just a quick note

since i know i have been MIA.
I believe i said before that my job has restricted access to blogger.. totally sucks.
I am training new hires at work so no net book time.
Im also taking an online social break from everything it seems... twitter, fb, IM, texting, blogger...
sometimes, its necessary to remove ones self from the social scene realm and bring ones mental back into
the physical reality...
and I dearly miss you, my lovely blog, but when life becomes chaotic, one must regain the sanity before it leaves completely.

So im here, yet im not "here".

I've also been getting daily severe migraines every evening and they basically wipe me out. Not sure what has triggered these but im ready to call the docs and run some tests or something esp when the meds dont touch the pain. :(

Ive also found that my cousin has lost her baby and right now, im surrounded by lots of pregnant people. co workers, half of my cousins, friends, online friends... so its pretty  heart breaking when someone close has been told there is no heartbeat in a much anticipated blessing.

And what is up with this weather?!?! I dont know about everyone else in blogger land but we have rain every week, and cool sunny days on weekends.. today, thunder showers. Is mother nature bipolar? Did she forget to take her meds? Did someone cancel summer and I missed the news flash?!?! Seriously, Im ready for hot, summer days. please!

I am looking forward to this weekend tho, supposed to be nice, up to the 80's by mid next week, and I'm bbq'ing with family and friends at a lake far enough to be away from home but close enough to not have to pack like it. I will def blog about this weekend! :)

Wishing all my fellow bloggers well,

X's and O's

~Jasara

Experimenting with new recipes...

Is good and bad all at the same time! Good because I can expand palates, create yummy masterpieces and indulge in ooey gooey goodness... Bad because I can indulge in ooey gooey goodness! lol Trying to loose weight and get into shape while sampling sweets basically can be pointless. I am trying to be careful and mindful of how much i taste... *smirk* but it definitely helps that I have taste testers to confirm, critique and indulge with me!

This week, I'm tackling Peanut Butter Cup-Cakes and Salted Caramel Cupcakes.

I didn't have the right salt for the Salted Caramel but the kosher salt gave a decent impression of what its supposed to taste like. I think I will make the frosting a bit more camramely and use a less chocolaty cake.. maybe a milk chocolate vs. the chocolate fudge recipe I used. oooh,maybe put caramel bits in the cake itself..or a caramel gooey center! hmmm so many options.

The Peanut Butter Cup-Cakes are the same chocolate fudge cake with a peanut butter frosting and a drizzle of chocolate ganache and sprinkled with salted chopped peanuts. My first attempt wasn't so great, used the peanut butter chips to melt inside, didn't melt and got hard once cooled, melted the chips with a little heavy cream and butter to make a ganache like frosting and it was good but I couldnt use too much because it was so rich (pic below). But the final recipe...OH man, talk about eating a Reese's peanut butter cup in the cake version! It was perfect! Oh YUMMMMM!

Here are some pics below of the final creations :)

***Oh andSPECIAL thanks to my brothers girlfriend (sista/future sista in law/the bestest) BEVERLY for hookin up the AWESOME new apron!!CUPCAKES, how appropriate!!!

rockin da cupcapron ;)

love my kitchen aid

blurry baker

gotta scrape the sides down

chocolaty yumminess!

1st try at Peanut Butter Cup-Cake

and the inside...

see how the chips sank to the bottom :/

second attempt with PB frosting, chocolate ganache

and salted peanuts!!

salted caramel cupcake with caramel drizzle and kosher salt

Trio for the week!

Salted Caramel, Peanut Butter Cup-Cake and Red Velvet

And check back tomorrow for a special Guest Post!!!

X's and Sweet O's

~Jasara

Chicken and Black Bean 'Dillas

As I said before... Here's the recipe for these yummy quesadillas!

