Knitting Lessons

I've decided that I want to learn how to knit. I learned as a child to crochet but I've been wanting to diversify. My friend Windy started teaching me several years ago so I'm not starting from nothing. But, honestly, I hardly remember it's been so long.

Well since domestic tasks such as knitting aren't as widely known anymore, I thought I'd browse Amazon for recommendations and I found a DVD. I was originally looking for a book but the DVD sounded like it would be very helpful. Here's the link. So far it's been great. I've picked it right back up. I did a couple of practic swatches and then started on my project. I am making a bright pink scarf for my first project. All it uses is the knit stitch so hopefully by the time I am finished I will be an expert at one stitch.

Bake Day.

So it is time to break in the new Kitchenaid. Sadly, I had it for almost 2 whole days before I got around to using it. So today I just went wild. Me and my sidekick (Emmalyn) decided to go all out.



First we made rolls. I learned my first lesson though. My mixer is too big to mix just one egg white, so I was forced to double the recipe. Unfortunately I doubled everything but the yeast so they were a little dense, but still tasted great nonetheless.

Next we made Apple Cake which I just searched for online. I was going to use the one at Smitten Kitchen because I almost started drooling when I saw it, but alas, I do not have a tube pan. Gotta put that on the shopping list...

So then we had to move on to the "what's for di nner" phase. For the menu right now I had everyone in the family pick a couple of recipes or favorite meals and today I let Emmalyn pick hers. She chose Fish & Chips with Jello. Now, stirring Jello just so happens to be one of my most unfavorite thing to do in the world. I remember enjoying it as a child when my mother let me suck all the ice cubes after she was done with them. (Now that was some good times.) But the whole stirring thing just doesn't get me off. Sooooo, KITCHENAID, again comes to the rescue. I poured the hot water in, added the Jello and let her rip. Then I just cleaned the kitchen while it dissolved. When it was done cooling in the refrigerator the kids cut out shapes and put them on a plate for dinner. They then got to top it with fresh whipped cream that it whipped in the ...da dada da...you've got it...the Kitchen aide. I know, I'm smitten. Then we had apple cake for desert.



First I tried it with a little powdered sugar on top.

Then I thought, hmm, I've got all of these new and fantastic cake decorating implements, I'll pipe some whipped cream ontop of it. This particular piece was Steve's. He didn't seem to have any complaints.

Emmalyn was making her own littl emini cakes with the leftover flour and apples from the cake and Brötchen (rolls). She loves to help me bake. I´m telling you, she´s going to be ready to be a housewife long before she is even able to start Kindergarten.

Cake decorating for Dummies

So I've been learning cake decorating from my friend Christy. It has been fun.

My first cake was a birthday cake where we just practiced doing using the star tip, writing and drop flowers and most important, icing the cake. I also learned how to use parchment triangle bags. I wrote Happy Birthday on it and the next day we invited Christy's kids over and dressed up for a happy-unbirthday party. They loved it. It's hard not to love something that includes cake.


My second lesson I learned shell borders and more flower practice. I forgot to take a picture of that cake which happened to turn out fabulously. It said flower power and I used really bright colors. Very 60's. Additionaly, my hand mixer just happened to die while making the frosting for this cake so unfortunately I had to convince Steve that I really needed a Kitchen Aid. IT's so sad, I know!!!

My third, and most recent, lesson I learned how to make roses. I made carrot cake and filled it and iced it with cream cheese frosting. I don't actually recommend using cream cheese for your final icing though as you can see that it cracked. I would use it for a crumb coat and then use buttercream for the outside. I thought roses were going to be ridiculously hard but it turns out that they weren't so hard as long as the frosting is the right consistency. I mention this of course because my original cream cheese frosting was way too thin and the flowers just sunk into themselves as I made them. I hurried and whipped up some buttercream frosting though and it worked like a dream. Here are pics of the most recent cake. I even did a cute little border along the bottom and tried to put flowers on the sides. It turns out that putting flowers on the sides is better if you let them dry first and then just glue them on later. I didn't really have a plan but I still felt pretty successful.

As a side note. I also found this great video instruction segment on how to start making and decorating cakes. The women included a recipe for making your own cake pan grease. I used it on the 3rd cake and it worked like a dream. My cakes just popped out of the pan.
http://www.monkeysee.com/play/982-cake-decorating-how-to-prepare-your-cake-pan-for-baking\

Her receipe for the goop is as follows:
Mix together:
1 c flour
1 c shortening
½ c oil

She´s Here!!!

So it looks like it was meant to be on my counter. You can´t deny it.

It fits perfectly under my counter. The color is nice and commercial looking. There is no doubt in my mind that it wouldn´t have any trouble beating up some bread dough.

And it has this powerful presence. Like if I don´t make sure to keep it clean it might decide to do something drastic. I might need to name it...