Well, hello there!

Wow...so it has been a LONG time since Vivian and I wrote a blog post. We have been SUPER busy, but I've never forgotten about you guys! I think about the blog almost everyday and I want to put so much more time and effort into this little blog!

We changed our name... welcome to Spoonful of Sugar! We decided on this name because I really want this to be a place where I can share my recipes and my journey through culinary school and my career in the culinary field! Food is my passion, and more importantly health is my passion! I hope you stay and come along this journey with us!

There actually is a reason I am writing you today...my family and I threw a surprise birthday party for my mom! And...I baked some desserts for the party! Guys, I made my first cake. Like, ever. And it was hard and there may have been tears. No joke. So let me explain it to you...everything was going well. I prepped out all of my ingredients and my best friend and I made the batters and baked everything off. So far so good. Then came the frosting. Now, let me tell you that I SUCK at decorating. It is not something that I am good at and so the idea of decorating a cake scared me to death. I had an idea of what I wanted to do. So, I attempted it and it actually looked pretty good for my first cake. We put it in the fridge to set up until the party.

I went to look at the cake a few minutes later and I opened the fridge door and all of the layers and slid off and were all off to the side. I swear, I thought I was going to burst into tears. I quickly grabbed my dad and he helped me slide it together and I carried it back into the kitchen. I decided okay maybe I'll just slap some frosting on the side and make it smooth and sleek. Oh, no. The cake didn't like it. It was all crooked and would not stay up. So I threw it in the freezer for about a half hour and then I came back to it and my roommate told me to just do a rustic frosting style. I thought, what the heck, why not? I mean, I really have nothing else to lose here.

So I grabbed my offset spatula and slapped some frosting all over the sides of the cake and spread it around roughly. Woah...it actually looked pretty good. Now, what to do with the messed up top with the raspberry sauce? OH! Spread that around and then put berries on top! BAM. Instant beauty. I was so proud, I wanted to cry from happiness. Now, all I had to do was put it in the freezer and NOT TOUCH IT until it was time to take the desserts out.

Oh, did you want to see it? I took pictures. Here you go:

Here's a full view of the cake!

I also made a fruit tart. No big deal or anything....

 I also made cupcakes (same as the cake, so no picture - sorry!) and I made a raspberry sauce (pictured above.

I hope you enjoyed the first post in seven months! Hopefully we'll be able to get on a normal schedule with posting soon. Keep checking in to see if we've posted anything new!

xo,
Bekah!

Culinary School: Kitchen Talk

Well...it sure has been awhile. Almost two months. School for Vivian and me has been fairly hectic. Vivian is currently across the country and taking 17 units worth of classes every 10 weeks - so please bear with her as she gets used to the schedule. I, as some of you may know, am attending Le Cordon Bleu College of the Culinary Arts. I am taking their Baking and Patisserie program; the program is 21 months long. It is divided into "terms" and each term is 6 weeks long. Meaning, each class is six weeks long. So, things are sped up and it is quite the busy schedule. I am currently on my third term - Intro to Baking and Patisserie. I completed my first term (Culinary Foundations 1, Food Safety and Sanitation and Career Success) and my second term (Culinary Foundations 2). The hardest of these was Culinary Foundations 2, it was so rushed and so stressful, I had multiple breakdowns while cooking. The thing with this industry is, you have to push through it. You can't just give up because it's hard - you keep going.

Since I am starting to get a better hang of my schedule (another reason I started blogging again was because I changed from the 6AM class to the 10AM class) I have decided to start a new series called "Culinary School" and basically it is going to what I've learned whilst at Le Cordon Bleu and what I have learned/noticed in the kitchen. 

Today's topic: Kitchen Talk. For those of you that don't know "kitchen talk" is the lingo used in the kitchen.

"Knife" - Someone in the kitchen is walking with a knife.

"Knife behind" - Someone is behind you holding a knife.

"Knife in sink" - There is a knife in the sink.

"Oven open" - Someone is opening the oven to either check on a product or take a product out.

"Hot pan/pot/tray/etc" - Someone is walking around carrying a hot object.

