<![CDATA[Blog]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/ Sat, 25 May 2013 01:47:31 +0000 Zend_Feed http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss <![CDATA[The Sweet, The Sassy and The Blur]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/the-sweet-sassy-and-blur/ Sweet Wise was located just across the street from the mega hotel.
It sorta seems like I had it all planned out, doesn't it? I will never tell but I will say I had a list made out of all the cake toys I wanted. They had everything on my list except two items. YAY!
The sweet manager of Sweet Wise allowed me to take some photos of the store to share with you and my YUMMY-O Cake Company "CAKIES."
Thank you Sweet Wise!
The photos turned out great and I am super excited to share them with you.
The yellow sign is the entrance to the classroom and video studio. The blue sign is the entrance to the store.


When I first walked in the door I immediately notice a few cakes sitting around.... fitting for a cake supply store, don't you think?


Then I turned around and there were massive amounts of Fondx fondant. Plain white vanilla fondant.


Fondx Elite fondant and...



pre-colored fondant. Lots and lots of fondant.



Look at all the pretty buttercream colors....


and we can't forget the CHOCOLATE!


A beautiful array of candy pearls,


sanding sugars, non-pareils, jimmies, sprinkles, different colors, shapes and sizes. This section got my heart pumping! I made a purchase.



Thank you for visiting Sweet Wise with me. By the way, have you had a "sweet treat" today? You should. Always. Donna xoxo
]]> Thu, 16 May 2013 13:19:12 +0000 <![CDATA[Caroline's Cake]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/caroline-cake/

 


My friend Caroline got married the last Saturday of June. It was beautiful week – they rented a cabin at a lake in Kentucky, and there was plenty of room for everyone to sleep, play, eat, etc. It couldn’t have gone better. I did the cake. I baked it at home before I went up there, torted (sliced in half each layer so it looked like 4 layers instead of 2) each layer, and wrapped it tightly and froze it to travel. This is a good method for traveling if you need to do the same and want things fresh. I don’t have a problem freezing a cake for a short time; I don’t think it affects the flavor or the texture in any way. I froze it less than a week, but if it were longer than a month, or the freezer had other “stinky” things in it, then yes, I’d be concerned.
Everyone always asks me for a recipe that stays moist. I use the Vanilla Cake Recipe on the Sweet Wise website on the bulletin board. For Caroline’s cake, I also added some Lorann Almond Oil (just a few drops – it’s strong!), and Crème Bouquet. SERIOUS MAGIC, I’m telling you. This is the best that recipe has ever turned out! 

I decided to fill this fantastic Almond Cake with fresh whipped cream and strawberries. What? Don’t call me crazy! I’ve got the tricks that will make this work, and I’ll share! First, let’s get everything ready. Another trick for making this already fabulous cake extra moist is to drizzle it with simple syrup. It’s an old Pastry Chef’s trick, and it works! There are different recipes, but the basics call for equal parts of granulated sugar and water,bring to a boil on the stove, then let chill. You can then either use as is, add a flavored liquor, add a few drops of flavor (I enhanced Caroline’s flavor with a few drops of Lorann Almond Oil), or even orange juice. Put it in a squeeze bottle, then after torting the cake, drizzle the cake with it. Not soaking, like French toast, but a little moist all over. Then I got my whipped cream ready. Yes, real whipped cream. No dairy whip, no mix, just a quart of heavy cream, then I whipped it.
Once it was stiff, I added a little confectioners sugar to sweeten it, just a couple of Tablespoons.
Here’s the trick to stabilizing it: ADD 3 Tablespoons of CLEAR PIPING GEL. Yes, I’m serious.
That will do the trick.

I made plenty of cake because I knew we’d be there several days and the leftovers would be fabulous, and Caroline said that a week later when she threw the rest out, it was still perfectly firm (refrigerated, of course)!!! I got my strawberries ready: Diced small, like peas and carrots size, or barely larger than that. I didn’t want them wet, so I cut them into a bowl with a paper towel at the bottom to absorb the liquid.

Time to assemble: Magical Almond Cake layer (torted), drizzle with Almond Simple Syrup, make a dam with butter cream icing around the edge of the cake layer so the filling doesn’t squish out. Spread stabilized whipped cream in the middle, then sprinkle with plenty of strawberries so each guest gets plenty of sweet, yummy bites of fruit. Continue to use all four cake layers; you should have 3 layers of filling. Crumb coat the whole thing with icing, then cover with Fondant (Okay, that was special, too). I used a blend of Raspberry White Chocolate Fondant and my favorite, Fondx, with just a drop of Ivory color to give a creamy white, yummy taste. (You can use Elite Bridal Ivory instead, and save yourself the hassle). TASTE: PERFECT. Design? She said she didn’t care, just plain. WHAT??!!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!!! YOU WON”T LET ME PLAY??!!! She only requested some Orange poppies to represent the national color of Holland for her husband to be, Robert. I ordered those in because they looked so good, but they were RED, so I painted them with Spiced Pumpkin luster dust, which worked great. Still plain, though. I used a lace silicon border to press out a nice border, dusted the whole cake with Super Pearl, and called it a day. She loved it, I was proud. I missed her walking in to see it as I was tending to something else, but she was kind enough to reenact it for me, which is another whole story in itself…….

 

 

Congratulations, Robert and Caroline! I wish you all the happiness in the world!!!]]> Thu, 16 May 2013 11:46:36 +0000 <![CDATA[Vanilla Cake]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/vanilla_cake_recipie/ 2 cups Cake Flour
2 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
3/4 tsp. Salt
1 Tbsp Pure Vanilla Extract
1 cup unsalted Butter, at room temperature
3 cups Granulated White Sugar
3 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
7 Egg Whites, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups Whole Milk, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two 9" pans with grease and flour or spray with Pan Release.

1. Sift together flour, cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

2. With a paddle attachment on your stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together on medium speed until smooth and slightly fluffy. Add oil, combine.

3. Add Vanilla.

4. Set the mixer on low and add the egg whites, one at a time, scraping between additions.

5. Add flour mixture and milk alternately, starting and ending with flour mixture. Scrape thoroughly and mix again to ensure batter is thoroughly combined. DO NOT OVER MIX!

6. Fill pans approximately 2/3 full. Bake 45-55 minutes just until toothpick in center comes out clean.

7. Allow to cool 5 minutes on your counter top. Cakes should have risen above the edge of the pans. Using a serrated knife and the top of the cake pan, gently take the top of the cake off. Your cakes will now be perfectly level and the exact same height. Place a piece of aluminum foil over the top of the cake, and then an upside down cookie sheet on top of the foil. Flip the cake pan and cookie sheet over, all together, and then remove the cake pan. You will now have your cake sitting perfectly flat on top of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet. Tuck some plastic wrap around the cake loosely to trap in the moisture, but not so tight that the cake becomes wet from the steam. Place directly into refrigerator to cool.

NOTE: You will notice that all ingredients that are normally stored under refrigeration, I ask to be at room temperature. This will allow the cake batter to start out closer to itʼs baking temperature, which will allow for a more even rise, and help avoid a domed center of the cake.

Recipe Yields approximately 9 1/2 cups batter.
]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 14:07:10 +0000 <![CDATA[Rich Chocolate Cake]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/rich_chocolate_cake_recipie/ 1 cup Cocoa Powder
6 Tbsp. DARK Cocoa Powder
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Salt
1 cup (8 oz) Sour Cream, at room temperature
1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
1 tsp Pure Almond Extract
1 cup Butter, at room temperature
3 Tbsp Vegetable Oil
2 cups Granulated White Sugar
2 Whole Eggs, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups Strong Brewed Coffee, cooled


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two 9" pans with grease and flour or spray with Pan Release.

1. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

2. In a separate bowl, combine sour cream, vanilla, and almond.

3. Using a paddle attachment on your stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together on medium speed until smooth and slightly fluffy. Add oil, combine.

4. Place mixer speed on low and add eggs, one at a time, scraping between additions. Mix thoroughly.

5. Add flour mixture and sour cream mixture alternately, starting and ending with flour mixture. Scrape thoroughly and mix again to ensure batter is thoroughly combined. DO NOT OVER MIX!

6. Place mixer on low, and stream the coffee into the batter. Scrape sides and mix again to ensure batter is thoroughly mixed. Again, do not over mix.

7. Fill pans approximately 2/3 full. Bake 45-55 minutes just until toothpick in center comes out clean.

8. Allow to cool 5 minutes on your counter top. Cakes should have risen above the edge of the pans. Using a serrated knife and the top of the cake pan, gently take the top of the cake off. Your cakes will now be perfectly level and the exact same height. Place a piece of aluminum foil over the top of the cake, and then an upside down cookie sheet on top of the foil. Flip the cake pan and cookie sheet over, all together, and then remove the cake pan. You will now have your cake sitting perfectly flat on top of aluminum foil on a cookie sheet. Tuck some plastic wrap around the cake loosely to trap in the moisture, but not so tight that the cake becomes wet from the steam. Place directly into refrigerator to cool.

NOTE: You will notice that all ingredients that are normally stored under refrigeration, I ask to be at room temperature. This will allow the cake batter to start out closer to itʼs baking temperature, which will allow for a more even rise, and help avoid a domed center of the cake.
Makes approximately 9 cups batter. ]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 14:05:38 +0000 <![CDATA[Swiss Meringue Buttercream]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/swiss_meringue_buttercream_recipie/ 2 1/2 Cups Granulated White Sugar
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 pounds salted butter
2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract


Cut butter into smaller pieces, allow to come to room temperature. Place medium saucepan on stove with 2 cups water, allow to come to a low boil. Do NOT combine sugar and egg whites until the water is boiling. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine egg whites and sugar and whisk together. Place bowl over water and continue whisking frequently. Bring temperature of egg white mixture to 150 degrees, until all of the sugar granules have dissolved. The mixture should now resemble marshmallow fluff.

Remove the bowl from the heat and place into stand mixer. With whisk attachment in place, whisk the mixture on high speed, and allow to continue mixing until the temperature drops down to about 90 degrees or lower.

