chocolate chip bread pudding

this one's for you Grandma :)


This is a recipe I love to make, and actually have a million different varites for it. Bread pudding is something typically thought to be accompanied with cinnamon and raisins, which of course is fine but I have too many ideas to limit my recipe to just that. Here is my basic chocolate chip bread pudding, but along the way I'll note varaiations that either I've tried or want to try. Choose which you think is best!

Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding

Ingredients

• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 5 large beaten eggs
• 2 cups milk
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups cubed Italian bread
• Milk Chocolate chips

Topping:

• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350F. 

Grease the pan. For this reciepe I decided to try out my new bundt pan, but I've also done this many times in a 13 by 9 or even cut the whole recipe in half and done it in an 8 by 8. Either way, grease the pan using your favorite method.

Mix together granulated sugar, eggs, milk and vanilla in a bowl. Here's where you can get creative: there have been a few times I haven't had all the milk I needed and I've used vanilla coffee creamer. I imagine any flavor creamer would be really good, but if you're using a super sweet kind, use about 1/4 c less sugar. I've also added cinnamon and cloves to this part of the reciepe, which is especially good if you want to use raisins. 

Pour over cubed bread and let sit for 10 minutes. The bread is also something you can play with- I used the typical Italian baguette that was slightly stale. But I've also used Italian whole wheat baguettes or any kind of old bread laying around. Cinnamon raisin bagels are something I've always wanted to try for the bread, which I bet would be really good. I've also done this same reciepe with really stale Christmas cookies- snickerdoodles or oatmeal raisins. We always have some sitting around weeks after christmas and as along as you break them up into bite sized pieces, the reciepe works the same!

In another bowl, mix and crumble together brown sugar and butter. Walnuts or peacans would be good too :)

Add chocolate chips to the soaked bread mixture. I really don't measure when I use chocolate chips for this reciepe, because lets face it, you can't have too much chocolate. But I used about 3/4 of a 12oz bag, but use as much or as little as you like. Here's where you can also change some of the recipe: I've thought about adding carmel pieces and allowing them to melt in the oven. I've also thought about chopping up toffey candy or candy bars and adding them. Whatever you want!

Pour bread mixture into prepared pan.

Spread brown sugar mixture over the top. I've doubled this reciepe for when I use a 13 by 9 pan. This is similar to the chocolate chips in the sense that you can't really have too much of it. It really makes the dessert!


Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until set.


In the past I've done a glaze to top it with, although it really doesn't need it. But if you wished to do so, especially with a cinnamon raisin kind, just mix 1 cup powdered sugar and a tablespoon or 2 of milk, brandy, or water.

Everybody who I make this for seems to like it, so I hope you do too! It's best served right out of the oven after it's not so hot, but if you store it at room temp with plastic wrap over the pan or in an air tight container it should be fine for a day or two. But good luck making it last til then!

Enjoy :)

Chelsea

on-the-go breakfast

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I'm not sure if I agree with that but it's definitely my favorite. I could eat breakfast for every meal. However, my busy life as a senior in college doesn't leave me much time to enjoy too many sit down meals. Good thing I spend my spare time thinking of food!

Here's one of my favorite things to make for breakfast, which actually ends up getting consumed on my way to school.

Breakfast Sandwich

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 piece of toast
• 1 Tbs butter
• Cooking spray
• Salt
• Pepper
• Cooked sausage (about 4 oz)
• Cheese (sliced or shredded)

Directions:

This all happens really fast, which is appropriate given that I typically spend my mornings like a chicken running around with it's head cut off. This may seem like "Breakfast for Dumbies" but follow closely for best results:

Preheat 6 inch skillet on medium high heat.

Place bread in toaster.

Crack egg and whip untill frothy. Add salt and pepper to taste. (Sometimes I'll add old bay :))

Cut sausage into small pieces.

Spray cooking spray into preheated pan, reduce heat to medium. 

Add frothy eggs to hot pan and ensure eggs coat pan.

Stir eggs thoroughly until eggs start to become solid, entire pan should be spread with egg mixture. 

Distribute sausage into the still soft eggs and press down.

