Been MIA! But I'm back!

I have been so busy with work, baking, church, and sleep! That I seem to have drifted away from myself!! But I'm so happy to be back!

I am going to post a few photos of my most recent creations, but please feel free to bop on over to sweetexperiments.com for the most up to date photos.

Baking is so fulfilling! I usually bake in the night hours when all is quiet and I get some great one on one time with God! I can honestly say that baking has given me the time that I have been needing with the Lord. Most people like to take time away and sit in a quiet place (Me too! Don't get me wrong) But when I get to spend time with God knowing that He is the one creating the artwork at my fingertips, I am soooo overwhelmed and excited. My roommate jokes me that I go overboard with details when I'm baking at night, but when everything is moving, you just have to move with it! I have to say that I will work on sharing more tips in future blogs, but I thought that this would be a great way to just get back into the swing of things!

** Okay, one tip: **
Seriously, when it says add one cup of powdered sugar at a time to your buttercream, do as it says! I don't have powder sugar everywhere anymore and it makes clean up go much faster! And truthfully, it takes about the same amount of time.

The traveling baker...

So here's the truth, I don't think that I can travel without baking something! With our family's trip to the Outer Banks, I carried my traditional box with some of my of baking needs =D I seem to pack those often! In the box, you can usually find: chocolate chips, flour, sugar, my favorite spoonula, brownie mix, white chocolate morsels, and parchment paper. Then depending on the trip, and whether or not I have access to a grocery store, there may be other ingredients/essentials in the box such as raisins, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, brown sugar, etc. So, of course, I also made the required trip to Harris Teeter once I got into town...

Since one of the items with me was a box of brownie mix and not really wanting to make brownies, again... I decided to make cookies! Something simple enough and easy to clean up! This is not something new but I knew that my niece and nephew would enjoy them. After I made two batches, I decided to add some crushed Oreos on the tops of the remaining cookies. (I think that it's a requirement that everyone take Oreos with them when they go to the beach!) After adding the Oreos, I baked the remaining cookies and allowed them to cool completely.

Of course, I can never leave well enough alone... I used the chocolate chips that I brought with me to top the cookies! I melted them in a ziplock sandwich bag in the microwave. Once thoroughly melted I cut off the tip of the bag and drizzled the chocolate over all the cookies.

So far, they are a hit with the kids... In the words of my niece, "These are very, VERY chocolate-y, Aunt Bethy!"

I'll take that compliment! =D

Father's Day!

So this Father's Day, I wanted to make a special cake for my dad! I was determined to make a cake like I had seen that was a shirt and tie. I thought that this would be something that he would enjoy as the kick off to our week in the Outer Banks.

So... I have this one habit that is not bad for those who consume my cakes, but doesn't promote the best sleep habits for me: I refuse to make cakes too early to ensure that they are the freshest they can possibly be for an event! I usually will start a cake no earlier than 12 hours before delivery so that all the elements of the cake are fresh. =D

But anywhoo... I decided to make a double layer chocolate cake using a recipe that had been given to me with vanilla buttercream. While the cakes were baking, I made the buttercream. My roommates love buttercream but can't stand the amount of powder sugar that ends up EVERYWHERE!!! I really need to find a way to make buttercream that doesn't dust most of the cabinets during the process! hehehe, but until then, it's just the way it's going to have to be!

While the cakes cooled, I made marshmallow fondant. I LOVE MARSHMALLOW FONDANT! It's like candy! Sometimes it's just too sweet, but it's so much fun to create with. It reminds me of grade school art class when you were given clay and told to create something! There are endless possibilities! =)

Covering the cakes was not too bad, as well as, creating the pocket and the collar. (Yes, the pocket is on the wrong side... oops! My sister and I had a giggle over that!)
But the tie.... I wanted to make a Virginia Tech colored tie for dad being a VT dad and my brother-in-law being a VT graduate. The tie was not too bad to cut out and create, but making maroon fondant! *sigh* orange, easy. Easy to wash off my hands, but maroon... =( not so much! Side story... I had to sing with the worship team in less than 6 hours of completing the cake and my hands were STILL PINK from the maroon coloring... And wouldn't you know that the first line in the welcoming song that we had to sing was "We lift our hands in the sanctuary..." And I did with reckless abandon... and there they were, up in the air, full on pink! I thought it was kinda funny! =D But I digress...

I got the tie on the cake and decided that the best way to display my signature 'daisy' on the cake this time would be as a tie tack! Every cake I make will have a daisy somewhere on it - sometimes it will be white and yellow but other times it may match the color of the cake. It's one way that you will know that it's a cake that I've had my hands on. =D

The End Results...

My Signature...

An 'Inside' look

Here we go!!

So at the recommendation of several friends, I am starting a blog to share in this new phase of my life! This is all very new for me. I was asked a few months ago to bake a cake for one of my friend's marriage vow renewal and from there the request for cakes has just continued to grow!

The next request was for a wedding cake for another friend...

I won't even pretend that I knew what I was doing at the time, but the cake got there and the bride loved it! Other than that, I'm not sure what else matters (Oh, she loved the taste too - that's pretty important as well!)

Since then I decided that I would start working on teaching myself how to make other things as well. Here are a few more photos of some of my recent cakes...

Memorial Day...


A Friend's "Golden" Birthday (hence the gold dots)...


A Co-Worker's Last Day at Work...


My Dearest Friend and Roommate's Birthday!


Since they seem to be all the rage right now, I have also started experimenting with cupcakes...


Baby Shower...


An Arts Cafe...


There are a few more, but I figure there is more time to share. =D But hopefully, this is only the beginning!