Marshmallow Fondant

I may never frost a cake again



Marshmallow Fondant

Ingredients
16 oz mini marshmallows
2 lb powdered sugar
4 Tbsp. Water
Shortening for greasing bowl & hook (Hands)


Directions
1.) Microwave marshmallows & water on high 1 min
2.) Grease dough hook & Bowl with shortening
3.) Put 3/4 of the sugar into mixer & add marshmallow
4.) Mix on low speed the check consistency (It will still be a little sticky at this point. If it is real sticky add some of the remaining sugar & mix a minute or so. #Repeat until fondant is firm & neither dry or sticky)
5.) turn out onto a clean & firm work surface. Knead by hand just a minutes until there are no flecks of dry powdered sugar remaining, Wrap in cling wrap or waxed paper & let fondant set for about 30 minutes.

to add color, add to marshmallows before mixing with sugar
to make it chocolate, add about 1/2 c cocoa powder be sure to sift it first.

This recipe makes 3 lbs. of Fondant


Compare the cost of $9 + per box from the store to just $3.77 homemade.

Adventures in Baking

This week we have had some Baking Adventure.
I wanted to make sure Bailey's cakes were AwesomeSauce.
Also this would be a trial run for my oldest daughter's
birthday in September.

We found an excellent pound cake recipe
It came from a lady's recipe box from
her mother's mother from England.
works great in a layer cake, & in cuppys.



This recipe makes 2 8" - 9" rounds
or 24 cupcakes.

6 oz Butter (soft)
13 oz Sugar (granulated)
Beat together for 5 minutes (Medium speed)
4 eggs (Lg.) room temp add 1 at a time
2 Tbsp. vanilla extract
Beat on Low speed 3 minutes (scrape bowl 3 times)
9 oz flour (All Purpose, Sifted)
3/4 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
Sift flour into bowl & wisk in B.P. & Salt
1/2 C. Sour Cream
1/2 C. Whole Milk
Add flour alternately with milk & Sour Cream (Low Speed)
1/3 flour, milk, 1/3 flour, sour cream, 1/3 flour

Mix on med for 2 minutes
Bake at 350 degrees F until done
Start checking at 15 minutes until, no crumbs come out on toothpick
& top in light golden brown.

For cupcakes we filled 3/4 full and had to remove tops.
(for uniform tops for decorating, we simply laid a bread knife on the pan edge &
sliced thru & across. Common practice when cuppy grow too far out of tin cups.)
We also will only fill 1/2 full next time to see results.



We started checking cakes at 12 minutes &
added time in 5 min intervals till done.
Different ovens cook differently.

We removed from pans & cooled completely before
decorating.

I must add that I mix all my cakes with a paddle attachment in the
Large capacity Ninja Food System Blender, it works great

TIP:
all ingredients should be room temperature
for best results. (Old Tyme Baking Tip from my Nanny)

Finished Cupcakes


Finished Cake


Marshmallow Fondant coming up next.
I will share the decorating products used in this
particular cake.

Have a great day
If you try this recipe please share in the comments
your experience, or maybe a photo at our twitter.com/HerbGir1972
~V

Homemade Valentines

I had come across a very cool box of chocolates as I was scrolling through my Twitter Feed about a month ago. I was inspired to make my daughters Valentines treats this year.

I found The seller ConceptsInCandy on eBay

I'll be making the Easter & Christmas candies as well this year :)

Here is a picture of my inspiration with my own creation side by side
Do The Math



My cost was:
Hershey's Special Dark Chocolate Chips 1 bag
3 molds $2.50 each
2 decorative boxes about $1.00 each X2
about 1 hour of time

My candies are delicious dark chocolate
The hearts are filled with Nutella
The Skull is Marshmallow filled
There are solid bones & love shrooms
And 1 large chocolate covered marshmallow.

I planned to color some white chocolate but my girls were home on a
snow day, I got these finished because if the ice storm coming tonight
is bad I'll have no power to work with it tomorrow or maybe into The next day.

Simplicity is the answer th making it a better world.



Have A Happy Valentines Day 2014 ~V

Tiny Trees on a Tray

I've seen similar trees in one of my favorite catalogues for years at quite exhorbant pricing and had a little leftover oasis this year and decided What The Hey!

