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Archive for October 2011

Didn’t win? Try again!

By Pam · Comments (40)
Monday, October 31st, 2011

10/31/11

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

As I promised, here’s one last chance to win a set of silicone bowls that I wrote about before! This time you have until noon PST, Wednesday, November 2, 2011. Here are the rules:

You still have two chances to win!

1) Go to my Facebook,  “Like” my page and answer the question-Do you prefer cake balls or cake pops?.

2) Post a comment below  answering the question-Do you prefer cake balls or cake pops? (I screen my posts to prevent haters from hating, so don’t freak out if your post doesn’t show up automatically).

Contest open to U.S. residents only. Limit one entry per entry mode (One on Facebook, one on blog). Winners will be chosen at random Wednesday, November 2, 2011 at 12:00, noon PST. Bowls to be given away are the  Michael Graves, 1-cup prep bowls. Color may vary from those pictured.

Good luck my friends!!!!

Comments (40)
Categories : Blog, Giveaway

Melting Chocolate

By Pam · Comments (3)
Friday, October 28th, 2011

10/28/11

If you saw my last post, you know I love using silicone bowls for melting chocolate for cake pops. They are super quick, the chocolate melts evenly and it’s just magic. However, I recognize not everyone melts their chocolate the same way, so here’s a quick tutorial on my method.

For this I used about 3 oz. of red Guittard A’Peels. Similar to Merckens, but the Guittard red is like the prettier and sweeter sister of Merckens red. And don’t judge by these pictures..they were taken in poor lighting with an iPhone…

Here they are in the bowl:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Microwave at half power for about 40-50 seconds and stir with a non-metal stirring device -I use popsicle sticks, silicone spatulas, chopsticks from last night’s take-out…whatever you like. Stir until you can’t feel any heat coming off the bowl. It’ll look like this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pretty, no?

After that, microwave again at half power for 20-30 SECONDS ONLY! This is where people get in trouble. They get impatient and overheat and being impatient only results in mass chaos and tears in the kitchen. Again, stir until no heat comes off. At this point, my melts had completely melted:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As my friend from Cake Ballers would say, BAM!

If you find the chocolate is still too thick even after all the chocolate has melted, use Paramount crystals (1/2 t. at a time) or shortening (1/4 t. at a time). I’ve personally never used shortening, but I know others have with success. Someone told me they tried vegetable oil with unfavorable results…

So there you have it. Melting chocolate Pam’s way. Hope it helps!

Comments (3)
Categories : Blog

Giveaway!

By Pam · Comments (84)
Monday, October 24th, 2011

10/24/11

A few weeks ago my good friend, Kris from ‘kCreative, and I were talking about what bowls we liked for melting chocolate. I had been using my vintage ceramic bowls for small amounts (and my Wilton’s Melting Pot for large amounts, which I still use). They were comfortable and I knew how to work with them. She was using these silicone, 1 cup prep bowls and swore her eternal love for them. To me I didn’t need anything new, and when I get set in my ways, I am SET. Because I’m stubborn. Like bull.

At first I thought it was silly to spend $13.00 for three small bowls, but then I finally decided to give it a shot. I trust Kris, and most of the time, this girl knows what she’s talking about. Let me tell you, they changed my life. The chocolate melted QUICKLY and evenly, and since the silicone didn’t hold a lot of heat, there was very little chance of the chocolate overheating. Plus they’re flexible and it’s easy to pop any left over chocolate out. And they come with lids! Who doesn’t like lids?!?! I went nuts and bought a pallet of these bowls. Ok, maybe not a pallet, but a lot. More than I probably need…

 

 

So, I’m going to give one lucky person a set (maybe two) of these bad boys. Each set contains three, 1 cup bowls with lids which are perfect for melting small amounts of chocolate for decorating and detailing. Color may vary from the ones shown.

There are two ways to enter:

1) Go to my Facebook,  “Like” my page and post a comment.

2) Post a comment below (I screen my posts to prevent haters from hating, so don’t freak out if your post doesn’t show up automatically).

Contest open to U.S. residents only. Limit one entry per entry mode (One on Facebook, one on blog). Winners will be chosen at random Friday, October 28 at 12:00, noon PST. If I get at least 50 comments on  my Facebook AND at least 50 comments on my blog, then one winner will be chose for EACH (Facebook AND blog entries.) So, you have a chance to win two sets! And if you have crazy obsessive tendencies like me, two will be better than one.

Good luck my friends!!!!

Comments (84)
Categories : Blog, Giveaway

Candied/Crystallized Ginger Recipe

By Pam · Comments (0)
Sunday, October 16th, 2011

I had posted on Facebook that adding crystallized or candied ginger to your standard gingerbread recipe was pretty much heaven on earth and I got quote a few emails on where to get candied ginger. I actually made mine and the process was super simple and WAY cheaper than buying it pre-made. In my opinion it tastes better too. The recipe I use is actually from one of my idols, Alton Brown, and it’s really easy. Try it out, I’m sure you’ll find that you’ll be adding this to all of your holiday recipes!!!

(Original recipe found here.)

Ingredients

  • Nonstick spray
  • 1 pound fresh ginger root
  • 5 cups water
  • Approximately 1 pound sugar

Directions

Spray a cooling rack with nonstick spray and set it in a half sheet pan lined with parchment.

Peel the ginger root and slice into 1/8-inch thick slices using a mandoline (I just sliced mine with my trusty kitchen knife). Place into a 4-quart saucepan with the water and set over medium-high heat. Cover and cook for 35 minutes or until the ginger is tender.

Drain the ginger, reserving 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. (I actually saved the liquid to add to the left over sugar and made a ginger simple syrup. uh, YUM). Weigh the ginger and measure out an equal amount of sugar. Return the ginger and 1/4 cup water to the pan and add the sugar. Set over medium-high heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, until the syrup looks dry, has almost evaporated and begins to recrystallize, approximately 20 minutes. (Longer if you used more liquid). Transfer the ginger immediately to the cooling rack and spread to separate the individual pieces. Once completely cool, store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks (Or a month in the freezer).

At this point I used the sugar that dripped on the parchment paper, threw it bakc in the pan poured in the water the ginger boiled in and heated it up. Ta-Dah! Ginger simple syrup.

Hopefully you find this useful! I sure did!

Comments (0)
Categories : Blog
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