We’re movin onto greener pastures.

Please change your feed in your readers and blogrolls. http://iheartfood4thought.com

Bye bye iheartfood4thought.wordpress.com.

Hello iheartfood4thought.com!

(Note: This post is a month belated but it wasn’t updating in some ppl’s readers so I am hoping by republishing, they can find me again.)

I’m going to be MIA for a little while.

But I’ll try to keep up with emails when possible.

Gordan Ramsey wants YOU!

Uh… Chef Ramsey scares terrifies me. He’d probably make me cry during the audition. I’m a crybaby+wuss. But maybe *YOU* aren’t.

Audition info here.

Good luck!

EDIT: One of my readers emailed to tell me that I spelled Chef Ramsay’s name wrong. Omg! He’s gonna find my blog post and kick my ass!! Sorry Chef! I’m not worthy. Sorry Chef. I’m not worthy! Please don’t hurt me…

Link Love :: iPhone

Monoprice Backup Battery Pack .::. Only $15? I’ll take 2 please!

Threadless + Griffin = .::. I want the red giraffe one!

Tiko Gadget Stand .::. I don’t buy a stand if it can’t be run over by an SUV. I have standards.

Griffin Case W/ Built In Lens .::. Macro lens+case? It’s an iPhone foodie nerd’s dream. You know you’re nodding.

TomTom Navigation Car Kit .::. I still get lost going to and from Target and you have no idea how many times I go to Target every week.

Rainy Day **GIVEAWAY**

In the lip synced words of Milli Vanilli, I blame it on the rain.

This week California is suppose to get it’s quarter of a century record breaking rain.  From 5-20 inches!  Grreeeeaattt… I’m hoping my area is more towards the 5 inches spectrum rather than the 20 inches.  But CB we could really use the rain. Ok that’s true. But you gotta understand something.  I’m Asian.  We already have a terrible reputation for being bad drivers.  (I will neither confirm or deny the rumor per my lawyer’s instructions.) Add in the rain and that’s 2 strikes against us!

You were probably coming to my blog to read about some fabulous Tuesdays With Dorie dessert-ness but it’s cold, dreary, rainy and wet in my neck of the woods. All of which put me to sleep rather than give me a get-up-and-bake mentality. But check out Lillian of Confectiona’s Realm for the Almost Candy Bar recipe >> here.

Instead I decided to embrace the rain. Thank goodness for shop-a-holic friends, Target and text messages. For the last hour I’ve been looking at buying some rain boots after my friend sent me a text about buying some pink polka dot rain boots from Target. So of course I got the want-them-don’t-really-need-them twitch. But not fugly yellow ones that fishermen wear. Cutesy ones. Ones that make me forget the cold, dreary, rainy wet (Did I mention those adjectives already?) outside.

Do you want some rain boots too? Well today’s your LUCKY day!

Rules:
(1) Only one entry per person please.
(2) Only those who live within the US eligible to win prizes. (Sorry my international peeps!)
(3) Please make sure you have a valid email address so I can contact you if you win.

To enter leave a comment:
I posted some of my favorites from Target’s website. Which rain boots should I buy?

Want an extra entry?
Just copy, paste and retweet about my giveaway! Leave me a separate comment with the link to your tweet.

RT @IHCuppycakes Embrace the rain in style! Rainy Day **GIVEAWAY** http://bit.ly/4USOKK

Deadline: Monday, January 25th @ 11:59pm EST
Supposedly the weatherman is saying that we’ll get sunny skies again come Saturday but let’s give him a little leeway and make the deadline Monday. You know how reliable weathermen are right? HA!

Winners will be chosen by Mr. Random Generator.

* All Rain boots from Target $24.99
** Prize to be given in form of a $25 gift card to Target

Un-New Years Resolution Giveaway **WINNER**

Ok I lied.

I know I said I’d have the winner of the giveaway up on my blog yesterday. But hey. It just goes to show you I can’t be trusted. Now you’ve learned your lesson. So really it’s your fault for giving me so much credit.

(I knew I should have gone to Law School.)

Special thanks to Jamie of Studio JK Vinyls for sponsoring this giveaway. Darling, you have a fan for life! *smooches*

… And the winner is.

Lucky Comment #1.

