Friday, December 28, 2012

Travel Case

Like I said before I get volunteered to do a lot of cupcakes. Which I have turned into - let me use your kitchen. It's much more fun to make cupcakes for people when you get to mess up their kitchen instead! :) I looked for the perfect case for a long time. My mother found this one at an antique store in Lansing. I'm big on vintage type stuff. Aprons, luggage, etc. (my engagement ring.....cough....cough). 
It started when I packed up for Matt & Erin's wedding. Everything I needed fit in it just perfect and now I take it with me everywhere. 

The case

It's got a nice shelf tray thing on the top to hold all of my little items. So here we see sprinkles, red and peppermint because the last ones I made were chocolate peppermint swirl. Some red food coloring. I like to drip it in the piping bag before I add the frosting, it gives it a cool swirl effect. A clothes pin, to close up powdered sugar bags. 2 different tips, both jumbo sized. Peppermint extract for flavor. And some jumbo and regular sized cupcake liners. I use so many of them that I don't even bother to buy the pretty ones any more. 



 In the box we have (and this is limited supply because I was using most of my stuff at the time) spatulas, of course. Disposable piping bags; these come in boxes of 10 or 15 and they tear off one by one, super handy. My ice cream scoop type thing from Gordons used to fill pans. Also, jello! You can basically put jello in any cupcake or frosting and it will make it that flavor. Neat, huh?!

So there you have it. Travel case extraordinaire. Do you have a travel case for any of your hobbies? If I didn't make cupcakes it would be a travel case full of gnomes and unicorns. You never know when you'll need a little magic on your side. 



TagLine*TravelocityGnome!





Thursday, December 27, 2012

Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Christmas...

OH OH OH! That's Ho Ho Ho backwards because I am OH so sleepy today. How was your Christmas?? Was it awesome? Or epic? Or boring? Did you get all of the great swag you asked for?

Mine was wonderful. I was so tired on Monday by the time we got back from Petoskey that I fell right asleep. And yes I'm one of those grown ups that will toss and turn all night on Christmas Eve because I'm to excited to sleep.

My family has this really great tradition where we wake up, open our stockings, have breakfast and then we get to open presents. This year I tried to bypass the breakfast part because I wasn't hungry but my mother said we would have to wait for gifts until I was. You bet your buttons I got to cooking! After breakfast we went to the barn to feed Miss Muffin and then we finally got home to open gifts.


This is what we look like when we go to the barn on Christmas (we stay in our jammies all day!). Justin got new Muck boots that he was so excited to try out in the snow. 


I got all sorts of really great stuff on Christmas. One of the jokes being that Justin got me a Creme Brulee torch and my mother got us 2 first aid kits. :) She's smart like that. I also got 5 or 6 really awesome new aprons!! I love aprons. I collect them actually, but I wear them all the time. That's going to have to be a new post in itself. I want to show them off! 

Back to the cupcakes: ----

I made Dark Chocolate Peanut butter cupcakes for a friend to take to work. She works at UPS on the early morning shift loading packages to make sure we all get our Christmas goodies on time (thank you thank you thank you!!!!). They were ecstatic to have a sweet treat so early in the morning. 

Here's the cheater version. :) It was sort of a last minute thing and I was being a bum. You don't always have to make things from scratch to make them taste homemade. :)


I started with this. A box of cake mix. GASP! Blah blah blah, yes sometimes I'm a lazy cheater but there are ways to make them taste more homemade. 
So read the normal directions - add 1 more egg, use milk instead of water and melted butter instead of oil. Voila! Better boxed cake mix. 
See, 4 eggs :)

Also, if you don't have one of these super awesome spatula blades for your KitchenAid you must get one. And if you don't have a KitchenAid you need one of those too. I use mine for everything.


I even took a break for some creative photo time.


 I also caught Justin playing his new drum shirt. All those little drums and symbols make noise and there is a speaker box sewn into the shirt. Pretty cool until you hear the racket it makes! 


 Back to the cupcakes - mix it real good. Scoop 3/4 full until your lined cupcake pans and bake. I use a 2 oz. ice cream type scoop that I got at Gordon foods. it's really handy. 


