about
about me.
i'm kelly.
26 year old stressbaker.
about-to-graduate grad school.
new england transplant.
eating through philly & the burbs.
baking my way into the hearts of friends.
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Monday, September 26, 2011 @ 9:04 PM
I'm baaaack
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.
So in addition to graduating from grad school while working full time planning and organizing a bridging program for 120+ students, job hunting, interviewing, apartment searching, packing my entire life up by myself, and moving to the city, I was baking. Dear readers, I would be lying to you if I said it wasn't the only thing keeping me sane. Not knowing whether I'd be homeless in a week or having to move my life (not to mention the contents of my baking closets [and yes, that's plural]) four hours away was daunting. The thought of not finding a job once my temporary position ended gave me a fair share of anxiety attacks, especially when I knew that Sallie Mae would come a-calling in a few months, palms extended and that greedy look in her eye...
So, I baked.
And I ate...
There were good cupcakes...
...bad cupcakes...
...and free [good] cupcakes.
Now that summer has come and gone, I'm excited to be settling into my new job, my new apartment, my new church and my new city. I'm thankful for all of the change thus far, but happy to have time return to blogging and food photography. Maybe now that I've cancelled my cable, I can finally get to unpacking those last few boxes so I can really give all this food stuff (the baking, the blog, the food styling/photography, even the food memoirs I got 3/4 through and never finished) the attention it deserves. Stay with me, friends. I have a feeling amazing things are yet to come...
Labels: emotional baking, life update
4 Comments:
Your photos are beautiful. I need to learn.
By 
EmKiller, at
September 28, 2011 at 5:32 AM
Firstly, the Hemingway line is obvs at the end of The Sun Also Rises :)
Secondly, these pictures are FAB. And drool-inducing. And I still owe you $10 for the treats!!!
By Jess, at
October 15, 2011 at 7:38 PM
Your cupcakes look awesome! Especially the 'sea' ones with the shells and sand :D I am incredibly jealous of your photography skills, mines never come out looking as professional as yours so well done :D
By Ellen's Cakes, at
April 3, 2012 at 5:16 PM
Hey Ellen's Cakes! Thanks for stopping in! I've moved on over to kellybakes.com. Check out my new blog and see what I'm up to! There's even a contest going on :)
By kelly, at
April 3, 2012 at 5:22 PM
Wednesday, October 13, 2010 @ 8:28 PM
baking thank-yous and conquering fears
At some point during my senior year of college, I found myself surrounded by amazing people. In moments when life got messy, I had a group of people ready to lend an ear, a prayer or a tub of ice cream. Thinking about how blessed I was made the world go watery and brought out the dimples I often forgot to use. I was so overwhelmed with thanks that words seemed trite and inadequate, leaving me unable to articulate my feelings. So, I turned to baking to express my gratitude. I channeled my emotions into every stir of my whisk and every swirl of my spatula. "Baked with love" took on a whole new meaning. Thank-yous morphed into muffins and cookies and banana bread and (once) five pounds of fudge.
I carry on the baking thank-yous tradition today. It manifests itself in macarons and madelines, caneles and cupcakes. My techniques and treats may have advanced, but I'm still at a loss for words. Despite being in grad school for English, I consider myself to be just as inarticulate as I was back then (if not less... my life is no longer filled with poets and poetry as it once was).
graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, fall spices for the crust
baked and beautiful.
(I was nervous that it was wobbly when it came out of the oven, but after some serious Googling, I found out that that was completely normal and it set after a few hours in the fridge)
It's rare that I surprise myself with how delicious something comes out, but my first bite of this guy was one of those moments. I mindlessly took a bite, as if I were nibbling on crackers at a cocktail party. After about two chews, my tastebuds finally woke up and said, "Hey, Dummy! Pay attention, this is delicious!" I may have even stopped talking; it's all a delicious blur.
If you are looking for something autumnal and rich to make for your friends (perhaps you have some thank-yous to bake), I implore you to try this recipe. You won't be disappointed.
Pumpkin Cheesecake as seen on foodnetwork.com
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen, 2007 (Bless that woman... she's probably the reason I have at least 2 lbs of butter in my fridge at all times)
Prep Time:15 min
Pumpkin Cheesecake as seen on foodnetwork.com
Recipe courtesy Paula Deen, 2007 (Bless that woman... she's probably the reason I have at least 2 lbs of butter in my fridge at all times)
Prep Time:15 min
Inactive Prep Time: 4 hr 15 min
Cook Time:1 hr 0 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 8 servings
Ingredients
Level: Easy
Serves: 8 servings
Ingredients
Crust:
1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 stick melted salted butter
1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 stick melted salted butter
Filling:
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 (15-ounce) can pureed pumpkin
3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
For crust:
In medium bowl, combine crumbs, sugar and cinnamon. Add melted butter. Press down flat into a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.
For filling:
Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, sugar and the spices. Add flour and vanilla. Beat together until well combined.
Pour into crust. Spread out evenly and place oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours.
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
1 (15-ounce) can pureed pumpkin
3 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
For crust:
In medium bowl, combine crumbs, sugar and cinnamon. Add melted butter. Press down flat into a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.
For filling:
Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, eggs, egg yolk, sour cream, sugar and the spices. Add flour and vanilla. Beat together until well combined.
Pour into crust. Spread out evenly and place oven for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours.
Labels: cheesecake, emotional baking, fall flavors, pumpkin
3 Comments:
Congrats, Kelly! I make a brownie bottom Bailey's cheesecake that's pretty phenomenal. Haven't made GF modification yet but I will in March.
