April 30, 2012

Well last Friday was quite an amazing day for all involved in the incredible e-vent for Oh Sweet Mum.  The event which was put together by my lovely friend Jacki from Blissfully Sweet Cakes combined the talent of some of the most creative individuals from Australia and around the world.  It was an absolute pleasure and honour to be involved and today I am sharing with you the event I hosted which was all about cakes!

My incredible team consisted of four truly talented cake designers – Dewi from Sweet Bloom Cakes, Sharon from Cakes by Sharon, Johanne from It’s a Cake Thing and of course Jacki from Blissfully Sweet Cakes.  Each of their individual styles was distinct but when you put all of the creations together they just blended beautifully – it was a real wow moment to see them all together (and the smell of sugar was amazing).

As it took me a number of days to get the shots I was happy with any visitors to my home during the week of shooting were completely amazed by how many cakes I had in one place!  

To top off the spectacular cake display we had the beautiful backdrop by Daneve of Ah-tissue.  Her paper flowers were brilliant sitting behind the amazing display and finished off the table perfectly.
So enjoy some of the most incredible cakes I have had the pleasure of working with – all of the other e-vents can no be seen in a beautiful online magazine which I have linked to below.  The magazine was designed by Nicole from Pretty and Print and will be available for purchase in hard copy very soon with a small portion of the proceeds going toward breast cancer funding.
Congratulations to Jacki and everyone who was involved in this spectacular event.
 
 

Leanne

April 24, 2012

I am really excited to share with you today some photos from a fabulous party I helped out with back in February this year.  eskimo design are the amazing people behind the look and feel of Sweet Style – from my logo to my website, so to be involved in a special celebration with them was such a treat!
The talented team at eskimo design celebrated their 14th Birthday which coincided with Valentines Day – so a theme of Love is In the Air was created – colours of fluro pink and white where chosen which was perfect when creating a striking table!
Hello Naomi created a gorgeous Igloo cake to tie in with eskimo’s name as well as perfect love heart cookies and the most delicious lemon meringue tarts.  Jacki from Blissfully Sweet whipped up some fantastic desserts on a stick – yummy cake pops and the most devine mini cheesecakes on a stick!  The table was finished off with macaroons, bon bons, jelly beans and little packs of conversation hearts for the guests to take home.
Enjoy some pictures of the fun fluro table plus some more pictures I took of the event on the amazing roof top at their office – the perfect location!  
Thanks also to Fete Press for featuring the party in their recent edition.
If you are looking for an amazing team to help create a look for your brand then make sure you contact Natasha or Zoe now – you can visit their website here.

Leanne

April 20, 2012

Have you seen the latest issue of Fete Press! As always Annabelle and Jane have done an incredible job.  I am thrilled to also have one of my recent dessert tables featured in the magazine which you can see on pages 72-79. There are also some other fabulous stories featuring Sweet Style products included.  I will be back on Monday to share loads more photos from this party!  The link to the magazine is below.  Have a fabulous weekend everyone x

Leanne

April 17, 2012

Today’s guest post comes to us from the wonderful Jacki from Blissfuly Sweet Cakes.  A master in the kitchen Jacki will be joining us regularly to share some of her favourite recipes. Today she begins with a favourite from the table I shared with you in yesterday’s blog post.

Jacki says…
When asked what my favourite ingredient is, the first thing that comes to mind is LEMONS!   I can have it in a dessert, in savoury dishes, as a granita, anything!   I love the tanginess that lemons bring to a dish – they awaken your palate!
 Leanne’s colour scheme of her recent Mothers Day Table was yellow and grey.   This was a fantastic opportunity to bring out some lemon in the desserts!
I made some lemon curd pots topped with a lemon scented marscarpone.   These are the perfect little serving and lemon curd can be used in so many different ways!
Use lemon curd as:
·       A filling in little tart cases – you can then easily top off the tarts with a meringue swirl and you have little lemon meringue tarts.
·       As a filling in your cupcakes – give your cupcakes a little extra zing.   Cut out a circle of cake out of the top of your vanilla cupcakes and fill with a spoon full of lemon curd and then finish with a dollop of fresh cream or cream cheese frosting!
·       Use as a filling for macarons.
·       Spoon on some hot pancakes.
·       When making any type of sugar cookie, make a little indent in the centre of the cookie and dab a little lemon curd and bake.   Scrumptious lemon drop cookies.
·       With some fresh cream on beautiful homemade (or your favourite store bought) scones!
·       Lemon curd pavlova nests.   Make (or buy) your pavlova nests and top with some fresh lemon curd, whipped cream and fresh raspberries
·       Bottle it up in a beautiful little apothecary jar (available in the Sweet Style store), and it is the perfect little thoughtful gift for something special.
Do I really need to continue!    The list is long and endless and limited only to your own imagination.
Below is my recipe that I use for lemon curd.   This recipe gives you a lemon curd that is thick, soft and creamy.   It has the perfect sweet and tart flavour.    The best news is that it is easy and does not take long to prepare!
LEMON CURD
3 large eggs (700gms)
150gms white sugar
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons)
1 tbs freshly grated lemon zest
60gms unsalted butter (room temperature)
Place a stainless steel bowl over a saucepan of simmering water.  Whisk together the eggs, sugar, and lemon juice until combined and well blended.  
Cook, stirring it constantly until the mixture becomes thick (like sour cream).   You need to stir constantly, so your mixture does not curdle.  This will take approximately 10 minutes.
Remove from heat and immediately pour through a fine sieve to remove any lumps that have formed.  Cut your unsalted butter into small pieces and whisk into the curd until the butter has melted.  Add the lemon zest and let cool. 
The lemon curd will continue to thicken as it cools. Cover immediately (so a skin doesn’t form) and refrigerate for up to a week.
Makes  1 ½ cups.
Tips:
Room temperature lemons always provide more juice.
Cold lemons are always easier to zest.   I always zest the lemons before I need to squeeze the juice.
About Jacki …
Jacki Fanto is the owner of Blissfully Sweet Cakes based in Sydney, Australia. Jacki is married and has three gorgeous boys who love that their mum is such a fabulous cook!  You can find Jacki’s website here and her Facebook page here

Leanne

April 16, 2012

One beautiful crisp morning in March I set out to capture a simple and elegant dessert table that I could picture in my mind – it had to be outdoors with a calm and petty backdrop.  I had been wanting to use the colours of yellow and grey as the work to beautifully together.
I asked Jacki from Blissfully Sweet Cakes to create two special cakes, some mini cupcakes and a dessert in a little glass jar – they were perfect for what I had in mind.
Nicole from Pretty and Print provided me with some amazing printables that captured the essence of the shoot which was all about Mothers Day.
My vision came together as the sun rose over the table – it was just me and my camera and a beautiful table full of lovingly created treats.
The morning also happened to be the 9th Birthday of our eldest daughter Laura – if you are a new visitor to my blog,  Laura is our angel in heaven – a little guiding light in our life – it felt so magical to be out there with the sunrise and the calm – like she was there with me celebrating our own mothers day.  It was truly one of those beautiful mornings that made me realise why I love what I do.
I hope you enjoy some more pictures of my special mothers day dessert table and it provides a little inspiration for your celebration this year.

The shoot was put together for the latest edition of the Bird’s Party Magazine which you can see below.
Special thanks to Jacki from Blissfully Sweet Cakes for her amazing desserts, Nicole from Pretty and Print for her perfect paper goods and to Contents Giftware for the beautiful console.  The stunning flowers are from Rebecca at Petal and Pod.
Please feel free to contact me if you need anymore information about the items included.

Leanne