Fears, Flops and Total Fails

Barely a Bear

I usually only post my best work. I mean who wants to post their worst failures--but, believe me, I've had my share of flops and failures. See, the little bear (above) who literally collapsed before I could even frost him? Or, the sad turkey below that shouldn't have been so afraid of Thanksgiving because he looked so sorry, no one would want to eat him.

Super Sad Turkey

 Or what about the time I'd seen one too many episodes of Cake Boss and Ace of Cakes , so I thought I could carve a cake into the shape of my brother-in-law Bo?

Bo Knows but this time Bo Blows

Or the time I decided to make cupcakes when it was about 100 degrees outside and my frosting kept melting?

Dragonfly Frosting Fail

Or the time my homemade marshmallow fondant was a complete flop?

Fondant Failure

I could go on and on, but the one thing I'm proud of is the fact that I haven't let my previous failures stop me. Instead, I push the fear of my next failure to the back of my brain and simply try to learn something from each of my (admittedly) horrible flops and failures and move on.

And, by letting go of my disasters, I've had some really happy moments. Such as:

Fatina's Graduation Barbie Cake - Because You're Never Too Old for Barbie

The graduation cake I made for my daughter-in-law, Fatina.

And, the Hello Kitty cake I made for a friend's daughter's birthday.

Hello Kitty

Or the wedding cake I made for my friend (with my daughter-in-law's help).

I Do Instead of iDud

My point is, sometimes we need to laugh at ourselves and pick up our wounded pride and simply strive to be the best we can be. And--of course don't be so silly as to compare yourself to the Cake Boss or the Ace of Cakes. Instead, simply have fun with your friends and family and learn to laugh with them when things go wrong because that's the best way to make it through to another day.

Family Laughing at my Flops

Poop Emoji Cupcakes

Have you ever wanted to make a poop emoji cupcake? Well I have. So, I did. I made these little guys for my brother-in-law's 60th birthday. (He's a plumber - so it seemed sort of appropriate.) I simply baked a couple dozen chocolate cupcakes and then I piped chocolate frosting onto the top using a piping pastry bag, without using a tip. 

At first, I tried using a #10 Wilton tip, but the rings of frosting were too small so I piped them into a bowl and started over. I decided not to use any tip at all so the rings of frosting would be big. And, I think it worked out great.

Then I cut out the mouth and eyes using black and white fondant. I used piping tips to get the circles. And I cut the largest circle in half to make  the mouth. 

I filmed it all using a time-lapse setting so it wouldn't be too boring.

Click here to watch how I did it

I also printed out these little signs and taped them onto cupcake sticks and stabbed them into the cakes. 

Let me  know what you think. And, if you try this, please share some pictures with me. I'd love to see them.

PALEO DESSERT

If you're looking for something that's tasty and healthy here's a simple Paleo dessert you can make in about 20 minutes.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
2 cups dates (soak them for about 5 minutes in warm water) (chop into pieces)
1 Tb vanilla
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup craisins
1 teaspoon kosher salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

Pulse ingredients in food processor or on high speed in your blender. Form into balls sprinkle with coconut flakes and bake at 350 on greased cookie sheet for 15 minutes or until coconut is toasted to a warm brown color.

ADVANTAGES OF THIS PALEO DESSERT:

There is no added sugar, no processed foods and  it tastes sweet and delicious...like a true dessert.

WEIGHT WATCHERS POINTS:

Appox. 5 pts per cookie