Raspberry Curd

Dear Sugar Diary,

Raspberries. I like raspberries. Red ones....black ones... and golden ones....I just like raspberries! Did I mention I like raspberries? (he he he) 

I wanted to share a recipe for raspberry curd. A fruit curd is basically egg yolks, sugar, fruit juice and/or zest that you cook together until it thickens. The fruit taste is intensified . Usually you will see that tart fruits are used when making a curd...like lemons, limes, oranges and raspberries.  OK- this recipe I am about to explain is great with dark chocolate cake....and can be used in cupcakes as a filling. It is also great for writing text on cakes or cookies. =)

  Raspberry Curd:

6 ounces fresh raspberries
4 ounces sugar
2 teaspoons lemon juice
4 egg yolks
8 tablespoons unsalted butter

This is what you do: 

First I puree the raspberries in my blender, I guess you can try the food processor, but I can't really tell you how that will go because I never use mine. After I puree the raspberries I run them through a strainer because I want the puree to be as smooth as I can get it. You need at least 4 oz of raspberry puree.  Pour that into a "non-reactive" pot with the sugar,egg yolks,and lemon juice. (By non-reactive I mean any pot that is NOT aluminum or copper. You CAN use stainless steel, clay, enamel,  glass or plastic.)

Now that you have all the ingredients in a proper pot...cook it over medium heat until you see it is starting to thicken and starts to boil. Take it off the heat and mix in the butter. Strain it one last time and then you can put it in a plastic container and cover tightly .. you can also place plastic wrap directly onto the surface so it does not form a skin. Put the container into the fridge and let it cool off completely. After it is cooled it ready to use. However way you would like.=) I hope you enjoy this raspberry curd as much as I like it. I also like that it isn't messy to make and doesn't require a lot of ingredients. The only thing you will probably have to go and get at the store will be the raspberries. This curd is GREAT as a cupcake filling...especially chocolate cupcakes...but vanilla will also be yum. So I hope that if you have never made a curd you will find this easy and well explained and find the time to experiment.=) You can basically change the raspberries out for lemon, lime, or orange ....You can't zest a raspberry but you CAN zest lemons. limes and oranges...so by all means...DO SO! It can be to your taste or liking. =) Happy Curd-ing! =)

My Always

Dear Sugar Diary,

Hi again!  It feels like it has been FOREVER! But..Here I am once again...and have a ton of things to share and chit chat about=). How was your weekend? Mine?  It was full. VERY FULL. This past Thursday my fiance went to Bullhead City to visit with his kids....but he left me the van ... & while I was happy he was getting time off to spend with his kids and his momma....I  didn't really get what him leaving for 4 days meant till after Friday. It meant I was baking...decorating and running for supplies alone. Deliveries would have to be made on time by ME. Little breaks would be me - sitting alone-with my coffee for one. If something went wrong no one was there to share my frustration....and no one would be there to suggest anything. But I didn't realize that till after Friday.

I have totally overlooked the fact that while I FEEL like I bake and decorate by myself there is so much Josh does for me that I have completely taken for granted. That made me feel horrible. It made me think about how he must feel every time he hears me say "Ugh..I need to run to the store." because when I say "I " I really mean "Him" . He never says no. As soon as I utter the last word of that sentence I hear the car keys jingling and he always says "Txt me the list." and I do. I txt him the same list every time:

                                                        Sugar

                                                         Eggs

                                                          Oil

                                                         Flour

                                                   Marshmallows

                                                        Vanilla

Not always in that order and not always all of it...but basically he runs to the store 3 or 4 times a week for that stuff. We joke that we should move closer to the store or live in it. Then I think about the deliveries....when Josh is here...I finish my cakes and attach address slips and times of delivery to them...then I pass out(after caking all night)  and he always just delivers them...on time every time. We also joke that people may think I don't even exist...because they place orders with me via email and then Josh shows up with the cake....so I never meet my clients personally. We joke that people may think Josh's online persona is "Sugar Shey" like a weird Norman Bates thing. LOL! That makes me laugh. (::Side Thought:: We thought our across the street neighbor was like this...he always talks about his wife ...but we had never actually seen her....then when we did start to see her they were never together at the same time...she would leave in her car...return and then like an hour later our neighbor would come out of his house and leave in his car....so Josh came to the very detective- like conclusion that they were one and the same...kinda freaked me out...and like crazy people we sat at the window looking to see if we could catch a glimpse of them together....hasn't happened yet! ::chills::) lol.. Ok ...well enough of my neighborhood watch report.....and back to Josh and his tremendous ability to make my life easier......

