Diva Desserts on 10-TV Sunday April 1st 8:15am Talking About Cakes for a Cause!

Hey Diva Fans,

Long time no post- I have been super busy baking up a storm having new products sold around town. All pretty exciting! 

While I've been in the spotlight for a little bit now I want to take a moment and turn your attention to a wonderful event that is happening later this week. Cakes for a Cause a benefit for Mid-Ohio Foodbank's Operation Feed Program. 

Now some of you know I work for Mid-Ohio Foodbank and I get to see first-hand the need our community has and the impact the Foodbank has by distributing food for 76,000 meals every day. I also know we can't do it alone, without generous community support, volunteers, fundraising, and donors. That's where Cakes for a Cause comes in. 

If you are up early Sunday Morning April 1st (no fooling) you can see your Diva on 10TV along with Emilie Duncan  Kasey Conyers (event planners) Talking about cakes for a Cause 8:15 am so set your TiVo and DVR's!

 

 Two wonderful local event planners have come together to create an evening of fun, food, and sweet sweet creations. I encourage you if you are in Columbus on Thursday April 5th plan on joining us for a wonderful evening. Check out the website for all the details.Tickets are on sale now you can get them here: http://cakesforacause2012.eventbrite.com

The evening which benefits the Mid-Ohio Foodbank and Operation Feed will include live and silent cake auctions and raffles and the Sweet Taste of Victory Competition (That's where I come in)

I am returning as last years Sweet Taste winner to defend my Golden Spatula Award!!!! I am whipping up all kind of sweet treats. So if you can stop by support a worthy cause and vote for ME your favorite baking Diva!!!!

See you at Cakes for a Cause

xo Diva D! 

 

Valentine's Day Menu

It's never too early to start thinking about Love, Chocolate, and Valentine's Day!

Let Diva Desserts help you say

I Love You

With Cheesecake and more.

Just in time for Valentine's Day... 

~

Cheesecake

White Chocolate Raspberry 

Velvety smooth white chocolate cheesecake baked with raspberries on a vanilla cookie crust.

Dark Chocolate Raspberry or Blackberry

A rich dark chocolate cheesecake with your choice of blackberry or raspberry swirl on an espresso cookie crust.

Hot Chocolate Mexican 

Spicy Mexican chili chocolate and cinnamon flavors explode on a chocolate cookie crust.

~

Order 1 dozen mini's V-Day special $22 Reg. $33 

4inch $15

6 inch $25

8 inch $35

10 inch $40

~  

Don't worry we still have your favorites

NY with Lemon Mascarpone

A traditional NY style cheesecake baked on a vanilla cookie or graham cracker crust topped with a lemon curd mascarpone.

Turtle Pecan Caramel

A vanilla bean cheesecake with homemade caramel toasted pecans baked on a cookie crust drizzled in dark chocolate, caramel and pecans.

Oreo Cookies-n-Cream

Our best selling vanilla cheesecake chunk full of Oreo's baked on an Oreo cookie crust.

~

Express your love with cake!

Chocolate Kahlua Cake 

10 inch bunt $45 / 6 inch $25

Triple Layer Red Velvet

10 inch $45

German Chocolate

10 inch $45

Cupcakes $25/dozen

Triple Chocolate, Birthday Cake Vanilla, Red Velvet, Spice Caramel Pecan, Lemon Blueberry

~
Ordering for Valentine's Day:
Order early our schedule fills quickly.
Place your order by Feb. 8th 
Delivery available Monday  Feb. 13th
Pick-up only Tuesday Feb. 14th

Call to order

614.946.6147

Email

info@divadessertsonline.com

There's still time to check out Diva Desserts in the January issue of 614 Magazine.
 Look for us in the Sweet Tooth section.

614 Mag Reviews Diva Desserts

Check it out... Diva Desserts was featured in the local Columbus publication (614) Magazine

Follow the link to the article: http://614columbus.com/article/sweet-tooth-diva-desserts-4075/

(614) published my blog address Dish-on-Diva Desserts  But you can still get my information here and see some great photos of my yummy desserts.

Countdown to Cheesecake:

If you are looking for the website to
 Diva Desserts www.divadesserts.com
Diva is Live on 1-10-12.

Valentine's Day Menu  
Coming Soon!

In the meantime:

• Check out my blog
• Call 614-946-6147 if you want to place an order
• email @ info@divadessertsonline.com if you'd like a menu or other dessert info.

