Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Snug as a Bug

I have an irrational fear. I'm not sure I know very many people who are also afraid of ladybugs. I also hate animal crackers, so yes, I realize I'm weird. I suppose I could go to therapy for it, but after this many years, I've come to accept it as one of my little quirks. It makes me that much more endearing, right? I know, I'm a freak, but, it's better than being afraid of socks or pencils.

My dear friend had a baby shower last week and I got to make the cupcakes. Guess what the theme of the party was?  I chuckled inside and went to work. I have to say that despite my fear, I was rather excited when I got the invitation.

http://www.tinyprints.com/product/37331/baby_shower_invitations_lucky_lady_bugs.html
stock photo from tinyprints.com

There's something that gets me very emotional when people tell me that they're expecting a girl. I think it's because I always wanted a girl to pass down my love for working with my hands. As my husband is from a family of all boys, I didn't think my odds were very good to even get one, but I am blessed with two...and they both LOVE baking, music and art. Mommy-to-be is a dancer and choreographer and I know her little girl will be wearing a tutu and tap shoes the minute she takes her first steps (if not earlier), and I'm so excited for her.

So, enough about babies. Let's talk more about me! and the cupcakes...

Here they are. Buttery yellow cupcakes with raspberry cream filling and buttercream frosting, topped with some frightening little creatures!






Tuesday, May 7, 2013

It's a Rocky Road!

I'm sitting here with a baby boy on my lap who has just discovered the keyboard. It's rather challenging to type n , jmn n hjk nhj  nhj     n  mn  n

I was browsing the internet early this morning. And when I say early morning browsing, I mean your basic 2am insomniatic browsing.  I came across some stunningly gorgeous "Alice in Wonderland" theme cupcakes on Flickr.  I started browsing all the cupcakes from this particular artist and discovered one that looked particularly delicious: Rocky Road. It had it all: chocolate, peanut sprinkles, marshmallows and it was topped off with a generous drizzle of caramel sauce. YUM!  s I looked further at this artist's photos, I discovered that all of the cupcakes were 100% fake. No wonder this person put so much detail into every cupcake! They'll last forever, why not?

Despite the trickery, I decided to practice the Rocky Road cupcakes for my husband's birthday next week. They look so yummy, do they not? Ok, maybe not as yummy as the fake ones, but unlike those that had the perfect caramel drizzle, these actually TASTE yummy too, complete with a filling of marshmallow goodness.



While shopping for ingredients, I came across something I'd never seen before. I found, in the coffee isle near the hot chocolate mix, this little hidden treasure of fun. 02io55n.054p
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(Sorry, more baby babble.)

Apparently, they've been around for more than a year. I'm not sure why I haven't come across them before today, but they're little crunchy bits of deliciousness just like you'd find in marshmallow cocoa mix. Brilliant! When I was a kid, I never thought there were nearly enough in the packets.

So, a new menu item and a new find equals a successful day.

NOW, he falls asleep!