He does all the supply runs...deliveries....pep talks when I am in a state of self doubt...and he doubles as my " Blecha Brothers" (the twin carpenters on Cupcake Wars) lol. But he refuses to wear the plaid lumberjack shirt but DOES have a beard!;)

I think what I am trying to say with all of this is if you have a one man or one woman entourage like I do....remember that while YOU may bake your cakes and spend a million hours planning and decorating them ....and while YOU may get all the thumbs up from your peers....think about your behind the scenes crew....that small bunch that are under the same roof with you day in and day out helping you....even if it is that one person that just sits and talks to you while you decorate a cake...or even the taste tester....whoever your person is..Thank them! Thank Them OUTLOUD....appreciate them....and tell them 100 times over how grateful you are that they help....that they put up with your cake talk....your "Cake Wreck" tears....your long hours and messy kitchen.....that they may even chip in and go buy more sugar at 3am because you just made 3 batches of fondant and they turned out bad and now your in a panic because delivery is 8am and you put it off till the last minute!

That's the kind of help I have...so when he went away this weekend....I felt and realized all  he does....and I will never again overlook anything......ever. I will thank him just for existing....and holding my hand through every great accomplishment and even my not so great ones. Because regardless if it has to do with cakes....or just life...He is always there. Always.

Anti Melt Down Recipe;)

Me...aka..Sugar Shey

Dear Sugar Diary,

 Hi again! I have decided to share my most favorite cupcake ever.....EVER. Also..whenever that picture is at the top..from now on...it will be to let you know a recipe will be shared..ok? Ok. So ..today I am feeling so DRAMATIC...I woke up dramatic and held that emotion through out my day....so what do I do when DRAMA tries to ruin my usually happy disposition? Well I BAKE...and I bake what I want. And then I eat however much I want to. LOL...and then my world is all better again and the Disney birds return to sing on my shoulder....=) and my mice help me with my chores.

Well today I baked my most favorite cupcake....and while I usually bake from scratch...this one guilty pleasure is from a BOX! Oh the SHAME! But when you eat it...all that shame goes right out the door and is replaced with a happy fuzzy feeling right in your tummy! Besides it was just for me...and saves tons of time.

I baked what I call my "Therapy" ....  I buy a brownie mix....you can buy whichever is your favorite...for me my favorite is what my mom used to make....and she always bought Duncan Hines  everything. Ok so first your going to want to make a cake batter...it can be whatever flavor you want..I choose yellow. You can make it from scratch or if your feeling stressed and on the verge of a melt down... like me ...run to the store and BUY a BOX MIX...I promise the sky won't fall on you and no one will point a finger...well they may point ...but who cares! Your about to go make some of the best nom noms in the known universe! Remember to grab the brownie mix! Now hurry home and set your oven to 350.  Follow the directions on the boxes...once you have those all mixed and prepped...go find your cupcake pan and line it with the prettiest wrappers you have...(it helps..trust me) Once your papers are all sittin' pretty- scoop a tiny amount of the CAKE BATTER into the cups....now switch over to your brownie mix and scoop some of that in on top of the cake batter..keep doing that in alternating layers till it is 3/4 of the way full...by now your oven should be at 350 so pop em in there for let's say 12-15 minutes....I know you guys know when it is ready...but remember the brownie mix will be slightly gooey-er and the cake mix will bake up normally. By the time they are in the oven for 10 minutes you will start to smell your anti-meltdown treat. At 12 minutes they will look done but make sure you check because some of the cake batter may be slightly undercooked. Okay now that it has been almost the full 15 minutes open the oven and ...hear that? Its an angel chorus! I hear it every time! Ha ha ha...what!? I do!
Let your cupcakes cool...(probably one of the hardest things to do EVER) but wait ...it is so worth it....Now that they are out and cooled....pick one up...they are so yum they don't even need icing or anything on top! Peel back that wrapper and sink your teeth into pure happiness....I like to eat them while sitting on the kitchen floor....right next to the warm oven.....bare feet ...and I close my eyes...I simply ENJOY. I really feel sooooo much better and calm after these! I do! If you want to go ahead and make the cake and brownie batter from scratch by all means do that...but every once in a while taking a short cut won't make the world stop turning...I pinky promise! I hope you try these and enjoy them as much as I do....Happy Anti-Melt Down Baking ya'll!;)

SO FRUSTRATING! My Top 7 Pet Peeves!

