Gingerbread Cheesecake = meh.

I've never baked a cheesecake before.  I've eaten many kinds of cheesecake.  I love cheesecake - as long it's not covered in sickenly over-sweetened strawberry goo.  I thought I'd try this recipe I saw in Kraft Canada's What's Cooking Magazine.  Gingerbread cheesecake recipe at kraftcanada.com   I thought it would be a great idea, Christmas themed, and since my son doesn't like cheesecake that tastes like cheese (!) would be a good non-cheesey option.

The verdict and the tutorial after the jump . . .

Shortbread Cookies or Bring on the Butter (Part Deux)

As I mentioned in my previous shortbread cookie post; I was thinking of tweaking the recipe to add more flava-flav, more zing, more oomph! I went a little nuts and used vanilla bean paste. I know what you're thinking; whoa, she's nuts, she's gone off the deep end! Well I did and it was delicious. I also doubled the recipe:

1 cup cornstarch
1 cup icing sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
4 squares Baker's chocolate (dark)

Wait?! What did that say? Chocolate? What is that for? Umm, for dipping the butter filled cookie goodness in of course!

I've never baked with vanilla bean paste and I can't believe the difference it makes. It adds the vanilla bean speckles that everyone loves so much, and intense vanilla flavour without diluting the dough. It smells wonderful also.

The result was a much better tasting shortbread in my opinion. I really wasn't happy with the previous recipe, it was definitely lacking in flavour. Then I really went nuts and melted the chocolate in a double-boiler and dipped half of each cookie and let it cool. Next time I will dip the entire batch. It was that good. I might even try to find a better quality baking chocolate (cross border shopping anyone?!) I think it would be much better with a richer, more high quality chocolate taste.

(Did I take any photos?  Maybe, but the camera is with Fred in Texas at a gig, so I'll post pics if there are any . . .)

Red Velvet Momma Loves, Loves, Loves Luzianne Iced Tea Bags

*** I'll be posting some of my favourite things on my blog.  I haven't received compensation or incentive to review any products.  Some of these goodies are found in the USA, so for my Canadian friends - you'll have to hunt these down!  Some products are uniquely Canadian. ***

I love sweet tea.  From south of the Mason-Dixon line.  I live north of the Mason-Dixon line.  I live north of the border.  You can't get sweet tea here.  You can have hot tea, almost too many varieties really.  Tea Lattes, green tea, white tea, tea in ginger ale; is it really too much to ask for a decent iced sweet tea?

When we travel south I can't wait for even a McDonald's sweet tea.  I'm that starved for the yummy sweet caffeine slurp from a straw!  So I looked for "recipes" for sweet tea and found out about Luzianne.  It's from Louisiana, hence the name, and it's made for iced tea.  I lucked out when I found it at the SuperTarget at Mall of Millenia in Orlando.  And it was on sale!  I bought six boxes, and now whenever Fred travels south for work or we head down to Walt Disney World, I stock up.  And I make it almost all the time.

Yum.  Going to brew a pitcher now.

Ugh, I really want to blog - but I can't find my Mojo . . .

I'm having a really hard time finding my mojo.  I want to blog my little heart out, and I've started a bunch of new entries but I've yet to complete them or post anything in ages.

Christmas has come and gone, I baked/cooked/slow-cooked/ordered-in until my fingers ached, yet I can't seem to find anything to say.  So I'll start with baby steps and post a couple of little things while I sit here and catch up on my PVR'd episodes of Coronation Street (from now on I'll refer to this as "Corrie" or "The Street").  Corrie has been my guilty pleasure since high school.  I'm still baffled as to why the CBC broadcasts episodes 9 months behind the current UK episodes.  I find this most irritating.

So here we go!  New post to follow - thanks for sticking with me.

Red Velvet Momma Loves, Loves, Loves Red Velvet Cake Mix

*** I'll be posting some of my favourite things on my blog.  I haven't received compensation or incentive to review any products.  Some of these goodies are found in the USA, so for my Canadian friends - you'll have to hunt these down!  Some products are uniquely Canadian. ***


It's only appropriate for Red Velvet Momma's first loves, loves, loves post to be Duncan Hines Red Velvet Cake Mix!