"Hot behind" - Someone is behind you carrying something hot.

Now, you may think that this is pretty straight forward and wonder why I'm even writing a blog post on this. To me, the importance of kitchen talk is not what you're saying, it's why you're saying it and having open communication with everyone in the kitchen. If someone is right behind you and you're carrying a bowl of flour or eggs and they don't communicate with you that they are behind you, you could easily bump into them and spill product. Or, if someone is walking around with a knife, hot pan, hot tray, etc. and they don't say exactly what they're doing - it could cause an injury. 

Kitchen talk is about communication and safety. When you use kitchen talk, you are not only protecting yourself from possible injury, but also the other people in the kitchen. They don't know what you are doing at your station - they're focusing on what they're doing. So by communicating and alerting to the kitchen that there is a knife in the sink, or that you are walking with a hot object, they are aware and they can be on the lookout and move out of the way if/when needed. 

I hope this was educating for you all, I know that it may seem boring or it doesn't apply to you, but trust me, communication is key in any situation. We all need to remember to keep an open communication with the people in our life.

xo,

Bekah!

Mango Apple Papaya Salad w/ Apple Cider Vinaigrette!

Hi everyone! Today I have a delicious salad that I made in my Foundations I class last Thursday! It has fresh fruit (mangos, apples, oranges and papayas) along with a fresh and tangy apple cider vinaigrette! It is such a super easy and fun dish to make! I hope you enjoy!

SALAD:

• Mixed greens
• Mango
• Papaya
• Green apples
• Orange

Dice the mango and papaya about 1/4 inch, set aside. Then, slice green apples into thin strips about 2 inches in length, set aside. Supreme oranges (make sure there aren't any seeds), set aside. Place rinsed mixed greens in a bowl, set aside. 

VINAIGRETTE:

• Dijon mustard
• Shallots, finely diced (almost minced)
• Garlic, minced (add salt and smash against side of knife over and over to make into a paste)
• Salt and pepper 
• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Canola Oil (or any kind of neutral oil)
• Sugar (honey is a good substitute)

Take a small bowl, place about 1/2 tsp. to 1 tsp. of dijon mustard in the bowl. Finely dice about 1 tsp. worth of shallots (small amount), if you dice more than you need, caramelize them, add some mushrooms, butter and thyme and saute all of it together! Now back to the delicious vinaigrette... Once you've added your shallots and dijon mustard, mince up some garlic (or make into a paste) and throw it in the bowl as well. Throw a pinch or two of salt and pepper in the bowl to give it some extra seasoning. Whisk everything together and add 1 cup of Apple Cider Vinegar, continue to whisk. Then take 3 cups of Canola oil, add in very lightly to the vinegar while still whisking. If you add too much oil in the beginning, it will break apart. Continue to whisk in oil until you've finished the three cups of oil. If it still has too much of a bite, add a pinch of sugar or honey to "round out" the flavor and to sweeten it up just a bit. Don't add too much or it will be too sweet, you still want that bite. 

Dress salad and all of your fruits with the dressing, then plate it and voila! You have a delicious, fruity salad!

I hope you enjoyed this quick little recipe! 

Side-note: I will be posting much more frequently, I promise. The past few weeks were so busy with school and I had final exams. I start my new class on Monday so I will have more time to try new recipes and share with you my recipes from school! 

Within the next 2-3 days I will be posting a Ginger Pear Tea Cupcake recipe that has a delicious Honey Whipped Cream Frosting on it! 

Have a wonderful weekend!

xo,

Bekah!

Get Ready with Vivian

   Hey guys! I just wanted to film a quick and easy makeup tutorial before work, so I made a Get Ready for Work with Me video! It's a simple neutral look that is appropriate for any job!

   
            Hope you guys enjoyed! :)

               
                                                                    xx,
                                                                          Vivian

DIY: Home Face Mask

       Every girl's dreams came true when as young teenagers, they opened a magazine for the first time and found out that pretty much everything in their fridge could be made into a face mask. But as we get older, we buy grown-up face masks that promise to clear up our face and stop wrinkles from forming at the stores. Little do we realize, we could be causing harm to our face with numerous chemicals and fillers in most products.

