Chocolate Death Cake

I was so excited to post pictures of this awesome chocolate cake I made for Kyle as a celebration of his diphtheria-like illness subsiding, but for some reason, every time I post a picture lately, the link breaks and I just can't seem to figure out how to fix it.  Talk about frustrating!  So anyway, if you don't see pictures of a sinful-looking chocolate cake below, that's why.

Oh well.  At least these picture problems are lighting a fire under Ky's butt to get my website started. Yay!  Caracakes.com will soon be a happy reality with lots of pictures that you can actually see, recipes to try, and more cooking and baking adventures!

Anyway, I feel that it's my duty to at least describe the yummy cake to you.  It was a chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream icing and chocolate shavings on the sides.  The cake was moist and chocolately, but not overly sweet.  The cake was a lot less dense than the typical chocolate cake, which I think may have been attributed to my only using egg whites insead of the entire egg.  The chocolate icing was that perfect mixture of thick, sweet, rich, buttery goodness, with just a touch of airiness.  70% cocoa shavings really helped elevate the cake from being a simple chocolate cake to a really decadent dessert.  Kyle refers to it as Chocolate Death Cake because it's so good that he couldn't stop eating it, and well, now he feels like death.  Guess that's what happens when you eat half a cake!

Friday I'll be sharing my most favorite chocolate lava cake recipe that's super easy, super quick, and of course absolutely delicious!

Hope everyone's having a happy hump day!

Chicken Pot Pie

All anyone seems to talk about lately is going green. The thing that bothers me about this is that the people that talk about it the most, with maybe the exception of my buddy Dawn, are the ones out buying $9.00 cleaners instead of just buying a reusable bottle that they refill with baking soda and vinegar, or some other kind of natural cleaner. They're the ones that won't car pool, but brag that they have a Prius. Are they really living green?

How does this relate to previous posts, you ask? Well I've been trying to "eat green". Does this mean I've run to the store to buy every organic item sold? Do I seem like the kind of gal that wants to spend more than I already do on groceries? No sir.

I'm a big fan of cooking from scratch. I don't understand why our culture is in such a rush to eat, but I'm convinced a big part of that contributes to why so many people are so darn fat. You might be thinking to yourself, "but this girl makes cakes and other terrible-for-you goodies all the time, what room does she have to talk?", and in a way, you're right, but let me ask you this. When you eat a HoHo, or goodness knows whatever your processed poison is, can you honestly say that you know what's in it? At least when I make my cakes, candies, cookies, or whatever, I know what's going into it. I know what I'm feeding my family.

Let's take it one step further. You're craving chicken pot pie, so you go out and you buy store bought pie crust. Do you realize how many extra chemicals and ingredients are in there for what's supposed to be a five ingredient food?

I understand the fear of cooking that people have, and why it seems so much easier to just get something processed you can nuke in the microwave. Trust me. My husband knew how to do three things when we got married- how to boil water, how to cook a cheeseburger into submission and how to microwave. He was petrified of learning how to cook, let alone trying to make things from scratch, but after months of watching me do everything, he started to get more confident, and now he's a pretty great cook.

So how does this relate to being green? Buying local produce, meat and milk not only helps the local economy, but can be used really easily to make great meals.

Here is a delicious recipe for Chicken Pot Pie:

Ingredients:

2 large chicken breasts
4 carrots (chopped)
3 large potatoes (I like red or yukon gold with the skin on), quartered
2 cups chicken broth
1tsp onion powder
2tsp corn starch
peas (desired amount)
corn (desired amount)
salt and pepper (to taste)
2 sprigs rosemary (diced)
2 sprigs thyme
1/2 cup water

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cut chicken into cubes (If you want to make it super quick and easy, use butcher scissors)
3. Pour chicken broth into a medium pot. Bring to a boil.
4. Add rosemary and thyme (dried rosemary and thyme will also do, just cut the amount in half)
5. Add the cubed chicken to the broth. When the chicken begins to turn white, take the chicken pieces out and place in a 9" pie pan.)
6. Combine 1/2 cup of water to the 2tsp of corn starch. Whisk them together until they are a white pasty/thick liquid.
7. Whisk into the broth. The combination will thicken a bit. Set aside.
8. Boil water.
9. Add chopped carrots and potatoes to the water. Boil until fork tender.
10. Strain carrots and potatoes. Combine the carrots and potatoes with the chicken in the pie pan.
11. Add desired amount of corn and peas.
12. Add the thickened broth to the mixture in the pie pan. Salt and pepper to taste. Gently mix everything together in the pan. (You can do this in a bowl if you like, and then add it to the pan, but this saves time and dishes.)
13. Roll pie crust onto the top. Pinch the sides and stab a few slits into the pie crust.

