Guitar Cake

Nut Brittle

We made yummy peanut brittle on Food Art. an easy recipe for the Christmas season. 

Product

The recipe:

Ingredients:  

• 250 mL sugar
• 125 corn syrup
• f.g. salt
• 250 mL nuts ( it can be peanuts, cashews, almonds, macadamia nuts, etc.)
• 5 mL butter/margarine
• 5 mL vanilla
• 5 mL baking soda

Method:

1. Spray a jelly roll plan with non-stick spray and place on a hot mat.
2. In a large glass bowl or glass measuring cup stir sugar, corn syrup and salt (if the nuts are salted already, you don't need to put in salt) with a wooden spoon or silicon spatula.
3. Microwave the mixture on high (cover the top with scale paper or a paper towel) until the syrup is pale yellow (about 5-8 minutes). If it doesn't turn colour when the time is up add 30 seconds until colour change.
4. Add nuts and then put it back into the microwave for 1 more minute (or longer if you don't get an amber colour to the mixture, always add only 30 seconds every time you put it for longer in the microwave).
5. Immediately stir in the butter, vanilla and baking soda. Don't worry if it starts bubbling  or foaming, it's meant to do that.
6. Quickly and carefully (it's HOT!) pour into the jelly roll pan.
7. Spread the brittle evenly across the jelly roll pan (you have to do this quickly or it would start to harden).
8. When the brittle is completely cooled break into pieces

Banana Splitsville

This was an 2-day lab we made the carmel and doodads on the first day and everything else on the 2nd day. 

Product

The recipe:

Ingredients:  

Basic Carmel Software:

• 500 mL sugar
• 250 mL water
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup

Caramel Sauce Software:

• 1 batch caramel (above)
• 500 mL heavy cream

Banana Brulee Software:

• 4 bananas
• sugar for coating

Additional: ICE CREAM

Method:

1. Combine the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a small, heavy saucepan and place over high heat.As soon as the sugar dissolved, heat your thermometer under warm tap water (to prevent thermal shock) and attach to the side of your pot,  making sure that the bulb is completely submerged but doesn't touch the bottom of the pot. DO NOT STIR THE MIXTURE OR AGITATE THE PAN AT THIS STAGE!
2. When the mixture reached 230°F (110°C), reduce the heat to medium and allow the sugar to colour gradually. As the temperature approached 300°F (150°C) the colour will start to turn amber. At this point, it's safe to swirl the pan gently to help distribute the heat evenly. As the caramel heads towards 340°F (170°C), it will reach a deep amber colour.
3. Remove the pan from the heat and slowly stir with a metal spoon, allowing it to cool until the caramel falls from the spoon in a solid stream, like a string (keep stirring and lifting up the spoon). When it does, it's doodad time!
4. Form the doodads by holding the spoon 12 to 16 inches over with caramel and drizzling a pattern on the parchment. The thinner it fall from the spoon the better (Hint: allow the spoon to unload into the pan for a few seconds before attempting the doodads. This will allow a narrower stream).
5. Quick back and forth motions or side to side movements are the best (I personally like to make circles). It's all in the wrist. Allow the doodads to cool for 15 minutes then peel the paper off (not the other way around, you might break it). Stack in an airtight container with wax paper between in each pieces if you are not using it.
6. After making 15 to 20 doodads, you should have sufficient caramel reaming to move on to the sauce phase.
7. Return the remaining caramel to medium high heat and continue cooking until you dee the first sign of smoke (in the pot not the element!) Immediately remove from the heat, and add the cream all at once, at arms length (it will boil furiously). Once the mixture calms down, return to medium heat and boil for 3 minutes more, stirring occasionally. Cool to room temperature and then move to squirt bottle (or just into a glass bowl and cover with plastic wrap) and refrigerate for up to a week.
8. To make the banana brulee, quarter the bananas (peel on) and then remove the peel and put sugar (we put a lot) on the flat part of the banana and place on cooling racks over several players of foil. (Don't try to do this on you dining room table). Don you safety goggles and fire up your torch (you don't actually need goggles). Hold the torch so that the very tip of the flame barely touches the banana, and move quickly back and forth until the sugar melts, turns brown, and bubbles. As soon as it looks like caramel (the top of a crème brulee), move on. You know you've got it down when a solid, glass like sheet of gold (no graininess)  has formed on the banana.
9. To do the split (so to speak), squirt a pattern  of caramel sauce on a chilled plate top with 4 banana pieces (Lincoln log style), top with ice cream of your choice and finally, a doodad. But you can do it any style you want if you don't want to do the log one

2-in-1 Cupcake Mosaic

So we did a cupcake mosaic in class today, it was a 2-day project, the first day we made the cupcakes (3cm by 3cm)  and the second day we iced the cupcakes.
This project was done in pairs and i worked with my twin (her blog here )  This project is DIY cupcake design project where we design our own design, i wanted to do a turtle but noooo, Grace wanted to do something fangirly. (story below)



The recipe:

We used the yellow cupcake recipe for our cupcakes, which can be found here
and for  our icing, we used the Classic Buttercream Icing, which can be found here. 


Product
So anyways, Grace (my sister) is a in-the-closet 1D (one direction fan and <3 Niall)  and since i do whatever Grace says, and she said she wants to do a 1D cupcake mosaic, so we did and  since they are British and Nail is Irish so BAM a combination of a UK+Ireland flag (hence the title 2-in-1 cupcake mosaic) 

Left: Ireland Flag Right: UK Flag

to bad this ^ isn't a turtle :(

 

 

 

MINI HOUSES!

