earth to victoria

Last Wednesday was my little brother Noah's seventeenth birthday. Since I had to work all day and then had class after I didn't get home until eight thirty at night, but I still really wanted to make him something special for his birthday.   I made basic chocolate cake cupcakes with a chocolate buttercream frosting, and tried to make them look like little footballs.  I'll admit they're not the coolest or best looking cupcakes, but it was late and I didn't realize how low I am on baking supplies.  My brother and the rest of my family loved them though.  They tasted beyond awesome, and everyone could tell they were footballs, which is important. These were super simple, literally a four year old could make them, and with it being football season I thought they were quite festive.  

Back in October I made my first ever pull apart cake in the shape of a football for my little brother Noah's sixteenth birthday.  This "cake" was very easy to make.  I used regular-sized cupcakes pushed together to get the "boat" like shape of the football, and I didn't have to cut any of the cupcakes, they were all left alone, full-sized.   After the unfrosted cupcakes were in the football shape, I just frosted over them all and decorated the best I could.  What was nice about this pull-apart cake was there was no actual cutting of the cake itself.  If someone wanted a piece they would just pull out one of the cupcakes from underneath and for the most part, it came off as a whole.  It wasn't too messy or anything, but there was a lot of extra frosting, but I personally never complain about more frosting.   I don't have the recipe to post that I used, it was just a simple chocolate cake and chocolate frosting recipe.  I replaced ...

I made these cute Thanksgiving themed cupcakes last Thursday for the big holiday.   And they were a huge hit.  Everyone was taking pictures of and with them and adding them to social networking sites instantly.  They were so adorable and a real lot of fun to make. Here's how I did it: Corn on the Cob:  Yellow frosting, and all different colors and shades of white, yellow, and orange Jelly Beans. Peas and Carrots:  Green frosting, green jelly beans (or green M&M's, I also used these) and cut up orange Starbursts. Mashed Potatoes and Gravy: White frosting, caramel (I used coffee flavored!), and a yellow Starburst to look like a slab of butter. Turkey Leg:  Chocolate frosting, crushed graham crackers (they taste WAY better then Bran Flakes, even though the Bran Flakes look more realistic!), and melted white chocolate I squeezed onto parchment paper and then froze. Pudding:  Chocolate frosting and rainbow sprinkles! I hope this ...

My boyfriend Jake turned twenty-one and I wanted to share what I made him, chocolate coffee cupcakes with a whipped chocolate cream frosting with strawberries atop.  Also coffee and cheese filled croissants. Ingredients: 2 cups sugar 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 3/4 cup Cocoa Powder 2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 2 eggs 1 cup buttermilk or sour milk (I used one cup regular milk and one Tablespoon vinegar to make my own sour milk) 1 cup brewed strong black coffee (I used instant coffee) 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoon almond extract Instructions: Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Set aside. In mixing bowl mix eggs, buttermilk, oil, and almond extract together. Gradually add in dry ingredients.  Then mix in hot/boiling coffee. You should have a thin batter. Pour batter evenly into prepared cupcake tins. Bake for 30 t...

I'm an aunt!  Yesterday my sister Brittany had her first baby boy, Brandon. He's absolutely perfect.  Beyond perfect if that's possible. I made these cupcakes special for the baby's arrival.  They were zucchini with a vanilla butter-cream frosting.  Nothing too fancy, but everyone loved them! I also brought Brandon a Peter Rabbit book and stuffed Peter Rabbit toy.  And got my sister a mom Wind and Fire bracelet and various candies from Lick .

For my boss' birthday I decided to make cupcakes I could bring in for everyone at the jewelry store.  I made these high heel cupcakes using Milano cookies, pretzel sticks, and a whole lot of homemade cream cheese and chocolate frosting. For Cake: 2 cups sugar 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 3/4 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 4 oz unsweetened chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch pieces 1 cup boiling water 8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted 2 large eggs 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 1/2 cup sour cream Preheat oven to 350 F.  Stir the sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt together in a mixing bowl. Set aside. Put the cut up chocolate in a large mixing bowl and pour the boiling water over it.  Let stand for 2 minutes, then whisk until smooth.  Whisk in the butter, then the eggs, whisking after each addition until smooth. Whisk in the vanilla and sour cream. Whisk in the flour and sugar mixture in 3 separate additions, whisking until smooth after eac...

Homemade Rock Candy, you will need: 1/2 cup water 3/4 cup light corn syrup 2 cups granulated sugar 2 teaspoons flavoring extract blue gel food coloring candy thermometer Instructions: Line sheet pan with foil, and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray/spray butter. In a saucepan combine the water, corn syrup, and granulated sugar. Place the pan over medium-high heat, and stir until the sugar dissolves.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then stop stirring.  Insert a candy thermometer. Continue to cook the candy without stirring until it reads 285°F on the thermometer. Do not overcook it, or it will start to take on a caramel color. Once at 285°F, take the pan off the heat and let it sit for a few moments, until bubbles stop breaking on the surface. Add the flavoring, I used raspberry extract and food coloring, I used Neon blue by McCormick, and stir everything together. Pour the candy onto the prepared baking sheet; tilt the sheet pan back and fo...