Friday Confessions

Sitting here watching House Hunters International (love that by admitting that you have no idea if I'm writing this in the morning, afternoon or night since this show is ALWAYS on), I feel the need to get a few things out in the open...

1.  I may have freaked out just a bit (frantic phone call as soon as I saw the post) when I read that The Pioneer Woman is coming to Indianapolis in March. My friend Cris - over at Goodeness Gracious - checked it out and shared the Goode news with me. I am just glad that my bladder was empty, just sayin!

2.  I went to dinner with my oldest sister and all four of my nephews...dinner out with 4 boys ages 10 and under is the best birth control a girl can have...sorry sis.

3.  I bought these because I saw a girl carrying around a package while in Target earlier today...

Hot Chocolate mini cupcakes! I had to leave half the package with my sister so I wouldn't eat them all at once. They are soooo good.

4.  Yes, I still have my snowman decorations up. It's still winter and I like them. So there.

5.  I just bought the Someecards iPhone App even though I can probably see most of them on Pinterest, like this one...

Source: blam-o.tumblr.com via Megan on Pinterest

6. I'm going to Blissdom next week and I am soooo nervous. What should I wear? Will anyone talk to me? It's like summer camp all over again!!!

Linking up to Friday Confessional over at A Blonde Ambition.

Weekend in NYC

Remember my Dreams of NYC post?

The one where I was going to experience the city so well-portrayed by my favorite television shows?

I NEVER FOUND Central Perk, though I did find a bakery and had these for breakfast one morning.

Crumbs

Don't worry about the calories consumed. We split the two cupcakes between four girls...and we walked 6 miles that day! The White Hot Chocolate cupcake on the left was DELICIOUS. 

I NEVER FOUND McLaren's Bar but we did have some wonderful cocktails at Stecchino in Hell's Kitchen .

I may have had one or two French 75's!

I NEVER DID karaoke in a bar with my posse but we did catch a Broadway Show!

One thing I DID do that was on my list was visit Mood - the fabric store from Project Runway!

Don't you just love just love what they did with some orange tulle?

Despite an early cold spell and rain and SNOW, we had a great time in the city and I'm even more determined to go back. This time I'm planning a late spring/early summer trip though!

Hooking up with Kelly's Korner - Show Us Your Life Non-Mommy Bloggers!

Divine Wine Cupcakes

I am thinking that this would be a great wordless Wednesday post but I want to share the recipe with you because these cupcakes are seriously delicious AND easy to make.

Remember the Friends episode when Rachel makes the trifle and accidentally mixes two recipes together and adds a layer of beef sauteed with peas and onions (I think) and Joey says..."Jam, good. Custard, good. Beef, good."

I promise that there's no beef sauteed with peas and onions in these cupcakes but there is an unusual ingredient...

Zinfandel wine! It's in both the cupcake AND the frosting...thus the blog post title "Divine Wine Cupcakes!"

Here's the recipe for all of you chocolate AND wine lovers!

Zinfandel Cupcakes

Batter
1 box devil's food cake mix (super moist recommended)
3/4 c. water
1/2 c. Zinfandel wine
1/2 c. vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 c. miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees (325 degrees for dark or nonstick pan). Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups. Make cake batter as directed on box using cake mix, water, wine, oil and eggs. Stir in chocolate chips. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups (about 1/2 full).

Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center. Cool in pans 10 minutes, remove from pans to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Frosting
6 c. powdered sugar
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. unsweetened baking cocoa
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. Zinfandel wine

In large bowl, beat powdered sugar, butter, cocoa and salt with electric mixer on low speed until blended. Beat in wine. If frosting is too think, beat in more wine a few drops at a time. Frost cupcakes. Garnish with chocolate curls (if desired).

I veered from the recipe in a couple of cases.

I didn't have mini chocolate chips so I used regular chips...however I failed to coat them prior to mixing them into the batter and the chips fell to the bottom of the cupcakes while baking. So I suggest taking a couple of tablespoons of your dry cake mix and tossing it with your chips. This should keep them from dropping to the bottom of your cupcakes!

Second, I just realized as I am typing the recipe that I forgot to add the salt to my frosting...I think it turned out OK.

And...I sifted my powdered sugar and cocoa before mixing them with the butter. I also started with four cups of powdered sugar and a quarter cup of wine and added more of each until I got the consistency and the taste I thought worked best.

I definitely recommend these cupcakes...they'd be great for a girls night in or a bridal shower or a Tuesday night.

Quick & Easy Black-Bottom Cupcakes

To celebrate Father's Day, I volunteered to make a couple of desserts for a casual evening gathering on my parents' backporch.

I decided to go with quick-n-easy desserts that I don't have the recipes for. A quick text to a co-worker got me started on the first - a strawberry angel food cake trifle.

Basically, it's a layer of cut-up angel food cake (or pound cake), topped with a layer of pudding (made with 1 & 1/4 c. water or milk & a tub of whipped topping), then a layer of whipped topping (I heart whipped topping!), then a layer of strawberries (or your choice of berries or fruit or candy). Repeat!

Since my four boisterous nephews were also going to be present, I decided to go with cupcakes for my second dessert.

One of the first recipes I remember baking on my own is black-bottom cupcakes - from scratch. The recipe was out of this great kid's cookbook that my sister and I loved.

Well, I didn't have that recipe at home but I did have a box of chocolate cake mix, a brick of cream cheese and some chocolate chips! With a quick call to my sister who provided an alternate cream cheese mixture recipe, I was off to the oven.

The recipe...

Chocolate cake mix

Cream cheese filling:

1 8 oz. package cream cheese (softened)

1 egg

1/2 c. sugar

1/8 t. salt

Chocolate chips (as many as you want!)

Make cake mix as directed on the box.

Beat cream cheese filling ingredients (except for choc. chips) together. Stir in chocolate chips.

Fill the cupcake liners about 1/3 (or a bit more) with cake mix and add a tablespoon of the filling. Bake according to the instructions on cake mix box.

 

They turned out pretty good. Not quite a good as the originals, but no one complained! Next time I think I'll try to make the cake mix and filling a bit thicker and see what happens.

Be sure to visit some of the great posts from the Cupcake Carnival and Cupcake Tuesday by clicking on the buttons below. They are way more creative than I am!