DIY: Sculptural Rose Tape Artwork

CasaSugar — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 16:00:02 -0800

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Happy Hour: Sage Sangria

partysugar — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:24:50 -0700

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An Edible Floral Arrangement - Rose and Poppy Seed Cupcakes

YumSugar — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 07:01:51 -0800

Although rose and poppy seed was not my favorite of the 2008 flavor pairings, I couldn't help but think it would make for a great cupcake. So I set out to find a delicious poppy seed cake, and a nice rose-infused frosting. The result was a subtle floral flavor, that really took me by surprise. I figured that the rose and poppy seed would complement one another, but I didn't expect them to be quite so delicious. If you're interested in trying it yourself, get the recipe, just read more.

Note: Rose flower water can be found at specialty grocery stores, places like BevMo, natural food stores, and possibly the "ethnic" aisle at your local grocery store.

I frosted these cupcakes with rose-flavored cream cheese frosting. I think they would also work well with whipped cream infused rose frosting. For garnish, I rolled raspberries in rose petal sugar - a gift from a friend, she found it at a specialty market - however you could garnish with plain raspberries, or a few poppy seeds.

Also, be careful when baking, mine were a little dry on the inside. The batter was really thick, I would probably use more yogurt next time, and bake for a shorter time period.

Poppy Seed Yogurt Cupcakes
From Stella Zedman

Makes 12 cupcakes

1/2 cup (125 mL) plain yogurt
1/4cup (50 mL) poppy seeds
1/2 cup (125 mL) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (125 mL) butter, softened
2 eggs
1-1/4 cups (300 mL) all purpose flour
1 tsp (5 mL) baking powder
1/2 tsp. (2 mL) baking soda

Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
In a small bowl, stir together the yogurt and the poppy seeds. Let this mixture soak while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, with an electric mixer, beat together the sugar, butter and eggs until thick and creamy - about 5 or 6 minutes.This wasn't exactly "thick and creamy" but it worked anyways.
In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture, in 2 or 3 additions, alternately with the poppy seed mixture. Beat just until smooth.
Spoon into the cupcake liners, filling them no more than 2/3 full -- there should be just enough for 12 cupcakes. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes -- until the cupcakes are just beginning to brown and a toothpick poked into the middle comes out clean.
Remove from oven and let cupcakes cool on a rack.
When completely cool, frost with your favourite frosting [I used the rose water frosting recipe below.] - it goes well with either chocolate or white frosting.

Rose Water Frosting
From Martha Stewart

Makes 1/2 cup - enough to fully coat 6-8 cupcakes.

4 ounces cream cheese
1/4 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons rose water
1 1/2 teaspoons milk, plus more if needed
Gel-paste food coloring [I used 3 drops of liquid red food coloring to achieve the color shown.]

In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and the sugar with a wooden spoon until the mixture is smooth. Add the rose water and the milk, and continue to beat the mixture until it is smooth. Tint the frosting, and use it immediately.

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EarDrops Rose Earphones

GeekSugar — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 05:00:23 -0700

If you ignore the fact that a misstep with these EarDrops Rose Earphones could leave you with a jamming plastic rose lodged in your ear, these little buds are pretty darn cute.

Designed for women, the EarDrops Rose Earphones from Elecom are lightweight and come in small, medium and large sizes. (When you order the 9mm diameter driver unit you get two pairs of extra ear pieces for an exact fit, which is perfect for all those people whose ears are too big or too small for regular buds.) I think the buds, which cost $49, are fun, but largely impractical. If you need to dress up your earphones why not use something like the Emotibud Earbud Set, which are changeable and less expensive?

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