Sweet like candy…

by

You know what’s gluten free? Lots and lots of different kinds of candy and gelatin based treats and things very high in sugar. There is actually a bit of a danger and a back lash in many gluten free items because of the typical additional refined sugar. If you are conscious of it, it’s no big deal and easy enough to avoid with plenty of options that are quite healthy instead, but you do have to be aware of the tradeoffs, I am learning. As with anything there is a give and a take and a balance. It is a whole new learning curve that I feel I am just barely at the point of understanding but I am nothing if not determined to learn as much as I can! So little by little I am tackling and mastering recipes of all kinds. Trying to prepare myself for many a birthday party to come when I need to be prepared to send Aubie Cakes with her own cupcake, favors, snacks, etc., in an effort to keep the family she is visiting stress free.

One of the things I have mastered is making homemade gum drops. Yep, you read that right, homemade gum drops.

 

IMG_6110

 

Now, if you are anything like me you may remember gum drops as rock hard, not all that appealing or tasty, thimble shaped treats, typically found at Easter time… yep, not something I would care to recreate at all. But then I saw this http://www.bakerella.com/goodie-goodie on Pinterest and fell in love with the way these looked for Aubie Cake’s birthday party back in January. I tried them and was totally shocked; as was the rest of my family and friends….these are the antitheses of what I recall!

 

IMG_6101

 

These are light and sweet and delightfully chewy and soft in the center with a satisfying outer shell that crunches a bit as you take a bite. Yum!!! And oh so pretty!!

 

They make wonderful favors or candy dish fillers. They are charming, vibrant, and just the perfect size for a quick pick me up without being overly indulgent. They last quite a long time just sitting out or in a covered jar. They will absolutely impress your guests, in fact, if they are anything like the guests and friends that received the ones I have made, they may not believe that you made them all! But you will know better!

I think they tend to get better with age as that outer shell develops and the crunch is ever more satisfying. They are completely customizable in flavor and color and have a lovely sparkle from that outer sugar coating. They are a little bit of a labor of love but mostly just in the number of steps and time required because the steps are spread out with curing time and drying time and what not, none of which are at all difficult, you just need to plan ahead a little.

IMG_6097

IMG_6096

I have made them 4 times or so now with the same great results each time. I am sure I will keep making them in the future as well. Each batch makes around 200-300 gumdrops depending on how you cut them, in as many colors and flavors as you would like based on how you pour the gelatin into the pans that you have on hand. No need for fancy equipment for these. I am sure you have what you need in your kitchen right now.

Here is the recipe – followed almost exactly from Bakerella – http://www.Bakerella.com – it’s a great recipe and a great site, check it out!!

You will need to following:

 

IMG_6068

 

Ingredients:

4 tbs (approx. 6 packets) Unflavored Gelatin – Knox brand is gluten free, sold in boxes of 4 packets so you would need 2 boxes.
1C cold water
1½C boiling water
4C sugar
¼tsp ish flavor of choice – mint, lemon, and raspberry have been our favorites so far – FYI the mint is very strong a little goes a long way.
Food coloring any color, to your liking – each pan can be its own flavor and/or color
Extra sugar – you will want to completely cover those gumdrops after they have chilled at least overnight and you cut them to your desired sizes.

Kitchen tools:

Spoon
Sauce pan
Measuring cups
Measuring spoons
Metal baking pans – I have tried glass and metal – the metal seems much easier to remove the sticky gelatin as long as you remember to spray – I use two 8×8 square metal pans typically but you can do whatever you’d like.
Pam or cooking spray of choice

 

IMG_6067

 

Directions:

Soften gelatin in a medium sized sauce pan by pouring all of the gelatin and the cold water into the pan, stir and let sit for 5 minutes.
Boil 1 ½ C water (I usually do this right in my glass measuring cup in the microwave to save me on some dishes)
Add boiling water to the gelatin after you have let it soften, stir until all gelatin dissolves
Stir in 4C of sugar
Place saucepan on stove and bring to a boil over medium-high heat – boil for 25 minutes continuously stirring constantly.
Immediately pour the gelatin sugar mixture into the pans you have prepared.
Flavor and color to your liking in the pan and stir gently until well combined

 

IMG_6069

IMG_6070
Cover and place in the refrigerator to set over night.
The next day you will remove the mix from the pans and cut as desired.

