Cheater Cheater Pumpkin Eater

It's been awhile! Tipsy has been a very busy girl these past few months! What's a busy girl to do? I had three parties to bake for last week, so I grabbed some boxed mix for the cupcakes and some pastry pride for the topping....shhhh! Don't worry! I doctored up both mixes with extra vanilla and chopped white chocolate chips for the white cake and chopped semi-sweet chips for the chocolate cake...you gotta be sneaky to make the box mix delish!

I also called for some decorating help! Luckily I had a couple of volunteers in no time!

I baked up the chocolate and vanilla cupcakes, whipped up the pastry pride (adding chocolate to half of it), picked up some vino and called the girls over!

We whipped up some colors per our Cupcake Consultant, Alicia. I did the base frosting and passed em' on over to the lovely ladies to make them.

We had plenty of supervision!

And Pico helped too!

The girls getting their decorating going!

The first masterpiece...

The crazy cupcakes. Each one got a little more funky as we sipped our Sauvignon Blanc..Alicia even invented the Pumpkin Waterfall look and Natalie created the Starry Night cupcake. It was amazing!

Cheers to cheating with some box mix/nobody guessing and cupcake decorating ladies night!

Happy Halloween!

Fun times!

xoxo,

Tipsy

Easter Cake!

Anyone who was at the Fam Easter celebration this year will know that I had a really hard time answering the question, "What kind of cake is that?" The reason Tipsy was stuttering? Not because I had a drink! This cake is so delicious and has so many key ingredients that I couldn't simmer it down to a brief title! Instead I replied, "Apricot Brandy, Almond Orange Cake with Apricot Brandy Jam, Apricot Grand Marnier Cream Frosting and Chocolate Ganache with Grand Marnier."

Is that a sentence? I don't think so! But this cake says enough for itself! I just loved it!

What says Spring more then some fruity boozey cake? To me, nothing! ;)

Ingredients:

3 eggs

1 cup sour cream (I skipped the sour cream and went for the fruit/booze! I substituted 1/4 cup apricot Brandy, 1/4 cup orange juice and 1/2 cup whole milk)

2 teaspoons vanilla

2.5 cup cake flour (sifted)

2/3 cups (unblanched) almonds (toast em' up and toss them in the food processor until finely ground)

.5 cup sugar

1/4 cup OJ

6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (grate it up in the food processor separately from the almonds)

1.5 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons orange zest

1 cup butter

1/3 cup Grand Marnier ( I probably used about 3/4 cups...)

1/2 cup heavy cream


Chop up the almonds and broil them up in the oven...then toss into the food processor until finely ground.

Mix up the 1/4 cup OJ, vanilla, apricot brandy and eggs

Mix up all the dry ingredients with the orange zest.

Add the butter to the dry ingredients until well creamed-then add egg mixture in thirds and mix well between each addition.

This batter is sooooo yummy! I had to celebrate with a little voddie tonnie with my left over oranges!

Bake in (2) 9 inch round pans at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Once the cakes were done I used a toothpick to make holes all over...then brushed on a generous amount of orange juice and the Grand Marnier...you can't go wrong here!

Once the cakes were cool and the OJ & Grand Marnier was absorbed I filled the cake with Apricot Jam which I had heated up with some apricot brandy for extra flavor.

I whipped up some cream and added about a cup of Apricot Jam and some Grand Marnier for extra flavor. SO DECADENT!

Next, comes what I cannot live without...CHOCOLATE! Scald the cream on the stove and add the grated chocolate. Remove from the heat, stir until smooth and add some Grand Marnier to taste. It really just brings out the richness in the chocolate!

For decoration I wanted to add some Marzipan oranges. Just roll the color onto the Marzipan and then shape.

I added chocolate ganache to about half the cake so that there was something for everyone, scattered some grated almonds and then used the Marzipan pieces to complete the Spring look.

I couldn't wait to taste the final result, but it was worth it. So many fresh flavors happening...a perfect Spring inspired Easter dessert!

Cheers to boozey/fruity/chocolaty baked goods! This is just one of the reasons I love baking so much!

xoxo,

Tipsy

Love & Colors

For Valentine's Day I just had to pull out the old DeYoung cook book for some sweet sugar cookie love!

It is a family recipe...shhhh! So, I thought I would just share the colorful frosting that I mixed up with my dear friend Michelle instead of all the Dutch details!!

Rolling out and cookie cutting the dough...

Crispy baked cookies and all the colorful frosting!

I asked the Hubs to make one for me and look what he came up with! I LOVED IT! :)

My cookies for my Valentine! So cheesy, but I love it! If you can't be cheesy on Valentine's Day after a few mimosas, when can you be?

AND!!!!!! My new official Tipsy Baking mascot! We adopted her Valentine's weekend and she loved watching me make cookies/eating up any little crumb that I dropped-my little girl, Tipsy! She has three legs, so she doesn't really need a drink for an excuse to be tipsy...literally, she tips over! LOL! I just love her and have to share a cute pic of her!

Cheers to the hubs being creative, adopting a new little love and celebrating love with some fun colors and sweet treats!

xoxo,

Tipsy

Baked Brie Heaven

Oh Paula Deen! That is all I have to say! She has done it again!



I went in search for a yummy baked brie recipe for one of the Christmas parties we had and I found just what I was looking for! Brie is one of my favorite cheeses and it only gets tastier when it is melted between some flaky puff pastry with sweet raspberry jam and toasted pecans!



