Brighten up your Kitchen with Color Swatches

I work with Pantone swatches on a daily basis. They are integral to graphic designers, printers and interior decorators alike. Yet how could it be that I have no use them in the kitchen! In an effort to try and bring my two worlds a little closer, a brainstorm ensued for ways to incorporate my love of Pantone into the kitchen. It seems to me that the closest equivalent to a tool such as a Pantone swatch book in the kitchen would be measuring spoons, so I decided to give my spoons a color makeover. 

I decided to go with a cheery green palette for my measuring spoons. To re-create the Pantone colors, I had to mix acrylic paints in green, white and black. Painters tape helps keep clean lines and prevents the paint from getting near the spoons.

These colorful measuring spoons had to be put to use, so I made matching Pantone Petits Fours. These bite-size iced cakes are commonly flavored with Marzipan and the layers filled with fruit preserves. Petit fours is actually a French word, meaning small oven. Seems fitting considering I'm making them in a NYC oven. (which is basically one step up from an Easy Bake oven)

Petit fours were the perfect excuse for me to bring Pantone colors into baking. For mine, I baked a simple yellow cake, trimmed the edges and sliced it into two layers. Then I pureed some raspberry preserves and spread it in between the layers of cake. Finally, I cut the cake into one inch squares and chilled them for a few hours to make them firm enough to coat.

Now, it's time to decorate these suckers.

White chocolate icing 

INGREDIENTS

1 cup white chocolate 

1 pound confectioners' sugar

1/4 cup light corn syrup

1/4 cup hot water

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the white chocolate in a heat proof bowl over a pot of simmering water and stir until evenly melted. 

2. In another bowl, mix the confectioners' sugar, light corn syrup, hot water and vanilla. 

3. Stir in sugar mixture to the melted white chocolate and mix until smooth and icing easily pours off the spatula. Turn down the heat to the lowest setting to keep icing warm.

4. Place a petit four on a fork and, holding it over the bowl, use a spoon to gently pour icing over the cake. Once it's coated, place the petit four on a wire rack to set. It's best to have a lined baking sheet under the rack to catch the extra icing that drips of the cake. 

5. Decorate any way you like! I recommend piping tinted icing or adding some bling with dragees. 

I colored rolled fondant to achieve the Pantone green I wanted. Once the color was perfectly tinted, I rolled the fondant out very thin, cut a square and used a little water to adhere it to the petit fours. 

The final step was to number the petit four "swatches" with an edible ink black marker. 

So maybe it is a stretch to try and unite a couple of my favorite things, but even if Pantone doesn't really have a place in the kitchen, at least it inspired some colorful treats! 

Candy Corn Shortbread

There are two types of people in this world, those who love candy corn, and those who don't. Clearly I like candy corn, but it's understandable that some might not have a sweet tooth like I do. My recent candy corn indulgence is what inspired me to make these shortbread wedges. One thing's for sure, everyone loves a crumbly, buttery shortbread and these "candy corns" are sure to be a crowd favorite. A touch of orange and yellow coloring makes these brown sugar shortbread wedges Halloween ready. Feel free to half the recipe for a thinner shortbread.

Candy Corn Shortbread

makes 12 wedges

INGREDIENTS

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup corn starch

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup light brown sugar

16 oz (2 cups) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
1. Pre-heat the oven to 300° F. In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, cornstarch, salt and brown sugar on low speed to blend the ingredients (about 20 seconds). With the mixer running add the butter cubes one at a time, mixing until dough clumps together. Add the vanilla, mixing until large clumps form and there is no loose flour. Do not over mix. There may be streaks of butter that aren’t fully mixed in (that’s ok!).

2. Transfer the dough to a work surface and divide into 3 portions–one small, one medium and one large. Set the smallest portion aside (this will be the white tip of the candy corn). Place the largest portion in the standing mixer and add about 1/4 teaspoon of yellow gel food coloring. Add more depending on how vibrant you want your yellow to be. Transfer yellow dough back to the work surface. Without cleaning out your mixing bowl place the medium sized dough portion in the bowl. Add 1/4 teaspoon of yellow gel food coloring and a drop of red gel food coloring. Mix until incorporated and dough is a bright orange. Add more depending on how vibrant you want your orange to be. Transfer the orange dough to your work surface.

3. Place the white dough in the middle of your springform pan, lightly press down with the palm of your hand to create an even circle about 3 inches wide. Wrap the orange dough around the white dough, leaving room for the outer ring of yellow dough. Lastly, wrap the final yellow layer of dough around the orange dough ring. Dough should now cover the entire pan. Use the palm of your hand to evenly smooth out the dough, making sure to keep the colors separate. Using a fork, prick the dough every 2 inches. Use a sharp knife to cut 12 even wedges in the dough. 

4. Bake the shortbread until the top is light golden, about 1 hour. Use a small sharp knife to carefully cut through the pre-cut wedges. Cool the shortbread thoroughly in the pan. Remove the side of the pan and separate the cookies. The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container for up to 1 week.

Here's the Recipe Card

Birthday Surprise!

Today I turn the uneventful age of 29. I've always loved having a birthday in October because it lends itself to doing something that involves the outdoors and this gorgeous fall weather. This year I was feeling a little un-inspired, so I decided not to do anything special for my birthday (I figured eating a pint of coffee ice cream and watching Boardwalk Empire would do the trick). My husband, however, decided to throw me a surprise get together last Sunday in beautiful Riverside Park. Although it was a great idea, the secret was quickly exposed when Tom realized he needed my help (food) for the party. I kept it simple by making some dips and my friends all chipped in by bringing candy and drinks! I also made this apple tart with cheddar cheese crust with the remaining apples I stole picked fair-and-square from a recent apple picking trip.

This small get together was perfect, even down to the ice cream cone piñata! Little did I know that Tom really did have a surprise planned for me—making the most amazing KitchenAid Mixer cake ever! I knew he wanted to make me an extreme cake, but the mixer idea was a total surprise. I'm truly amazed at this cake (video below). I guess all those nights of me making cakes really has taught him a thing or two! One thing's for sure....I'm a pretty lucky gal. Thank you to my amazing hubby and here's to an eventful 29th year!

Heres a video my friend Jeff took of me vs. the piñata. I may lose this fight, but I got the candy in the long run!

Now, to the cake! Here's a look at Tom's process and the amazing result. 

Once I figured out that Tom was making me a mixer, I had to document the making of this amazing cake!