The most worrysome part of this project is cutting the oasis, it's dusty and messy (wet or dry) but it is so worth it in the end. I was going to Just Do It and have my kids oh and ahh and that be the end of it. But I put my 5 1/2 yr old daughter in charge and it was just the right kind of project for her.
I cut the stems (branches) all the right size and just let her go at it, and it's one of the most perfect decorations in our house. (both to look at & for fragrance)
And will be as much as a tradition in the future as making Gingerbread houses.

The oasis I had was in a square portion but you may be able to purchase cones and spheres as well.
So I recycled the old Oasis and cut it down into triangular shaped forms. (Shown here)Soaking in a bowl of water.

Arborvitae required quite a bit of branches. But was fun all the more.
We started from the bottom & worked our way up. We had to have longer stems for the damaged parts of the oasis.



Fraiser Fir was quite sappy & sticky
I plan to let my youngest finish up the boxwood tree tomorrow whilst I start the Holiday Baking.

Watch for homemade Grasshopper Cookies Recipe

Tomato Cage Topiary

This thought came to me all of a sudden this week as I was looking over the prices of live trees to put into my pots.
I had some extra greenery cut so I put my mind to work how to use it up
Repurpose your Tomato cages from the garden

This is a daytime and a nighttime view of my finished trees, They are large enough to make a statement in daylight or nighttime and the design can be more elaborate if you wish adding ornaments or garlands. I was simply using what I had around (the least expensive options)

Materials Needed:
Tomato Cages
Floral wire
Fresh Cut Greenery (16" pieces are optimal)
Embellishments (lights, Ornaments, Toppers)
one wire hanger cut into 6" pieces and bent into a U-shape to hold down tree into soil)

I started with an assortment of Tomato cages, and chose the least damaged of what I had.
I wired the tops to make a sort of teepee form

Then I started adding my greenery it was already cut into about 16" pieces since I was putting together wreaths and garland(Check out past blog posts from 2012). More pieces can be put into a bucket and cut into to make those. (it takes about 1/2 -3/4 a five gallon bucket to make each tree)
I used Sea Green Junipers for the ones pictured.

Wrapping once across the branch, under the first rung in the cage and back around is enough to hold on your branches.
If it seems thin push branches to one side and add a couple more.
You are really just creating an illusion, so unless you're going to have a professional checking out your work, the imperfections are what actually give this project its charm.
I topped off my Tree Creations with what ever red flowers I had around (they were inexpensive Dollar Store finds)
I also topped the very top with just a little fraiser fir branches. Just because.
We added a strand of solar led lights to each tree.

I'm thinking you could make a thin taller tree if you wired two cages together, and smaller one with cones of chicken wire. (Or even other topiary shapes it's only limited by the imagination)

Christmas decoration don't have to be costly or fancy to make the season special. Family & Friends and never forgetting the True Meaning of Christmas makes for a much more memorable & fulfilling Time.

Living Simpler is goof for you and good for the planet.


Here is a Sneak Peek of the next installation of our Christmas Decorating with the Kids.
Tiny Trees on a Tray

Lucrative Venture ~ Photos

I have two wonderful girls, which means I am going to have to find creative ways to create more income to support the habit that just seem borne into women of these times ... LOL
So with that said I have added quite a number of pictures to a new site in an attemp to sell some of my work. I take loads of pictures and only a small percent ever get seen, I really am picky as to what will represent my tastes and feelings at a certain time. I do although have loads of pictures that I love no one has ever seen. Through Instagram and Instacanvas I am offering an insight into how I see things around me and things I really love. My gallery has a good selection of different samples available now for those who would like to check it out.
There is no reason my photos taken with my phone can't pay for my phone. Anyway The money from the pics are going toward monthly phone payments as well as any money exceeding that amount will pay for my girls 2013 Christmas Vacation.(if all works out)
I will have some prints available of some older works as handsigned prints, Those will be available at a later date, I was not happy with the current printer's sample. Watch for the announcement of their availablity.