IMG_6071
I have learned a few tricks along the way I think you would appreciate –

  • Cover the entire top of the pan with sugar and pat to absorb prior to trying to remove
  • Run a knife all the way around the edges allowing sugar to slip in between and underneath the slab of gum drop goodness
  • Slowly pull away from the pan, if you remember to grease the pans and followed the above it should be hesitant but it should come out pretty easily it will stretch a good bit but should not break. It is very elastic
  • Keep sugar handy and immediately as you expose a side when cutting cover in sugar to help ease the stickiness
  • Cut into pieces as you desire – I usually do cubes, I just think they are super cute and great for packaging. Part of the charm is that these are homemade so don’t dwell too much on uniformity.

 

IMG_6077

 

Leave the gum drops out in the open air at room temperature for 2-3 days to allow the sugar to crystalize, trust me, this is crucial, try, try, try to avoid temptation, they only get better, I promise!!

IMG_6080

What you do with them from there is up to you! Give them away in cute little treat sacks, put them in your candy dish on your desk at work and watch them disappear, or keep them all for yourself and eat them all up, I won’t judge!

 

IMG_6107

 

But really just enjoy and wait and see how many people give you the “you made these? No seriously? You made these?!” looks and comments
– why yes, yes you did, you domestic goddess (or god) you!

Soul Searching….

by

I have said it before and I will say it again… when I first started this little endeavor I really had no conscious intention of this turning into a business and certainly not a little bakery upstart specializing in Macarons in Central PA where most people have never heard of them, let alone tried them… I am blown away at the response and support and I appreciate each and every sale and order and compliment and Facebook page like/follow more than you could ever know! Thank you all so very much. In fact, this has caused such an abrupt change that I need to do some soul searching. And I thought it might be best to write it out, see it on paper, and work my way through it… perhaps with some help with friendly readers like you!! So, here we go.

When I began this blog it was intended to be a place where we were able to share our various projects, not just baking endeavors, and our successes and failures, especially as it pertains to Pinterest recipes, project, DIY’s etc. I am sorry to say not all are successful or even real links to valid information. In talking with many people with similar complaints we all agreed it would be awesome to begin a virtual library of these kinds of things, mixed with personal projects and recipes and general life stuff. That was the goal. Selfishly, this was really for me. Did you know that I am an interior designer and I still feel like I need a creative outlet. Yep. It’s true. Contrary to popular belief my bachelor in interior design did not win me any HGTV-rific projects, clients, or time machines or money trees, as HGTV-rific projects and clients MUST have; because that is the absolute only way that HGTV projects happen. That is a FACT. I very rarely get to choose pretty pillows and art work and accessories. I am NOT a decorator. The two are completely different professions. I get to be a decorator from time to time in my job as a desiger, but my job is actually very highly technical most of the time. I don’t get to be creative nearly as often as I would like. And that’s ok. I have always enjoyed the technical, puzzle to my day job work; however, I have always needed that additional creative enterprise on the side. I dabble in all sorts of things. Home renno and DIY, photography, clay work, baking, cooking, painting, writing, knitting, crochet; you name it, I have probably tried it, at least once. I am just one of those people that MUST always be busy.

Lately, especially with the things that Aubie Cakes has been facing (the person, not the business) I have been keeping my hands (and mind) extra busy and engaged, it helps me process. The response to Aubie Cakes (the business, not the person) has been so very welcome for that very reason. Busy is very, very good and I am able, currently, to balance it with a full time job and do most of it while Aubie Cakes (the person, not the business) is sleeping or out on excursions with family, friends, etc. But I can see that line drawing dangerously close. Especially as summer comes and we need and want to be outside and various house hold chores and projects keep us busy as well as our garden, that I think we can now safely plant outdoors, finally…. And I am sure you can see where this is headed. This blog was intended as a way to share and encourage, not obligate and tie down. So, I hope that you can forgive me for the fact that it has been a place of soul searching lately versus a place of sharing how to’s and whatnots lately. I hope to get back to that place, but currently these are the things on my mind.