      I have recently taken a step back from all the chemical-ladded face masks and turned back to the natural face masks that intrigued me as a young girl. Today I want to share one of my recipes of just a great all around face mask, that is all natural and is made with ingredients that everyone will have! All you need is:

   

•       1 tablespoon honey
•       1/2 tablespoon ground oatmeal*
•       A couple of drops of fresh lemon juice

* If you don't have ground oatmeal, just put regular oatmeal in a food-processor.

    Mix these all together in a bowl and you should get a paste-like mask. Apply the mask to your face and leave it for 20-30 minutes before rinsing it off and that's it! It's a great all-natural mask that kills bacteria and clears up acne (via the lemon), draws impurities out of your skin and exfoliates (via the oatmeal), and gives your skin a beautiful glow and moisturizes (via the honey)! And best of all, your skin will thank you for years to come that you're not smearing harsh chemicals on it!

    I hope you guys enjoy this mask, it's definitely one of my favorites at the moment (I actually have it on my face as I am typing this right now)! :)

                                                                   xx,
                                                                        Vivian

Recipe: Basic Mushroom Sauté

Hi everyone! Earlier this evening my mom brought home some Shiitaki mushrooms and asked if I wanted to make dinner. Being in culinary school I've been learning a lot about flavors and cooking. My chef made us sautéed mushrooms last week and I absolutely fell in love. So when my mom brought home the mushrooms tonight I quickly read the recipe that went with it and made a delicious mushroom sauté dish to go with our sausage!

To make the mushroom sauté you will need:

• one package of Shiitake mushrooms
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/2 onion diced
• 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• fresh (or dried) thyme
• (optional) fresh lemon juice

Start with a sauté pan, turn heat to medium and melt butter. If your mushrooms come whole, slice them about 1/8"-1/4" thick and throw them in the sauté pan. Stir and combine the butter with the mushrooms. Dice half an onion (I will be posting a knife skills tutorial soon!) and finely chop two cloves of garlic and mix in with mushrooms and butter. If you have fresh thyme, chop it up and stir in. If you have dried thyme, you can just throw it in immediately. Turn heat to low/medium and let sit for two minutes. Stir and season with salt and pepper, to taste depending on your personal preference. You can also add fresh lemon juice if you wanted a lighter citrus flavor as well!

I hope you enjoy this quick recipe, it is absolutely delicious and you can use this base to make some amazing dishes. You could add some cream and cook that together and add some chicken, or make a mushroom risotto! There is so much you can do to turn a simple base dish into something extravagant and delicious.

Have fun experimenting with this new recipe!

xo,
Bekah!

Custom lip color!

Hi everyone! So the past few weeks I have gotten so bored with my lipsticks and wanted something new, one morning I decided to play around with colors and see if I could create my own custom lip color...and it worked!

1: MAC Velvet Teddy 2: POP Fuchsia Flirt Chubby Stick
3: MAC Velvet Teddy underneath POP Fuchsia Flirt Chubby Stick

I just took my MAC lipstick in Velvet Teddy, which is a matte nude brown lipstick, and my POP chubby stick in Fuchsia Flirt and combined them together! It was super simple. All I did was put my MAC lipstick on and then I lined my lips with the chubby stick and filled them in (almost as if I was using a lip liner).

I love the POP chubby stick. It is super moisturizing and smells minty! It's almost like a chapstick mixed with a lipstick! It also has the most perfect finish to it! It has a beautiful sheen that's not too shiny, but not matte. I didn't want to put a matte color ontop of my matte MAC lipstick because it would have been too much matte for my face (I don't like using any type of shine in my foundation routine).

I hope you enjoyed this quick Do It Yourself project! Please post comments about how it turned out for you!

ALSO: check us out on Twitter (@DailyDoseForYou)! We just created our account to let people know when we have new blog posts and new videos posted!

Have a wonderful day!

xo
Bekah!