Sims 3: Real-life Ambrosia Recipe

Happy Friday! For those of you who may or may not know this but...I'M A SIMMER! I've played The Sims since 2000. I've gone through huge life experiences whilst playing The Sims. I've gained weight from playing all summer long my sophomore year. I also ended a toxic relationship around that time. There was a time my sister Anz and I, could make conversation by just speaking in Sim language. I have families to manage in my world and careers to build. Evil emperors, world-renowned surgeons, star athletes, international super spy and desperate housewifes have I created, raised or terminated, and then resurrected. So yes, I am a Simmer and I do enjoy this world.

In the game of Sims, Ambrosia is considered the ultimate-satisfying-age-defying-life-resurrecting food. According to The SimWiki and yours truly (currently playing Sims3 on Xbox360), a Sim must have a level 10 Cooking and Fishing skill, a level 7 Gardening skill, learned Ambrosia recipe (12,000 simoleons), Deathfish and Life Fruit. More tips on Ambrosia here.

Here's how to make a real-life Sims 3 inspired Ambrosia dish without having to be a Michelin-star chef, a member of Cabela's or have the blessed touch of Persephone:

Gelatin Ambrosia

1 packet of Lime gelatin dessert
Pineapple chunks
Orange chunks
Seedless red grapes, halved
Maraschino cherry bits
Chopped Pecans
Blackberries, halved [something black to represent the Deathfish]
Shredded Coconut

• Make lime gelatin dessert according to packet. Let chill for about 30-40 minutes. 
• Mix the rest of the ingredients together. Add to slightly thickened gelatin and let child overnight.

Baked Spiced Pear

1 Bosc Pear [aka Life Fruit]
Cinnamon-Sugar mixture
A dash of nutmeg

• Preheat oven 350 degrees. Cut pear in half and sprinkle spices on pear. 
• Bake 30-40 minutes. 

Honey Soaked Shredded Coconut

1 tablespoon of Honey or 1 teaspoon of Barenjager Honey Liqueur (for 21+ crowd)
Sweetened shredded Coconut
1-2 drops of green food coloring
1 teaspoon of lime juice

• Mix all ingredients together. Mold into a 1/4 cup measuring cup or your mold of choice. Chill until ready to serve. 

Flourless Chocolate Cake and Sea Salt Caramel

Happy Tuesday! I know I haven't posted my cookie recipe but I promise you, I will find it and share it. But for now I just want to share a recipe I found last night for Flourless Chocolate Cake. For added sweetness, enjoy with Talenti Sea Salt Caramel!

The recipe I chose was Shana Hillman's recipe "Flourless Chocolate Cake II" from Allrecipes.com. Instead of sugar, I used Sweetleaf Sugarleaf blend of stevia and raw cane sugar.

Flourless Chocolate Cake
adpated from Shana Hillman's recipe on Allrecipes.com

4 (1 oz) squares of semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup of salted butter
1/2 and 1 tablespoon of Sweetleaf baking sugar
1/2 cup of Ghiradelli sweet ground chocolate and cocoa powder
3 eggs beaten, room temperature
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
• Grease 8-inch round pan with butter and coat with some cocoa powder.
• On a double boiler, melt semisweet chocolate squares and butter. Once melted, remove from heat.
• Mix in sugar, cocoa powder, eggs and vanilla. Pour batter into pan.
• Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool in pan for at least 10 minutes, then turn onto plate or rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar or glaze with your favorite icing recipe. 

Allrecipes.com is a great site for any recipe! Thanks to the many cooks who make it possible.

Added more powdered sugar...hehe.

Something for My Husband

It's Thursday, one of my favorite days of the week. I would like to post my new cookie recipe but I need to find it in my kitchen! I've been baking off the top of my head lately and most of the times I lose my recipe notepad in the mess of it all. So I'll find it and post it tomorrow. (fingers crossed)

But for today, I found this video link on Pinterest from pinner Drew Hawkins. I don't know him personally but that's the beauty of Pinterest, you just pin what you like no matter who pinned it first. I dedicate this vid to my husband in hopes that it will bring a smile on his face during his lunch break. Happy Thursday!

Kara's Cupcakes

Did I forget to tell you about my travels to San Francisco? I think I did.
This summer has been one of the busiest summers our young married lives. My husband got accepted into Animation Mentor and we've been nonstop busy ever since. We traveled to San Francisco late July in order to attend Animation Mentor's annual BBQ on the Great Meadows (Fort Mason area). Read all about our travels and our journey as a couple learning and living through animation school on our blog The Animator's Wife.

Well, after we spent a full day of making new friends and putting faces to profile pictures, a crew of us journeyed to Ghirardelli Square. While we were there, we collected free chocolate samples, had decadent dessert and I made sure I got a taste of Kara's Cupcakes!

What a great location for cupcake and what a stylish little storefront in color and simplicity. Who could resist such a sweet place? I had a hard time choosing which flavor to try but I ended up happy with their seasonal Key Lime cupcake and one of their staple Chocolate Velvet cupcakes. It. Was. Delish.

So if you are every around Fisherman's Wharf or on your way to see the Golden Gate Bridge, stop by Kara's Cupcakes for a treat or two. Read more about how their unique and environmentally-friendly approach in their business.