OH YEAH

also, wow how on earth did I forget this?! I'm famous!!!

ok, so maybe not famous. BUT I did put into a magazine!

my cousin's awesome wedding was published in Alaska Bride magazine, and my cupcakes got a picture and a little shout out.

http://www.alaskabride.com/_pages/local_weddings/sf_11/kristen_jeffrey.html

yay!

cheater "fancy" nutty devil's food cupcakes

so today was a pretty lazy saturday, except for making cupcakes... jeff asked if I would make dessert if he ordered dinner, so I agreed- I always want treats and I was pretty bored anyway.

I was trying to think up something fun, and I remembered I had a boxed cake mix in the pantry. it's actually been a while since I've used one, so I figured why not? my problem is I always have to screw around recipes and add something or find a new/weird way to make it.

so obviously I couldn't just make a plain ol' devil's food cake (or cupcakes). instead I decided to do devil's food cupcakes w/nutella filling, peanut butter-cinnamon frosting, and chocolate butterscotch swirl on top. see, I told you- I can't just leave things alone.



since I just used a box, there's not really much of a recipe. just follow the instructions on the box, and then:

• fill cupcake liners about halfway up w/batter, then spoon in about 1/4 teaspoon of nutella, cover nutella w/just a little more batter.
• bake according to instructions on box (about 20 minutes).

Frosting:

• about 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• 3 to 4 cups powdered sugar (depending on how thick/thin you want the frosting)
• 1tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• approx. 1/4 cup milk
• cream all ingredients together on medium in stand mixer until creamy and fluffy.
  

for the chocolate on top I melted about 2/3 cup of a mix of regular semi-sweet chocolate chips and butterscotch chips in the microwave for about 20 seconds at a time, stirring, until it was all smooth and evenly melted. spoon it into a plastic zip-top bag, clip off a tiny end to pipe onto the cupcakes.



and yeah, that's about it! I only tasted a half of a test cupcake, cause the rest are for dessert, but I'm pretty pleased w/the outcome.

ni hao, again!

first off, can I just say I sort of want to learn Mandarin now?
secondly, I know I said this was going to happen yesterday, but I had to go see monster trucks. so sue me...

anyhow, CAAAAKE! honestly there's not really too much to write about these bad boys, since I did a bit of an intro friday night. they were super fun to make, and not nearly as melt-down inducing as some other cake projects I've embarked upon.

first, the cupcakes... these were more an accessory to the cake, but just as yummy!


then the actual cake-the frosting ended up getting a little crackle-y in some places, which kind of bummed me out, but I think it still turned out pretty cute... even though I made Kai-lan look like she ate a few too many donuts before her big appearance on cake... haha.






close-up shot... it'd been a while since I've exercised my frosting drawing skillzzz, but I think it turned out ok.
















the most important thing, though is that the "client" is happy. judging by her little excited smile, I think it all worked out.

M is for new blog! wait, no it's not...

So this is my blog, people. I'll take this time to introduce myself to all you sugar addicts out there in the land of the internets. My name is Laura, and I like cupcakes. A lot. I love making them, decorating them, EATING THEM(nomnomnom), you know... the usual... Wow, this is really starting to sound more like a support group than a blog post... Oh well, I suppose we'll see where this takes us.

Anyway, I'm pretty much always thinking about cake in one way or another. What kind of cake can I make next? What kind of frosting? What can I turn into cupcakes? When's the next time I get to eat cupcakes? That sort of thing. Basically the point of this blog is to share ideas, get ideas, and show you what has become of ideas I've had.

So let's get down to business, and explain the title of this post... Lately I've been thinking HOLY CRAP I CAN'T BELIEVE IT'S MAY ALREADY! That's where the M came in. M is for May aaaaaand Monsters! Which is what my latest project was. A good friend of mine has a little girl who just turned one and she loooooves Elmo. So for her party I made Elmo and Cookie Monster cupcakes. As a lover of cupcakes and Muppets, I was really excited to try these bad boys out. I'd actually been wanting to try out some Sesame Street cupcakes for a while so I was happy to have this opportunity. Soooo without further ado, here they are! Happy monster viewing!