YumSugar

Yummy Links: From Tomato Bites to Horchata

partysugar — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 06:45:01 -0700

Tomatoes, basil, and goat cheese combine to make a delicious and adorable appetizer. - The Food in My Beard
Meet Food Network's newest star, Aida Mollenkamp. - Chow
Wake up to the smoky smell of bacon with this bacon alarm clock. - Serious Eats
Candy is a sweet theme for a baby shower. - Hostess With the Mostess
Edible gifts for new parents. - The Kitchn
Are gummi bears good for your teeth? - Slashfood
Test your celebrity food knowledge by taking this fun quiz. - The Epi-Log
Are these musk-flavored candy sticks for real? - Candy Blog
The latest update on the salmonella outbreak. - FitSugar
Making homemade horchata is easy and cooly rewarding. - Baking Bites

Light the Room with Gummi Bears

YumSugar — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 07:55:19 -0800

I have a weakness for gummi bears (especially sour gummi bears). There's just something about those bite-sized delicious bear-shaped jewels that cause me to salivate. So when I saw these gummi bear sculptures by artist Ya Ya Chou I immediately went gaga. I mean look at this gorgeous chandelier, can you believe it is made out of gummi bears? I absolutely love how they catch the light, and the best part? Even though it was made two years ago, the gummi bears are still fresh now.

Another one of her creations is named "Simon." It's a bear skin rug made from gummi bears! Talk about ingenious. Her site has a few other creations (be sure to click on the word "sculpture").

Source: Craft

Yummy Link: I Can't Keep _____ In The House

YumSugar — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 14:11:21 -0700

Over in the Serious Eats Forum, folks want you to fill in the blank with a foodie item: I can't keep __________ in the house. Right now mine would have to be sour gummi bears from Bristol Farms (seriously where do they make these and how can I get a factory tour, and why do they taste so different from regular sour gummi bears?!). How about you, what can't you keep in the house? - Serious Eats

Yummy Links: From Sugarcane to Sour Gummi Bears

YumSugar — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 10:22:18 -0700

I'm not sure I would consider fresh sugarcane juice is the original lemonade, but it is really delicious. - Serious Eats

I know how much you all love cupcakes, so what do you think of this pan that will allow you to make a giant sized one? - Baking Bites
What are you going to do with all of your warm-weather ingredients? - Chow
Love soda water? Here's how you can make your own soda water at home. - Apartment Therapy: The Kitchen
Can the words luxury and canned food really go hand in hand? - Will Work For Food
If you can't make it to The French Laundry, you can do like Carol and cook The French Laundry recipes at home. - Slashfood
Release the inner beauty of tomatoes by peeling and seeding them. - Culinate
In case you haven't heard, The Simpsons Movie opens today. To celebrate here's a list of the Top 10 Simpsons candy moments. - Candy Addict
Speaking of candy, here's a review of my fave Sour Gummi Bears. These are the best sour gummis out there. - Candyblog

Would You Eat This Sweet Seven-Layer Dip?

YumSugar — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 16:00:55 -0700

I'm not going to lie; I'm looking forward to Cinco de Mayo for one true reason. So I can eat as much as I want of the cool, creamy, and spicy gastronomic delight known as seven-layer dip. And I'm not alone: the writers at Evite love seven-layer dip so much that they created a dessert version of it, with peanut butter, Nutella, marshmallows, shredded coconut, chocolate chips, salted peanuts, and gummy bears, to serve with Ritz crackers and Nilla wafers. Does this sweet-tooth version seem like something you could dig into?

Source

Mid-Century Modern Gingerbread House

YumSugar — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 07:56:19 -0800

The other day, CasaSugar asked you which Sugar HQ gingerbread house you preferred. Many of you said PartySugar's Lagito Cabin Gingerbread House, but my Mid-Century Modern charmed some of you folks as well. Earlier you got the step-by-step for hers, so today I thought I'd give you the step-by-step for mine. And if it inspires you then join us! We're currently asking you to submit your own gingerbread house!

I started off by creating my concept. Once I had the crude drawing, I got some scraps of cardboard and created a life-size model. If you're going to create your own house, I recommend you doing the same. The cardboard pieces will be used to cut out each wall piece.

