Only Two Pounds of Sugar...

This, ladies and gents, was my very first attempt at icing (for real icing, not cream cheese who-really-cares-if-there-are-crumbs-it-tastes-freaking-amazing icing) and decorating a cake. I was quite proud. I'll be putting more photos of precious (hopefully) cakes up as I make them. Sadly, though, the cake was not the best tasting thing I've ever eaten. Next time, possibly less sugar (yeah... less than the TWO POUNDS we used), more butter, and more vanilla.

Comfortable in the Kitchen

Well, I'm back. It was a lovely holiday and I cooked and baked more than I ever have before! I had a lot of firsts: homemade marshmallows, homemade smores (with homemade marshmallows), Chef Hallman's famous cinnamon rolls, and Christmas dinner.




And now, it's back to school and back to cooking with a person looking over your shoulder and grading every move you make. In each class we had a practical exam on the first day. That was... well... awful. I did fine, though. I didn't have time to get all worked up over it, so I was more relaxed. This is definitely something I have noticed in these first two weeks of Semester 2. I have a certain relationship with the kitchen now that I never had before. I'm not afriad to get burned, cut, or wounded in any way. Instead, I have a respect for my knives, the skillets and stock pots in the kitchen, and myself.

I can't wait to continue this crazy journey I decided to embark on. Today my partner and I made a killer Bolognese sauce. Chef Joe tasted and it grinned. I'm really not sure if there is a better compliment out there.