August 18, 2006

Berry Bloomers

Despite being on a my strict 5 day diet throughout the week, I haven't stopped baking! I wasn't allowed to eat sweets; but it didn't mean I wouldn't bake them *wink* Haha. I brought these to my dear aunt Pauline's place when I went over for a visit. She hasn't been feeling very well lately and it was nice to see her after such a long time. I baked these in the morning with some extra lindt chocolate I had lying around and was trying extremely hard to resist eating them! I covered a couple of strawberries with chocolate and coated them with dessicated coconut and dragees. I stuck them onto satay skewers which were then inserted into the center of my iced cupcakes.
The bee's and flowers were made from fondant at the last minute and positioned on to the frosting with tiny mint leaves to match. The recipe for the chocolate cakes were from my favorite recipe resource website Epicurious. Link here for the cupcake recipe. I chose not to use the ganache glazing and instead; I piped a pretty swirl of whipped cream cheese frosting tinted in baby pink to help tone down the rich chocolatey flavor of the cupcakes.On the way there; I was getting stressed out and worried about what my aunt Pauline would think when she saw my sloppy display of baking cupcakes! She was an immensely talented pastry chef during her younger days and I've heard she makes the BEST fruit cakes! I finally convinced myself that it was the thought that counts and she would love them despite how it tasted! *laughs* I was happy that it was exactly what happened....she was delighted and impressed that I showed an interest in sugarcrafting. My several hours spent in her home was indeed an eye opener! We browsed through her huge collection of photographs of the cakes she's made through the years and I was absolutely blown away. She does magnificent lace and amazingly intricate piped royal icing designs in dainty and fragile borders. She filled me in with a couple of handy tips and interesting ideas and we were on our way. I've been looking forward to our next trip to her place since!! Haha If only I drove and I knew my way around the western suburbs. *sigH*

14 comments:

Little Monster said...

hi. A Singaporean friend of Amrit here. The dishes look really yummy. And is true that adding cooked oatmeal to muffins will make them chewier and more dense? My mum claims they do. So will it make muffins taste better?

dee said...

You're cupcakes looks really good!You should open a bakery ya know! =)

Su-Yin -Décorateur said...

thanks guys! :)
I'm off to the Whitsunday Islands for a sailing trip till tuesday...
I hope to be back and baking ASAP :P LOL
alma: hmm...Im not sure..I guess it depends on the recipe youre ussing, but they do make cookies chewier ;) so your mom could be right! LOL. Give them a try...no harm. Haha tell me how they turn out! THeyre definitely good for you body too! You can NEver too much fibre...heh

dee: haha thanks...*shrug* haha too much uni work...etc.. LOL I'm selling cakes and catering small time at home, but thats just going to be it for now. I guess in a couple of years after I get better :)

Anonymous said...

they are so lovely! do you have a fondant recipe to share?

Anonymous said...

The bee's are soooo adorable!

Lex said...

too pretty to eat!

Anonymous said...

the cupcake containers are so pretty! May I ask where did you get them from? Another Sydneysider here :)

Anonymous said...

ur so talented with ur cooking!! envy! keep it up~ looking beautiful as usual
vonzi

diddy said...

oh my godness! So pretty! What's the recipe for the fondant?

Su-Yin -Décorateur said...

Hey guys...I'm home..its been a long weekend!
Thanks for the compliments on the cupcakes, I can tell many are interested to learn to make fondant to sculpt tiny critters and flowers. Here is a website that could be helpful
http://whatscookingamerica.net/PegW/Fondant.htm
I've done it many times and it tastes better than many other recipes.
If you get too lazy; just buy a slab from your nearest cake decorating store LOL

Nadia: HEy! so happy to hear from you...its been a long time huh? I'm glad you still remember me ...haha I really hope you'll be trying out the recipes here. Instant food isnt really good for you ;)

dangkin said...

gosh.. just came across your site while bloghopping and can't stop myself... could you send me some of those cupcakes???

keep baking!

Su-Yin -Décorateur said...

abby: the containers were from peters at kensington.

Su-Yin -Décorateur said...

dangkin: Haha..theyve all gone down our tummies!~ sorry :P maybe next time ;)

Abster said...

These are EXTREMELY adorable!