just a little insight into how i'm feeling today.
i'm the victim and the "common cold" is my zombie.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Just a common cold...right?
I've heard people refer to colds forever as "a common cold." Why does something so common make you feel like you're head is going to explode!! That isn't very common!
That being said, I feel like crap tonight. It's Saturday night, the Oregon Ducks just whooped on ASU and I'm up late watching Hocus Pocus because I can't sleep thanks to this "common cold!"
I think I'm just gonna hop on Twitter for a while and catch up with my Tweeps... (Is that what the kids call em? Remember, I'm getting too old for cool kid lingo.)
Tomorrow, I'll be 20 days from 30 and cupcakes will fill my kitchen, my mouth, my thighs.....
Until then, my dears, enjoy some sweet dreams for me.
Friday, October 14, 2011
I'm back...
I seemed to have taken an extended break from my blog. But, I'm back.
I'm back as a woman on the verge of 30! Not that I wasn't a woman before but 30 wasn't right around the corner when I last posted. Now, in less than a month, I will be the big THREE OHHHH!!! I'm not upset about it. A little excited, actually. 30. An adult. A real, live grown up. That's what I get to deal with soon. But, am I really ready?
Talking to other girlfriends who have entered this new age group or are about to enter, I've realized that we all have something in common. All of a sudden, we're evaluating our lives. Am I where I'm supposed to be financially? Emotionally? How do you know where you should be? Should I be married? Or at least in a long term, committed relationship? Cause I'm not. Should I be upset about that? Cause I'm not? (Mostly....)
I know that with my upcoming birthday I have a new beginning. (Never mind that I say that every year...) I really do have a new beginning. I'll no longer be in my twenties. I'm ready to leave them behind. I'm ready to start out fresh and have everything I deserve..maybe even a few things I don't deserve but want really bad.
With all that being said, I'm ready to start documenting again. My random postings with cupcakes thrown here and there (cause let's face it, I'm still obsessed..) is mostly for my sanity and emotional release but I welcome everyone to come along. I promise it will be random. It may not be funny or inspiring or anything at all. But it'll be something..
For now, I'm going to enjoy one of the last Friday nights I have as a 20something-er... lol.. I'm going to watch the first season of Walking Dead, drink a glass of wine and fold some laundry. (hopefully, I won't spill any!) See...already to old to be in my 20's - staying home on a Friday night!!
Night all..
Monday, March 21, 2011
Dulce de Leche and Vanilla Bean...
wow... I tried out a new cupcake this weekend. Two, actually, but let me talk about this vanilla bean first!
It was soo good... First off, I made the most simple Dulce de Leche imaginable. I saw some posts on many other websites about a crock pot, fix it and forget it dulce de leche. It can't get any easier than this.
One can of sweetened condensed milk (label removed) in a crock pot with water covering by an inch. Turn on low and leave for 8 hours.. That's it!! When the can cools, open it and you have a can of Dulce de Leche. Very tasty..
Vanilla Bean Cupcakes
1 ¼ Cups All Purpose Flour
½ Teaspoon Baking Powder
¼ Teaspoon Baking Soda
¼ Teaspoon Salt2 Large Eggs (room temperature)
1 Cup Sugar*
½ Cup Unsalted Butter (room temperature)
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
Seeds from 1 Vanilla Bean Pod
½ Cup Sour Cream
Dulce de Leche Frosting
3 to 4 Cups Confectioners Sugar (sifted)
½ Cup Unsalted butter (room temperature)
2 to 3 Tablespoons Dulce de Leche
about a Tblspn Vanilla extract as needed to thin out (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350°degrees and place paper liners in pans.
In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a standing mixer, beat the eggs and sugar together until light and creamy for about 2 minutes. Add the butter, vanilla bean seeds, and vanilla extract. Mix until well incorporated. Slowly add the dry ingredients until well blended. Fold in sour cream until smooth and well incorporated.
Fill each lined cup ½ to 2/3 full. Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until the cupcake bounces back, rotating halfway between baking time.
Cool completely in pans on top of a wire rack.
While cupcakes are cooling, prepare frosting. In a large mixer bowl, whip the butter until very light and fluffy. Slowly add the confectioners sugar until the butter becomes thicker and stiff. Add the Dulce de Leche and whip until combined. I ended up adding about a Tblspn of water to thin it out but it was still a little too thick and gritty from the sugar so I added a little vanilla extract to thin it some more. (Not quite a tblspn.) This made it perfect for my liking but definitely try it first before adding any extra liquid.
When cupcakes are thoroughly cooled, fill a piping bag with a small tip and the Dulce de Leche. Carefully insert the tip into the cupcake and slowly fill each cake with desired amount.
Fill another piping bag with the prepared Dulce de Leche frosting. Frost and decorate the cupcakes. I used a wilton star tip to make little stars all over the top and the shape held very well.
*instead of throwing away the pod of my vanilla bean, I added it to about 2 cups of sugar and will let it flavor the sugar to use next time. I plan on making these again very soon.
Next time i make these, i'm going to make them into a mini cupcake because they are so sweet!!
thank you to
http://theculinarychronicles.com/ for the idea!
It was soo good... First off, I made the most simple Dulce de Leche imaginable. I saw some posts on many other websites about a crock pot, fix it and forget it dulce de leche. It can't get any easier than this.
One can of sweetened condensed milk (label removed) in a crock pot with water covering by an inch. Turn on low and leave for 8 hours.. That's it!! When the can cools, open it and you have a can of Dulce de Leche. Very tasty..
