Cupcakes

Hello all. I made cupcakes yesterday. I know, I know… Suzy homemaker. I decided to document the festivities and share it with you. First off, let me show you where all the action took place. In my awesome kitchen with stainless steal appliances, granite counter tops, two toned cabinets, and ebony stained real hardwood floors… ok… so I made all that stuff up. Here’s where the REAL action took place…

Did you spot it?  The boxed cake mix on my counter?  That leads me to this… the introduction of my VERY favorite cookbook,  101 Things To Do With a Cake Mix.  I. LOVE. THIS. COOKBOOK.

I spotted it one day in a Cracker Barrel and mentioned to my Mom that “that was my kind of baking” and what do you know?  Santa must have over heard us because I got one the very next Christmas!  It’s filled with easy recipes that all start with a cake mix and end with cookies, fancy cakes, brownies, and bars.  Now, this isn’t the Pioneer Woman’s Cooking Blog, so don’t expect anything high class and fancy.  In fact, once I got started I was missing the key ingredient in the cupcakes I was planning on making so I ended up with a fairly run-of-the-mill chocolate dollar store version of what I set out to make.  And to top it all off, look at the ONLY cupcake papers I had in my house.

Yep. Halloween in January.  My poor kids… I’m going to be the crazy Mom in my pajamas running their lunch into them at 11:15.  You know the Mom… the one even as a 2nd grader that you thought was crazy.  Speaking of my kids… here is what was going down on the other end of our kitchen/dining/livingroom while I was honing my culinary kills (please excuse the toys, no excuses, that’s just how we roll).

Did you notice my computer sitting on the livingroom floor?  Currently the only thing I’m working on is my cousin’s wedding and it’s just too chilly in my office basement so I lay there on my stomach (actually that’s where I am this very second) and work.

Coop’s attention span it about  I—-I  that long when it comes to anything except puzzles, he LOVES puzzles.  G-funk just hangs out in his exersaucer.  As long as I position him in the middle where he can see the length of the room either way (always able to see Cooper) he’s as happy as could be.

Back to cooking… my only kitchen claim to fame?  Did I mention that I can skillfully crack an egg with one hand (and in this case shoot a photo of it also)?

The real reason I bake is because I LOVE kitchen gadgets, any gadgets really, but that is a different blog post.  Here’s two current favorites…

1.  The best turner/spatula whatever you want to call it in the entire world.  It’s very thin metal with a silicone covering  on it.  I LOVE it.  (thanks Mom)

2. This handy little gadget from Pampered Chef.  I actually have two of them so there is always one clean.  My sister-in-law Brandy got me one, and Sara (that you might remember from my post about Pampered Chef Stones ) also gave me one when I ordered from her last fall.  It is GREAT for cooking ground beef and it’s made out of something (something isn’t the TECHNICAL name) that doesn’t scratch your non stick pans.  It’s great for chopping anything, but now I couldn’t live with out it when it’s time to chop a big hunk of ground beef.  Love it.

So how are the cup cakes coming?  I had to make an emergency call to my cooking lifeline to discuss the merits of Bakers Chocolate.

Yes that’s my iPhone.  Yes I still LOVE it.  Yes there will be an entire blog post coming soon devoted completely to my love affair with my iPhone.  Back to the cupcakes… what was that I said about Cooper’s attention span I—-I ?  I don’t know where he got that from.

You’re wondering why I took a photo of a matchstick?  I didn’t have a toothpick.  You know for that whole stick in the toothpick and make sure the inside of the cake is done?  So I used the closest thing I had.  Hey, it’s small… and made of wood… kind of the same?  And the finished product?

Lots of cupcakes!  And my favorite… the leftovers that wouldn’t fit in the muffin pans.  I poured it in a Longaberger bowl and baked it when the cupcakes came out.  For some reason, that left over cake is always my favorite.  That little red bowl is actually discontinued, but there are other shapes and colors.  That plate is from Cowboy Living.  It’s the Buckaroo Stoneware collection.   And because I can NEVER shoot a decent photo of my eldest child, here are some funny ones of him scarfing down a couple fresh out of the oven cupcakes.

I love that little Goober.  Go bake a cake, and have a great weekend!