Any and all of my Facebook friends would know that my profile has been attacking them all with pictures from the engagement shoot that Evan and I recently took. After lots of discussion about how to make our photos slightly unique and tell the story of our 10 years together (there was a time when we were going to rent the space in a prop airport but... you know... we're cheap), we decided to show a day in the life of Ellie and Evan! That meant walking our puppy on the Beltline behind our apartment, snuggling on the couch, and of course - baking. The one difference between the pictures we took in that last category and real life, is that I actually allowed Evan into the kitchen with me.
Two days before our photo shoot was about to take place, our amazing friend (and matchmaker) got engaged! This meant that our baking photos served two purposes: 1) To show us laughing (staged) while baking and only sometimes showing how nervous Evan cracking an egg makes me, and 2) To make a cake to celebrate with at Tali and Corey's L'Chaim!
Two days before our photo shoot was about to take place, our amazing friend (and matchmaker) got engaged! This meant that our baking photos served two purposes: 1) To show us laughing (staged) while baking and only sometimes showing how nervous Evan cracking an egg makes me, and 2) To make a cake to celebrate with at Tali and Corey's L'Chaim!
The Recipe we used is my classic chocolate cake recipe, seen in this post from last year, but we applied a few new decorating tricks to make the cake look a bit more romantic. In these photos we also have some home-baked "Oreos" and Peanut Butter-Banana-Toffee Muffins. These muffins are almost too good to share the recipe with the world, but scroll to the bottom of this post to see how I made the world's tastiest and easiest Oreo-esque cookies!
Thank you to Shane & Christine from Reverie Studios for making us so comfortable in front of the camera, and for making our baking and kitchen look much better than they are in real life!
For those wondering how to recreate this cake, simply bake your two chocolate cakes as per the directions in the last post. Level them, and fill with your favourite buttercream frosting and fresh berries. Frost the entire cake with your best buddy looking on very seriously, and top with fresh flowers (I used hydrangeas and baby's breath) and some (shh.. store-bought) macarons in a similar colour scheme. Et Voila!! A super fancy looking cake that is actually as effortless to make as the photos imply!
And for those looking for an actual recipe, check out my recipe below for the insanely delicious, shockingly gooey,
And for those looking for an actual recipe, check out my recipe below for the insanely delicious, shockingly gooey,
Fauxreo Cookies!!!
Ingredients:
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
1 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs
3/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
1/2 tsp Sea Salt, plus more for sprinkling on the top half of your fauxreos
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tbsp Hot Water
1 tsp Vanila
1 1/2 Cups Mini Chocolate Chips
1/2 Cup Olive Oil
1 Cup Sugar
2 Eggs
3/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
1/2 tsp Sea Salt, plus more for sprinkling on the top half of your fauxreos
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tbsp Hot Water
1 tsp Vanila
1 1/2 Cups Mini Chocolate Chips
What To Do:
Combine the olive oil and sugar.
Add your eggs one at a time, being sure to mix well between each.
Add the cocoa powder, flour, and salt - mix until a dough forms that is the consistency of a very thick brownie batter.
In a separate bowl, dissolve the baking soda in the hot water- add this and the vanilla into your batter.
Fold in the mini chocolate chips.
Refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes or more.
Preheat the oven to 350 F and scoop the chilled batter in heaping tablespoons onto a lined baking sheet. Sprinkle half of the cookies with some sea salt, and bake for 10-12 minutes.
Allow the cookies to cool completely and then fill them with your favourite buttercream or cream cheese frosting.
Too make these fauxreos POP, roll the cookies through a plate of rainbow sprinkles!
Last Step: Try not to eat the entire plate in one sitting.
Combine the olive oil and sugar.
Add your eggs one at a time, being sure to mix well between each.
Add the cocoa powder, flour, and salt - mix until a dough forms that is the consistency of a very thick brownie batter.
In a separate bowl, dissolve the baking soda in the hot water- add this and the vanilla into your batter.
Fold in the mini chocolate chips.
Refrigerate the batter for 30 minutes or more.
Preheat the oven to 350 F and scoop the chilled batter in heaping tablespoons onto a lined baking sheet. Sprinkle half of the cookies with some sea salt, and bake for 10-12 minutes.
Allow the cookies to cool completely and then fill them with your favourite buttercream or cream cheese frosting.
Too make these fauxreos POP, roll the cookies through a plate of rainbow sprinkles!
Last Step: Try not to eat the entire plate in one sitting.