I recently decided to go back to an amazing buttercream recipe I used off & on over the years.It has superior taste, mouth feel and is lighter than air and maybe what the clouds in Heaven taste like ? Hmmmm..

My other buttercream was creating some color issues because it was slightly ivory colored and I prefer the taste of the Swiss meringue buttercream. I made some cupcakes for my Daughter’s Baby Shower and because the old buttercream was ivory-ish when I added blue color to it that I would pipe on the cuppies it was sorta blue/ sorta  aqua marine..Not cool.My Daughter who is very gracious said it was fine, but I made up my mind right then no Grandson of mine is going to have to eat aquamarine buttercream cuppies..Ever.

Long story short; here is the recipe you will need to make this luscious buttercream.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

16 ounces egg whites (mine were pasteurized)

2# organic sugar

1 -1/8 th of a tsp sea salt

2 pounds of butter ( room temperature)

10 ounces shortening (mine was pre creamed)

1 ounce vanilla extract (preferably Rebo vanilla)

1. Place egg whites , sugar & salt in double boiler stir with whisk till very warm (approx. 110-115 degrees)& sugar is no longer grainy
2. Scrape into 8 Qrt commercial Kitchen Aid mixer w/ whip attachment; whip on high till VERY firm peaks appear & it is thick, glossy & white, about 8-10 minutes
3. Quickly add shortening and then butter till all is incorporated.
4. After thoroughly mixed, remove whip attachment & switch to paddle attachment
5. After 2 minutes, add vanilla extract, beat smooth & remove

******This is a medium skill recipe with outstanding results..Make sure meringue is cool before adding fats or you will have vanilla soup..I used pasteurized egg whites with fine results..Some will tell you it’s not possible to whip them at all or stiff enough to firm up the buttercream. I believe it is good & safer and most of the time what we believe is more important than what we hear. ENJOY !!

*********For a smaller batch cut in half and use a 5 quart or larger Kitchen Aid mixer. I used the commercial mixer and larger recipe because I go through a TON of buttercream..Store @ room temperature no more than 5 days, a good two weeks in the refrigerator or about 2 months frozen..If you place in cooler you will need to take it out a day before you need it & re mix with a beater, same for freezer..Joie de Vivre !!

On the left is the newest member of the cheesecake family; Chocolate Hazelnut & on the right is the Cherry Caramel Amaretto…Chocolate Hazelnut = choc cookie crust w/ chopped toasted hazelnuts, then dark rich chocolate cheesecake batter topped with hazelnut layer (hazelnut paste & Frangelico)..

Cherry Caramel Amaretto = graham crust,batter studded with sour cherries, Amaretto, caramel sauce & toasted almonds..

From the top; Chocolate Banana Caramel Torte, whole torte and a slice.Chocolate cake layers sandwiched with fresh banana’s mascerated with caramel sauce & vanilla extract & placed on bottom layer, covered with Chocolate silk mousse, then top layer . Then flat iced with Cream Chantilly (sweetened whipped cream w/ vanilla extract).Lovely flavor explosion..

Bottom 2 pics are of the Death by Chocolate Cheesecake, whole cake & a slice. The base is Chocolate Flourless Cake then topped with dark rich Chocolate Cheesecake batter, then Chocolate Ganache & finally one more Chocolate: Chocolate buttercream..WOW !!

***Disclaimer; you will not expire from eating this Cheesecake, however, you will feel like “you’ve died & gone to Heaven..” Enjoy !!

I recently purchased a 8 quart commercial Kitchen Aid mixer.I would give it five stars out of five possible stars.I will pursue purchasing a scraper beater for this machine, but it works fine without one. All attachments are heavy duty and sufficient for commercial use. It is well worth the price paid, even though it is a little jump from the standard Kitchen Aid mixers.The extra money you spend will be well worth it in durability and life span.I have owned a standard 5 quart Kitchen Aid mixer for over 28 years & it is still running fine.The one caveat is even though it’s labeled as a commercial mixer I would not use it for heavy bread making/ baking.I mixed up a double batch of sweet rich dough for two King Cakes and with the bowl approximately 2/3’s full it was laboring at slightly higher speeds.So, if you are looking to do big quantities of bread dough, I would recommend you buy a 10/ 20 quart commercial mixer.Hobart is a trusted name and have a very good reputation.I used Hobart’s in most all of the professional kitchens I have been employed in.But for home use Kitchen Aid is King !!

Most of my use of this mixer is for cakes, cheesecakes, muffins, streusel’s, scones, coffee cakes,quick breads, etc..And it is perfect for this style of use and is very easy to clean.It is heavy, so find a place for it where you would like it to remain and you will be very, very pleased you bought it and never regret the purchase.*****You may click on the picture to link to Amazon and purchase it.

King Cake & Jack Frost to celebrate the Winter and the beauty of God’s nature. King Cake is made from a sponge method rich yeast dough that is spread with a cinnamon, brown sugar, butter & honey filling before it is rolled up, sealed and placed in front of the wood stove to proof. I Love the beauty of God’s creation & seeing snow or ice formations turn ordinary things into extraordinary. On these days traveling down my road it appears to be an ice/ snow tunnel that hovers above the road as you approach my hacienda..Never stop finding awe in your lives and allowing it to transform your moods/ days or moments..God is good..