Now how often does that happen. Heck I find myself subconsciously NOT commenting first on giveaways b/c I know that the first person NEVER gets chosen. Guess Mr. Random Generator just proved me wrong today.

Congratulations Diane! Please email me your shipping address, what you want the 6 vinyls to say and color choice.

… and thanks to everyone that left me a comment.

Until next time.

“Any fool can tell the truth, but it requires a (wo)man of some sense to know how to lie well.” ~Samuel Butler

TWD #88: Ms. Engineer’s Cocoa Volcano Cookies

I know you’re probably confused.

You’re probably thinking… CB, I read your blog word for word every day and you said this week would be Mrs. Vogel’s Scherben? Who’s Ms. Engineer?

Ok maybe you don’t read word-for-word or even everyday but you are right. This week should be Mrs. Vogel’s Scherben. Side note: Am I the only one that has no idea what a “scherben” actually is? It’s not even in the dictionary! (Yes, I looked it up. No, I’m not offended that you said NERD under your breath.) Apparently Scherben is German for shard. It’s deep fried dough that is sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. Sounds like a funnel cake to me. I love funnel cake. Slap on gobs of strawberries and powdered sugar and OH BABY it’s better than a cupcake. Yeah I said it!

But I have a confession. I suck at frying. It makes me nervous. It’s gonna take me a little more time to get the courage to deep fry anything in my new house. I have this neurosis that I’ll burn my new house down. *knock on wood*

So my sincere apologies to Teanna of Spork of Foon, our Tuesdays with Dorie host this week, but it’s not you. You’re the coolest foodie on the block. It’s me. You still love me right? Don’t leave me hanging… I feel so guilty already.

Instead I decided to do a TWD rewind. I was bumming that I didn’t get a chance to make my foodie friend, McDuff of Lonely Side Car‘s pick last month. You can find the recipe on her blog. Even though I’ve been bad on the blog commenting and email corresponding (I “just” found out that she’s engaged! *squeal*), me and McDuff are like this. *crossing index and middle fingers* Hmmm… maybe more like index+ring finger. Tight but hard to reach sometimes. She’s my second favorite Bostonian. (Nikki of Crazy Delicious Food is my Number 1. And she’ll hurt me if I don’t say that. I’m not kidding. Save me.)

This picture is dedicated to Mike of Ugly Dude Food who explained that my mental health would improve if I just took the pictures where they lay. No props, no artificial lighting, no digital enhancement. Aaahhhh… I can feel my stress level decreasing already although it’s driving me a tad crazy that the saturation needs to be bumped down a notch. I know. I have issues.

So to make a long story short. (Too late for that, CB.) I baked up the Cafe Volcano Cookies instead. Why the homage to Ms. Engineer? Well… Caitlin of Engineer Baker (Get it??) inspired me to switch out the espresso powder for double the cocoa powder. And also special thanks to Nancy of The Dogs Eat The Crumbs, Tracey of Tracey’s Culinary Adventures and Margaret of Tea And Scones for confirming my nut(ty) substitution. True to my unprepared form. I realized I had no walnuts or almonds at the last minute. So instead opted for double the pecans instead.

What I learned this week:
This are the EASIEST cookies I’ve ever made. No joke. Five minutes + baking time.

ENJOY!

Husband rating: A
It’s not his favorite cookie (he’s more of a PB cookie man) but he said that it would be awesome dunked in a cup of coffee.

Wife rating: A
I can’t believe that this turned out. There are only 4 ingredients: nuts, espresso powder (or cocoa), egg white and sugar. I remember thinking before I baked them there was no way this could turn out any kind of cookie. But once again The Great Dorie Greenspan proves me wrong. This cookie is oh so right. I agree with hubs. Would be yummy with a hot drink. Next time I might cut down on the baking time so it’s not as crunchy though.

Next week: Chocolate Oatmeal Almost-Candy Bars pages 114-115

Stay tuned tomorrow for the winner of Studio JK Vinyls! (and you thought I forgot didn’t you!?)

TWD #Ilostcount: All the world is birthday cake, so take a piece, but not too much. ~George Harrison

Like my subject line implies…

I can’t remember what number Tuesdays with Dorie recipe I am on now. I wanna say in the high 80s maybe? Then again my memory aint what it use to be back in my 20s now that I’m in my 30s so I could be WAY off on the count. All I know is it feels like FOREVER AND A DAY since I last participated. Anyone that tells you that you can buy a house, move into your house, unpack all the boxes, celebrate the holidays *AND* keep up with any other activities is Super Woman. I certainly couldn’t so unfortunately my little ol blog lacked any Tuesday with Dorie goodness lately.