Add the butter cubes one at a time, stopping to scrape sides of bowl occasionally. Add vanilla and combine.

Place into a food safe container and cover the surface with plastic wrap. You may use this immediately, or freeze. If you freeze it, when you are ready to use, allow to come to room temperature overnight, and then re-whip before use.

Makes approximately 8 cups.
]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:59:19 +0000 <![CDATA[Simple Syrup Variations]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/simple_syrup_variation_recepie/ 1 Cup White Granulated Sugar 1 Cup water Combine Ingredients in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Allow to cool completely. Makes 1 1/3 cups. Flavor Options: Citrus Syrup: Add 1 Tbsp fresh zest of lemon, lime, or orange, and allow to come to a boil together. Allow rind to remain in syrup and steep until cool. Strain and use as needed. Vanilla Syrup: Split a vanilla bean, scrape seeds into sugar mixture, also add bean rind. Allow to come to a boil, and remain in syrup as it cools. Strain and use as needed. Liquor Flavored Syrup: Decrease water amount added to 3/4 cup. Bring to a boil and allow to cool as usual. After cooling, add 1/4 cup of any liquor you would like to flavor with (Grand Marnier, Licorice, Raspberry, Coffee, etc.). Use as needed. Coffee Syrup: Replace water with 1 cup brewed coffee. Bring to boil and cool as usual. Use as needed. Pick a flavor Syrup: Once your syrup has cooled, you may add any flavor of LorAnn flavorings that Sweet Wise offers to your syrup to enhance the flavor of your syrup. Champagne, Cotton Candy, Guava, etc. The choices are endless! Flavor to taste; remember these flavors are very strong!



 

Simple Syrup Variation

]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:38:59 +0000 <![CDATA[Cookies]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/cookies_recepie/ 1 -1/4 cup Butter, softened
2 cups Granulated Sugar
2 eggs
1 -1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
4 drops Almond Oil (find this at Sweet Wise in Nashville)
5 cups All Purpose Flour
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Milk
Additional flour for rolling surface
Preheat oven to 375 F. Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl until fluffy. Add eggs and flavorings and mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside. Add the dry ingredients a little at a time, alternating with the milk until all have been incorporated. The dough will be stiff at the end of the mixing process; it might be necessary to add remaining flour by kneading. Flour your rolling surface, and roll to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut into desired shapes, and place on ungreased baking sheet or Silpat. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until just starting to brown on the edges. After cooling, decorate as desired.

Option 1. You can use your Christmas (or whatever cutter fits your theme) cookie cutter assortment to cut, bake, and decorate as you desire. I like to use Royal Icing (we have a great mix that you just add water to). If you use the entire recipe for cut out cookies, you will get approximately 45 three inch round cookies.

Option 2. Stained Glass. You will need a silpat (or any stick silicon baking mat) for these stained glass cookies. Cut shapes, then cut more shapes OUT of that shape. For instance, cut a square, and place it on the baking mat. THEN cut 4 squares out of that, as if cutting the panes out of a window (cutting after it's moved helps it keep from distorting its shape). Fill each pane with crushed hard candy (like jolly ranchers or life savers). Bake as normal, and the candy will melt into the cavity. LET COOL COMPLETELY BEFORE MOVING! After cool, you can life them off and enjoy! Think of these shapes of stained glass cookies: A large teddy bear with a heart in the middle, a star with another star cut out (or hearts on Valentine's Day), a Christmas ornament with mini shapes cut out, the possibilities are endless! You can even hang them from the tree if you'll make a little hole before you bake them for a ribbon to go through.

Option 3: To make colored candy cane cookies (or any mixed color cookie), color equal parts dough (like ½ cup each) red and green. Take a piece of each about the size of a large gum ball. Roll out into a snake about 5 inches long. Lay them beside each other, and then twist. Lay on cookie sheet and bake as above.

Option 4: Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies
1 cup Roll Out Cookie Dough (just take 1 cup of finished dough)
1/4 cup Raspberry Jam or Raspberry Filling (or green apple jelly)
1/4 cup sliced almonds, slightly crushed water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Portion dough into 24 balls. Dip in water, then roll in almonds. Place on ungreased cookie sheet or Silpat a few inches apart, then press into the center of each cookie with your thumb to make a cavity. Fill cavity with raspberry filling. Bake about 10 minutes until almonds start to brown slightly.
Option 5:
Powdered Wedding Cookies
1 cup Roll Out Cookie Dough
1/8 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 cup finely chopped Pecans
Powdered Sugar
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix Cinnamon and Pecans into dough. Chill for 20 minutes to help cookies keep their shape. With a small cookie scoop, scoop cookies onto ungreased cookie sheet or Silpat. Bake 10-12 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes, then roll cookies generously in powdered sugar.
]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:31:15 +0000 <![CDATA[Coconut Truffles ]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/coconut_truffles_recipie/ 16 oz Bag Dry Fondant (Item 1915)
2 Tbsp Milk or Whipping Cream
6 Tbsp Butter or Margarine
4 oz Desiccated Coconut (Item 5249)
1 tsp Coconut Flavor (Item 1376), optional for coconut lovers!
1 pound Milk or Dark Chocolate Merckens Wafers


Warm milk or cream and butter or margarine on stove or in the microwave, just short of boiling. Remove from heat, if you would like to enhance the coconut flavor (adding too much coconut will make the dough dry and tough, so you should instead use the flavor here), now is the time to add 1 tsp coconut flavor. Stir in dry fondant, pour out onto parchment paper. Once cool enough (just a minute or two), knead the dough until smooth. Add in desiccated coconut and knead in until fully incorporated. Roll into 1 inch balls, place onto parchment covered cookie sheet, and chill slightly. Melt chocolate just until smooth, dip centers, place back onto parchment. Let chocolate sit for 30 seconds and then sprinkle with little more desiccated coconut for garnish, if desired.

Tip: If your centers are too cold, the chocolate will crack as it cools off. Have the centers slightly chilled, but not cold.

Once the chocolate is fully set, you can place the coconut truffle inside a treat box resting in a nest of tissue paper for nice appearance, or place each truffle into a colored candy cup for alternative service style.

Makes approximate 3 dozen truffles
]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:24:56 +0000 <![CDATA[How Much Cake Batter Do I need in my Pan? ]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/how_much_cake_batter_in_pan/
2" Round Pan: .33 cup
3" Round Pan: .66 cup
4" Round Pan: .75 cup
5" Round Pan: 1.5 cup
6" Round Pan: 2 cups
7" Round Pan: 2.75 cups
8" Round Pan: 3.5 cups
9" Round Pan: 4.75 cups
10" Round Pan: 5.5 cups
12" Round Pan: 7 cups
14" Round Pan: 10 cups


4.5" Square Pan: 1.5 cups
6" Square Pan: 2.75 cups
8" Square Pan: 5 cups
10" Square Pan: 8 cups
12" Square Pan: 9.5 cups
14" Square Pan: 12 cups
]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:16:58 +0000 <![CDATA[Kathy’s Ultimate Chocolate Cake Recipe]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/kathy_chocolate_cake_recipe/
Sift dry ingredients together in bowl of a stand mixer. Add milk, eggs, oil, and vanilla, mix on low speed until combined.
Scrape down sides, mix on medium speed for one minute. Place mixer on lowest speed and slowly drizzle in boiling water a little at a time.
Stop and scrape down sides a couple of times before all water is added.
This batter will be VERY thin. Don’t let that throw you off!
Pour batter into desired sized pans and bake at 350 degrees F until a toothpick comes out clean from the center (times will vary according to the size pan you use).

Makes 10 1/2 cups batter. Please check our chart on “How Much Batter Should I Use” for your desired pan size.
]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 13:05:18 +0000 <![CDATA[Carrie Bigger’s Gumpaste Recipe]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/carrie_bigger_gumpaste_recipe/ We find this recipe perfect for a number of uses, particularly the Cricut and the formerly “elusive” JEM cutters!

2 pkg unflavored gelatin (2 Tbsp) ½ cup cold water 2 Tbsp melted shortening 1/3 cup white corn syrup 2 Lbs powdered sugar 3 Tbsp tylose powder

In a small saucepan, add the water and sprinkle the gelatin on top to soften for about 5 minutes.
Begin to heat the gelatin gently.
Stir until gelatin is a dissolved clear liquid. DO NOT ALLOW TO BOIL!! Turn off heat.
Add melted shortening and white corn syrup, stir to combine thoroughly.
Place powdered sugar (reserving about 2 cups) in a large glass or plastic bowl. Make a well in the center.
Pour the gelatin/corn syrup liquid into the well of sugar, and mix until nearly all of the sugar is stirred in.
Pour onto counter-top which has been lightly greased with shortening and dusted with the additional powdered sugar.
Sprinkle the tylose powder into the mixture.
With lightly greased hands, knead, incorporating all of the powdered sugar and tylose, until it forms a smooth rubbery ball. Add additional sugar as needed.
(You can use a heavy-duty stand mixer with bread dough hooks for this process). (It should not be really sticky or too soft. With experience you will learn how “stiff” is stiff enough.
Knead in as much sugar as it will take. Beginners usually make it too soft).
Wrap tightly in plastic wrap, twice. Store in gallon plastic zippered bag.
Allow to rest overnight. Can be stored at room temperature for weeks.
Refrigerate or freeze for extended storage time.

When ready to use, start with a baseball-sized piece and warm briefly in microwave no more than 10 seconds at a time to soften and make easier to knead.
]]> Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:55:33 +0000 <![CDATA[What I'm Making for My Valentine...........]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/valentine/
I wanted to share some of my Christmas recipes with you, and it's a little easier to go into the detail on the blog rather than the email, so thanks for sticking around!

The idea behind this assortment of recipes comes from a special place: I love to give something to the people who I have grown close to – from teachers, to Greg, the same nice man that brings our packages everyday, to Mary, the lady that does my hair. I want to give something to the neighbors and so many more. It adds up when you have a big family on top of that, but still, you want to give because it makes you feel so good, and it can't be something meaningless or random. There is no better gift than a homemade box of Christmas treats. It speaks so much more loudly than a store bought tin of cookies. Don't get me wrong; that is thoughtful and much appreciated, but if you have the time and the motivation, then I share my time tested recipes with you and invite you to go in this direction this year.