First melt a tablespoon of butter in a sauce pan and then add 1/2 cup of chopped pecans or walnuts. Add 1/8 teaspoon of the cinnamon and stir over the heat until the butter browns and the nuts are toasted.









Then roll out the pastry dough so that it is large enough to wrap around the brie and toppings. Her recipe is for an 8 oz. wheel of brie, but I doubled it and used a 1 lb. wheel. The more the better!





Whipping up the eggs a bit...

Then I got the brie ready by topping it with the nuts and the jam.

Then washing the egg on both sides of the puff pastry for that golden crispy layer!

Wrapping up all the goodness!

The baked beauty! This is such a decadent treat! Best served with some chilled white wine or some of my sassy spicy cider! ;)

Cheers to decadent brie heaven!

xoxo,

Tipsy

Sassy Spicy Cider

After braving the malls and party after party, the hubs and I are always ready for a little at home relaxation!

Our good friend Jeremy taught us this little delight and I added my lazy mans touch to it!

You can buy mulling spices at the store, heat the cider up with the spices and then strain them out. I went for the Starbucks Chai Tea Bag (lazy) approach. Once the cider is spicy enough, just remove them.

Once the cider is hot and spicy, pour it into your mug of choice and then add the sassy part. I went with DeWar's, but Crown Royal is delightful as well.

To measure the sassy addition, or not to measure? That is the question. Tipsy says-add to taste, but feel free to measure if you would like to know just what you are getting yourself into!

This little Holiday bevee is sure to make you warm...and toasty!

Enjoy with your favorite Holiday cheeses and treats.

Cheers to the Holidays! Merry Merry Christmas and much love to everyone!

xoxo,

Tipsy

Pumpkin Obsession Finale

So, I know I got carried away with the pumpkin, but I love me some pumpkin! This is officially my last pumpkin creation for this Holiday season that I will admit to making!



My sassy cousin Kaitlyn shared this recipe with me after she made my Thanksgiving with it and I made it for my Thanksgiving II with the hubs and friends. It turned out so good and I think it is because this recipe actually uses a whole can of pumpkin...the more, the better!



Thanks Kaitlyn Rose!



3 eggs beat

1 cup sugar

1 can pumpkin

3/4 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoon cinnamon



Mix together and pour on a cookie sheet that has sides. I lined mine with parchment paper and plenty of pam.













Bake for 15-20 minutes at 375 degrees. If you line the pan with the parchment paper and pam you can place the whole pan in the fridge for 20 minutes after it bakes. If not, turn the cake out onto a waxed paper covered in powdered sugar and then refrigerate. The cake is very sticky, so I would definitely recommend the parchment paper and pam option.






Mix up the filling:

1 cup powdered sugar

8 oz. cream cheese (soft)

4 tablespoons butter (soft)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla




Spread over the cake.








ROLL it up and then sprinkle powdered sugar on top. Mine looked a bit messy and split on the side, but it tasted so good and once you slice & serve it you can't see any of the flaws.







Sliced and delish!

Cheers to the pumpkin spice flavor that just brings in the Holiday feel! I love it!

xoxo,

Tipsy

Pumpkin Treats Meant for Breakfast

After eating cookies for breakfast I thought it would make sense to actually make a pumpkin scone breakfast!



I went with a recipe that looked delish..and I had some extra buttermilk in the fridge from my last Red Velvet Adventure!



2 cups flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon soda

1/2 cup cold butter (cut into small pieces)

1/3 cup cold buttermilk

1/2 cup pumpkin

1 teaspoon vanilla





First, mix up the dry ingredients and then use the pastry cutter to cut in the butter.

Mix the buttermilk, vanilla, pumpkin in a separate bowl.

Combine-don't over mix. Then knead into a circle and cut into 8 slices.

Mix up an egg wash with 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of milk. Wash each slice.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Cut in half and cover with butter! Sooooooo yummy and you just get the feeling of Fall with one of these to start your day!

Cheers to the Fall and my pumpkin obsession!

xoxo,

Tipsy

Passing on Delicious Traditions

My sweet and super creative friend, Luna, wanted a little lesson in pie baking! I have done many events with her and she is a phenomenal florist! We finally had a day off at the same time and couldn't wait to get some baking going. After my Pie with the Queen lesson I felt totally prepared for some Sunday Funday Tipsy Baking lessons!



We started with some huge Washington Apples from Costco. These bebes were juicy and delicious!



We sliced them up and added 2 tablespoons of Tapioca, 1.5 teaspoons cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 cup sugar, splash of vanilla and a squeeze of lemon juice to get the flavors going.....instantly made the whole house smell DELISH!!!















Then for the dough! The most important part! Fruit can do it's job easy...but the crust needs much work and help! We just had to bust out the Sauvignon Blanc to make it happen!



We used Granny's Recipe, of course!






Stirring up the filling again...maybe an excuse to smell this deliciousness!







Luna loves photography and I think she is hired full time for my blog...if only I can pay her in sweets! I think this is my favorite pic that I have posted!











After covering the pie with crust we made the slits for steam.






Ready to eat with some vanilla ice cream! YUMMMMM!

Thanks for joining me Luna! I can't wait to learn how to make your Abuelita's tortillas, frijoles y arroz! I was just so entertained to know that both of our grandmother's secret ingredients would be lard! ;) I guess we are both carrying on the tradition of knowing what makes things delicisous! I love it!

Cheers to carrying on delicious family traditions, no matter how fattening!!

xoxo,

Tipsy..and Luna!