While I am ready and up to the challenge, going gluten free has taken a stride out of my step, to be prefecly honest. My kitchen confidence is not what it should be and I feel a little deflated. Thankgoodness for Macarons (naturally very easily G-Free) or I would feel lost. I am relearning and starting from scratch the very different process of Gluten Free baking and cooking. And that is a GOOD THING…. Just like my last post, I hope that you know, as words on a screen are often misleading, that in no way is any of this a bad thing… these are good problems to have. I assure you, I am not at all unhappy with any of this, but this is my way of musing through some challenges; and by ‘challenges’ I mean the ‘I dare you to try’, or ‘ I bet you can’t’ kind of challenges, the kind that for me have always been highly, highly motivating. Not the ‘doomsday’, ‘woe is me’ kind, because I simply don’t have time or patience to wallow, a wollow-er I am not. After all, what good is any of this if we can’t help each other through life’s challenges, however big or small or silly or trivial? In the end that is what this blog was really meant to be; support for each other from each other on how to tackle life’s projects. Sometimes those projects are building bird houses, baking cakes, refinishing furniture, or learning how to eat and cook all over again due to a necessary life change for the health of your child. Whatever it may be, I am confident, that we got this. I know we do, because we are all stronger and more capable than we may think and, not to mention, we have each other. Until next time…

A good problem to have…

IMG_5658

Being crazy busy is one problem I have always been so very grateful to have! In the last few weeks you may have seen a few sneak peaks as to things that have been going on with us. We officially received and delivered on our first two orders ever! Aubie Cakes is a real thing now, y’all! I am so excited! And I am honored to have been chosen to be part of two such special events in two amazing couples’ lives! I have had a ton of fun and being too busy to update the blog is a problem I am willing to have, any day! So 200+ macarons and one very special surprise macaron cake later a wonderful couple got married yesterday and begin their journey as a family together. Day 1, today!

IMG_5668

On the flip side a wonderful couple announced the gender of their second baby (currently in incubation phase) with one of my cakes!!! I honestly never knew or intended for this to turn into a bakery business, it just never really crossed my mind. But I will sure take it! Aubie Cakes – open for business! Specializing in French Macarons and proud to offer gluten free options!

 

can we talk about how cute the heart shaped ones are?!

IMG_5723

IMG_5681

Which brings me to the other side of this post. While things have been moving along at lightening speed, we have been dealing some pretty scary health issues with my daughter. The root cause is still under investigation but for now we are being asked to run some trial elimination diets. The first, Gluten Free. I will admit I have been highly skeptical of this whole G free craze and was viewing it as a money maker and a made up doctor diagnosis for when they didn’t have an answer, sort of like the medical equivalent of a Hallmark Holiday (yes, I am one of those people) …. however, I am slowly becoming a believer. We have seen an enormous difference in Aubie Cakes in the few days we have had her on this diet and I feel great  when I follow it, too. Hubby and I are mostly following this by default as it seems horribly unfair to eat things she can’t have in front of her. I understand this is a lesson and something we will eventually need to teach but this is all new and she is only just barely 5 years old. I don’t have the heart right now.

IMG_5674

But this is not meant to be sad or woeful news friends, I am using this as an opportunity. I refuse to see this as anything but a unique challenge that is a wonderful opportunity. It is hard to find tasty meals and sweet treats that are gluten free, especially in my current, very small, hometown. So, it has become my goal to live gluten free, with Aubie Cakes and to make some damn tasty treats that laugh in the face of gluten and wheat flour… whhaaa haa haa haa haa….. too much? Okay, so I’m a Mama on a mission, what can I say. Look friends, I’ve been through some stuff in my life and all it has taught me, really, is to always be prepared for the next big change or challenge but to look it square in the eye and not only meet but exceed it’s demands. And if you can laugh all the way, well that’s just sprinkles on the top of my gluten free cupcake, y’all. And they are tasty!

IMG_5682

(this was loving referred to as Macaron Madness rather than March Madness in the basketball sense, around our house)

IMG_5714

 

So, now you know what’s been going on with me… I am thinking of putting my macarons up for sale. Local stores, farmers markets etc. so for now that is a top secret recipe! Sorry! But I can share pretty photos all day long, which I will do, shamelessly, taunting you with the deliciousness, here and on Instagram and on Facebook and well, anywhere really. The lovely bride has me quite obsessed! And – Hey! they are gluten free!! Whoot!!! Big score for our household!