Through an email last week I shared the recipe for my favorite cheesecake, from our good friend and former White House Pastry Chef Roland Mesnier. If you missed that recipe, I am posting this recipe in its entirety here. The premise of the whole dessert is to layer a beautiful cheesecake (made separately, without crust), with the perfect Red Velvet Cake (except I made it HOT PINK!) and glue the entire phenomenon together with a cream cheese buttercream. It isn't just ANY cream cheese buttercream. This one doesn't get sloppy and gooey. It's my own secret trick to having the best of both worlds - the creamy, smooth but sharp taste of cream cheese, with the stability and firmness of a quality decorator's buttercream.

This recipe is truly made with love. Though a little lengthy, it's well worth it, even if you're really just making it for yourself or for the challenge. The recipe comes in 3 parts. Cheesecake (no crust for easier cutting). We freeze the cheesecakes, because they are super easy to get out of the pans that way. Part 2, Red (or Pink) Velvet cakes. Unmold from pans, cool. You can take a break from the whole thing and freeze these if you would like to also. The day before you are ready to assemble (that will be the 12th or 13th), take them from the freezer and put them into the fridge. Part 3 is the cream cheese buttercream, and finally, putting it all together.

The reason this is lengthy is because I am sharing baking tips with you. If I don't make my point clear anywhere else, I'll say it here again (even if you use boxed mixes): HAVE ALL OF YOUR INGREDIENTS ROOM TEMP OR WARMER!!!!!!


PART 1: Cheesecake Recipe
Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare pans (use CAKE PANS, not springform pans. This is a very liquid batter, taken from Dessert University by Roland Mesnier. One of the best I've ever had!) by cutting a round parchment the size of the bottom of your pan (I am using 6" pans because it's just for two, knowing I'll have extra batter to make more cheesecakes later!). Run a little shortening around the sides to help it stay in place and to help the sides release later. Four 8oz Blocks Cream Cheese 1 ¼ Cups Sugar 1 tsp grated lemon zest 1/2 tsp grated orange zest 5 large eggs 2 large egg yolks ½ Tbsp Pure Vanilla 1 cup Heavy Cream Make sure all of your ingredients are at room temp before mixing!! Place cream cheese, sugar, lemon and orange zest into mixing bowl with paddle attachment. Mix until thoroughly combined and free of lumps. Add the eggs and then yolks, one at a time, scraping down sides of bowl each time. Add vanilla, then heavy cream a little at a time, again scraping sides of bowl. Batter should be very smooth. Place pans on baking sheet with sides and fill with batter to a little over half full. Place onto oven rack, then pour hot water into the baking pan (careful not to splash in to the cheesecake batter!!!) so as to surround the cheesecakes with a bath that helps with even baking and moistness. For a 10" pan, bake an hour. I am baking 6" pans, so I will set the timer for 40 minutes and then check it. Try not to open the oven (that, plus cold ingredients, or too hot of an oven is what causes those cracks in the middle!) The cake should still be a little "jiggly" in the center. Cool cake completely, then you can freeze it in the pan! Alternatively, if you need the pans, you can freeze the cake solid, then turn out of the pans, and then wrap them to go back in the freezer. You can leave the parchment circles on for now; I'll remind you to take them off when we assemble.

PART 2: Red Velvet Cake
This is the Red Velvet part of this recipe. I tried several others, and quite frankly, wasn't swept away by any. I worked this one up, and I kind of LOVE IT. Here you have: Little Mama Gentry's Hot Pink Velvet Cake Please take creative license with this recipe! As I have suggested here, colors besides red can absolutely be used! For St. Patrick's Day, someone had BETTER bring me a GREEN Velvet cupcake with an Irish Cream Filling. On Elvis' birthday or when the Titans play, let's see BLUE Velvet! Just remember that the cocoa will darken the shade a little bit. Here, the electric pink became a beautiful vibrant fuchsia, which I really loved. 2 cups sugar 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature 2 eggs (I warm eggs, in shell, in hot tap water before using in recipe) 3 tablespoons cocoa powder 1 teaspoon-ish Americolor Electric Pink food coloring (you KNOW I don't measure!) 1 Tbsp Vegetable Oil 2 cups cake flour ½ cup All Purpose Flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 cup buttermilk (warm in microwave for 45 seconds before using in recipe) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 tablespoon vinegar

Kathy's Tip: WHENEVER YOU BAKE, please have all ingredients at room temp or warmer (did I say that already?)! Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour pans (I used three 6" round pans). Combine sugar and butter, mix on medium high in bowl of stand mixer until fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. In the meantime, in a separate bowl, sift flours and salt together. Add eggs to sugar mixture, one at a time, mixing in between additions. Scrape down sides of bowl and mix again for about 10-15 seconds. In a glass measuring cup, mix cocoa powder, food coloring, and oil. Add into sugar mixture and mix. Add flour mixture alternatively with warm buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Stir in vanilla. Scrape down sides again and mix another 10-15 seconds. In a separate bowl, mix together baking soda and vinegar and quickly stir into cake mixture.
[img]{e_MEDIA_IMAGE}2012-02/pink_velvet_batter.jpg[/img] Immediately pour into cake pans and place in oven. Cakes will take approximately 25 minutes, but as every oven bakes differently, I always suggest the "check the middle with a toothpick" method. Remember also that you can always bake it longer, but you can't bake it less. That means if you think your oven bakes hotter or faster, set your timer for less and check it. Cool, turn out, but lay on the flat bottom to cool so there's no cracks or breaks. You can level the cake top before we put it together. Icing and assembly comes next!!!!!

Part 3: Cream Cheese Icing
4 oz Cream Cheese, softened 1/2 cup Hi Ratio shortening (you can substitute regular shortening, but make sure it does NOT have Trans Fats removed. The more durable shortening helps the stability of the icing, especially in humid conditions) 1 tsp lemon juice 2 pounds powdered sugar 3/4 tsp salt 1/4 cup milk 1 tsp vanilla 1/2 tsp Lorann Cheesecake Flavoring Place cream cheese and shortening in bowl of stand mixer. Add lemon juice, 1 cup powdered sugar, and salt. Mix with paddle attachment until combined. Scrape bowl and mix again. Add remaining sugar and milk, alternating between additions. Scrape bowl again and mix thoroughly. Add Vanilla and Cheesecake flavoring. Mix on medium high speed for 2 to 3 minutes. Makes 4 1/2 cups.

FINALLY-THE ASSEMBLY!!!
Torte all of your layers, including the cheesecakes. If you are not a "torter", you should be! It basically means to split your layers so you can have more layers of filling between cake. It really adds to the taste and appearance of the cake! If you would like to see the general method, please watch our youtube video on torting and filling cakes. 1. Since we baked in 6" pans, we'll get two cakes. AFTER YOU TORTE, you should have six 1" high layers of Red Velvet Cake, and at least four 1" layers of cheesecake.That's all we'll need. 2. Place a dab of icing on your cake board or plate, then adhere one layer of cake. Fill with a thin layer of cream cheese icing. Top with a layer of cheesecake (don't forget to take that parchment paper off!). Fill with a thin layer of cream cheese icing. Continue layering, alternating cake a cheesecake. At the very end, you should see three layers of cake and two layers of cheesecake. 3. Crumbcoat the cake with a thin layer of cream cheese icing, then place in refrigerator for at least an hour to firm up. 4. At this point, you can finish the cake however you like. Either a final coat of cream cheese icing, or a beautiful finish of red fondant will look great. I plan on finishing the cake in red fondant. The decor will be a chain around the cake, with a lock, and various keys made from white chocolate and brushed with bronze luster dust for a gorgeous effect. The message?

"You hold the key to my heart!"

And he does.

I will post the finished product on Valentine's Day!

Have fun with it!
]]> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:46:22 +0000 <![CDATA[What Should I Charge?]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/what_should_change/ First, some would take offense to calling them "dummies". I don't think they are very sensitive, so feelings likely won't get hurt if you call them "dummies". On the other hand, presenting to a client should always be done with taste, so it might come across better to refer to them as "Faux Tiers" (those unfamiliar with French should remember to pronounce that "foe", not that anyone here is a dummy. :) It also sounds a little classier than "fake tiers". Loftier language tends to fetch a better price!

So, to the issue. I wouldn’t try to get your dummy tiers back, so include them in the cost. There are so many nooks and crannies for bacteria to hide in the styrofoam, no matter how well you wash them, you risk contaminating cake that your next client will ingest. NOT worth the risk. If you insist on getting them back to save the money, PLEASE don't use them on a real cake. Use them ONLY for display cakes. So, my opinion, charge for them, and say goodbye. How to charge: At the very least, your cost (dummies, boards, box, icing, fondant, pearls, whatever else is going on them) should represent 1/3 of what you charge your client. So, for example, your cost is $20. The cost to your client should be $60 by basic theory. The second thing you need to consider is how much time it will take you. Lets say one tier will take you 4 hours to cover and decorate. That means that extra $40 paid you $10 an hour for your labor. If you’re good with that, end of story. If you want more per hour, calculate that and charge more. Another school of thought on the whole dummy (or Faux) tier issue is that the only thing you are saving money on by using them is the cost of the ingredients and the time to mix and bake the cakes. As you get more experienced, you get more efficient, and that time gets quicker. Alot of people feel that by providing dummies, that they are undercutting themselves on the sale of cake! For that reason, alot of people will offer NO discount for dummy tiers. If a 12" cake serves X amount of people at Y dollars per serving, then, by golly, that 12" dummy tier will be the same cost!!! I can't tell you what to do on that issue - that is a business decision that you will have to make for yourself. The BIG question: What should I charge for my cakes? That is always such a loaded question, because so much goes into it!!!! The basics should start with the same concept of how you charge for dummy tiers: Figure your cost first. Don't know exactly how much? FIGURE IT OUT!!!! Any business should know what the cost of an item is!!!!! If you paid $4.00 for a sack of sugar, figure out how many cups of sugar you get out of it, and divide that by the cost. When you use 2 1/2 cups of sugar in your recipe (or better yet, go by weight because it is more accurate), now you know how much it costs per cup. Don't forget - PRICES OF INGREDIENTS CHANGE!!! Keep a check on them! Do this for all of your ingredients- it is time well spent to know what you spend on your ingredients. This should also be done for what you spend at Sweet Wise: your colors, boxes, boards, flavorings, etc. that go out your door with each cake. In addition to that, you have to put in the cost for production and delivery (the electricity for mixing and baking, as well as any fuel cost for gathering ingredients and delivery).

