So yesterday was a "kitchen" day. Meaning I spent the entire day in the kitchen, which is not normally my favorite thing to do, but yesterday was an exception. I had a blast. I made the raw materials so that Emily could make a doggy "cake" - a unique kind cake made of rice krispie treats, wrapped in fondant, decorated with modeling chocolate and cocoa powder and placed on a giant cookie.
A few things I learned during the day -
- First, fondant is pretty easy to make with a Kitchen-aide. It tastes really good, too. Not like the bucket stuff. It basically tastes like marshmallows. There's still some minor kneading and rolling out that goes on, but all in all not nearly the headache I was expecting.
- Secondly, home-made modeling chocolate will freak you out until you've worked it enough. It really looks like you've ruined it, but if you keep going it turns out fine. (I'm sure there's a lesson in that, if I think hard enough about it.) Once it's set, work it like playdough to get it soft enough to do what you want it do do. Again - a job that required patience, but not nearly as much as I was anticipating.
- Cake batter rice krispies - really good. 'Nuf said.
- Always make more than one box of cupcakes for children's choir. There are a whole lot more kids in there than you think. On that note, a big "THANKS" to Sandra for her cupcake rescue! And Grazie Mille to all you selfless people who work with the kids on Wednesday nights! You guys are the best.
- Purple frosting looks really cool.
- Kitchen-aide mixers make the lightest, fluffiest batters and frostings. Ninety percent of the cooking yesterday was sponsored by Teresa. I never would have been able to make all that without "the mixer".
So the day is over, the kids ate the face off the dog (I know, they're twisted. Or maybe they just couldn't stand to have him stare at them as they slowly devoured him from the rear, I don't know) and I had a chance to play with my daughter and my Kitchen-aide while learning patience and perseverance. Joel and the boys kept things running like a machine, doing whatever needed to be done to keep things going smoothly. I have such a great family. It was a really fun day.
Oh, and then a group of friends kidnapped me and took me out for a delicious treat that I didn't make. It was so good! I really have great friends. Thanks, girls.