2 large chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1/2 onion, diced
1 green bell pepper (and red, yellow, orange if you want) diced
1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 small can of green (or red) enchilada sauce
1/4 Cup of Sour Cream
Garlic and parsley seasoning, salt free, to taste
Chili Powder to taste
Shredded Cheese (any good melting cheese of preference)
Soft Taco or Gordita size Tortillas (flour, spinach, tomato, whole grain what ever your pleasure!)

In a large pan over medium-high heat, spray pan with cooking spray and saute the onions and peppers until soft. Add drained and rinsed Black beans. Reduce heat to Medium. Add Garlic/Parsley and Chili Powder seasoning and cook 3-5 minutes. Add Chicken and 1/4 - 1/3 cup of enchilada sauce. Reduce heat to Low-Medium  and add sour cream. Mix Well. If this is too thick you can add water to desired consistency.

Remove From heat.

In smaller skillet over medium heat, spray with cooking oil. Sprinkle 2 Tbsp of shredded cheese on 1/2 tortilla. Spoon chicken filling over cheese (approx 1/4 cup). Fold tortilla over and place in skillet and heat until crispy and light brown flipping once. Approx 1-2 min on each side. Remove from skillet and let set.
Cut into wedges.

You can dip these in guacamole, sour cream, salsa or eat them as they are.

Variation: in a 3 inch deep round baking dish, spray lightly with cooking spray and layer corn tortillas, chicken mixture and shredded cheese and additional enchilada sauce until you've reached the top,.
Top off with enchilada sauce and shredded cheese and bake at 350 for 15-20 min or until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Enjoy!

work it on out!

Today, I almost ran a mile straight. I know, not a big feat for most but for me... I have not ran in a VERY lonng time. I took a 2 min break due to a cramp just below my rib... then ran the rest of the way back to work totaling 1.11 miles. So now im feelin =D supa cheeezy! lol

Ill get some weight training and balance ball in tonight too. Before I bake. I have been trying to bake these Salted Carmel Cupcakes (and while I'm at it, Ima make some Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes too!!) so I can continue to taste some new creations to be added to my new slightly secret but not for long expansion to Slice of Delight.

****************************************************************************************

****You DO know who MONKEY is right???****

Pleas tell me Oh faithfull few blog readers you clicked the link

and read the heartbreaking story of

fellow blogger Michelle and her

beautiful little 16 month old daughter

who was recently diagnosed with

Neuroblastoma...

Thanks to Ian for putting this out here in blogland for all of us to read, pray and support

a fellow; blogger, mother, parent, woman, human being...

**************************************************

What a lovely sidetrack huh?! So yeah, workouts, baking, I still need to read up on my book so I can move on to Eat, Pray, Love... think i need to give self a deadline. :)

Im also looking into licensing, commerical property, mobile food vending, new web design

still working on a logo, looking into some small biz classes...

oh and a business plan. Hear those things are helpful. lol

Seriously, Im happy to be breaking away from the demands and time of sculpted cake

to lay some more brick and build up my passion.

Anywho... forgot i have some random mobile pics I wanted to post.. along with last nights yummie

dinner!! Chicken and black bean quesadillas!! Recipe to follow!

Enjoy and Please come back FRIDAY for a SPECIALblog post!!!

reminds me of Burning Man (Reno, Nv) google it! lol

Red Velvets from last weekend

Sunrise outside of my apartment  at 6:11am

another shot of sunrise Mothers Day Weekend

Chicken and Black Bean Quesadillas!!

Ill post recipe tonight!

X's & O's :)

let me explain...

Honestly, I thought I had only been gone just a week.. but I seen my last post was almost two weeks ago if I had waited until tomorrow!! YIKES!! yeah, never again.

First, I stopped posting because as most of you know, I post while at work. (im such a hard worker!! shhh)
Well, my job has slowly been blocking website access and one day I came into work and blogger was a restricted site. Yet, I could still access facebook. Okay. So then I figured, well... ill just post in the evenings... but for those with kids, you know once you leave your daytime job, you then begin your other shifts as "Taxi, personal shopper, doctor, pharmacist, mommy, cook, housekeeper, maid, conflict resolutioner, counselor, and the list goes on.... ". No acception here. 3 boys at different stages makes for a mom who feels lucky to squeeze her shower in by 11pm. So no, I didnt get around to it.... but that will change. I promise!!! ;)

So heres an update of a day in the luife of Jasara for the past couple weeks...

