Apple Strudel

Fall is one of my favorite times of the year because of the festiveness that seeps into apple flavored desserts to pumpkin flavored M&Ms. Here's to the first of my desserts, recipe copied but used Puff Pastry dough and almonds instead of raisins. 

Semi-Naked Cake

Made my fourth bridal shower cake this weekend. The bride requested a floral semi-naked cake and I did what I could with Target flowers, rosewater icing, and a strawberry cream cheese filling. Honestly been loving 6-inch layered cakes lately (instead of tiered). Works so much better, easier to transport and is the right amount for small gatherings. 

The one thing I did differently was put the layers in the freezer after they cooled, so that the crumbs wouldn't stick to the thin layer of icing. 

Ramadan Crescent Moon Cake

I had a few friends over for iftar and really wanted to do the most because I hardly ever host parties or get-togethers. I think we definitely went overboard on food for only having 12 people over, but alhamdulillah I'm so happy my effort was worth it and that everything worked out. I've always wanted to host an outdoor party and although the summer heat in Texas is the worst, somehow it wasn't so bad (until bugs came out after sunset — even though we lit torches). I definitely would prefer hosting indoors, but outside just has a nice aesthetic and I wanted to try something new.

I'm so blessed to have a strong support system. The last time I had friends over was last Ramadan, and every time I realize how stressful it is the day of. My friends always help out when it comes to setting up or just asking if I need anything and it means the most. They also read this blog.

This is the cake I made, attempting to go with the Ramadan theme. It's chocolate with fudge filling (even though I don't like chocolate cake, I just followed a recipe). This was also my first time successfully making piping cream cheese frosting! (1/2 cup butter per 1 packet of cream cheese, 1 1/4 cup sugar, and 1 tsp vanilla extract).









I stuck to an easy second dessert option — vanilla pudding and chocolate on the bottom, topped with fruits.






Manicotti was a hit (stuffed with cheese and spinach filling), on the right I prepared tacos with chicken, sour cream, salsa, and shredded cheese options. Behind the manicotti are potstickers. Not pictured: spring rolls.

Honestly the key to a wholesome iftar is having a close group of friends because having too many people can get hectic. Especially if you're fasting. I prepared the food a day in advance and that also helped so much because I did not touch the manicotti the day of my iftar until 1 hour before it was served to put it in the oven. What took the most time though was icing the cake, but I loved how it turned out.

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Ombré Rosette Cake

I'm incredibly late, but I thought I had lost these. I made my first cake for a friend's bridal shower back in July 2017 (almost a year ago). Here are photos of my favorite cake I've made to date. The one that inspired me to push myself out of my comfort zone.

Celebrating the South Asian Bride

One of my best friend's is tying the not right after Eid, so we threw her a bridal shower before Ramadan. She wanted the theme to be Las Vegas and a Bachelorette party rather than your typical bridal shower. I did what I could while staying away from fondant and this is what I came up with. Honestly I knew I would go for red rosettes to complement her stunning bridal dress, but only after icing the whole thing did I decide to spray paint gold over and the result had me over the moon!

Surprisingly, the flavor happened to be carrot cake, which is her favorite. Congrats to one of my best and closest friends Afia!

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Nontraditional Tiramisu

Recently I checked out my high school friend's food blog and was motivated to try out her tiramisu recipe after she did a step by step video on her insta. Here's her egg-less, alcohol-free tiramisu recipe. I'm not a huge coffee or even chocolate person but this turned out amazingggg and was finished by my family within a couple of days.  

Blueberry Loaf Bread

Made blueberry cake today in a loaf pan using two different recipes hoping to come up with the right concoction. It took me too long to decide what to make as I had the day off, and resorted to this when I found untouched blueberries in the fridge. Please give me more suggestions for the future, and remember to subscribe if you want email updates for whenever I post! I wish I had a lemon glaze on top but I got tired and resorted to powdered sugar. Here it goes. 

Sunday Cinnamon Rolls

My friend Alissa recently thought of doing monthly potluck brunches with our friends commencing this new year. I've been wanting to make cinnamon rolls for a while but never quite got the motivation because of how long the preparation takes, but these turned out so much more wholesome than store-bought. I just wish I used brown sugar for the filling instead of regular sugar. I started off using the Betty Crocker recipe then realized I didn't like it and switched over to the Epicurious one that I recommend. Some reviewers mentioned adding a few drops of lemon juice to the cream cheese glaze — I totally forgot to do that but that will be in my plan for next time. If you try this recipe out, do let me know! I know making dough and recipes from scratch can be a daunting task but I think this recipe is quite fool-proof. Keep in mind that this does take a full 3 hours (love my cat for keeping me company).

Yields 18 servings. (All in different glass pans)

Lemon Coconut Cupcakes

My sister brought home a lemon coconut flavored Sprinkles cupcake so I tried to compose a recipe imitating theirs. These turned out pretty close! Honestly some of the softest cupcakes I've made.