My New Year's Anti-Diet Resolution

So, I'm doing something I never ever planned on doing, ever...writing a blog. I was considering New Year's resolutions a week or so ago and I've never been a fan of the diet resolution. I never really understood why the first day of the year was a good time to start dieting. Are people more successful making plans on the first of the year than say, June 16th? Or maybe it's just the guilt of over-eating during the holidays? Whatever the reason, I don't see the point and that's what got me thinking about baking as an anti-resolution. And that in turn got me thinking of blogging as a way to ensure that I keep my resolution.

My goal is to make a new dessert every week for the entire year. It's a little bit like bakerella (http://bakerella.com/) meets Julie & Julia. And because I don't want to gain 100 pounds over the course of the year, I plan on using my unsuspecting co-workers as dessert-eating guinea pigs.

To celebrate the beginning of my blog as well as the beginning of 2010, my first baking experiment is a combination of cupcakes and cute New Years party hats. A quick warning, I love making things cute. I so rarely get to do this in any other aspect of my life, so it comes out a lot in my baking.

(Bear with me this week, I can't find the cord for my camera so these pictures are courtesy of my blackberry)

HAPPY NEW YEAR, CUPCAKE!

The first part of this little project was baking the actual cupcakes themselves. You can find the recipe here: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/cupcakes/chocolate-cupcakes-with-a-kick/

(BHG is one of my favorite places to find new recipes)

For the assembly of the New Years Party Hats you will need the following:

- Sugar Cones

- Orchid Candy Melts

- Purple Sanding Sugar

- Twizzler Pull'N'Peels

- Decorating Gel (I used Wilton's Red Sparkle gel)

- Frosting

- Red and/or White Sanding Sugar

The first thing to do is cut some of the bottom of each cone off. The hole should be big enough to fit a few Twizzler pieces in it. Next you dip the cones in the Melted Orchid Candy Melts until they are completely covered. You'll want to sprinkle the purple sanding sugar on immediately afterwards. If you sprinkle it over a bowl it will make it easier to re-use any that miss the cone. Leave the cones on wax paper to dry.

At this point you can go ahead and ice your delicious cupcakes (I recommend trying one first, I love cupcakes without icing). Always make sure your cupcakes are completely cooled before icing them, otherwise you end up with a hot mess. After icing, dip the cupake (icing side down) into a bowl filled with red or white sanding sugar. Set aside.

Back to the cones! Once they are dry decorate them however you choose with the Decorating Gel. This is where you can get really show off if you're artistic. Or you can do what I did and just write the year and throw on some swirly shapes. Next, place a few strands of your Pull'n'Peel twizzler into the top of your "hat." Put the hat on your cupcake and press gently so it sinks into the icing. Then you're done! Cute, pretty and simple. Don't worry about making a mess when you're decorating. I always end up with icing and sugar all over the place, it just means you've done your job.

Next Week: Tiramisu (hopefully!)