Raspberry Cheesecake (A Late Valentine's Day)

 Whew!  My husband and I are mostly moved into our new house...mostly.  Well, at least we've unpacked essentials like pillows, blankets, the computer, the cat, and the Kitchenaid.  I'm getting used to the new kitchen, which has a gas oven instead of an electric one (weird).  So far, I've managed to tackle a couple small baking projects, and I'm finally ready to post about a scrumptious raspberry cheesecake, which I originally made for Mr. Buttercream for Valentine's Day.

Almond & Raspberry Cattails Cake

My dad really likes cattails.  I also like them (although not nearly as much as he does).  I think they evoke an image of a still, quiet pond, on which you while away an afternoon in a boat.  So, I decided to make a cattail-themed cake for my dad. 

Raspberry & Aprium Mini Pies

Summer is for fruit pies!  And summer has finally (finally!) come to Seattle.  Luckily, farms, grocery stores, roadside stands, and farmer's markets are bursting with berries, peaches, plums, cherries, and fruits that I have never even heard of.

White Chocolate Cheesecake Mini Cupcakes with Raspberry & Blueberry Whipped Cream

Happy Fourth of July!  What an excellent day!  I woke up this morning to a star-spangled Space Needle, and ended the day with grilled shish-kebabs and corn-on-the-cob for dinner.  Because I had no work today (yay!), I decided to revisit cheesecake cupcakes - this time, with some patriotic red (raspberry) and blue (blueberry) whipped cream.

Vanilla "Companion Cube" Cupcakes with Raspberry Buttercream

I don't usually like video games.  In fact, the only games I've played for longer than an hour are Minesweeper, The Sims, and Portal.  In Portal, you must solve puzzles using your "handheld portal device", which you really need to see to understand.  Throughout, you are prodded onward by an increasingly malicious AI named GLaDOS.  Your only friend (for a brief time) is the Weighted Companion Cube, which is, as the name implies, an inanimate cube.

Valentine's Day Raspberry Mini Pies

I attempted to keep these mini pies a secret from my husband until Valentine's Day.  The plan was to make them the weekend before, freeze them, and then sneak home from work during lunch to bake one on Valentine's Day.  This mostly worked.  Unfortunately, my husband kept wanting to do annoying things like get into the freezer for ice.  So, he had to have known something was going on when I banned him from getting into the freezer.  A better idea might have been to store them in the freezer at work...

First Post: Chocolate Raspberry Birthday Cake

My first blog post!  I realized a while ago that I'd become something of a baking nerd.  I also quickly realized that not many people want to hear me relate to them my research on various types of buttercream.  So, I'm starting this blog.  Hopefully, if you read it you are also a bit of a baking nerd and find my baking research and adventures at least somewhat interesting.  I am by no means an experienced baker, so all of these projects are learning experiences.  Some of which succeed (at least mostly) and some of which...don't.  I consider this birthday cake that I made for my mother's birthday mostly a success!  Woot!

My mom requested a chocolate cake (everyone always does).  She later added that raspberries might be nice as well.  I had previously made some cupcakes decorated with chocolate plastic roses that my mom seemed to like, so I decided to make some more of those for her.