Week 13, Happy Father's Day

Again, thank goodness for holiday's. It gives me purpose for cupcakes and creativity. This week I can not take credit for my creativity. My friend Heidi, in Switzerland, sent me a link with perfectly decorated Father's Day cupcakes. (Thanks Heidi) Brilliant idea. This week, it was up to my hubby to determine what kind of cupcake he wanted. Let's guess........chocolate! Next week, no chocolate. I am sick of cleaning up cocoa powder off of my cupboards. It's so light and dusty. Seeing that my 2yr old loves to help with the baking, the cocoa seems to spread everywhere.

So I focused on the decorations instead. As you will see in the photograph's (yes I finally took pictures again) I made little BBQ's out of the cupcakes. I had so much fun in the candy isle, trying to pick out the best disguise for hot dogs and little mini steaks. So cute. By the way, the steaks are caramels that I mushed and shaped with my fingers and then a dab of icing in the middle. Upon first glance I know they don't look so hot but this week was fun. It was also a wonderful surprise for Tyson and my Dad. Manly cupcakes. The picture had gray grills, but who the heck knows how to make gray icing???? Brown was my sub. Thanks again Heidi, great idea:)

Week 12 of 52:) Cupcake Challenge

Sooooo short and simple this week. Half a cheat, I made a double batch last week and froze them to use this week. I did make fresh icing. Cream cheese icing. CRAPPPPP AGAIN. Too much cream cheese, and butter, I think. Anyways, I made them on Monday night when Tyson was away. My Mom came over and my toddler declared that we should have a party. Brilliant idea. Girls only party, according to my toddler, had to include: presents, balloons, dancing and CUPCAKES. ahhhhhh so sweet. Any smart parent (I just figured out) has balloons on hand at all times. Luckily we had pink ones. The presents included a new outfit from Grandma and borrowed DVD's from the library. So we ate cupcakes and danced the night away. Ok maybe not the night, but at least we rocked out to Bobs and Lo Lo for a solid 45min before bath time:)

Week 11, Birthday's Again!

Thank goodness for birthday's and holidays or I would be a boring Bob for cupcake making. This weekend was my Mom's birthday. June 5th. Cupcakes, yeah!
I first want to say, is there ever going to be a week where I don't eat at least one cupcake????? Please cupcake God make me stop eating them. Sometimes there not even that good, I just eat them. This week, posed an especially big issue with the cupcake eating because I made them on my Mom's birthday and then I didn't see her. She went away. Yeah for you Mom, bad for me and my hips. My Mom had requested earlier on for chocolate-chocolate cupcakes. I want to perfect my chocolate icing anyways. The icing wasn't so hot...... AGAIN! I put it on real thick though, in hopes that you may just be overwhelmed with sugar and disregard that, 'hmmmm there just is something missing', feeling. Can I swear on hear? Of course I can, it's my blog::)))) *##$$#$## ps for future reference that means shit, crap f*#k. Sorry Mom and Dad. I am getting tired of not having a perfect icing all the time. Its been almost 3 months. So no pictures. My Mom seemed to like them though. Thank goodness. Promise by week 52 mom, I'll have the best chocolate-chocolate cupcakes you could ever imagine. Sigh!

Week 10 -Birthday Bonanza!

As you know it was my baby girl's first birthday this week. Let's just say the preparations lasted the whole week through. Cupcake prep started on thurs evening when I decided I would make the butterflies. We don't own a microwave so melting coloured chocolate and then putting it in pastry bags, is really hard. The chocolate is so flippin hot I had to wear an oven mitt for the procedure. Hence, my tracing skills (of my beautiful butterfly outline) was a little wobbly. 22 purple and pink butterflies later, I realize I have to store them in the fridge until Sun. Ummmm crap, where will they go??? So I clear out the top shelf of our fridge (probably didn't need or know I had half of it's belongings anyways) and gently place the 3 trays, 22 butterflies, AKA 44 wings in the top shelf. Ahhhhhh
I decide to make the cupcakes the day before the party. I don't like to do this, because I hate stale cupcakes, but time was of an essence. So of course I squeezed in it between 2yr old haircut, lunch/naps, and a visit with friends to our house. Of course I fit it in:) Oh, I almost forgot to mention that the 3 dozen no sugar carrot cupcakes turned into 1 dozen carrot and 2 dozen chocolate. (If you know my husband you would know why. For those that don't, basically he is a choco-holic. More than any chic I have ever known:) Love you honey but you love chocolate more than me, and that's a hard one. So somehow he convinced me to make chocolate, and I did) 1 dozen carrot, complete, no worries. 2 dozen devils food chocolate no worries. I did however manage to complete destroy our kitchen in about 1hr. Hubby had left me a lovely note saying how clean the kitchen was for our arriving guests and I was not to mess it up. Ummmm opps again! So our guests arrive. Best friend Richelle, husband Dale and daughter Ella. I apologize for the chaos called our kitchen. Little did I know that the chaos was just beginning. If you know Richelle, and you know me, then you put those personalities in a 2 and 1 yr old and you know the visit is going to be fall off your chair funny, and a little busy. Which it was. Just to paint a quick funny picture in your head of the visit, here are a few highlights.
-My 2 yr old is on day 4 of potty training. There were many trips to the potty that involved 2 adults, 2+kids. Musical potty seats and lots of children acrobatics on the potty. A few funny noises here and there potty style as well:)
-Lack of meal planning meant we had a 3 course meat meal. Tuna, sausage and chicken. Sorry kids, no veggies today! (Let me say though, it was delicious and I highly recommend it)
-Me making the icing for the cupcakes in between meat meal and bath times= more chaos in the kitchen.
- 3 kids and 4 adults eating = messy table and messy floor. Don't worry though our busy crawling 1yr old treated it like a buffet.
-2 toddlers in the tub. Need I say more here.
It was so much fun and so funny. I loved it. Made me way more relaxed for the upcoming birthday party with the family. 17 adults and 10 kids:)

