Recently in Parties Category

Whose birthday? Mine, of course!

I'm trying to think of a good couple of desserts to have at my party this weekend - cupcakes are likely, but I'm looking for something special either in addition to, or worked into, those. I have a couple days for prep. I'd like to wow the crowd. Thoughts?

Nothing original on my side today, but be sure to check out Cynthia's write-up on her recent flavor tripping party (which I was lucky enough to attend) - her experiences match mine almost exactly (and there's a paragraph I contributed there as well). As always, it's punctuated with her always beautiful photography -  take a look.

This morning, I made a maple crunch ice cream, as my cream needed using and the maple candy I made last week wasn't getting any fresher. It turned out really well, and got me thinking: Are there enough LA/OC folks out there who make their own ice creams to have a meetup and tasting?

I've thought about doing it with cupcakes, and while it'd be fun, there are only so many cupcakes you can try in an evening. But with ice cream, you can get the full experience with a spoonful, leaving you open to five to ten more spoonfuls are the night goes on. I'm not sure, though, if many/any of my blogging friends even make their own. Your thoughts and input welcome!

All sorts of baking, cooking, preparing, and eating to do this weekend:

Tonight I baked a variety of Amish Friendship breads - some muffins, some mini loaves, and a big loaf. They were all the same dough, but the variety in types is due mostly to wanting to make a bunch of muffins, but realizing I'd be up until 2 in the morning if I went that route. Instead, I made loaves to use up the huge batch of batter faster. If you'd like some, please ask.

Tomorrow I'm going to my first flavor tripping party - thrown by a foodie friend, even. I've acquired a bunch of very sour, very delicious kumquats to test the before-and-after effects of the miracle berries. I'm very excited!

Having some leftover maple syrup and an overinflated sense of my candy-making skills, I tried to make some maple caramel last night, but ended up instead with a sort of grainy maple meltaways, not quite a hard crack, but not at all soft. So what to do? Ice cream - I'll make a richer-than-usual ice cream, and incorporate the candy. I have high expectations for it.

Since it's been a while, Sunday might find me making pizza, cupcakes, or both. If you need me, I'll be in the kitchen.