Fall & Winter Delicacies!

 We've got some major catching up to do on the blog!

I've managed to post pictures to Facebook and Instagram, but our poor blog has taken a back seat!

So, we're back!

This fall I donated some cake pops to our church youth group's Speed the Light auction.

Speed the Light provides equipment for missionaries around the world.

The above photo was French vanilla cake dipped in white chocolate with some autumn leaf sprinkles.

 

These were also for the STL auction.  These were a red velvet cake...half were dipped in white chocolate and the other half in red candy melts (vanilla).  Sprinkles were added for fun, of course. ;)

I also did 2 platters of decorated cookies.  These were a pumpkin spice flavor cookie.

I hunted down a "base" recipe, but put my own spin on it.  They were quite tasty if I do say so myself!

I also did some red velvet cake pops for a birthday girl this fall.  Kiddos always get a kick out of cake pops.  They've become a popular request for many birthday parties I've done.

I did these autumn cookies for my aunt who lives in Illinois.  My parents were going back to visit family in the area and I know my aunt has a sweet tooth, so I wanted to send her something special.

 In December, we had our ladies Christmas tea at church.  This was my first year hosting a table.  As a little take-home "favor" for each guest at their place setting, I made little bags of cookies tied up with ribbons.  Our theme was "Night of Hope" so I wanted to do a custom cookie to match.

I did a "candy cane" theme at my table, so I also did some candy cane cookies for each guest.

This was my table.  Simple, but fun.  I look forward to hosting again next year!

 Our ladies Bible study group had a Christmas party in December and we had a White Elephant gift exchange.  I had no idea what to bring...and then it hit me.  WHITE ELEPHANT COOKIES!  Hilarious. Yet adorable. I wanted to make them a little Christmas-y...so I added mistletoe/holly-berries to their booties, hehe!  I think they turned out cute!

We also had to bring a snack or treat to the party...so I brought some cake truffles.  French vanilla cake dipped in white chocolate with Christmas sprinkles.  Yum.

 My last project for the year was some snowflake cookies.

We had a going-away potluck for someone at work and I always love to bring a dessert.

 Snowflake cookies are one of my favorite Christmas/holiday/winter cookies to make.

I love them because you really can't mess them up.

Each one is unique and different.

 There's no rhyme or reason to the design...and that's what's so fun about making them.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season.

May your 2017 be filled with blessings.

God bless!

Melody

Cake Truffles

 So...this is another "pre"-post to the big project I've been working on all week.
I still can't reveal pictures of the "main" part of the project because the recipient hasn't received them yet...and let's face it...surprises are always so much fun!

I decided to toss in some cake truffles along with the gift basket I'm working on.
I started out with the idea of just doing cookies in the basket, but I thought it would be fun to throw in some cake truffles as filler too! 

 I don't make "traditional" cake pops or cake truffles like most people do.
A "traditional" cake pop or cake truffle is crumbled cake pieces with frosting stirred in to form a gooey mixture that is then dipped in melted chocolate.

 Many folks enjoy this mixture.  For me personally, it is WAY too sweet and rich.  For that reason, I have always done strictly "cake" in my cake pops and cake truffles.
No frosting mixed in.  It's all up to personal taste. :)

 I've always thought cake truffles were the perfect bite-size snack.
Total portion control.
But let's face it, who can eat just one?

 These were a white confetti cake and then dipped in white chocolate.

Stay tuned for the pictures of the final project!

Chat soon!

Valentine's Cake Truffles

 I always feel so behind during each of the holidays compared to all of the other bakers.

I see the cakes, cookies, and other treats being posted weeks, even months, in advance.

Me, I'm lucky if I get mine posted BY the holiday itself, or even after in some cases!

But then again...I don't just bake.

I work a full time day job 55+ hours a week in the early childhood field and am taking medical transcription classes...

So maybe that will excuse my tardiness...just a wee bit?

Hehe!

I haven't had a whole lot of orders lately, so I've mostly been baking for fun.

My husband requested some cake truffles.

 What are cake truffles?

Basically they are cake pops without the stick!

Many people refer to them as "cake balls"...but I never liked that word.

(Always thought it sounded rather crass.)
Then one day, my good friend and fellow baker Sandra who's work I admire so much, told me that she referred to them as "cake truffles".

I LIKE IT!

Sounds MUCH more classy!

"Elegant" Sandra says...hehe!

I have to agree.

Cake balls...NO...Cake TRUFFLES...YES!

LOL!

 When making cake pops and cake truffles, I do mine a little different.

I don't use the traditional cake/icing mixture.

I am not a fan of very "rich" sweet desserts.

And the traditional cake pop mixture was just too gooey for me.

So for these, I used my BabyCakes machine.

BabyCakes cake pops and cake truffles are strictly cake...which I love.

For these I used a Funfetti cake batter (white with sprinkles) and then dipped them in white chocolate.  For half of them I added some pink tint to the white chocolate.

Add a few red/pink sprinkles...and...voila!

Valentine cake truffles!

 

Cake Truffles

 We had a family cookout this week and I needed a quick dessert.

I love whipping up a batch of cake truffles for events.

They are so much fun.

You can dress them up or down with assorted sprinkles or drizzles of chocolate.

I did these in white and yellow cake and then dipped them in white chocolate.

I used a variety of sprinkles and colored sugar crystals.

Cake truffles are always loads of bite-sized fun!

Autumn Treats For The Family

I had an order for some cake pops on Friday.

They only needed a dozen, so with so many leftover...I decided to make some cake truffles for the family.

I had used a cherry chip cake and dipped it in white chocolate.

I used some autumn colored sprinkles.

I just love these little "autumn leaf" sprinkles!

I won these from a giveaway along with some cookie cutters and think they're simply adorable.

Along with the cake truffles, I had some leftover melted white chocolate, so I made up some of my husband's new favorite treat.

White chocolate dipped pretzels.

We all love them actually.

The sweet/salty combo just can't be beat!

Cake Truffles...

Tonight I made some cake truffles.

(Thanks Sandra, teeheehee!)

They are called many things by many people.

But my friend Sandra came up with the word "cake truffles" and I liked the sound of it!

Basically they're cake pops without the pop.

I did a yellow cake.

Coated some in chocolate.

Coated some in vanilla.

I think I've decided that vanilla is my favorite.

How about you?

What's your favorite coating?

And for all you cake pop experts out there...

I'd love to know...

What is the best melting chips for cake pops.

I've heard sooooo many bakers say they don't like Wilton.

Which ones do YOU like best!

Leave me a comment!