This Little Diva Goes to Market

Diva Desserts & Ann Miller Tobin, the main diva herself, will be setting up shop at the Clintonville Farmers Market for the Summer starting Saturday May 21, 2011.

Soup, salsa, sauces and plenty of mouth watering tasty treats will be available for purchase & order.

So stop by to see your favorite Diva the following Saturdays this summer at the Cintonville Farmers Market.

Saturday's

May 21

June 18

July 23

September 10

September 24

October 15

The market is located in Clintonville along the west side of North High Street at Dunedin Road between Orchard Lane and Torrence Road. Click here for a Google Map & Driving Directions.



More info & yummy photos coming soon!

Hello Dish-er's ee's and ett's

Greetings Diva Dish-ers or should it be Dish-ee’s? Let me think a moment I am the Dish-er and you are the Dish-ee’s! There we go! Dish-ee’s is what I will call all of you who tune in to read my verbage in Dish-on-Diva Land!


Greetings my Diva Dish-ee’s and Happy Day to you!

I have lots in store for you over the next few weeks and months! Whew I am going to have to start taking vitamins to keep up with it all. But I am very excited since I’ll be bringing you lots of great things. Things to read, to win. Product reviews, new recipes, a cheese party.

Before I forget for any of you worried my by Ode to a dead dead oven well I am back up and running. The Hubby fixed it and I am back in baking business. Whew!


Now about the Cheese Party… I follow www.RecipeGirl.com I am a reader of her blog. She has some really great photography of her foods and recipes you should check her out, her website and blog content. She is a HUGE force n the foodie blog world. I am a mere pea in existence compared to her. However we all have to start somewhere right? I digress… well reading her blog last month she had a Sam’s Club give away for $300.00 worth of international cheese. (Sam’s is trying to beef up their cheese department and lure all of us great foodies to thinking SAM’s when we need a cheese fix… I think it’s working) I mean of all the things a person could win that have a $300.00 value tag who’d think about cheese? Well my fellow Dish-ee’s yes that is right I did. I dared to dream the big dream so I won the big cheese! Yes, I happened to be the random chosen winner from her contest and was overnighted the biggest box of cheese!!!


My winnings have given me the perfect excuse to host a wine and cheese party which gives me the perfect topic for a great blog post. Well the party is this weekend and I am hoping to have pictures and fun anecdotes posted by next Friday 10/29/10 so check back for that!!!


Also in the future I will be posting a PHILADELPHIA Kraft Give Away… Spread a Little Joy… in time for the Holiday Baking Season! Also for Cookie Baking Season I’ll have a new cookie cookbook review. Pies and fillings and recipes to share, another give away or two perhaps plus some recipes that I have promised you all from crab cakes to cheesecakes to ribs! We have it all here at Dish-on-Diva.


And if that wasn’t enough follow me as I blog about my preparation and participation in Cupcake Combat here in Columbus OH. Local Dish-ee’s can check me out in person November 7th at Kroger Brewery District location Downtown Columbus, Ohio where not only will you get to taste the entries but you get to vote for your favorite and decide the winner!!!! Come vote for your favorite Diva help her win the title of Best Cupcake in Columbus and support a really great cause.


Visit http://www.amusebouche.deromeo.com/   for more information. This is a Kroger sponsored fundraiser for the Stefanie Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research at the Ohio State's Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital All proceeds will go to support this very important cause.


Well my little Dish-etts that is all for now!!! See what I did there I made you ee’s more plural by calling you etts! If nothing else it sounds fancy and possibly French ooh-la-la! Ha-ha who knows maybe not? I am sure there is an English teacher out there rolling over in her grammar grave. However my ee’s and ett’s I bid you adieu for today.

Ode to a dead dead oven

Oh dead oven!
Oh heating element I mourn thee.
I feel naked - alone.
Why oh why oven of mine do you lay silent and mocking?

Burn me...
Burn thee...
Burn anything!

I clean you
I sing to you.
I lovingly lay yummies inside you.
Golden brown and delicious you'd return them to me-
Birth them forth into my waiting ovenmitted hands.

No more.
Your Door un-hinged and on the floor.
Wires ripped from your bowls
You are dead.

Adieu GE Oven Monogram.

Fun with Avocados for Back to School or Anytime

Behold the Star of this blog post Avocados from Mexico.

