My brother, the chef.

My brother, Colton, is 15 years old and he loves to cook. I think his desire to cook is mainly based on his desire to eat delicious food. When he spots something yummy in a magazine, he often tries it out. Here is one of the fanciest ones he has made to date, a Yule Log. Good job Colton!

A heart! How cool

Cake:
6 eggs, divided
1 16-oz box chocolate cake mix
1/4 cup each: water, amaretto and canola oil
Unsweetened cocoa powder

Filling:
12 oz mascarpone cheese, room temp
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
2 tbsp each: whipping cream and amaretto
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract

Frosting:
1 10-oz bag dark chocolate chips
1 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp amaretto

Preheat oven to 375 and grease a jelly roll pan.  Beat eggs in large mixer for 5 minutes or until thickened and pale yellow.  Beat together cake mix, water, amaretto, oil and 2 of the eggs for two minutes, then lightly stir in remaining eggs. Spread batter onto prepared baking sheet and bake 11-12 minutes.

Let cake cool 5 minutes. Sprinkle a clean dishtowel with cocoa powder, then carefully invert cake onto towel.  Roll up the cake and the towel starting with the short side. Let cool completely.

For filling, beat mascarpone, powdered sugar and cream in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Stir in amaretto and the extracts.

For frosting, place chocolate in a food processor and pulse on and off to chop. Bring cream, butter and amaretto to simmer in a small saucepan. With the motor running, slowly add cream mixture to chocolate and process until very smooth. Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes or until it has the consistency of frosting. 

To assemble, carefully unroll cake. Spread filling over entire surface and roll again.  Place two pieces of waxed paper in the center of a rectangular serving platter, side by side.  Place cake, seam side down, in the center.  Spread frosting over the top and sides, then lightly drag a fork along the surface until the frosting resembles tree bark; carefully pull away paper. Refrigerated until ready to serve. Let stand at room temp for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Colton didn't want to participate in his "interview" or in any picture taking.

My personal favorite

At least we caught him cooking!

Colton spent many hours making this fancy cake. He told me that he didn't want to make it look like a log because that was stupid... so no bark designs on his Yule Log (-:

Colton is always in the kitchen making himself fancy lunches.  He shared one of his favorite creations with me: Cut a hot dog in half lengthwise and marinate it in liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce, BBQ sauce and oregano for half an hour.  Grill it up and enjoy the best hot dog you've ever had!

As you can see from the cake, one of his favorite things to make is sweet treats. He says the best combo for a milkshake he has come up with is to use chocolate ice cream, banana, Ovaltine powder, milk, shredded coconut, and graham cracker crumbs. Sometimes he shares his milkshakes with me and they sure are delicious.

So someday, when Colton is a world-famous chef: you heard it here first!