The last three things to go into the cost of a cake are the most difficult: your capital investment, your educational investment, and your labor. (There is overhead, too, but should we deal with that in a separate issue because this is getting lengthy?)

1. Capital investment: You paid good money (and probably the bigger investment for you) for your tools: Cake pans, silicon molds, decorating bags and tips, that clay gun, etc. Should you NOT make money on that investment? Yes, you should. The difficult part is knowing how to divide it up. I can't say how many uses you will get out of that cake pan. 50? 100? 500? The theory is to guesstimate it, and then put that into your cost. (Here I will sneak in a little about overhead: Assuming you are a licensed business, those costs need to be incorporated, too: Rent, insurance, internet service, the cost of the licenses themselves, etc. : ****This gets complicated. Stay tuned for a youtube video on our channel, with great input from my husband John, who is a very talented CPA. He knows the cake business, and he has a great accounting pedigree, as well (insert proud wife's brag here: graduated from Maryland, Cum Laude, in 2 1/2 years, recruited by Big 6 firms, worked for Ernst & Young right out of college. He will make me delete that as soon as he sees it because he doesn't like his horn tooted :) Seriously, though; stay tuned for the video. He has great input on this issue, and will give good guidance on finding the right person to keep your books as well!).

2. Educational Investment: Same thing; you paid good money to travel to a class, invest in the materials, the tuition of the class was X. Just as a doctor spends alot of money going to medical school, investing his or her time into learning new skills and practicing to perfect them, so does a cake decorator (okay, not neck and neck, but you get my point). You should charge for that, because now you are a more gifted cake decorator, perhaps, than someone who did not invest in that education. Again, there isn't a rule on what percentage to charge for that, but it is something you HAVE to consider. The variable here is that 2 students could go to the same class, invest the same amount, and come out with two different results. Some people are just better decorators than others. Don't trust your family and friends as to whether your skills rank up there with the best. THEY WILL LIE TO YOU. "Oh, honey! You need to go to a Cake Challenge! They've got NOTHING on you!!!!" Sound familiar? It may or may not be true!

3. Your labor. I know from experience that some people work faster, or more efficiently, than others. What might take an experienced baker two hours to do, a rookie might take 12. Does the customer sufffer for that? Maybe, maybe not. Your duty as a cake decorator and good business person is to work efficiently, so that you can offer fair pricing. This also puts less strain on YOU. I've seen alot of decorators get burned out because they were working so hard, so many hours, and the profits didn't balance what they were putting in. You have to know how fast you work (let's say, mixing the batter, washing the pans and prepping for the next round, covering a cake in fondant, or piping scrollwork on the cake, making flowers, etc.) so you know how much to pay yourself. As you become concious of how much time you put in, you will move a little more quickly. Make a goal to KNOW what that time is, and then decide how much you are worth per hour. See? That's the last difficult question: Although your family and I think your are priceless, you have to be real with yourself: How good, really, are you at this? Do your cakes have puckers at the bottom, is your piping crooked like a 1st grader's? Are they, instead, flawless and beautiful? We have all taken the liberty of replicating a "magazine quality" cake. It's how we practice and challenge ourselves. Did it look just like it, or was it a poor copy? You have to put yourself in the shoes of your client, and ask yourself what you are worth. As you come to that conclusion, and you have figured out how much time it takes you, you have a hard and fast answer as to what to charge for your labor: X hours of work times Y dollars an hour= $Z for labor cost added on to the other things we discussed above. Do you own your business and have someone else actually making the cake for you? You just made $0 because the rest of it was cost. Now you need to factor in profit. Maybe your hourly labor makes $8 or $10 an hour, or more. How much profit should you factor in for yourself? Should you pay yourself by the hour or by the cake, say for every $100 cake you get $10, or $20, or more? Each question has a different answer for every business owner. I am just giving you the questions to ask yourself!

So, as you venture further into turning your hobby into profit, let me recap what should go into what you charge: 1. Food cost 2. Cost of materials (cardboard, dummies, pillars, etc. that go with the cake) 3. Cost of production and delivery (fuel and electricity) 4. Capital Investment 5. Educational Investment 6. Labor

This is SUCH a hard question to answer for people, because in the end, I didn't give you an answer, like $5 a slice. That's too easy, and I can't make that rule. Consider the things I mentioned above, and please take this into account: If there is one thing I can advise you to do, is stay away from the emotion involved. That means, "Oh, this person doesn't have alot of money, so I'll charge them less. Oh, I would only pay $20 for a cake at the grocery, so that's what I'll charge for this cake that I just put $35 of cost and 8 hours of my time into. Oh, people in this area won't pay that much for a cake." What you end up doing is either losing money or making $.75 an hour. That being said, I won't beat anyone up about doing that! If it's a hobby, and something that you love doing, and don't need to make a profit at, more power to you! Love it, enjoy it, feel good about it!!!! YOU and you only are in charge of what your cake is worth. Just don't let anyone else, especially the customer, decide that for you!

I hope this helps you with some factors to consider in your cake pricing! Good luck!!!

....and stay tuned for a FREE video on how to price your product!]]> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 13:36:17 +0000 <![CDATA[Nashville baker teaches cake decorating online, at store]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/nashville_baker_teaches/ By Juanita Cousins • THE TENNESSEAN • November 2, 2010
A Music Valley Drive cake supplier is making the art of crafting TV-worthy cakes available to Nashville residents with in-store classes, YouTube videos and inventions. “Everyday I would hear someone come in and say, ‘I love your store. You have so much great stuff, but I don’t know how to use it,’ ” said Kathy Wise Gentry, who operates Sweet Wise with her husband, John Gentry. Customers demanded classes because they didn’t know how to use the gum paste tools from England or the impression mats from Germany sold in the store. So Kathy began teaching customers the finer points of creating specialty cakes. This summer she began a YouTube channel, posting short videos to show customers how to use her products and offer cake-decorating advice.

“We think it is really going to set a standard for how knowledge is shared,” John said. John worked as a certified public accountant before joining his wife in the cake business. John helped Kathy build her inventory and business model, which now includes franchising, first in Memphis in 2011 and then adding three stores a year. “If you go to Sweet Wise, you know the staff is educated and can advise you. We not only are a supply store, but we can teach you how to make a successful product,” Kathy said.

Classes that start at $45 also include guest appearances by their friends: Food Network personalities Keegan Gerhard and Jacques Torres, award-winning pastry chef Andrew Shott and celebrity cake decorator Michelle Bommarito, who made their wedding cake. Former White House executive pastry chef Roland Mesnier will teach a class Dec. 4 on holiday desserts. Kathy Wise Gentry has been decorating cakes since age 6 under the direction of her mom. She majored in economics at Centre College in Kentucky before going to the Opryland Hotel Culinary Institute. In 2001, she began Sweet Wise as a bakery that focused on wedding cakes. Five years later, Velma’s Cake & Candy Supply Shop (where she purchased tools) closed. “I thought that if I didn’t know where to get my supplies, then neither did any other Nashville cake decorator,” Kathy said. “I saw it as an opportunity to fill a void.” After eight months of balancing the store and the bakery, Kathy stepped out of the kitchen to concentrate on her evolving business. That dedication led to her creating a tool dubbed THE MAT (patent pending) that makes it easier to roll and preserve fondant, a clay-like icing used to decorate cakes with complex details. THE MAT, in all capital letter for branding, sells for $15.99 that she totes as the only food-safe vinyl mat. It went on sale this fall and is manufactured by a company in the state of Washington. Kathy’s bottom line: “Cake decorating is approachable and anyone can do it. It’s not something that is scary and elite.” Contact Juanita Cousins at 615-259-8287, jcousins@tennessean.com or Twitter.com/talljournalist. http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/201011021306/DAVIDSON/101102063 ]]> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:30:44 +0000 <![CDATA[December Newsletter From: “Chef Roland”]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/december-newsletter-from-chef-roland/
I’m very excited to include a final picture of the Mount Vernon Gingerbread House for the 2010 holiday season. My team and I spent more than 300 hours over two weeks constructing this magnificent gingerbread house. This construction is made with more than 250 pounds of gingerbread, 100 pounds of chocolate and nearly 40 lbs of marzipan! Every inch of this house is indeed edible! Mount Vernon in gingerbread will be on display until early January so I encourage you all to visit. In fact Mount Vernon was voted by AAA as one of the “Top 12 Places to Catch the Holiday Spirit!” I will visit the gift shop for several more book signings over the holidays so i look forward to seeing you there.

And because no one can resist a little something sweet during the holidays (myself included) I’m thrilled to be presenting a holiday demonstration at the legendary Inn at Little Washington on Sunday, December 12. I will also sign books at the Inn’s Tavern Shops after the demonstration. As is tradition, the Inn will send home a little box of sweets with each guest. The Inn at Little Washington is an award winning, country-house hotel and restaurant nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The hotel and restaurant each hold a Five Star Award from Forbes and a Five Diamond Award from AAA.

I plan to celebrate Christmas at home with my wife, Martha and son George along with close friends. And shortly after the holiday I will travel to The Homestead in Hot Springs, VA. This was the first American establishment I ever worked in and am very excited to return. This legendary hotel first opened in 1766 and I’m thrilled to have played a small role in its history. On December 28 & 29 I will host cooking demonstrations with my good friend, current Pastry Chef at The Homestead, Michel Finel. In fact, I hired Chef Michel to replace me as the Pastry Chef when I left The Homestead to begin work at the The White House in 1979.

