Thanksgiving Roundup!

I hope everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend!  We were down in Atlanta where my Dad's sister lives.  It is usually nice and warm down there, but unfortunately this year it was just as cold as NY.  That didn't stop us from having fun with our cousins :)  

and stealing their food.....

My Aunt makes quite a feast, I always look forward to it. We have a few people in our family that are now Gluten Free so she made a special baked brie (my favorite!).  She topped the brie with a little honey, brown sugar, dried cherries, dried apricots and sliced almonds.  She then baked it until it was warm and gooey and the sugar melted in - yum! (The picture below is before it was baked)

Every year she gets a Turkey Ice-cream cake from Baskin Robbins, but her Baskin store closed down.  So I was put to work to try and recreate one. Since there are 5 older cousins, I decided to do the cones as feathers instead of legs so each of the kids could have one.  My cake was certainly not as polished as Baskin Robbins, but I was happy with how it turned out for my first try.

My 94 year old Grandpa was able to make the trip this year! We got a great picture with him and all of his Great Grandchildren! (Savanna wouldn't stay in by herself....) We bought the matching pajamas from PajamaGram.

The kids had fun on Friday making peanut butter and jelly and grilled cheese pie pops for lunch with the Baby Cakes Pie Pop Maker.  It was such a fun activity for them and they cook super fast which is great for their attention span.

Hope you had a wonderful holiday as well!

Irish Soda Bread and 4 Months!

I am an Italian girl who loves Irish Soda Bread!  I try and make it every year but I am never fully pleased.  I found an old newspaper cut out in one of my grandma's recipe books and I decided to try that one this year.  Oddly enough it is the same as the recipe on the Friendship Buttermilk carton, who knows why I never tried that one before :)  I am happy to report that I think I finally found a winner which is why I am sharing it with you.  

 

Savanna turned 4 months last Friday and we were very excited that she decided to sleep again.  I am slightly nervous that after I post this it will jinx it, but for now we have some sleep.  We are currently trying to transition her from taking naps in her stroller to her crib and it has not been going to well.  She definitely seems to have a different association with day and night sleep.  I should not complain since she is napping and part of me wants to just leave it..... 

Now for some fun Savanna updates! 

1. She rolled over on her own on Monday to go for one of her favorite toys but hasn't done it again and does not seem to have any desire to.

2. She is taking a swim class every Monday, it is for 30 minutes at Asphalt Green.  I am doing it with my friend Kate and her daughter Brennan.  Savanna loved it and she is really recognizing other babies now which is fun.  

3. I started giving her a little oats every afternoon, and it has been slow but she seems to like them a little more every day.

4. I ordered her a Bumbo chair and I was super excited she liked it right away because she hated every other chair we initially put her in.  It took her 2 months to like her bouncy seat! She likes to watch me prep dinner and watched me bake the soda bread- I am teaching her young :)

Have a Happy Saint Patrick's day and a wonderful weekend!

Irish Soda Bread

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter - softened

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

1 cup raisins

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Butter and line a 10 inch pan with parchment paper (I have done it free form before which I like just as much and almost better).

2. In the bowl of the mixer sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

3. In a separate bowl, combine butter, sugar, eggs and buttermilk with a wisk. 

4. Using a flat paddle or dough hook mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.  The dough will be thick and sticky.  Add the raisins in.

5. Place the dough round in the pan and make for one hour. 

Happy Halloween!

We hope everyone made it through the storm ok!  We were very lucky to never lose power in our home, but unfortunately the kitchen is out of power :(  We hope we will be up and running by the weekend!  No baby news here fortunately/unfortunately so we are now just in the waiting game! We hope everyone has a safe Halloween and our thoughts and prayers are with all those families who do not have power and had serious damage.

Halloween Orders!

Make sure to get your Halloween Orders in early!  All orders placed before October 20th will receive 10% off. Check out some of my fun Halloween treats below!  I have fondant toppers for cupcakes or Paper Flags made by Bushel and Peck for cupcakes and cake pops!  I can also do jack'o'lantern, ghost and black cat cake pops.  Adding a tray filled with candycorn makes it easy to transport to your party!  

American Flag Cake Pop Cake!

I wanted to share my American Flag Cake Pop Cake!  I thought it would be a great addition to bring to your memorial day barbecue this weekend!  

Mother's Day!

Mother's Day is this weekend!  I wanted to share some fun KbyK gift ideas in case you have not purchased your gift already.  Order now through Wednesday and receive 20% off your order!

Instead of Flowers give your Mom Flower K-Pops :)

What mother wouldn't love a little box of Pretzel Almond Toffee or Mixed Nut Brittle!

A lovely little personalized pie in a jar :)

A Strawberry Shortcake is a great way to end your Mother's Day meal!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Love & Luck Menu & Giveaway!

My "Love & Luck Menu" is up so make sure to check it out for your Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day Treats!  

Also make sure to check out my give away at Deposit a Gift that is going on this week!

Deposit a Gift is a cash registry site that was created by Dana Ostomel to simplify and modernize gift gifting (especially for those of use with small NYC apartments)!  You can check out her out on facebook or follow her on twitter as well!  

My giveaway :)

Some other Valentine's Day treats!

Happy New Year!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas  &  Hanukkah! We had a fabulous  holiday (I  shared some pictures below).

I wanted to take the time to thank all of my customers for your loyal support and encouragement during my first year!  I could of not done it without you, and all the help from my devoted husband, family and friends.  I hope to take KbyK to new heights in 2012 and look forward to sharing the journey with our loyal friends and customers.  

