Lately.....

I realize I have in no way kept this blog (or my other) current . ..

Just no time!

However, I have had time to make some goods lately:) Enjoy--I might update my other blog, but we shall see!

Bad I can't remember, but think these were just plain vanilla with whipped cream cheese frosting! 

Chocolate cupcakes with salted caramel filling and chocolate ganache filling. 

a just because cake that was DELICIOUS

Vanilla cake with raspberry coconut cream filling & IMBC . . . frosting this cake started out totally different, but then I got frustrated as it wasn't perfect;-) so this is what I ended up with:D

Cake

So, it has been ages since I last updated-buttttt anyways:) I have been itching to make a cake and we recently got a new English Bulldog . . .Rowdy Roulette Rousey and so I made a cake for Shannon to take to work:) Whenever someone "big" in your life happens they have this thing where they bring in treats!
This is a vanilla cake with chocolate strawberry filling with italian meringue filling.

Today's experiment

In the way of fondant carnations:) I tried mums but I don't have the right flower cut out--mine has too many petals! So--I need to get that one;)

Can you imagine

I read this article & WOW, cannot imagine being that bride . . . . . .

click the link below

Um--a wedding cake?

TONIGHT

Is the night I get to share my love and passion for cupcakes with others! I cannot wait. I am nervous as I have never done this before. Usually, I like to be alone in my kitchen with just my music/show playing in the background, coffee (yesterday in the form of Starbucks) and my MIXER--oh, and Rampage :) he just sits/lays there and I get to bounce ideas off him and he always agrees:D:D

For the class, yesterday I made up some vanilla and chocolate cupcakes for the class to decorate. I also made up some salted caramel filling for them to use. On the list today is frosting, probably IMBC and Cream Cheese. Also think I am going to make another filling so they have two to choose from. Bringing all my supplies that I have so that they can use whatever they want to decorate their cupcakes.

I have been wanting to try making more things with fondant, so I have been researching and teaching myself. Shannon got me these movies for Christmas from this cake baker, and the first one is how to frost cakes smoothly, but I know she has some fondant ones too that I need to get.

My goodies bags. A cupcake corer, my three favorite tips (and one you can do so much with) and some piping bags. The boxes are for them to take their finished cupcakes home. 

Fondant roses--SOOO easy to make! 

salted caramel filling-oh so good:) 

My new personal blog

instead of flooding this blog with new pictures i just made a new one! this one is purely for cupcakes. i transferred all other blog posts to my other one:)

...life as it is...

sooooo there you have it:)
I will eventually end up making it private, so just shoot me your email etc and I will put you on the list!:)

Lemonade & Flip flops

We weren't able to make it up to Wilson to get to Kylie's 7th birthday party, so we planned something for tomorrow. I had asked her what she wanted and she asked for a "flipflop" birthday cake. :)

I have really been into the "big" cupcake lately. I always think I have major room for improvement, and not sure my vision came out exactly how I wanted, but I have to work at 1500 today, soo after spending over an hour plus on getting the frosting right this is what I came up with:)

Oh, and I tried a lemonade cupcake with cute little umbrella straws & molded chocolate flip flops. I was going to do fondant flip flops then I found a super cute silicone ice cube tray in the shape of flip flops and knew it would be perfect:)

So Lemonade cupcakes with Lemon Marshmallow Buttercream. (Totally new recipes, and the buttercream is a bit too sweet for me) Anyways some cupcakes are decorated with the cute flip flop and others with the umbrella straws:)

Big cupcake: Vanilla cupcake with IMBC.

OH & I wanted to include this one, because I never made a post about it. One of my favorite nurses to work with left us :( went and got his APNP and moved to Agnesian . . so, we had a little party for him before my last day of work with him:) I made cupcakes . . . . . .Chocolate with IMBC

sweet sweet summertime

i have always loved my nursing schedule that allows for days off during the week. 

never a monday-friday thing (generally) with most weekends off:) but, my schedule this week allowed me to spend some much needed time with some of my favorite little ladies and my favorite mom carlson! 

kylie and karena came to spend some time with grandma and grandpa--so, i went and had some fun too:) 

i left work yesterday and went and stayed the night and spent most of today with them. 

i certainly enjoy my time there and most certainly loved getting to see the girlies. i hadn't seen them in far too long:( they grow up so much every time i see them, i feel like i miss so much!!! 

i was so grateful for time with everyone! the girls don't let me out of their site, no privacy whatsoever & i LOVE it. i love that they love every bit of time with me as much as i do with them. 

we played outside. played with the animals. i did their hair. play-do. they opened a massage parlor and i was their only customer. tag. and my favorite:

 "let's play amish" as they are getting onto grandpa's trailer (their buggy). 

karena "i am tying my bonnet. the amish make the best pies."

kylie "yea they cut out stars and hearts on the top of their pies." 

karena "the amish are RICH." 

me "oh yeah, why do you think that?" 

karena "because they don't spend their money on silly things like we do." 

Oh-they are too funny;) 

Karena has some funny little saying "uh, you just made me more fuller."  and i could go on:) 

here are some pictures! 

Sweeets

Well, decided to make some cupcakes today!!

New recipe and probably a new favorite flavor!
Salted Caramel Cupcakes!!! Delicious!

Very time consuming, but oh so good!:) Had to first make salted caramel, which if you have ever made caramel, you know the process/time/perfectness that it entails!;-) And then the buttercream--the recipe called for Swiss buttercream, but I don't like making Swiss because although people say it is easier, for me, it is more of a pain in the butt! (Double broiler etc etc) I like making the so called "difficult" one Italian Meringue Buttercream!! I have the method down pat, because I have made it so much! But, you add your salted caramel into the buttercream, and you core out the center of the cupcakes for filling as well!!!  The second type was chocolate with peanut butter frosting, never a fan of recipes that have a ton of powder sugar in it (i hate sugary frostings) so, I just made my own up--but obviously I can't test taste it because I am allergic, soooooooooooo Shannon will have to try it when he gets home:)

Tips & Cupcakes

I have a huge plethora of piping tips, but I don't use many of them. A lot is r/t the fact that I don't know how and some is related to the fact that I have my favorite.

This is the OPEN star--tip number 1M but with this tip you can also do a rose . . . 

TIp 61. 

Tip 61. 

Also, the 24 cupcake pan was one of THE best purchases I have made to date--makes things go so much faster . .. . . and in the next house check out my oven, which will also help move things along!
I am including a sneak peak of my new appliances in the new house . . . . . . .. . . .

but shhhh:)

Cheesecake & Lemon Curd

Well, I have another cupcake gig coming up but other than that --this will probably be the last cooking rendezvous in this kitchen:) 

I wanted to use the lemon curd and blueberry preserves I had in my fridge . .. 

Lemon Curd Cupcakes with Blueberry Cream Cheese frosting :) 

& then . . .

One of Shannon's fellow co-workers is leaving Oshkosh Corp, so I asked him what treat he wanted --he requested a cheesecake. . . 

the chocolate had hardened, but looks like it is starting to melt in this picture! EEP . . .

Anyways . . that is what I have been up to--besides this blasted dreadful weather:/ doesn't allow for much fun outside yet:D