5 Things I Learned from My First Catering Gig

I'm being liberal with my use of the word gig, since it was my brother's graduation party, and I wasn't getting paid. But, still, it was my first chance to bake for such a large group of people, and to debut my new little catering business. Things went pretty well! The set up  looked amazing (I wish I had brought along a camera), and everyone seemed to enjoy the food. I guess I'm officially in business!

Recipes for all the food I made are forthcoming, but, for now, I'd like to share some things I learned from the experience.

1. A good buttercream can carry you. A delicious, pretty looking, frosting can hide a multitude of baking sins.

2. Follow your instincts. I wasted a pound of butter attempting a recipe I knew looked wrong from the get-go. I ignored my instincts in favor of the authority of a cookbook, and I paid the price. On the other hand, I "fixed" my standard buttercream recipe by preparing it the way my gut told me to instead of following the actual instructions.

3. Praise is nice. It can also be awkward. It's always nice to be appreciated for something you work hard on and enjoy doing. But for an extreme introvert, like me, it can be a little uncomfortable, too.

4. Cupcake toppers are stupid. You take the time to print out dozens of themed toppers, take the time to tape them to sticks, and take the risk of mucking up your buttercream to stab them into your cupcakes. And they'll all land in the trash in 10 seconds flat.

5. Make business cards. I didn't think to make any, but I did get asked for them. They're free to make and print at www.avery.com. Even if you're not interested in baking for pay, business cards can be useful for spreading word about your website or blog.

How to Make a Treat Box

Looking for a cute and thoughtful way to gift your home-baked goodies? Well, look no further than this useful, and easy-to-make, treat box. The finished dimensions are 10 x 4.5 x 1 inches, making this box the perfect size for cookies and brownies.

What you'll need to make this box:

• 12 x 12 inch piece scrapbook paper
• scoring board (or a ruler and a butter knife)
• scissors
• glue stick (or double-sided tape)

That's it! Let's get started!

Have you ever folded a piece of heavy paper only to have the paper crack at the fold? Scoring (or indenting) the paper helps prevent this, as well as ensuring precise folds.

Score your scrapbook paper on the wrong (non-patterned) side. Using a scoring board, score at 1", 5.5", 6.5", and 11". Turn the paper and score again at 1" and 11". Basically, you'll have scored an one-inch border around the paper and an one-inch spine down the middle.

Don't have a scoring board? Measure in with a ruler, and score using the back of a butter knife.

Using scissors, snip the flaps of the box. Fold them inward, as pictured.

Hopefully, it is clear from this photo that you're not cutting off the flaps, but merely snipping them so that they can bend inward. Only make cuts on the sides of the paper running perpendicular to the spine.

Apply glue to the right (patterned) side of each of the flaps. Adhere them to the inside of the box. This part of the project is difficult to explain but will become immediately clear to you while doing it.

I glue together the bottom of the box and then the lid. This is how it looks while in progress.

Once you have glued all the flaps, and the glue has dried, fold the lid over the bottom, sort of like a pizza box. Ta-da!

Mushroom Bacon Quesadillas

This recipe is my little love letter to my home town. It is a place that does two things well: growing mushrooms, and Americanizing Mexican foods. So, in honor of my childhood town, I present my recipe for Mushroom Bacon Quesadillas. These quesadillas make for excellent snacking during football games, or a quick dinner. The amount of bacon is just enough to give these quesadillas some added flavor without over-powering the mushrooms. Of course, bacon fanatics (of which I am not) can feel free to add more!

MUSHROOM BACON QUESADILLAS

• 8 oz white button mushrooms, coarsely chopped
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 4 10-inch flour tortillas
• 2 slices thick-cut bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 2 oz (1/2 c) pepper jack cheese, shredded
• 2 oz (1/2 c) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

1. In skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper. Cook mushrooms over medium heat until soft, about 10 minutes.

2. In the center of each 10-inch flour tortilla, place 2 tbsp of each cheese. Top with 1/4 of the cooked mushrooms and 1/4 of the crumbled bacon. Fold over the tortillas. Heat an indoor grill* to it's highest temperature. Grill quesadillas one at a time, until cheese is melted. Cut into wedges and serve.

* I use my indoor grill to make these. Alternatively, quesadillas can be cooked using a regular frying pan. Cook quesadillas over medium-high heat, flipping occasionally, until cheese is melted and tortilla is crisp.

Souce: Cats and Casseroles original recipe

Betty Crocker Best Bread Machine Cookbook

Betty Crocker Best Bread Machine Cookbook, Wiley Publishing, 1999

I really can't say enough nice things about this cookbook. It's the reason I love my bread machine. Simply put, this book is a collection of nearly flawless and easily executed recipes. It's a must have for anyone with a bread machine.

Pretty much every thing you can imagine making in a bread machine is covered in this cookbook. There are plenty of loaves baked right in the machine, ranging from sweet to savory, but the recipes that really shine are the shaped loaves that use the machine just to create the dough. There are recipes for coffee cakes, cinnamon rolls, pizza crusts, focaccia, and more. I've personally tested about half the recipes in the book and have only had one flop. And unless you are the type who enjoys frustration, reliable recipes is essential to making friends with your bread machine. I've never had a loaf cave in. I don't think I'd like how that feels.

There's nothing particularly ground breaking or gourmet about these recipes. I appreciate the simplicity, but, as is clear from this blog, I'm not a gourmet-type chef. The book is divided into seven chapters: white-flour based loaves, whole grain loaves, fruit and veggie loaves, small loaves, rustic loaves/flatbreads, rolls/breadsticks, and sweet breads. All of the recipes use easily found ingredients. Unlike in many other bread machine cookbooks, none of the recipes call for added gluten (which can be hard to find).

A sampling of recipes included: Orange Cappuccino Bread, Pumpernickel Pecan Bread, Rosemary Apricot Bread, Greek Olive Focaccia, Curry Rice Dinner Rolls, and Chocolate Caramel Sticky Buns.

Hungry yet? In sum, this is a gold star cookbook, especially for newer bread machine owners.

Thursday Pictures

Happy 1st birthday, Sundae! I remember that day, one year ago, I went to the SPCA and a little black and white kitten racing around her cage caught my eye. I picked her up for the first time... and she bit me. Even so, something in my gut told me this was the kitten for me, and I've never once regretted taking her home. Sundae is a truly special cat, and she lights up my days.

Found this little Pyrex bowl at Goodwill. Picked it up for $2.

One of the perks of when I volunteer with my mom is the free cookbooks. Can you believe they were going to throw these away? They are Time Life books from the 60s. I don't come across too many Creole or Viennese cookbooks, and so I snatched these up. Flipping through the Austrian cookbook, I was confused at first, because half of the recipe titles were in German and half were in some Slavic-looking language. Then my 8th grade social studies kicked in and I remembered the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Can't say I've ever seen another Austro-Hungarian cookbook, and doubt I'll ever see one in the future. I consider this a good find.

Currently, I'm working on some baking projects. I've tested about a dozen recipes in the last week, all of which have been flops, and I'm working on the catering for my brother's graduation party. I'm a little stressed, but posting pretty pictures helps!