Attempt #2: Refried Beans, not so Successful

I attempted making the refried beans again, using the recipe I made up. Still really tasty... except, I put way too much salt in them. So much that it burns my tongue. Of course, I'm not a big salt eater anyway, so to most people it's probably perfect.

Tomorrow I will make another pot of beans and make them up without the salt, then mix them to counter the extreme amount of salt in the first batch.

This time I used black beans. They are a little sweeter tasting, once I get past the salt.

Cake Pops Galore

Starting tomorrow, I will begin making more cake pops. I just got a new job and I will be extra busy between college and two jobs. So, I need to make a little every day so I can stock up. Also, I have that bazaar coming up in December. I want about 900 so I have an abundance, but also so I don't run out of any one flavor.  Plus a few hundred sample sized pops. Itty bitty pops on a toothpick. Those should be cute. I might even have to start another new fad. Itty bitty pop bites: 12 for $1.

Let me see how tough they are to make first.

Wedding Cake Success

My newest endeavor was a success. It's a 4 tier, stacked cake with the top on pedestals. It turned out quite lovely. I need to practice with fondant. I have a tough time smoothing it down the sides. I guess I'll have to make some cakes just so I can practice.

Too bad my neighboring cake testers are all getting married.

Amazing New Flavor

Last night I invented a new cake pop flavor. It is really tasty. They are chocolate peanut butter cake pops. And they are scrumptious. They have layers of chocolate and peanut butter (melted peanut butter chips) on the outside of a scrumptious chocolate peanut butter cake.

I'm willing to share this pop recipe with a few of my followers here.

Supplies:
Sucker sticks
Baggies
Ties
Devils food cake mix
Eggs
Oil
Peanut butter (crunchy or creamy)
Melting chocolate (aka almond bark)
2 packages Reese's peanut butter chips
Shortening.

Directions: Bake cake according to package instructions. Cool completely.

Place chocolate in a bowl; place over a small saucepan with about 2" of water. Place on burner, set to lowest heat. In a separate bowl, melt peanut butter chips. Place the bowl over a small saucepan with about 2" of water. Place on burner st to lowest heat. Stir both frequently. Do not allow the chocolate or peanut butter chips to get too warm or the chocolate will crack on the pops. Add enough shortening to each flavor to make them thin. The chocolate will use about 2 tbsp of shortening. The peanut butter will need more, but you have to just add more until it is thin enough.

Crumble cake in a bowl. Add enough peanut butter to make the cake form a ball. Make sure the cake is not sticky or mushy. The cake needs to be just sticky enough of form balls. Form balls about 1" around. Place on a waxed paper or parchment lined cookie sheet. Chill for 15 minutes. Remove from fridge. Dip sucker sticks in chocolate and push into balls. Make sure they go at least half way through the pops. Chill for 10-15 minutes or until the chocolate is set.

Now comes the fun part.

Dip the balls in chocolate and place in styrofoam blocks to dry. Once the chocolate is dry, dip in peanut butter about halfway down the pop. Allow to dry. Dip one more time in chocolate far enough down to leave just a small strip if peanut butter showing. This give the appearance of a Reese's peanut butter cup that is cut.

Or, be creative. Dip the balls fully in chocolate, then peanut butter, then chocolate, and top with finely ground peanuts. (make sure the nuts are very finely ground or they will make the chocolate run off the pop and they won't look pretty)

 Tip: squish the balls in your hand until they form a solid ball. If you are using crunchy peanut butter, the nuts will make it more difficult to shape the balls. It can also cause the balls to break apart when you add the sticks.

 Don't be afraid to experiment a little. These are yummy pops, but rather boring to look at.

Wedding Cake Order

This weekend I will begin making a huge wedding cake. I'm very excited for this one. I have free reign. The only requirements are red and ivory, and roses. Easy. It's for a dear friend who is like a brother. I am making it for him as a wedding present. I will start Saturday because school is keeping me super busy, so I need some extra time to prepare things.

Chocolate Peanut Cake Pops ideas are running through my head. I'll be working on that recipe this weekend as well.

Stay tuned...

Attempt #1 a success: Yummy Refried Beans

I have now made homemade Mexican style Re-fried beans. And they are yummy.
They are still fresh and haven't quite finished meshing the flavors, but they are still pretty good.

I'm going to put the recipe here because the one I used, I completely changed, and it is no longer the same recipe.

