A Million People And A Valley of Winnebagos...

Dressed to kill? ...Check.
Music ready?...Check.
Pink champagne on ice? ...Check.
Dessert? ...Holla petit fours!

The perfect dessert for a New Year's Eve party. One bite ...done. I thought about this for a long time. Seriously, many sleepless nights here. Okay, not many sleepless nights, but at least one.

At first I thought about a cookie, but a cookie is just not going to cut it. I wanted "wow" factor as well as taste. I also wanted a dessert that everyone could pick up with their hands and not worry about forks or spoons. I want my guests to eat, drink, and move around freely.

I want people to mingle ...mingle! After all, about a million people will be coming over. Oh ...did I forget to mention that I live on the parade route for the world famous Tournament of Roses Parade?

Yes, every year hundreds of winnebagos and their owners surround my neighborhood along with the thousands of people that come to view the parade on New Years Day. On New Years Eve, Colorado Blvd. resembles Mardi Gras in New Orleans. Fun times.

So, I made petit fours because they're tiny and the recipe yields a lot. After all, I am having like thousands of people over. Thank god the City of Pasadena dropped off four port-a-potties on my corner.

There you have it, my New Years Eve plans. And if you happen to be in the area ...holla at me! I'll be the one handing out pink champagne and pink petit fours. Happy New Year!

Classic White Cake
by Nick Malgieri

2 cups of all purpose flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of salt
12 tablespoons of softened butter
1 and 1/2 cups of sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
6 large egg whites
3/4 cup of milk

1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Grease a 12x18x1-inch pan with butter and line with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; set aside. In a small bowl mix together the egg whites and milk; set aside.
   
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted the paddle cream the butter and the sugar until light fluffy. Add vanilla extract.
4. With the mixer on low, add one fourth of the flour. Add one third of the milk/egg mixture. Add one fourth of the flour and so on. Making sure to end with the flour.
5. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes checking with a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
6. Cool cake layers in the pan for 5 minutes before un-molding and finish cooling on a wire rack.

White Chocolate Ganache

12 ounces of good white chocolate
1/2 cup of heavy cream

1. Place chocolate in a heat proof bowl; set aside. Heat cream to a simmer and pour over chocolate. Let the cream sit over the chocolate for about a minute then stir until smooth and glossy.
2. Let the ganache cool for about 2 hours. Then with a hand mixer beat ganache until light and fluffy. Use immediately.

Pourable Fondant

2/3 cup of corn syrup
2/3 cup of hot water
7 cups of powdered sugar
6 drops of lemon (I used a raspberry liquor)
Food coloring

Whisk the corn syrup and hot water until dissolved, then whisk in the sugar until smooth. Stir in extract. Working quickly fondant into smaller bowls if coloring different colors. if not leave in bowl and dye desired shade.

I made two batches of the white cake. Spread the ganache over the entire bottom layer making sure to spread evenly. Then place second layer on top, making sure align evenly. Cover cake with plastic and place in fridge over night or four about 4-6 hours.

I then placed cake in freezer for about an hour before trimming the edges. I then trimmed the edges of the cake. Next, grab a ruler and cut the cake into 1x1-inch squares. Use a bread knife or electric knife and cut with a "sawing" motion.

Place the cut squares on a wire rack leaving 1-inch in between each cake. Place the wired rack over a sheet pan to catch excess fondant. Carefully pour fondant over the cakes making sure to coat the sides of the cakes. Let dry. Then with melted chocolate or fondant pipe then decorative lines.