Do I still have any readers hanging around? *echo echo*

But I knew I had to come back come hell or high water for TWD’s 2 year anniversary!

Psst… Come closer. Can I tell you a secret? I’m a little bitter that my campaign for the White Chocolate Brownies for TWD’s 2nd anniversary recipe got axed. Frick Da Man?!? The Cocoa Buttermilk Cake got picked b/c everyone likes cake. The Tarte Tatin got picked b/c every one likes frenchy frou frou stuff. What about the brownie? Show some love for the brownie! Ok I’m done with my vent.

Since my brownies didn’t get picked (AGAIN!!) I decided to go with the Cocoa Buttermilk Cake. Because like I said. Everyone likes cakes. Esp when I can make them into cupcakes so that I can give away to neighbors easily. Transportable desserts are the way to go for me. Just saying.

What I learned this week:
I am getting better at judging the ratio of ingredients when I bake now. I halved the recipe to make 12 cupcakes but when I was measuring out the amount of buttermilk I realized before it was too late that I forgot to half it. Whew! That would have been some runny cake batter. Runny cake batter just aint right.

Happy 2nd Anniversary Tuesdays With Dorie baking group!

It’s been a fun ride!! I’m looking forward to the next years and beyond… *MUAH*

Cocoa Buttermilk {Cup}Cake
You can find the recipe on Laurie’s blog or page 256-257 of Baking: From My Home To Yours by Dorie Greenspan

ENJOY!

Wifey rating: A
I really like this “cake” recipe. It’s moist and full of chocolate flavor. Adding the melted bittersweet chocolate was optional but don’t skip it! I honestly thought it brought out a great chocolate flavor. I didn’t make the malted buttercream frosting though. I opted for a cream cheese frosting instead. My Hubby isn’t a fan of “malt” and since he’d be the one eating it I figured I better substitute his favorite.

Husband rating: A
He liked the “cake” but loves the cream cheese frosting. There’s just something about cream cheese.

Next week: Mrs. Vogel’s Scherben pages 157-159

Un-New Year’s Resolution 2010 **GIVEAWAY**

Hello Blog. It’s been 20 days since my last confession.

Oh wait! Wrong audience. *embarrassed blush*

I don’t know about you but this holiday wiped me out! I can barely remember what day it is much less who I’m talking to anymore. But now that I’ve had a few days after Christmas to recover I figure it’s about time to celebrate 2010 with a … wait for it… G-I-V-E-A-W-A-Y! *readers cheer*

Now I admit I’m not one for New Year’s Resolutions. It always seems like every year making a New Year’s Resolution is like setting myself up for failure. I think my problem is that I make these crazy resolutions that are way too specific. For example: By 2011 you will lose 50lbs. See what I mean? I can’t even remember the last time I lost 5 lbs much less 50 lbs. But it’s not *MY* fault. I blame Tuesdays with Dorie. Yeah I said it! Whatcha gonna do about it? *getting into my Karate Kid crane stance* Don’t mess with me. I aint afraid to use it.

So this year. I say PHOOEY on da man! (I’m eating a 3 day old red velvet cupcake as I type this to prove my point!) I decided to set my New Year’s Resolution BEFORE New Year’s. I figure it would take away the stigma and maybe I’d actually accomplish it. I decided to call it my Un-New Year’s Resolution. Ta da! The Mad Hatter would be so proud. And furthermore. I decided to ban any kind of weight loss, diet, South Beach, Atkins, low carb terminology in my Un-Year’s Resolutions too. Instead I want to focus on something that’s been on my to-do list for a long time: organize my kitchen!

Remember my recent tweet about these vinyl stickers?

It would be an understatement to say how much I LOVE.LOVE.LOVE these stickers. Talk about organization meets kitchen chic! Forget the Ikea shelves and wall racks that my husband installed for me. My favorite part of my kitchen are these glass jars and vinyl stickers. They make me smile every time I scoop out a cup of flour/sugar/brown sugar.

