy melt color of choice.

Set the newly dipped marshmallows on a wax paper covered pan.  I did not dip the ghosts because I wanted them to stay white I felt dipping them in white chocolate was redundant and I wanted a set of just plain marshmallows.  Refrigerate or freeze the chocolate covered marshmallows until the chocolate has set.  5 - 10 min.  I stuck the sugar eyes on Frankie while the chocolate was still warm so they stick.

With the black candy melts draw some faces on those monsters.

Give Frankie some hair and side blots.

Enjoy.

My First Wedding Cake

My friends Caleb and Amanda got married October 20th, 2012.

It was the most beautiful wedding I have ever seen.  They held the ceremony at a picnic area up the canyon with perfect fall weather.

Amanda asked me to make her cake.  I have been wanting to do a wedding cake for the last two years and I jumped at the opportunity to finally do one.  This is my first wedding cake.  

Four tiers.  Red Velvet and Cream Cheese frosting.  White fondant covering.  Silver ribbon bases.  It got hot and kind of melted off to one side.  I still need to figure out how to get it perfectly stacked and straight.

Her florist did the flower sections and the topper.  I just provided him with the white cake pallet to work with.

During my cake baking process I burned a batch of cakes.  I cut off the burned part and added cream cheese frosting and made cake pops out of them.  They turned out delicious.

I also made a simple 12" x 18" frosting sheet cake in case we needed more cake.  Everything was red velvet and cream cheese.

I am so happy for them and wish them the best as they start their new lives together.  They are such a cute couple.

Twice Baked Potatoes with Ham

I have done twice baked potatoes before on the blog, but this time they are with Ham instead of Bacon.  I like to change things up a bit.  This is another of my go-to dinners when I have potatoes and not much else.  They are a bit time consuming, as in, they take more than an hour to make.  Therefore, these dinners are reserved for nights when J has to work late and I have plenty of time to wait for dinner.

Twice Baked Potatoes Recipe

• Scrub a few large Russet potatoes clean and poke a few holes in them with a fork on both sides.
• Bake potatoes for 1 hour at 375 degrees in the center of the oven on a sheet pan until tender.  Or as my Momma used to do, put the potatoes directly in the oven without a tray.  She also did this with broiled cheese on toast.  I did it once and flipped the toast when I was trying to get it out.  Nothing like trying to clean up burnt toast and melted cheese from the bottom of an oven.  I put everything on pans now.
• Take potatoes out of the oven and let them cool until they are easy enough to handle.
• Cut potatoes lengthwise and scoop out most of the centers and place in a large bowl.
• Mash potato centers with sour cream, milk, butter, fried ham chunks, cheddar cheese, chives, a bit of salt and pepper and of course, Italian seasoning.  
• Fill the empty potatoes skins and put them back in the oven.  Lower the temperature to 350 degrees and back for about 20 - 30 minutes longer, depending how hungry you are.  I do not have the gift of patience so I usually can only wait about 20 minutes.
• Remove from oven and top with more cheese and sour cream.  The potatoes should be crisp on top and lightly golden brown. 

Enjoy.