Happy Birthday Adrian and Melody!!!!

Hello My Sweets!! How is your weekend going?? This weather is driving me nuts, how about you? It can't make up its mind, warm, cold, wet, dry, snow, UGHH!!!! But regardless I was on a mission this week to find some special inspiration for a cake for two very special sweethearts, who were celebrating their beautiful birthday's this week.

So I racked my brain, for an idea that would be great for both a boy and a girl, he age 9 and she age 6.  Thinking about what they like to do and watch, I came up with a Super Idea for these two gorgeous super siblings! One of the favorite past times around is sitting back and laughing as you hear I'm Mario, I want to be peach, or get me out the bubble! The game they are talking about is Super Mario Bros, or any version. Who hasn't played Super Mario, Mario Kart, Mario World and so on, its a game franchise that's been out for every one loves it! Its as popular now as it has always been if not more so. So I decided for these little cuties, something super was in order!

Got the theme I wanted, now I was wondering how would I execute my plan, and how I wanted it to look!  Right to work I went on making some icing, ( sugar free of course kids are hyper enough with out added sugar haha!!) and decided Yoshi's Egg was gonna be my base, with some daisy flowers.  I have been practicing the sculpting of figures and designs with the cakes, but I decided I wanted this cake to double as part of the birthday gift for these two sweet peas, so on a search I went for Super Mario Figurines to help and I found them!  Now this is  really a neat trick, because nothing beats the eyes going wide with surprise and excitement when first sigh of  the cake, but also the fact that some new toys. What can I say other than Priceless! And That was just their father!  

It was a special Day and I was so happy to be a part of it, and so happy that I could do something special for these kids that mean so much to me. They couldn't wait to blow out the candles and dive in and rip it apart. You had to hear all the adults yell no wait, it was a moment that made it even greater!  What a great celebration, can't wait to do it again and share it with all you!! Till next week...

Happy Baking from Bradley Sweets!!

HOOWWW YOOUUUU DOOOIIINNNN???

How you Doin??? ( Where my Wendy Fan's at) .Another week of a crazy of ever changing schedules but I have been working on some great idea's to share with you! Plus I've been practicing, getting ready for a special cake that someone has asked for!

  So What do you all think?? I was fooling around in the Lab working on a special test cake for a special occasion.  I decided like always to get a little wild and crazy, I know what else is knew.  This wonderful cake you see, is just a bunch of ideas I was trying, with a few techniques I've learned over the years that I was practicing. You see I am making a very special cake this weekend for two very special people close to my heart. And I wanted to try out some ideas, kick around a few things to see what might be good what won't work. 

Ok so I decided lets test some of the ideas in my head. First this yummy cake you see is 100 % sugar free, which is why I was testing some techniques!  In my experience and adventure trying to find some yummy sugar free recipes I have found that the icing sometimes either has a funky taste ( thankfully I have worked out a great recipe you wouldn't even tell the difference and funky after taste)  The icing since it is sugar free also have a tendency to not be easy to decorate with. It is either to sticky or too runny or won't hold the shape I'm trying to make. I have found the perfect balance though is making the icing and keeping it sugar free and holding the shape.  Check out the roses!! This of course took time and patience.  Which I can say if you ever decide to try your hand at decorating, I suggest taking your time and practice. 

So As you can see, not only was I testing the technique, I was using coloring as well! With the sugar free icing when you add a little bit of coloring ( remember food coloring a little goes a llooooonnngggg waaayyy) it can also help in making your icing get a little thin. Heres a quick tip, after you mix the color in and place it in your piping bag stick it int he fridge. When working with icing it can warm up quickly and this makes it hard to work with.  Keeping it cold does help keep it firm, and so much easier to work with! So I got crazy decided to make green icing, ( mostly cause the special cake I'm making will have green in it, so I had to test it) And Also I was testing a new sugar free chocolate icing recipe that I had. Plus the contrasting colors actually make it pop! Now depending on the decorating your doing, is how you decide how stiff your icing should be.Take the roses, which I left white, for example. To make flowers you need very stiff icing, which gives your hand a good work out. That's why I left them white, cause I wanted to see how it would come out.  Next time I'm adding color!  I was also testing the writing technique and got inspiration from Ms. Wendy Williams ! I was all soft and pink!!

Ok My Sweets I'm off, have a lot of work to do for this weekends very special cake! I hope you are excited to see what I'm going to be doing. I have a vision in my head, and I want to make sure it comes out perfect.   Make sure to check back next week, and let me know what you think!! Also Remember to comment on this cake!! I want to see what you guys think of the test cake.