I recently had the pleasure of receiving a basket of these delicious fruits from Avocados from Mexico My mouth got all drooly and my eyes glazed over as I considered the mounds of guacamole I could soon be making. But no, I stopped myself and thought why not try something new and different. In my basket of green fruited goodies were some fact sheets about Mexican Avocados along with some recipes. The point that was clearly being made to me was these beauties are packed with powerful goodness for the body and brain. See below for all the wonderful things the Avocado packs beneath its pebbly skin.

So for my Avocado experiment I made carrot cake cupcakes with avocado butter cream. The buttercream, using avocados, was suggested to me by a friend and fan of Alton Brown the ‘Science Guy’ of cooking on Food Network. Thanks friend it was AWESOME!

I think it would be a great way to introduce kids to a new and sometimes strange looking food. The color is perfect for fall and Halloween. The buttercream it has a real good look, sorry but I have to say it.....Green gooey snot!

But once you get past the color of the avocado buttercream it is yum, yum, yummy!

So get out your carrot cake recipes, your pumpkin spice recipes and start baking up batches and topping them with avocado buttercream.
Try it as something new to pass out for trick or treat or to take to school for the kiddoes. You’ll feel good knowing rather than copious amounts of butter and Crisco normally used in a standard butter cream; you’ve offered a healthier alternative.

Avocado Butter Cream Frosting Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2005 Recipe makes approximately 2 cups of frosting

Ingredients
• 8 ounces avocado meat, approximately 2 small to medium
• 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 pound powdered sugar, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

Directions
Peel and pit the avocado. Place the avocado into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment along with the lemon juice and beat until lightened in color, approximately 2 to 3 minutes. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time and beat until smooth. Add the lemon extract and mix to combine. If not using right away, store in the refrigerator.

For my cupcakes I had some cheesecake batter left over so I swirled some on the top of the carrot cake before baking!

Visit: http://avocadosfrommexico.com/Index.aspx

for great back to school recipes using avocado

 

Fun facts about Avocados from Mexico

An avocado is ripe when it’s pebbly skin turns from green to black and it yields to gentle pressure near the stem end.

Mexican avocados have the “good” fats – mono –and poly – unsaturated fats that make avocados are a good alternative to foods like dairy and mayo which are rich in saturated fats.

Avocados have only 50 calories per ounce & only 3 grams of carbs per serving and are filled with B-complex vitamins that support memory and brain function!

Thanks to Avocados from Mexico for sending me a basket of great avocados. I was not paid for my post or compensated in any way other than the free avocados. The post and opinions in the post are as always my own.

Big Yum Chocolate Chip Cookie!

 

Taste & Create Dessert Challenge for August

I'd like to start off by saying thank you Taste & Create for giving me a partner. I really had fun with this project. This is a really good cookie and deserves a hall of fame spot on any bakery menu. It's definitely good enough for this Diva of Desserts. I hope you enjoy my entry!

Okay so for the Taste and Create August challenge we were asked to  prepare a dessert recipe from the blog we had been partnered with. I had the pleasure of being paired with Heather of www.vrybzybaking.blogspot.com and the dish I chose from Heather's blog was "In the Chips". This was a no brainer for me. In the chips whether they are chocolate or potato I am there!! So bring on the chocolate chips. Heather had tested an America's Test Kitchen chocolate chip cookie recipe. Who doesn't love Chocolate Chip Cookies? 

Like Heather, I too like America's Test Kitchen Recipes and TV program and I get their cooking magazines. I've learned a lot watching and reading Christopher Kimball and crew over the years so I felt compelled to give this recipe a try. Also I can not believe I have never tried the ATK Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe till now.

So let's start with the recipe direct from Heather's blog:
Ingredients:
1 1/2 sticks of butter, softened
1c. brown sugar
1/2c. white sugar
2t. vanilla
1 whole egg + 1 yolk Heather's Note:'save the whites for something else'
2 1/4c. flour
1/2t. Baking Soda
pinch of salt
1 bag your favorite chocolate chips Heather's Note:'I prefer Ghiardelli and I use 1/2 semi-sweet and 1/2 bitter sweet'
Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In mixer on low, cream butter until light and fluffy. Add sugars and mix until smooth. Add egg and yolk and vanilla. Beat until thoroughly mixed. With mixer on low speed, gradually add in the dry ingredients. Scrape the bowl down as you go. When you have a good, stiff dough, mix in the chips by hand.I use a 1/2oz. cookie scoop for 2" cookies or a 3/4 oz. scoop for large cookies. If you have no scoop, drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheets and leave enough room to spread. Bake for 15 minutes and remove from oven. They will look barely cooked. Allow cookies to rest on sheets for additional 10 minutes. (They keep baking!) Then remove to a plate or cookie jar and enjoy!

