Catching Up

I haven't updated this thing in a while, which defeats the purpose of why I started it in the first place! I've been baking like a fiend, but not putting the work online! So here's a recap of what has been concocted since my last post!

First, I tried my hand at Cake Pops. I ordered Bakerella's new uber-cute book and decided to give it a whirl. They are adorable and quite tasty, but SO time consuming! I enlisted the help of my bff Hayley (and future business partner ;) ) to experiment with these guys. Mikey is a huge fan & declared that they have trumped everything, including his beloved Macadamia Cookies & Strawberry Cupcakes.

Then there were Cookies & Cream Cupcakes. I followed Your Cup of Cake's Cookies & Cream Cupcakes recipe with a little deviation here & there and they were pretty good. I was scared to do a Chocolate cake because I was worried it would be overload, but I wasn't really crazy about the Vanilla Cake, but everyone still seemed to like them! Forgot to take a picture of these guys before they were devoured. 



Next, for Father's Day, I made my Daddy's favorite: German Chocolate Cake, except in cupcake form! I followed Your Cup of Cake's (I just love her, okay?!) German Chocolate Cupcakes recipe and found these so fun to make. We've always whipped up the boxed & canned German Chocolate Cake for him because he isn't very picky, but these have made me a believer. JP3 had a birthday yesterday (GO HEELS GO AMERICA!) so due to Fourth of July commitments elsewhere, we had a family get-together Tuesday night and because I was unprepared, I whipped up a boxed cake we already had. And I dare say I turned my nose up at it, would not eat it. Canned coconut pecan frosting is really disgusting when you've made it from scratch. So, I hereby pledge to never buy it in a can again. Amen, Hallelujah, Motion Carries, etc, etc.

My softball team got the Reese Cupcakes of my last post, so I've been hounded at every game about the need for more sweets. My little BFF Jessica requested Red Velvet, so we gave it a shot! I used a box mix and souped it up and then made a typical Cream Cheese icing. I had a lot of fun with these because I finally got to try out the rose technique, which I love and is SO easy. These were a huge hit. Michael's reaction pretty much sums it up: "Something about these cupcakes just says Love." 

And then there was Cookie Dough Cupcakes. I had been dying to try these and combined about 209285093759 recipes to make them how I wanted. While everyone loved them, they were a pain. I later saw at Hobby Lobby that they make cupcake corers - I shall immediately invest in one because an Apple Corer just doesn't work. I made an eggless cookie dough to fill them with, but honestly, they store bought kind is soo much better. Anyways, these were also a hit despite their richness. Butter Cake with Chocolate Chips, Cookie Dough Filling and Cookie Dough Frosting with Chocolate Chip Garnish. Cookie in a Cake. Ta Da.




And lastly, Cake Balls! These are essentially Cake Pops sans sticks for you common folk out there. I saw this cool American Flag display on Pinterest and decided to try it for Fourth of July. Again, cake pops are a pain. The coating never gets thin enough despite the amount of shortening you put it in. Bakerella says to try Paramount Cystals but where do you find those things? Anyways, I managed and was able to make the display despite the strange shape of some of the balls. I sent it with my parents to our church's Fourth of July Cookout and the leftovers ended up in the hands of Mikey. Are we surprised? Not really.

If I have any readers, I hope summer has been treating you well. The heat is finally here, but enjoy it because soon it will be freezing and school will be in - NO FUN. My mother just bought a snazzy new SLR Camera so hopefully my photography will be getting better if I can enlist her help. More news, not sure if I've mentioned it, but we have a new addition.

Meet Miss Daisy

Here she is looking all cute in the kitchen watching me bake. Don't let her fool you. She's Marley from the book/movie reincarnated. If she can tear it up, she will find it and she will do it. She's gotten away with a lot so far just due to lack of time and consistency, but Puppy Bootcamp starts Monday so she better get ready. Here's proof of her misbehavior.

I also wanted to let everyone know that I am available to bake for birthdays or special events. I'm trying to learn more & more and experience is the best teacher. I love a new challenge so if you have an idea, let me know and we can work something out! And with that, Daisy & I say so long. 

Go Get Muddy or Something!