Cupcake Tree Tutorial

Due to popular demand, I am taking a momentary hiatus from my self-imposed blogging hiatus to provide you a cupcake tree tutorial. The project idea originally came from my Mother's Day issue of Food Network Magazine, but I can't find a link with instructions on the website.

Here goes:

Materials:

-Flower pot (I'd recommend using one with a wider base than mine . . . it was a little top-heavy when finished. It might also be a good idea to weight the bottom (rocks?) before putting the floral foam in.)

-Floral foam and moss cut to fit snug inside pot (I used a pre-packaged pot from Michael's with the foam and moss already fitted inside. It worked marvelously, and saved some time.)

-White styrofoam craft ball (purchased at Michael's Craft)

-Stick for the trunk (I put Seth in charge of this one. He did a great job finding something to fit my specifications . . . though next time I think I'll specify that I need a thicker stick, as the ball was much heavier than anticipated once I got all the cupcakes on.)

-Toothpicks

-Craft paint for the styrofoam ball, I used pink because it matched my frosting.

-Mini-cupcake liners (Michael's craft)

-One box (per tree) of cake mix baked into mini-cupcakes (I baked extra so the trees didn't get completely mauled by kids trying to work the cupcakes off)

-Stiff icing (I make buttercream from scratch so I can adjust for stiffness by adding more powdered sugar as necessary.) I used two different tones of pink.

Allow at least an hour to build your first tree . . . successive trees should come more easily and take less time.

Paint styro ball with craft paint and allow time to dry.

Wash the stick to be used for tree trunk.

Push stick to the bottom of the foam in the pot, and then push styro ball onto the top.

Using a decorator's icing bag and a large round tip, ice each cupcake in a swirl design starting on the outer edge and finishing with a peak in the center.

Attach cupcakes to styro ball with toothpicks. Try not to swear too much during this step. The ones on the bottom take three toothpicks (some are going to stick out the sides a little, but it doesn't show too much once all the cupcakes are on) the cupcakes on the top only need one or two toothpicks.

The styro ball is going to show a little between the cupcakes, but that is okay because you painted it, remember?

Good luck!

Clever

This sweater has had me all agoggle since I first laid eyes on it last fall. Unfortunately it's price tag has left it off my shopping list. My darling husband actually tried to buy it for me for Christmas, but it had been sold out for ages. Do you love it like I do? Well, look at this. And for a much more reasonable price. Unfortunately, I don't need a sweater anymore.

Did you know that you can donate to the Red Cross effort in Haiti by text? Brilliant. Text "Haiti" to the number 90999 to donate $10 via your phone bill. As of Thursday Red Cross had already raised $5 million this way. Simple. If you are LDS you can also add a donation for "Humanitarian Aid" on your tithing slip.

We bought these dresses for the little girls to wear at Em's wedding. So sweet, right? The flower accessory doesn't come with the dress so I've been shopping for something of similar size in hot pink. Any suggestions?

Brace yourself for Pinewood Derby photos in a couple of weeks. Seth and Michael have been busy brainstorming and designing . . . I'm excited to see their car plans come to fruition this weekend.

And lastly, the best granola recipe ever. I got it from Lanie, who got it from Linda who got it from somebody . . . You know it is awesome if it has been shared that many times! I halve it because it is huge. For the dry fruit I've used chopped food-storage apples and Craisins.

Mix in a large bowl:

1/2 cup ground flax seed

10 cups oatmeal

1/3 cup sesame seeds

1 cup wheat germ

1 1/2 cups plain unsalted roasted sunflower seeds

1 1/2 cups chopped nuts (any kind of your choosing) I like chopped almonds

Heat in sauce pan until melted but do not boil:

1 1/2 cups water

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 cup oil

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup molasses

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 T. vanilla

Pour syrup over dry ingredients. Spread on two large cookie sheets. Bake at 300 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool. Add dry fruit. Store in airtight container.

This granola is soft baked at only 25 minutes. If you bake longer it will be much crunchier.

Cramming All The Fun We Can Into the End of Summer

I always fall off the blogwagon a little in the summertime. There is just too much to do outside. And I forget to bring the camera a lot (like for our entire trip to Utah.) Michael remembers, however. So if he's along there are usually pictures to show for it. Here are some shots from our hike last week.

These are Seth's new glasses. He's got the whole Clark Kent thing going on.
Alice asks multiple times a day "How many days until kindergarten?" At least now we are getting down to the single digits in terms of wait time.
Thomas is still trouble. He'd better chill out, because I fully intend to toilet train him as soon as the kids head back to school. I have big plans for that diaper money, people.

He's still too little for pre-school, so some friends and I are doing Joyschool this year. It is called Joyschool, because I will be joyful when it is not my turn to teach.
This is what 100 pounds of peaches looks like on my kitchen counter. I went a little overboard on the peach picking. I usually shoot for about 60 pounds . . . but they were so beautiful and smelled so good I couldn't stop picking. I am tired of canning.
We've been totally enjoying the bounty of our friend's gardens. Vixie showed up with tons of tomatoes, zucchini, squash and cucumbers. The result was amazing over pasta. (I threw in some onions, garbanzos and marinated artichoke hearts too, for fun.)
I know I have a lot of blog catch up to do. Next up: our tenth anniversary and trip to Seattle. I'm going to try to be better . . . but with three separate soccer schedules (mine plus two kids), piano lessons, cub scouts, and school coming up, I can't make any promises.