Dear Sugar Diary,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

 Sleep is no where to be found so I am here...at my table ...something provoked  me to write...wanna know what that is?            

PET PEEVES!!

YUP!...the little things that annoy the beejeebees out of me about caking. Grrrr .... those little things that I can do without. Like what? 

THESE:

 Let's address Wilton Letter Cutters. It is basically our first set of cutters when we set out on our quest for the basic first pieces of equipment for our passion. Those tiny little rounded letters (that look like alphabet magnets) and seem to stick to the cutter and we can never get out in one piece.....then when we finally master it and get them out all nice and neat we notice that now everyone seems to have a new font.  THESE:

 TAP IT'S!  We look everywhere for them then low and behold there they are on some site ON SALE....we do a happy dance...add to cart....wait for box....and when they arrive we look at them...and in our minds see every cake in our not so far future with beautiful funky curly letters....ahhhh..yes....but these too require mastery....Once this skill of carefully tapping your letters is mastered...yeah you guessed it...everyone has moved on....

Cricut Cake fonts! blahhhh! So again you wait...hunt and stalk every site till finally you see  it ....ON SALE! You POUNCE! You click "Add to cart" and wait.....then the box arrives you hold a ceremonious unveiling of your Cricut Cake machine ...you even read the book and watch the video ... you think the green light is sooooo pretty when you press Power...then ...it shreds your gumpaste...chews up your fondant or rips your sugar sheets. Great ....I could have done that for free!!!!!! Not paid almost $300.00 to get that result. Grrrr! I have resorted to using my tap its and cutting free handed letters with an exacto knife.

                            Then there is fondant.

 My most favorite medium to work with. But how about when you are working with white? Or yellow? Or pastels? How about that one spec of something that will just stick to your fondant even if your in the most sterile environment on earth? That one spec that ruins your whole day! That piece of fondant could be a mile down the road and you would look and still see that spec!!! You pinch it off...you TRY to pinch it off...and if your like me ..you no longer want to work with that piece of fondant , it is ruined..tainted...unclean..TOSS IT! 

Or the fondant that has dried around the edge....you trick yourself to think you can knead it back into soft manageable fondant but instead end up with lumpy dry ugly fondant...UGH!!! Toss it too!

Hummm let's see.....what else? YES! I know!! You spend 15 minutes kneading a piece of fondant into some color....like blue...then you switch to a new piece to make it yellow and .....and...AND....you somehow manage to get BLUE on your YELLOW and it turns GREEN! That drives me NUTS!  These are just some of my biggest IRKS in caking! Oh wait how about air bubbles? Underneath your fondant!!! Doesn't that make you just want to scream???!!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!! lol
Ok I will stop for now....lol...before my blood pressure gets any higher! I have a million other things I could write about but these are my top ones....;) Now...tell me...what IRKS you ? =\

Working from Home

Dear Sugar Diary....

Hi there! I took a couple of days to get back here but here I am!=) My sleep pattern has been CRAZY lately. Like a baby that stays awake all night and wants to sleep all day...yup..that's me! Bakers and decorators have the craziest hours don't we??(...the sleepless nights and long hours) But I love decorating my cakes at night. When the kiddos are all asleep and the house is all nice and clean and all is quiet and calm. (I guess sleeping in the day time while my monsters are at school is a perk of choosing to stay home and I realize that not everyone has that option=(.  I usually click on Netflix....find my shows(Grey's Anatomy or I.D. or Man vs Wild)...make coffee and turn on all 7 light bulbs in my kitchen...throw on my reading glasses and get in the zone. ;) This is my actual work spot:(click on the pic to enlarge)

