Cupcake in a Jar

Source: mycakies.blogspot.com via Sunny on Pinterest

I think trend of putting cupcakes in a jar is adorable. They look almost too pretty to eat. The lovely blog Cakies shares how to bake and put together these delicious Red Velvet Cupcakes in a Jar with easy step-by-step instructions. These would be perfect for picnics and for when you are throwing a party.

Whatcha got Cooking?

Source: marthastewart.com via Sunny on Pinterest

We have been so busy the last few weeks that we haven't had any free time and as a result we have not been spending any time in the kitchen. That is changing this weekend we plan on trying a few different recipes. Maybe in a few weeks we will get ambitious enough to give High Hat Cupcakes a try.

Sunny & Star

Gigi's Cupcakes

During our last shopping trip we went to Gigi's Cupcakes. We had seen the cute cupcake bakery on previous trips but had never ventured inside. It really is a cute place and they have the cutest delivery van ever! Once inside it was such a tough decision to narrow down their mouth watering options to just six cupcakes. Every cupcake looked so scrumptious and decadent that we really could not have made a bad decision.

So we narrowed it down and brought home the following six cupcakes:


Starting with the back row we have Strawberry Shortcake, Italian Cream Cake, Orange Dreamsicle, Wedding Cake, Scarlett's Red Velvet, and Texas Milk Chocolate.





If you want to learn more about Gigi's cupcakes check out their website. If you have a location near you, definitely give it a try. I can't wait to get another one of those Orange Dreamsicle Cupcakes.

Star

Chocolate Cupcakes

We got this recipe from Glorious Treats Blog and while our didn't turn out nearly has pretty as Glory's we had to share this recipe with you because not only is it easy but it is pure delicious chocolate Heaven. The cupcakes have a little bit of a brownie texture. And the frosting is so creamy. We will most definitely be making this recipe again. In fact we are already looking forward to the next time.

Ingredients Cake
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

Frosting
1/2 cup (1 stick/8 Tablespoons) butter, at room temperature
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (always use pure vanilla extract if possible)
4 cups powdered confectioners sugar
1 to 4 Tablespoons heavy cream, heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa

Directions
1. Line muffin tin with paper liners. Heat oven to 350*F. In a large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. 2. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for one minute. Stir in boiling water. The batter will be thin. 3. Fill liners 2/3 full with batter. Bake cupcakes approximately 22 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a wire rack.

Directions for Cream Cheese Frosting
1. Place butter in a large mixing bowl and blend slightly. Add cream cheese and blend until combined, about 30 seconds.
2. Add vanilla and cocoa. Mix until completed blended.
3. Add powdered sugar. Blend until fluffy.
4. Add the cream until you get the consistency you want. We didn't use any. 5. Frost cupcakes. These cupcakes were a wonderful treat. We made them for a family-get-together and they quickly disappeared. The recipe made 24 cupcakes.

Happy baking,
Sunny & Star

Happy Birthday To Me

This past Saturday was my birthday. I always feel conflicted when it comes to my birthday. I like receiving presents and being taken out to dinner. But I've never been a fan of getting older. Although I usually get mistaken for younger than I actually, thinking about where I am in my life and what I had hoped to have accomplished at this point and what I still would like to do overwhelms me. I had a good birthday this year. It was a quiet day. I started the day by sleeping in. I received some very nice presents. I baked some delicious chocolate cupcakes. My sisters got me dinner at from one of my favorite restaurants and got me some chocolate ice cream. We had other family events, aside from my birthday, happening this weekend so there was a lot of visitors from out of town. Over all I had a good day. Maybe next year will be even better. How do you usually spend your birthday? Do you have any big plans for your upcoming birthday or did you just celebrate?

♥ Sunny

via: We Heart It

Vanilla Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

We got this cupcake recipe from Baking Bites and we paired it with a simple buttercream frosting. Baking Bites is a wonderful blog full of delicious recipes and tons of useful information. I've always loved cupcakes because they are super cute.

Ingredients 12 tbsp butter, room temperature
1 2/3 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 tbsp vanilla extract

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 cupcake pans with papers.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar. When light and fluffy, beat in the eggs one at a time. 3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. In a measuring cup, combine the buttermilk and vanilla extract. 4. With the mixer on low speed (or by hand), stir one third of the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Blend in half of the buttermilk, followed by another third of the flour mixture. Stir in remaining buttermilk/vanilla and the rest of the flour, mixing only until no streaks of flour remain. 5. Divide evenly into prepared muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 full.
6. Bake for 22-24 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly pressed. Cool in pan for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting. Frosting Ingredients
1 lb. confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tbsp. milk
Food coloring (optional)

Directions
1. In a large bowl, beat together sugar, butter, vanilla and milk until smooth. If necessary add more milk until frosting is spreading consistency. If desired, add a few drops of food coloring. Mix everything well.
We colored some pink and green. We tried to pipe our frosting onto our cupcakes but the frosting was not thick enough. Still the cupcakes were delicious and they were all gone before the end of the weekend.

Happy baking,
Sunny and Star

Tea Time

I have a huge love for teacups. They can be so delicate and look so fancy. Whether you are curled up in a blanket on your sofa, going for afternoon tea, or headed to party like the Mad Hatter would throw for Alice, everyone loves drinking from a lovely teacup. I used to imagine tea time to be a very proper, formal event. And while I love any good chance to get dressed up teacups have so many other wonderful uses. They can be perfect for enjoying your tea, coffee, or hot chocolate at any time. I think they can make your alone time seem even more special. I love all of the patterns that are available. I love mixing and matching teacups and I think they would be a wonderful item to start collecting. Wouldn't this be a beautiful treat to sit down to? Plus, teacups can be used for a lot more than holding your beverages. Like a little seat for your pets. And they are perfect for treats such as cupcakes and ice cream. I also love how in this picture they are used to organize jewelry.

♥ Sunny

via: We Heart It

Tickled Pink

I'm rather sure pink has been my favorite color since the day I was born and they wrapped me up in a little pink blanket. No matter what it is if it comes in pink, that's the one I'm choosing. If you google what your favorite color says about your personality, you'll find that if your favorite color is pink you tend to require affection, need to feel loved and secure, and are generally charming and gentle. Yummy pink food. I would love to receive a bouquet of these. Beetles are my favorite car. I would love to cruise around town in this car. Lovely old books with beautiful pink covers. And a prince waiting for a kiss. This computer would be nice to do work on and to do my blogging. When I build my dream house someone is going to have to restrain me from going overboard with the pink decorating. A wonderful thing to take home from a carnival. Doesn't this look like it came straight from a fairytale? A nice little hideaway to relax.

♥ Sunny

via: WeHeartIt

Cupcake ladies

Here are a bunch of studies for my cupcake ladies for my illo for Girls Drawin Girls Vol III book (Dessert themed!)

Here are my flavors- chocolate, vanilla, red velvet, and hostess. I didn't like the first pose (vanilla) so much, so I re-did her pose/hair-do (the last one).  They're all naked 'cept for little sexy aprons... : D

vanilla study #1 (blonde)

chocolate (black)

hostess (50s looking brunette)

red velvet (dark red hair)

vanilla study #2 (blonde)