sugar on top

i thought i would give you a sneak peek into my latest obsession, which may or may not be a success down the road, but is something i think is exciting, fun and encourages me to continue dreaming big. 


the idea was suggested by one of my girlfriends to create a blog specifically for my baking - with the intent to show off my baking and the creative ideas i have for party planning and hosting. so with that, i am making a dedicated effort to practice and learn more about the details of baking - and to hopefully someday make cakes, cupcakes and desserts for parties, showers, etc. for friends - at a low cost!  

with that, i prematurely introduce you to the new venture, only because you are such valued readers - sugar on top. otherwise, i am going to wait another month or so to get some more baking under my belt before i ask my friends to let me bake for them!

queen of sheba

i promise this isn't turning into a baking blog, but lately we have had a lot of fun, foodie occasions that have offered the opportunity to try some new recipes and of course play around with the new camera.

this weekend we celebrated our friend sonja's birth. she and her husband are also fellow blog/food/photography lovers and hosted a "julia child" dinner party for the occasion.

each guest was to bring a french course to share, and the food, wine and company was fantastic! to be honest, it was just what i have been needing lately - some quality time with quality people (and fancy pants food never hurts the cause!) it really made me covet what the europeans have going on over there...days and nights full of a slower paced life, enjoying the company of loved ones and food cooked with care. and i think things like this need to happen more often. perhaps we can host once we get some more dining room chairs (ahem, this is where's the husband's coworkers should remind him of this!)

appetizers began at 7pm and i'm pretty sure we wrapped up with eclairs at almost 11. i feel like we really had time to savor the great conversation with new friends. make sure to check back to sonja and alex's blog link above for their post (hint, hint to them!) for a more complete documentation of the evening! 

behold below, the "reine de saba avec glaçage au chocolat", or translated to the "queen of sheba cake with chocolate glaze"...not sure why the french didn't mention the almonds used in the recipe, but that too.

hello, cupcake

as promised, irish car bomb cupcakes i made for the husband's birthday - chocolate guiness cupcake with an irish cream frosting and ganache - and yes, they were as awesome as they sound!!

dishes

my husband put this cup away last night and actually considered it clean! no, really.

i'll admit...i have been spoiled because he has been the one doing the dishes since we got married. i thought "wow, lucky me, i snagged a good one!" because he really doesn't mind doing it (in fact, he is the kind of person that can't stand them sitting in the sink). however, i am now second guessing my faith in his abilities.

last night, i noticed that what he used to pass off as "hard water stains" is now just plan food remnants. i hand-washed (really scrubbed) half our dishes last night. and they needed it.

the debate is now whether the jumbo, mega-deal dish soap he picked out at sam's club is the problem or if we flat out need a new dishwasher...