Welcome to my very regular kitchen.....in a house that was built around the 1950's....and I am quiet content here. And SEE my laptop is right there too...I spend most of my day in here.....doing a whole lot of caking and keeping up with clients and a lot of YOU on Facebook. It's my space...and while it may not be state of the art...it is mine and I love it.=) I am sitting in that chair now....in front of the laptop..typing this. An Argentinean Tango is playing on Spotify....and I am typing this while trying to calm all the crazy scattered thoughts of cake ideas going thru my mind....I don't think it matters what your kitchen looks like at all....and I have said this before...It is the heart and passion you throw into your work....the sleepless nights....the nerves...every tear you have ever let escape because a cake isn't turning out or every happy tear because it did. I don't have a dishwasher...look again...see? No dishwasher...and a regular old oven...but where there is a will there is a way and there is SO MUCH will in this kitchen!....=) When I got into this wonderful world of cake...my intention was never to own a store front....I just wanted to bake and create while wearing my slippers....make cakes like the ones I saw on TV and online....I am not trying to be a bakery...and that is why I haven't purchased a banner or created a menu (even though I have like 23 different menu layouts saved but not completed) I don't have a pricing chart because I don't make cakes like a supermarket....I DO have a basic per serving price and cupcake prices...but my cakes are all mostly custom and novelty....and pricing is very unique to each one. I have my flavors and am always coming up with new ones...so a menu would always be changing....I have ordered business cards and I hand them out or deliver my cakes with them on there...but even that makes me feel weird...lol...does handing a card to someone seem like I am full of myself? lol....I kinda think it makes me look that way. I bake for fun and am in love with this form of artistic expression....it makes your eyes happy and tummy even happier....I started charging for my cakes when demand grew and I needed more ingredients but a lot of my cakes have been free....especially in the beginning when I just wanted the excuse and free artistic reign over a cake ;)
I have been asked to provide weekly menus of cupcakes for the week as other fellow bakers do but having 4-5 cakes a week makes that hard. I really don't know how bakery's do it! lol...but then again  they have employees...I don't.
I don't know....I think that all this rambling is boiling down to the fact that I am content baking at home...I really am....I know I get friends saying " I wish you had a store front Shey" but a store front isn't what I want....I want to be home with my kids...bake ...be a mom....and one day when they are all grown up I am pretty sure they will have these memories of a mommy always covered in sugar and a color stained apron....answering homework questions while holding a rolling pin or kneading fondant...or of a mommy asleep on the couch because she was too tired to go all the way down the hall to her bed...They will look at pictures of past birthday cakes and reminisce...and their friends will say things like " I remember when your mom made me a "blah blah" cake for my 13th birthday!" I want them to look back and realize I stayed home for them...but also that I was motivated enough to DO something with my time...after all where else can these be my rules? xoxoxoxoxox

To Shop or NOT to Shop....Blahh..Who am I kidding?

 Dear Sugar Diary,
     There I am...standing in the aisle....looking at cupcake wrappers...cutters...sprinkles...books...flavorings...tools...and everything else imaginable for creating a new cake..
It is kinda like

I am a drug addict standing in an alley waiting for my next fix!!!

                                                                                                                                                I know I have a budget...I know that I need to buy some groceries ... I even need gas later...but the temptation is overpowering! I look at the "new" cupcake wrappers and quickly imagine a cupcake in it with it's cute little swirl hat...all dressed up....I look at the cutters and wonder.."Do I have that one...oh yeah I do! But the one with it in the package...I don't have THAT one!" I go about negotiating with myself..."Well...if I buy these ones...I can always replace that money when I make my next order..I will stick it in with the rest in my cutter basket and no one will even notice!"  Ugh! The decisions! It's horrible. I turn on the pc and try to avoid the online supply stores...but there they ARE all neatly lined up for me on the right side of my Facebook page....waiting.....taunting and making me look! So I click...and the first thing I see is "FREE SHIPPING" Awwww Come ON! Not the free shipping! =\ Then I try to justify that..."But it's FREE SHIIIIIIPPING!"  And who can resist the smile on the Amazon Box? C'mon! LOOK AT IT! It's smiling at me!

