Such Pretty Things

Pretty Edible Flowers

If you've been following me for a while, then you know that it's no secret that I love flowers.  My home is brimming with them - fresh flowers, paintings of flowers, floral china, fabrics covered in flowers, etc....  The list it infinite.  So, of course, I love my food covered in flowers as well!  This delicious coconut cake is a good example...

Edible flowers are such an easy, but beautiful way to decorate your cakes or cupcakes.  If you don't have the time or desire to bake, buy a simple iced cake from your favorite bakery and just add some pretty blooms.

In order to ensure that they are truly edible, you will want to buy pesticide-free flowers.  Some specialty grocers sell them or you can order them from my favorite grower, Gourmet Sweet Botanicals.  They have an incredible selection and their flowers are gorgeous!

For my cake, I baked Ina Garten's famous coconut cake and decorated it with Pansies and Dianthus in shades of pink, white and lavender.

So simple and so pretty! And it would be so lovely for a wedding or shower...or any occasion that calls for flowers!

:-)

Jessica

Pretty Entertaining: Easy Easter Centerpieces

Here is a super easy Easter centerpiece idea!

Here's all you need:  Mini cupcakes (make your own or buy plain iced ones from your favorite bakery), pastel sprinkles, pretty Easter candies. easter grass or paper shred, and a cake pedestal!  I found the pretty sprinkle mix and cake pedestal at my local Homegoods. 

Just place your cupcake on top of the Easter grass and fill in with the candies!  So simple, but it makes quite an impact on your Easter table!

Happy Saturday!

xo

Jessica

Mini (Half) Birthday Bundt Cake

I think I've mentioned before that half-birthdays are a pretty big deal in our family. I guess we just love any excuse to celebrate...and eat cake! This year, I cheated a bit and bought a mini vanilla bundt cake at Whole Foods.  It was so cute and just the perfect size for a "half" birthday.  I whipped up some pink icing to drizzle over the top and decorated it with a variety of colorful sprinkles...

To add to the festive feel, I added some pastel confetti,

mini party hats,

and a sweet little birdie garland...

If you personally don't embrace the whole "half-birthday" thing (although you really should!), this mini party would be great for just a regular old birthday as well. :-)

XOXO

Jessica

Hot Chocolate Bar at Home

I love Autumn - the colorful leaves, the crisp air, and the squirrels running around in a wild frenzy in search of their winter bounty. It's definitely getting colder though and last night I had to turn on the heat for the first time this season. The dark mornings and early sunsets make my whole family want to just curl up on the sofa with piles of cozy blankets and drink warm, yummy things. Hence, the hot chocolate bar. We make so much hot chocolate (or "cocoa" as we called it growing up) during the colder months, that I thought it deserved it's very own place in the kitchen...

So, I rounded up my favorite hot chocolate mix (Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Cocoa - I just add hot milk - never water!), mini marshmallows, chocolate chips, and some crushed peppermint candies...

The more mix-ins, the better!

Then I just set out some mugs, paper coffee cups (perfect when you are on the run!), and spoons and I had a very simple (and pretty) hot chocolate bar right on my kitchen counter. Needless to say, it's been very popular!

XOXO

Jessica

Pretty Collecting: Birthday Candles

"Mini-me" needed to come up with some candles for a friend's birthday cake this past weekend.

Luckily, she picked the right mother for that. :-) I love birthday candles and always keep a sizable stash on hand...

Birthday candles are just one of those happy, little items, aren't they? They make for a fun and practical collection, too. You can certainly find them at party and craft shops, but I have actually found many of mine at bakeries (i.e., Peggy Porchen) and supermarkets! Whenever we travel out of the country, I also always make it a point to check out the local party supplies in the grocery shops. I've found some really pretty and usual ones this way. Here in the States, I have purchased some of my very favorites online at Shop Sweet Lulu and Caspari.

And remember, if you have not yet entered to win a copy of Rachel Ashwell's newest book, Prairie Couture and Flea Market Treasures, you still have until Midnight tonight EST! Just follow @cicobooks on Twitter and let me know by leaving a comment. The winner will be announced tomorrow!

Happy Monday!

:-)

Jessica

 

The Cake Decorating Party: Take Two

Yay!  We did it!  Mini-mini-me managed to stay healthy this time around and the cake-decorating party (finally) went off without a hitch! I can honestly tell you that I have never been so happy to have a party behind me. But, it really was a great party and I promised to share, so here it is...

We had twelve girls attend the party. This was a manageable number, but I really wouldn't suggest going too much higher than that. Upon their arrival, we greeted the girls with one of the frilly no-sew tulle aprons that I showed you all previously. They seemed to go over pretty well - I mean, who doesn't like tulle and ruffles? After the girls washed their hands and put their hair back in ponytails, they got busy decorating their cakes.  I had already set up the table with all the necessary cake decorating supplies and a two-layer cake was placed at each setting. Now, if you have the time and the desire, by all means, bake the cakes yourself. Sadly, I didn't have the time (or the desire), so I ordered them from a local bakery. ;-)  I specifically requested that the cakes be "smoothly" iced with white icing and with no additional piping or decoration. This was important because I wanted the girls to have an opportunity to practice with the icing bags.

I had pre-filled 12 icing bags with six different colored (pastel!) icings and fitted them with a variety of tips.

