Will Cotton

Ladies and gentleman, I love Will Cotton's work. How much do I love it? So much so that it's frankly ridiculous that I haven't written about him before now. Alas, there are so many sweet things to write about and so few hours in the day! Anyway, I've finally gotten around to putting something together and now, without further ado, I am very happy to present my Will Cotton post!

Will Cotton, an American painter and artist, is the current king of dessert art. He creates glorious landscapes filled with cotton candy clouds, candy cane houses, and nude female figures. Drawing inspiration from such diverse sources as pin-up girls, Dutch medieval poetry, and the children's game Candy Land, Cotton uses classical painting techniques to create an enchanting world where human desire is at the forefront. I love the surreal and dream-like elements of his work and, well, of course, the candy! All this sweet stuff isn't just in his head, either. He actually uses real baked goods, making a lot of the desserts that appear in his work.

Some of you may recognize Cotton's work from the cover of Katy Perry's California Gurls album, which features a painting he did of Perry. He was also the artistic director behind her video for "California Gurls," which is filled with loads of classic Cotton imagery. Click here to check out more of Cotton's work online.

Square Cupcakes

If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to here it, does it make a sound? If a cupcake is square and not round, is it still a cupcake? These are just a couple of life's deepest philosophical questions that have been plaguing humanity for generations. In my opinion, the answer to both questions is "yes," but I know that there are probably many of you out there that would disagree. Is a square cupcake still a cupcake or is it just a piece of cake? Does the roundness of a cupcake make for easier eating? Does the shape matter? Certainly, the folks at Cupcakes Squared, a bakery in San Diego, have no problem with changing the shape of the traditional cupcake, considering that their store is filled with, not round, but square cupcakes! Some may consider this to be a bit blasphemous, but not me. I'd try one of their square cupcakes any day! Especially the Pistachio Pomegranate . . . mmmm. If you would like to try your hand at making your own square cupcakes, check out the resources below.


Wilton Square Silicon Baking Cups

Fat Daddio's Square Muffin Pan

Square Baking cups from Baking Idea

Sweet Testing: Red Hot Velvet Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream

Yes, it's true. It's another Baked cake. I know. You're shocked, right? Actually, I've been wanting to make this cake ever since I first got Baked: New Frontiers in Baking. Every time a birthday or a holiday or some other cake-required celebration comes around, I put it on a list of suggestions and it always gets overlooked! So, when I was asked what kind of cake I wanted for my bday, I immediately picked this one! And I was so glad that I did! So, so yummy! One cake eater/red velvet fan said that it was the best red velvet cake that she have ever had! I have to admit, though, that I liked it a whole lot better the next day. The cinnamon seemed much stronger. I don't know if that's because the flavors needed time to percolate or if I had just eaten too much food prior to cake time. Then again, I often tend to like baked goods more the next day, but that's just me and my weirdness.

You can find the complete recipe for Red Hot Velvet Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream after the jump.

Homemade is Best by Ikea

Hel-lo gorgeous! That's what I thought when I first saw the photos from Ikea's new baking book Hembakat är Bäst (Homemade is Best). These beautiful images, taken by photographer Carl Kleiner and styled by Evelina Bratell, were inspired by high fashion and Japanese minimalism are Ikea's attempt to break from traditional food photography by focusing on the ingredients, instead of the finished product. The 140-page coffee table book contains 30 classic Swedish baking recipes, including Schackrutor, which Petra Borner was so kind to make us last year. The only bummer in all this is that Hembakat är Bäst is apparently only available in Ikea stores in Sweden and only for a limited time. Ikea, you're such a tease! If you'd like to see more from this colorful and interesting cookbook, Ikea's advertising agency is featuring pics on it's Web site, right here. Also, click here to view images on photographer Carl Kleiner's Web site.

Edible Art: Sweet Bed

The artist Brusse is all about love. Street art, installations, mixed media pieces all examining and exploring the subject of l-o-v-e. He's done a lot of interesting pieces over the years, but, personally, the piece that I can't get enough of his candy-inspired "Love Injection" bed. And I'm not even a romantic person! Actually, squash that. I am a romantic person. I'm just not attracted to romance in the traditional sense (i.e. candlelit dinners, boxes of chocolates, stuffed bears), but something about this makes me go awwww. Maybe it's the sugar. All I know is that I'd much prefer candy on my sheets than rose petals, although it would probably be a good idea to buy some cheap white sheets that you could toss (or use as rags) if they stained. To check out more of Brusse's love work, you can visit his Web site, right here.