December’s Dessert of the Month is of course my Bûche de Noël on page 162 of my book Basic to Beautiful Cakes. Keep in mind that no matter what their politics, all the First Families I served were very traditional when it came to the holidays. My Bûche de Noël – which features marzipan squirrels, chocolate bark and meringue mushrooms—was always a favorite. I hope you and your family enjoy this Christmas tradition as much as I do! On that note let me wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! ]]> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:24:48 +0000 <![CDATA[Can I add just cocoa in to my buttercream to make chocolate icing? It doesn't ever seem to get rich and dark enough.]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/cocoa-in-buttercream/ Can I add just cocoa in to my buttercream to makechocolate icing? It doesn't ever seem to get rich and dark enough."
You can add cocoa, but chances are you'll end up with a grainy lookingbuttercream because you added in a dry powder. You would either need to siftthe cocoa powder INTO the powdered sugar first (if making an AmericanButtercream, or decorators buttercream), then mix, or use my method.

Ganache: Bring 1 cup of cream (cut to 3/4 cup if you want a really stiffbuttercream in the end) to a boil (cream boils over easily - be careful!). Place 8ounces chopped chocolate (or semi sweet chips - the darker the chocolate, thericher your ganache/buttercream will be) into a heatproof bowl. Once the creamboils, pour it over the chocolate and bring together with a whisk until smooth.Let this cool! If you pour it into your buttercream while warm, it will just meltyour fat in there and you'll have a big mess.
So once cool, start your mixer on LOW and pour in the ganache (about half ofit). Start to whip. Stop mixer, and add some of our incredible DARK cocoa (it's sodark it's black, like an oreo), about a quarter cup. Pour in the rest of the ganachein, incorporate, then stop mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of thebowl. Bring mixer to a medium high speed to make fluffy and light (while at thesame time, dark, rich, and fudgy). Yummy! This concoction would most likely beappropriate for 2-3 quarts of buttercream. You know it's hard for me to measure.
]]> Wed, 24 Apr 2013 11:16:04 +0000 <![CDATA[Using THE MAT]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/using_the_mat/ USE OF THE MAT

Before we get into the detailed instructions on the use of our mat system (Patent Pending), let me bullet point its advantages:

* Dust Free Method: STOP drying out your fondant, STOP changing the recipe of your fondant, STOP making a mess, STOP causing fermentation from Corn Starch!!!
*It's Sanitary: Minimizes or eliminates contact with bacteria laden countertops and skin
* HUGE Cost Savings: With THE MAT, you can roll thinner, using less fondant.
* Saves time: THE MAT allows you to roll out fondant and get it on the cake more quickly, PLUS you don't have cleanup!
* Minimizes effort and Stress on the User: Easy to handle the fondant, Easy to get it on the cake, Easy to get a professional looking result with first time use.
* Makes the cake TASTE BETTER: By rolling the fondant thinner, there is a less "bulky" mouth feel to each bite of the cake; Because you didn't use dust, the fondant didn't get "chalky"!
* It's FOOD SAFE: Our manufacturer uses only FDA approved materials;
general purpose vinyl is not approved as food safe.
Use and Care Instructions
How to cover a cake with fondant - Using THE MAT

1. For first time use, unroll THE MAT (2 included) and discard tissue paper. Lay the mats flat, one on top of the other, and roll the top sheet back. With clean hands, rub a very small amount of shortening on the top surface of the bottom sheet, covering it fully, but with a very light coat. Wipe hands clean and roll the top sheet down on top of the bottom sheet (so it can "grab" some of that shortening). If you're not sure "how much" shortening to use, just use plenty, and then just wipe it off. THE MAT will take what it needs. This is a FIRST TIME ONLY necessity in order to "season" THE MAT. Roll the top sheet back again, and begin to knead your fondant on the top surface of the bottom sheet. NO DUST OF ANY KIND IS NEEDED. Flatten the fondant into a disk shape, as if you were going to roll out pie dough. Return the top sheet ON TOP OF the disk of fondant.

2. Begin to roll out the fondant into the desired shape – round for round, hexagon, petal shaped, etc. pans, and square for square. The fondant should be able to cover the cake with an inch or so extra for centering purposes. The thickness should be similar to that of a corrugated cake cardboard. [i]Some rolling tips: Go from the center out towards the edges, as in a sunburst shape, as opposed to side to side or top to bottom. This helps the fondant to be the same thickness from edge to middle to edge. PUSH (as in squeezing toothpaste out of a tube) more than rolling. With the rolling pin, if you will use the last 4-5 inches of one end of the pin and focus your energy there, you will get quicker results. If the top mat grabs the bottom mat while rolling (this may happen the first time or two you use THE MAT), simply pull it off and place it right back down where it was. You can rotate THE MAT to help you get the shape you want. You can even flip it over and roll from the bottom side. If the mat scoots away from you, simply brace it between your hip and the table.[/i]

3. Once you have the size you want, remove the top sheet and roll it up. NEVER fold THE MAT. Lift the bottom sheet up with the fondant facing away from you, towards the cake (which should be flat on the table, not raised up on any pedestal). Line up the bottom of the fondant circle to the bottom edge of the cake closest to you. Lay the fondant over the cake, centering it.

4. Start to pull the sheet back away from the cake with one hand, and start to pull the fondant from the sheet with the other. Once the fondant is off of the sheet just a bit, its own weight will begin to pull it away from the sheet the remainder of the way. Keep the portion of the mat that is rolling back taught; don't let it buckle and cause the fondant to tear. THE MAT works because of the combination of the surface tension you are creating and the high buff on the surface that we created. Remember; it's about the weight of the fondant pulling itself off THE MAT more than you are pulling THE MAT away from the fondant!!!

5. Once the fondant has released itself from THE MAT, use clean hands to flatten the top (pushing any air bubbles towards the edges, smoothing any uneven spots, etc.). Pull fondant out away from the sides, distributing the natural ruffles evenly around the cake in a skirt-like fashion.

6. Help the fondant adhere to the butter cream on the cake by rubbing the fondant with your fingers from the top edge of the cake to one inch down all the way around the cake (your hand is slightly cupped). Use the other hand to pull the fondant slightly out and away while you use your first hand to rub the fondant and adhere it to the cake an additional inch down from the top edge.

Continue this method of one inch down, two inches down, three inches down, etc., until you come to the bottom of the cake. ***The bottom of the cake is where decorators usually encounter problems with pleating, folds, or puckering. Instead of forcing the fondant down to the cake with the plan to smooth it out later, simply pull the fondant back out away from the cake slightly, and using the fondant smoother, rub in a back and forth motion over the fondant to adhere it to the cake.

7. Using the flat edge of the fondant smoother, give a firm push down on the bottom edge to give a firm, flat edge to the cake. Cut the excess fondant off with a circular blade and remove. Smooth wherever necessary with the fondant smoother.

8. THE MAT should be wiped with a clean cloth between uses. If it becomes necessary to wash it, hot soapy water in the kitchen sick followed by a hot rinse will suffice. After rinsing, hang the sheets to dry. Sheets are best stored rolled up together and placed in the Fondant Mat Carry and Storage Tube; it keeps them clean and protects them from getting bent or damaged.
******One of the most important things you need to know about these mats is that they are food safe. Some people have suggested to just get the mats from a craft store. What you will find at the craft store is a general purpose vinyl, not approved for food. THE MAT contains 100% FDA approved materials, and because we order it in the size lots that we do, it is maintained in a food safe environment. When it is "General Purpose" vinyl, it uses materials NOT FDA approved, and also runs the risk of encountering other chemicals and materials that are NOT food safe, so the product will then NOT be food safe. Some of the things that the manufacturer suggested the general purpose sheets come in contact with were, frankly, FRIGHTENING. SO GLAD we educated ourselves!!!!!

THE MAT you get at Sweet Wise is food safe. Craft store, no. On top of that, the polish, or buff, we asked them to provide on our mats is a much higher grade– it works perfectly with fondant!! THE MAT currently sells for $17.99 plus cost of shipping, and includes the storage tube. Online ordering will be available very soon. Don't forget to look at the YouTube video that shows the action on the use of our mat system.
In the meantime, TO ORDER THE SWEET WISE QUIK COVER FONDANT MAT FOR SHIPPING
SHOP ONLINE

We also encourage you to sign up for our email list on the homepage, as well as "Subscribing" to our YouTube channel so you can see new videos as they are posted! ]]> Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:36:47 +0000 <![CDATA[Chocolate Dipped Strawberries]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/chocolate_dipped_strawberries/ This delicious berry is in its peak season, and what better way to enjoy it than covered in delecible chocolate?!

Something so simple, but somehow elusive to some. Let's fix that! Of course, you will want to start with plump, sweet strawberries, free of blemishes or seeping parts. The green stem part should be bright and also free of any blemishes or brown parts. Kind of like a fish's eyes, the stem of the strawberry can often tell you how fresh it is. Now the question: to wash, or not to wash? Chefs often say - just brush the debris away; a wet strawberry is doom for the chocolate! I agree to a certain extent. Part of me can't eat a fruit that isn't washed, but yes, it ABSOLUTELY has to be DRY!!!! So wash gently under cold tap water, but dry thoroughly with clean paper towels or soft linens.

For this project, I prefer the Merckens chocolate. You can use milk or dark, whatever your preference. Even white is fine! Melt 30 seconds at a time in the microwave, stirring bewtween rounds, until it is lump free. Line a cookie sheet with either parchment paper or foil. Dip the strawberry, being sure to coat thoroughly (but here I like to let the red just barely peek out from the chocolate - it is so pretty, and gives you a peek of what is to come). Place on the cookie sheet. For flawless strawberries, I let it sit there for about 15 seconds, and then MOVE it to another spot.