To get the rest of my steps and up close pictures of each side and all the components, read more

Once I had my cardboard creation standing, I rolled out my chilled gingerbread between two pieces of parchment paper. Then I took the pieces of cardboard and put them on top of rolled out gingerbread (on top of the parchment paper). I then used a sharp knife to trace the cardboard. Once traced, I removed the cardboard and top sheet of parchment paper. Next I removed the excess dough and placed the entire piece of parchment paper (with dough) onto a baking sheet and baked according to directions.
This method is the best, easiest and cleanest, however, it uses quite a bit of parchment paper, make sure you have an entire roll.

When the gingerbread had cooled (at least 6 hours to make sure it is firm) and the icing had been made. I put the pieces together. Start by creating two adjacent walls in order to create an L shape.
If your gingerbread gets covered in white icing, wipe it off immediately if possible. You may want to use a damp towel to "wash" it.
Make sure your gingerbread house is standing before you stick the decor on. You may want to build the house and let it sit overnight.
To create the modern looking roof, I covered the roof pieces in icing and applied a thick layer of crumbled Oreo cookies. I pulverized the Oreos in a food processor first.

The Christmas tree was created by stacking Oreos with a layer of icing in between each one. I then used a sharp knife to shape the tree. Next I took green icing/frosting and slathered it with my hands.
Thin sour belts make for great decorating. They are easy to cut with scissors and can be adhered with a small amount of icing. It also works for easy grass covering!
To create the flowers, I sliced gummi bears into thinner pieces. I liked the way the sour gummi bears had a difference in color on the outside and inside.
I originally tried to make the wreath on the outside with store-bought cake decorating icing. Unfortunately, the texture would not work vertically and my wreath soon "melted" down the side of my gingerbread wall. I was too lazy to create a green colored batch of icing, so I used regular white icing and then applied the store-bought on top of that.

View 29 Photos ›

Daniela Edburg's Drop Dead Gorgeous Photos

YumSugar — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 11:54:02 -0700

Even though I've actually thought I could OD on gummi bears, the phrase "death by gummi bears" sounds a bit ridiculous. However artist Daniela Edburg has made it look amazing, don't you think? In her series Drop Dead Gorgeous, Edburg features beautiful girls (all of whom are her friends, not professional models) dying from food related obsessions. There's a girl getting attacked by flying bananas, one smothered in oreos and another being chased down by a tornado of pink cotton candy. When asked about why food has such a sinister effect on the women in her photos, Edburg replied:

I guess I am pretty compulsive. That which gives me pleasure one minute, causes guilt the next. I am surprised at how much I like the products I consume, but, if you stop for one second to think about it, it’s absurd. Yet, you can’t stop.

The rest of the pictures are absolutely gorgeous (we love the M&M one and the banana one too), plus be sure to read the interview with the artist. Also if you live in the Miami area, you can actually go see the photos at the Kunsthaus Miami.

I Heart Candy Roundup

YumSugar — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 13:28:39 -0700

I was so excited to open up my inbox and see it stuffed with I Heart Candy submissions. You guys are really amazing and totally impress me, from cookies to truffles and everything in between, you guys really love your candy! There are 20 entries total, so let's just get this candy-loving party started!

Oh and if you sent one in and it didn't appear here, use the contact form above to drop me a line and I'll get it added!

Entry #1
Our first entry comes from TeamSugar member calibabi who wrote in to share her recipes for Rolo Cookies and Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Cookies. I think I know what I'll be baking this weekend!

Entry #2
Kate from A Way To Eat took her home state Vermont into consideration when she made maple walnut pepper crunch. This looks fantastic over ice cream, but I bet I could eat handfuls on its own!

Entry #3
Amy from Seattle's Nook & Pantry melted my heart with green tea truffles. I've had these once before and have always wanted to make my own. Thanks for submitting these!

Entry #4
Utah-based Heather from dustbunnies wrote in to tell about her favorite new candy: Bertie Botts Every Flavored Jelly Bean. As someone who's a big Harry Potter fan, I was excited to hear that she and her family love to play Bertie Botts russian roulette. Hope you don't end up with the vomit flavored one!

For SIXTEEN more sweet entries, read more

Entry #5
Manila-based SweetPleasures got inspired by the film Chocolat and made us some lovely homemade chocolates. I gotta make my own someday too!

