Peter - Survived the fridge

My first attempt at making chocolate candy I learned a few things. Candy can crack when it hardens too fast. So, don't put the chocolate in the freezer to harden.

The first time I tried it, I put one in the refrigerator and one in the freezer to harden. The one in the freezer cracked the one in the refrigerator didn't.

I was able to fix it though by simply pouring milk chocolate over the dark chocolate and hardening it in the refrigerator.

I hope this helps you if you're making home made candies for Easter.

Tuesday Treats - Cake Pops

I wanted to try to make some cake pops so I bought a new silicon pan and made some cake batter

I filled the cups 3/4 full (which is a little to full - the cups overflowed a bit)

I took some flower foam
Then I bought a little shamrock bucket to "plant" my cake pops in. I cut the foam down to size and fit it inside the bucket


I stuck the cake pop sticks in the pops
then I planted them in the foam (next time I'll put a little green grass around the foam to cover it up.

The only problem was that I made cream cheese frosting, which is pretty heavy, so the cake pops wouldn't stay suspended on the sticks after they were frosted.

I'll have to try it again and use more of a glaze-type frosting. This was a fun baking experiment and I learned a few things that I'm hoping will help me next time.

Gummy Bear Mold

My son's friend melted down the gummy bears and poured the juice into a honey bear mold to create a giant gummy bear.

FRY...DAY - SUGAR THE BITTER TRUTH

Watch it...I guarantee you'll learn a lot and be in for a rude awakening

Here Comes Peter Cottontail

I wanted to try to make my own Easter Bunnies and chocolate eggs so I did. Of course this was my first try at molded chocolates. Real experimental food.

First I washed out the molds just to make sure no dust or unseen grime was hiding inside the plastic.

I air dried the molds to make sure no unwanted cotton tails or cotton fuzzies were stuck inside from the dish cloth drying method.

I let the silky, shiny chocolate cool down to about 90-100 degrees and I made sure by using a candy thermometer to double check the temp.

I poured the chocolate inside the molds (trying to be careful not to spill the chocolate all over the molds.

The chocolate I accidentally drizzled on top of the mold, I wiped off with a wet paper towel so I'd have a little less cleanup.

I let the chocolate cool for about 8 minutes before I put the molds in the fridge.
Then I had to unmold the eggs and bunnies


One of the bunnies didn't make it. The unmolding was too much for him.

I had to fit the egg pieces together but first I heated a knife and scored the edges of the egg by running it between the two halves to warm them up. Carefully I put the two sides back together



But first I had to stick some peeps inside and a few jelly bellies for a hidden surprise.


This was a fun experiment and I learned a few things so the next time I make more chocolate (probably this weekend) I'll have a better idea what I'm doing.

I thought the dark chocolate egg turned out pretty but then I wanted to try a milk chocolate bunny (my favorite) rather than the dark chocolate rabbit.
We'll have to wait to see if he survives the unmolding process. Keep your fingers X'd that Peter Cottontail survives or kids may not be getting any colored eggs in their baskets this holiday.

Green Knitting

Okay so it doesn't go with the outfit but I wanted to get a picture of my little button shawl before I had to head out for work. So I had my daughter snap a quick photo. And this is a seriously "green" shawl. My husband says it looks like a baby cape. . . okay, maybe it does but I still like it.

I wanted to make a shawl/scarf that was a little different than all the other ones I have. So I made this. It's clipped at the throat with a large green button.

Here's how I made it: first I have to cast-on and I start by making one loop

Then I do it over and over again

Next, I simply start knitting one loop after the other




Finally I was starting to make a little progress on my project...green knitting just in time for St. Paddy's Day.

Solutions

I love to put flowers on my front porch but the vases (stands) kept falling over. The wind here can be wicked.

So my husband said, "I can fix this." He took some scrap wood and put the scraps together
He fit the flower stands and cut the perfect size hole

and this is what he made.

Now, hopefully, my flowers won't fall over.