The Maine Attraction

My friends Kim & Mike were married this fall in Kennebunkport, Maine.  I was lucky enough not only to attend the festivities, but to design the cookies for the big day.

I riffed on a previous leaf I had done a few years ago, and made them a bit smaller and more vibrant in color to reflect the color of the leaves in Maine this time of year.

The happy couple!

Android Cookies

I baked these up for a team BBQ with my co-workers.  I think the green is true to form, but next time I may opt to give them unique expressions.

Elephants on Parade

I whipped up these elephants from my friend Heather, as she was co-hosting a baby shower for a dear friend. I wound up making the template myself (there are some odd looking elephant cookie cutters out there).

As I was icing them, I found it hard to ice over this gem: in an attempt to patch a crack in the dough before baking, I inadvertently baked a small heart onto one of these little guys. Awww...

One Happy Customer

My nephew James digging in to some Father’s day lobster cookies at the start of the season. His getup is quite patriotic!

March Madness

I baked up these basketballs for a new tradition: our Friday March Madness party at Centro, my company. We had a number of clients come out for some basketball cheering and... "beering".

Rock It

These guitars were for my friends Armine & Pete, as they recently had their first child. The design is in honor of their son becoming a future rocker like his dad. (I was going for "electric" but somehow they scream "banjo"!)

Cheers!

I had a lot of fun with these. I created these for my friends Brian & Lauren to celebrate their upcoming 'nups. Since they're tying the knot on New Years' Eve, they have a gold & silver motif. I played around with metallic dust for the first time (if you look closely, you can see the the dust brushed onto the background).

The navy blue icing may or may not have dyed peoples' mouths as blue as Smurfs. Apparently that happens when you eat more than 5!

Baby Giraffes

I made these little guys for my friend Jen's baby shower. She's having a girl, but the hosts didn't want to overdo it in the pink camp. These provided a nice understated touch.

"Batter" Up

I created these cookies awhile ago, and just recently stumbled upon the pics. I made them in Spring '08 for my Uncle Carl's birthday. He's a huge Phillies fan, so I emblazoned a few with red "P"s. Oh, and I should probably point out that the Phillies won the World Series a few months later. Just saying.

Fired Up!

My mom's friend was throwing a shower for her son & daughter-in-law. He's a firefighter. And they're having a girl. So naturally we decided on...what else? Pink hydrants.

Baby Blowout

I created these onesie cookies for my friends Marley & Brian who are expecting their first (in a month!) Since they had a co-ed shower, I didn't want to go overboard with the pink. A few touches of orange did the trick. Next time I may opt for doing the decals in fondant (see below post).

No she (fon) dant!!

I know, very cheesy heading, but I couldn't resist! This fall, I tried my hand at fondant icing, which is a pliable icing made of a thick sugar paste. And it....was awesome.


I would daydream about how gratifying it would be to roll out a big circle of chocolate "playdough", which is kind of what fondant feels like. I molded it onto a base of homemade chocolate cake, filled with a homemade ganache filling which was every bit as decadent as it was easy to make (all recipes courtesy of Confetti Cakes by Elissa Strauss). The fondant I bought because...well...one only has so much time.
















For the accents, I used white fondant which I dyed a robin's egg blue. The cake was for my dad's 64th birthday, and needless to say (which happens to be one of his favorite phrases), he was delighted. As was my nephew, naturally...

Ladybugs

I created these critters for my friends Chris & Evelina - their daughter Emi turned one this August. Adding a little green confetti "grass" helped animate them so they had some movement...a la crawling in the grass.

A'Hoy!

To help my two aunts celebrate their 60th birthdays at the shore (and to coincide with Father's Day), I made these nautical treats to help us get into the Cape May spirit. When I made the lobsters, I was imagining what would be going through their heads before dipping into a pot of hot water....

Bridal Shower

My friend Nancy threw a bridal shower for her sister, and I made it my mission to replicate the design from the invitation. (An actual image from the invite is below). I took some creative liberties, and made the cupcakes and engagement rings as separate cookies.

Mother's Day

I designed these delicate pink daisies as Mother's Day treat for the moms. I think arranging them in a simple white box or tying them with a pretty ribbon really elevates them. For a change of pace, here are some visuals to give you a peek into the process....

Jamesy Turns "1"

A purple brontosaurus seemed like the only way to go for my nephew #2. The icing is a "stippled" purple buttercream and the dots are actually rolled out Starburst candies. Do you think James liked it?

All Things Pink..

I created these pink champagne flutes and giftboxes for my friend Tim (who's a fantastic photographer, as you can see by these pics). He threw an adorable a shower for his sister, a huge fan of pink. I can't take credit for the chocolate treats, but I love how this display is styled...the brownies offer a nice counterpoint to the bright pink tones.

Monkey See...

My friend Jen from Gourmet celebrated her little boy's first birthday last weekend, so in following with her animal / jungle theme, I took a cue from Curious George to make these custom monkey faces. Looking at them makes me happy!!

Ushering in Autumn

Mom turned 60 this fall, so we all got together at The Rifle Club in NYC to celebrate. I opted against big "60" cookies and instead chose these cheery fall leaves that we set at each person's plate.