Bridal Shower Cupcakes and no Martha Stewart Challenge...yet.

To my fellow Martha Stewart Challenge Bakers:  I'm going to be a little late on my Tres Leches post.  Saturdays at our store are super busy and I just didn't have the time.  I do plan on making them, though!

Last week I made these cupcakes for a Bridal Shower that a friend was hosting.  The hostess requested Champagne Cupcakes with Champagne Buttercream frosting and Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese frosting.  The super cute liners were from Bake It Pretty. Being a cooking enthusiast,  I absolutely love Bake It Pretty, and I would spend my entire tax return there if I could!

A Personal and Difficult Time

Hello fellow bloggers and readers!  I've been noticably absent from my blogging lately, and it is for a few different reasons.  I haven't really been doing too much baking lately, and I think part of that is because I went through a lay off about two weeks ago.  My beloved job as a graphics operator for a local television studio was taken from me. 

Now, I consider myself someone lucky in the job department.  I've never had a job that I've absolutely hated.  I've done fast food, worked in a music store (I LOVED that one!), waited tables, dealt with angry (oh so angry!) people with parking tickets, been a pyrotechnician, answered 911 calls, and most recently worked in television production.  But this last one was so special to me because not only was the work enjoyable, but the people I worked with were absolutely amazing.  We were like a little family, a little dysfunctional, but still a family.  :)

So now I'm on the hunt for a new job.  I've always been a coupon clipper, but now I am even more so.  When I was planning out wedding, I would spend so much time online trying to find wedding coupons.  There are so many blogs and websites out there that tell you exactly how to save a lot of money, even make money on some things.  I'm now stepping up my coupon clipping, and I think it will help a lot while I try to find my new direction in my career life.

Everything happens for a reason, right?

Cheesecake Brownies a la Martha Stewart

I've blogged before about the amazing group of women that I scrapbook with.  Our group on Meetup.com is called Oh Crop!  We were having a weekend retreat a couple of weekends ago, but I couldn't make it.  So I made these brownies by Martha Stewart to drop off for the girls. 

Alex and I also managed to be productive in our garden this weekend, we pruned our little garden area.  Our japanese maple is blooming beautifully.  I found this great article about how to Beautify Your Garden, give it a read if you get a chance.

Oh, and for more info on Martha Stewart's books, here are some Borders Coupons.  Also, I hope to be doing some reviews of some really awesome products that I have won in giveaways lately.

MSC: Jumbo Cupcakes

This month for our Martha Stewart's Cupcakes challenge, Jess from Cookbook Habit chose the Jumbo Cupcakes on page 133.  And since this little guy was having a birthday, I decided to make them for him.

He is a big fan of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and I had some awesome Mickey Mouse sprinkles that I couldn't wait to decorate his cupcakes with.  I was super excited to make the Marshmallow Fluff filling, and I wasn't disappointed...it was so yummy.  I thought the cupcakes, however, were a little dry.  But it seems like a lot of the recipes that we have baked in this challenge have been dry.  I didn't want to leave the tops of the cupcakes without a nice mound of frosting, so I made my go-to buttercream frosting.  This made the cupcakes super rich.  The best part of the cupcakes were the filling.

Here are a few shots of the party we threw for Ryan in the park by my parent's house.

My brother Jeff and nephew Ryan.  Look at him eyeing that cupcake!

My amazing Mom with my nephew Owen

Easter Cupcakes 2010

Last year for Easter I made cookies and cupcakes. This year however, I was not so ambitious. I had some adorable decorations that I couldn't wait to use, like these made by Wilton.  I used Martha Stewart's Carrot Cupcake recipe from her Cupcakes book. This recipe is fabulous, and I love making them because they are so moist and have such a great flavor.

Alex and I went over to his grandparent's house for the day, and had a nice relaxing time.  I love lazy Sunday's with family.  I hope everyone had an amazing Easter with loved ones.

Giveaway WINNER!

Thanks to everyone who entered to win the Calphalon Angel Food Cake Pan.

Drumroll please....the winner is Margaret from Tea and Scones! I have posted a comment on your About Me section of your blog...I couldn't find an email address for you. Please email me within 48 hours with you mailing address so I can get your pan sent to you as soon as possible!

I'll select a new winner if I haven't heard from Margaret within 48 hours.

Congratulations Margaret!

Calphalon Angel Food Cake Pan and a GIVEAWAY!

On Friday, I made my first ever Angel Food Cake. I was a little nervous going into it, but I like to try new things. I found a recipe here on marthastewart.com.

The awesome folks over at CSNstores.com are the sponsors of Cinema Cupcakes' First Ever Giveaway! They literally have everything from cookware to barstools. I selected the Calphalon Angel Food Cake Pan found here to review and to give away to one of my readers.



So Martha's recipe specifically states NOT to spray the pan with cooking spray. And this made me incredibly nervous! But, I knew that Calphalon makes amazing products so I decided to roll with it. Even though my picture may not reflect it, this cake came out surprisingly easy. I think the reason I have some holes in the cake is because I didn't get all the air bubbles out before I baked it. More importantly, this cake tasted great. I was very pleased with the end result.



I dread doing dishes after I am done baking. I mean, really dread it. But this cake pan cleaned up very easily without having to soak or be scrubbed at all. It is dishwasher safe, but I opted to wash it by hand.

And now for the giveaway! To enter to win a Calphalon Angel Food Cake pan from CSNstores.com, leave me a comment below and let me know if you have ever made an Angel Food Cake and how it turned out. Be sure to leave a way for me to get a hold of you if you win. Entries will close at 11:59pm on Monday, March 22nd. I will select a winner using Random.org on Tuesday, March 23rd. Good luck!




FTC Disclaimer: I was given this product for review from CSNStores.com. I was not compensated for this review.