Archives for October 2011

Gadget Review : Babycakes Cake Pops Maker

October 21, 2011 By Stephanie Louise

I like miniature cooking. I don’t know what it is about turning something normal sized into something bite-sized, but I love it. Obviously, I’m not the only one! I spotted this gadget in Kohl’s along with 2-3 other types of mini makers (doughnuts, cupcakes, turnovers, etc) and knew I wanted THIS one. If I can make cake in it…then I can probably make other things too right? Correct!

Product Info: The Babycakes cake pop maker brings the fun and delicious cake pops trend into your own kitchen. Bake 12 cake pops or doughnut holes in just minutes. Add sticks and a touch of creative decorating for perfect cake pops. The nonstick coating makes baking and clean up fun and easy. The Babycakes cake pop maker comes complete with all the accessories you need to bake and decorate cake pops or doughnut holes. The manual includes a variety of tips and recipes that will help you enjoy the baking experience.

The cake pop maker features power and ready lights, convenient cord wrap, latching handle and it comes with a fork tool, 50 cake pop sticks and a cake pop stand.

My Take: So this little machine is adorable. Its lavender so it really stands out against all my other appliances. I ripped it out of the box as soon as I got home. I had to make cake. I flipped through the recipe booklet provided. Along with basic instructions (they really are basic…plug into wall and wait) they has included a few cake recipes, a doughnut hole recipe, and multiple frosting/glaze options. At first I thought “Well gee that doesn’t give me much to work with…” but then it dawned on me : You can use any recipe you already have, logically speaking. I pulled out a cake mix I had on hand which happened to be Devil’s Food. I then separated the mix into 1/3s. Why? We didn’t need that many cake pops and this way I can always make them fresh.

Top Notes:
-Easy to clean
-Doesn’t take up too much space
– Lightweight!
-Cooks evenly
-Accessories that are actually useful
-Can use different types aka muffins, cake, & even brownies…although they were pretty lumpy
-Great for portion control!!!!

Cons:
-Can be difficult to remove the cakes
-Wish it came in a giant size too….but that might just be me being lazy!

Cooling before their Spooky Slime Glaze.

So my husband thought this was SO cool I walked in on him making muffins yesterday! It really is that fun! They have a few other types, but this is probably the only one I will buy. I mean, it pretty much does it all!

Cooking in Pictures:

Vanilla “Green Slime” Glaze.

So here’s what happens when you overfill the machine! Turned out a bit like a brownie corner. I don’t know why, but I thought this was hilarious.

Here’s the stand which I put on top of a plate. It holds 12, same as the machine.

Batch #1: Top row is swirled glaze, middle is linear glaze, bottom is “drop” glaze.

Batch #2: I made way too much, so I smothered them and added sprinkles. Lazy or awesome?I think you know which one I went with! 😉

Snack Review: Food Should Taste Good Multigrain Chips

October 8, 2011 By Stephanie Louise

Product Information: Made with the goal of creating unique flavors that give consumers choices in natural chips, these chips are both healthy and tasty.

Brand Rave:

Certified Gluten Free, Kosher, and Vegan

No Trans Fat, MSG, or GMO’s

Excellent Source of Whole Grains

All Natural, No Artificial Colors, Flavors or Preservatives

Cholesterol Free, Low Sodium, High in Fiber

Ingredients: Stone ground corn, high oleic sunflower oil and/or safflower oil, brown rice flour, flax seeds, evaporated cane juice, oat fiber, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, quinoa, soy flour, seat salt.

Impressions: Tasty! Shaped like a high end cracker but tastes like a tortilla chip! Yum! Healthy in many ways (check my video for the full list…its a long one!) but has that crispiness I crave!

Where to Buy: Food Should Taste Good. Retail Price is $1.29 per bag. If you check out the link, they have quite a few different flavors too! I want to try them all eventually!

*Item(s) sent to me for review are featured in this post. This in no way guarantees coverage. All of my reviews and reactions are honest, I would never recommend something that didn’t deserve it. For more information, please see my disclosure policy in the top bar.*

Fuss Free Lunch: Low-Calorie Fish Plus Sides for a Hungry Afternoon

October 7, 2011 By Stephanie Louise

Sometimes I think “Okay, I’m eating healthy…but I’m STARVING!” Today was one of those days, not surprise since I have been busy-busy-busy! When you are having one of those days, try this out!

On the Plate:

1/4 cup of peas seasoned with pepper and a touch of garlic

1 Mahi Mahi Fillet sauteed (no oil/butter, just cooking spray) seasoned with lemon pepper to your liking

1/2 cup brown rice

3 medium mushrooms + some leftover red onion sauteed for rice topping

As much leafy greens as you’d like tossed with a bit of vinegar

Doesn’t this look like an awful lot of food for lunch? After tallying it up, you’ll only be taking in approximately 300-350 calories. This is less than your average TV dinner, very tasty, easy to throw together, & much less sodium!

Need it on the go? Make the brown rice ahead, add the peas to your salad, and sub out the fish for chicken. Grab & go lunch you can feel good about!

Cakes: Halloween or Fall Pumpkin Cake Idea

October 6, 2011 By Stephanie Louise

Check it out! I got this idea from one of my cooking magazines (Woman’s Day) for a Pumpkin-Carrot Cake, but there’s was WAYYY too large for what I needed! It fed at least 40 people! So I broke it down to one tier and added an inner frosted layer.

If you would like the recipe just let me know! It was a hit! The frosting is homemade cream cheese, so it was softer than regular but tasted amazing! So here’s the decorating breakdown!

To get the pumpkin shape, use a bundt pan. I chose one with linear shapes instead of flat. It you go with smooth, just create more texture when you’re icing! I used gel icing for the rich color and the stem is a flat-top ice cream cone with green icing.

What do you guys think?