Shark Week

So, being that it is the last week of July, and the start of August, Discovery Channel is hosting their annual Shark Week. For me, this means hiding from dad for a week while he plays "Jaws" and sings "da na. da na. da na" [aka the shark theme music]. I am not a fan of sharks. But I am a fan of baking. So, in the spirit of Shark Week, I made these cookies. Well, mom made the cookies, I made the fondant toppers - they are Sprinkled With Love [and the fear of sharks]. :)

Homemade Fondant

Alrighty, folks. Mom made a deal with me...not sure if I like it too much but, we'll give it a shot.
Here's the deal:
Since I'm leaving for school in 3 weeks, being crammed in a 200 square foot room, I probably won't be cooking or baking until I come home on the weekends. But there is a kitchen on every floor, so I'll definitely check that out. Anyways, mom said while I'm gone, she would do the baking and send me the pictures, and I'll do the posting - because I think she's always wanted to go into business together :)

SO...Here's the fondant recipe!
1 [16 oz] bag of marshmallows
1/2 cup Crisco
4-5 TBSP Water
1 [2 lb] bag powdered sugar

 2 pounds of powdered sugar...

16 ounces marshmallows..

Put the marshmallows in a large, microwavable bowl, and add the water [all of it at once]. Microwave on high [uncovered] for 2 minutes, or until melted. Try and stir the mixture every 30 seconds.

Once out of the microwave, add 1 pound of powder sugar. This will get sticky...

Take this 1/4 cup of Crisco shortening, and spread it ALL OVER THE COUNTER. Anywhere you will be working will need to be slathered in this stuff. 

Dump the lumpy mixture onto the greased counter top. Knead it, adding powder sugar until smooth and firm. 

Keep kneading...

The finished fondant should look smooth like this.

Make sure to wrap it tight in plastic wrap so it stays fresh, unless you are using it right away. 

An example of what can be made with fondant...I love this little frog...he turned out soo cute! 

Finally, if the fondant is too soft, sprinkle it with some more powder sugar, and of course make sure it has been Sprinkled With Love. :) 

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecakes

Forgive me, there aren't any other pictures...I was baking these lovely desserts with Andrea and forgot to take pictures along the way. Anyways, it was really easy...

sooo to make your individual chocolate covered strawberry cheesecakes just...
[1] Mix together 2 [8oz] packages of softened cream cheese, 5 tablespoons powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla [and a dab of pink food coloring, if you so desire] in mixer until light and fluffy.
[2] In another bowl, mix together 1/4 cup melted butter and 1 cup graham cracker crumbs until firm.
[3] Place 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of the graham cracker and butter mixture into the chocolate shells.
[4] Add a dollop of the cream cheese mixture on top of the graham cracker 'crust.'
[5] Place 1/2 of a strawberry on top of each cheesecake.

The final step: Make sure each cheesecake is Sprinkled With Love

Chocolate Cupcake Shells!

How good do these sound?? I'm super excited to be sharing this with you. I am proud to say that this recipe is extremely simple and takes less than 30 minutes to complete [this includes clean up time]. So here we go...

Ta-Da! The finished product! Don't worry though, I'll give instructions on how to get this cute cup!
Just follow these step-by-step instructions, and within a short bit of time, you'll have your own lovely dessert shells.

First, start with these Silicone Baking Cups [from Crate&Barrel]. Wash and dry them...make sure they are fully dry!

Start with some chocolate disks...notice they are bigger than chips and a little better quality. I found these at the local cake shop, for about $4 per bag. Anyways, pour them into a bowl [I only used 1/4 of the bag - it made 7].

Next, melt the chocolate. I microwaved mine for 1 minute at 50% power. It looked gorgeous. I did also try this with some specialty chocolate [Barry Callebaut Chocolate] and it didn't work out too well. Yes, the cups worked, but they started to melt as soon as they came into contact with my hands.

Next, scoop about 2 tablespoons of melted chocolate into the silicone cups. Make sure the bottom is entirely covered, and extends up the sides of the cup.

I only did one at a time, because it was easier for me. Once the chocolate is in the cups, swirl it around the edges, until the whole cup is fully covered in chocolate. After I did this, I turned the cup upside down and shook out the excess chocolate [just so the cups weren't too thick]. Stick the chocolate cup in the freezer for 3-5 minutes.

Ta-Da!! They are out of the freezer!

Once out of the freezer, carefully pull the edges off the cup. After you have loosened the edges, pull the silicone back [it should turn inside-out pretty easily]. However: DO NOT put too much pressure on the bottom of the cup...it will cause the bottoms to break.

The finished product! Later today, I'm hoping to fill it with strawberry cheesecake filling and graham cracker crust for a delightful Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cheesecake.

Hope you enjoyed the Chocolate Cupcake Shells:)

-Sprinkled With Love

First Food!

Alrighty! The first Sprinkled with Love food item is...


Chocolate Cupcake Shells! 


A picture will be up tomorrow when I make more, I promise. :)
On Sunday, I went to my boyfriend's sister's 12th birthday party...and, like a usual birthday party, there were cupcakes. These, however, were ice cream cupcakes from a local ice cream shop [name shall stay anonymous]. Her dad asked me if I had ever tried to duplicate the cupcakes - since I turned his son into quite the little chef. I answered yes I know how to make them, but no, I haven't tried the cupcake all together because I couldn't get that chocolate shell just right.
So, here I am on this great Thursday, pondering what to bring to a party tomorrow night. My mind started going over every possible dessert idea. ever. Well, I decided to make the shells. I'll post a picture and instructions tomorrow.
But for now I'll tell you what I'm going to do with them! I found this recipe for Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries. Sounds delightful, right? Yes. It does. I'm bringing a variation of those to the party. So where do the cupcake shells come in? I'm going to put the graham cracker crust as a bottom layer to the no-bake cheesecakes. Followed by a delicious cream cheese center, that I'm contemplating dying pink for the strawberry...all topped with a pretty sliced strawberry, and of course, it will be Sprinkled With Love :) 

Why Hello, There :]

Welcome to my blog, Sprinkled With Love [♥]! Here you'll find the lovely little creations I make almost daily. But first, a little bit about myself...

I got braces in 5th grade, shortly after, in 7th grade, they were removed.

After that, I decided that I wanted to be an orthodontist - mainly because I wanted to give children the confidence of having straight teeth [just like my orthodontist did for me].

During my 4 years of high school, I made sure every friend had a cake or cupcakes on their birthday [even if it was in the middle of the summer]. I would bring cookies in randomly because "I just had a hankering for cookies."

Now, still wanting to be an orthodontist, I bake everyday. Literally.

And it hit me about 2 weeks ago [5 weeks before I go to college to study Dentistry] that maybe I belong in Culinary School...

So fellow bakers, read, and enjoy :)

-Sprinkled With Love [♥]