To celebrate my Un-New Year’s Resolution 2010, Jamie of Studio JK is sponsoring a set of 6 vinyl labels to one lucky reader. *golf clap

You can even customize it to your kitchen with the color and “words” of your choice. I went with the traditional black b/c I like how it matches with my stainless steel appliances but you could be more adventurous with red or blue or green or yellow to match your Kitchen Aid. How fun is that?

Here’s the fine print.

Rules:
(1) Only one entry per person please.
(2) Only those who live within the US eligible to win prizes. (Sorry my international peeps!)
(3) Please make sure you have a valid email address so I can contact you if you win.

To enter leave a comment:
What is your Un-New Year’s Resolution? (Remember ixnay on the ietday alktay please!)

Want an extra entry?
Just copy, paste and retweet about my giveaway! Leave me a separate comment with the link to your tweet.

RT @IHCuppycakes Happy Un-New Year’s Resolution **GIVEAWAY** with @studiojkvinyl’s vinyls! http://bit.ly/5JK1l2

Deadline: Monday, January 4th @ 11:59pm EST

Winners will be chosen by Mr. Random Generator.

A very merry Un-New Year’s to you! and you and you and youuuuuuu…

Foodie Question of the Day

What was the WORST Christmas food related gift you’ve ever received?

This happened about 6 Christmases ago.

My ex-SIL (you can already tell there’s some bad history from her prefix) was the QUEEN of gifts. She had that creative flair that made every gift perfectly wrapped with bows and matching To and From tags. You know those types right? *cough April cough* I kid you not. Ex-SIL was the Debbie Homemaker of gifts. I would try to aspire to wrap gifts like her but I am WAY too lazy to make a bow look that perky.

So imagine my surprise when the last Christmas that she was part of our family, Hubs and I received our gift as an unwrapped box of Sees candy. Now we’re not gift greedy or anything. I’m all about the food and candy gifts for Christmas being a foodie myself but this gift was so uncharacteristic of her. That’s what made it so surprising. But wait there’s more…

Upon opening the box of Sees candy, we realized right away that it was a regift. How did we know… you ask?

Candy had mold. It was straight up fuzzy.

It’s not right what she did to that chocolate. Damn shame.

10 Holiday Gift Ideas for the Foodie in Your Life

Alternative Title: Dear Santa, I’ve been a good girl (more than 50% of the time). Here’s what I want this year.

1. Digital Measuring Cup and Scale $34.95
How many times have you read in your baking books that measuring ingredients by weight is much better for baking? I am almost ashamed to admit that I still do the old school scoop-and-level technique. But now this little gadget combines a measuring cup and a digital scale. It’s the best of both worlds. If Santa doesn’t bring me one, I might have to buy it myself.

2. Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer Pasta Attachment $179.95
I love pasta so this attachment makes me giddy. Check out the link for a video too. I think the thing that pushes me over the edge is all the different pasta cutters that come with it in a nice little compartment. I’m a sucker for packaging.

3. Kitchenaid Glass Bowl $69.99
I don’t need the Kitchenaid Mixer. I already have my beautiful Artisan red that I fondly named Ginger Spice. I just want the glass bowl. Think about it. You can microwave it. Can you imagine the possibilities if you could microwave and go straight to beating/whipping in your mixer? It also has measuring lines and a spout to pour. I’m sold.

4. The Magic Mouse $69.00
This isn’t “quite” foodie but it’s foodie related esp if you are a foodie that blogs. I love my iPhone and my Mac so I’m excited to try out the touch mouse esp since I hate the ball scrolling mouse I have right now. The ball is on it’s last “roll”. Right now I can scroll “up” but “down” aint happening anymore. I think it’s a design flaw for the mac mouse so the touch mouse would eliminate that issue. And it doesn’t hurt that the mouse is damn sexy.

5. Le Creuset French Oven, Red $225-$260 (depending on size)
Talk about lusting. I’ve been LUSTING after a Le Creuset french oven for a LONG time. But check out that price tag. All foodies swear by it regardless of price. That’s how I feel about my KitchenAid mixer but I have yet to break down and buy a Le Creuset. The price always deters me. But I’m a little hopeful after reading Michelle of Brown-Eyed Baker’s post about “Buying Le Creuset on a Budget“. Next stop. Marshalls.