Happy Baking from Bradley Sweets!!

Guess Whose Back!!

Hello My Sweets!! Miss me?? I missed you!! I'm so so sorry I've been M.I.A.  Let me fill you in on whats been going on! Well First, as you may all know, we in a recession  and we all got to have a day job, including me! Lately my employer has been acting nuts with my schedule and changing it at least 5 times a day. When I mean changing I mean telling me one time, then 5 minutes later telling me another, and then another and another, and he has also sent me email 5 minutes before I'm about to leave to tell me another time . Needless to say its been crazy and I have not had a chance to get up in the lab and create some goodies to share with you!  He keeps promising that the schedule will even it out soon, however he does keep changing, so until then I have made the decision that my once daily blog, will be a weekly one, because I don't want to leave you guys out of all the fun! So please bare with me, and thank you so much to everyone who has been following and sending us messages of love! 

Okay so another thing we have been doing is that thanks to a very good friend ( Yeah you!!) we were informed of a great baking contest for Martha Stewart, and we have been working on a great recipe which we submitted and hopefully we will be considered in the running. As soon as we get more info my sweets I'm sending you all messages to vote vote vote for us!

Ok, so now that you know all the crazy that has been keeping me busy, lets get down to the nitty gritty of a great sweet that we created. How many of you have wished for a wonderful donut? Or perhaps that you had a Dunkin Donuts right in your house, or that they even at the least delivered?  Well someone in my house was wishing that very thing, so I decided to remuage  through my baking closet and look through my molds to see what I had.  Now There are lots of ways to make donuts, and there are lots of recipes. I was lucky enough to receive as a gift a donut mold a while back and decided what better time to use it. 

I was watching one of those America's Greatest Food Shows one night on tv, where they featured a dinner that was known for potato donuts which they called ponuts. Yeah not kidding, the batter was made from potato flower, I've never heard of such a thing so it sent me on a quest to look what other recipes I could find , and see what other types of batters people were using. My quest did not disappoint either and I found tons of different recipes from all over, and I had fun experimenting with them all and making my up my own as well. Needless to  say that donut craver in my house has been one happy camper! I have found in all of my experiments that this ponut thing is great, cause its light and not as heavy, and can easily be made sugar free and taste amazing.

The fun part was decorating them after as well/ I made some look like a very famous donut from the Simpsons, ( Oh Homer!) Luckily with the mold I was able to make all types that you can find at your favorite donut hole, but I have also been working on some other donuts that would be made without the use of the mold, and having fun doing so. Krispy Kream got nothing on me! I really suggest that everyone try this at least once. It was a messy adventure, but a fun one too!!

Well my sweets I'm off, to create the next great idea for you guys. Thank you all again for the love and support, and baring with us as our schedule has gotten nutty! I will keep you all updated on our adventures! Remember to please donate to our march of babies too while there is still time! Love you all!! Till next week...

Happy Baking from Bradley Sweets!!

This minty refreshing treat is for you my friend in Cali!!

Hello My Sweets! What a couple of days it has been. Our hearts and prayers go out to all those in Japan and hope that all those missing are found alive and well. We also would like to send our well wishes to those in our region who are suffering from the recent flooding. We wish you a speedy recovery.

So My Sweets,  I am still going through all the requests all of you made, and I came across one from a good friend of mine, a request I see more as a challenge. This friend mentioned they were craving the famous Shamrock Shake from Mcds, but alas could not have it with out getting sick. Well my friend from the west, challenge not only accepted but challenge won! I made a minty fresh, froze treat that is good for all!!  Okay so I know a fair amount of people who are lactose intolerant, ( meaning dairy, like milk, no good for the tum tum), and although when you go to the grocery store there are more options becoming available, sometimes a nice homemade treat hits the spot.

In the laboratory I went into my closet to dig out an my ice cream maker. I actually love this thing, and on top of that it is can make 2 flavors at one time!  I grabbed some ingredients I needed, and got to work mixing up some lactose free ice cream.  In keeping with one of my favorite flavors, and the fact that St. Patty's is right around the corner, I made a sweet mint, and added some green coloring!!  This treat will make that Shake rock its shams!  To keep it simple all I did was top it off with a nice mint cookie, ( which btw does anyone know a girl scoot I'm running low lol).

Weather has been warming up or trying to, and this refreshing treat is a great way to welcome in the Spring which is also just around the corner!! Remember to say a prayer to all those devastated  by the recent events, and hold those you love closer.  Off to create another request my sweets, till tomorrow...

