So much for that NaNoWriMo thing. It’s been a crazy busy month over here in Kellyland. Between friends visiting, family birthdays, going home to CT, stuff at work, trying to maintain some fragment of a social life and all the other things I volunteer myself to do, I’ve been a little busy. Sadly, my commitment to writing a post every day has fallen to the wayside. It’s probably for the best, though. For once I’m actively trying not to say yes to everything so I won’t be tired all the time.
Does that mean I stop baking? Of course not! It seems as though the one thing I can’t shake is the baking muse who whispers ideas into my ear at all hours of the evening, leaving me elbows-deep in dough at 11:30 at night, as I try to perfect some baking technique I’ve never attempted before.
I can’t promise that life will get less crazy anytime soon, so I won’t tell you that you’ll see more frequent posts from me. For now, accept pictures of the pumpkin-bourbon cheesecake I made at 11 o’clock last night as an apology and a pathetic stand-in for a real post.
I’ve made this before, only this time I added (roughly) 2 tbs of bourbon (I finished off the very cheap bottom-of-the-barrel brand I had on hand for baking) and, in my sleep-deprived, stress-induced stupor, forgot to add the flour. Sans flour, it came out much fluffier than the last time I made it. The top was a failed attempt to make soft caramel sauce with bourbon and pecans. The texture resembled more of a pecan brittle than the languidly gooey layer of caramel I initially envisioned. If brittle’s your thing, great. If you’ve got an actual recipe for caramel topping and you follow the rules and don’t just play with sugar in the microwave at work, you’re a better baker than I. I applaud you. Get down with your baking self.
16. November 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: Uncategorized |
2 comments
I have to admit. I’m a sucker for free food. Even if it’s something I know I won’t like, I will wait in the line at Trader Joe’s and try the super-spicy something-or-other in hopes that whatever amuse bouche awaits me in a little paper sample cup will instantly transform my tolerance for heat and change my mind about spicy foods forever.
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01. November 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: chicken, horchata, Uncategorized |
1 comment
Wait, did she just say puppies? Yes, yes I did.
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26. October 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: beer, donuts, eating out, eating with friends |
2 comments
If you thought I ran off and started culinary school, I’m sorry to disappoint you [okay and me too, but isn't it pretty to think so? ...Hemingway? anyone? Bueller?]. Just because I’m not off chasing one dream, doesn’t mean I’m not working on another. I assure you, exciting things are afoot in the life of Ms. Kelly Cakes. For one, I’ve finally moved to Philly, so this whole “let-me-tell-you-what-Philly’s-got-to-eat-besides-cheesesteak” thing can actually happen more frequently. Oddly enough, now that I’m here and eating in restaurants, I don’t really want to write about it. I have a new
friend who used to do it for a living and he knows the inner workings and history of the food scene here that I could never do it justice. So, I guess that’s all to say that this blog is in flux and will most likely evolve into something truer to my experience with food and how it shapes my life [yes, it's gotten to be that serious]. Stay tuned.
27. September 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: emotional baking, life update |
2 comments
Happy 4th of July, dear readers! I hope you had a weekend that was as relaxing and stress-free as mine was. I’ve been under an exorbitant amount of stress lately and haven’t had the time to do much of anything, so I wanted to take this weekend to do everything I’ve wanted to do for the past few weeks. So, while the rest of the country was BBQing with friends or hitting up the beach, I slept late, watched two seasons of Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares, went raspberry picking, treated myself to some intense yoga, cleaned my apartment, started packing, saw a movie and only hung out with a few people. It was wonderful to get away from a flooded inbox and constantly ringing phone. I know that things will be hectic again in a few short hours, but I’m relishing in the last moments of being on my own schedule.
04. July 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: almonds, ice cream, plum, tarts, vanilla |
2 comments
No, seriously. Make them. You won’t be sorry.
06. June 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: blackberries, lemon, mascarpone, raspberries, tarts |
4 comments
…that’s what these donuts are made of. This past weekend, Casey of
Tastespotting tweeted about a recipe for baked sweet potato donuts that I couldn’t pass up. I’ve been trying to reduce food waste and only make things with ingredients I already have, so this recipe was a big help to me and the unused bag of sweet potatoes that was hanging out on my kitchen counter.
01. June 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: cinnamon, donuts, sweet potato |
4 comments
Today I built a lightbox. After gawking at the beautiful pictures I had seen in foodblogs, it hadn’t occurred to me that they were the result of more than just beautiful food and a fancy camera. During the food styling session of
Eat Write Retreat, I watche
d Lisa Cherkasky and Renee Comet carefully dance around three huge reflectors, circling a tiny table with a masterfully styled dish in the center of it. The results were incredible. A salad that I had chopped the tomatoes for had been transformed into something that look like it belonged on the shiny pages of a magazine. I quickly realized that I was severely lacking in my knowledge of food photography.30. May 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: eggplant, EWR, food photography, grilling, panini, potatoes |
4 comments
Last weekend I attended Eat Write Retreat in D.C. I was invited via Twitter and bought the ticket on a whim as a graduation present to myself. I wanted to do something out of the ordinary with the hopes that being around serious bloggers would help me figure out if I wanted to pursue ‘something’ in food–Should I bake? Should I write about restaurants? Did I want to take my blog in a new direction? Does my writing suck? Should I bother blogging at all?
My poor brain was a whizzing tornado of anxiety. Thoughts were dashing around my head. I had doubts about my ability, about how professional my blog looked and whether I would be taken seriously at all, being that my blog has few followers and a small readership. After all, didn’t I start this blog for fun? I wanted to stop spamming my facebook newsfeed with pictures of the delicious photos I would take of practically everything I baked and whatever I ate at restaurants. How would it stand up against serious bloggers?
Do me a favor. Read that last question again. [I'll wait.]
28. May 2011 by kellybakes
Categories: blogging conferences, EWR, writing |
10 comments
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