Harry Potter cake

Ahhh.. Mr. Potter, eh? I am not aware of when but Harry Potter movie franchise has become one of my favorites. I must have watched all the movies at least 10 times and still do every time there's a marathon on TV. So, I am more than excited when someone approaches me with a Potter theme cake design. These are the 2 that I've made so far.

 
 A monster book theme cake

 

Interpretation of Hogwarts, dark nights and many other things that make Harry Potter series fun!

 

A little take on the main characters.

 

Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies

These are the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever made or had. I came across this recipe a couple of years ago when I was looking for easy cookie recipe to make with my daughter during long winter break (Oh, how I dread those! - Considering the NW weather.) I tried these out and then did some modifications and now it’s the go-to recipe for me.

 

 

 

Recipe makes 3 ½ dozen cookies

Prep time - 15 minutes

Baking time - 12 minutes

Ingredients -

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed light brown sugar

½ cup white sugar

2 eggs OR Ener-G egg replacer for 2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

3 cups quick-cooking oats

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

 

Directions-

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg replacer (or eggs), then stir in vanilla.

Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended.

Mix in the quick oats, walnuts, and chocolate chips. Drop by heaping spoonful onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake for 12 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Note - As a healthy alternative, you can use 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup applesauce.

  

First post

Hello and welcome to my first post. This is a very timid step in a huge world of blogging and I am hoping to learn as I progress. As a new year resolution, I've decided to slow down in cake decorating and spend some more time with my kids. But destiny has other plans and the constant phone calls for cake inquiries makes me wonder if I can do it all. Has anyone ever done it all? So, I fall back into trap and accept a few orders for later half of this month. Am I a masochist? Maybe not but cake decorating surely gives me a creative outlet that I can't find anywhere else. For me, cake decorating and music is an amazing combination and I feel like I am in my own little heaven.

Another resolution is to learn to take better pictures. It's such an irony since my first cousin is a professional photographer. If only we lived closer, I would have her take all my pics.

 
At the end of my first post, here are some pictures from my daughter's 7th birthday. There were a lot of firsts here. First time I used a stencil, first time I made a huge gum paste number standing on top (without it breaking on me), first time making gum paste peony.






 

 

The cake was rainbow with cream cheese filling. I love the contrast of bright red peony against black and white cake.