More random pictures. This is my Christmas apron :)


On to the frosting. Get out your peanut butter. I use so much of it in my house that I buy it like this. And I love it! The other day I wanted to put peanut butter on my pizza but didn't because Justin thought I was being weird. 


Mix your room temp butter & peanut butter together and then slowly add your powdered sugar. I have no measurements for these because I wing it. always. Sorry. 


After your cupcakes cool and your frosting is mixed you get to pipe them. I use a Wilton 1M tip. One of the giant ones. I like the shape they give. 


After all is said and done your cuppy cakes should come out looking something like this!

 I didn't have chocolate syrup for drizzle so I melted some chocolate chips in the microwave & put them in a Ziploc bag to drizzle.  Then I topped them with mini baby cute adorable reeses cups. 





This is how I like to eat my cupcakes. I rip the bottom off, squish it on top and eat it like a sammich. Nom!







TagLine*ThisBlogTook3DaysToMakeSoEnjoyIt!










Saturday, December 22, 2012

We're having a very white Christmas!

First off, I'm glad you all survived the apocalypse. Hope you came out stronger than ever. I didn't get into the hype of it. Although my favorite Mayan excuse was "Well, it was pretty cold and snowy there for a few minutes, so we were kind of right". And boy did they get that right!

I even talked Justin and my mother into opening juuusssst one present in case. Wouldn't want all that hard work shopping and wrapping to go to waste. I got a great new apron (I'll take pics eventually) and a Pandora bead shaped like Michigan. :)

Here in Gaylord we ended up getting almost 19" overnight. We literally went from no show to hella crazy snow just like that. It started on Thursday so I closed up shop early so I could get out of the mess and go home. And by Friday we had so much that it took us until almost 1 pm to get the cars cleared off and get out of the driveway. Also, I didn't have to go to work. Thank God we have a 4-wheel drive Blazer!


This is our house on Friday morning. Looks cute even buried in snow :)


 A shot of downtown


This is our front porch, sort of :)  


Had to get the big broom out to clean off the cars. The poor Moments Mobile is still pretty covered. I gave up, it was hard work.  


Justin, snow blowing the driveway. Me, cleaning cars. Mind you he rolled out of bed and went out in his PJ's  when I put my carhart overalls & coat on, gloves & a hat. He's crazy.  


So there you have it snow-pocalypse 2012. Anyone else have any crazy weather like we did? 



Tagline*SnowDAYS! 

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Oh the weather outside is wonderful!

Mother Nature finally got into the holiday spirit! It started snowing in Gaylord around 2 am (or so I assume because I was sleeping) and it's been snowing ever since.

I got a late start today because we had to do the driveway and then I needed to run out to the barn and the post office. I think everyone must have finally made it out of their driveway the same time we did because the roads were crazy!!

I love to look at snow. I don't really love the work that goes into it but I sure do like how it covers the trees and roads.

Here's a picture of my view at the barn (I stayed inside because I was in my nice work clothes).
Love those two. 


Apparently I am in an 'I love everything' mood today. Maybe it's because my boss just called and said I could close up early today! Yay! Guess I'll sign off before I make any of you gag or overdose on my love fest. :)


TagLine*HighFiveMotherNature

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Christmas Cupcakes

There's this new tradition forming that whenever a friend of one of my friends says cupcakes I get volunteered for something. This time we made 80 cupcakes for an event at Saint Mary's. Ignore the fact that in the pictures I look terrible, we had traveled to Missouri and back over the weekend, got home at 2 am on Monday, I worked all day and theeennnnn went and make cuppy cakes. I was a little tired to say the least.

This was towards the end. We made 2 gingerbread cake people, cookies & cream cupcakes, chocolate peppermint cupcakes, and orange cranberry spice cupcakes. 

See, tired. But still happy that I got to spend time with the girls.  

All cute and decorated.  

One Ginger Man. :)  


Recipe: Orange Cranberry Spice Cupcakes
2 1/2 cups bleached all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup milk 
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups dark brown sugar 
1 bag of dried cranberries

Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl, set aside. Bet sugar and butter in a mixed until well mixed and fluffy. Add eggs & vanilla. Alternate adding dry ingredients and milk until well mixed. Add cranberries & mix.
Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, check with the jiggle & poke method and continue to bake if needed. 