You heard me right. The chocolate will drip off and leave a somewhat unsightly rim. If you move the berry after it stops dripping, it is perfectly clean! Dip, dip dip, dip, dip. Now we get to the point where the chef's advice starts to make sense. Water is the enemy of chocolate. Ever drop water straight into chocolate? It stiffens (or siezes) up. Strawberries are moist. Everytime you dip, you are putting a little water into your chocolate, and by the time you get to the end of your batch, you can hardly dip anymore! Some of you are saying, "Ohhhhh.... I get it now!" How do you fix it? PARAMOUNT CRYSTALS.

Little chips from the magic wand. Sprinkle a few chips into the melted chocolate and stir in until you get a nice, smooth flow.
Kind of like the old magazines that had the great tip of adding shortening to the chocolate to thin it? One problem - the chocolate would then stay soft, and you can't handle the strawberries! With the Paramount Crystals, it firms back up just tlike the original chocolate!! This works great especially with colored chocolates or older chocolates that tend to be thick even when you melt them. The berries are great like this, but if you want to add an extra special touch, add a drizzle. The trick is to move fast, not to drizzle carefully and deliberately.
You can do this with the same chocolate you dipped with, or with another color of chocolate. You can even color coordinate with a wedding, birthday, or baby shower! Pick up some of the chocolate with a spoon, and let it fall back into its bowl until it has a very thin stream. Very quickly (almost flinging it), zig zag back and forth over the berry. Remember - thin stream, move fast. Last tip: going back to the wet berry thing, the strawberries will start to release water once the sugary chocolate is on it, and will start to get soggy (like cut strawberries in sugar).

If you have an event, dip the strawberries that morning. If you try to dip them a day before, you will end up with a mushy mess. I hope you enjoy the rest of the summer, and be sure to treat yourself and your friends to a plateful of these gems, even if there isn't an occasion!
]]> Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:36:22 +0000 <![CDATA[Christmas Cookies and MORE!]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/christmas_cookies_more/
I wanted to share some of my Christmas recipes with you, and it's a little easier to go into the detail on the blog rather than the email, so thanks for sticking around!

The idea behind this assortment of recipes comes from a special place: I love to give something to the people who I have grown close to – from teachers, to Greg, the same nice man that brings our packages everyday, to Mary, the lady that does my hair. I want to give something to the neighbors and so many more. It adds up when you have a big family on top of that, but still, you want to give because it makes you feel so good, and it can't be something meaningless or random. There is no better gift than a homemade box of Christmas treats. It speaks so much more loudly than a store bought tin of cookies. Don't get me wrong; that is thoughtful and much appreciated, but if you have the time and the motivation, then I share my time tested recipes with you and invite you to go in this direction this year. Here's a great time saver: One cookie dough, at least 5 uses. Here's the basic roll out dough that I use: Roll Out Cookie Recipe 1 -1/4 cup Butter, softened 2 cups Granulated Sugar 2 eggs 1 -1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract 4 drops Almond Oil (find this at Sweet Wise in Nashville) 5 cups All Purpose Flour 2 tsp Baking Powder 1 tsp Salt 1/2 cup Milk

Additional flour for rolling surface Preheat oven to 375 F. Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl until fluffy. Add eggs and flavorings and mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside. Add the dry ingredients a little at a time, alternating with the milk until all have been incorporated. The dough will be stiff at the end of the mixing process; it might be necessary to add remaining flour by kneading. Flour your rolling surface, and roll to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut into desired shapes, and place on ungreased baking sheet or Silpat. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until just starting to brown on the edges. After cooling, decorate as desired.

Option 1. You can use your Christmas cookie cutter assortment to cut, bake, and decorate as you desire. I like to use Royal Icing (we have a great mix that you just add water to). One of the more fun cookies that I like to make is: just cut out round cookies, any size. Use color flow icing (thinned royal icing) in a variety of red, green or white on each cookie. Once the icing sets up, Go back and write in an opposing color "Naughty" or "Nice", then decorate with a small dot border in the third color. SO fun to watch which cookie the guests choose, and see them think so hard about it!!

Option 2. You will need a silpat (or any stick silicon baking mat) for these stained glass cookies. Cut shapes, then cut more shapes OUT of that shape. For instance, cut a square, and place it on the baking mat. THEN cut 4 squares out of that, as if cutting the panes out of a window (cutting after it's moved helps it keep from distorting its shape). Fill each pane with crushed hard candy (like jolly ranchers or life savers). Bake as normal, and the candy will melt into the cavity. LET COOL COMPLETELY BEFORE MOVING! After cool, you can life them off and enjoy! Think of these shapes of stained glass cookies: A large teddy bear with a heart in the middle, a star with another star cut out (or hearts on Valentine's Day), a Christmas ornament with mini shapes cut out, the possibilities are endless! You can even hang them from the tree if you'll make a little hole before you bake them for a ribbon to go through.

Option 3: To make colored candy cane cookies, color equal parts dough (like ½ cup each) red and green. Take a piece of each about the size of a large gumball. Roll out into a snake about 5 inches long. Lay them beside eachother, and then twist. Lay on cooie sheet and bake as above.

Option 4: Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies 1 cup Roll Out Cookie Dough (just take 1 cup of finished dough) 1/4 cup Raspberry Jam or Raspberry Filling (or green apple jelly) 1/4 cup sliced almonds, slightly crushed water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Portion dough into 24 balls. Dip in water, then roll in almonds. Place on ungreased cookie sheet or Silpat a few inches apart, then press into the center of each cookie with your thumb to make a cavity. Fill cavity with raspberry filling. Bake about 10 minutes until almonds start to brown slightly. Makes 24.

Option 5: Powdered Wedding Cookies 1 cup Roll Out Cookie Dough 1/8 tsp Cinnamon 1/4 cup finely chopped Pecans Powdered Sugar
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix Cinnamon and Pecans into dough. Chill for 20 minutes to help cookies keep their shape. With a small cookie scoop, scoop cookies onto ungreased cookie sheet or Silpat. Bake 10-12 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes, then roll cookies generously in powdered sugar. Makes 20.
There you have a nice assortment of cookies from one basic dough. Want to go a little farther? I can't explain to you the incredible, buttery difference between homemade peanut brittle and store bought. Try it; you'll love it! I substitute Dry Roasted peanuts where a lot of recipes use Raw Spanish. They seem to be easier to find, and I like the nuttier taste. Here's my recipe:

Peanut Brittle 1 ½ cups Dry Roasted peanuts 1 cup sugar ½ cup light corn syrup ¼ tsp salt 1 Tbsp butter 1 tsp Baking soda 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
Combine first 4 ingredients in heavy bottom saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring gently, until sugar dissolves. Cover and cook over medium heat 2 to 3 minutes to wash down sugar crystals from sides of pan. Uncover and cook, stirring occasionally, to 300 degrees. Remove from heat and stir in butter, soda, and vanilla. Pour out onto silicon baking mat or buttered cookie sheet. Let cool, break into pieces.
Two more things I have to put in my cookie box.
Christmas Bark If you haven't made Christmas Bark, your friends are missing out! Its crazy easy, beautiful, and everyone loves it. All you do is take 3 pounds of Merckens White Chocolate (or Super White; the white is a creamier look, the super white is a stark, bright white color, really no difference in taste). Melt it in the microwave, 45 seconds first, and then stir, then 30 seconds and then stir, continuing just until smooth. Once completely smooth, stir in one pound of red and green peppermint crunch. Lay aluminum foil on a large cookie sheet, then pour mixture out into a thin layer .Let set completely, then break into pieces. The color is SO vibrant and beautiful! Besides going into the cookie box, this looks really great on it's own as a small gift. Place it into a clear, disposable 12" piping bag and tie it with a ribbon, and you've got a nice gift on its own or a fantastic way to increase your counter sales. Look how great it looks with tangerine crunch!

The last item I usually include is my secret recipe, which I will gladly share. It also uses the Red and Green peppermint crunch, but this makes a creamy, delicious fudge.

White Chocolate Peppermint Crunch Fudge 2 tablespoons butter 2/3 cup Evaporated Milk 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 cups mini marshmallows 12 ounces Merckens White Chocolate 1/2 cup plus 1/4 cup red and green peppermint crunch

Directions LINE 13 x 9-inch baking pan with foil.

COMBINE butter, evaporated milk, sugar and salt in medium, heavy-duty saucepan. Bring to a full rolling boil, stirring constantly, over medium heat. Boil, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. STIR in marshmallows and white chocolate. Stir vigorously for 1 minute or until marshmallows are melted. Once smooth, stir in red and green crunch Pour into prepared baking pan. Place ¼ cup crunch on top of fudge and press in slightly. Refrigerate until firm. Cut into squares.

This is a great assortment of treats, and I can assure you that it will be loved by everyone you think of. I spend a day or two at my leisure making everything, and then a quick morning assembling the cookie boxes to distribute .I hope that you love giving these out as much as I do!!!

]]> Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:35:57 +0000 <![CDATA[Don't Let the Neighbors Find Out!!!]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/let_the_neighbors/ www.CakeCentral.com and came up with a pretty cool design. So I'll talk you through the details of what's on the cake. I hope you enjoy it!

The recipes (chocolate and vanilla) came out of the Confetti Cakes book, one of my many favorites at the Sweet Wise. The base layer was chocolate, 6 inches high, 12 inches round. I filled it with Swiss Meringue buttercream without icing the outside, and froze it solid. Once it was frozen, I took a 10" cake circle and marked a circle on the top of that cake. I used an electric knife (cake still frozen) and carved down towards the outer edge of the cake to create the shape of an elephant stand. She loves buttercream, so the yellow icing on there is buttercream, not fondant. I did make the details in fondant - you know it just looks better. The blue triangles are fondant (I colored them with Americolor Royal Blue) and red stars (colored with Americolor Super Red). Little balls of fondant (thank you, John, for rolling out hundreds of them for me) in red, blue and yellow, of different sizes for the border.

