Blogspot - Recipe Scratch Rusia

Emma and I made a Chocolate Buttercream cake for Mike's birthday.   Mike is a fan of the classics - chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies and brownies - so for his birthday, we thought a classic chocolate cake with homemade buttercream would be perfect. We've become fascinated by Culinary Dots cakes - I've never seen anything quite like them.   She recently made a cake with a Christmas Tree in the center that Emma thought would be fun to try.  I made the cake and frosted it with the buttercream (recipe below), and she made the Tree 100% by herself.  She started with an ice cream cone as the base, then added green buttercream. While Culinary Dots makes vegan treats... we used a boxed cake mix and this wonderful Homemade Chocolate Buttercream.  I made the cakes in these 8" cake pans. 8" x 3" Cake Pans, $8 Chocolate Buttercream 1 stick of butter, melted 1 1/2 cups of cocoa 1/2 cup of milk (plus more) 2 sticks of butter, softened 5-6 cups of powdered sugar (plus...

I've told the story before - before Mike and I were even dating, I served warm "homemade" bread at a dinner party at my house, and he raved about it for weeks.  Did that lead to him finally asking me out?  I guess we'll never know...  The Barefoot Contessa has her "Engagement Roasted Chicken" and I have my "homemade" bread.   You can make a loaf size as in the first photo, or you can cut the log into cinnamon rolls and bake them in the Medium Size Basket instead.  My secret weapon to "homemade" bread is Rhodes frozen bread dough.  (This is not paid, by the way.)  It is found in almost every grocery store in the freezer department.  Over the years I have transformed the simple dough into Cinnamon Rolls, Monkey Bread, Pecan Rolls, Pizza Bread, etc.  When I saw these Wooden Bread Baking Baskets I knew they would be just the thing to take my "homemade" bread to the next level.  I've seen them many times in Martha Stewart used t...

'Tis the season for cocktail parties.  While Thanksgiving is all about the big sit-down dinner, Christmas seems to be more about the cocktail parties.  I put together this list of my favorite appetizers from years past.  Some are from my catering days, when December was my craziest time of the year and the parties were sort of fancy and refined.  Some are new recipes that we've become fond of now that we're in that kid-friendly entertaining phase of our lives where cocktail parties are really Open Houses with kids running around. Crab Stuffed Mushrooms The filling is like the center of a crab rangoon - so yummy. How to Build a Bountiful Cheese Board Sometimes this is the only thing I make for a party! Beef Tenderloin with Horseradish and Soft Rolls This is how to turn appetizers into a meal.  Everyone will oh-and-ah.  Such a treat. Mini Lobster Rolls Again, a little bit-sized luxury that everyone will go crazy for and feel completely spoiled. Baked Fontina ...

15% off orders over $50, code : Holiday15 20% off orders over $100, code : Holiday25 30% off orders over $150, code : Holiday30 Shop the Holiday Collection >

'Tis the time of year to always have a selection of easy gifts to grab as you're running out the door.  I've put together my favorite one-size-fits-all, budget friendly gifts for $10-20.  They are just the thing for teachers, neighbors, birthdays, friends, & hostesses.  Red Wrap, $16 Ivory Scarf, $12 Red Scarf Above, $12 Quite often, I wrap a pretty set of Taper Candles up in a bow and present that to our Hostess as a gift.  They always get rave reviews if they've never seen such beautiful candles in these gorgeous colors. The 15" Celebration Candles in Gold are always a favorite to give for a birthday or anniversary. I love giving Tablets to friends and teachers, too.  Because these are so classically simple in design, they will suit anyone's aesthetic.  They are also seasonless.  They come prepackaged in a cellophane bag with a logo sticker, ready for giving. LePens are such a treat for anyone.  They are a perfect gift to a teacher. For ...