neglectful me

Ok, I have been a very bad neglectful blogger. This past week just flew by without a post... eek! There was some reasoning to it... I had a birthday (hooray!), and then this past weekend was Thanksgiving up here in Canada, so it has been back to back feasting and family visits. And now it is officially catch up time - time to catch up on the blog, work, and craft making for the upcoming shows... so much to do, so little time!

wee birthday wishes

This weekend we had family over for Jasper's birthday. Hooray! I can't believe my little guy is turning 2 already. Since mommy is not a very good baker (and the wee one loves ice cream), I thought I would just fancy up a store bought ice cream cake with some crafty cake toppers. A little paper bunting and cardboard cut out of Max and Ruby was met with the biggest smile. Happy Birthday Jasper! :)

oh la la

Hope everyone had a great Valentine’s Day! I got a little surprise treat from my hubby... Roger made a yummy Gateau Basque (yes, that is a gooey jam filling you see). Just writing this post is making me hungry... hmmm... perhaps time for a another slice. :)

this takes the cake

As soon as I took a bite of this the other night at L'Abattoir, I knew I had to blog about it... it was sooooooo good! Excuse the photo, I had to use my phone and it was very dim mood lighting in the restaurant... so this was the best I could do with no flash. Ok, ok... so what is this best dessert ever? Apple and olive oil cake with honey ginger ice cream and green apple granita. I literally had to refrain myself from licking the plate afterwards (I shake my fist at you "social etiquette" and "manners").

tarts and celebrities

A tasty treat the other night to celebrate the 'ol birthday... nothing like a cute lemon tart topped with a little chocolate ladybug. While on the topic of birthdays, I thought I would do a google search to see what famous celebrities I share my b-day with (yes, I am procrastinating a bit right now). Here are 10 (in random order):

1. Ashlee Simpson (hmmm, not off to a good start here)

2. Seann William Scott (aka Stifler from American Pie... dude!)

3. Neve Campbell (from Party of 5... I never really got into this show, who's next...)

4. Kevin Richardson (aka, the guy with the eyebrows from Backstreet Boys)

5. Gwen Stefani (ok, my list is improving...)

6. Clive Owen (...getting better...)

7. Tommy Lee (hmmm... darn, my list is sliding again)

8. Lindsey Buckingham (Fleetwood Mac is a bit before my time, but my mom liked them)

9. Roy Horn (aka Roy of Siegfried & Roy, aka the one that was attacked by the tiger... eek!)

10. Chubby Checker (had to end with this one to give the list a nice "twist")

chocolate sweet, less the wheat

I am totally not a baker... love to cook, but still haven't really gotten into the baking. So when my sister's birthday dinner came up, and a wheat free desert option was a must, I volunteered to make the cake?! My memory of a store bought wheat free cake at a work function years ago left me with memories of a dry and inedible cake that everyone politely moved around their plates or smuggled into their napkins, so I figured I would spare my sis the same culinary torture. Anyhoo, rather than start from scratch (since, yes, it has already been established, I don't really bake), I thought I would try a store bought wheat-free cake mix.... and lo and behold, it was really good! And yes, please don't make fun of my amateur cake decor... that unfortunately, I had to do from scratch!

cake attack

Lesson learned over the weekend... never try to eat a scrumptious little cheesecake in front of a wee one wielding a fork. I have never seen Jasper look so ravenous! BTW, the petite cheesecake was scrumptious... and it was so pretty decorated with little candy pearls (we devoured this at Trafiq Cafe & Bakery on Main Street). I am now wishing I got a box to take away...

cutie cake

Oh what is this chocolatey and yummy delight you see here? This was Jasper's birthday cake! (You can see him eating it here). We had Lyndsay of Coco Cake make a custom Cheburashka cake for Jasper, who subsequently is one of his favourite stuffy dolls (see bottom pic). His face is a round 7" cake and his ears are made up of mini cupcakes. He was quite a hit with both the kiddies and adults at the party... and devoured quite quickly too! Check out the Coco Cake blog to see all her yummy creations.

happy 1st birthday jasper!

Happy Birthday to our little Jasper who turned the big numero uno today! I can't believe it has already been a year since we brought him home from the hospital... oh, yes, I am getting all wishy-washy now... sorry, can't help it. Oh, he is growing up so fast - so fun to see him toddling around the house and flashing his big toothy smile. Will post a picture of his birthday cake soon.... have to go through all the photos still. :)

mmmm.... butter

We celebrated my sister's birthday over the weekend (she just moved back into town from Ontario, so better celebrated in person rather than over a long distance, even if a bit belated). Nothing like a good family dinner followed by a selection of colourful pretty cupcakes (we got these ones at Butter on Dunbar in Vancouver). Hard to choose which one to eat, hmmm... or more like, hard to choose which one to eat first. ;)

happy birthday roger!

Today is my hubby's birthday... Happy Birthday Roger! We had a great birthday weekend and had a wonderful brunch (eh-hem... made by me), visited the Vancouver Art Gallery, took in a movie (yes, we saw Hot Tub Time Machine in all its 80's cheesiness), went for a lovely dinner at a french bistro and had some cake. Here is the cake I made... um, not from scratch, since I don't really bake. Do you recognize the character?... it is Cheburashka! (I had posted about him a couple of months earlier here). Well, I can't say I would ever win any cake decorating awards here, since bake is not my forté, but, hey... I tried. You will be happy to know most of it has already been eaten, though.

cake pops

I had a chance to do some holiday baking on the weekend, since we were heading to a holiday potluck. So what to bake, when one is not really a baker?... cake pops! I saw the recipe on Bakerella awhile ago, and have always wanted to try to make them. And once I read that it uses cake mix, it sealed the deal. They turned out pretty good too... I decided to go with the pink, since it went so well with the chocolate cake centers. I think most of the guests sustained a sugar high for a few hours after eating these. Check out the recipe here.

ps. don't forget to enter my December giveaway hereto win a calendar! :)

they say its your birthday...

Hooray! Today is my birthday! (wow, did I just cheer for myself out loud?... uh, yes i did!) Not sure what the hubby has planned for today... he is keeping it all very hush hush.... but I hope there is some cake somewhere in the plans (Roger, if you are reading this, please get cake). Hope everyone has a great weekend! :)

ps. don't forget to enter my giveaway here!