     I know you have been there too...even if it isn't cake supplies...we all have  our weakness....but for me getting a new spatula is probably as exciting as it would for any other woman to get purse or shoes. Ha!  I used to be obsessed with getting UPS boxes ..Fed Ex boxes and Amazon boxes....it was soooooo exciting...then from Global Sugar Art....and the endless lists of other vendors....
     I remember the day my KA mixer arrived ....It looked like someone had just handed me the winning lottery ticket! And the day my Cricut Cake arrived ...I could swear I heard a full angel chorus!....I stared at it for hours! (Funny how it lives in a closet or under my work table..hardly ever used at all.)
I think we all do this ...buy things we need then we buy thing we want and then we buy the things we THINK we need and want.  So I have resorted to mental lists...even hand written ones and also emailing myself....GRRR....but it has to be done! At least for me....because I have been known to buy doubles and triples of things. So until I win the lotto and hire a personal shopper .... and an accountant... I will resort to the chicken scratch lists written on scraps of paper that look like trash. I think you could actually play a tune on the piano with my lists....hee hee....they are written in haste and usually in half Spanish & half English (SPANGLISH) ..lol...but I am a woman...and the urge to buy things is overwhelming...I did good today..grabbed only things I will actually USE this weekend! Yay me! Now I will put those things to good use and start all the prep for this weekends round of cakes....I will be back soon to bring those recipes I said I would ...for real this time! =\ Sorry about the delay! ;) Stay Focused and may your day be enjoyed !=)

Humbled

Dear Sugar Diary,

  I just logged into my Facebook Fan Page and saw that we made it to 900 likes....that feels like I just won something. It means that 900 people have at some point stumbled onto my page and gave it a second thought....even if they didn't keep up with it or whatever it was still a moment that they stopped by and liked it.=) I am happy now that more "cakers" have joined and it feels nice to have people that relate to you. I also LOVE the people that get on to just "look" at cakes and leave nice comments. They boost the moral over here and make me feel like what I do is liked. I even appreciate the ones that leave not so nice comments....they make me work harder. I don't spam them or even delete them...I leave them there...they are a reminder that in life you can't please everyone and that is never my intention.

I received a call and an email from the city...complimenting my cakes and letting me know that they are watching and they even knew I had over 500 likes.....They also said that they are proud to have me in town ! Wow! I felt proud for a brief moment then reminded myself that I make cakes...and that in this business being humble is the only way you can grow. Humble....the definition of that is "Having or showing a modest or low estimate of one's own importance." I never take myself seriously....never. There is no difference between me and the next mommy/baker. I am sure we want the same things....for our families to be healthy and happy and for a chance to play and practice  our cake passion.

I am a mom and my fiance's best friend before all else.....then when those duties are fulfilled I throw on my super hero costume (which is a plain white apron I think I bought for like $2.99 at Wal-Mart on a sale rack)....It makes me feel like I am on Food Network Challenge...Like I am actually wearing the RED chef's jacket and then that's when the narration starts....in my head..."Our returning Challenge Winner, Shey Jimenez, coming all the way from Sierra Vista, A.Z. to defend her title.....Today's challenge will be ..... blah blah blah cakes for a mystery client....." LOL...ok ok ok....maybe I am crazy.... maybe I daydream way too much....but isn't it fun? hee hee.....

I don't know...I think that all this caking gets to you but in a fun way...maybe it's from breathing in too much  powdered sugar dust...I never think I am better than anyone....I always look at other cakers creations in awe...wide eyed...and always wonder " Wow...so much talent!" I wish I could have started this earlier in life....I love how many young people are getting into it! This world is in for a treat with the amount of young artists getting better and better at this craft. Such new and fresh ideas... It makes me so happy and excited.

So This blog entry was all over the place....it's probably because I just typed my thoughts...like in an actual diary....=) I am excited for the things that may come my way....but I will always remain humble...I will once again thank all my "likers" and say that I hope I can continue to make things that are appealing to eat and look at....also I hope that you are all inpired by my limited knowledge and if I don't know the answer I always find someone who does;) So...with this I say Ciao! (In about 15 min my monsters get home from school with big appetites! ;) )
    I will post again soon and bring along my recipes to share! <3