Entry for this week...

Here is Nicole's entry:

Journaling reads:

“Welcome to the Daring Bakers! You are part of the March 2008 class. Please take some time to read the following information. And please pay special attention to the rules regarding following the recipe and rules for challenge participation to maintain good Daring Baker status. The premise of the Daring Bakers is very simple: each month we bake a challenge recipe that is put to us by the month's host. Everyone bakes the same recipe with no variations or substitutions unless approved by the host. Now that you're officially DBers (that's what we call each other), here are some points you need to know…”

I can’t tell you the little thrill of excitement I felt when I got my welcome message from the Daring Bakers. I really enjoy cooking but I was looking for something to push me to try even more new things than I had been and, one day while browsing the Internet, I stumbled upon the Daring Bakers. My first challenge was the Perfect Party Cake (see picture) and I was so proud when I finished. It was quite a bit of work but I was elated. It had been years since I did a cake from scratch—never mind that I made my own buttercream too! Wahoo! I have just completed my second challenge, which was even more challenging that the first, but I am always surprised at how good I feel when I finish. You’d think I had completed a marathon instead of a recipe! I am learning so much and so far the fruits of my labour have been very tasty…