Let egg and sausage sit for about 3 mintues.

Butter toast.

Using a spatula, flip egg. Contiune to cook until completely solid, about 2 more mintues.

Transfer egg to toast, top with cheese if desired. 

Serve with juice/coffee, or wrap in a paper towel to eat on the go.

Try it tomorrow for breakfast! Or whatever :)

For more breakfast ideas, checkout this HUGE list of TONS of breakfast ideas at Mr. Breakfast's Website.

hmm smores pie..

Every once in a while my family expects dessert. So a lot of times we have a bunch of ingredients that go together even if I don't know what I'm going to do with them. A few of those things are chocolate chips, marshmallow fluff, and graham cracker crusts.






And honestly, who doesn't think of smores when you have all 3 of those ingredients staring at you in your pantry.




So here's one of my family's favorite:

Smore's Pie
(Note: this is the mini version, you could multiply everything by 8 if you had an 8'' or 9'' graham cracker pie shell, but this night I made just two mini pies, so everything here is per pie)

Ingredients:
- 4oz chocolate chips (or about a handful)
- 1/3c marshmallow cream/fluff
- 1 mini graham cracker pie shell

Directions:

Preheat broiler in oven.





Melt chocolate in microwave in 30 second intervals. Spoon chocolate into pie shells.

Fill plastic bag with fluff. I've found it's easiest to place the plastic bag in a cup and spoon in the marshmallow. Cut 1/2 inch piece off the tip of the bag to pipe fluff out.

Fill the chocolate lined pie shells with fluff.

Place under broiler with oven open. The pies will be in the oven for no longer than 3 minutes. DO NOT WALK AWAY. Watch the pies until the tops turn light brown, or until they've achieved desired brownness.

 

So see, even if you don't have a lot of ingredients or time, you can still have a delicious dessert!

Enjoy!

Chels :)

look ma! fried chicken!

DISCLAIMER: this is not my healthiest recipe. If you get fat from making this recipe, it's not my fault. If you do however gain weight, at least you'll be fat and happy.

---

Fried chicken is one of those things a lot of people love to eat but aren't too good at making. It's one of the trickier dishes but once you practice a few times you can get a system developed tht really helps you become more confident with your chicken. My boyfriend (who is almost sickeningly obsessed with KFC and Popeyes) and I tried our hand at making our own fried chicken for the very first time a few months ago. We were actually shocked how good it turned out, but made a list of things we would do differently when we did it again.

Well yesterday I found myself with some spare time on my hands and some drum sticks..because that's just a typical day for me, so I decided I'd put the list of things to do differently when making fried chicken to use!

I researched a good bit of fried chicken recipes and based off the knowledge I learned from making chicken with my boyfriend, I came up with this recipe:

Fried Chicken (Hmm..)

Ingredients:

• 1 quart low-fat buttermilk
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped finely
• 1/4 cup hot sauce
• Whatever chicken pieces you'd like
• 4 cups all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons salt (kosher works best)
• 2 tablespoon finely ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons garlic salt
• 4 eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 3 cups vegetable oil 
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter

Directions:

Combine the buttermilk, garlic, and hot sauce and stir well. Submerge the chicken pieces in the buttermilk. Let soak for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator, but I let it sit overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the oil  over medium heat in a large skillet ad add the butter after the oil has heated, about 5 minutes.

Mix together flour, garlic salt, salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Mix eggs and 2 tablespoons milk in another shallow dish.

Pull the pieces of chicken out of the buttermilk 1 at a time. Let the excess buttermilk drip off into the bowl and then place the chicken into the seasoned flour. Coat well and shake off any excess flour.

Dip the chicken into the egg mixture and coat well. Return to the flour mixture, ensuring the chicken is coated on all sides. Shake off excess.

Place the chicken skin side down into the hot oil. Cook until nicely browned, 10 to 12 minutes per side. (If you're using small pieces like I did, it'll take about 8-10. If you're using larger pieces like breasts, it may take up to 15.)

Place the chicken on a sheet tray and bake in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes. This will ensure that the chicken is cooked through and that the skin is nice and crispy.

Let sit on paper towel until most of the grease has been absorbed.