Happy Baking from Bradley Sweets!!

Today is a day for Thought and Prayer....

In the early hours of the morning a very large earthquake hit Japan and many very strong aftershocks are still causing destruction. The earthquake caused a powerful tsunami that not only hit  the shores of Japan, but is  hitting Hawaii and also up and down the west coast. Today we are sending all of our thoughts and prayers to those affected by this devastation.  We are also keeping those in New Jersey Affected by the severe flooding caused by all the rain in the east  in our thoughts and prayers as well.   We wish everyone a speedy recovery.

Happy Baking from Bradley Sweets!!

Sponsor Me at March for Babies!

Told you I'm gonna keep promoting this till you donate or join the walk!!!!!

Happy Baking From Bradley Sweets!!

Down South getting Messy and Dirrrrrtttyyyy!!

Don't you love when Hump Day rolls around my sweets?? Have a fun Fat Tuesday yesterday?? So Who got the trinkit, as luck would have it I did!! Your still throwing the party, you know who you are... I bring the cake though!! So you might remember that yesterday I mentioned today we would be staying in the south for our treats, and I meant it.  Whose ready for a messy classic that reminds you have your childhood?

Picture it, summer of 85 in a small town in New Jersey, two young children around age 3 are playing in the yard.  The little boy has a bucket of water that he splashes at the ground and the little girl in her brand new pink dress covered in dirt is making a big old mess.  The little boy impatiently waits for his mud pie, that he of course plans on throwing at the little girl when she least expects it.  Except he doesn't anticipate the fact that she has a hidden mud pie and when he goes to sit down she smushes it in his hair. That little girl , she was me, and that little boy, well he was Charlie Sheen!  HAHA no not really Charlie Sheen, it was my cousin but his name has been changed for reasons unknown!  Did you also enjoy the Gold Girls set up to the story, just a little nod to one of my favorite shows, but it served as a good hint to todays request!  That's right, Mississippi + Mud = Decadence!!

Ok So if your not familiar with this cake, let me tell you something about it. Its a simple cake, you can make it as a pie your choice of course,  with cheap ingredients you find at the store. Its said that this cake originated in Mississippi, ( well Duh that must be how it got its name Winning , sorry Charlie Sheen again, gosh darn tiger blood!) and looked kinda like the banks of the along side of that river, you know the one, oh whats the name,  I'm sure it will come to me later!

Well like the fast pace of a running river to the Labratory I went ( aka my Kitchen) and grabbed some ingredients to make this yummy gooey mud cake!  Ok no you can add nuts to this if you want, but again I'm going nut free. Not cause I don't like nuts, or that I'm allergic,  just cause I feel like it! Okay now when I make Mississippi Mud cake, it brings back some memories of when I was young making mud pies and getting messy, so you can bet your butter socks that I want to make this as messy as possible! So here are some tips that I have that can help you make this as yummy and gooey as possible. After pouring your batter in the pan take some frozen chocolate and place a couple of pieces through out the cake. As the cake backs the chocolate will slowly sink and melt into the cake. That way when you take a bit it will have a yummy melty chocolate pour out! While your cake is baking  I like to get my topping ready, cause I like to put it one just before the cake is done. So take some chocolate  ( I like to keep it in the freezer that way it melts slower and doesn't burn easily) and some marshmallow fluff ( you can find it in the baking aisle near the marshmallows, grab a bag of those while your there) and start mixing the broken up chocolate or chocolate chips into the fluff and throw in some extra marshmallows as well . Fluff is sticky so have fun with it! So once you have it all mixed , and your cake is a little more than half way down, take the cake out of the oven, and spread the ooey gooey mixture on the top of your cake, and stick it back in the oven. The fluff and chocolate will melt, and so will the marshmallows which once they start to turn golden you know your cake is ready!

Now nothing beats this cake warm and first thing out of the oven, thats when its at it most messy, however if by some odd reason you have left over of this cake, just pop it in the microwave for like 20 seconds or so warm it up, and its just like straight from the oven!

Well well my sweets, I don't know about you, but request week is a whole lotta fun! We might do it again some time! Thanks for this messy request! Remember everyone is you want to visit us on Facebook or on Twitter you can, and if you would like an recipes or tips just sends us a message! We love hearing from all our friends!!  I'm off my sweets I got to get me a piece of that cake before its all gone! Please don't break the door down trying to get in to get a piece! You know who you are!!  Make sure to check back tomorrow, when we share another request  from one of our sweet friends!!

Happy Baking from Bradley Sweets!!