Looking forward to hearing from you in the New Year!

I am very lucky that both of our families live close, we start the day in Westchester with my husband's family and then make our way to Long Island to spend the evening with my family :)

Some Dessert Platters I put together

The day after Christmas I took my nieces to have tea with their American Girl Dolls  (I wonder what those two are talking about :) )

MY FAVORITE!

1 Day to Christmas!!!!!!!!

Merry Christmas from KbyK :)

Day 2 til Christmas!!

Did you know....

"Jingle Bells" was first written for Thanksgiving and then became one of the most popular Christmas songs.

I was making my cheese cake with a gingerbread crust and cherry compote today and saved a little to try a mini version - I definitely think they will be added to the menu next year!

Day 3 til Christmas!

Christmas Sweets all over the world.....

• FRANCE: Buche de Noel (a Génoise or other sponge cake, baked in a large Swiss roll pan)
• USA: Pumpkin Cake (with cinnamon and ginger, frosted with cream cheese frosting)
• SPAIN: Nougat (made with sugar or honey, roasted nuts)
• HUNGARY: Beigli (roll of sweet yeast bread with a dense, rich, bittersweet filling)
• ITALY: Panettone (is a type of sweet bread loaf originally from Milan)
• SWEDEN: Pepparkakor (heart-star and goat-shaped gingerbread biscuit)
• UK: Christmas Pudding (steamed pudding, with dried fruit and nuts, usually made with suet)
• PORTUGAL: Pain Perdu (French toast made with bread and eggs, milk, sugar and cinnamon)
• GERMANY: Lebkuchen (large cookies made of honey)

My cranberry, caramel almond tart and hazenut chocolate tart :)

Day 4 til Christmas!

"Santa" in various countries: 

England: Father Christmas
France: Pere Noel (Father Christmas)
Germany: Christkind (angelic messenger from Jesus) She is a beautiful fair haired girl with a shining crown of candles.
Holland: St Nicholas.
Italy: La Befana (a kindly old witch)
Spain and South America: The Three Kings
Russia: In some parts - Babouschka (a grandmotherly figure) in other parts it is Grandfather Frost.
Scandinavia: a variety of Christmas gnomes. One is called Julenisse

My custom hand painted with royal icing Santa :)

Day 5 til Christmas!!

Some Christmas Tree Facts For You :)

• Forego throwing out your Christmas tree and make it lunch. The Evergreen is actually edible, well most parts of it anyway. In addition, it is nutrient enriched, so if you take the advice stated previously you'd be getting a good source of Vitamin C and roughage. Don't mind that you will be eating a tree; it's just one step away from any other vegetable.
• According to the National Christmas Tree Association, Americans buy 37.1 million real Christmas trees each year; 25 percent of them are from the nation's 5,000 choose-and-cut farms.
• Animal Crackers are not really crackers, but cookies that were imported to the United States from England in the late 1800s. Barnum's circus-like boxes were designed with a string handle so that they could be hung on a Christmas tree.

Christmas Tree Cake Pops!

Day 6 til Christmas!!!

Did you know.....

Before settling on the name of Tiny Tim for his character in "A Christmas Carol," three other alliterative names were considered by Charles Dickens. They were Little Larry, Puny Pete, and Small Sam.

Before settling on the name of Tiny Tim for his character in "A Christmas Carol," three other alliterative names were considered by Charles Dickens. They were Little Larry, Puny Pete, and Small Sam.

My homemade hot cocoa jars and cupcakes!

Day 7 til Christmas!!!

To all you New Yorkers

New York City's Empire State Building's world famous tower lights are turned off every night at midnight with the exception of New Year's Eve, New Year's Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and St. Patrick's Day, when they are illuminated until 3 a.m.

A Custom Christmas basket with chocolate covered pretzels, cookies, pumpkin bread, nut brittle and k-pops!

Day 8 til Christmas!

Did you know....

Before settling on the name of Tiny Tim for his character in "A Christmas Carol," three other alliterative names were considered by Charles Dickens. They were Little Larry, Puny Pete, and Small Sam.

Reindeer Cake Pops!

Day 9 til Christmas!!

Some Christmas History...

• Christmas became a national holiday in America on June, 26, 1870

• The first president to decorate the white house Christmas tree in the United States was Franklin Pierce

• The first state to recognize the Christmas holiday officially was Alabama

• Electric lights for trees were first used in 1895

Milk Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup Gift Tin

Day 10 til Christmas!

Did you know.....

Candy canes began as straight white sticks of sugar candy used to decorated the Christmas trees. A choirmaster at Cologne Cathedral decided have the ends bent to depict a shepherd's crook and he would pass them out to the children to keep them quiet during the services. It wasn't until about the 20th century that candy canes acquired their red stripes.

 Kandy Kane K-Pops!!

Day 11 til Christmas!

Some Christmas Statistics For You :)

• 1 in 10 – The number of the presents received that will be broken by the New Year
• 7 in 10 – The number of dogs that get Christmas gifts from their owners
• 33 – The average amount spent per person on last-minute purchases
• 25 – The percentage time spent in queues when Christmas shopping
• 832 – The number of homes Santa visits every second to deliver all his presents
• 5340 – Average number of times Visa Cards are used every minute during Christmas time

My Snow Flake Brownies - studded with white chocolate chips and dusted with confectionate sugar