Fig & Kindle

Sarah Goldschmidt over at Fig & Kindle recently sent me a link to her Etsy shop and boy, am I glad that she did! Her glass brittles may be the most gorgeous brittles that I have ever seen and the flavors are so creative! This isn't your ordinary peanut brittle. At the Fig & Kindle shop you'll find walnut rosemary, saigon cinnamon, and wasabi pea brittle! I don't know which one I would want to sample first! There are also cocoa cinnamon and almond anise cookies available in their Etsy shop as well. Yum! Besides all of the eye candy, personally, I have a hard time resisting anything with the word "fig" in the title. Love the word...love the fruit! Sarah's brittles (and more) are available right here. Click here to check the Fig & Kindle blog as well. [Thanks, Sarah!]

Inspiration Board: Candy

Oh, wow! Do I love this cake or what?? When I first came across this Rock Candy Cake on Style Me Pretty, I thought, that is the greatest wedding cake I have ever seen. Okay, I admit it, I probably have said that about other cakes in the past, and I think I said it again when I saw the Dots Cake featured below, but it's definitely one of my favorites. It's beautiful and fun and simple all at the same time. Who knew that rock candy could look so sophisticated! If I attended a wedding and there was a Rock Candy Cake, I'd be a happy girl. Seeing this cake actually inspired me to do a little research to find other ways in which candy can be used as a design element in food and this is what I came up with. I hope you enjoy it! {Rock Candy Cake by Cocoa + Fig, photo by Red Ribbon Studio}


Candy Dots Cake, by Lochel’s Bakery, courtesy of Philadelphia Wedding


Gumball Cake by A Sweet Design


Heston Blumenthal’s Popping-Candy Chocolate Cake by Chubby Hubby {This cake is amazing, but if you'd like a simpler approach to incorporating Pop Rocks in your desserts, try sprinkling it on top of a cake or cupcake.}

Kitchen Stickers by Hu2 Design

I think my love of wall stickies is probably rooted in my childhood love of stickers, but, really, I think that it's the way that they easily transform an otherwise boring room that makes me a fan. I love the idea of completely changing a wall without the use of paint or stencils. These playful stickers by Hu2 Design would work perectly in a kitchen or dinning area. I espeically like the one titled Essential Dessert Recipes. It's a design element and a cookbook all in one! Click here to shop the Hu2 sticker collection online.

Edible Art: Paul Wayne Gregory

I have a major weakness for chocolate sculpture. Don't ask me why. Probably because it combines two of my favorite things: art and food! So, of course, I'm loving these amazing pieces by chocoltaire Paul Wayne Gregory, despite the fact that the chocolate bust pictured above reminds me of the clay head in Lionel Richie's amazingly bad Hello video.

If you'd like to chocolate sculpture of yourself or your loved one, Paul is available for comissions. He'll even do a full body version, if that's what you're into. If you like your chocolate on a much smaller scale, you can order Paul's award winning Pure Indulgence chocolate box, which includes a chocolate made out of popping candy, along with other sweets via his Web site. As an added bonus, you'll be happy to know that Paul's candy is made without any artificial food flavorings or artificial compounds and a minimal percentage of sugars. Woo hoo! Click here to check out more of Paul's work and to shop online.

Blast From the Past: Cakes Men Like

Sometimes it’s the little things that just make my day. I came across the silliest and corniest cover for this little cake booklet from 1953 and instantly became obsessed with it. It's so hilariously awful and so perfectly vintage, I knew that I had to find out more! Turns out these babies were printed in the early fifties for either GM or Western Electric employees. Cakes Men Like is actually part of a series of "how to please your man" cookbooks. Some of the other titles include Pies Men Like, Desserts Men Like, Meat . . . Men Like. Men, men, men! Man, I am sooo glad that I did not have to put up with that crap and am able to laugh about it now.

I don't know how well they researched these cakes, though. Apparently, they think that midcentury men like pink cakes. Would Don Draper request a pink cake from Betty? Does Betty know how to make a cake? Hmmm. Find out in next week's exciting episode! Click here to get a free copy of Cakes Men Like on Scribd. Enjoy!