For support, I pushed in the 6" hidden pillars and placed an 8" smooth edge round cake plate (covered with yellow fondant to disguise it) into the pillars, directly on top of the cake. I had found a beautiful clear vase, really a large apothecary jar, that I turned upside down to support the next layer of cake. My reason for using that instead of pillars was stability and vision. Inside the jar I put an edible carousel. Yes, edible. The base of it was the rotating light up topper base from Wilton. I made another base out of white chocolate to go on top of the base so I could attach the horses. The horse I made out of white chocolate with the chocolate mold we have at Sweet Wise. Made another top out of white chocolate and glued it all together. Painted the horses with luster dust and trimmed the whole thing out with fondant details. Yes, it rotated within the glass jar! John snapped a picture of me wrapping the posts of the the carousel horses with colored gumpaste, which I cut perfectly with my new favorite tool, the multi-ribbon cutter. The next layer was white (with Almond Oil for extra yumminess!). Basic 10" square, built on top of a 10" square piece of foam core board for support, which I hot-glued onto the base (now the top) of the glass jar for stability. Covered in red fondant, used the funky lower case tappit cutter for Katie's name, and trimmed out with some details in piped royal icing. Standard cut dowel rods to support the next layer, which was a 7" round (also Almond cake), simply covered in yummy green buttercream. Used the MASSIVE grass tip that we now have in to save me lots of time! Again, standard dowel rods inserted in this layer for support. Top layer of cake replicates an actual tent that Katie had at her party. Stripes of red, blue, and yellow fondant (again, cut to the same size with the ribbon cutter). It was a 4" cake, 3 layers high, top carved to a rounded shape, with a gumpaste flag on a tooth pick stuck in the top. So that's the structure, now for all the fun details! At the base, you'll see popcorn. It's cake, carved, covered in white fondant, and, of course, red stripes cut with the multi ribbon cutter. Individual popcorn was made from buttery yellow gumpaste, shaped into two sizes of balls, hollowed slightly with PME ball tool (one end large, one end very small), glued together with clear piping gel, centers colored with brown luster dust. Peanuts are scattered about. I took light brown fondant and simply rolled it between my fingers to make the peanut shape. Need a small rectangle shaped SOMETHING to make the indentions in the shell, which I didn't have, so I shave the flat end of a skewer to do the trick. Wow! That looked great! Dusted the peanuts lightly with some cocoa petal dust to make them looked natural. Carnival/circus food: Hot dog. Carved cake into the bun shape, covered it in light brown fondant. Separately shaped a weiner out of the same light brown fondant with a bit of the red mixed in. Scored each end to make it look real. Sprayed bun lightly with Wilton yellow color mist and touched some brown color to the edges to make it looked toasted. The color was tricky, but this is the combination that worked for me. I put the wiener into the bun then rolled out thin snakes of yellow and red fondant and attached to make ketchup and mustard. I think I was MOST proud of the hot dog! Also made a corn dog! Carved cake in a tubular shape, covered it with fondant colored light brown, placed it on a wooden dowel rod. Poked gently all over with the sharp end of a skewer for texture, then gave a light, uneven spray with the yellow WIlton color mist on this. Ketchup and mustard on this guy, too. Funnel cake!!!! Probably my favorite carnival food. Shaped light brown fondant into a very thin snake, and let it fall into a funnel cake shaped mound. With it being brown,it looked a little unappetizing, as you can imagine. I won't say what it looked like, but it needed some help! Well, funnel cakes come on paper plates, let's make one of those: a thin round of white gumpaste, ruffle the edges and let dry. That helped alot! A little powdered sugar on top, and it did the trick! At the end of the day I didnt want to put this on the cake because I didn't plan ahead. Let this be a lesson to all decorators: my problem was that it was NOT size appropriate to the other food; it was WAY too small. She wanted it on the cake, though, so on it went!

The last of the food was cotton candy. I simply shaped a cone out of white gumpaste and then wrapped it in a long stripe of white gumpaste. She had a cotton candy machine at the party (I did tell you that she's quite the party planner, right?), so I indulged myself by having her put the actual cotton candy on once we got the cake next door. Awesome!

I cut stars out of thin gumpaste and attached them to wires. I didn't like the wire showing through the gumpaste, so I ended up wrapping the tip of the wire in a bit of the same color of gumpaste and then attaching it to the back of the star. That worked well. Before I did that, though, I shaped the wire into a spiral by wrapping it around a dowel. They looked like they were shooting out of the cake! Dusted them with a little pixie dust and they were spot-on! The last piece to the cake to put it over the top are those flag poles! I took plastic dowel rods and wrapped them in strips of gumpaste (yes, cut with the multi ribbon cutter). Attached them with the magical clear piping gel, which has SO many uses! To have them dry with out messing up the gumpaste, I took a cake dummy and stuck wooden dowel rods into it and slid the gumpaste wrapped plastic dwel rods over them so they could stand upright to dry. I used a steamer to make the color pop and to make the cornstarch disappear. It really gave them a finished look. I took a stencil cutting tool (or a really hot knife) to cut two tiny slits into the top of each rod. This was so the string could sit down in the rod slightly and not roll off. Separately, I made flags out of yellow gumpaste by cutting small diamonds, then wrapping them around a thin skewer to dry. As they were drying, I piped lettering to say "Happy Birthday Katie" on the flags in blue royal icing. Once all this was dry, I removed the skewers and simply threaded the flags with white sewing thread, put them into place, and secured the top of each string at the pole with a nice blob of round blue fondant. Whew! Yes, it was alot of work. DId I say it was alot of work? It as alot of work. Over 3 feet tall once all was said and done. She was really pleased, and followed instructions to tell everyone that because I am so busy with the store and teaching, that I do not make cakes except for her, but I am glad to pass on the names of other cake decorators (that's YOU!).

So that's it! I hope I didn't ramble too much, and I hope my instructions were pretty clear. You know you can always come into the store and ask for some help if you have an idea in mind and aren't quite sure how to execute it. That's what we're about; just bring your imagination; we've got everything else!

Here's the finished product. Just like we all do when we make cakes, I see TONS of flaws. Just ignore them. :)]]> Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:35:33 +0000 <![CDATA[Having a Ball]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/having_a_ball/
I hope we'll have her another time (although catch her healthy eating seminar at the Southern Women's Show this weekend!) to show us how we can take some baby steps into getting heathier food into our families' bellies without much trouble or many groans from the kids. Here's how we laugh together - I had gone to bed early while she and John (my husband) had stayed up chatting. Michelle later went to jump in the shower after our daughter had a nightmare and needed John to tuck her in and lay with her a few minutes to ease her fears. At the very same time, it being late, I knocked on the door of the shower after not seeing John anywhere. Michelle poked her head out, and I said, "Do you know where John is?" She looked around behind her and said, "Well, he doesn't seem to be in here." We've been giggling about that all day. So here's another glimpse of the fun, down to Earth Michelle - she takes good care of her skin, and shared a mud mask with me. I'll be happy to share it with you! Enjoy it; don't be scared! And please join us Saturday at 10:45 for Michelle's free demo in the Sweet Wise classroom! ]]> Wed, 06 Mar 2013 12:35:11 +0000 <![CDATA[Animal ZOO]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/animal_zoo/ I'll just start out by clarifying, NO. This is NOT a cake. I say that because cakes are usually my thing. Making cakes, teaching cake classes, selling cake supplies, making videos about making cakes, etc. So for those of you who read me looking for cake tips, I just wanted to clarify. For those of you looking at my stuffed animal thingy, come take a look at our cake stuff! I'm not a particularly crafty person. I used to sew, but somehow over the years, I have lost all knowledge of how to sew. Scrapbooking.....nope, shoeboxes. If my daughter wants her hair braided, she has to go down the street. Crafty doesn't live here, unless it's on a cake. Necessity screamed at me, though. My daughter has built up a collection of stuffed animals of epic proportions. We've tackled it and whittled it away a number of times, but some neither one of us can bear to part with. Her Build a Bear collection is quite respectable and my thought was that this collection is one she might want to pass down to her children. The only problem is they TAKE UP SO MUCH FREAKING SPACE! And dust. I saw a picture of some bungees in a garage holding up some balls vertically, and I thought “animal jail!” I summoned my inner crafter and introduced her to my inner handyman, and they had a baby. I got 2 large (18” I think, and about an inch thick) corner shelves from the hardware store (HD) and painted them black. I figured the black and white in the room was a great palette for zebra stripes or pops of color while she's young, then would be a great background for art deco or parisian elegance when she's 16. I made a pattern out of a large piece of tissue paper by tracing the smallest part of the shelf (it's beveled) and cutting it out. I folded it in half to find the center, and marked a pencil hole about 3/4 inch in from the edge. I marked holes about 2 1/2” apart from there (make sure you measure so they're even), ending up with 7 holes.

 

I placed the pattern on the shelf and made hard firm marks through the tissue with a pencil. Flipped it over and did the same thing on the underside so the holes would match up. MAKE SURE the holes line up. I drilled through them with a 3/8” drill bit. I couldn't find a roll of bungee cord anywhere locally, so I ordered a spool of it , 100' long and 1/4” thick, in black. I mounted the shelves according to the directions, leaving enough room underneath to vacuum and enough on top to match the distance that was left on the bottom. Mounting the shelves would have been easy for anyone, I think, except for me. Not only am I not very crafty, I'm also not very handy. The handyman I summoned had already knocked off early for a beer, the crafter was sneering at me because I obviously didn't know what I was doing, and I was on my own. Children may be reading over your shoulder, so I won't repeat the things that were said as I tried to mount the shelves. Again, an EASY job for anyone else, so don't let that throw you. I refused to ask for help. I really wanted to accomplish this on my own. My husband did advise me to make sure to add corner braces (on top of and on bottom of shelves) for support since the bungees would be pulling, which I did (he also made sure to tell me to mount those braces on studs for extra support). I even painted them half black and half white to match the shelf and wall. Thinking I was so smart, I weaved the bungee through, leaving it a tad loose so as not to pull too hard on the shelves.