Following the instructions ALMOST exactly I whipped up a batch. Once you gather everything together start to finish of the first batch out of the oven is 30 min. or less. Quick enough to do as a busy mom or working gal.

My notes for what I did differently:
1.  I used a Madagascar bourbon vanilla bean paste rather than a straight vanilla. I am a vanilla freak and think only the best should be used especially when making cookies!
2. I used 3 kinds of chips 1/4 cup each of Milk Chocolate, Semi Sweet and 60% Cacao Baking Chips all by Ghiradelli.
3. I used a fine flake sea salt rather than regular salt. I love the flavor sea salt can add to baked goods.

My Baking Tips for the timing:
For the really BIG cookies the first batch I did as directed 15 min in a 325 degree oven then let rest on cookie sheet for 10 mins. YES they really do look under cooked but you get that soft chewy texture desirable in a big cookie but I was missing the initial crunch so the next batch or BIG cookies I increased the baking time to 20 min and 10 mins. for resting time. This gave me the perfect result!!!
For the smaller cookie size the timing was just about perfect as it was. I did increase from 15 to 17-18. It really depends on your oven and how you like your cookies!!! The 10 minute resting time on the cookie sheet is key because the cookie is still baking as it cools down and keeping it on the baking sheet allows the bottom of the cookie to crisp up just enough!!

Assembled Ingredients

Cream your butter add sugars, egg +1 yolk & vanilla. I used a vanilla bean paste

Mix in Dry Ingredients

Mix in by hand your Chocolate Chips. I used 3 kinds of Ghiradelli Chocolate Chips.

I made really big cookies!

And I made some smaller ones!

Serve with Milk!!!!

Spotlight on Savannah Syle and Paula Deen

Anyone who begins a recipe saying “You start with a stick of butter” is a Cooking Diva to whom I can relate. Naturally I mean the one and only...

Paula Deen.

I am very excited to have the opportunity to spotlight Paula Deen’s  Savannah Style.          Co-author Brandon Branch, Photography by Deborah Whitlaw Llewellyn.
Paula oozes every bit of her Butter Queen charm across the pages of this lush, lavish and over the top book.


Like Paula herself, the book draws you in and you can’t keep from smiling as you turn the pages first to see all the beautiful photos while imagining yourself sitting on porches featured in the book sipping your sweet tea!

Boy! Let me tell you that sweet tea is SWEET. This Yankee girl came back from a Savannah trip in June and in July my dentist informed me of a cavity. I blame the Savannah Sweet Tea and not my poor flossing habits!


With your next pass through the book you include the text and if you’ve ever watched Paula on the Food Network you can hear her voice with every word you read. I love that it is written in the ‘Paula’ vernacular!

At this point I’d like to take a moment to leave Savannah Style and brag a bit that I have met and cooked for Paula Deen. Casually had a conversation with Brandon Branch and briefly talked tomatoes with Libby Summers, Food Stylist and Editor for PaulaDeen.com.

How did this fantastic moment come about?


Through the magic of Recipes, YouTube, Philadelphia Cream Cheese and little thing called RWOP . I was chosen as 1 of 16 women out of 6,000 video recipe entries for the Real Women of Philadelphia cooking - talent contest sponsored by KRAFT, hosted by Paula Deen. You can view the site here: http://www.realwomenofphiladelphia.com/ or http://www.pauladeen.com/

I still get dizzy remembering the moment I got the email telling me I was a finalist and that I was going to Savannah to meet Paula Deen and cook my recipe for her!

You can see my reaction video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5mV40Y8P00 and the video recipe that got me to Savannah: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZwCsoqTjfk


It was a surreal, exciting moment in my life to be in Savannah this past June. I had never been to the charming southern city but from the moment I saw the trees laden with Spanish moss I feel in love with it’s charm, rod iron, history, architecture, pubs, and shrimp n grits .