Go ahead, make yourself fat & happy :)

For a video tutorial that follows the same basic step-by-step process that I followed (not the exact same recipe, but close), check this out:

everyone's irish on st. patrick's day

Happy St. Patrick's Day! And happy start of Spring Break for my Marylanders ;) here's some fun to start your weekend and your break off right, and to get you feelin the Irish spirit! Enjoy:

Shamrock Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Melon vodka
• 1/2 oz triple sec
• Splash of orange curaçao
• juice of 2 limes

Preparation:

1. Pour the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes.
2. Shake until frothy.
3. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Irish Car Bomb

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pint Guinness
• 1/2 shot Irish cream liqueur
• 1/2 shot Irish whiskey 

Preparation:

1. Pour the Irish cream liqueur into a shot glass.
2. Pour the Irish whiskey on top.
3. Pour the Guinness into a pint glass or beer mug 3/4 of the way full and let settle.
4. Drop the shot glass into the Guinness and chug

Irish Flag Shooter

Ingredients:

• 1 part green creme de menthe
• 1 part Irish cream liqueur
• 1 part Grand Marnier

Preparation:

1. Pour the crème de menthe into a shot glass
2. Float the Irish cream liqueur on top of the crème de menthe.
3. Float the Grand Marnier on top of the Irish cream liqueur.
   
   courtsey about.com

Or you could just get yourself some good ol green beer. hmmm...

throw together dinners

A few nights a week I get a real big urge to make dinner. But typically in my house we don't have too much on hand unless we have our meals planned out before the week starts. So when I get my spontaneous urge to put my culinary skills to good use, I'm pretty much S.O.L. However, there will be a few times where I'll get lucky, and even if we don't have everything I want on hand, I can typically throw something together.

Tonight, I was lucky enough to create an amazing stir fry. Somehow everything came together. And even though I didn't have everything I wanted for the dish, it still worked out. I've found stir fry is something you can put together in an infinite amount of ways. Typically I make it differently everytime. This is how it went tonight:

Chicken Stir Fry

Ingredients:

1lb skinless boneless chicken tenderloins, cut into bite sized peices

Vegetable oil

2Tbs chopped garlic

1tps ground ginger

1/2 c chopped carrots

1/2 c chopped brocolli

1/2 c chopped celery

1/2 c chopped red bell pepper

1/4 c onion

1/4 c chopped mushrooms
1/4 c chopped water chesnuts

1c chicken broth
Stir fry sauce
Soy sauce
Duck sauce
3c white rice



I'm being serious when I say I make it different everytime. Varities often include:

Chicken breasts
Beef tenderloin
Shrimp
Fresh ginger
Green onion
Beef broth
Asian noodles
Brown rice
Sesame seeds
Hoison sauce
Oyser Sauce

Really, whatever you want/have.

Directions:

Heat wok/skillet over medium high heat. Add vegetable oil after wok has preheated, turn to coat the pan well. Add chicken. Cook about 8 minutes, but don't stir, let the chicken sit. After is it obvious chicken has cooked thoroughly on first side and most of is has become white, stir. Add ginger and stir more. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic and 2Tbs sauce of choice. Cook about 5 more mintues. Transfer chicken to bowl or plate to rest.

Recoat the pan with oil and add vegetables. Add chicken broth and allow to sit and steam, covered, about 15 minutes.

Pour over equal amounts of soy sauce, stir fry sauce and duck sauce.

Return chicken to pan, tossing with the vegetables.

Serve with rice.


You really can't go wrong with this reciepe. Even if you have only a 1/4 of the ingredients listed, you got yourself a pretty tastey stir fry.

