one down.. (re-visiting peanut butter cupcakes)

so i said, just the other day, that i needed to re-visit this cupcake with a glorious idea that hit me..  sometime, i can’t remember when.  it was most likely when i was ready to fall asleep.

(those darn glorious ideas hit me then or when i am in the shower..  at least i can write them down when i am in bed.)

i originally tried this recipe in the fall and we all loved it.  after that trial, i had the idea to add some reeses (big ‘uns) to the actual cupcake.

yeah, i didn’t get around to trying that one out until, well, last week.

they were winners.

so when my next glorious idea hit, i knew i’d better test drive it (so to speak) soon.

that, and one of the guys who works for merrill didn’t get his peanut butter cupcake due to the fact that merrill ate it.

(i think that means they are kind of good.)

so here goes…

i start out with my most favorite boxed triple chocolate fudge cake mix ever (still haven’t found the perfect chocolate cake recipe to make from scratch that stays moist…).  i tweak it a little by substituting 1/2 cup softened butter in place of the oil.

then i divide the batter among my cups and get an assistant to unwrap, and not eat the regular sized reeses peanut butter cups. 

(not eating them now is key.  tempting, i know, but very important.)

you take that little cup of yumminess, and place it on the top of the batter.  press it in until the top of the cup is level with the surface of you batter.

see:

pop those in the oven and let them bake according to the recipe.

after they have cooled, they will look flat.

(but they are delicious, so don’t fret.  frosting will make up for the flatness soon.)

we had one, that didn’t get “reesed” (totally just invented that word..  you can even see it up there!!) and you could tell which one was missing the secret surprise.

it was all fluffy and junk.

then lynn ate it assuming it was like the rest.  she was greatly disappointed.  but she should have known.  there were no chopped peanuts on top!

(that is our code of sorts.)

which is okay, i am sure that she was the culprit who got into the jumbo bag and ate the one cup that we were going to need to reese all of them.

so after they have cooled, frost them.

when i say “frost them” i really mean that you should frost them with this:

Peanut butter frosting

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/3 cup heavy cream

Place the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

so, you can go on ahead, and pipe that on the way it is OR…

you can do what i did..

i substituted the regular old peanut butter (delicious, but boring in comparison) with a cup of this!!!

it is a bit of an addiction lately…

i really wanted to add dark reeses to the cupcakes, but would not (no way!!) settle for the miniatures.  i wanted the big’uns.  i couldn’t find them.  i will have to attempt it again, i guess.

(i am sure everyone will throw a fit of epic proportions..)

now these are good the “regular way” but SO good with this little tweaking.

(i finished off the frosting.  right out of the bag…  can you picture that?  me, mouth ajar, bag of frosting inserted..)

when i asked merrill if they were good, i got quite the reaction.

now that frosting recipe makes enough to generously frost a little more than a dozen, so we made some of each…

(and to further try to convince you to go and make them yourself, here’s some pictures to help with the convincing.)

yeah, don’t forget those chopped peanuts either.  you know, “code” and all..

oh, and i have been told that a glass of milk is a great addition.

More for your Monday.

Time to show off some of the loveliness that exists at Jessica Sprague…

(Don’t forget that “Mondays in May” are still in full swing there!!)  

Jodie Lee has released some beautiful stuff today.

Here, I used her “Botanique Brushes” to create everything from the background to the sweet little stamps.

(Click on layout for list of full credits.)

Last week, we had a RS meeting that we chose Faith to be the theme.  We paired it with gardening (‘tis the season) and I made these cute plant picks for the tomato plant handouts, and one to go in each of our speakers thank you plants.

Cosmo Cricket was made for this people…

 

For the tomato plant ones I simply designed them in photoshop, printed out my stuff onto presentation paper, cut them out, use a little double-sided tape, plus a popsicle, and the help of a good friend.

For the larger ones, I did pretty much the same thing, but instead of double-sided tape, I mod-podged the papers onto either side of a little “woodsie” (found at craft stores).  I sanded-down the edges after it dried and top-coated with more mod-podge.  I used Tombow multi adhesive (the green and white guy) to glue the popsicle stick onto the back.

(Here’s the link for list of full credits on those babies.)

We also had some of these….

This one is asking for me to toy with it..  can I add it to my list that is today?

As for the state of homelessness, among other things in my life..  changes are in the works in my neck of the woods people..

Lots of changes.

All of them good! 

(I swear…)

Summer is coming, life needs to get a little more organized, streamlined and a bit easier, I am thinking…  blogs might get a re-boot of sorts.  “Furious Orange” (the color of the vomitastic wall in my basement) will no longer be so vomit inducing, hopefully starting today.  Then there’s a tutorial I am putting the finishing touches on..  those cupcakes I mentioned toying with..  and some sewing patterns I bought.  I want to do them, but I don’t without a space to leave them when I need to, you know, to cook, clean, wipe bums.  Stuff like that.  Oh!  And pictures..  LOTS Of pictures to share.