Chocolate chocolate chip muffins topped with cheesecake batter they are yummyfied..Great way to start the day & served @ Court St Coffee 27 South Court St, Athens, Ohio ..

It’s time to get cranking again, I’ve layed low long enough. I will be posting some new recipes with pictures and possibly some baking basics on video. I need to play with my new toys for your pleasure too. I added Photo Shop & have been experimenting with my new Nikon camera to make the pictures clearer and crisper. Being that this is one of the busiest months for the Bakery I’ll do my best to feed the blog in between. Stay tuned & Thank You for your patience & continued support..Store is coming together & will be up & running soon. Peace and Blessings.                                Heaven Scent’s Gourmet Cinnamon Muffins are pictured below. Cinnamon is in the batter, streusel and in the cinnamon chips. I am liking the natural light much better than the day bulbs for crispness. Joie de Vivre.

Once I began to talk and interact as a young lad I quickly was able to discern that the way I saw and perceived things was different than say, 99 % of the population..It made me a square peg in a society of round holes. Bottom line = I did not fit in..

I wanted to fit in, to be a part of something, to belong. But it was not to be..I felt like a freak with no way to reconcile my unalterable thought processes. I saw it back then as a curse, but much later in life it became the biggest blessing ever. Funny how powerful perception is.

I remember seeing “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” as a young pup and immediately identified with the plight of Rudolph, the “dentist elf” and company and their journey to the land of misfit toys. I thought Wow, where’s this place ? I might fit in there..It was akin to a gambler seeing Las Vegas for the first time..

I will not fill in all the spaces of many years here, but suffice it to say that there was much animosity between my Dad & me, school officials, the law, ANY authority figure, institution, or place that tried to insist I think how they believed was acceptable and right. I still to this day blatantly resist the herd mentality, status quo or conventional “wisdom”.

After sobering up on July 5th, 1990 my future began to fall in place.(Actually I must digress and credit my Mom here for buying me my first cookbook and allowing me to cook and bake with her at the tender age of 6.) I was dating a woman at the time (1987) who had much more insight into my calling than I did. She was able to see the passion come alive when I cooked or baked and knew I had a serious profession staring me in the face.She pushed me to go see the Chefs at Hocking Technical College to pursue Culinary Arts.It was early in my school work that others would catch me in the Bakeshop, stealing away every moment I could.

The long & short of it is I began baking and 3 months later the Pastry Chef quit without notice & I was dubbed the new “Pastry Chef”. I knew hardly anything about baking in volume, but being a hard worker and someone who loves big challenges, I stepped up to the plate and I never looked back.Thank You Annie !!

I had found my niche. And for someone like me who is a visionary, passionate, discerning , stand on my own kinda guy I had found Nirvana.I had an extreme distaste of working for others & eventually opened up Heaven Scent Cheesecake and Spice Mix Company on March 16th, 2013. I Love it and it fulfills every part of my complex make up. I added cakes and tortes to the menu in January, 2015 and they have become an integral part of my company. Being that almost everything I make is from scratch, fresh and not frozen it does limit me to the local area but the Good Lord has Blessed me with a great customer base that is growing all the time.

I do it all myself; so I am the Pastry Chef, Cook, delivery driver, administrative assistant, janitor, accountant, research and marketing dept., in charge of advertising, accounts receivable, making bank deposits, customer relations, ordering all products, label maker and in charge of menu/ recipe development among other things. It is perfect for me and because I found my niche I no longer am a square peg  trying to fit in a round hole.

Moral of the story ? Never give up, you never know how near you are when it seems so far. If you’re different and feel like a freak, no worries, there’s a place for you if you find your niche..Live your passion, bathe in your eccentricities, dream big, do what you Love, live your dreams, scoff at limitations and leave “friends” who are negative and are constantly trying to keep you small. They don’t want you to succeed because they are afraid they would look as unfulfilled as they feel inside.

Dream, Act, Chase, Work Hard, Figure Things Out & Most of all; Shine Brightly….Carry On..

• I intentionally left out all the places I worked in the subsequent 28 + years of Baking and Pastries to save space..

The store concept will take a little bit and I am struggling to finish my blog about who I am, why I am & the reasons I do what I Love to do..Coming soon, however in the meantime enjoy these fun projects to do at home..

Irish Cream Liqueur

1 1/2 cups Irish Whiskey

28 ounces sweetened condensed milk

4 Tbsp. Chocolate Syrup

4 Tbsp. Instant Coffee

2 Tbsp. Boiling Water

6 Large Eggs

** If you are worried about using raw eggs substitute store bought pasteurized eggs. Use 12 ounces from the carton..

Whisk all together or blend till smooth.

Refrigerate & keep up to 30 days

Use for after dinner coffee drinks or to flavor desserts..

Creme de Orange Liqueur

1 1/2 cups Grand Marnier, Cointreau or Triple Sec

28 ounces Sweetened Condensed Milk

6 Large Eggs

Same procedures as above

The Orange recipe would be good in Crepes Suzette, stirred into syrup for French Toast, in creme brulees, Bananas Foster, Bread Pudding etc..And also in coffee drinks..

ENJOY !!!!

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