In the Kitchen, Playing with Wilton
Friday, October 1, 2010 at 6:44AM in Halloween, Product Reviews, baking, cake, candy, chocolate, cookies, cupcakes, desserts, holidays, muffin, snack What does that mean, you ask? Well, it has two meanings. Not only was I in the kitchen, actually playing with products straight from Wilton Industries, Inc., but I’m participating in a new project from Kitchen Play--the SideCar Series. This first project is Halloween--one of my favorite times of the year!
We all know what Wilton Industries, Inc. is, right? If you don’t, Wilton is THE place for all of your cake, candy and cookie decorating needs. Don’t forget their baking pans! Wilton baking pans are the ones I always go back to when I need a special pan, or just to add to or replace my every day baking pans. Their pans never let me down--they don’t warp, and they conduct the heat well--which results in beautiful baked goods.
You’re also probably wondering, “What is Kitchen Play?”
"Kitchen Play is devoted to connecting food bloggers and PR professionals through sponsored events such as the Progressive Party, the SideCar Series, the Pampered Pantry and more."
Kitchen Play is the brain child of Casey Benedict at TasteStopping. Her plan is to connect people in the PR industry with food bloggers. Participating bloggers will have the opportunity to learn about the PR industry, and give their own brand (blog names) more quality exposure at the same time.
PR reps will get their brand names out there, and also get to know some up and coming food bloggers. It’s a win-win!
Kitchen Play will be holding different events every month, including a Progressive Party each month. The premise: six bloggers tasked with the challenge of incorporating the same food product or kitchen tool into six wildly different courses. Then there’s the SideCar series, which will pair smaller groups of bloggers with sponsors and products to create themed events and recipes. Think Halloween, Baby Shower, Mardi Gras. Lastly, there is the Pampered Pantry, a gift guide for foodies. The Pampered Pantry includes reviews of the products written by your fellow food bloggers.
Kitchen Play will include a professional spotlight featuring PR reps from the food industry. There will also be an interactive forum devoted to helping food bloggers better understand the PR world (What is an “elevator pitch?” How do I improve my Page Rank?)
Casey is working with all levels of food bloggers, so don’t worry if you’re new at this, or your traffic isn’t as high as some other blogs--if you’re interested(and why wouldn't you be?), head on over to Kitchen Play and get in touch with Casey. Then let the fun begin!
As I mentioned earlier, the first SideCar event is sponsored by Wilton Industries, Inc, and the subject is Halloween! Full disclosure: Wilton was very gracious and supplied me with all of the supplies I needed, free of charge.
Here’s what I came up with:
First off, made with the Tombstone Comfort Grip Cookie Cutter, were these deliciously spooky sugar cookies. Easily decorated with a simple butter cream , tinted gray with some Black Gel Food Coloring, Icing Decorations, and Red Cookie Icing.
Not only are the cookies great for simply eating, but I also used them to decorate this Bloody Cemetery. My favorite chocolate cake (which makes enough for 3 layers, so you’ll have enough to make some cupcakes, too), topped with my favorite chocolate icing.
Sprinkle chocolate graham cracker crumbs over the icing for that “dirt” look. The ghosts, the cemetery sign, and the large skeleton bones were made with White Candy Melts. The ghosts and the sign were free handed on parchment paper. Melt the candy, pour it in a Ziploc bag, cut off one corner, and squeeze the candy on to the parchment. Chill in the fridge for a few minutes, and peel off the paper. A few sprinkles gave the ghosts their little faces, and the Red Cookie Icing gave the sign it’s spooky, bloody look. It also did double duty and made the bones, created with the Skeleton Bones Candy Mold, a bloody sight to see! To prop the tombstone cookies, candy ghosts and the candy sign up in the cake, just cut a slit for them to stand up in. Finally, I finished the graveyard off with some small Bone Sprinkles, for that “messy cemetery” look. The kids? They love it! Oh! The cake was baked in the Wilton Ultra Gold 9x13 Sheet Pan. This pan is not only pretty to look at (yeah, I think pans are pretty!), but it bakes super evenly, plus, the cakes release beautifully. I baked the cake one afternoon, and didn’t take it out of the pan until the next day. It popped right out! Only lightly greased, no flour in there.
