Wilton Cake Decorating Class - Course 1

I had always wanted to take a Wilton class. I mean always - my mom had taken them before and had one of the Wilton yearbook things (a yearly book that comes out with various designs and directions for techniques) and I can remember sitting and looking at the book for a heck of a long time. I even had Wilton decorated cakes for my birthday growing up - I remember (or have at least seen pictures of) a Cabbage Patch Girl, Big Bird, and The Ghostbusters (loved that movie!!). Each and every one of them had the most delicious buttercream icing on top - yum!!!

Anyways, after admiring that Wilton yearbook for so many years, I was online one night and noticed that Michael's was offering their Wilton courses at 50% off (which, I've heard, is something they do every month). I mentioned this to Chris and he told me I should take the class (especially if I wanted to open a bakery someday - I should at least know the basics of decorating, huh?). We went to Michael's, signed up ($22.50 for the class) and used one of my 40% off coupons to get the big mambo jambo kit (that's the technical name). The kit I got comes in a big blue carrying case, similar to a toolbox, and has a whole bunch of tips (used for allowing the icing to make a whole bunch of designs), some featherweight bags (re-usable), clear plastic bags (not re-usable, but fabulous for using with the class because there's not much to clean up afterwards), gel dye (much more powerful and vibrant than the little eye-dropper-ish ones), and a whole bunch of other stuff. If you want to see what comes in the complete set, check it out here .

For $22.50, you get 1 class a week for four weeks. Mine just happened to be on Wednesdays from 6-8pm.

I'll give you a recap with what we did each class and show you a picture of my "final" cake at the end.

Class 1

• learned that icing comes in 3 different consistencies - stiff, medium, and thin
• learned basics of icing a cake
• learned basics of coloring icing
• learned basics of filling an icing bag, putting a tip and coupler on
• practiced with tip 18, star tip (each tip has a number)

Class 2

• learned how to use piping gel to transfer a design onto a cake
• practiced using a few tips to make different designs
• learned how to make a clown out of icing and a plastic clown head (sounds creepy, huh? came out cute, though!)
• completed the first cake - a rainbow cake (picture to come soon!)

Class 3

• used more tips to make even more designs - some animals
• started learning the rose
• worked on some piping and edging designs
• decorated lots of cupcakes with different designs on top

Camera batteries were dead, so I didn't get any pictures :-(

Class 4

• came to class with a pre-iced cake, ready to make the final cake
• practiced roses some more
• learned how to make leaves
• learned how to make a ribbon bow (tough stuff!)
• completed the final cake
• got our completion certificate!

Here's a picture of my final cake:



I've signed up for Course 2 already - it's going to start this Friday!

Chris was loving having the cake for the first couple of classes, but, after celebrating his birthday (yet another cake!) in the middle of those classes, his cake enthusiasm has decreased. Who's coming over to eat my cake on Friday? (after I get pictures of it, of course...lol)

For lots and lots more Wilton information, check out the Wilton website here.

Have a great day!!

Penne with Vodka Blush Sauce

I remember making this recipe for the first time in the first house Chris and I owned. I had been wanting to try making this because, when student teaching, one of the assistants must've made Vodka Penne practically every week. She'd come in and just RAVE about how good Vodka Penne was. Come to think of it, she probably had more vodka herself than penne, if you know what I mean, but, whatever, it still sounded good! I can't remember for the life of me where I got the recipe, but I do remember that I got it one one of those recipe search websites online. This is a great recipe for leftovers - Chris and I will eat dinner and have enough for probably another dinner and a few servings for me to bring into school for lunch. Yum! Here's the recipe:

Ingredients
1 lb penne pasta, cooked aldente (I used ziti because I didn't have any penne in the house)
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped (I use my Pampered Chef Food Chopper for this because it keeps my eyes from watering and is super fast)
4 cloves of garlic, crushed and chopped (feel free to use 1-2 more cloves depending on how much you like garlic)
2 (28 ounce) cans of crushed tomatoes (I used four 14.25 ounce cans of whole tomatoes - I like the tomatoes to be more chunky and don't mind mashing them up with a wooden spoon)
1 pinch of hot pepper flakes
3/4 cups of vodka (resist any urge to put more in - it'll taste awful with more! trust me!)
salt and pepper
2 tablespoons of fresh parsley, chopped (or just throw in some dehydrated parsley - fresh is better, but work with what you've got)
3/4 cup of heavy cream
parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Directions
1. Put the olive oil into the pan and add the onions and garlic.

Look! I took a picture for you:



2. Turn on the heat to medium-low and gently cook for a few minutes.

3. Add the red pepper flakes and cook for 1 minute. Add the crushed tomatoes.

4. Raise the heat to medium and bring the mixture to a boil.

Another picture!



5. Add the vodka and a pinch of salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered for about 8 minutes over medium-low heat.

6. Add the cream and lower the heat. Add drained pasta and toss in parsley.

7. Stir to coat well and grate a generous amount of parmesan into the pasta using a grater. (I use this one . It's awesome!)

8. Serve immediately sprinked with more cheese (yum!).



Enjoy!!

Welcome!!

My first blog post! I have been wanting to start a blog for a while, but didn't know what I would blog about. I mean, who would really want to spend their time reading stuff I write?? First, I was going to do one of those 365 picture blogs - looks really neat, great idea, and I do love photography. Then, I thought that I could do a blog on saving money, but I already know a great blog(http://www.couponqueeny.blogspot.com/ is amazing!!) and I couldn't see how I could get much better than that! (Check it out - she's a great person! My husband, Chris, and I met her at the Souther Women's Show in Orlando last summer and have saved a lot of $$$ with her ideas!). With my husband and some friends encouragement, I finally decided that I needed to create a cooking blog. I absolutely LOVE to cook and bake (cleaning up, not so much - Chris comes in handy for that! Thanks, honey!) and would be thrilled to open my own bakery someday (I already have a name, but that's a secret!). Why do a cooking and baking blog? Well.....a girl can't just eat cupcakes all the time. Think of it as you'll get to see what I eat for dinner AND dessert :-)

With that said, welcome to my cooking and baking blog. I can't wait to share my culinary adventures with you! So, pour some of that leftover New Year's champagne into a glass - here's to a great start! Happy New Year and thanks for joining me!