Sweet Testing: Peanut Butter Banana Cream Pie

I have had a craving for a Peanut Butter and Banana Creme Pie for a long time, ever since I first heard about it last year, so I was really happy when my father picked this as his dessert of choice during a recent visit. I was doubly happy when I searched the internet for a recipe and discovered that my favorite bakery, Baked, has their own version of this delicious treat! And let me tell you . . . it was soooo good!! I cheated a little bit and used a Whole Foods brand gluten-free pie crust, which I highly recommend for people with gluten allergies. Usually, I don't really care for store bought pie crust, but this one is a definite winner AND it's gluten free! So, because I wanted to make the pie edible for people with gluten allergies and because I was short on time, I didn't end of making the vanilla wafer crust that goes with this recipe, but I'm sure the pie would be even more amazing with that added element, although it was pretty damn good without it! For that reason, I can't really speak to the ease of the crust preparation, but the filling was super easy to assemble and came together quite quickly. Easy and a total crowd pleaser. What's better than that?

(p.s. For Baked fans, another teaser video for the new cookbook has been released. It features one of my favorite things: baked goods with miniatures. To watch it, click here.)

(p.p.s. Sometimes I feel like every recipe I make is from Baked. Someone seriously needs to hide their cookbooks from me!)

You can find the complete recipe after the jump.

La Pâtisserie des Rêves

First of all, I can't believe that I have written anything about Philippe Conticini's La Pâtisserie des Rêves yet! I've been meaning to do a post on this pastry shop since it opened last year in Paris, but, alas, like many things, it just kept slipping out of my memory. Anyway, I am in love with this shop! Not only are the desserts gorgeous (and I've heard tasty), but it's the way that the food is displayed that really gets me. At La Pâtisserie des Rêves each delicious pastry is treated like a work of art or, perhaps, a science experiment, and displayed beneath a bell jar. Each of the jars is temperature controlled based on the sweet contained inside, while a pulley system attached to the ceiling allows the jars to be raised and lowered. What fun! It's also a much easier way to view the desserts than having all the customers crowd around a display case at the counter. It really is a unique and creative shop, a fact that is not all that surprising when you consider that in 2005 pastry chef and owner Philippe Conticini wrote a cookbook titled Sensations Nutella, which is devoted entirely to, you guessed it, Nutella. For more info on La Pâtisserie des Rêves, click here.

Inspiration Board: Plaid

Okay, I know that it's a little out of season to be talking about plaid, but I love these plaid desserts too much to wait until Fall! Besides, today I feel like breaking the rules! Just think of this as a Fall 2010 preview! I love all of these designs, but I have to say that the pink plaid cakes is my favorite one in the bunch! Very cute! Check out all the plaid dessert below to find your favorite. [Above: Chocolate Plaid Pear Cookies with Gold Leaves by Diane Drake]


Pattern Cookie Rounds: Plaid by Whipped Bakeshop


Plaid cupcakes: Cookies and Cream by Happy Little Cupcakes


Plaid Birthday Cake by dancerina


Isaac Mizrahi 8" Tartan Plaid Cheesecake by Junior's ($44)

Chipotle Cheddar Biscuits

I know that right about now you're probably thinking, Erin, a chipotle biscuit doesn't really qualify as dessert. At first, I was thinking that exact same thing, but then I changed my mind. Here's why.

1) This recipe is from the Baked cookbook and 99% of the recipes in that book could be served as a dessert.

2) Biscuits are pretty much a dessert food. I mean they are a fairly large component of strawberry shortcake, which is undeniably, a dessert.

3) Biscuits are usually eaten with breakfast, most often with a sugary jam on top, and let's face it, unless you're eating bacon and eggs, breakfast is basically dessert.

So, there you have it. Even though we ate these biscuits during a meal and not after it, I think I've made a pretty strong case for including them on the dessert menu. The biscuits themselves were mighty yummy. The chipotle giving them a nice, comforting, smoky flavor. The only thing I would change the next time around would be to maybe use a little less chipotle powder. Baked actually recommends using less spice, if you don't have much heat tolerance. I went with the full dosage, and the chipotle powder that I used was fresh, so the biscuits ended up being a little too spicy for me. That said, they were so yummy that the fact that my mouth was a little burny didn't stop me from eating three of them! I just think it would have been a little more enjoyable with less powder, but it all depends on what you can handle.

You can find the complete recipe after the jump.