Wedding, Birthday, and Celebration Cakes Especially 4 You
My future mother-in-law wants to add 30 more guests after we have sent out the invites. Can I ask her to pay for them?
If the number of guests have already been agreed upon and the invites are in the mail, she is asking too much, not you. Have your fiance explain what your budget situation is and tell her she’s welcome to add the new guest, as long as she’s willing to help cover the costs. Coming from her son, it might seem like less of a threat.
Get help in the kitchen from unexpected sources.
*Paper towel: Place a damp paper towel underneath your cutting board to keep it from slipping. No more chasing the board across the counter as you chop.
*Spaghetti: Fresh out of toothpicks? Break a piece of uncooked spaghetti in half and use one of the pieces to test if your cakes and other baked goods are done.
*Can: Use a can of soup or beans to crush nuts. Place the nuts in a plastic baggie, push most of the air out, seal it and roll the can over the bag to smash the nuts. Keep the nuts in the middle of the bag to avoid ripping the corners.
*Straw: Level flour in measuring cups with a drinking straw instead of knife. Store the straw in your flour canister-it be one less thing to wash.
*Straw: Taking a 2 layer cake to a party. Place straw down the middle of the cake and the top layer will not slide off.
*Salt: If dinner spills while cooking in your oven, cover the mess with salt right away. It’ll mask the odor until you can clean things up.
*Your Thumb: For a quick measurement. The distance from the tip of your thumb to the first knuckle is usually about an inch.
I have tried these and they work.
donotcall.gov….National do not call registryto rid of Telemarketers. This is the government’s permanent list of off-limits numbers. There are some who pay no attention to this, but when I do answer their call, I just say “I am on the governments do not call list” and I never hear from them again.
OptOutPreScreen.com….to get rid of credit card and insurance offers. The four major credit reporting companies will take you off their lists. Using this can help with someone taking them, telling them you have a new address and running up a high bill in your name.
catalogchoice.org….to get rid of unwanted catalogs. Register, check off catalogs and this nonprofit contacts them individually.
SOFTEN BUTTER IN SECONDS……If your’ ready to start your recipe, but have forgotten to take your butter out of the fridge, thinly slice the amount you need and lay out the pieces on a plate at room temperature. The butter will soft by the time you have measured the dry ingredients.
CLEAN YOU HANDS QUICKLY…..kneading dough for pies or biscuits in fun, but getting it off you hands when you’re finished can be a chore. To speed it up, rub your hands with cornmeal and give them a brief rinse. The dough will come right off.
MEASURING WITHOUT MESS….Working with peanut butter, molasses, honey and other sticky substances can be slow, especially when you’re using a spatula to get every bit into you mixing bow. If you lightly mist you measuring cups with cooking spray beforehand, even the gooiest ingredients will slide out.
SPEARATE EGGS WITH EASE….Use a plastic bag to help separate whites from yolks. Simply snip a small corner off the bag, place it in a glass to contain the white and careful crack you egg into it. The white slips through the hole into the glass while the yolk stays in the bag.
National Secretaries Week was created in 1952 through the efforts of Harry F. Klemfuss, a New York publicist. Working in conjunction with the National Secretaries Association, later known as the International Association of Administrative Professionals, wanted to encourage more people to consider careers in the secretarial/administrative support field.
The official period of celebration was first proclaimed by U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Charles Sawyer “National Secretaries Week,” which was held June 1–7 in 1952, with Wednesday, June 4, 1952 designated National Secretaries Day. The first Secretaries’ Day was sponsored by the National Secretaries Association with the support corporate groups.
In 1955, the observance date of National Secretaries Week was moved to the last full week of April. The name was changed to Professional Secretaries Week in 1981, and became Administrative Professionals Week in 2000 to encompass the expanding responsibilities and wide-ranging job titles of administrative support staff.
Over the years, Administrative Professionals Week has become one of the largest workplace observances. The event is celebrated worldwide through community events, social gatherings, and individual corporate activities recognizing support staff with gifts. In the United States, the day is often celebrated by giving one’s assistant gifts such as, flowers, candy, trinkets, lunch at a restaurant, or time off. And CAKES.
No, a liquid measuring cup doesn’t work for dry ingredients because it’s impossible to level off the correct amount, as you can with dry measuring cups. Tapping a wet measuring cup to settle a dry ingredients like flour just makes it more compact, which wreaks havoc on baked good, where accuracy is important. However, if you have a steady hand, you can fill a dry measuring cup with liquid-it will yield the correct amount (minus any spilling).
The history of Mother’s Day is centuries old and goes back to the times of ancient Greeks, who held festivities to honor Rhea, the mother of the gods. The early Christians celebrated the Mother’s festival on the fourth Sunday of Lent to honor Mary, the mother of Christ. Interestingly, later on a religious order stretched the holiday to include all mothers, and named it as the Mothering Sunday. The English colonists settled in America discontinued the tradition of Mothering Sunday because of lack of time. In 1872 Julia Ward Howe organized a day for mothers dedicated to peace. It is a landmark in the history of Mother’s Day.
With Mother’s Day coming up soon. How about sending mom a cake?
You can order her cake from anywhere in the world and I will deliver it here in and around Livingston County at no extra charge.
I have taken “Taste of Love” cake orders from California, New York, Georgia, Texas, Iraq, just to name a few.
Here are a few things to make your special day a little smoother. Just pack up a small bag of these items to take to the Bride’s room for members of the wedding party who may need them.
Go to my web site: http:/www.cakesespecially4you.com for the complete list.
Technical Advancement in Making of Birthday Cake
In the beginning the cakes used to be similar to bread. They were sweetened with honey and enhanced with nuts and dry fruits. According to food historians, ancient Egyptians were the first to show evidence of advanced baking skills. Medieval European bakers used to make fruitcakes and gingerbread that could last for months. Around the middle of 17th century, Europeans had made considerable advancement in the art of making cakes. They began to make what can be called precursor to modern cakes that were round and had icing. This was mainly due to the development of technology that made available reliable ovens, food moulds and refined sugar. At that time cake hoops – which were round wooden or metal moulds for shaping cakes were placed on flat pans to effect the shape.
First icing that was used in cakes were usually a boiled composition of finest available sugar, egg whites and flavors. Then icing used to be poured on the cake and then the cake was put back into the oven for a while. When the cake was taken out, the icing cooled quickly to form a hard glossy ice-like covering. Mouled cakes and fancy ices reached their zenith in Victorian times.
With the time, the art of baking cakes kept progressing and it was not until the middle of the 19th century that the cake we know of today developed. Taste and appearance of the cake was enhanced with extra-refined white flour and the use of baking powder instead of yeast.
I am the designer, baker, decorator, delivery person, cleanup crew, customer service, and office staff.
