March Challenge

I'm going on Spring Break tomorrow so I won't be able to post the results of this month's challenge on the 30th as was decided. So here they are- but don't worry, I managed to mess up my camera and lose my pictures so I won't spoil what it looks like (it wasn't the greatest looking cake anyhow).
It tasted amazing and I have to give props to the maker of this recipe! Unfortunately I didn't make the buttercream quite right, so it was a lot runnier than it was supposed to be and just dripped down the sides. (I forgot to cool the sugar mixture before putting the butter in). The cakes themselves turned out wonderfully- I normally have a hard time getting the cake to come out of the pan in one flawless piece, but these came out beautifully. Overall a ten (maybe not on my presentation, but it tasted so good!)
Oh and remember how I joined daring bakers for that term paper I was writing? Well we got our grades back; I got an A!
Happy Spring Break!

Busy Busy Busy

Hey!
I unfortunately will not be able to participate in this month's challenge. Everything has been crazy busy, and I just don't have time to take a day out to make this month's challenge. As far as what's going on with me, I just committed to going to Indiana University in the fall to play volleyball (I signed about a week ago) so that's really exciting. Club volleyball is picking up and so we've had tournaments the last couple weekends and I've met a couple of the girls that will be playing on my team next year!

I turned in my I-Search paper (that was on baking) and I didn't get a grade yet, but it looks great! I took pictures of all the things that I baked and included them in the paper and it looked really awesome, so I just thought that everyone should know it was a hit!

Good luck with this challenge! Count me in next time!

Lemon Meringue Pie

I had never made a lemon meringue pie before this, but it was really quite good! The meringue turned out beautifully. Unfortunately I was impatient and I cut into the pie before the lemon filling was completely set, so it ended up running, but it did eventually set so I guess I did it right. I used real lemons and made juice from them and it made the pie very flavorful, and a little tart (it had a nice zing! as my dad would say). As a first challenge I would have to say that this went very well and it tasted amazing- I already have requests to make another one for the people who didn’t get to taste it the first time!

Cheese Crowns

My first creation for my I-Search paper came from Betty Crocker's New Cookbook: Cheese Crowns. They have a fillo dough pastry and a layer on the bottom that is pecans and brown sugar topped with a creme cheese filling. They turned out really well. You actually weren't supposed to use fillo dough, but puff pastry (i accidentally bought the wrong thing, but I used it anyhow and it ended up working out). I topped them with raspberries and sometimes chocolate sauce as well.

They were surprisingly easy to make and tasted fantastic. I used fat free creme cheese so there were fewer calories; probably rounding off at about 300 calories per crown. They only keep in the fridge for about 2 days, but they're normally gone before they can go bad.

Chocolate's Biggest Fan

Hey!
I just joined Daring Bakers and have yet to bake my first challenge, but I'm going to take on the Yule Log. I'm writing a paper for my senior year English class and it has to be an exploration of something that is interesting to you; I'm doing baking. I've been baking since I was a little kid (starting with licking the spoon while my dad made cream puffs, cake, whatever the choice of the day was) and now I'm taking on the enterprise myself.