Baby, baby!

When do you start feeling less like a wannabe pastry chef rather and more like an actual pastry chef? I had a moment on Friday that made me feel more like the latter.

One of my friends who saw my pastries on facebook actually came over to my house to learn how to decorate cupcakes for a baby shower. Do you realize that it combines my love of teaching with my love of baking??

We made brownies from scratch (you'll have to ask Tammy for the recipe, I personally recommend the box version), yellow cake from the box, and of course, wilton buttercream frosting:

My favorite were the brownie rattles. Tammy looked online and found the directions. Here's how you do it:

1) Bake brownie mix as directed in a greased muffin pan (no liners).

2) Poke a small hole with a toothpick. 3) Insert a lollipop stick into the hole (you won't believe how much easier it is when you use the toothpick first).

4) Tie an adorable bow around the lollipop stick.5) Stick a gumdrop (hehe, we used spice drops) on the bottom of the rattle. 6) Decorate as desired! This is the fun part!
Please note how much easier it is to take pictures when there is someone else! :)

**Special thanks to Tammy bringing such fun ideas and being up for decorating til 1am, and Charles for the cakelet pan!!**