Back to the cupcakes. I put them in the freezer overnight to hopefully preserve any freshness in them. Decorated them around noon. Then put the butterflies on them. Had my dad sort the smarties to pick out all the pink ones for me. Thanks Dad. I think they turned out great. They were so pretty, I just may make them again. Maybe, some day, ask me in 20 weeks or so:) Again, I have no idea what to make this week. Ask me in a few days.

Week 9 of 52-Boring Bob

Made cupcakes, Tues May 23rd. This week is exactly that, borrrring. I had to get the cupcakes in, but didn't want to do anything to detailed because I was getting ready for the birthday party. So I decided to perfect the vanilla cupcake and vanilla icing. Soooooo this is not my strong point. The vanilla were boring, and the icing was just ok. Could of been that I had to use brown sugar for the cupcakes because I didn't have any regular. My husband thought the cupcake and the icing tasted like butter and brown sugar. Sounds nice, but really it wasn't. It was cheap grocery store material. I guess I will have to do these ones again, even though I was hoping I wouldn't have to. My family thinks vanilla is boring. Chocolate is where it's at! Oh well, I want to perfect all angles. No pictures for boring bob week:(
Stay tuned for next week, BIRTHDAY BONANZA:)

Week 8 of 52, Cupcake Challenge

I know I know, 'I will post immediately after my next bake'. oppss sorry. Life happens, and apparently life is busy lately. Not to worry, the challenge is still happening. Every week!!! Ok, down to business. Week 8. Trial run cupcakes for my daughters first birthday. I make vanilla cupcakes with chocolate icing. Dumb mistake number one.Using whole wheat flour for vanilla cupcakes. Makes them taste like a gross healthy version, that shouldn't have icing on top, but rather......... fruit or something. BLA.
Oh well, this week was all about the decorations. Check out the photo's. I made little monarch butterflies for the top. Used melted chocolate (coloured), and filled ziplock bags with the icing.  Then drizzled the chocolate over wax paper butterfly designs. They go in the fridge to harden, and are topped on the icing with little smarties. I loved them.
NOTES: They are a super pain to make. Take loads of time. Holding the zip-lock bags was way too hot, I will use a icing tool next time. They are worth the pain, I think, because they look so cute in the end.
I dedicated my cupcakes this week to my friend who has been helping me a ton with the Pampered Chef.
Remember: Cupcakes made, and then get them out of the house, so I don't become a cupcake.

Week 7 of 52

So I am keeping up with all the baking. No probs. I have never been down to the 11th hour or anything. I do seem to have an issue writing about it though;) Next time I'll write immediately after baking (or try). So week 7. Let me start with saying a quote from my husband. As the children are running/jumping/crying/pushing/playing all over the living room with my husband stuck somewhere in the middle of that. He looks at me in the kitchen (as i am baking the cupcakes this week) and says 'so you pick the most inconvenient time to bake your cupcakes. Can we talk about that?'. I smiled, and realized I was/am picking the most inconvenient time to bake the cupcakes. Maybe that's the most convenient time for me?? AKA I need a break from mommy world. OR maybe i bake best under pressure? My thoughts this week are to try out these theories. Also to try to see what I can produce with no pressure and lots of free time. (this may not happen until closer to week 50!

This week: Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate icing. I know chocolate again! Who could ever get sick of chocolate though. I made the cupcakes Tues morning before my Pampered Chef meeting. Yes I decided to join Pampered Chef and become a consultant. It's awesome, the host rewards are awesome, there is great support, fits my schedule and I love the products. (there's my new business plug, want to host a show?? contact me, great host rewards, tons of free and discounted products. You can even have a catalog show (no actual show) but all the same benefits.) ANYWAYS, i thought i would bring them to the meeting. Remember, get them out of my house!  8 Chocolate cupcakes and 24 mini chocolate cupcakes. Perfect swirl on top. Not so perfect tasting icing. I doubled my 'perfect' chocolate icing recipe and it was crap. Tyson (my husband) the cupcake connoisseur, thought it was fine, but he loves anything with sugar. So I took the rest to the meeting (minus the 2.5 i saved for my parents) and left them there.
NOTES AND THOUGHTS THIS WEEK:
Continue to make cupcakes at inconvenient times, kinda of funny as it happens
Try decorating ideas more
Re-try chocolate icing
Again no pics, too rushed. Next week I promise.