For frosting:
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup butter
3 teaspoon orange extract
2-3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

In a standing mixer fitted with a whisk, mix together sugar and butter. Mix on low speed until well blended and then increase speed to medium and beat for another 3 minutes or so. Until it gets fluffy :)
Add orange extract and cream and continue to beat on medium speed for 3 minute more, adding more cream if needed for fluffy consistency.

Give it a try :)




Tagline*SpiceIsNice

Advice from the Over Planner

Back in the day I didn't plan anything. I went with the flow and was super mellow about whatever happened. Literally nothing bothered me. Until, I ended up with some super crummy roommates that were never sure if they'd be able to pay their bills, make it to work on time or cook a meal on their own. I grew up pretty quickly when I became a pseudo parent to this grown up children. Always making sure I have enough extra money in my bank account to cover rent so our landlord wouldn't get mad, waking them up and even doing their laundry so they'd make it to work. What a joke! Needless to say, after all that ridiculousness my carefree attitude went out the window and I cracked down on being organized.
I'm organized to the point now that I own not one, not two, but THREE planners, plus at least 2 calendars. I even made a 'Christmas Binder' this year that included my mailing list, my recipes, my gift receipts and more. I thought I was a little over obsessed when I started putting it together but it really came in handy. My gifts were wrapped the first week of December and I've been laying low since then.

So what does any of this have to do with cupcakes?

Recently I had a gal ask for some advice because she had agreed to make cupcakes for a friends wedding and had never made an order that large. This is what I told her:

1. Over plan. (duh)
2. Make a list of everything you are going to need at least a week in advance. That way you can keep checking it, catching things you missed, and add things you remember at the last minute.
3. Check your recipes and your kitchen before you head to the store. Seems like a no brainer but I do it all the time and when I get home I'll have thought I had plenty of sugar and then find none. If there is nothing more I hate more than going to the store it's going to the store twice.
4. Bake a day in advance. Who wants to have to get up at 5 in the morning to make cupcakes? Not me. You can always place a layer of plastic wrap over the cupcakes and that will keep the moisture in.
5. Wait to decorate until you get there. I would be a nervous wreck if I have to transport 200 frosted cupcakes over 2 hours. No way Jose!
6. That also means you'll have to make extra. Frosting that is. You can never have too much frosting. And better to have too much than too little.
7. Take a helper, but be very clear about what you need/want them to do. My mother is the best sous chef I've ever had (sorry, Justin) but I still have to explain what I want. I have a particular way of doing things so as I'm piping things she can be adding the decorations; not until I've explained how I want them to look tho.
8. Give yourself extra time. If you have time left over you can go get your hair done, if you are pressed for time you might moss the wedding. Your choice.
9. Do not wear your nice clothes to set up. Or do. Maybe I'm the only one that always ends up covered in sugar and frosting?
10. Be nice to the kitchen staff. Sure you're the cupcake gal and everything looks awesome but you may need their help doing dishes, mixing more frosting or cutting your piping bags. No one wants to help a jerk.

So there you have it. Now I hope to see you all out there catering your friends weddings soon! :)



Tagline*Don'tBeACupcakeJerk

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

I feel like I need to catch up...

.. and show you pretty pretty pictures. :)




Maple Bacon. (My boss hates when I make these but everyone else loves it!)

 These were for a birthday party. The only request was that they looked girly. Nailed it!

Snickers Cupcakes. Nom Nom Nom 
 

Vanilla Cupcakes - See they got prettier. And less turd-ish. :)

 4th of July Fireworks Cupcakes!!!!

I had to make 26 dozen cupcakes for a Senior Open House and this is what it looked like. I want one if these racks for my house.  

My kind of humor....

Red Velvet lovelies

Chocolate & Vanilla for a school concession stand.


The wonderful Muffin again...

 It's almost Christmas time!!!



Tagline*PicturesYo!


I'm a list maker

I'm a list maker for sure! Plus I leave lists for Justin and make lists about my lists. I have list lust.

This is an early on list of a few of the flavors I offer. I found this picture in my computer and thought it was kind of cute.


To me it looks old, like when you scan your grandparents recipes so you don't lose them. Shrug. Also, not my handwriting. I still write like a 13 year old boy. 



Tagline*LittleManHands

Surprise Cupcake! Err.. PARTY!

