Cake. Inspired.

Finally getting this review posted.  I had a friend ask me if I had tried these new Ghirardelli cake mixes and I didn't even know of their existence.  Sorry Ghirardelli, nothing personal. I picked up two different types of mixes and decided to go with dark chocolate first. I used my typical hacks... melted butter rather than oil and milk rather than water. Instead of a full cake, I made cupcakes.  (its good to switch things up a little now and then). Final Impressioin  It doesn't have the slight 'chemical taste' like the cheaper brands but its significantly more expensive. My Mancave dwellers are my most trusted critiques and they ate every last crumb. I didn't mind the flavor or texture at all, which came as a total surprise. If I HAD to use a mix, what brand would I choose???? Ghirardelli. Its worth paying a little more AND I see coupons for them on a regular basis so that helps offset the higher price. Thumbs up from the C...

  Old MacDonald had a farm Yi-Yi-Yo! My oldest daughter loved McNuggets and she would ask to go to Old MacDonalds Yi-Yi-Yo for McNuggets...  So, of course, the name stuck..... 28 yrs and holding. This is a 2 tier which is very similar to the last 'farm' cake however this was for a sweet little girl who loves everything about Old McDonald.  I tried to place flower vines and bushes here and there to girl it up a little.   I love to create these woodsy type cakes, they are just too fun.

Lately people are requesting farm or woodland type cakes.  Soooo fun!  This was for little Coles 1st birthday (wanna guess who forgot to take pictures?)

Happy Birthday Harley!   What an honor to this was to create a cake for someone who is beyond special.  This is one I will never forget.  (this was not the original design... during transport we were literally ran off the road by some lunatic, which caused us to lose 2 layers. Jerk! Total nightmare.)

This is rapidly rising to the top of my 'most requested'.  Yeah, its pretty much amazing. Chocolate Chipotle Ganache Ingredients: 1-1/4 C semi sweet chocolate chips 1/4 C milk chocolate chips 2 TBSP unsalted butter 3/4 C heavy cream 3/4 tea ground chipotle child e  powder Place cream in a small sauce pan and place over medium heat.... keep an eye on it Add chips and butter to a microwave bowl and zap 'em for about 20 seconds.  Remove, stir a little and zap again for about 15-20 seconds. Set chips aside until heavy cream is ready, when little bubbles form around the outside remove from heat and carefully pour over chips.  Let sit for a minute or two then stir until well blended.  Clean the sides of the bowl COMPLETELY then use a large piece of saran wrap cover, pushing the saran down until its sitting on top of ganache, then smooth saran up the sides of the bowl.  This is an important step, ganache will form a weird f...

This cake recipe is adjusted just a tad from the online Hershey's Chocolate Cake .  Hey, the Hershey's people have been doing chocolate since like forever... they know their stuff. Ingredients: 1-3/4 C sugar 1-3/4 C all purpose flour 3/4 C cocoa - I prefer Dutch process 1-1/2  tea baking powder 1-1/2  tea baking soda 1  tea salt 2  eggs 1  C milk 1/2  C butter, melted 2  tea vanilla  (the good stuff.  Never settle for anything less than the best) 1  C boiling water Directions: Heat oven to 350 degrees - higher altitudes lower by 25 degrees Grease pans and line bottom with parchment paper Place dry ingredients into a large bowl and then use a whisk to blend.  In a separate bowl place the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, beat on medium to blend together.  Now add the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with hand mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes.  *St...