YumSugar

Yummy Links: From Pac-Man Cupcakes to Dog Meat

partysugar — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:00:04 -0700

Wow your geek friends with a Pac-man cupcake cake. - Slashfood
Suggestions for making the perfect wedding toast. - Chow
Speaking of weddings, here are five tips for picking the best caterer. - GlamDish
What exactly is fondant. - Baking Bites
Do you have what it takes to win a Major League Eating competition? Find out when you play Nintendo Wii's new Major League Eating: the Game. - Serious Eats
Use a bundt pan to easily remove corn kernels from the cob. - Simply Recipes
Celebrate the season's first tomatoeswith rosemary, garlic, and a grill. - The Kitchn
Chinese officials have confirmed that dog meat will NOT be served at any restaurants connected to the Beijing Olympic games. - The Epi-Log

Definition: Fondant

YumSugar — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 04:03:31 -0700

Fondant
A typical cake icing made with sugary, syrup and gelatin. It is cooked to a specific temperature (240F), poured over a marble slab, sprinkled with water (to prevent crystallization) and then kneaded to a smooth soft paste. It is often colored and flavored and used for candies and cakes. It can be rolled out and its soft qualities enable it to be draped like fabric.

Image Source

Must Read: Chocolates and Confections

YumSugar — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 04:00:49 -0800

I should have put self-control on my list of New Year's resolutions, because I haven't been able to resist temptation this month, especially when it comes to nostalgic candies, dragées, or any charming confection. At least one publisher appealed to my weakness when I received a copy of Peter Greweling's Chocolates and Confections at Home With the Culinary Institute of America ($23), I think my heart actually skipped a beat. Did it let me down? Find out and read more.

Must-Read: Matthew Mead Halloween Tricks and Treats

partysugar — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 15:00:08 -0700

Move over Martha Stewart, there's a new kid on the crafty Halloween block, and his name is Matthew Mead. Mead is a producer, stylist, and author whose creative work has appeared in numerous publications including InStyle Weddings. To see what I thought of his Halloween Tricks and Treats ($19) book, read more.

Pros:

The book is full of festive and fun ideas. Each idea is accompanied by a photo.
Mead excels when it comes to fabulous party themes. I love his owl-oween children's party and his mummy cooked dinner.
His decorations are spot on. The fun house section teaches readers how to cover a wall with eyes and create a spooky clock.
The book is very inspiring. While browsing the pages I came up with many ideas.

Cons:

Some of the how-tos lack templates and details. Its assumed that everyone will be capable of cutting a witches face out of pizza dough.
I was bored by the entire chapter devoted to fondant creations. While they look adorable, I'm just not a fondant fan.
Some of the ideas are more hokey than chic. They're appropriate at a cheesy child's affair but wouldn't be stylish at a grown-up party.

Recipes: The recipes are innovative, but too many rely on packaged ingredients like snack cakes or lu biscuits. Still, there are some I'm dying to make:

Candy corn freeze (a layered ice cream dessert)
Green gruel with eyeballs (a broccoli cheddar soup)
Bleeding berry pie (a mixed berry pie decorated with edible candy eyes)
A jack-o-lantern cocktail (a vodka carrot juice concoction)

Imagery: The pictures are clear and plentiful. Each idea is represented with a coinciding image.

Overall Rating: If you're a hardcore, crafty entertainer, whose favorite holiday is Halloween, you will love this book. Its chock full of amazing ideas.

Are you familiar with Matthew Mead? Have you checked out any of his books? What did you think?

View 5 Photos ›

Kiddie Soiree: My Baby's First Cake

babysugar — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 07:00:26 -0800

My lil girl turned one this past weekend. I have been to a few parties and witnessed all the hullabaloo that was supposedly for baby. The expectations and excitement were high, but my budget was low. I couldn't stomach spending a month's paycheck for a party my darling won't even remember.

At one party I attended, the little girl was presented with a fondant cake. I didn't even order a fondant cake for my wedding. Don't get me wrong - they are beautiful, but, what happened to the good old days of making your own or buying a sheet cake from the local grocer?

Sheet cakes are my favorite because you can get creative with them. I bought a white cake and had my daughter's picture printed on the white icing. I only had to give the baker a 4x6 photo and one day notice.

Like most one-year-olds, my daughter loves seeing her own reflection so it was literally the icing on the cake. She dove into it and giggled. That's what birthdays are about. Sorry expensive fondant cake, you lose.

I'm Asking: How Did You Save Money on Your Wedding?

SavvySugar — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 10:30:39 -0700

It's well-known that most everything in the wedding world is wickedly overpriced. Taking advantage of blissfully engaged couples just isn't cool, yet the cycle of ripoffs continues when there aren't obvious alternatives. Asking around is the best way to discover cost-saving measures, and I know that any helpful advice during the wedding planning process is worth its weight in gold.

TeamSugar member Spectra gave some great insight when she commented about her cake: "I also got a good deal on my cake by having a family friend who owns a bakery do it. You can save a lot of money on your cake if you get one with buttercream icing instead of fondant; plus the buttercream cakes usually taste a lot better anyway."

