Friday, August 29, 2008

Beary Sweet

My niece and I spent a day out in Manhattan together. I thought it would be fun to go shopping, see a show and have lunch. I surprised her and took her to Build-a-Bear Workshop at the end of the day. I'll be honest, "Auntie Yana" is known for her cupcakes and cookies with her niece and nephew. A lot of times when we're together I'll let them help out with the baking. Sonny (my nephew) is more interested in the end result. He is an expert in the spice sprinkling department. Well, once we got to Build-a-Bear, she picked out her bear. After she chose her bear she decided on an outfit. I had NOTHING to do with her decision making in the outfit but when I saw it I was so touched. (she picked one out for her brother who she dressed like her dad) So now her bear looks like Auntie Yana!!! hahaha!!!
How cute is this???







Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Nutty Buddy




Growing up I was close with all of my siblings. My second oldest brother and I got especially close throughout high school. He drove me to school and looked out for his freshman sister while he was a senior.We were each others buddies. Literally, we came up with the endearing term "buddy" for one another. Even through college (we went to the same one) once again he took care of his freshman sister while he was a big bad senior. lol. Even years later, we still use that term. It's a little nutty but nice. These are my Peanut Buddy Cookies with a little twist. I did a milk chocolate drizzle over them for my chocolate lovers. A great chunky peanut butter cookie any day of the week.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

BIRTHDAY SWEETS

My fabulous sister(in-law)recently celebrated her birthday with the family. It was intimate and sweet. I really wanted to create some babycakes that were a reflection of the kind of woman she is. So I came up with my traditional lemon babycakes with lemon buttercream frosting. But I used a flower effect for the design and topped them off with fresh strawberries. She's just that. Always, growing into something beautiful like a flower, bright like the color yellow and sweet like strawberries. I even have some cookies named after her (The Smart Cookie). Since she was birthday girl she had a supersized babycake!!! Enjoy!

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Sweet Planning

I had a conversation with my mother the other day. We were discussing the planning of my grandmother's big birthday bash coming up. As we continued to talk, I confessed to her that I really wanted to do some of the baking. (She didn't want to try and have me doing anything that could possibly stress me out) I assured her that I would have everything prepared prior to the day of. She agreed to let me do it. She then began talking about how she hasn't baked in about 20 years and she had considered doing some of the baking for the party too. Needless to say, by the end of our conversation, we had created a baking team between the two of us. I haven't baked with my mother since I was a kid. We both were really excited!! Pictures soon to come of what will be a fantastic event!!!

“Suga” Cookie
(Inspired by Mom who got me started baking. An affectionate name Dad calls her.)
*These are the custom Valentine's Day ones.

The Beginning....

“Inspiration comes from within but can be influenced by what is outside. Bake Sweet Love is the love child of inspiration and passion.”

Bake Sweet Love began in Brooklyn in the summer of 2006, but its true origins began years ago during my childhood in Detroit, Michigan.

Even as a child I had a passion for baking. My mother, an amazing cook and a master in baking, went as far as to take cake decorating classes to be able to create beautiful custom cakes for all of our birthdays, and I would stay right by her side while she created all of these wonderful sweets. I remember wishing I could stay up late when she baked cakes. Not just because I wanted to taste them, but also because I wanted to see how beautiful they would turn out. From experiences like those my inspiration was drawn of keeping the tradition of baking alive.



“There is something so genuine and wonderful about baking. You need a certain patience. The fulfillment comes from allowing people to indulge in something that brings them a little joy. I remember how that felt growing up and want to continue to help people feel that way.”

-Ayana