Back in April this boy I kind of like had a birthday. So being as crazy as I am I took on the task of organizing a surprise party. I started by emailing all of his friends/family.... which sounded something like this:

Oh, Hello!
So here's the scoop. I'm a putz of a girlfriend and my life is running behind.
Justin's bday is Wednesday, April 4th. I'd love to get some people together to go out for his birthday dinner. But on the hush hush.
Surprise! All the people you happen to know are at the same restaurant. Weee!
Feel free to invite/bring other people. Just let me know when you RSVP about it. No one wants to stand and eat. 
The Place :
Red Mesa Grill
117 Water Street
Boyne City
The Time:
Your arrival at 7 PM would be appreciated. I will make a reservation and the arrangements ahead of time, you'll just have to tell them you are there for Justin's bday when you show up.
We will be there around 7:20-30 (giving myself a few extra minutes for traffic and hair emergencies, and also some time for you slackers . Have I told you how much I love you? )
A favor: I may need one of you to take a GINORMOUS cupcake over with you so it can be there before we are. It may or may not be filled with ice cream but it will certainly be made mostly out of Guinness.
An RSVP by Sunday April 1st (no fools, yo.) would be stupendous.
Thanks! You're the best!


His friends and family but on their best and we had ourselves a party! But not until after some cupcake magic by yours truly. I called my boss (which I never do because she's a very busy lady) and asked her to cover for me one afternoon. Then I went and got my bake on. Making the largest cupcake I could! MUAH HA HA (evil villain laugh).
It took a lot of people to pull this off. The girls picked up the cupcake and took it to the restaurant, his friends kept their mouths shut, and I got fancy. Oh, and Justin got surprised!
We were even late because I forgot to tell him we had a reservation so he was taking his sweet a** time to get ready.



Surprise face! (Justin later said that he thought we had to eat dinner in a room full of small children because every one was crouched down and hidden). 


Mondo Cupcake. I was going to make it Guinness and Bailey's but at the last minute he said the Whopper cupcakes were his favorite. 


The gang! You guys are the best!


End of the evening picture. Justin dancing with our favorite bartender, Mike. And Karin, off to the side ready to pee her pants :)
















Tag line*PeePants!


Let's get married! I mean....

Yup, my life revolves around weddings. I work at Lasting Memories Bridal Boutique, I bake cupcakes like a boss, and Justin and I own a Photo Booth and Photography business.

I eat, sleep, dream, breathe weddings.

So of course when my bestest friend in the whole wide world asked me to bake for his wedding I said "YES!".

At first it was just 80 cupcakes, then it was 80 cupcakes and a cake, then it was 80 cupcakes and a cake that looked like a tree stump. Suuuuuuuuuuureeeee, yeaaahhh, I can handle that. A tree stump? Oh dear lord.

I had never ever ever worked with fondant before but I have watched a lot of cake boss. Where do I buy a giant roller thing? Oh wait, Justin says I can't have one of those because we don't have enough room. FINE! I'll do it myself, (and by do it myself I mean, please help me! please help me!)

Here here it goes, 80 cupcakes in Red Velvet, Vanilla, Chocolate Peanut Butter and Triple Chocolate.
(plus a tree stump cake.....)


The cake table, in all it's gooey glory. 

Look's like a tree stump to me. When I was in the process of making it Tiffiney thought I had put a salamander on the side of it. Then she cried because she thought I was offended. Pregnant people are crazy!


Birds eye view. I loved the little mushrooms. 


The bride and groom scoping it out. 


Up close and personal, and yummy. 




Tag line, BAM!

What's in a name?

Muffin's Cupcakes?

So you make muffins too? Nope. No way, no how. Not that it's a big deal, but cupcakes are prettier. :)

My horse DTA Dream Catcher got the nickname Fluffy Muffin many years ago which got shortened and turned into Fluffin, Muffin or Fluffy. Some days, depending on her mood we would call her Dreamy Nightmare. Luckily we didn't have to go with that one very often.

So essentially when I was trying to figure out what I would call my 'cupcake stand' I came up with Muffin's Cupcakes.

And thus, this was born......



And here's a picture of Miss Muffin herself, just because I love her oh so much!




Hmmm...... this is the awkward part... how do I end a blog post? Help me come up with a tag line or something. All ideas welcome.