I've been experimenting a lot lately to figure out great tastes and color combos. The other day, I made a basic vanilla cupcake and messed around with the frosting. So, I made a simple chocolate frosting, though found it very commercial tasting. That's not good enough, Ally! Step up your game! So that's exactly what I did. I added concentrated coffee but found it tasted too coffee-y  so I added Bailey's Cream. Not too much, and just enough to give it a creaminess with a little zing at the end. If you want to step up your chocolate frosting from a can, add some Bailey's or some coffee.

Until next recipe,
~Ally

I've been baking a lot. In winter I can do that 'cause the oven warms up the house. Today's blog post is about a organic and gluten free chocolate cake for a going away party. My sister's friend was heading off to Israel and I wanted to make a cake for her. She's allergic to gluten and I am allergic to tree nuts so there goes almond flour. I played with the recipe until I had a delicious two layered chocolate cake with filling and icing. I used white chocolate almond bark and melted it. Then, I colored it and piped it on wax over a paper with the design I wanted. I made a dove and wrote "see you again" in Hebrew. All in all, a really great cake; (If I may say so myself.) Please comment and tell me what you think! 

Until next recipe, 

~Ally 

     Hey guys! It's been a long time since my last post because of school starting and me being unable to get into my account... but anywhoo.
     For my friend's birthday I made red velvet surprise cupcakes. Each one had three Starburst candies decorated to look like gifts on the top around a central candle. (Really cute idea for birthday  or surprise parties!)
     Also, I made watermelon shaped sugar cookies. Green food coloring dyed dough surrounding a tube of red food coloring dyed dough in the freezer and then cut into slices, and into fourths. Baked with mini chocolate chips inside for charming seeds, this treat can be perfect for any season, especially summer, when you cannot get your hands on a fresh watermelon.
   
      Until next recipe...
            ~Ally~

Watermelon cookies and snakes with the extra green!! 

         I love cheesecake, but it's not the healthiest dessert in the book. Plus, once you eat one small slice because you're being "good," you just have to have another one; saying the first one was "small." With these facts in tow, I made personal cheesecake cupcakes. I swirled some cherry preserves through the filling and made a concentrated cherry sauce to put on top. This recipe is easy and fun to make, with a browned sugar cookie for a crust. Each person gets their own, and it is already portion controlled.

Until next recipe,
~Ally~

P.S.  These would be a great idea for a party!

I made lemon cheesecake. Yes, CHEESECAKE! It was a huge success. I used a Williams Sonoma cookbook with a recipe for Lemon Cheesecake. The crust was half gram cracker crumbs and half lemon square crust crumbs. The filling was thick and I added extra citric acid to make it super citrusy. Then I refrigerated it overnight. My family and my neighbors loved it! Shirley, my neighbor, said that it tastes silky but was disappointed that I only made one. I definitely recommend making this great summery treat. 

Williams Sonoma; Cakes and Cheesecakes

Until next recipe...

~Ally~

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Today, at 2:00 in the morning, I decided to bake tiramisu cupcakes. Half of the batter was made with coffee and the other without coffee, and then I marbled them together. When they were done baking, I filled them with a mixture of mascarpone cheese, vanilla extract, whipped cream (In which I made myself), and powdered sugar. Then, I made my frosting with cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and some more whipped cream to make it light and fluffy. Using a spatula, oppose to piping it on, I added it to the cupcakes and sprinkled on some shaved dark chocolate. All in all, a pretty tasty cupcake. Trust me, it tastes as good as it looks, (If not better.)

Until next recipe...
~Ally~

Chocolate Mousse

     Chocolate Mousse today! I just bought a new recipe book with Everything; All the basics. And in this nifty little book was a nifty little recipe for Chocolate Mousse.
     I used a makeshift double-boiler to melt the chocolate and butter together. I whipped all of the other ingredients to either soft or stiff peaks. I poured the fluffy mixture into small wine glasses and put them into the refrigerator to set up for a few hours. ~ About 3-4 hours later, they weren't really cold enough, (Or at least as cold as I wanted them), so i put them in the freezer. About 20 minutes later we took them out and served them with raspberries.
     And let me tell you, Delicious! I think the key is to make everything well "fluffed." It'll make for a lighter mousse. Without being too dense, this recipe is chocolaty enough to not be overpowering. I defiantly recommend making it.

Until next recipe...
~Ally~  

You can fin the recipe that I used in this book: How to Cook Everything: The Basics. All You Need to Make Great Food by Mark Bittman