Whew!

So glad this one is done. I booked this wedding over a year ago in Omaha. At the time it was only a 45 minute trip. Today it was a 3 1/2 hour trip one way, on the coldest and ickiest day so far this year. I'd been dreading the trip for some time. But I made it with no mishaps. Done and delivered. Yay. Yay! Yayyy!!!  I was even pretty happy with the outcome. There were a few things, of course, that I would have liked to improve upon. But everything overall was great. I even managed to successfully carry the entire 4-tiered brides cake up to the second floor. You would think that a hotel as nice as the Paxton would have a cart.

This was the grooms cake. So fun! It took about 8 hours.

Brides cake. It had a lot going on as per brides request. As long as she's happy... I'm happy! One thing I did differently this time was to line both of the cake boards with fondant. It took a little more time but gave it a much nicer, more finished look.

After no sleep and the long drive, well, I guess I'm so happy to be done that I don't feel completely worn out!

Fall, tea & scones

There's nothing better with cool, breezy Fall weather than a  cup of chai and a scone. Well actually it's a bit more than breezy and I'd rather have a latte but you just can't make them good at home.  So just imagine, if you will, the nice, calm, relaxing morning this thought evokes. Forget about the reality for just 15 minutes.

Here you go....

Now you can either come over and have some with me, or buy some chai and make the scones with the recipe below. These are absolutely wonderful.

Cranberry Orange Scones

Copyright, 2006, Ina Garten, All Rights Reserved

Ingredients

4 cups plus 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar, plus additional for sprinkling
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
3/4 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
4 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup cold heavy cream
1 cup dried cranberries
1 egg beaten with 2 tablespoons water or milk, for egg wash
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
4 teaspoons freshly squeezed orange juice

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix 4 cups of flour, 1/4 cup sugar, the baking powder, salt and orange zest. Add the cold butter and mix at the lowest speed until the butter is the size of peas. Combine the eggs and heavy cream and, with the mixer on low speed, slowly pour into the flour and butter mixture. Mix until just blended. The dough will look lumpy! Combine the dried cranberries and 1/4 cup of flour, add to the dough, and mix on low speed until blended.
Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead it into a ball. Flour your hands and a rolling pin and roll the dough 3/4-inch thick. You should see small bits of butter in the dough. Keep moving the dough on the floured board so it doesn't stick. Flour a 3-inch round plain or fluted cutter and cut circles of dough. Place the scones on a baking pan lined with parchment paper. Collect the scraps neatly, roll them out, and cut more circles.

Brush the tops of the scones with egg wash, sprinkle with sugar, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tops are browned and the insides are fully baked. The scones will be firm to the touch. Allow the scones to cool for 15 minutes and then whisk together the confectioners' sugar and orange juice, and drizzle over the scones.