Michele's Refried Beans
3 cups uncooked pinto or black beans (do not use canned), sorted and rinsed
Water
1/2 cup lard
1/2 to 1 large onion (depending on your taste preferences), finely diced (food processor is very quick)
2-4 jalapeno peppers (to taste) finely diced
3 Tbsp minced garlic (or more, if you want)
1 tsp cumin
Salt

Soak the beans overnight (or at least 8 hours) in water that covers them at least 3 inches. Drain the beans. Place beans in a large pot or stock pot. Fill with enough water to cover at least 3 inches. Bring beans to a boil and simmer until they are soft enough to squish easily - 3-4 hours.

Remove from heat, but do not drain. Using a food processor (or a big spoon and a bowl), gently puree beans, adding enough of the bean water to keep the beans almost fluid. Make sure you don't completely mash the beans, because there needs to be a few lumps. You will use quite a bit of the water, but don't worry, as the beans sit, they'll finish soaking it up and they'll dry some.

Melt lard in large skillet over Medium heat. Add onions, jalapenos, and garlic. Saute until cooked through. Add cumin. Add mashed beans. Stir well to mix and cook until they are a thicker consistency.

Add a lot of salt. These take a lot of salt, but you could also try some different seasonings if salt is a no-no.

As an added note: I ate some of these beans while I was typing this. The longer they sat, the tastier they got. So, that means that most likely, the beans will improve with flavor over time. Make these a day ahead of time for the fullest flavor.

Mexican Food family Gathering

My aunt and uncle are traveling evangelists. They come through twice a year, and our family gathers together and does what our family does best: eat and talk. (Well, and tell terrible jokes). So, this time through, I decided that I was going to foot the bill for the family dinner rather than my mom and dad. Usually, they spend all the money, and everyone else comes to eat, with maybe a desert or salad brought along.

I haven't cooked a full meal for a large gathering in a while, so away I go.

I have another not so looked at blog that I put together for my church's Daniel Fast last year. On that blog I have this really wonderful recipe for Meatless Mexican Lasagna. It's very scrumptious. It's one of those foods that has so much in it that you just can't imagine what else you might find. And it's tasty as well.

Besides the Meatless Mexican Lasagna, I am going to attempt authentic re-fried beans (made with LARD!!!), and real Mexican Rice. Not those packages of rice that are bland and boring. I am also planning to make the delicious Hershey's chocolate cake with (Sh!) cherry filling and chocolate cream cheese frosting. Yummy. I can't wait.

The funny thing is, when I told the family that I was cooking, they began to plan what else to bring. So, now, there will be all kinds of Hispanic dishes and I don't have to cook as much. Oh, the plans I make, always bring out the best in others.

Silly Little Pops

I have an order for a batch of cake pops. I sell a batch for $25. The batch usually ranges from 30-50 pops depending on how big I make them, the density of the dough, and how much frosting I add.

Today, my batch made 47 pops. The last one made 42.

Not bad for $25.

New Adventures in Popping

I bought a Cake Pop book. It's not Bakerella's, but it's good. I looked at her book today, and although it is amazing, it's really for the beginning popper. After six months of making cake pops, I am no longer a beginner, but I admit, I am not an expert either.

I bought Wilton's Cake Pop idea book. It has some really adorable pops in it, but they are very time consuming. I wouldn't want to make hundreds of them. That's for sure. I think it will be a really useful tool for me. I can be more adventurous in my future endeavors.

I also found a few people on Facebook that are in the cake pop business. I've listed their links on the right of the page. They have some amazing ideas. Very creative. In fact, one has a really adorable bunch of cake pop roses. I have a wedding cake coming up for a very dear friend who is more like a brother. He loves cake pops. So, for his wedding, I am going to make him some red rose pops. He will love it.

His cake is going to be amazing, and I can hardly wait to tackle it. I have a few weeks left before his wedding, and I can hardly wait.

I am also going to do a bazaar in December. Nothing but cake pops. I will start preparing those about two weeks out. I think I will make between 500 and 800 pops. I will prepare some in boxes, and some individually. I am hoping it is successful. I need the money.

College is expensive now.

Holiday Baking

Holidays are here... Well, almost. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's are coming rapidly, and I have a feeling I will be doing cake pops galore.

I've moved to another college, and have already started a new reputation campaign. I have a good baking rep at my first college, and I still get people who want them. So, now, I have two "monopolies" on cake pop venues.

It's pretty cool. I'm going to attempt to make some ghosts for Halloween for my classes. Should be interesting.