ENJOY!

chow down on some chowda

In all honesty, I can't say the word "chowder" without pretending I'm from Boston and saying "chowda". Chow-da. If you're from New England, it's what you know as the heart-warming creamy soup with lots of veggies, potatoes, and clams. If you're from Manhattan however, when you order a bowl of chowder, you're expecting a tomato-y concoction with a much less creamy consistency. But when I think of chowda I think of a rich, creamy, thick, potato-filled soup, and seeing as it was cold yesterday, I decided to make me some chowda! Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

nocoupons

• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, divided
• 2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
• 2 cups medium-diced celery (4 stalks)
• 2 cups medium-diced carrots (6 carrots)
• 4 cups peeled medium-diced boiling potatoes (8 potatoes)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 quart (4 cups) clam juice
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 3 cups chopped fresh chowder clams (1 1/2 pounds shucked clams)

Directions

Melt 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) of the butter in a large heavy-bottomed stockpot. Add the onions and cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, or until translucent. Add the celery, carrots, potatoes, salt, and pepper and saute for 10 more minutes. Add the clam juice, bring to a boil, and simmer, uncovered, until the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.




In a small pot, melt the remaining 8 tablespoons of butter and whisk in the flour. Cook over very low heat for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Whisk in a cup of the hot broth and then pour this mixture back into the cooked vegetables. Simmer for a few minutes until the broth is thickened.


Add the milk and clams and heat gently for a few minutes to cook the clams. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve hot.

NOTE: I actually decided as soon as I started this that I didn't want to use clams, I'd rather use chicken. I'm not a big clam person. So instead I baked 2 pounds of chicken tenders in the oven for 20 minutes at 350 with a little olive oil, salt and pepper, and added the bite size pieces of chicken right after I added the chicken stock to the veggies, another slight modification. But feel free to use whatever you'd like :)

make sure to season very well with salt and pepper throughout the process. I actually even sprinkled a little old bay over the bowls as I served them. Not bad for my first chowda attempt!

cheap treat

Most of us have a sweet tooth. I sure can't speak for anybody else, but when I get a hankerin' for somethin' I just gotta have it A-SAP. And I sure as hell don't want to spend an arm and a leg for the sweets I'm craving. I came across this recipe from something my Mom collected from a friend. I was struck by the title, but was intrigued to find out more. As I read on, I decided to make this dessert and was pleased to find that all the ingredients I needed wouldn't leave me broke :)

Oreo Cookie Balls

Ingredients

• 8 oz softened cream cheese
• 18 oz package of Oreo cookies, crushed- don't remove the filling!
• 2 cups semi-sweet or milk chocolate chips
• 1 Tbsp shortening or oil

Instructions

Crush Oreos in a food processor or blender until extremely fine. (If being done in a blender, it's easier to do in batches)

NOTE: Difficult as it may be, DO NOT EAT THE OREOS! If you do not have enough cookies to mix with the cream cheese, the consistency of the candy will not be right! To keep this from happening, buy yourself an extra packages of cookies :)

Mix cream cheese with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add the crushed Oreos and beat on high until well mixed. Chill mixture for at least an hour in the freezer.

Once chilled, roll Oreo cookie mix into one inch balls. (I used a small ice cream scoop to make them uniform).

Melt the chocolate chips and shortening or oil with a double bolier. (You can use the mircowave instead, but I've found it's more difficult to regulate the temperature of the chocolate and can cause it to seize! Using the double boiler on a low temp prevents that from happening.)

Dip the Oreo balls completely into the melted chocolate using forks, spoons, toothpicks, whatever you find works for you!

Place coated candies on a wax paper lined cookie sheet and leave them to harden in the refrigerator for about an hour.

I'm not crazy about the name. When I go to serve them to a crowd or make them for some sort of event I need to think of a better name. Ideas? I'm not a fan of the name "Oreo" in the title, to me it sounds very packaged, and I'm also not a fan of a recipe that includes "balls", regardless of them being shaped as such.

Give the recipe a try! You'll be suprised how chocolately these yummy treats are, and happy you'll have money over to make another batch :)

Chels

the good ol' soup & sandwich

So for those of you who enjoy the winter months not because of the colder weather but because of the warm food that comes with it- this post is for you! One of my favorite meals to make in the winter is soup and grilled cheese, which typically consists of something campbell's with the regular bread and cheese. However, last night I felt inspired and wanted to try something new. I got online and found a reciepe for sweet potato and rosemary soup and ham and apple panini's.