What money-saving tips do you have for brides in the planning process?

Source

Happy Birthday, North: Two Sweet Cakes For My Sweet Boy!

PetSugar — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:15:36 -0700

When cruising around looking for a perfect birthday pawty-cake recipe for my pup, I found a site that sells fondant for dogs! That's means if I wasn't super last minute, I could have ordered him either special treats with his adoro face on them, or just sent in a photo and special ordered their pet-friendly fondant (made of whole-wheat flour, peanut butter, milk, soy flour, baking soda, brown sugar, and milk) already set up to top 12 pupcakes! For his next fiesta with fellow furry friends, I'll bake up either the Peanut Butter Carrot Cake or the Ginger Banana Version . . . 'cause he's got a sweet tooth. Check out both recipes below when you read more.

Peanut Butter Carrot Party Cake
Pup Cakes -n- Cookies

North loooooves peanut butter so how could I resist a recipe with that main ingredient?!

Ingredients

1 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup shredded carrots
1 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup honey
1 egg

Directions
Mix flour and baking soda. Add remaining ingredients. Pour into greased 8" round cake pan or greased 12 cupcake pan (no liners!) and bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Let cool. Puree cottage cheese in blender for icing. Decorate with more peanut butter and carrots.

Print recipe with images | without images

Ginger Banana Party Cake
Pup Cakes -n- Cookies

Not too sweet for pets but with extra scent and flavor . . . and optional sprinkled nuts for fun!

Ingredients

2/3 cup mashed bananas
1/2 cup softened butter
3 large eggs
3/4 cup water
2 cups Unbleached Flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp ginger
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions
Beat together mashed banana and butter until creamy. Add eggs and water. Beat well. Stir in dry ingredients. Beat until smooth, Add nuts. Spoon batter evenly into oiled and floured bundt pan or greased 12 cupcake pan (no liners!). Bake at 350° for about 35 minutes. Cool on wire rack 5 minutes, remove from pan, replace on rack and cool.

Print recipe with images | without images

Source

Linktime!

FabSugarUK — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 06:00:45 -0800

Looking at the biggest style moments of 2008 - In Style UK.
Checking out headwear by Thelma - Fur Coat No Knickers.
Fashion Flashback: George Michael's 'Freedom! '90' video starring "The Trinity" of supermodels - Catwalk Queen.
Time to say Goodbye to Amelia - Style Bubble.
Post Christmas 2009 Sale watch - Sassy Bella.
Fondant fancy footwear - Disney Roller Girl.
American Apparel release most risque ads to date - Refinery 29.
Celebrity Style: Nicole Richie - Fab US.
Introducing Smurf Paint 'n' Play - Fashionista.

Sweet Tooth: Estee Lauder's New Autumn Collection

BellaSugarUK — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 03:00:00 -0700

Finally, a way to satisfy those chocolate cravings, without having to worry about the waistline!

Estee Lauder, is really spoiling us with their Chocolate Decadence range. Launched on the 1st August, it's a tempting, limited edition collection of decadent dark chocolate and caramel cream-inspired products, for the new season.

Designed to capture the essence of a luxurious chocolate boutique, the look features intensified lined and smoky eyes and softly glowing skin, with subtle lip colour, and glossy, polished nails.

The flattering colour palette ranges from the palest caramel, to full-on, mouthwatering dark chocolate and berry cordials –while the marbled swirls and fondant fancy-esque design look deliciously covetable.

I'm especially smitten with the lip glosses, which have a yummy chocolate raspberry flavour, making it hard not to lick your lips when you're wearing them. Apparently my kisses have never tasted so sweet...

Would You Spend $10,000 On Your Tot's Birthday Party?

babysugar — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:00:25 -0700

Call me old fashioned or what you will, but I rather enjoy the birthday parties with pin the tail on the donkey, sheet cakes, balloons, and cellophane wrapped party favors.

To see what some mothers are spending on their tot's celebrations, read more.

While birthday festivities should focus on the child being celebrated, the trend of outlandish bashes seems to do just the opposite.

Instead of highlighting the five–year–old, crazed mothers spend oodles of money to enter the "look at me" competition amongst the mommy clan.

Over the Top Productions is a company that encourages this behavior by planning extravagant fetes for lil ones. Some parties cost parents up to $10,000. I'd rather put that into a savings account for my wee one.

When I heard that Moses Martin had a fiesta at a Mexican restaurant in NYC, I was proud of Gwyneth and Chris for providing their son with some sort of normalcy in a not–so–normal life.

But then I heard that Suri Cruise had a $5,000 birthday cake for her second birthday (pictured above). Now really, can you honestly tell me that Suri prefers fondant to butter cream frosting? I think not. But amongst her pals, Katie Holmes might get "Mommy of the Year" for her billable efforts.

Would you ever spend a lavish amount on a birthday party for your child?

Pacific Coast News Online