by Mindi Stavish on February 20, 2012
I made these wonderfully rich and moist cupcakes for Xander’s Very Hungry Caterpillar Birthday. They were the most raved about dessert at the party.
Sources:
Cupcakes- bon apetit by Barbara Fairchild
Frosting- My Baking Addiction
1/2 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
2 oz high quality milk chocolate (I used Hershey’s)
1/2 cup boiling water
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup cake flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 16 standard 1/3 cup muffin cups with paper liners.
2. Combine cocoa powder and chocolate in bowl. Pour 1/2 cup boiling water over; whisk until smooth. Whisk in buttermilk.
3. Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt in another medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, brown sugar, oil, 1/2 cup sugar, eggs, and vanilla in large bowl until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in flour mixture, alternating chocolate mixture in 2 additions.
4. Divide batter among the liners filling about 2/3 full.
5. Bake until tester inserted comes out with some crumbs attached about 18 minutes. Cool in pans on cooling rack about 10 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool completely before frosting.
These are SO very good topped with the Nutella frosting! Everyone at the party enjoyed them. I can’t wait to share the rest of the dessert bar and party foods with you. We had a wonderful time celebrating Xander’s third birthday. We are also happy to be enjoying a quiet day at home today on this long holiday weekend.
by Mindi Stavish on February 6, 2012
I’m still recovering from the Patriots loss last night…boo! It was a great season but hard to see it end like that. We had a relaxing night at home watching the game, eating junk food and chili for dinner. It was so nice that I had leftovers of chili in the freezer from a couple of weeks ago. Chili always seems to taste better reheated anyway. I’m trying to keep meals simple for the week, as I plan to do a lot of baking for Xander’s birthday party throughout the week. As I was going through my recipes on Friday night I got the idea to use Pinterest to meal plan, so I created a board on my account here. When I come across a recipe that I want to make for the upcoming week I can pin it to my board. Then when it comes time to meal plan on Saturday or Sunday all my links are in one place. I still plan to use Kitchen Monki to keep track of my favorite recipes and share them on the blog. I just think the addition of Pinterest will help me stay more organized throughout the week. This week I didn’t transfer anything into the blog on Kitchen Monki, because I meal planned on the way to the grocery store on Saturday. Sometimes I’m just too lazy to do that additional step after planning and shopping.
Monday: Mac and Cheddar Cheese with Chicken and Broccoli (a family favorite!)
Tuesday: Crock Pot Salsa Chicken over rice with Roasted Asparagus and Mushrooms
Wednesday: Healthier Hamburger Helper with buttery brown sugar carrots
Thursday: Meatloaf and Mac and Cheese Spinach Muffins (new recipe I found on Pinterest)
Friday: Leftovers for the boys but I’m trying Piping Hot Peanut Butter Soup Peanut butter in soup sounds bizzare but this looks really good. I will report back next week!
If you need some more ideas come follow me on Pinterest or check out Meal Planning Monday with Laura of I’m an Organizing Junkie. Have a great week with yummy dinners!
