"The most important part of the body is the brain. Of my face, I like the eyebrows and eyes."
Frida Kahlo
Frida was known for her artwork, her style and her ability to get through many personal hurdles and tough circumstances. She had polio as a young child and was in a bus accident as a teenager that left her unable to walk for a long time and changed the trajectory of her life. She was studying medicine and when she was bed ridden and healing she took up painting. Mostly self-portraits and paintings of people and things close to her.
Frida has always been one of my favorite artists and I think that one of the reasons is the rawness of her artwork, the stories her paintings and sculptures tell and her use of art to help her get through tough times.
"I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best."
Frida Kahlo
So many of us are feeling isolated right now. It is a challenge to feel connected with others with social distancing in place. However, now more than ever we are lucky to have a variety of online outlets to use to connect with each other from a distance or reconnect with ourselves and those in our six foot circle. Below is a sweet activity to do and share with those at home. You don't have to make the cake pops look like Frida. Feel free to do your own self-portrait or make a cake pop or two that look like a family member. Grab a hat, an apron and get your ingredients ready. Watch the how to video our Facebook or YouTube to learn to mix, shape, dip and decorate your own Frida Kahlo Cake Pops! If you don't have access to the ingredients or materials below at the moment get a piece of paper, mirror and a pencil or some markers and draw a self-portrait or ask a family member or roommate to sit for you.
Connect, create, stay well and stay sweet Brooklyn and beyond!
Amy
Here are two quick recipes you can mix up if you have the ingredients. If you can't find some of these grab a box cake mix and a tub of ready made buttercream. I'll give you a pass for this project.
Loco Cake Recipe: This cake recipe is adapted from a Depression Era Crazy Cake recipe that does not include eggs. It makes a moist chocolate cake that is good to use for cake pops or a solid vegan chocolate cake. Don't worry...it doesn't taste like vinegar! Vinegar is a common egg substitute and reacts with the soda to help the cake rise.
1.5 cups All Purpose Flour
1 cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 cup Cocoa Powder
1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
1 Tablespoon Vinegar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 cup Cold Water
Method: Add and mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Make three holes in your dry ingredients and put each wet ingredient into a separate one (you can put the vinegar and vanilla in the same one). Mix until incorporated. Use some vegetable oil to grease the 8 x 8 pan. Pour the cake batter into the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes or until your cake tester (skewer or fork) inserted into center of the cake comes out clean.
Be cool and let the cake cool.
American Buttercream
1 Stick Unsalted Butter (4 oz), room temperature, not melted
Approximately 1 cup Powdered Sugar
Method: Cream butter in a stand mixer or by hand. Add in powdered sugar gradually and mix until incorporated.
Extras:
8 x 8" Baking Pan or 8/9" Cake Round
Pan Spray (Optional)
Chocolate Chips (White and Milk)
Chocolate Melting Wafers White and Dark (I use Ghirardelli. I don't recommend using Merkens or Wilton Candy Melts-they don't taste like chocolate and and are more difficult to evenly coat the cake pops.)
Vegetable Oil or Shortening
Cinnamon (Optional)
Cayenne (Optional)
Rainbow Non-Pareils (Hundreds & Thousands)
Flower Sprinkles (optional)
Fondant Flowers (optional)
Cake Pop Sticks or Short Skewers
Cake Pop Stand (Optional-can use Styrofoam disk or a container with rice in it.)
Edible Ink Markers/Chocolate Markers or Food Gel or Food Coloring (For painting not for coloring the chocolate.)
Where to find the extras and ingredients if you don't have them on hand: Local Grocery Store, Sugar Room (Queens-currently closed), NY Cake (Manhattan-currently closed), Whisk (Brooklyn-taking orders via phone or online for curbside pick up 12-5pm or to ship), Michaels (Brooklyn-currently closed), Target or Amazon. **If you are local and have trouble finding some of the ingredients/materials, email me and will see what we can do to help.
I would love to see your cake pops! Please post them on Instagram or Facebook and tag Sweetly Brooklyn.
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