Sometimes you have a Red Velvet emergency, or a hankering; and you need some tasty cupcakes FAST.  I know these things happen to me.  You can't buy this in Canada, so when we head to the States, I stock up.

I don't use cake mixes very often, my chocolate cake recipe is scrumptious, if I do say so myself.  But I do use this one.  I don't use canned frosting, I always have cream cheese in the fridge, and icing sugar kicking around; so it's easy to whip up some icing (frosting?  I'm not sure which name I like better). 

There will be a tutorial soon, my birthday's coming up, and I want these for my dessert!

Shortbread Cookies or Bring on the Butter (Part 1)

Confession.  I don't think I've ever baked shortbread on my own before.  The recipe is crazy easy.  The result is a rich, buttery cookie that makes me think of Christmas.  I used a recipe found on the side of the cornstarch box. 

I'm going to look around for another recipe, or tweak this one.  While we found the cookies good, both of my kids thought it could use a little something.  The Princess said cinnamon, the Padawan said vanilla.  So there will be a Part deux to this post in the next couple of weeks)

Here we gooooo!

The Disney Social Media Moms Celebration Debacle, in 700 words or less.

I've been thinking about blogging for a couple of years now.  But I never thought anyone would want to read what I had to say.  Then I remembered that some people like to listen what I have to say - why should blogging be any different?  Plus blogging means testing my spelling and punctuation skills.  This leads me to thinking about blogging conferences, get-togethers and mommy-blogging.

I was beginning to think that being a mom-blogger wasn't exciting or meaningful - but when I looked at the blogs I was reading, or using Google to research something that ultimately led to a mom-blog I realized that we're out there, we have something to say and we're intelligent.  But I needed a push to start blogging.  I had bought a new KitchenAid mixer this summer (and started using it right away, even though it's meant to be a birthday gift - and my birthday's in December) I knew that I would have to include cooking & baking in my blog.  Then I was laid-off from a part-time job I had started, after not working for almost nine years.  And then I heard about the Disney's Social Media Moms Celebration (Conference) coming up in March.  I wanted to go, but from what I understood, you need to be a blogger/tweeter/facebooker.  I wanted to learn how to do this:  be part of the social media.  I also thought it would be a learning experience for seasoned as well as newbie bloggers. 

It was the jump-start I needed.  I started blogging.  I have been on Facebook for years now, but that's a personal account, just for friends and family.  And also some fabulous DisBoutiquers that started me sewing and crafting again!  I've had fun on Facebook and had been thinking about Twitter for quite some time too.  So I waited for the registration date and time for the Social Media Moms Celebration to open.  The dates for the conference were good for my family, and I loved that I could bring the family with me, and even spend some time with them.  We don't have the desire to travel without our kids, so this was perfect.  I set my calendar reminders, set the alarm on my phone, and waited.

And waited and waited and waited.  The time for registration (it was advertised as "First Come, first served") arrived and it was nearly impossible to complete.  The server was overloading, and the page kept refreshing and refreshing.  Tweets from far and wide were describing the "orange spinning circle of death".  I had faith, trust and (hopefully) pixie dust on my side.  Right?  I didn't think it would take almost two hours to "register".  I had to put that in quotes, because it was really an application process.  With no explanations or qualifications listed.  I was sent an e-mail stating that I would receive e-mail notification of acceptance (or not) shortly.  I then waited some more.  A day later, I received notice that I wasn't accepted.  I was confused.  I thought it was a given that if you were able to register, you were in.  I guessed they were going to review and make certain that you were a real person before sending confirmation, but that wasn't the case.  I'm disappointed that I'm not able to go, I would have loved the experience to go and craft my blogging skills.  Maybe even get some inspiration and some new followers.  Find lots of new blogs to follow too. 

I will apply again next year, just as I will once again apply for the DisneyWorld Moms Panel.  At least with the Moms Panel I know it's an application process.  Hopefully next year's Disney Social Media Moms Celebration will have some glitches ironed out, and a more open application process.  I look forward to reading all the blogging about the conference.  I congratulate all the bloggers who were accepted to attend.  I hope you have a great time!  Please have a Mickey ice-cream for me 'kay?  ºOº