See, I told you good, and exciting.

P.S. Gear up for “7 Days in May”.  It starts next Monday…  I am severely looking forward to it.

It truly is the most wonderful time of the year!

Happy Spring!

It’s just the start of the celebration here..

I was in the mood to bake something cute (and tasty of course) the other day, so I let the first day of spring be my muse (and excuse).

I really wanted to make fondant butterflies.  They are such a sweet, easy touch to any cake or cupcake, and the girls love them.

And the fondant contains marshmallows.

(I have a real thing for marshmallow lately..)

I use this recipe, and I have never gone back.  (It was part of an inspired message one month from my visiting teachers..)  It is just as easy, cheaper, and more tasty than your boxed variety.

And it has marshmallow in it…

(Have I said that already?)

If you are lazy, well then, here’s the recipe:

Marshmallow Fondant

• 8-ounce bag of marshmallows
• 2 pounds of powdered sugar (also called confectioner's sugar or icing sugar; you won't quite use all of it for this recipe)
• 2 tablespoons of water
• vegetable shortening (Crisco) for greasing hands and tools

Put the marshmallows and water in a microwave-safe bowl and heat on high for about two minutes. The marshmallows should be puffy but will still hold their shape. Stir thoroughly until smooth.

Next, add about 1 1/2 pounds of the powdered sugar and stir with a spoon well greased with the Crisco. The homemade fondant at this point should be a very sticky dough.

Thoroughly grease your hands and work surface with the shortening and knead the fondant, adding a little bit of powdered sugar at a time until the mixture isn't sticky anymore. If it's sticky, add more sugar. If it's dry and tearing, add a teaspoon or two of water and knead it in. The homemade fondant recipe is finished when the dough is pliable and stretchy without tearing.

If you won't be using the marshmallow fondant recipe right away, cover it with a little bit more Crisco and wrap it well with plastic wrap. Seal it in a bag and keep it in the refrigerator, where it will last for several weeks.

You can color and flavor it like you can the nasty boxed kind too.     

After I have colored parts, I roll it out with the help of lots of powdered sugar, and use my tiny butterfly cookie cutter to cut out lots of little butterflies.  I will lay some flat to dry, and others I lay over the edge of a thick edged platter to get that about to take off look. 

I pinch off a small piece of the yellow fondant and roll it like a short snake, then pinch the end for the body.  One year, I got all detail oriented and used my fingernail to make little lines for the segments.

Then you leave them there to dry.  The thinner your fondant is rolled out, the quicker they dry.

I attach the bodies to the wings by pipng a little bit of buttercream using the smallest tip I have.

Then they can go onto cupcakes…

Or a cake…

 

We teased the girls, telling them that we couldn’t eat the cake until 5:21 pm on Sunday (the OFFICIAL start of spring).

Surprisingly, they waited patiently!

Caramel Chocolate Cupcakes.

I cannot take credit whatsoever for these delicious treats.
My friend Emily shared this a while ago on her blog and I knew I had to try them out.
Well worth it I may say…
I did have to make an alteration, but trust me, still incredibly yummy.
I used my tried and true, but not from scratch (GASP!!) favorite box mix, and made this frosting.  Now mind you, I had no whipping cream (that smelled good, I am crazy about that), so I used a can of sweetened condensed milk instead (and licked the can clean!).  It worked out fantastically!
Caramel Frosting
1/2 cup butter or 1 stick
1/3 cup whipping cream (the real stuff)
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
melt the butter, cream and sugar in a medium pot over medium heat. The recipe said to just heat until the sugar dissolves, but I liked the results better if you heat just till boiling point, let it simmer for like 1 minute more after that..pour hot caramel in a mixing bowl, and mix on low speed for about 1 minute, then add 2 cups of powdered sugar, one at a time or the sugar will fly everywhere. Mix until smooth. The frosting will still be some what warm. That's okay. This stuff sets up really fast.
I used my uneven spatula, trying to get the tops all pretty and such, the frosting was still so warm, that It just coated, so prettily the top of each cupcake.  It was no work at all.
(My family also licked the bowl of frosting clean.)
I also had no sea salt, so I cannot testify to that particular flavor explosion, but these were oh so good!
Thanks Emily for sharing your little bit of found heaven!

Cupcake confession.

I have my “go-to” items when I make cupcakes.

Some of them aren’t your traditional baking items, but they work for me!

Thought I would share what has made my life easier when it comes to baking my favorite treats.