I participate in life, trying not to miss a thing, sometimes the little things are the

http://instacanv.as/tigerlily690

only things, watch for little things.
Have a great day
~v

This Too Shall Pass ~ INSOMNIA

Due to stress I have been having quite a bout with INSOMNIA lately.
I know it has been affecting my pleasant demeanor, although I haven't snapped to harshly at anyone yet. All my stress debunkers have failed, and I am resolved that it is going to just have to pass and I will just have to grin and bear it (and buy a new concealer stick...LOL)

Well last night in my attempt to use boredome to help sleep creep up onto my brain I found quite an interesting app on my Samsung SmartPhone...UDraw (FREE)

Here are a few examples of what rattled around and out of my fingertips, The best pic that was created actually didn't get saved, I have found with this app & my phone, it will shut itself down, Oh well what can I expect from something free right it will have it's glitches ;) But I think it will save enough of mine and my gals spontaneous art to satisfy and make up for the glitching.

I also have been playing around with a Sketch App, I think I will use that for my Christmas cards next year, a collage of pastel colored sketches, I can't wait...

Have a Blessed Day
Catterpillar Scarves coming up (Light, Compact, Warm, Attractive, and Fluffy)
Easy and fun to make, you can have one to match,contrast all your cold weather outfits ;)
~V

Fresh Christmas Greenery

Nothing Beats the smell that Fresh Christmas Greenery provides at Christmas-time. Some folks avoid the mess with artificial trees but even they can add a little of the Hominess that actual greenery adds without the clean up if the greenery is properly prepared, not bought too early in advance, and well cared for.
If creating your own greenery masterpieces, be sure what you purchase is fresh or cut your own. Immediately sumberge stems into a solution with a little bit of Preservant mixed as per instructions. Allow greenery to hydrate at least 24 hours before using. Soaking of pre-prepared greenery pieces can last up to two weeks longer then non hydrated pieces, just be sure what you start with is FRESH, sometimes purchased items greens, wreaths, garlands, etc have been sprayed with a shine product which renders the soaking irrelevant because you are not hydrating just getting it wet. Know your Greens are Fresh... ;)

Here is a look at two of my greenery projects this year
this first one was created out of a 5-inch by 7-inch caged piece of Oasis
It was created from the back to the front with the specific purpose of not being to thick to fit inbetween the front and storm doors at my home, sometimes Custon is the Best. The small oasis start created about a 18-inch by 20-inch front door piece, and I thought it really turned out nice.

I suggest wearing gloves when dealing with some of these prickly evergreens.
This particular door decoration contains: Fraser Fir, Juniper, Red Cedar, Anise, Eucalyptus, Nandina leaves, and Berries. The only addition not in place is the string of battery powered lights. it says Christmas and if it happens to last longer I can just change the color of the bow into the New Year. Oasis is the bomb, you can even use it in plates on a table for centerpieces, get your florist to sell you a casket topper and make a tree-mendouus mantel piece decoration. I say to use this because it can be docorated on one side, has a resorvoir in case you have to add hydration, it's just the perfect size.The smaller oasis cagese can also be filled and turned sideways for a great Mailbox decoration with a great bown on top.

I also added greenery in floral water picks into a wreath that was already created and it just made it more beautiful, Hopefully today I can get motivated to string out a little garland, to complete the real green look over out front doorway, we've never done that before.

I hope you all enjoy this, I have not been on is a spell due to illness, but I think things are on the Upswing. Have a Merry Christmas ~V

Recycle an Old Jar into a Decorative Night Light

When Home for the Holidays I am always on the lookout for quick, easy and attractive projects for the kids to work on whilst I am working around the house. This onw would be a great one for older kids with little supervision. But for younger ones they need tobe supervised.

What You Need :
Tape or Stickers, Spray Paint, exacto knife, Flameless tea lights, old glass jar to recycle.

What To Do:
Place tape in various places or stickers onto the glass jar surface. If using tape cut desired designs into tape and peel away excess. Spray paint entire outside of jar desired color (we used Gold in the photo) and wait about an hour to dry to touch, and remove the stickers/tape. Allow to dry and then place flameless Tea Lights into the jar...Viola...A very cool recycled lamp. You could use these as party decore if you added a bit of wire to the rim and hang in clusters. Or use them on individual tables with other festive decor. Try using different sixed jars maybe with letters on them to spell out a special message any time of the year ;)
Enjoy, V~