I have to share this next photo with all of you, just because. I was taking photos of the graveyard out on the deck, and one of my Corgis was sitting just at the edge of the deck. Look where his little black ears showed up here! Couldn't have planned that one if I tried.
The remaining cake batter was used to make these Blood Spurting Cupcakes. So simple! A simple butter cream, tinted kind of an icky Halloween green, and again, we see the Red Cookie Icing. It really lent itself well to the whole Bloody Halloween thing! So, ice the cupcakes, and for the eyeballs? Candy Eyeball Drink Stirs! I just bent the sticks to the lengths I wanted them, then gave them a little snip with scissors. Perfect! Poke them into the cupcakes, and then go to town with the Red Cookie Icing. For the eyeball-less ones, I poked a little hole in the cupcakes, then started the red cookie icing from there, and let it ooze wherever it wanted to go. Instant bloody mess! Displayed for your party on the Pick Your Poison Cupcake Stand, this will make a perfect centerpiece for your table. Don’t forget the Skulls and Scrolls Baking Cups!
And last up, I made great use of the Dimensions Multi-Cavity Mini Pumpkins Pan. I didn’t feel like making more cake, so I opted for my Pumpkin Morning Glory Muffins. And even though these are “mini” pumpkin pans, they still make a jumbo sized muffin. So I decided not to put these together, like you can-to make the whole pumpkins. Someone’s going to have to live with getting the bottom half of a pumpkin, I suppose. But normally, you’d just “glue” the tops to the bottoms with icing. I decided to decorate these with Orange and Green Cookie Icing. I topped them off White Cake Sparkles for that frost on the pumpkin look. Can I just say? They’re delicious!
So there you have it! My first foray into the Kitchen Play Series. Not only was this a lot of fun, but I got to try things I don’t normally do--like decorate cakes and cookies. (Not that you would call my graveyard a decorated cake.) I had a blast! And my kids enjoy all of the colorful Halloween things coming out of the kitchen. Be sure to get on over there and contact Casey about joining!
My sincere thanks go out to Casey at Kitchen Play and TasteStopping, and Diana at Wilton Industries, Inc. You both made my October!
Reader Comments (18)
What a great job. My kids would love it all. The tombstones are adorable.
Everything looks great and so tasty!
Oh I just adore your Bloody Cemetery :) !! I can't wait to make something similar with the boys.
Hey! Me, too! Loved playing with all the stuff from Wilton, and may I say, your "bloody cemetery" is positively ghoulish! Love your creativity!
This looks like so much fun!! I haven't decorated cookies since I was a kid with my mom. Spooktacular!!
All those goodies make me want to have a Halloween party!
Kitchen Play sounds like fun. I'm a new blogger but maybe I'll check it out. I'd love to participate!
Wow, what great stuff! That could be a halloween spread in a magazine.
Love all of it! The pumpkin muffins look delicious, and I'm totally digging the new Halloween theme on your blog.
Thank you all so much!
What a fun time you must have had in the kitchen! Loved the grave yard cake...very cute. Actually you did a terrific job on all of it but the cake rocked! :)
~ingrid
These are all so much fun! More fun to make than eat? Oh they would be fun to eat! Halloween already! But I still love the little black ears waiting patiently for a cookie ghost to fall off the table. :-)
Very creative! I'm going to put a link to this post on the Mignardise Facebook page so more people can enjoy it. Great job!
Wow, your blood cemetery looks amazing! The cookies look great. Thanks for your sweet comments on my graveyard cake. I love how everyone came up with such different and wonderful ideas!!!
Oh what fun to play with all these goodies. I have to try those pumpkin morning glory muffins soon! And I love the pumpkin pan!
Elle,
I am blown away by your creativity! You had so much fun with the assignment. And I love the "help" sugar cookie. It's positively spooky. I had a blast creating my Halloween cake scene for my sidecar, but you've inspired me to bake some more as we get closer to Halloween!
Vanessa
Thanks, guys! I truly appreciate the comments!
What fun treats! Those would be the perfect entry for our Halloween Recipe Contest! You can read all about it here. I hope you decide to enter it!
Hi Elle, Just visiting your site to see who won your giveaway:( Maybe next time:) I figured I should leave you a comment on how brilliant and talented you were with your Halowween cookies baking and the entire production was unbelieveable!! Catch up with you on twitter! Shulie