Not bad right? ;)

So here's how it went:

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 large or 6 small shallots, thinly sliced
• 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 pounds (about 2 to 3) sweet potatoes, peeled, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 (6-inch long) stems fresh rosemary
• 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

Directions

In an 8-quart stockpot, melt the butter and oil together over medium-high heat. Add the shallots and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and cook until soft, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the sweet potatoes, rosemary and chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer until the sweet potatoes are very tender, about 20 to 25 minutes. Turn off the heat and remove the rosemary stems. Using an immersion blender (or regular blender), blend the mixture until smooth and thick. Whisk in the mascarpone cheese until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Keep the soup warm over low heat until ready to serve.

I couldn't have asked for this to turn out better. I followed the recipe exactly except I forgot to pink up some mascarpone cheese so I used about 2Tbs cream cheese and 2Tbs sour cream. I actually even added a little sour cream after I began eating. If you like sweet potatos, you'll like this soup.

Now on to the sandwich!

I'd never tried apple with a savory dish, but this recipe sounded promising:

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 8 (1/2-inch) thick slices country-style white bread
• 1/2 cup whole-grain mustard
• 2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Gruyere
• 8 slices (8-ounces) Black Forest ham

• Special equipment: a panini press

Directions

In a 12-inch skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the apple slices and thyme. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are slightly soft, about 4 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes.

Preheat a panini press. Spread each bread slice with 1 tablespoon mustard. Arrange 1/4 cup of cheese on each of 4 bread slices and top with 2 slices of ham. Divide the apple mixture evenly on top of the ham. Add the remaining cheese and cover with the remaining 4 bread slices. Grill in the panini press until the cheese has melted and the tops are golden and crispy, about 5 to 6 minutes.

I did a few things different as I was going through the steps. The only thing I did with the apples that the recipe called for was peeling and slicing, I didn't saute them. I wanted the crisp crunch of the tart apple, and I'm glad I left it that way. And actually, I don't even have a panini press, so I just wrapped a brick in foil and left it on the sandwich as it cooked.

I was floored by the way the sandwich turned out also! The apple was a great compliment to the cheese which, as a side note for those who are a little broke (like me): gruyere is a fancy name for expensive. Swiss cheese will do just fine :)

Not bad huh?

For a great cold winter's dinner, give your old soup and grilled cheese a makeover ;) Enjoy!

Chels

sweet treats for the 14th

It's our favorite time of year again! (Well, for those of us who like Valentine's Day that is.)

I've always liked Valentine's Day. Not because of the presents and flowers that so many recieve, but because it's such a good way to show people you love them....with food! Whether it's fudge or candies, cakes or cupcakes, there's always something perfect for your special someone :)

By now I hope everyone can tell I like food. Anything food/baking/cooking/dessert related, I love it. And see, I'm convinced I'm the world's luckiest girl who's been blessed with the sweetest boyfriend anyone could ask for. Really, he's a great guy. The only complaint I've ever had about him in the 10 years I've known him is he doesn't like sweets.

-pause for reaction-

...I know, weird right? He just doesn't eat them. He's never had chocolate. Doesn't know what m&m's taste like...I once begged him to eat a piece of carmel popcorn and he just about choked to death.

What's especially upsetting to me though, is that I bake to show my love. For all of the birthdays of my friends and family theres always a cake or a plate of cookies or brownies. But not for my boyfriend.

Nonetheless, I still bake for Valentine's Day (as well as every other holiday). This year I made a giant donut! (I got the cake pan for Christmas and I'd been dying to try it out. I just used a boxed cake mix and canned frosting that I melted over the finished cake. Topped it with some heart sprinkles and called it a day!) For those of you who are at a loss of what to make your honey (or whoever will eat it) here's somethings I've done over the past few years: (I wish I had pictures!)

• Grab some Valentines's Day cookie cutters and buy a storebought sugar cookie dough. Punch out some cookies and decorate with a colored powdered sugar frosting. Can't go wrong!
• Bake a standard boxed cake mix, either in two 9-inch pans, or a large sheet pan and cut out heart shaped cakes. Frost and decorate. Makes for personalized treats!
• For my fellow cupcake lovers, bake up your favorite kind of cake, using Valentine's Day liners or course. Pick your frosting- just because it's canned doesn't mean it's bad!- and melt in the mircowave for 30 seconds. Dip the cooled cakes in the melted frosting for some fast icing. Melt milk chocolate chips and pour into a large ziptop bag. Line a flat surface with waxed paper and pipe chocolate hearts to top the cupcakes with. Let set, and top your cupcakes with love!