The highlight of the trip was meeting Paula Deen. I never guessed we would have multiple opportunities to talk with her. Before, during and after the competition. Let me tell you she is just as charming in person as she is on your TV screen. Whether she shows up in a beach cover –up and hair tied in a scarf or all made up for the stage she is a real down to earth lady. Paula was heartfelt, funny, empathetic, natural and full of fire. She was inspiring. Paula made us feel at ease and as if we were her nieces who had dropped by for a visit.

Our first meeting was short and intense but let me tell you the very next day she remembered everyone by name. I was impressed since we were 16 grown women squealing like teenagers when she walked in the room. We could hardly contain our excitement grabbing our cameras and video cams to capture the magic of the moment. But the true magic was when we put the cameras down and listened to Paula speak directly to us about her life, her family, her passion for cooking. Those were the true golden moments for me.

There was no “I’m a star and you are the little people” attitude about her. She looked you right in the eye when speaking with you, maybe held your hand if it was a personal moment she was sharing. She was funny, cracking jokes about herself. She welcomed everyone like family friends hugging each of us.


If that is what’s meant by southern charm and hospitality then Savannah has rightly adopted her as their city Ambassador and Queen.

The day we had the cook off and filmed our segments with Paula both Libby Summers and Brandon Branch were on set and oh did I mention Paula’s son Jamie dropped by to say hello? Wow he is TALL and very handsome. He was just as easy going as his momma staying quite awhile talking with us.

Here’s a funny story about not always knowing who’s who! I did not know Brandon Branch by sight. I guess if I were a better fan of Paula Deen’s I should know instantly who he is however I did not.


So there we were after our cooking/filming segment was done waiting to be called in one by one to the judging room. I was the last one to be waiting and I had been speaking with this charming fellow who had sat down across from me.

After a little while I said ‘So how are you involved with all of this?’ Gesturing to the decorated set around me. He calmly said and pointed with a finger to the room.. “Um I designed the set” I looked over my shoulder and around me and casually said “Oh cool it looks great!” About 30 seconds later it dawned on me OMG this is BRANDON BRANCH! What an enormous idiot I was... ‘Um, yeah good job man’….DUH! No wonder it was a great set. It looked like it could have been in Paula’s home!


I think he was amused when I finally got it. He saw the light bulb go off in my brain and my eyes got a little wide. And I am sure I blushed in embarrassment. Graciously he leaned across the way held out his hand smiled and said “I’m Brandon Branch nice to meet you and good luck with the competition.”


I was able to regain my composure enough to shake his hand properly and say “Thank you” it was nice meeting him and I'm Ann Miller-Tobin. Fortunately before I could do anything else stupid I was called to go into the judging room. Whew I’d better brush up on my Paula entourage for next time huh!!!


Enough about me back to the book! If you want to learn more about my adventures in Savannah this summer join my blog and follow my posts. Coming soon will be a section devoted to Miss Paula, my RWOP experience and many more photos, and stories about my trip to Savannah.


Savannah Style is a coffee tables dream book. The photos alone make it a worthy table top adornment. I enjoyed Brandon’s tips finding most affordable and fun for someone like me with no decorating bone in her body. I’d love to borrow Brandon for a month to see if he could help make sense of my 1918 Four Square home.

Savannah Style is divided into four seasonal sections covering a variety of topics. Among my favorites were "Porch Livin'", "Book Nooks", "Powder Rooms" and "Live-in Kitchens" . It’s hard to admit, as a cook and homemade chef, that “Porch Livin” almost outshines “Live-In-Kitchens” for me. Turning the pages photographs oozing genteel southern ‘porch’ charm reminded me of daydreaming days as a girl longing to be Scarlett O’Hara. Ever since I first saw the iconic drama, Gone With the Wind, part of me has longed to be a southern belle.


Savannah Style is meant to be enjoyed and appreciated for what it is. A glimpse into a different way of life and décor.


Leafing through Savannah Style can melt any Yankee heart. The Sweet tea however is an acquired taste. For me, I’ll stick with lemon and a sprig of mint in mine and pass the pralines please.

Let Me Tempt You!

Turtle Brownie Bites.

Custom Dice hand cut sugar cookies.

5 Layer Angel Food with lemon curd mascarpone filling.

Mini Lemon Cakes with Raspberry Buttercream.

Spinach & Three Cheese Quiche in Wonton Cups.

Oreo Cookies n Cream Mini Cheesecakes

S'mores on a stick....YUM.

The one and only Kahluah Cake!

Oreo Cookies n Cream Cheesecake ready for the oven.