Cupcakes are my favorite!

I threw a baby shower at work for two coworkers. It went great! I made cupcakes and thought I would share.
The actual cake part was just out of the box butter recipe or chocolate fudge. I had to save time as I made 4 batches!
However, the icing is my mom's buttercream icing which I love.
For one batch ingredients:
1 and 1/2 boxes of 10X sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup vegetable shortening (I'm guessing, I eye bawl it. It is like a heaping spoon glob really.)
1/2 cup butter or margarine (Again this is a guess, I use 2 "globs" of tub margarine.)
1-2 tablespoons of milk (eye bawl for the consistency that you want.)

If it is too sweet add a little shortening, if it is too think, add butter or milk. Play with it and keep taking it until it is the sweetness you want. If you get it too runny, then add a little sugar or shortening. It usually tastes good no matter what!

Add color or not.

I use one of the Wilton's cupcake tips to ice them. It makes them pretty and so easy!

Here are the cupcakes I made for the shower!

Pioneer Woman's Crash Hot Potatoes with my own spin!

I love these and make them often. Pioneer Woman's Crash Hot Potatoes are really good!

Here is what they usually look like.

I had a little extra cheese and bacon around. I shredded the cheese and nuked the bacon. Then I sprinkled it on top and look how amazing!

They were like little amazing potato skins! Yummy!

Mozzarella en Carozza...That's a fancy word for fried grilled cheese!

I was watching Kitchen boss on Monday and holy moly did I start having cravings. He made this amazing looking Mozzarella en Carozza and I was drooling. So I decided to try it with some left over ingredients from a pizza I was making. I didn't make the sun-dried tomato pesto, I just used the pizza sauce from a jar!

This is what it looked like when it was done.


And here is what it looks like in the middle.

They were absolutely sinful and delicious. This is a great appetizer and could be made in bit size!

Mini Raspberry Cheesecakes

My team is in charge of "snacks" at work on Wednesday. I'm making some sweets to go with what others are bringing. I saw these on Annie's Eats website and thought they would be perfect.

Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake Cupcakes

Recipe from Annie's Eats.

Yield: 32 cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the crust:

1½ cups graham cracker crumbs

4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

3 tbsp. sugar

For the topping:

6 oz. fresh raspberries

2 tbsp. sugar

For the filling:

2 lbs. cream cheese, at room temperature

1½ cups sugar

Pinch of salt

1 tsp. vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

Here's how to make them. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Place baking cups into cupcake tins.

In a bowl combine crust ingredients (graham cracker crumbs, butter and sugar) and mix with a fork. Spoon 1 tablespoon of mixture into each cup and press down firmly. Bake for about 5 minutes. Let cool before filling.






Make the puree. Place raspberries and sugar in a blender and blend until smooth. Strain mixture to remove seeds. I didn't have a "sieve" or whatever she called it. I just used a wire colander and it worked out okay. I had to press the puree through and it removed most of the seeds.



Make the filling. Beat the cream cheese until fluffy. Add sugar and mix well. Add salt and vanilla. Then add one egg at a time and mix thoroughly until well blended.



To assemble spoon in about 3 tablespoons of the cheesecake mixture. I used my tablespoon I was already using. It worked out okay.




Then place 3 drops of puree on top. I used the 1/4 teaspoon to scoop it out and place on top of the cheesecake.


Now take a toothpick and swirl the raspberry into the cheesecake to make a decorative design. (This was the fun part!)




Bake until the filling is set and rotate about halfway through. I baked them for 22 minutes as she suggested. I'm not sure that was enough for my oven.

Place on cooling racks or you can do a water bath to cool evenly. I tried both and they still started to sink in the middle! I hope they are good because they aren't as pretty as hers! Place in the refrigerator for 4 hours to chill. These pictures were taken before they collapsed!

Baking Beauty: Holiday Baking!

I've spent the last few hours baking up a storm!
Here is a platter of cookies I'm putting out for my girl's night tonight! I think chocolate seems to be this year's theme! :)

From left to right: Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies, Chocolate Chip cookies, Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, and Peanut Butter Cookies with Hershey Kisses.

Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies
from the Pioneer Woman
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/12/chocolate-candy-cane-cookies/

Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter softened (2 sticks)
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup Semi Sweet Chocolate Morsels

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. combine, in small bowl, flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

Beat butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer on high speed until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla, mixing well. Gradually add flour mixture and stir in morsels. Drop rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet.
Bake 9-11 minutes until lightly browned. coll 1 minute on baking sheet before moving them to cooling racks to cool completely.
(makes about 5 dozen)

Chocolate Sandwich Cookies:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/wayne-harley-brachman/chocolate-sandwich-cookies-with-vanilla-cream-filling-recipe2/index.html

Peanut Butter Cookies with Hershey Kisses:
Pilsbury Peanut Butter refrigerated dough (I know, I cheated!). Prepare as directed on package. While they are baking unwrap the Kisses. HINT: use a small bowl to put the trash in so you don't have wrappers all over the floor! Man, do those things fly! Remove from oven and immediately add a Kiss to each cookie. Let cool a minute or 2 on baking sheet, then transfer to cooling racks.

Enjoy!
~Baking Beauty

Baking Beauty : Meal Planning, I try but I can't seem to find the motivation these days!

Trying to save money can be difficult when you are used to going out to dinner when you don't feel like cooking. However, now that we are on a tight budget, that is no longer an option. I have started doing a little meal planning to help me stay motivated. We would just go get something if we both came home tired and said "What's for dinner?" I would shrug and say "I didn't get anything out of the freezer." Those days are long gone. We have to save where we can if we want to make our dreams come true.

To help answer the age old question "What's for dinner?" I have started meal planning. I plan out at least 4-5 meals for the week. I also always have something quick and easy for back up in the freezer, be it frozen pizza or Stouffer's. This has really helped me stay motivated to cook and made it easier to save.

So what is on the menu for this week you ask?

Day 1: Pineapple Teriyaki Chicken and Rice

I got this recipe from Publix's website. I thought I would give it a try. Publix has many of their Apron's recipes online. They are all simple, easy meals for working families.

Day 2: Steak with Garlic Cheese Potatoes

Day 3: Grilled Chicken with Provolone and Bacon with Homemade Honey Mustard

Day 4: Roasted Lemon Garlic Chicken

Day 5: Fried Pork Chops with Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Corn and Corn Muffins

Now that the meal plan is complete, it is time to make the shopping list. Meal planning has really cut down our grocery bill. I make a list, stick to it, and don't come home with all kinds of things and nothing to eat!

I will try to post a step by step with pictures of the Pineapple Teriyaki Chicken and Rice later this week.

Have a great week!

~Baking Beauty