S'mores Cupcakes

I've been on a new cupcake flavor kick lately and decided to try one of my kids favorite things as a recipe.
S'mores!!!

This is fun because just like a s'more the cupcake has 3 layers. Graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallow.

The graham cracker bottom was cooked for a few minutes before the batter was added so it was nice and crispy. Yum. 

TT Tip: Once the cupcakes are finished, you can garnish with a graham cracker or take a hand torch and torch the top a little, just like a real toasted marshmallow. 

The icing isn't really marshmallow because that would melt down and become a mushy mess, however, this home made icing tastes just as good as marshmallow and holds up much better. 

Cupcake Fun

Sometimes it's just nice to make cupcakes for fun. Although I usually stick to making cupcakes and cakes for special events,this was a spur of the moment deal.

I made these very simply with a 5 year old helper. They were vanilla but for fun we tinted them purple with Wilton's gel color and added some very big sugar colors to the top.

The cupcakes were moist and very very yummy.

TT Tip: If you are making something for yourself or close family, consider going the semi home made way and but your frosting or use a box cake mix to save time. 

New Cupcake Flavors

I have recently come across some new flavors for cakes and cupcakes. If I am to be honest with myself (which I always try to be) I would like to try and make ALL of them today, right now!

This always happens when I come across something new. The problem is that I can't realistically make 2 or 3 dozen cupcakes to try out a new recipe. I don't want to eat all of the cupcakes ( and I will) and I also don't  have the time. With 3 kids and a house to keep in order, a new recipe takes time. It also takes tweaking.

Sometimes a recipe that works for one person, doesn't always work for the other.

It would be nice if I could get a babysitter for a few hours just so I could stay home and try out multiple recipes. I could then give the cupcakes and cakes away. Or heck, sell them at a bake sale of some sort. I wonder how legal it is to hold a bake sale out of your home if you are donating the money??
This will be something I will need to look into.

On that note, I would like to give myself a really good reason to try new recipes as well as bake to keep in practice and try new things. So if anyone in blog work would like to see something new, or wants to try a recipe but is worried about how it will come out, please let me know and I will make it first and post about it on my blog. Thanks!

Happiness is...

I got this image courtesy of High heels and diet dr. pepper. I actually saw this photo in A blog magazine earlier today and couldn't get the image out of my mind. I was really inspired by the quote as well and wanted to share it with everyone.

I believe home should really be a happy place and anything that reminds you of that should be cherished. I enjoy baking cakes for many reasons. I like seeing the look on people faces and I like knowing that something I made makes people happy. I enjoy being creative with cakes and cupcakes and watching that creativity come to life before my eyes. Most of all though, I like baking because it reminds me of my grandma. A simple time when we would get together in the kitchen and she would explain the ins and outs of cooking and count the scoops of flour I put in the bowl. She would help me turn the crank on the flour sifter and let me lick the beaters when she was finished.

Every time I bake anything these little memories pop into my head and it brings me so much joy that I can truly relate that Happiness is Homemade.