Cuisine

Have you ever noticed how uninspired some of the names for Japanese restaurants are? There is seriously a Japanese restaurant that we've eaten at called . . . . Japanese Restaurant.
Other poorly named establishments we have noticed include:
Teriyaki
Sushi World
Best Sushi
Mr. Sushi
Sushi Land
Sushi
Sushi Palace
Sushi & Teriyaki
Sushi Time
I Love Sushi
Sushi & More

So creative. Don't get me wrong, though. I love Japanese food and will continue to eat it. Some things are just fun to mock while I am enjoying them.
Speaking of sushi, check these out:


I found them on notmartha.org.They are made of Hostess Twinkies, Donettes, Sweedish Fish, and green Fruit Roll Ups. Pretty cool, huh?

Every time we go out to eat I entertain the idea of opening our own establishment named Mike and Mandy's (Hey, it is better than Mr. Sushi).
The cool thing about this restaurant would be the two menus. The menu called Mike's would offer items like ribs, bacon, fried cheese, sirloin steak, burgers, fries, mashed potatoes and gravy, fried chicken, prime rib, sausage, oysters, and steamed artichokes with butter sauce. This menu wouldn't offer dessert, because Mike would rather eat more fried cheese.
Mandy's menu would serve green salad, fruit, soup, bagels, pita sandwiches, baked potatoes, salmon, pasta, pita chips with hummus, grilled chicken, brown rice, whole wheat breads and for dessert; chocolate cake, chocolate cheesecake, and chocolate ice cream.

Of course, I'd never really open a restaurant. It is much to much work, and I already hear enough people complain about my cooking.

And in conclusion of my slightly Asian-themed post, I must tell you about the little old Asian man I see twice a week when I drive the pre-school carpool. He is the cutest thing. He jog/shuffles along the sidewalk waving to every person and car that goes past. Sweet Little Asian Man (as I call him in my head) is always dressed for his jog in a black turtleneck, dress slacks and Aquasocks. And for that, I love him.

More Oprah Wannabe; The Food Version

Mmmm. Panera's French Onion Soup. It is a must try. If I was really Oprah, I'd get you all together and give you free samples. But I'm not. So you'll have to take my word for the fact that Panera's onion-y, crouton-y, cheesy, bread-y concoction is the best around. Imagine my ecstasy when they built a brand new Panera within a reasonable drive from my house. I'll need to buy stock in the company to justify my expenditures there, I think.

Next up, I adore a good peck (or more) of fresh Oregon peaches. I especially love those peaches if they are handpicked by me and my precious progeny (but that is another post). This is what I do with many of those peaches:

Peach and Raspberry Crisp
Copyright, 1999, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, All Rights Reserved
Show: Barefoot Contessa
Episode: Pot Luck

4 to 5 pounds firm, ripe peaches (10 to 12 large peaches)
1 orange, zested
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 1/2 cups plus 2 to 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 pint raspberries
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1/2 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the inside of a 10 by 15 by 2 1/2-inch oval baking dish.
Immerse the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds, then place them in cold water. Peel the peaches and slice them into thick wedges and place them into a large bowl. Add the orange zest, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and 2 tablespoons of flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the raspberries. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. If there is a lot of liquid, add 1 more tablespoon of flour. Pour the peaches into the baking dish and gently smooth the top.

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, salt, oatmeal, and the cold, diced butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the butter is pea-sized and the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle evenly on top of the peaches and raspberries. Bake for 1 hour, until the top is browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve immediately, or store in the refrigerator and reheat in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until warm.

You've gotta appreciate the Barefoot Contessa, and Foodnetwork.com.

And:


I enjoy cold cereal. But this, this cereal is delicious. It is crunchy. It is banana-y. It has lovely golden walnuts. And whole grains. And sometimes I eat it for dinner when Michael isn't home. I like to slice bananas on it, and then it is like a WHOLE MEAL. I fully expect the Post people to contact me for an endorsement contract because I love it so much.

Now, of course you all know that I can't live without dark chocolate. That is a given, but still worth mentioning, as it is a favorite. Only yesterday I realized that it probably defeats the purpose of spending my morning mall-walking with the grannies when I stop at See's for a free truffle afterward. I still do it. And after eating all that chocolate, I must brush with:


Tom's of Maine Orange-Mango Toothpaste. Okay, so toothpaste is technically not food, but this is like dessert on your toothbrush.

Now, last but not least, Trader Joe's. It is like food heaven. If you live near one, I strongly admonish you to try the Mediterranean Hummus, Snap Pea Crisps, Chocolate Covered Fruit Pieces, and Stuffed Salmon. When I'm feeling health-conscious (often) I like their horomone-free milk, free-range eggs, and whole wheat cous cous.

Now that you are all salivating, it is time to start dinner.