Cook for 40 minutes, or until crust is browned.

This is my favorite pie crust recipe by the fabulous Alton Brown (I make it in batches and freeze it so it's always handy)
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/pie-crust-recipe/index.html


Happy, Healthy Eating!

Laela's first favorite food!

Last week was a doozy..my daughter woke up with a tooth..and then another tooth. We didn't realize that she was teething until the first one popped up. It kind of explained why her usually robust appetite had kind of waned.

Now my kiddo is back to being a hungry hungry girl, and let me tell you, when I made her some baby brown rice cereal with a teaspoon of applesauce, a half teaspoon of cinnamon, a quarter cup of mashed sweet potatoes, and a little water to make it creamier...she loved it! She got so worked up with every bite that she was reaching for the spoon for more, even when it was all gone! And trust me, I scraped that bowl clean!

The thing I love most about making mashed sweet potatoes for Laela, is that I get some! Mash some up for yourself, toss a little brown sugar, cinnamon and butter in and yum! When I'm craving something extra sweet, or am just missing my old Girlscouting days, I like to add some marshmallows and just torch them for a minute with my trusty mini torch (they come in most creme brulee kits).

I love this age. She's so curious, and everything is so new to her, that the excitement that comes with something that she's never done or had (flipping upside down, trying fish tacos off of Mommy's plate) is just priceless. There's something to be said for the fearlessness that comes with being a child- the ability to try new things without being grossed out at the prospect, or afraid because you know all of the scary possible results/consequences. Well, at least until she makes friends who will tell her things are gross, or stupid, or weird, and then she doesn't want to do it because they say it's not cool.

If you have a little one like I do, enjoy this time. Relish all those little moments that they'll never remember and you'll never forget...and don't be afraid to share your funky dish with your little one, because you never know, you might have a mini chef or foodie on your hands. : )

Happy Birthday Emma!

It's amazing how quickly babies grow! I remember when Emma, my best friend Xana's daughter, was born. She was gorgeous with her chunky little cheeks and her whispy blonde hair. This weekend was her second birthday. Now, instead of a chubby cheeked, waddly little munchkin, she's evolved into a smart, charming, spunky little girl...who's now obsesssed with Yo Gabba Gabba.

When Xana told me that Emma wanted a Yo Gabba Gabba cake, I had no idea what she was talking about, so of course, I googled. To really get the gist of just how creepy, catchy, and well, mind numbing that Yo Gabba Gabba is, you'll have to check it out for yourself. If you're too afraid, let's just call it baby crack.

Here are some pictures from Emma's first birthday (with the cakes that I made), long before she liked super scary kid shows:

It was so fun making her first birthday cake. The theme was pink pink pink (and cupcakes!). My kitchen was dyed purple and pink for a week. Thanks to Yo Gabba Gabba, it's now a smattering of red, black, pink, yellow and green.

If your child is into a creepy kid show like Barney or Yo Gabba Gabba, I salute you for being a fabulously tolerant parent..and I'll keep my fingers crossed that your brains don't fry (especially since I've only watched a few videos and have had "there's a party in my tummy" stuck in my head for two weeks now. Ugh.) I can only hope that whatever Laela gets obsessed with when we let her watch the tube isn't so damn catchy.

Have a happy, non-mind numbing Monday!

Baby Taco Time!

Ah motherhood. Being a Mommy is something I always wanted to be. I had the dream perfectly laid out..tall, handsome, smart husband (check), adorable pets (check check), beautiful babies (in my dreams there were always three for some reason, but I think I'm all for two)...Anyway, after nannying for three kids for nine years, I figured being a Mom would be cake.

But we don't know what we don't know, right? I didn't know that the major difference between being a Mom and being a nanny is that the nanny is the one giving the break. Mom's don't get a break. I loved the family I nannied for, I loved those children dearly- I still do, but it will never be anything in comparison to the love I have for my child. I can't turn off my feelings for my daughter, I can't shut off the worry, concern or care for my little girl.