Vanilla Bean Cupcakes
1 ¼ Cups All Purpose Flour
½ Teaspoon Baking Powder
¼ Teaspoon Baking Soda
¼ Teaspoon Salt2 Large Eggs (room temperature)
1 Cup Sugar*
½ Cup Unsalted Butter (room temperature)
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
Seeds from 1 Vanilla Bean Pod
½ Cup Sour Cream
Dulce de Leche Frosting
3 to 4 Cups Confectioners Sugar (sifted)
½ Cup Unsalted butter (room temperature)
2 to 3 Tablespoons Dulce de Leche
about a Tblspn Vanilla extract as needed to thin out (optional)
Preheat the oven to 350°degrees and place paper liners in pans.
In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a standing mixer, beat the eggs and sugar together until light and creamy for about 2 minutes. Add the butter, vanilla bean seeds, and vanilla extract. Mix until well incorporated. Slowly add the dry ingredients until well blended. Fold in sour cream until smooth and well incorporated.
Fill each lined cup ½ to 2/3 full. Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until the cupcake bounces back, rotating halfway between baking time.
Cool completely in pans on top of a wire rack.
While cupcakes are cooling, prepare frosting. In a large mixer bowl, whip the butter until very light and fluffy. Slowly add the confectioners sugar until the butter becomes thicker and stiff. Add the Dulce de Leche and whip until combined. I ended up adding about a Tblspn of water to thin it out but it was still a little too thick and gritty from the sugar so I added a little vanilla extract to thin it some more. (Not quite a tblspn.) This made it perfect for my liking but definitely try it first before adding any extra liquid.
When cupcakes are thoroughly cooled, fill a piping bag with a small tip and the Dulce de Leche. Carefully insert the tip into the cupcake and slowly fill each cake with desired amount.
Fill another piping bag with the prepared Dulce de Leche frosting. Frost and decorate the cupcakes. I used a wilton star tip to make little stars all over the top and the shape held very well.
*instead of throwing away the pod of my vanilla bean, I added it to about 2 cups of sugar and will let it flavor the sugar to use next time. I plan on making these again very soon.
Next time i make these, i'm going to make them into a mini cupcake because they are so sweet!!
thank you to
http://theculinarychronicles.com/ for the idea!
Monday, March 14, 2011
Cupcake Kisses
So, I have become a little obsessed with cupcakes as of late and have compiled a list of cupcakes that I want to try for one reason or another.
My question to you is:
What kind of flavor combinations would you like to try in a cupcake? Maybe a Red Vine and Cherry Coke cupcake? Maybe just a classic Vanilla Bean and Strawberry?
Give me your ideas and I will work my magic...
My question to you is:
What kind of flavor combinations would you like to try in a cupcake? Maybe a Red Vine and Cherry Coke cupcake? Maybe just a classic Vanilla Bean and Strawberry?
Give me your ideas and I will work my magic...
Monday, February 7, 2011
Cobbler isn't supposed to be this easy?
This recipe comes courtesy of my best friend, Shannon. I had mentioned to her that I wanted cobbler but it just never came out right. She said "I have a cobbler recipe that has only 3 ingredients in it but it tastes like you made it from scratch. Nobody knows.." I didn't believe her. A cobbler recipe with only 3 ingredients? NO WAY!!! Well, it's true. It's tasty, easy to make and makes your house smell SO GOOD!
Ingredients:
1 large can of fruit pie filling (I used apple pie filling)
1 stick of butter melted (you may not need to use all of it)
1 box of cake mix (either yellow or vanilla)
Directions:
preheat oven to 350 degrees
spray one medium sized, deep baking dish with cooking spray. pour in pie filling of your choice. in seperate bowl, pour cake mix and slowly add melted butter. mix the butter in the cake mix with your hands until the cake mix becomes crumbly and forms small balls. sprinkle the cake mix on top of pie filling. again, you may not use all of it. just use enough to cover the filling by maybe 1/2 inch. this recipe is so fast and simple that it really doesn't matter. it's all personal preference.
place in oven and bake until topping is golden brown. about 10-15 minutes.
serve warm! mm..with ice cream, of course! =)
Enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 large can of fruit pie filling (I used apple pie filling)
1 stick of butter melted (you may not need to use all of it)
1 box of cake mix (either yellow or vanilla)
Directions:
preheat oven to 350 degrees
spray one medium sized, deep baking dish with cooking spray. pour in pie filling of your choice. in seperate bowl, pour cake mix and slowly add melted butter. mix the butter in the cake mix with your hands until the cake mix becomes crumbly and forms small balls. sprinkle the cake mix on top of pie filling. again, you may not use all of it. just use enough to cover the filling by maybe 1/2 inch. this recipe is so fast and simple that it really doesn't matter. it's all personal preference.
place in oven and bake until topping is golden brown. about 10-15 minutes.
serve warm! mm..with ice cream, of course! =)
Enjoy!
the BEST apple cupcakes EVER!!
This has got to be the best apple cupcake I have ever tried. I've done various frostings and glazes on this cupcake including maple cream cheese and a candy caramel glaze. I bet cinnamon cream cheese would be delicious as well. This recipe is all from scratch. No box mix involved! I promise, these cupcakes, no matter what frosting you put on them, will be gone before you realise what happened.
1 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 rome apples (about 1 pound), peeled and shredded
Shred the apple instead of chopping it for even distribution in the batter and to keep the cupcakes moist.
Arrange a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 350°. Line a cupcake pan with baking liners. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth. Whisk in the oil and vanilla. Stir into the flour mixture until just combined; stir in the apples. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan until almost full. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
1 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 rome apples (about 1 pound), peeled and shredded
Shred the apple instead of chopping it for even distribution in the batter and to keep the cupcakes moist.
Arrange a rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 350°. Line a cupcake pan with baking liners. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar and granulated sugar until smooth. Whisk in the oil and vanilla. Stir into the flour mixture until just combined; stir in the apples. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan until almost full. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
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