The week of 5/4, I had a last minute cake order due, which i ended up stayin up all night friday night until saturday morning, mothers day weekend... to finish and deliver this cake. Only for the customer to try and screw me over once it was delivered. lesson learned and I will be making many changes upon all of these touch learned lessons of the cake business. Sad to say, it pushed me farther away from the enjoyment factor and so, my break from sculpted cakes is definate.

Sometimes, you have to walk away and take a breather to be able to continue to enjoy the beauty in the things you love. 

Mothers Day plans were shot thanks to cake order... Mothers Day itself, we went to church then came home and had a yummy breakfast of swedish pancakes, bacon, eggs, hashbrowns... then we headed to the movies and watched How to train a Dragon which was A-DORE-ABLE!!!! (movie options are limited with kids 6-15, what can i say!) Then headed to one of my most favorite restaurants that I had not been to since I was in labor with my youngest! haha, maybe thats why i havent been back... Anyway, On the Border and had a delish Margarita! Empanadas and Flautas and rice and beans and a cripsy Dos XX's fried fish Taco! The night ended wonderfully and all was let go with my boys by my side all day. Love my lil/big munchkins!

Ah so, the next week.. work. fun.  :| but gotta pay the bills right. I have been running and walking trying to get to consistant running so I can train for a marithon next year... One day, I took my lil man Dru with me and we walked the Newark Lake... Later than I would have liked and for good reason... Mosquitos. The last 1/4 mile we had to fight and run threw the swarm of blood thrusty suckers and once in my car (where i managed to let just one in of the hundred that covered the air space above and around my car) I couldnt belive how many were attacking! Took me all night to shake the mosquito in my hair, on my skin feeling... *shivvers*

mama & DruDru BearSunset on the LakeSunshine!Dru ExploringChasing Geese

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This past weekend, I had an order for 24 red velvet cupcakes. I doubled the batch and baked an extra 24. I invited my brother and his girlfriend Beverly over since my brother has somehow NEVER, EVER, EVER, NEVER tasted a red velvet. *gasp!!!* A tastebud crime in my book. And Beverly, LOVESSSSS them! So we hung out and chatted and ate red velvets. 2-3 each. Plus the lil hands that kept sneaking one here and there left me with ... 6.ALL MINES!! Muaaahhh haaaa haaaa!! Ok, i can only wish, I would gain back the 15 @W*#%T&#* pounds i've managed to some how loose and keep off... gotta be good. *fingers crossed!*

And that brings me to today... Monday. A blah day since its raining, AGAIN! It is May right? Are we sure? Ugh.  2 days of rain this week, then nice weather only to have more rain in another week. Is mother nature bipolar? If so, she's off her meds.

Anyway, glad to be back!! And please check out Monkey and her mommy's blog and send dotations if you can and comment to show your support and send prayers cause, if you lil monkey was diagnosed with cancer wouldnt you want/need/appreciate all the support you could get?!?! We cant all help the the world, but we can help the world of this sweet child!

(sorry the button was not showing up right, but you can access it thru the link above!! Thanks!)

Miscellany Monday

This is my firs time participating in this and I should have done sooner because I love Carissa's Blog!

She is a wonderful mom of her baby boy Hunter, and soon to be mommy of Sage (oh how i love that name!!!)

and a dedicated wife as well! She is truly blessed and I am ever so greatful to have crossed her blog!

And so, my Misc. Monday ...