So when I transitioned from Cara to wife to Mommy, I had to make some pretty major decisions. Was I going to go back to work? Was I going to nurse or bottle feed? And now that the little peanut is eating solids, to make baby food, or to not make baby food?

Laela is an exceptionally big baby. My husband is 6' 6", so it isn't any surprise that by 4 months, she'd almost quadrupled her weight. Since she's so big, we started her on solids. Now that she's almost 7 months (yikes!) she's ready for the good stuff!

We opted to make her food, and I'd like to say this. I spent less than $3 on making my baby's food for the first two months (with the exception of baby cereal, which was less than $3 for 2 boxes), and you know what? I know what's in her food, and I'm getting her used to my cooking. The best part? It only takes a few short minutes. Steam veggies, puree in blender or food processor for a few seconds, season, serve.

Now my little piggers is on to taco meat with cheese and hot sauce! Tell me I don't have a little food adventurer on the horizon?!


Here's an extra special recipe I whipped up for Laela that she loved:

Baby-Friendly Tacos

1lb ground chicken, turkey or beef
taco seasoning
shredded mexican cheese mix
1 can kidney beans
hot sauce (if your little one is down with the spicy!)

sautee ground meat on medium low heat. (cooking meat on anything higher than medium will often result in a tough, overcooked meat.) add taco seasoning with a 1/4 cup of water. (if using beef, drain the fat before adding the water and taco seasoning.) try to make the meat as small as possible.
drain the water from the kidney beans. heat in pan or microwave. toss in blender on the puree setting.
mix cheese, beans and meat together for a yummy treat!
this will make A LOT of tacos, so freeze the leftovers in ice cube trays or enjoy some yummy tacos with your little one (this mixture is GREAT on nachos or in taco shells for bigger kids and grown-ups!)

Post Holy Week Food Coma

This year's holy week was a doozy! We had an amazing Sader dinner at my best friend's mother's house, seafood fest on Good Friday, a fun family pre-Easter pizza party, a delicious Easter brunch prepared by yours truly, and a fantastic traditional ham dinner with friends. Needless to say, my family needs another sweet like they need a hole in the head, but I can't help but thinking of...



What is that delicious concotion, might you ask? Do you see some delicious chocolate peanut butter cups on there? Could it be? Why yes, yes it is, Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake! Chocolate cake, peanut butter buttercream, chocolate fudge buttercream, and peanut butter cups galore! I don't think there are many things better in this world than the chocolate and peanut butter combo.

This is my go to cake for Father's Day. It's one of my favorites to make because it reminds me of when I first became a baker, and had to make hundreds of the same boring chocolate cake with peanut butter as the filling with some Reeses slapped on. I hate making cakes like a factory worker, and I hate the idea of beautiful peanut butter being treated so poorly with it's dear friend, and partner, chocolate. I invented a delicious peanut butter buttercream so that the peanut butter isn't overwhelming. The peanut butter buttercream dots give that extra punch of flavor to enhance the chocolate fudge icing and chocolate cake, and as my Daddy says, it's "just wrong it's so good".

I can't wait until Laela is old enough to help me make her Daddy and Grandpa's Father's Day cakes with me! In the meantime, I'll keep trying to think of fun new ways to knock their socks off!

Easter Cupcakes

I don't know what you were like as a kid, but I loved Easter almost as much as I loved Halloween. I knew that my family would stock me up with enough goodies to keep me in sugar shock for at least two months. My favorite part about the entire holiday? Not family dinner, or the Easter egg hunt, but these amazing cupcakes my Grandma would bring me from the fancy schmancy bakery down the street from her house. (Only I would love real French buttercream in elementary school haha.) They were that gooey, fabulous, melt in your mouth kind of cupcake that's so fluffy and perfect that it doesn't even get a chance to stick to your fingers.

So in honor of my favorite Easter treat, I'm making a boatload of my favorite cupcakes- done Caracakes style- Easter bunnies jumping into the bunny holes, grass with jumping beans, and of course, Easter Eggs. It took me years to get even close to that fabulous bakery of my youth's recipe, but I've finally done it..and I can't wait to share with my friends and family this weekend.

Have a great holiday everyone!