To my surprise and joy I awoke last Thursday morning to find I had been nominated to receive the Versatile Blogger Award from my new and good friend The Cooking Actress. I was tickled to have been thought of and proud to have been nominated. Thank you Kayle for awarding me this award, I am very honored : )
So, what is the Versatile Blogger Award? "It is a great way to introduce different bloggers to each other and to promote quality blogs that awardees and their readers may not have discovered otherwise."
If you are nominated, you’ve been awarded the Versatile Blogger Award. Here are the rules:
- Thank the person who gave you this award. Thank you Kayle!!!!
- Include a link to their blog. The Cooking Actress
- Next, select 15 blogs/bloggers that you’ve recently discovered or follow regularly.
- Nominate those 15 bloggers for the Versatile Blogger Award.
- Finally, tell the person who nominated you 7 things about yourself.
- In the same post, include this set of rules.
- Inform each nominated blogger of their nomination by posting a comment on each of their blogs.
Here are my nominations for the Versatile Blogger Award (I have 12)
http://bitebymichelle.com/ Great smile & personality, yummy recipes, great photography and fun to read.
http://americaneater.com/ Series of photographs chronicling their daily life from the perspective of their plate, just never know what you'll see and the photos are fun.
http://www.azgrabaplate.com/ Patricia is a gem, awesome recipes, great photography...lives in a beautiful place I once called home, The Valley of the Sun, Arizona.
http://www.hapabento.com/ Healthy and appetizing boxed lunches that never fail to make me hungry just by looking at them. A nice variety is offered for all palates.
http://www.crunchyrock.com/ Fun recipes ranging from super healthy to decidedly decadent. She writes with a sense of humor and quite often has made me chuckle. It is a collection of recipes and photos.
http://cookinwluv.blogspot.ca/ A wonderful collection of recipes and lick your screen inspiring food photos. Offers a unique selection of daily posts that are a joy to read and keep you going back for more. Recently awarded this same Versatile Blogger award but deserves another mention : )
http://foodandthriftfinds.blogspot.ca/ Delicious recipes, great photos...such a selection offered here, you could spend most of your day searching through them.
http://damndelicious.tumblr.com/ An awesome offering of cookies and muffins to make your mouth water. A fun place to visit and browse yummy baked goods. Not to be considered just a baker, there a lots of recipes here for delicious dinners and much more.
http://www.thethreelittlepiglets.com/ One of my newest finds I have started following and am so glad I have. Tasty recipes with lovely photos along with budget friendly meals and money saving tips.
http://www.lizziemariecuisine.com/ I ran across Lizzie awhile back and was very impressed with her skills, her writing and her versatility. I immediately started following her blog and have enjoyed her recipes, thoughts and adventures, I think you will too, she definitely deserves this award.
http://healthyfoodietravels.net/ I have just met Kiri, but love her recipes, her photos and her charm. She is a lover of food and travel, two things I can certainly relate to. She works hard at keeping it healthy and does a great job.
http://www.littlegraybird.ca/ An interesting place to find information on anything Manitoba. Her site offers funny captivating stories and fun facts as she finds her way in a place she now calls home.
7 things about myself : ) Hmmm...
1. I always have and still do love stickers! Puffy ones, scratch and sniff, wiggly eyes, sparkly, fuzzy...all of them.
2. One of my favorite all time movies growing up was Charlie and The Chocolate Factory w/ Gene Wilder.
3. I love the simple things in life, individual snowflakes, the smell of fresh cut grass, dew drops on flowers, laughter, the sound of a Loon's call.
4. I love all movies, esp. scary movies and romantic movies. If you look close you might catch me bawling at the end though I may not admit it if you don't have proof...I love a good love story.
5. I love to swim.
6. I do not like and have little patience for...stuck up people, mean people, and mean spirited gossip.
7. I have a tendency to repeat myself, I have a tendency to say the same thing twice.
Bonus : ) I love people who inspire me, who seek out chances and take chances when the opportunities arise to make someone's day extra special : ) A moment of kindness takes a moment but can last a lifetime in someone's memories.
Thank you again to The Cooking Actress for this award!
Special events deserve special treats.
Dark Chocolate Ganache
(to cover the top of a chocolate fudge cake)
1 cup heavy whipping cream
200 grams of your favorite dark chocolate
56 grams of your favorite semi-sweet chocolate
1 tablespoon unsalted room temperature butter (helps to make it very shiny)
1 teaspoon almond extract
Chop all chocolate into very small pieces and place into a heavy glass bowl.
Add butter
Heat cream in a pot until boiling, stirring often. As soon as it is boiling, remove from heat.
Pour hot cream over chocolate pieces, leave for 1 minute to allow chocolate to soften.
Mix slowly (to avoid adding air bubbles) with a spoon until all the cream and chocolate is mixed well.
Add almond extract and stir only long enough to blend.
Let the chocolate stand a few minutes to cool slightly.
Start in the center of your cake and slowly pour ganache over the top.
Using the back of a spoon or a flat spatula, working from the center, gently push the ganache over the edge of the cake to let it run down the sides. Continue doing this until the sides are completely covered.
Let the cake rest for a couple of hours to allow it time to set. Decorate or leave as is for an elegant presentation.
 |
| I wanted to make it special and say happy birthday, my hands were shaking : ) I am def. not a pro at the piping. |
 |
| It did taste yummy tho! The cake reads....Happy Birthday Heeyoon, it was a very special birthday celebration and we were honored to have been invited to share it with her : ) |
I made a four layer chocolate fudge cake with layers of fresh strawberry cream cheese frosting inbetween and topped it with the dark chocolate ganache : )