Entry #6
Bon Vivant's own Colorado-based Chelsea decided to make an English Toffee Inspiration Sundae. Is it bad that I am craving this so early in the morning?!

Entry #7
Candied blood orange peels end up being the secret weapon for Nina of Sweet Napa. Her orange creamsicle birthday cake will surely beat the Los Angeles heat!

Entry #8
Based in the Philippines, Chef KC wrote in to say that it's fun to play with your food, especially if it's candy!

Entry #9
Minko of Couture Cupcakes sent these vodka soaked Red Skins cupcakes all the way from Australia. I've never even heard of Red Skins (a raspberry "flavoured" hard candy), but I really want to try these!

Entry #10
TeamSugar member Karla Sugar wrote in to say that although it sounds odd, she thinks water with lemon tastes just like candy! Especially if it's room-temp or cool (not ice cold). What do you guys think?!

Entry #11
Maryland based TeamSugar members crispet1 and beamer1, did three entries! First they created a selection of adorable candy filled phyllo purses and then they created cute cupcakes and a drink they call "Gummy Worm" - can't wait to try them all!

Entry #12
Our very own GeikoSera has decided to list her favorite candy. Mallo Cups... mmm....

Entry #13
Molly was able to capture a pic of the elusive Knut the polar gummi bear!

Entry #14
Canada-based Sweetheart_450 sent her recipe for Peanut Butter Buckeyes. She says they're the most delicious sweets she's ever tasted and a must try for everyone!

Entry #15
Team member Bonne sent us a recipe for rock candy and then wrote in to tell us how she used to eat all the fundraiser candy! Shhh.. don't tell!

Entry #16
SU3 of TeamSugar treated us with two delights: M&M's Kisses pretzels and Butterfinger popcorn balls. I can't decide which treat I want to try first!

Entry #17
TeamSugar member poetess treated us to a quick poem about candy.

Entry #18
The office went wild for the Heath Bar Cake that PartySugar made. So delicious!

Entry #19
Our pal TeamSugar shared her weakness for Milk Duds and Dots (just not at the same time)!

Entry #20
And finally, I started the whole shebang by creating Reese's PB Cup Cookies.

Not enough candy? Be sure to check out some more candy related posts. There's still some time left in June, so it's not over yet!

Come Party With Me: 30th Birthday - The Look

partysugar — Fri, 09 May 2008 06:00:04 -0700

Just because her 30th birthday is at a bar doesn't mean DearSugar can't decorate. She'll head to Le Colonial hours before the party begins to set up a fabulous look. When done correctly, balloons, metallic streamers, and confetti can be fun. Cotton napkins make the event more sophisticated. Have the wait staff serve the appetizers on silver platters. Fill vases with lilies, the birthday girl's favorite flowers, and bowls with sour gummy bears, the birthday girl's favorite candy. Light hundreds of votive candles and use pretty rhinestones as shiny accents.

Source

What's Yummy This Week: YumSugar Weekly Recap

YumSugar — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 07:57:31 -0700

Don't miss this interesting gallery of families surrounded by a week's worth of food. The difference between countries is astonishing.
This week we started things off with National Cheese Day. We showed you some great cheese tools, how to store cheese and we wanted to know your fave cheese. If you've got any leftover, you can always make cheese chips.

June is national candy month, so I'm challenging you to come up with great candy recipes and stories.
The summer of cooking reality shows has begun. Be sure to check out our recaps for Top Chef, The Next Food Network Star, and Hell's Kitchen. While you're at it, let us know which one you plan on watching.
Could you eat 59 1/2 hot dogs in 12 minutes?
If you're looking for some delectable sweet treats, try chocolate mint bars or chocolate-malt brownies. Not into chocolate? How about strawberry cheesecake (easy and expert recipes!) instead?
These drop dead gorgeous photos really blow my mind. Death by gummi bears, nutella, cotton candy and more.
Know someone graduating this year? Plan them a great graduation party.
Are you buddies with your barista?
If you're getting married soon, don't forget to eat on your wedding day! Also, here are some ideas for a great rehearsal dinner.
And finally, we find out if Mexican (real sugar) Coke tastes better than regular Coke.