I placed one bag at each place setting, but made sure to instruct the girls to take turns sharing colors and tips. I also set out plates of pretty sugar flowers that I bought from a cake supply shop...

...and lots and lots of butter-cream roses (which I had piped myself ahead of time)...

Of course, there were also a variety of colorful sprinkles and sugars...

Each girl also received a hunk of pink fondant with which to practice making their own roses and decorations. The girls took the task of decorating their cakes very, very seriously.

And, as you can see from the results, the cakes turned out just beautifully!

Some, like my daughter, took the opportunity to truly "gild the lily"...

While others showed a bit more restraint and went for a simpler design...

When everyone was finished decorating, the girls went off to sing, dance, and scream to Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez, while I packed up the cakes and quickly switched the table over to party mode. Instead of paper plates and cups, I used these pretty pink and aqua plastic ones that I found at Target in the children's housewares aisle! They were such a great deal, too - about 50 cents a piece! And we can use them over and over again!

We had scheduled the party for mid-afternoon, so I was luckily able to avoid the whole pizza ordeal (not good when you have shabby chic white sofas!). Instead, we served cake (ordered from a favorite bakery, so as to not destroy any beautiful works of art)...

..and ice cream with confetti sprinkles. Beverages included pink paper-wrapped water bottles and pink lemonade. Served with lots of pastel striped straws!

And if that wasn't enough sugar, I also gave each girl one of the old-fashioned candy baskets that I showed you the other day...

When it was time to go home, the girls left with their beautiful cakes, a cake decorating kit, and their tulle aprons.

So, that's it. We did it! It was lots of fun and Mini-mini-me had a wonderful time, but next year I think I'll be doing my best to convince her to go bowling!

Don't worry - we'll make it pretty :-)

XOXO

Jessica

Another Year, Another Cake Decorating Party

Some of you may remember that "Mini-mini-me" had a cake-decorating party for her birthday two years ago. We held it at a wonderful local bakery and the girls all had a blast. Just last week, I was discussing possible themes for this year's party with Mini-mini when she mentioned that she would really, really like to have another cake-decorating party this year. At first, I was a bit hesitant.  We've certainly done a lot of party themes over the years, but surely we could come up with something new and exciting? But, after some thought, I decided Mini-mini really should have what she wants. After all, It is HER birthday! And it really is such a fun party.

So, yes, we will be doing another cake-decorating party this year. But we will be doing things a bit differently.  For one, we will be having it at home this time around. The bakery was lovely, but I think it will be even more fun to do it ourselves. This way, we can have all the pastel prettiness we want!

I will, of course, be delighted to share all the details with you here. For starters, this is the invitation that we picked out (not our wording, but you get the idea). Isn't it just adorable!

It was designed by the very talented Sarah at Delight Paperie and we found them on Etsy. Her shop also has lots of coordinating items like stickers and pretty envelopes! I have a ton of decorating and favor ideas, so there will definitely be more to come in the upcoming weeks...

XOXO

Jessica

French Cake Decorating Roses

When I discovered these in Paris last spring, I didn't really know what they were...

I am still not completely sure (I guess I should have stuck with that French class in seventh grade).  From what I can discern from the label, I am pretty confident that they are edible.  And they seem to be made out of some wafer-like material or thick rice paper. "Mini-mini-me" volunteered to be the Guinea Pig and try one. Her opinion - they tasted "very blah -  like Chinese pancakes". O.K.  Well, whatever they are, I think you will agree that they are stunningly beautiful...

I found them in a gourmet food shop among other cake decorating supplies, so they are obviously intended as confectionery decor. They come in a variety of pretty pastel colors - with edges that look as if they were air-brushed.  Pretty cool, huh? I am currently loving them on some simple vanilla cupcakes with white icing.

I have never seen them for sale here in the States. Have any of you? Or do you know anything about them? I'd love to learn more...

:-)

Jessica

Real Life Sprinkles

Gourmet sprinkles are truly a glorious thing, but sometimes even I just want some regular, old-fashioned sprinkles (jimmies?) to put on my ice cream. Mr. Sprinkles fits the bill!

He's a new discovery for me, but a friend tells me he's been around for a  long, long time. Mr. Sprinkles' sprinkles are happy, tasty and colorful (they come in chocolate, too)!

I absolutely love them for everyday, real life treats! And to those of you who are afraid of clowns...I deeply apologize for this post. :-)

Happy Friday!

Jessica

 

 

Pretty Shopping: Le Grande Epicerie, Paris

It is rainy with dark gray skies here today, so not ideal for photo-taking. So, I thought I would share one of my all-time favorite Parisian shops, La Grande Epicerie at Bon Marche.

Le Bon Marche ("the good market") is one of the best known department stores in Paris. And, while I love to look at all the latest designer fashions and accessories, my favorite department in Bon Marche is this massive gourmet food emporium. If you love cooking or baking (or just eating!), you need to put this place on your bucket list.

This is where I purchased those incredible French sprinkles that I wrote about the other day.

They have an extensive and incredible selection of beautiful candy, unusual baking supplies, and the prettiest sugars you will ever see.

They also carry lots of items I have never seen here in the States. Like this fabulous Violette beverage...

Yes, you know I brought one of those back! And these pretty syrups...

And colorful cookies!

I found so many pretty things at La Grande Epicerie (as is evidenced by that first shot of my quickly filling shopping basket). It is definitely a shop worth visiting!

XOXO

Jessica