By Gina, at
October 13, 2010 at 8:34 PM
I absolutely love this post. The first part seriously made me "awwww"... I feel the same way, I struggle to thank the people I love. Talking gets me all flustered, so writing is my equivalent of baking, I guess. Though I do enjoy baking, I really love sending/giving cards to people! What a nerd! haha
Your blog is so wonderful, keep up the good work, girl! <3
By Jess, at
October 13, 2010 at 8:56 PM
Thanks, Gina! That sounds amazing! Pass along the recipe (if you don't mind, that is).
Aww, Jess! Having received several wonderful cards from you this past year, I can honestly say that they bring joy to their receivers! You have a way of making people feel appreciated and reminding them of their gifts and that is a skill in itself that goes way beyond a plain old "thank you!"
By kelly, at
October 14, 2010 at 9:50 PM
Monday, August 2, 2010 @ 7:59 PM
Cupcake Craziness & Wedding Wonderfulness
25 hours. 175 cupcakes. 16 lbs of fondant. 8 lbs of buttercream. 2 lbs of gumpaste. 1 six inch layer cake. 1 crazy baker. 1 happy newly wedded couple. 1 labor of love.
Let me explain something. I'm an emotional baker. When my friend Beth got engaged, she asked me to bake her wedding cupcakes. I was delighted. I was honored. I was elated. I was googling wedding cupcakes until I was seeing double. I was bombarding her with cupcake liner designs and wedding pictures. For a week straight, I would fall asleep thinking about the pros and cons of buttercream and fondant. The thing is, when I bake for someone I care about, it's more than mixing ingredients and putting them in a greased and floured pan for 35 minutes at 350 degrees. I bake my feelings along with the butter, sugar, flour and eggs. Baking is my non-verbal way of saying "I couldn't be more excited for you!" or "I appreciate your friendship" or "I love you!" When I get worked up with emotion, I stumble over my words and they sound trite and inadequate, so I rely on cake and frosting to do all the talking. I pour my feelings into each wave of my spatula and every squeeze of my piping bag. And these cupcakes were no exception.
They started off simple enough...
...but as the cupcake pans kept coming out of the oven, I began to realize just what a big undertaking it was going to be. I mean, these were more than a few thank you cookies. These were more than a birthday cake. I couldn't just slap trick candles on top and have a waiter at TGIFriday's bring them out singing and hope the lighting was dark enough to cover any flaws. These cupcakes were for someone's wedding. One of the most memorable days of a person's life. This was serious business. I had originally intended on making poured fondant, but after giving it some thought, I decided to give rolled fondant a try.
some of the many, many cupcakes.
I had a lot of work ahead of me, but I had good company :)
well, for most of the time anyway...
Once the cupcakes were baked, it was time to make the fondant from scratch. [Get the recipe here from cakescanada.com. I played with the recipe a little bit. I found that it was much quicker to stir by hand than to try to use the dough hook. Plus, I was using my sister's Kitchenaid and didn't want to have to buy her another if I broke the motor on it.]
Melting the bloomed gelatin, corn syrup, vanilla extract and glycerin over a double boiler.
Incorporating the mixture with sugar.
Formed and ready to roll!
Then the cutting began. (I used an Ateco biscuit cutter which was the perfect size to cover a cupcake. If your cupcakes are a little big, the beauty of this fondant is that it can be gently stretched with your hands over the uncovered cupcake area).
One of several stacks of circles.
Fondant? I've got this covered.
Decorated! (I used the tiniest cutter from a Wilton circle cutter set to get the uniform circles. The smaller circles were cut from the same cutter, broken into two and then rolled and flattened to form smaller circles).
I used an Ateco tip #126 and two different shades of icing for these flowers (lavendar & white).
Boxed up and ready to go!
The final display!
Cutting the cake!
...and so, with every whirl of my Kitchenaid, every swirl of frosting, every tiny fondant circle and every crumb of cupcake, I say...
Congratulations, Mike & Beth!!
Labels: CT food, cupcakes, eating with friends, emotional baking, poured fondant, wedding cake, weddings
6 Comments:
wow kelly, i'm speechless by your all your hard work. love shreya
By 
Shreya, at
August 3, 2010 at 12:57 AM
You're a genius and I love you. For all your cakes and all your heart, my beautiful friend!!! I, however, as the roommate of the bride, am left with an apartment full of delicious leftover cupcakes. I have you to blame. For as much as you're an emotional baker, I'm an emotional eater :)
By , at
August 3, 2010 at 2:27 AM
I gasped out loud multiple times over the beauty of your cupcakes. In the event that I'm not a spinster, can you make me a stunning array of wedding cupcakes too?! :D
By Jess, at
August 3, 2010 at 3:13 PM
dearest kelly. your cupcakes were so SO incredibly amazing. i had 12 that night. i love seeing how you made them!! you are so ridiculously talented! i just love you.
annie
By Unknown, at
August 3, 2010 at 5:01 PM
Annie really did have 12, by the way. She really did. :)
By , at
August 4, 2010 at 5:35 AM
aww thanks, gals!
Jess - You will not end up a spinster and I will make you cupcakes any day of the week (including your big day).
Annie - I am so proud of you. You are a champ, both for your cupcake eating skills and just generally. Love you.
Em - I can always count on you to verify such claims. For this I thank you. I hope you take the rest of the cupcakes and make yourself some friends!
By kelly, at
August 4, 2010 at 10:14 AM