Cinnamon Rolls

Today, I made cinnamon rolls with my family. They turned out scrumptious, and everyone was addicted at first bite.

The dough, which we made from scratch (using yeast), took a little while to rise, but the fluffy result was well worth it.

The icing was something of my own creation, although the recipe did suggest confectioners sugar and milk. I used about 1/2 cup milk, and 2 cups (give or take) confectioners sugar, until it got a little thicker. Then I warmed up about 4 tablespoons of cream cheese and whisked it into the icing.

I got the idea from another blog, J's Kitchen.

Here is the recipe.

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

I have made these cupcakes before, but I have never put them up here. 

This is one of my favorite recipes, and I think it ties in well with Autumn. 

For the pumpkin flavor, the recipe called for one can of pure pumpkin puree.

The recipe had many spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and ginger.

For the recipe, click here.

Halloween Cupcakes

For Halloween, I made Marshmallow Ghost cupcakes. I used a chocolate cake mix, and made vanilla frosting, dyed orange.  

For the ghosts, I used two mini marshmallows. For the head marshmallow, I rolled the top between my fingers to create the peak shape. Then I used chocolate sprinkles as the eyes. 

I got this idea from Martha Stewart, here.

Homemade Samoas Bars

For my friend's birthday, I made him homemade somoas. 

Somethings went wrong when I was baking them, but these would be good with a little practice. 

The main ingredients were toasted coconut, caramel, chocolate, and a shortbread cookie base.

Here is the recipe.

Caramel Filled Chocolate Cookies pt. 2

So I already made these cookies before, but the first time they were not as successful as I had hoped. I tried the recipe again, and this time the cookies came out a lot better.

This time I used Rollos instead of Dove caramels.

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream Icing

Once again, I was inspired by a classmate to bake this recipe. I am really glad I tried them out because they were delicious, especially the icing. 

What made these cupcakes "Mexican Hot Chocolate" was the cinnamon in the recipe. The ingredient gives it a subtle spice.

Once you have completed the batter, you slowly add 1 cup of boiling water to it. This made the cupcake really moist.

I found the recipe online here.

Italia 2010

So I haven't really updated all summer, but there's a good reason behind that. This summer, I went to Italia with eleven other people, all whom I had never met before. My group began with a three-day orientation in Roma (Rome). Then we all stayed with a different Italian family for two weeks in Napoli (Napels). After my group and I went to a culinary school to work with a chef in small northern towns (Canelli and Asti). And finally we spent three days in Venezia (Venice). It was a life changing experience, I made and ate some incredibly delicious food and I made some friends for life. Below are some pictures.

A beautiful view of all the vineyards in Italia on the way to our culinary school.

My first gelato (in Roma)! Lemon and mango flavored.

My group and I made our own pizzas from scratch in Napoli!

In Napoli, we visted a buffalo mozzarella factory, where we ate fresh mozzarella.

My group and I made a dessert very special to Asti, bonet. It is like a hazelnut chocolate flan.

This is one of the many plates of pasta we had while in Italia. This is goat cheese gnocchi with lavender.

My group, the chef and some of his assistants in the kitchen.

The view from a gondola in Venezia. Absolutely gorgeous.

On our trip, we focused on a special program, the Slow Food Movement. Their mission is to "counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world." As a result of partnering with this program, we really learned to appreciate the ingredients and process that goes into making our food.