**NOTE: I am NOT trying to pass myself off as “the best cupcake maker ever”, nor do I insinuate that I am a “professional” baker, by any means, it is a hobby.  It is something that I enjoy, and unless the people who I share these with are lying, others enjoy the fruits of my labors as well.*

These are staple items that I have in my house at all times.  You never know when you will feel like something sweet to eat, or an activity to do with the kiddos.  Even to take a plate to someone who might need some sweetness in their life!

 

Powdered sugar, cake mixes (and all necessary ingredients), nut cups, my piping bag, coupler and favorite tip, un-even spatula, and ice cream and cookie dough scoops.

Let’s start with confession #1..

RARELY do I bake a cake or cupcake from scratch.  There are certain recipes that are favorites, but these cake mixes are the best things in my book.  I try to get the butter recipe ones, they are the best and the moistest.  If the flavor I want doesn’t come in a butter recipe, I tweak the recipe to become a butter recipe.  Substitute the 1/3 cup of oil for 1/2 cup of margarine or butter, softened.  Decrease the water to 1 1/4 cups, but keep the eggs the same.  I keep a few of these in food storage, love it when they go on sale!

After you cupcakes (or cake, we like those too!) are done baking, let them cool for ten minutes, cover with foil and freeze for a half hour to an hour.  This traps in the steam and makes for a moister cake.  (I learned this tip from a friend of a friend, best thing ever!)

Another tip I learned from a cooking show (although I can’t remember which one..) is to use an ice cream scoop for getting that batter into your cupcake liner.  It is the perfect amount of batter.  I love using my little ones for my “baby” cupcakes.  Perfect amount every time!

    

Then there’s the liners.  I prefer to use nut cups.  They have a nice, sturdy construction to them, the also have a slightly  waxy coating to them that makes them pop out so easily.  I buy them at the local craft store for a couple dollars a package.  They are great to line up on one cookie sheet and pop them all into the oven at the same time.  No more rotating muffin tins!

Then there’s the frosting staples..

Powdered sugar is another food storage item (along with marshmallows now that Veronica shared the joy of homemade marshmallow fondant with me).  Can’t have frosting without this stuff!

My favorite frosting tip of all time is Wilton’s 1M tip.  It is mated with the GIANT coupler, which goes with the GIANT piping bag, but well worth it.  It makes the prettiest piping on top of those cupcakes, makes them more edible, because they look prettier!

Then there’s that GIANT bag.  I use coupons on these bad boys.  40-50% off..  YES, PLEASE!

This guy can hold A LOT of frosting, I mean an obscene amount, but that makes the job that much quicker and easier.

So, there’s my tips..  watch out tomorrow for a new recipe my friend shared on her blog. 

Had to try it..

LOVED IT!

For the love of Peanut Butter! (Peanut Butter Cupcakes)

Have I ever before mentioned how our little family embraces everything peanut, especially when it is paired with chocolate?
Well, we do.  It was a pre-requisite to be in our family.
I set out to find a perfect chocolate cupcake recipe, and went to the most dependable gal on planet earth when it comes to recipes for tasty things (Ina Garten) and I not only found a chocolate cupcake recipe, but an amazing peanut butter frosting recipe.
Now, let me first say that the cupcake recipe, I wasn’t head over heels for.  It wasn’t nearly as moist as her other cake recipes are, maybe I should tweak it just a little bit, I dunno, but I used my favorite boxed (gasp!) mix for these bad boys.
(Fav boxed mix by the way is Betty Crocker Triple chocolate fudge mix, I sub the oil for a stick of butter and decrease the water to 1 1/4 cups instead of 1 1/3.)
The frosting was divine!
Merrill, who is expert taste-tester, and aficionado of peanut butter/chocolate combos, gave this treat two thumbs up (with his mouth full).
Peanut Butter Frosting
(so she calls it “icing”..  whatever..)

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/3 cup heavy cream

Place the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth
And then pipe (or smear) it onto something yummy (like chocolate cupcakes), and prepare to enter heaven.
P.S. I also topped my cupcakes with some chopped nuts, just to let people kinda know what was in them.  Oh, and it looked cute too.

Coconut Cupcakes..

I should start out saying a big thanks to Jaclyn, my SIL who made these tasty treats 4 years ago, and has had me hooked ever since.  Another big thanks needs to be said to the cookbook where she got the recipe from..  love that Ina Garten!  Grandpa W. probably loves her too..  these are a fav!)
Now, don’t have a heart attack when you read the ingredient list, just tell yourself that you can have one (or three if you are like me) a day, and call it good.
Cupcakes:
3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature (that’s 3 sticks)
2 cups sugar
5 extra large eggs at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract (mmmm..)
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
14 ounces sweetened, shredded coconut (divided in half)
Preheat oven to 325.  Cream together butter and sugar for about 5 minutes on low.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well, then add the vanilla and almond extract.  In a separate bowl, sift together: flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Add 1/3 of the combined dry ingredients and half of the buttermilk to the batter.  Mix well, then add 1/3 more of the dry ingredients, and the other half of the buttermilk.  Mix again.  Add the last of the dry and mix until just combined.  Fold in 7 ounces of the coconut, and bake in lined muffin tins for 25-30 minutes.  Let cool well and then ice.
Icing:
1 pound of cream cheese (softened)
3/4 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature (3 sticks again..  I know, I know..)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/2 pounds of powdered sugar.
Cream together the cream cheese and butter.  Add the vanilla and almond extract, then add in the powdered sugar.  I would mix in a half at a time.  You can fold in the remaining coconut or top the iced cupcakes with it, Merrill likes it that way so there is adequate warning that these particular cupcakes contain coconut..  or do a bit of both.  They look pretty and taste even better.
This does make a lot of icing, but I like to eat it for breakfast. ;)

