Good Things

Having now made two appearances on Rogers Daytime, I’m starting to feel more at home on the set. Being on live television as an ‘expert’ guest can be a little unnerving, but when you’re surrounded by such warm and positive folks (the staff and hosts at Rogers Daytime are wonderful), it’s easier to let go of the jitters and get down to business.

My topics so far:

January – My miniMartha blog! I joined Daytime hosts Kasia Bodurka and Christian Pritchard in cooking the poached pears dessert from Martha’s Dinner at Home cookbook. The discussion was about my decision to embark on this year-long culinary journey, what I’ve learned so far, and tips for other budding chefs.

February – Wedding invitations and programs. Being a graphic designer, I love taking on personal projects like wedding invites. Kasia and Christian had me back for their wedding show to talk about how people can create their own invites and programs using the tools and supplies that are available to them in the Durham region. I did a demonstration where I put together a fan-style ceremony program like the ones I created for my wedding last September.

Gingerbread Village project, December 2009

This December I decided to take on a Gingerbread project. We often host family and friends at our home for the holidays and I wanted to create something special that would make people feel welcome, give them something to converse about and create a great aroma in our living room.

My best friend and I each created a village from the same recipe and directions, but they turned out differently as we added our own special touches during the decorating process. My favorite part of the village is the little shop with a fruit stand out front.

The Bulk Barn is a great resource for a variety of different shapes and sizes of candy – if you plan to tackle a gingerbread project, definitely check it out!

Daphne's 85th birthday cake, April 2009

I wanted to create a very special cake for my grandmother Daphne’s 85th birthday party. This lemon and vanilla cake was based on a tiered wedding cake design in Martha Stewart’s Wedding Cakes (hardcover). Several layers of vanilla sponge cake were brushed with a lemon simple syrup and assembled to create a 10″ tall single tier. The outside was covered in yellow buttercream and decorated with lemon-flavored madeleine cookies. A gold ribbon was wrapped around the cookies to finish it off, and I made a special medallion commemorating the date, attached it to a bbq skewer and inserted it through the top.