 

Here is how that worked out:

Every time I added just one more animal, the bulge at the bottom grew bigger and bigger. and dropped and dropped. So obviously I needed to tighten the bungee, which I did, then just tied a new knot and cut off the excess. You could go to the trouble of doing individual pieces of bungee, but weaving it through seems to work just as well and was less time consuming. I also added kind of an internal shelf (just 12”, but still a wooden corner shelf) in 2 spots, to help support the animals and help her find the ones she wanted to play with a little easier (you can see a bit of one just above the little seal's head). Here's the end result:

She was upset at the thought of her animals being in jail, so we're calling it a zoo unless they misbehave. Except for her older brother; he makes sure to tell her they are bad and are in jail every day. Now all her animals take up like 18 square inches of space in her room as opposed to 20 square feet. I'm going to pat myself on the back for this one, but I'm putting away my drill and my screwdriver and going to get my spatula. My inner crafter and my inner handyman have filed for divorce, and although I'm proud I did this without help (outside of great advice from a husband concerned about flying sharp objects), I don't know that future projects involving drills will find their way into my agenda.

]]> Thu, 17 Jan 2013 09:04:26 +0000 <![CDATA[CHEF DU JOUR: Pastry Chef Rolls in the Dough]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/chef_du_jour/ Background
Chef Du JourHaving a mom who loved to decorate cakes propelled Kathy Wise on a cake-baking path. She remembers decorating her first cake at age 6. In 1992 she graduated from Centre College in Danville, KY., as an Economics major. She knew early on the she wanted to blend her financial education with baking, so she went to culinary school at Opryland, graduating in 1995. She "chefed" her way around town until she opened her own wedding cake business. When she discovered difficulties in finding supplies and materials, she opened Sweet Wise, a store for cake, candy, and pastry supplies for home and professional cooks.

At home
Entertaining friends is her favorite hobby. Whether the groups are large or small, she likes to make dishes that are easy to handle from a buffet, and, of course, the dessert buffet is one of her specialties.

Favorite cookbooks: Dessert University, by Roland Mesnier, former White House Chef. She also likes his previous book, All the Presidents' Pastries: Twenty Five Years in the White House, a Memoir.

86 this trend
Cakes, candies, and pastries decorated the same old way. She's a total believer in keeping up with new trends, methods, and processes. "It's worth it to network and take trips to bigger cake-decorating groups, such as the International Cake Exploration Societe," she says. The website is www.ices.org.

Roll-out cookies
She offers her grandmother's recipe for roll-out cookies, which may be prepared in three ways.

— THAYER WINE, FOR THE TENNESSEAN]]> Tue, 27 Nov 2012 16:40:18 +0000 <![CDATA[Take a Bow: Colorful party, fantastical cake make for magical birthday]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/magical_birthday/
But Anna, who was adopted from China as a 2-year-old, also has had many challenges in her life. She is blind, has autism and albinism. A student at Tennessee School for the Blind, she has come a long way in just a year her family said. "She's had birthdays before, of course, but I think this is the first year where she woke up and said, 'I'm going to be a different number,' " Sauer said.

Anna, who can distinguish some light and color, was able to get a close-up look at the Chihuly exhibit's amazing glass-blown works, which were lit up for the evening viewing. Although this was Anna's time to shine, I was impressed with the level of detail in Anna's birthday cake. Franklin resident and family friend Sharon Hanson, who bakes cakes just as a hobby, made this amazing half-yellow and half-chocolate cake as her gift to Anna. Using fondant, Hanson created her own version of a magical garden for Anna with items celebrating the milestone. There were eight koi fish swimming in the icing pond, eight pumpkins, eight frogs, eight rose bushes and more. Even the garden's wrought iron gate included the number eight in the design. On top of that, everything on the cake was edible. The textures and 3D effects also allowed Anna to trace her fingers along the stiff fondant.

"A waterfall!" she exclaimed as she figured out exactly what icing feature flowed down the side of her cake. Hanson did have some help with the cake. John Gentry of Nashville's Sweet Wise learned how to blow sugar to create miniature edible sculptures that were similar to the Chihuly glass art. Red and yellow blown sugar was set in a white boat in the middle of the pond on top of Anna's cake to complement The Boat, a full-size Chihuly creation floating directly behind the party in Cheekwood's reflection pool. An opportunity for Anna to experience the exhibit also carried an inspirational message. Dale Chihuly, the renowned glass sculptor, is blind in his left eye. The injury is the result of a car accident in the mid-1970s. "I think this can serve as a positive inspiration for her," said Anna's mother, Ginger Goad.

"It doesn't matter what issues you have in life. You always have the potential to create something beautiful and wonderful with your own unique gifts." ]]> Mon, 26 Nov 2012 11:32:23 +0000 <![CDATA[Modeling Chocolate]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/modeling_chocolate/ www.sweetwise.com is our daughter Lindsey, 7. She is holding a cake made by Stephanie Felts of The Sweetest Day, winner of the 2009 Tennessee Cake Fest (www.TNCakeFest.com) at a class taught by the Amazing Mike McCarey (which is detailed with Modeling Chocolate, which I'll get to).

The other day, things didn't go her way and she decided she would show us. She marched herself to her room and packed up to run away. All the important stuff - a change of clothes, her favorite blanket, and vital stuffed animals. It was, of course, snowing outside. She had one arm into her coat and went to tell her brother Logan in a carefully planned but non-chalant manner that she hopes he enjoys being an only child. She made the next dramatic entrance into the office, where we were working, to ask if we had any last words before she left. I just hugged her and told her that I would miss her terribly, to please stay warm. She made a few steps to the door and burst into tears. Of course, I scooped her up and sat her down on my lap and gave her all she needed to hear - the family wouldn't be complete without her, I would be too sad, she would be scared and alone and unsafe, and she can't bully us in to getting her way. Although she still didn't get her way, we gave her lots of cuddling that night and she felt safe, warm, and loved. John and I later shared each of our own "I ran away once" stories. I think her drama was all over a Rainforest Cafe cup that she HAD to have THAT day. Thank you for indulging me. Now about modeling chocolate!

I've seen it called many things: modeling chocolate, plastic chocolate, candy clay, etc. It serves several purposes - some coat their cakes in it, although I really don't care for that method, but to each their own. I prefer just using it for details. It is a bit shinier than fondant, and models a little easier. Difficult to make? No, not at all, and you can make it in any color. Sweet Wise sell Merckens Chocolate in 16oz bags. Take one of those bags (in chocolate, white chocolate, or ANY color), and melt it just until it's smooth - the microwave is fine, but don't burn it! Stir after 30 second intervals of heat. Once it's smooth, stir in 1/3 cup of Glucose OR 1/2 cup CLEAR corn Syrup. Pour it onto a silicon baking mat or simple aluminum foil. Once it cools off, it's ready to model! It's THAT EASY!

Kathy's tip: Have some old colored chocolate in the pantry that doesn't melt smooth and is spotty and not pretty? Don't throw it away. Turn it into modeling chocolate, wrap it up and store it in a zip bag. It will last longer, not go to waste, and might just come in handy when gumpaste just won't do what you want it to. ]]> Mon, 26 Nov 2012 11:32:23 +0000 <![CDATA[Beautiful on the Inside!]]> http://sweetwise.com/videos/blog/beautiful_on_the_inside/
We've mentioned this before in snippets here and there, but here I just want to throw out some inspiration for you to take the inside of your cake to a new level. Try what I suggest, then let your mind wander. Sometimes I find myself looking at patterns on purses, shoes, little girls' dresses, and saying in my head "THAT would make a great cake design!" We should do the same with flavor, right?

Back to the flavor that my son came up with. He was way into drinking lemonade with strawberry ice cream syrup in it. I asked him to help me come up with a new, summery flavor to offer to brides, and without hesitation, my (at the time) 6 year old quickly said, "Strawberry Lemonade", as if I had asked him where my socks were. Of course! It was summery, and it was BEAUTIFUL! I swirled lemon cake and strawberry cake together, and when we cut into it, it was such a happy, fun cake!

So here's how you do it. Icing Fruits. They are a magical thing that all of you should have in your kitchen. It's basically concentrated fruit. It comes in Raspberry, Orange, Strawberry, Lemon, Cherry, Banana, and we are hoping Lime. You can use a tablespoon of it stirred into whipped cream (stabilize that whipped cream with a tablespoon of clear piping gel, kids, and keep it from getting mushy!!!), or stirred into icing, pastry cream, etc., and you will have a yummy, natural tasting filling. Check back on my "torting layers" blog to see about getting it layered inside properly without squishing out). The icing fruits willl serve a different purpose here. Here, we will put it IN the cake batter. Take your standard white cake recipe (yes, if you are a box mix person, it's fine to do that), and split it in two parts. Stir in a tablespoon or two (to taste) of lemon icing fruits into one, and strawberry icing fruits into the other. The color will be there, but they're not keen on adding artificial stuff, so if you want to enhance the color a little bit with Americolor Lemon Yellow and Americolor Super Red or Deep Pink colors, you'll get an even better look. Place some lemon batter in the pan, just in big blobs, leaving a little of the pan exposed. Place a little strawberry batter in the pan in big blobs, and keep alternating until the pan is appropriately filled. Take a butter knife and swirl through the batter, alternating with circle and figure eight patterns. Don't over swirl! Bake as you normally so, and fill and ice as you normally would, and you will have a beautiful cake!

So as I was saying, let your mind wander on flavors. At the fair? Cotton candy tastes great? That would make a great cake! We have Lorann flavors in Bubblegum and Cotton Candy that work great in cake batter (and candy, ice cream, punch, cookies, incense burners, seriously!). Had a chocolate covered cherry? Yummy! Try a chocolate cake filled with Cherry (from the icing fruits or Lorann flavor) whipped cream (don't forget to stabilize!). But don't want to give up the Almond flavor? Me, either! Alternate chocolate cake layer with almond (use our Almond Emulsion so the flavor doesn't bake out of the cake so much) filled with your magical Cherry Concoction, and Almond cake layer (from Almond Emulsion in the batter), also filled with your magical Cherry Concoction. Your guests eyes will get BIG!!!!

So that's my two cents on the inside of the cake for today. I invite you to click on the option to follow my blog - I promise I'll add posts m ore frequently. As always, I am happy to get suggestions on what you want to hear me blog about! Have a great week!! ]]> Mon, 26 Nov 2012 11:32:23 +0000