We’re Moving!

Sugar & Spice is officially moving! Per my previous post, the time has come for Sugar & Spice to evolve and undergo some changes. I have purchased my own domain and have completely redesigned my blog, including my name. I am so excited about the new blog, and hope that you will come on over and join me at…

Brown Eyed Baker

Leaving Sugar & Spice behind is bittersweet, but change is good and it is what keeps us growing and keeps us from getting stagnant and boring. Please head on over to the new site and check it out! Please be sure to update your reader subscription, which you can easily do by clicking the appropriate button below:

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I’ll see everyone over at Brown Eyed Baker – I’m looking forward to sharing even more kitchen adventures with you and hope that you enjoy the new site!

A Change is Gonna Come…

Be prepared, loyal Sugar & Spice readers, that a change is imminent. I have purchased my own domain and have completely redesigned my blog, which includes a new name! The switchover is likely going to take place in the next couple of days so please be on the lookout.

Why, you may ask, am I changing my blog? Well, first of all, hosting it on my own domain gives me a much greater deal of flexibility in both design and functionality. I can make my blog do exactly what I want it to do, without limitation. And as for the name change, I truly struggled with this one. In the end, it came down to the fact that there are now multiple “sugar & spice” blogs out there in the blogosphere and as I take my blog “to the next level” I wanted to be truly unique.

It’s taken a good bit of time and work to get the blog up and running and although there are a few kinks, I think you all are going to love it! Hopefully you’re as excited as I am about the new changes and will follow me over to my new blog and continue reading and cooking and baking with me!

Stay tuned for the big announcement in a few short days!

TWD: Chewy, Chunky Blondies

This week’s TWD was really Pecan Honey Sticky Buns, chosen by Madam Chow at Madam Chow’s Kitchen. These are made of the same brioche base as the Brioche Raisin Snails that we made a couple of months ago, which were fabulous! Unfortunately this time around, it was me and an empty house, so without Nick around to shuffle off the goodies to his coworkers, I decided that a pan full of sticky buns to keep me company was likely not a good idea. So I still stuck with Dorie this week, and tried her blondies, which I have had my eye on for quite some time. And the results were…

Well, there were some issues! The batter appeared to mix together just fine and I got it into the buttered pan easily. The recipe states to bake it for 40 minutes, but I had to go 5 minutes longer. At that point it appeared to be done, but in retrospect I don’t think it was even close. I have an oven thermometer, so I know that correct temperature was not an issue. The recipe then states to let the blondies cool in the pan for 15 minutes and then turn them out. This created my mess. No way were those ready to come out of the pan at that point, and I learned the hard way. Half of the pan slid out, the other half stayed in, and in between was all of the raw blondie-ness that I had thought was cooked. Thus, I took to eating them with a fork 😉 They tasted good, but definitely not cooked, and definitely needed to stay in the pan longer. Also, these are nowhere near as thick as the ones in her picture. I have included the recipe after the break – if anyone has some insight they would like to share, I’d love to hear it, as I definitely want to give these another shot!

Gift Exchange Goodies

I spend time on an online message board on The Nest called “What’s Cookin?”. The group is made up of mostly newlywed (or recently married) women who enjoy cooking and/or baking and share tips with each other. Truly a great group of women, many of whom have become great friends. Four times a year we have a gift exchange through Elfster – always a great time picking out gifts for someone new! This past week I received my gift – it was so perfect and thoughtful that I wanted to share it on my blog. Thank you to Jamie (freeburger16) for all of the wonderful goodies! She sent me the Williams Sonoma Baking cookbook, a set of mini tart pans, and a silicone spatula for my stand mixer. A million thank you’s!

She even customized the packaging (and card) to take Einstein into consideration 🙂  And I think he knew it was meant for him!

I am a Hero… A CUPCAKE HERO

This was my first month entering the Cupcake Hero event over at quirky cupcake because, well, truth be told, I don’t consider myself very good at being creative in the kitchen. I can follow a recipe to a T, but when it comes down to creating something on my own I don’t feel very confident in my abilities (or my creativity). So imagine my shock when I open the round up and see that I’ve actually won!

