Naked Cake

Naked cakes are becoming a very popular option for weddings. They tend to have a more natural or organic feel. A naked cake is one that is lightly frosted on the sides, if frosted on the sides at all. Instead of sugar or gum paste flowers, fresh flowers are used for decoration.

We decided to make a chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. Any combination can work, but I've shared our delicious recipe below.

Moist Chocolate Cake

-- 2 cups sugar

-- 1-3/4 cups flour

-- 3/4 cup cocoa

-- 1-1/2 tsp baking powder

-- 1-1/2 tsp baking soda

-- 1 tsp salt

-- 2 eggs

-- 1 cup milk

-- 1/2 cup vegetable oil

-- 2 tsp vanilla extract

-- 1 cup boiling water

1. Heat oven to 350. Grease and flour two 9-inch pans.

2. Stir together all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the eggs, milk, vanilla, and oil. Beat on medium speed with an electric mixer for 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour into prepared pans.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire racks.

Cream Cheese Frosting 

-- 1 stick room temperature butter

-- 6 oz cream cheese

--4 cups powdered sugar

-- 2 tsp vanilla extract 

Use an electric mixer to beat the butter and cream cheese. Add the powdered sugar one cup at a time and beat after each. Then add in the vanilla.

Once the cake has cooled, slice off the top in order to make a flat surface 

Flip the cake over so that the side you sliced is face down on the plate

Once you've frosted your first cake, place the second one on top and frost it as well

You can move your butter knife in a wave-like motion to get a nice texture 

Lightly frost the sides so that the cake underneath can still be seen or leave the sides unfrosted 

Decorate your cake with fresh flowers and/or fruit 

You can pick the flowers off or cut around them.

Slice, serve and enjoy :)

Sub Rosa Bakery

A couple weeks ago my dad read an article in The New York Times about different bakeries around the United States, including Richmond, that let their bread ferment much longer than usual.  

Link to the article: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/23/dining/against-the-grain.html? 

So it was perfect when we found out I had a field hockey tournament in Richmond a week ago. 

The bakery is small but cute no doubt. Huge windows allow beautiful natural light to come in and shine on your pastries. 

There aren't many options on their menu so I think it's a perfect place for breakfast or a light lunch. 

They offer soups and paninis as well as lunch stuffed croissants (like ham and cheese) and small quiches. Of course they have desserts and bread as well. 

Here's the east side panini. Inside there is chili paste, greens, and melty cheese. It was quite delicious and surprisingly filling. Not much salad came with it, but still yummy.

The almond chocolate croissant on the left was definitely my favorite out of everything. The chocolate was rich and creamy and the almonds gave it a crunch. The dessert on the right was filled with dried cranberries and nuts. Also very good, but not as sweet. 

We took these phyllo dough braids home with us. They were crisp and buttery. Perfect for breakfast with cheese or jam. 

Overall loved the bakery. Hope to travel to the other ones mentioned in the article in the near future!

Easter Eggs!

Instead of using the store bought Easter egg dye this year I decided to do something different. My grandma used to dye Easter eggs with onion peels, but wouldn't put leaves or flowers underneath to make patterns. When I found this online I knew it would be more work but would definitely be lots of fun.

The supplies you'll need: eggs, small flowers/leaves, onion peels (red/yellow), string 

The first thing you'll need to do is put your flowers and plants onto the eggs. Dipping them into water will help them stick. 

Once you've stuck your desired amount of plants and flowers onto your egg, you'll need to wrap it in onion peels and string. Wet the onion peels to help them stick. Make sure you wrap the string tightly so the patterns turn out more visible. After you've wrapped each egg, they're ready to boil. I added beet peels to the water as well as any extra onion peels for more color. 

After boiling your eggs and taking off the onion peels and flowers, you'll have your naturally printed Easter eggs! You can oil them to give a shine.