Rachel's Wedding

It is such and honor to be asked to create the sweet confections served at any event...especially a wedding. So I was thrilled to be asked to bake some yummy cupcakes for this wedding. Planning started almost a year ago when the bride and I met, with a sample pack for tasting. Once she decided what flavors she wanted to go with it was time to think about display and how many cupcakes to use for this wonderful event. Rachel decided to go with Red Velvet, a favorite of her handsome groom, Chocolate Peanut butter, her fav, and vanilla to have a balance.

The reception was held at the Pewter Rose in Charlotte.....so neat and warm and eclectic. The theme was Black and White so with Rachel's boxes and centerpiece, I added black square plates and cake stands to hold the cupcakes. I think it turned out great....and I hope their marriage is filled with love for a lifetime!

Ganache! A little bite of love on a spoon!

A lot of my friends ask me about Ganache? What is it? How do you make it? What can you use it for? Why is it soooo darn good? Well, Friends, Ganache to me is a little bite of love right on a spoon. And trust me...I've been known to just eat it that way. Right out of the bowl from the spoon!

Ganache is a fancy name for heavy cream combined with chocolate to make a wonderful glaze, filling or icing for just about anything you can think of. I like it with cupcakes, of course, but you can use it on pretzels, cookies, doughnuts, or your finger! A very good friend of mine has stated on several occasions she could just roll herself around in it! Right, Jenny!

It's a simple recipe really, just heat heavy cream (I use a double boiler so as not to burn the cream) and when it starts to boil, take it off and pour it over your favorite chocolate. I like a darker chocolate for my Ganache but you could use milk chocolate for a milder taste. Then combine the cream and chocolate until the chocolate is all melted and you are left with a wonderful creamy, dreamy bowl of yummy. Simply pour over a cake and let it run down the sides or let it set up a little and dip your cupcakes in it to produce a chocolate glaze top. It really doesn't matter how you use Ganache, it will always give you a little bite of love....right from the spoon!