IMG_5729

So, enjoy the eye candy feast while I work on some other recipes to share that are tasty and gluten free. Working on converting my White Velvet (yes, you read that right and; yes, drool is the appropriate reaction, I won’t judge) cake recipe to Gluten free this afternoon. I promise I will share the success, when I achieve it!! Thanks for sticking with me friends, and if I can fulfill any macaron orders you, just say the word, my piping bag is never far from reach! Check out this surprise Macaron Cake I made the happy new couple… Nutella Buttercream frosting, fresh raspberries, whipped cream… oh yeah, yum!!!

IMG_5732

Wednesday Wisdom 1.2

by

20140326-213857.jpg

“May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.” – Nelson Mandela

I believe that our lives are a summary of our attitudes. If you choose positivity and courage and act accordingly you will not only be setting an example for others and for your children, but you will look back on a life full of stories worth telling. This is something I work on and strive towards everyday.

When given obstacles and challenges, we have the power to choose to see the limitations or the possibilities. Do not misunderstand. I do not believe in living in denial. I simply believe in accepting the hard knocks, moving on, and learning from them and constantly working toward being the best you.

Live your truth. Don’t ever forget to listen to your own voice.

This is as much a reminder for me as it is for you. I hope someday this will be second nature but in busy, stressful times I must constantly remind myself of these things.

Xoxox – mama

p.s. Back to the fun stuff this weekend, I promise!

Monday Quick Fix – Dessert in a Jar, take two

by

Remember that time, not so long ago, when I shared a Thin Mint homemade coffee creamer for your Monday Quick fix? Well, today’s quick fix trumps that! At least for me, I am big into balance. I do not care for anything super sweet and when I do have sweets, I like savory to balance.

IMG_5630

 

So when I ran out of Thin Mint Creamer, (thankfully on Saturday morning instead of Monday morning this time, much less dramatic) I thought for a bit and then went digging through my pantry… Salted Caramel, that was all I could think about!

Well, I had some coarse sea salt on hand (“check,” says Aubie Cakes) and I had my sweetened condensed milk and I had my vanilla almond milk (“check, check” – Aubie Cakes) and then, as if my magic, I found some caramel sauce from a recent birthday party (“My horsey 5 year big girl birthday party”, corrects darling Aubie) just begging to be used and the next thing you know, I had my most favorite flavor combination in the world, in a jar. And I get to use it every day (for approximately the next two weeks, at which point I will probably make more!)

IMG_5629

Salted Caramel Coffee Creamer

Ingredients:

(1) 14 oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk

(2) cans full Vanilla Almond Milk – give or take depending on room in your jar (just like last time this could be soy or really any milk of your choice, just know that will alter the amount of caramel you need to use due to the sweetness of the vanilla milk)

coarse sea salt

caramel sauce

Directions:

Just like before pour your sweetened condensed milk and your milk of choice into the jar and give it a really good shake.

Open it up carefully and then add approximately 3 pinches of salt (the salt will dissolve over time so be careful not to add too much)

Now the caramel part is really subjective.  added 4 good squeezes, approximately 1/2 C I would say, more or less to your liking is totally fine! This is your creation now!

Stir, shake, stir, taste, mmm that’s good, taste a little more just to be sure, yep, stir again, now make coffee and enjoy!

**Remember: The creamer itself should have a lot of flavor because your coffee will mask it. If you don’t take your coffee too strong, don’t make your creamer too strong, or only use just a little at a time. Either way!

 

Guess, what guys, that’s it! It is a quick fix after all! Enjoy!!!

IMG_5667

 

and if you just so happen to have a batch of my fresh, home made macarons laying around to go with this you are in for a treat!

What’s that you say? You need some of my macarons? Well, I’d be happy to make you some!

Wednesday Wisdom

by

20140320-112238.jpg

It’s been a series of trying events for us lately but it is important to us to remain positive and keep our heads high. So, Aubie and I thought ‘if this helps us we should share because maybe it will help someone else.’ And now we have all of you. So thank you for being a bright spot in our days. Now we want to return the favor.

Welcome to Wednesday Wisdom. (For however long we feel we need it = always)

So here’s to spreading a little sunshine from us to you.

20140320-112701.jpg

Ps. Hug your loved ones and be thankful for every day you have them in your lives. Healthy or ill, grumpy or happy, you wouldn’t be ‘you’ with out the ‘them’.

xoxoxox