Squirrels-n-Sweets: "Supreme Reefs" Brownie

Ben is cool. We like Ben. Be more like Ben.

In all seriousness, this is our friend, Ben. I still remember the first time we met at a dance practice. He was encouraging me to attempt crazy stuff outside of my comfort zone. He still does to this day. I call his bluff and tell him to try it too. He'll make an attempt - giggling and cussing all the way. That's the funny thing about Ben. Even if it's hard, he'll still smile and take a go at it.

For a long time, Ben has loved marine life and the ocean. He's the first one out the door with his fishing pole and will suffer through a boat ride with his motion sickness to spend time out in the water. This passion took him down a road that is definitely not common for a guy in Northern VA: he opened a coral reef shop.

Supreme Reefs is the accumulation of years of work. Believe it or not, but this Aquatic Pet Store started in his family's home. We would call him on the weekend to hang out and he would say, "nah man, got to wash the tanks in the garage." Totally normal.

Now, Ben and his partners have opened this awesome little shop in Springfield, VA. I love going there to work because the sound of the tanks is so soothing. It's a surreal experience, casually being surrounded by exotic coral. Ben has hand-raised each creature in the shop and holds a surprising wealth of knowledge. Again... so cool!

In honor of the shop's grand opening, I made a huge brownie (same as the "WKND Outpost" brownie) decorated in the Supreme Reef's logo. The super cool logo was designed by my talented husband so it was a win-win. Shout out to our buddy Aziz for hooking it up with groceries when I couldn't get to the store! You're a lifesaver!

The reef portion of the design was done in fondant and was surprisingly easy. The hardest part was working with black fondant - I hate the Wilton version because it can dry out so fast but it's readily accessible. The waves are a simple swiss buttercream.