The cupcake that I submitted was an Ambrosia Cupcake. This was created to adapt the popular salad that includes fruit cocktail, miniature marshmallows, coconut, and Cool Whip. We always had it a lot growing up, and it was one of the first things that I thought of when I thought of marshmallows!

I’m so very excited to get a tshirt with the ubiqitous Cupcake Hero logo on it, and will be sure to model it for everyone!

Head on over to the Cupcake Hero roundup to see what 51 (awesome turnout!) other people did with marshmallows and cupcakes!

CLICK! The Photo Event – Metal

CLICK! is a theme-based monthly food photography event that I have had my eye on for some time. I have become increasingly interested in photography since starting my blog and this event seemed like a great way to work on those skills as well. This was the first month that I’ve been able to enter (and I realize I’m about two days late, hopefully the camera gods will be kind!), and I’d like to start making it a regular event that I try to enter.

The picture I entered is a snapshot of some of the decorating tips that I had recently organized into a new caddy: “Tips for a Great Cake”.

Check out the event and all of the amazing pictures!

Cupcake Hero: Ambrosia Cupcakes

I’d first like to thank Laurie for still being my friend, as this is my first Cupcake Hero entry. I know, I’m a bad, bad friend.

This month’s ingredient theme for Cupcake Hero was marshmallow. The very first thing that came to my mind was smores, and I’m pretty sure that was the first thing that popped into about everyone else’s head. After seeing a number of smores entries show up in my Google Reader, I decided to rethink my approach. I was brainstorming all of the wonderful things that I have eaten that contained marshmallows in some way, shape, or form. A few popped into my mind, but I kept coming back to one – Ambrosia.

For those that have never had it, ambrosia is basically a “salad” of fruit cocktail, Cool Whip, coconut, and miniature marshmallows. My grandma used to make this all of the time around some holidays, but it mostly reminds me of Easter. It’s such a light dessert and Easter is typically the gateway holiday to warmer weather. So here we are, the week after Easter and I had to do something with marshmallows – Ambrosia Cupcakes it was!

These cupcakes are made with a base of fruit cocktail cake, then freshly whipped cream is piped into the centers (you’ll see that I didn’t quite pipe deep enough), topped with a marshmallow creme frosting, sprinkled with coconut, and, just for good measure, topped with a cherry. I had never made homemade marshmallow creme before and, wow, that’s dangerous to have sitting around! So good!

Blogging By Mail… All the way from Singapore!

A day after I received my Blake Makes surprise in the mail, I was shocked to see a package waiting for me from Singapore! At first I wasn’t sure what it could be, and then remembered Blogging By Mail… this must be it!

THANK YOU to Laureen at Eat and Be Happy for such a wonderfully thoughtful package of goodies!!

I can’t tell you how much fun I had opening this package and uncovering all of the great treats that Laureen sent my way. I have never traveled overseas and so this was such a wonderful way for me to learn a bit about another culture and the types of food and treats that they enjoy! Below is a picture of all the wonderful things that were included in my package:

Malaysian coffee
Green tea
Ginger and honey instant tea
Hainanese Chicken Rice Paste
Vitamin C drops (“Hacks”)
White Rabbit treats
Plain biscuits
Biscuits with icing
Black pepper sauce
Chicken-flavored flour for dredging
Crispy Praws with Cereal

So far Nick has tried the Malaysian coffee, which he loved. He said it tasted very different than any kind of coffee he has had here in the States… he said this had a much thicker flavor and was more “milky”. He really enjoyed it!

We also tried the White Rabbits, which were sweet taffy-like treats. The treats that Laureen referred to as biscuits, were very good! While they look like your typical oyster cracker, they were actually sweet and tasted very similar to Italian pizzelles. You can’t go wrong with those! I am looking forward to using the rest of the goodies, and will definitely post again when I do.

This was my first experience participating in Blogging By Mail, and I have absolutely loved it. It was such a great experience to get a taste of what those in other parts of the world have everyday.

Thank you again, Laureen, this was such fun! I now have a little bit of Singapore in my pantry! 🙂

Dark Chocolate Chip Scones

Nothing says good morning quite like a sweet chocolate scone! These scones have become sort of my signature recipe with my family and friends. These are great for a sweet breakfast or a little dessert after dinner, or a snack, or… anytime at all!