1. I bought a scrapbook over a year ago and it has not moved from my desk since. It has moved around my desk

in the cabinet, on the desk, in the drawer... I have forgotten what exactly I was going to do with it

initially and still, have no idea. btw, i've never scrapbooked anything before...  :)

2. I am a candy freak. lately. chocolate. and if its new, im on it. Although, i have yet to try coconut m&m's...

3. In my annual spring cleaning , i came across a caboodle... remember those?!?! this wasnt

my big fancy one but the smaller simpler ones with the tray inside. Pink ofcourse..

and what was inside?? Letters, baggies full of pennies and bark and mulch!

This goes back to when email and texting didnt exist... man i sound old!

lol well email did im sure we just couldnt afford a computer so what did friends do... we wrote letters! These are from my best friends back in San Francisco elementary/middle school time! And the baggies.. well i collected old pennies dates you never find plus my familys birthyears! And the bark stuff well we went to visit sequoia and i was amazed by these trees and the scenery so i collected samples cos you never knew when they would

all just disappear! lol the mind of a 9yr old!

4. Ever try MetroMint water? comes in all mint flavors orange, lemon, raspberry and even chocolate!

Each has a level of chill factor... mildly cool, simply cool, very cool, extra cool and super cool...

well my dad promoted it so i tried the lemonMint which is simply cool.

def a taste to adjust to... felt like i was drinking chewing gum. kinda wierd...

5. baking Salted Caramel Cupcakes tonight... cant wait! yummmmmmmmmmmmm!

Im Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! and it feels so good!

I've got alot of catching up to do, and so ill be posting away today.. forgive the excessive posting in advance!

Im starting by posting the Monday Minute Monkey Minute... if you havent read up on Monkey

follow this link and catch up! Monkey Needs your support!

And thus... the Monkey Minute

Have you ever peed in the shower/bath/pool?

shower and pool yes, i'll admit. Bath, no.

What is your biggest pet peeve?

Bad drivers

What's the story behind your blog title?

its pretty self explanitory... I aspire to be many things, it seems.

Even if its one thing, over time it evolves and seems to drift and

change to be something else or it expands to more than the initial...

What is your definition of success?

Happiness.

When one is truly happy, they are enjoying everything in life they are doing.

If you were famous, what would you want be famous for?

my cakes and character :)

Allergies. Misery.

Today I woke up fine. Feeling great. Even dressed up for work. I decided to use my 30 min lunch to run. Slowly conditioning my body to get used to running again... I had my Tank, my shorts... my new shoes... BUT

I forgot.

My claritin.

And within 5 minutes of returning to my desk, I am a sneezing- watery eyed-stuffy nose mess. It has been 3 and 1/2 hours since I poped my claritin after my run and I cant focus for NOTHIN!!!

Im miserable.

:(

more meds + rest = no more allergies?

 i'm hoping...

X's, sniffles and O's

Getting to know me May 2010 edition

Thx to Ian from The Daily dose of Reality for letting us get to know just a lil bit more about him!
Now, for me...


1. Are you superstitious?

Even though I dont follow alot of them.. I do still follow some so I guess I am.



2. If you were an animal..what kind would you be?

Lion... what you expect??!! Ima Leo!



3. You would never catch me wearing.........?

Thong Bikini



4. If someone posts a VLOG..do you watch it?

Depends. Whos posting it and what the topic is about. I may just play a few seconds worth to match a voice with a pic.



5. Have you ever waxed your girlie/manly parts..or any other part of your body?

Have I ever??!!! Still do, thank you very much. along with legs and underarms on a regular...



6. Are you a spender or a saver?

Ive grown from a spender to a saver thru my 20's. Priorities change!



7. If you were starring in a movie..who would you want to play your leading man/woman?

Man - Taye Diggs



8. Smoker..never smoked..social smoker..or smoked back in the day?

I smoked when i was 17-18 then quit for 10 yrs.. then after a move to Northern California and being surrounded by smoker upon smoker, and the stress of this new life and the beginning of change in self, I picked it back up again. I must have quit 5 times in 18 mo but as of March of 2009, I quit for good. cold turkey. Never to go back :)

X's and O's...