I found a great site for more ideas- everything baking related!

Bakerella has great baking ideas, but especially special things for Valentine's Day.

Hope everyone has a great Valentine's Day! Best of luck on your baking adventures!

Chelsea :)

remix that dish

These days every body's trying to eat a little healthier. But what a lot of people do, is maybe order the salad instead of the steak. Or if they're cooking like me, they'll opt for the chicken breasts or salmon over the pork roast. What many people might not realize (which the food network has tried to do a few times with several different shows) is that you can turn old, fatten, but oh so comforting favorites into new, updated, healthy dishes!

For example...

My Grandma came to stay with us this past week, whom we haven't seen in forever. Like most typical Southern Grandmothers, she loves to cook (where I get it from) and loves the traditional fixins' of Southern cookin'. However, due to the majority of my family being slightly overweight, and the continuous watching of my Dad's cholesterol, we had to stop her when she started to make her delicious, however fat laden Breakfast Casserole.

Typically, Grandma takes:
6 pieces of buttered white bread,
pours over eggs and milk
sprinkles sauted onion, peppers,  and sausage
and tops with lots of cheddar cheese

From there the whole thing goes into a 350 over til golden brown. Oh and let me tell you, if you're into breakfast dishes, it's just as good as it sounds.

After much consideration and the constant begging and pleading from my brothers that the Casserole still be made, my Grandma and I came up with an alternative of the same dish:

6 slices of whole grain bread,
spread it with just enough I-can't-believe-it's-not-butter Spread,
poured over egg substitute and soy milk 
kept the onions and peppers because we could,
sprinkled some soy sausage patties
and soy cheese over it all

And from there it was business as usual.

We were a little hesitant to taste it because of all the substitutes, but man, were we pleasantly surprised. The Breakfast Casserole Remix was a success!

Now, for those of you who are hesitant to use soy products or substitutes of anything, here's a word from the wise: think about it, enjoy the foods you love, with half the fat, calories, carbs and sodium, and all the benefits of added grain and protein, and be able to eat MORE than what you would in a typical plating for one serving of the old stuff!

I know I might not be able to convince everyone, I was a slow convert too. But not only can food remixes taste just as good, but you feel better after having ate them too :)

oh cupcakes

Well, for those of you who know me, you know I have a minor obsession with cupcakes. I actually recently urchased a cupcake necklace, cupcake earrings, and cupcake panties but that's neither here nor there. It's not even really the eating of the tasty little treats, its the: what can I do with them? I'll admit, to which Martha Stewart would flip her lid over, I'll use boxed cake mixes and canned frosting. Depending on my mood, I'm not so much into the making of the cake as I am the decorating.

 I love to decorate cupcakes.

I really regret that I haven't taken more pictures of the ones I've decorated, but I'm trying to remember to do so whenever I make them. I'm not even sure what it is about a perfectly decorate cupcake, but you have to admit, it's real hard not to like cupcakes.

Last year for my birthday, my boyfriend got me the Martha Stewart Cupcake book. Until then, I really didn't like cookbooks. I thought they were boring and just took up space on a shelf. However, this cupcake book (in my opinion), is second best to only The Bible. It has everything- and oh man, I mean everything- you could ever need to know about making cupcakes.

For those who are curious, or want some seriously good cake and frosting recipes, as well as ideas of how to use, display, present, and store cupcakes, I can't recommend this book enough.

I would check it out if I were you. Unless you have it. Then we would probably get along really well.

first post....ever

Alright well, we're gonna see how this goes. I'm hoping to make my blog somewhat of an area I can run my mouth about food I like, don't like, suggest, wouldn't suggest, love to make, recipes, etc. This might turn into a Julie and Julia type thing but I don't really want that so I'll try not to do that. More stuff to dish about (ha, get it..dish..) later.