A Very Merry Gingerbread House!

I finally finished decorating the gingerbread house yesterday afternon. In between making coquito, kipes, and pasteles en hoja, I finally finished!

This year it has been colder and more humid than usual, and in this climat the icing takes forever to dry. I decided to make my gingerbread house covered with red fondant; therefore, very little icing was used for details, it was mainly used to glue the house. I found that using meringue powder icing, option II here, without diluting it after it's done, makes a strong icing that glues and dries much quicker.

Traditional Gingerbread Men Cookies

These last few days I've been putting together our gingerbread house and making gingerbread men. With all the things we have made a habit of doing for this season, there is nothing better for me than to decorate cookies. I have so much fun decorating gingerbread men, and it keeps me busy doing what I like, especially when it is to give as a gift!

En español

The cookies are very easy to make and decorate. All you need is a gingerbread man cutter, your favorite cookie recipe, and royal icing. There is nothing complicated about decorating it the traditional way. I made a video of less than two minutes for you to see and get inspired to make a few in the next weeks.

Need some cookie recipes: 
Sugar Cookies (Traditional) 
Decorating Chocolate Cookies
Gingerbread Cookies Recipe

Notes: To add color to the traditional cookie dough, you just have to add a few teaspoons of cocoa or a few drops of color of your choice. These will look nice in red or green, maybe pink for a baby girl!  I am stuck on the traditional, but it is always good to try out new things, especially for kids!

Glaze Recipe: 
Royal Icing

A sweet peek at this year´s gingerbread house:

Have you noticed the beautiful new blog design? I would like to thank Fran, from Freborboleta Design, who is the one who helped me to change the style of the blog. I love the new design and I hope you like it too! Feel free to look around, use the new "custom search" on the right, or the options on the gray menu bar above. If it is not in your language, click on the top right button to switch to the English or Spanish blog.

Have a Merry week!

Adding a Festive Touch: Creating Poinsettia Fondant Flowers for Your Sweet Creations

Poinsettia flowers not only provide a beautiful finish to our sweet creations but also infuse them with a delightful touch of Christmas. The poinsettias I'm sharing today were crafted using fondant cutters, which are commonly found in many households. Specifically, I utilized two types of cutters: those designed for hydrangeas and daisies.

Cupcakes Navideños y Cómo Hacer Flor de Pascua en español.

These versatile flowers are perfect for enhancing small confectionery items such as cookies, cakes, and mini cupcakes. I trust that these tips will prove helpful and inspiring for your own festive creations!

What you needed to do mini poinsettias or poinsettias: 
• Fondant red or white
• Tylo
• Cutters shaped flowers (see link below)
• Dishes or molds to dry flowers


Note: If you have gum paste used that instead of fondant. If you need the sugar paste recipe, look for it here: Recipes Fondant Mari’s Cakes. A good combination to make sugar flowers or figures is 50% gum paste and 50% fondant. I used fondant and tylo for this project.

If you are interested in these cutters, get them here: 86 Pcs Fondant Cutters Decorating Tools Molds.

A large cutter and the small cutter of the same pattern is needed.

For drying the flowers, consider using a curved plate. If one is not readily available, a clean egg carton can serve the purpose, or you can fashion your own using aluminum foil.

In my experience…

• In highly humid climates, I've found that using a mixture of 1 cup of cornstarch (80 g) with ½ cup of powdered sugar (60 g) is ideal for working with fondant. This powder is perfect for sprinkling in the area where you'll be rolling out your fondant, and at times, over the fondant itself to prevent the rolling pin from sticking to it.

• Glue the gold dragees with a little vodka, it sticks well, dries fast, and is not sticky. I also use this to glue small fondant pieces.

Are you looking for recipes for soft and tasty cupcakes? I recommend the following:

• Pumpkin Cupcakes

• Gingerbread Cupcakes

• Eggnog Cupcakes

My best wishes to you all, and may you have a holiday vacation filled with love and peace!

Because of his kindness, you have been saved through trusting Christ. And even trusting is not of yourselves; it too is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good we have done, so none of us can take any credit for it. - Ephesians 2:8-9

Delicious Holiday Cupcakes with a Festive Twist: Indulge in Eggnog-Inspired Treats for Seasonal Celebrations!

