New Stand Mixer!

For the past year or so I have been using a hand me down mixer that's probably as old as me, if not older. It was my aunt's mixer that we used for countless years to make all our cookies and other yummy treats. I always borrowed it when I had a lot to make, but I usually just used a whisk or a hand mixer. Then my aunt treated herself to a new one and passed old glory onto me. It was great, but lately started making lots of strange noises and it really sounded like it was on it's way out. It also developed had a mind of it's own and would just speed up for no reason. It sounded like a helicopter trying to take off.

So, my mom decided that it was time at last for me to have my own brand new KitchenAid stand mixer! She got me a 6qt and I LOVE it! I got it yesterday and I have already used it to make beer cupcakes, a red velvet cake, and some frosting. In a little while I will be using it again to make more frostings. I can't wait! It works great! LOVE IT!!!!!

It also came at a perfect time. The delivery date was scheduled for Friday, the 24th. I have 3 birthday cake orders for the 25th, so having it delivered early was perfect!!!

More Mr. Met

First step


We just finished building the arms... they're in the fridge chilling before we can cover them with the fondant. Then we can finally start to decorate! So excited!Added the arms Added the blue for the sleevesAdded more white for the jersey.

Ok, so we covered the board with home made orange fondant... took forever! It was just so soft.
The body we covered with home made marshmallow fondant. Worked out fine.
The huge rice krispy head we ended up having to run to the store to buy a box of pre-made fondant. We just completely ran out of the good stuff.

Everything is going to sit in the fridge overnight again so we can start decorating tomorrow. The hat was cut out yesterday, so it's still drying. I just have to add the face, the buttons, and some other details. Tomorrow is going to be a LONG day! It's a good thing I LOVE what I do!

Doggie Treats!!!

Ok, so I was getting ready to get my bake on yesterday and I started thinking about how many people passed by the "Flea By The Sea" with their furry little friends. So I decided to bake up a batch of doggie treats!

Sorry for such a bad cell phone picture!
This was the first batch that came out of the oven.

I found this recipe:

Peanut Butter Dog Treats
Adapted from Brown Eyed Baker

INGREDIENTS:
2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 cup peanut butter *I used natural peanut butter, which is very dry*
1 cup skim milk

**I had to add an egg to hold everything together since the peanut butter was so dry.

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a bowl, combine flour and baking powder. In another bowl, mix peanut butter and milk. Add wet mixture to dry, and mix well.

Turn out dough on a lightly floured surface and knead. Roll out to 1/4-inch thickness and cut out shapes. Place on a greased baking sheet and bake 20 minutes or until lightly brown. Cool on a rack and store in an airtight container.

Makes about 20-30 dog biscuits.

In addition to the doggie treats I also baked up chocolate chip cookies, brownies, chocolate cupcakes and margarita cupcakes. Today I will be making golden cupcakes and red velvet, plus whipping up the frostings! I can't wait 'till Saturday's "Flea By The Sea"!

The making of a mini PB&J cupcake!

So, the first run was such a hit that I had an order for 4 dozen mini's! I used the same recipe, only set it to serve 12, which was perfect. I ended up with 52 cupcakes and we ate the left overs! LOL

The batter is so white! So fluffy and pretty!

All Baked! Fresh out of the oven!Here they are with the jelly injection.The making of the frostingAll frostedJelly drizzleAnd they're done!

I'm so glad these are such a hit. With the mini's, I found that there wasnt enough jelly inside and the peanut butter was taking over... but once we drizzled the jelly on top, they were perfect.

My rating remains the same...

Cake taste: 5
Moistness: 5
Frosting: 5

Delicious!

PB&J Cupcakes!

Ok, so after doing a lot of research on cupcakes... mostly peanut butter and jelly cupcakes.... I decided to try it for myself.

I used a white cake batter that was incredible! I only made enough for 7 cupcakes, so I hope when I try to make this in bulk they are just as tasty.

Fresh out of the oven!

Then they got a grape jelly injection

And I topped them with an incredible peanut butter frosting and grape jelly drizzle.

I am so happy with the way these came. I ran a few over to my friends house after Mike (the fiance) and I taste tested them ourselves. It was a hit! So excited!!!!

The white cake recipe was much more than I bargained for. I got it from AllRecipes.com and set it to only 8 servings. The measurements were a little screwy, calling for 1 1/4 egg whites. (I only used 1) and some odd amounts of sugar. It also called for vanilla extract and almond extract, but I left both out. I wanted it to be as pure as possible. This is what I got:

INGREDIENTS

• 3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons sifted cake flour
• 1-1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1-1/4 egg whites (I used 1)
  
• 1/3 cup and 2 tablespoons and 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 3 tablespoons and 2-1/2 teaspoons butter
• 1/4 cup and 1 tablespoon milk (I poured a bit in slowly... don't think I used that much)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (Left out)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (Left out)
  

The frosting recipe I got from the How To Eat A Cupcake Blog It was seriously incredible! It wasn't an overwhelming peanut butter flavor. Mike compared it to peanut butter ice cream. It was light and fluffy.

Peanut Butter Frosting (this is the original recipe x1.5)

3/4 cup smooth or crunchy peanut butter
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
3 tablespoons milk

Combine the peanut butter, butter, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Using an electric mixer beat until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Add the confectioners sugar along with the milk, and beat until well combined.

My rating: Delicious!!!!
1-5 system... 1 being the worst... 5 being the best.

Cake flavor: 5
Mostness: 5
Frosting: 5

Cupcakes!

Ok, I will be working on this blog as often as possible. I would like to post up some recipes that I have as well as images of the cakes or cupcakes produced by them. I will also include a rating of some sort. I have lots of good frosting recipes too!