2..

Well, it’s 3 actually…
After I made this shirt for Peyton’s second birthday, I received a request from a friend to make one for her soon to be 2 year old.

I ended-up making 3 of them.



What can I say, I was groovin’.
(I’ll have to let you in on which one she chooses..)
So if you know or love someone who is turning 2, I have two 2 shirts available.  They run $10 each.
Sized 2T of course. ;)
Or, perhaps you are interested in a customized cupcake with a different digit? I can do those too!  (Price may vary.)
Just contact me: mindypitcher@comcast.net

I’m a dork..

I thought I finished Peyton’s shirt..
Then I realized that I forgot some details.  I often do that…

What’s a cupcake without sprinkles?
I mean, really?!

Scrumptious: Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes

This was the treat I made for Family Home Evening this week.
I also made them, slightly different, for Ashley’s pre-school class.  They had a letter “P" on top instead of the heart.  They are learning about the letter “P” this week.
They were really quite cute.
Quite tasty too..
I am a boxed cake mix kind of girl.  Sometimes, but not very often, I will make one from scratch, but I have perfected the box mix, and I choose to stick with it.
For these I used a triple chocolate fudge super moist mix (and it was goooood).  I usually go for the devil’s food, but Merrill isn’t a huge fan of chocolate, so I thought I would go a little lighter on him with the chocolatey-ness of the cake, since it was gonna hit him in the topping. :)
I have taken to using these nut cups instead of the traditional liner, and I love them!  I can set them all on my huge cookie sheet and fill them, baking more at a time and they turn out perfect and cute!
After I let them cool, I dipped just the tops in Ganache that hasn’t been whipped yet. 
For those who haven’t enjoyed Ganache yet, try it, tomorrow.  I would promise to bring you some, but I would probably eat it all before I got to you.
It is that good.
It’s equal parts of a good chocolate (I like semi-sweet) and whipping cream.  You heat the cream (don’t boil it) and then put your chocolate (chopped up) in it.  Let it sit for a few minutes, then stir in the chocolate, letting it all melt.  Let it cool longer in the fridge (but not so it is set up and hard).  I let mine set for about an hour, then mixed it using my mixer until it was nice and smooth.  Then I dipped the cupcakes.  I put the Ganache back in the fridge and let it chill a bit longer, then whipped it up the rest of the way and piped the tops using my favorite tip (Wilton 1M).
I took a tip from Bridget when it came to my toppers.
I melted white candy melts in my handy-dandy squeeze bottle(both are found at any craft store) and squeezed that onto waxed paper.  For the Ps I had a piece of paper with the perfect Ps to trace underneath the waxed paper, for the hearts it was all free-hand baby..  and while the chocolate was still soft, topped them.   I used crystallized sugar on my hearts (shown here) but used Valentine colored non-parelis (sprinkles) on the Ps.  Let those harden up and transfer them to the cupcakes.
They tasted so good!
In fact, there is one left in the fridge, and I have a book to finish!

Birthday Shirts..

Peyton’s second birthday is fast approaching and I wanted a special shirt for her day.
I ironed heat and bond onto my desired fabrics, then I traced the pieces for the cupcake onto the backside of the appropriate color.  I cut those out, then ironed them on, starting with the base of the cupcake.  I sewed around that, using a straight stitch.  I moved up to the frosting layer and did the same thing.
Before I ironed on the number candle or the little flame, I marked where they would be, and did a straight stitch forward and then backward a few times to make a little wick for the candle.
After that I added the number candle and flame the same way I did the other two pieces.


I made another one for my nephew, Tyler, who turned one!  (Where has this past year gone?)
I saw a plush iron on at the store, and thought, I can so make that..  or I can “sew” make that, if you want it to be “pun-ny”  or funny, if you will.
(Someone is tired..)
I used felt instead of fabric for this one, but used the same heat and bond, iron on then sew technique.  I did add a button for his little eye.

I was pretty excited with how cute they turned out!
Go here and here  for patterns.

November 7th..