With the holiday near and vacation time for many of us, there is always time to try out new recipes. The following cupcakes are great for this season’s celebrations. Eggnog is included among the ingredients, but if you don’t any on hand, you can substitute it for milk. Enjoy!

Receta de Cupcakes de Vanilla y Ponche en español.

Vanilla Eggnog Cupcakes 

Ingredientes: 

1½ cups sifted flour (195 g)
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
⅓ cup + 1 tablespoon unsalted butter or margarine (90 g )
1 cup sugar (200 g)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (5 ml)
1 egg
⅔ cup eggnog cream, with or without alcohol (150 ml )


For the Frosting:
Vanilla buttercream with rum flavoring or Italian Meringue

Decorations: 
Fondant flowers

Preparation: 

1. Line the cupcake tray. Pre - heat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C).

2. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt, and set aside.

3. With the flat beater beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. This process takes about 3-4 minutes on low speed 2-4.

4. Add vanilla and mix for a minute, then add the egg and beat at low speed until it is fully combined.

5. Add the flour with the mixer on low speed, alternating with the eggnog. At the end only beat for a minute or less until the flour is combined. I recommend you finish mixing with a spatula in folding motions.

6. Fill the prepared pan and bake for 16-18 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool completely before decorating.

Yield: 12 cupcakes. Have a blessed day!

I opted for Dominican eggnog in this recipe, but feel free to choose any eggnog that suits your preference.

If you enjoyed this post, then you'll like:

How to Create Poinsette Fondant Flowers 

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. - John 14:27 

Post by Mari's Cakes.

Pumpkin Cake

En Español

Last week I made more Christmas tree cupcakes and had some leftover pumpkin puree, enough to make a pumpkin cake in a tree mold I had not used for years. I inadvertently posted a photo of winter wonderland to my Facebook page, so for the decoration I allowed myself to decorate the Christmas tree cake all white inspired by the wonderland snow. I used simple techniques and hope it inspires you in some way. The recipe is delicious and like always can easily be done following my step by step instructions. I truly recommend this recipe for the approaching birthdays and holidays.



The recipe for this cake: 
• Double the pumpkin cupcakes recipe.
Note: duplicate everything except the baking soda.

To frosting use one of the following: 
• Cream Cheese Frosting
• Vanilla Buttercream
• Italian Meringue (Dominican Frosting)
• Whip Cream

 All these recipes are found here at Mari's Cakes blog.

Fill the mold with the batter a little more than half, and place it on a tray to avoid it tipping in the oven while it bakes.

Frost all the edges first and smooth out, then fill the top.

With a spatula spread the frosting evenly on the cake, then with the same spatula gently pat to get textured peaks. That simple, that easy!

Decorate with white fondant flowers with gold dragees, and voila! The fondant flowers and can be made several days in advance.

This cake is delicious!

I am sending you like lambs into a pack of wolves. So be as wise as snakes and as innocent as doves. - Matthew 10:16 

Holiday Cakes eBook Giveaway by Mari's Cakes CLOSED

En Español
In celebration of my 40th birthday, I decided to make my first blog giveaway!! I want to give away not one, not two, nor three, but four copies of my latest eBook, Holiday Cakes! Find out what you need to do by reading below.

WINNERS ANNOUNCED BELOW!

If you can't wait until the giveaway is over :) because you want to start baking right away, then  click on the eBook icon in the upper right hand of the blog and follow the directions to purchase the eBook. Remember that Mari's Cakes will be donating from the sales of this eBook to buy a Christmas dinner for children and/or families that need and deserve a decent Christmas dinner.

Christmas Tree Pumpkin Cupcakes

En Español
It's good! Is there more? Those were the words my husband said when he tasted one of these Christmas tree pumpkin cupcakes. I have always wanted to post on Christmas tree cupcakes, but never had a chance to until now, and I love starting December with something of the season. I have put together a short video of how-to pipe these cuties, you can find it below.

I'm satisfied with the outcome of these cupcakes, the color and details I accomplished with the butterless Italian meringue. For the cupcakes I used this pumpkin cupcakes recipe, which is simply AWESOME! Their moist, soft texture in addition to the spiced flavor is purely a heavenly Christmas gift to for your taste buds. You have to prepare these cupcakes for your next holiday get together!