6. Temecula Olive Oil Sampler Pack $23.99
I am obsessed with Temecula Olive Oil. I went to their store for an olive oil tasting a couple months ago and it’s better than a wine tasting! Although many of my wino friends may disagree. HA! I use it so much that my 4 bottles are almost gone! I have tried their Citrus Olive Oil (made cupcakes with it!), Lemon Olive Oil, Basil Olive Oil (it’s amazing on pizza and pasta!) and Vanilla&Fig Balsamic Vinegar (pour a little on some brie and instant appetizer!)

7. Pizza Peel $18.71
I already have a pizza stone from William Sonoma but I feel like I’m not using it to it’s full potential without a pizza peel. Trust me. Trying to get an uncooked pizza onto a HOT pizza stone is impossible in one try. Unless you don’t mind ghetto looking pizza and/or burned fingers. Nothing wrong with ghetto but I’m OCD about my pizza being round and pretty.

8. The Steamy Kitchen by Jaden Hair $18.45
I’m Asian (specifically Vietnamese) so I have a thing about wanting Asians to succeed. You can ask my bff, Nikki, about my Asian obsession. When we watch our 2 fav shows, Project Runway and Top Chef, I always want the token Asian to win. (Chef Hung rules!) What can I say? I’ve got the Asian pride. So of all the new cookbooks out right now I definitely wanna get a copy of The Steamy Kitchen. My mom would be so excited to see me learn how to cook Vietnamese food. And I can tell my mom that I kinda sorta know Jaden. Ok not really. But I follow her on twitter so I feel like I do. (Is that stalker-ish?)

9. Lowell Ego Light $88.99 ($177.98 for 2)
My old apartment use to face in the wrong direction to get any natural light. My new house is better but in the natural light department but not as good as it could be. Many foodie friends that live in a cave like me swear by these Lowell lights. I think it’s about time to take my food photography to the next level and get myself some decent lighting. My camera will thank me.

10. Sony Under-Counter LCD TV/CD Clock Radio $399.99
My friend has an under the counter LCD tv/radio combo in her kitchen and I LOVE it. Wouldn’t it be fun to watch your favorite foodie shows (Top Chef, Ace of Cakes, Cake Challenge, Giada DeLaurentiis, Barefoot Contessa etc) while actually in your kitchen cooking? I think so! That way my Hubs can watch what he wants and I can be in the kitchen watching what I want. I wonder how hard it would be to run cable to my kitchen? Ah details details.

Footnote:
I stole borrowed this fabulous list idea from my foodie friend, Maria of Two Peas and a Pod after reading about her favorite foodie things via her blog. I added a few things from her list to my Dear Santa letter along with other gadgets I’ve been lusting after for a while. Hope my list (and hers) gives you some ideas for the foodies in your life. Hopefully one of the foodies is me! *wink

NaBloPoMo: Day 30

I can’t believe it’s been 30 days.

So much has happened.

I don’t even know where to begin to recap.

Let’s just end my NaBloPoMo journey by saying… There’s no place like home.

NaBloPoMo: Day 29

Hallelujah!

My kitchen is almost unpacked. I’m ready to get my bake on again soon. What should I bake to christen my new kitchen? So many choices… Not enough calories in a day. I tell ya. It’s a hard knock life. *wink*

Posted from WordPress app via iPhone

NaBloPoMo: Day 28

I can’t believe I’ve been in my new home for almost a week. There are still boxes everywhere. But we can almost fit one car in the garage now though. HA!

It’s still kinda surreal for me.

Remember when I blogged about being unsure if it was all worth it?

Two words.

It is.

NaBloPoMo: Day 27

Readers,

I’m running on 4 hours of sleep and credit card adrenaline to write this post so bare with me.

My friends and family that know I wake up at 4am to get the early bird after Thanksgiving shopping deals think I’m crazy since a lot of the deals are online too but to them I ask one question… Can you make money shopping online? Answer: No you can’t! Whereas since I let someone cut in front of me in line at Best Buy, they paid me $20.

Booyahhhhh!

That’s what I’m talking about.

I save money *AND* I make money.

(And the new Blu-ray player and 32″ LCD for the bedroom doesn’t hurt either. *wink*)

I L.O.V.E Black Friday.

How did all you bargain shoppers make out?

Now I’m off to bed. (Yes, I realize it’s only 730pm. Stop laughing.)