We are making gingerbread houses for food art. I personally don't like making gingerbread things since it is kinda annoying and takes forever!
well here's the recipe:


The recipe:

Ingredients:  

• 250 mL Shortening
• 25o mL sugar
• 2 eggs
• 300 mL molasses
• 15 mL vinegar
• 1370 mL flour
• 5 mL baking soda
• 5 mL salt
• 5 mL ground ginger
• 5 mL ground cinnamon
• 5 mL fround cloves

Method:

1. Cream shortening well.
2. Gradually add sugar and cream well again.
3. Beat in eggs, molasses and vinegar.
4. Stir together 250 mL of the flour along with baking soda, salt and spices.                                        
5. Gradually blend the first cup of flour and spices into the creamed mixture and mix well.
6. Add another 250 mL of the flour gradually, blending well.                                     You may find that at this point the dough is stiff enough and the reaming flour may make the dough too dry and crumbly. Your dough should feel soft and workable but not sticky. If you think it had gotten too dry and crumbly then re-crumble into a bowl and sprinkle with a little water and work until it comes together and is workable.
7. Gather the dough into a ball then flatten it into a dish and wrap it tightly with plastic wrap and put in the fridge if you are baking on a different day.
8. Roll out the dough to 3mm thickness  (check with a ruler)                                                          *It may be easier to shape large, cut-out pieces of gingerbread directly on the baking sheet or onto parchment paper, so that the dough doesn't distort as you transfer if from the work surface.
9. Cut into shapes.
10. Place 2.5 cm apart from each other on parchment lined cookie sheets or jelly roll pans.
11. Bake at 375°F or 190°C for 5-6 minutes or until firm and lightly browned.                       *Like any cookie, gingerbread is not crisp or firm when it first comes out of the oven: this means it may be difficult to tell whether it is cookies, particularly as cooking times vary from oven to oven. Generally, the dough will have risen slightly and will be just colouring around the edges. Do not under cook.
12. Cool slightly on the sheet for about 5 minutes, in which time it will start to crisp, and then remove to racks to cool completely.                                                *If the gingerbread still feels very soft, return it to the oven for a few minutes.
13. Very often the gingerbread will distort slightly during baking. If you wish or feel the need to trim it to reshape (especially for the houses pieces to fit properly), be sure to do it while the dough is still warm. If you allow it to cool and then try to trim it, it could break.

To store:

Large, flat pieces of gingerbread must be cooled and stored on a flat surface or they will become distorted. Use a box or try to store and in a ziplock bag. 

Finished Product

Well I made a log house, but i can't post a picture of it yet since i don't know where Grace put the camera and she isn't here right now and i still can't sync my phone to my computer ><"
i will post the pictures once Grace comes back home :)

Spider Web Cookies

The recipe (cookies):

Ingredients: 

• 375 mL flour
• 200 mL cocoa powder
• 2 mL salt
• 185 mL margarine
• 300 mL icing sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 mL vanilla

Method: 

1.  In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, salt. Set the mixture aside.
2. Use an electric mixer to cream the margarine and icing sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
3. Add the flour mixture; mix on low speed until thoroughly combined.
4. Divide the dough in half; wrap in plastic wrap.
5. Chill the dough for 10 minutes in the freezer.
6. Heat oven to 350°F or 180°C
7. Roll the dough out between two pieces of wax paper until about 5 mm thick.
8. Cut out a tracer for the web shape from scale paper.
9. Cut out each cookie.
10. Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes (personally I couldn't really tell if it's ready or not because you can't tell by the colour)
    
11. Cool completely on wire racks. 
    

    

    Finished Product (not yet decorated)

    The recipe (Royal Icing):
    Ingredients:
12.  250 grams sugar
13.  2 mL cream of tartar
14. 15 mL whip powder
15.  50 mL water 
16. black food colouring/ 30 mL chocolate chips/ black icing paste

Method:

1. Whip together the ingredients in a medium bowl
2. To make the cobweb design, begin by icing the cookie with white royal icing. 
3. To 50 mL of the icing add 30 mL of melted chocolate chips or black food colouring or use black icing paste. 
4. Pipe out a spiral of black icing starting from the center to the edges of the cookies  
5. Draw a bamboo skewer or use the tips of a sharp knife and drag it from the center to each point of the cookie, then from the inner curves back to the center.

   

   Voila! Spiddy cookies!
   

   
   

Classic Buttercream Icing

 The recipe:

Ingredients: 

•  250 mL vegetable shortening (you can substitute with butter but makes sure you have the correct amount!)
• 5 mL vanilla
• 30 mL water
• 454 g or 1000 mL icing sugar
• 15 mL egg white powder
• Food colouring

Method:

1.  In a large bowl, cream shortening, icing sugar, egg white powder, vanilla and water.
2.  Add the dry ingredients and mix on medium speed until all the ingredients has been thoroughly mixed together,
3. Blend together for an additional minute until creamy.
4. This icing can be refrigerated or you can freeze it. 
5. For the piping of the icing, it depends on you.
   
   You can use the buttercream icing to decorate any thing you want, cake, cupcakes, poundcake......... we used the buttercream icing to decorate yellow cupcakes (recipe here  

Finished Product

This one i made by Kelly! it's so pretty~

Cupcakes we decorated!