chocolate buttermilk cupcakes*

These cupcakes are simply chocolate heaven! I haven't made cupcakes for the students for the longest time, so I decided to kick off getting out of cupcake retirement with a bang! Who doesn't like chocolate on chocolate on chocolate?? No one I know. Except my husband. Except him. It hurts my soul.

Chocolate Buttermilk Cupcakes

from Baker By Nature

chocolate chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes*

It's about time that I shared this recipe with you guys! I have a rule. I never make the same dessert twice for the students. Although I have not broken this rule, I have made these for parent conference, a family dinner, a girls night out, and for a couple of my new neighbors! I think it's safe to say that I am obsessed with this recipe!

The only change that I made from the original recipe was that I thought cookie dough in the middle as well as a cookie dough frosting may be a little overkill, so I didn't freeze my cookie dough balls. I formed them and put them straight into the batter. A couple of times I put them in the fridge for a few minutes just so they weren't so sticky. I LOVE the cooked cookie in the middle with the yummy frosting! I'm looking forward to making these yet again hopefully in my near future!

Chocolate Chocolate Cookie Dough Cupcakes
from Java Cupcake

raspberry filled vanilla cupcakes w/ vanilla buttercream frosting*

Last night I finally broke down and downloaded the Draw Something app on my phone and made the hubby play with me. Oh, my cute little husband. He is so funny and doesn't even try. If you have never played before, it is just like Pictionary. It lets you watch your opponent draw their picture and make mistakes and erase and start over until they finally have their finished product. Well, I was watching the hubs draw his word with my thinking cap on, just trying to get it in record time. He kept erasing over and over, and each thing he tried to draw was completely different, just leaving me more and more confused. And then I thought for sure I got it. He was drawing a dinosaur with a spiky mohawk! Then he erased and drew an American flag with "42 cents" written in the corner. Evidently his word was "stamp". So I asked him where the dinosaur came into play. What I thought was a dinosaur, was actually the Statue of Liberty. Oh man...hahaha. I was laughing so hard I was crying. Definitely my new favorite game! If nothing else, it cracks me up!

These cupcakes were the dessert at the sports banquet on Wednesday. The blog I got the recipe from suggested ways to make your store bought cake mix taste homemade, so I followed those instructions. Although, I think each store bought cake mix is different because all of the extra ingredients just made my cupcakes fall apart easily. You live, you learn. Homemade is the way to go!

I think I also kind of got anxious with my filling, because I don't think I let it boil long enough and get as thick as it needed to be. Once it cooled down and I added my raspberries, it wasn't as thick and I wanted it to be. So I added some whipped topping to make it thicker. So if you find yourself in the same predicament, I would suggest adding about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of whipped topping to your filling. It still tastes amazing!

Raspberry Filled Vanilla Cupcakes w/ Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
adapted from Tidy Mom

no bake nutella cheesecake*

Hello friends!! Yes, I am still alive! I am sure you all were wondering, since I took a 66 day break. I cannot believe it has been that long. Man, time flies when you are having fun (a.k.a. being crazy). Here is a quick update of what I have been up to for the last couple of months.

*The hubby and I went decoration shopping crazy and pretty much revamped our whole living room! Our colors are a subtle lime green, turquoise blue and brown. We also got a new bed and some cute decor for our extra bedroom, and it is seriously a million times cuter than our master! We are still using the furniture my mother-in-law got for 50 bucks at a yard sell when Landon was like 20. We're pretty cool like that.

*The whole month of February I taught cooking classes to every home at work! We made some custom calzones and red velvet chocolate chip cupcakes! The students did SO awesome, and their baking skills were killer! Each and every batch of cupcakes came out PERFECT! Oh, and their calzones! Their calzones looked seriously pro and could easily be served in a legit Italian restaurant!

*My newest hobby kept me busy for the last month or so. My new favorite channel is HGTV and I am obsessed with House Hunters. I was introduced to this channel when my hubby discovered it on our channel lineup, and he is probably regretting that decision at this point. Why, you ask? Because we are MOVING! It inspired me to want my dream home, and when I looked up houses in our area I discovered that we can easily afford my dream home! I am so excited I could cry! It took the hubby some convincing, but once we went and looked at our options I got him on my side real quick :). We found a house that won our hearts, put in an offer, and they accepted! So we put our house up for sale on Monday, and had an offer in by Tuesday night! I am so excited to be buying a brand new, never been lived in house in Spanish Fork, which is where we currently live. We are hoping to close at the end of April, so this month is going to be crazy with packing again. It has only been 6 short months since we moved last.

Do you want to know the highlights of this house, all in which are things that I have never had the luxury of experiencing since my very own home ownership??

1. There is a PANTRY!  A pantry people! Like, the things you put your food in! My whole married life my food went in every last inch of every last cupboard.

2.  The kitchen has granite countertops! And an island topped with granite countertops! Oh, how I love granite countertops!

3.  The house has AC. AIR CONDITIONING my friends! No more swamp coolers for me! No way, jose!

4.  There is a master bathroom with a walk-in closet! Currently my clothes are in the extra bedroom, the other extra bedroom, and the coat closet. The hubs gets the closet in our room because I'm nice like that :).

5.  Last, but not least, there is a huge big yard for Tankers to run in! And there is a door to the backyard, which means we won't have to carry him out every single time! It doesn't currently have a fence, but that is the first thing we are doing. Other than a fence and putting grass in the backyard (the front is already landscaped), we don't have to do a thing! We have always bought project houses in the past, so this is going to be weird.

Anyway, I have been quite occupied and my blog has certainly suffered! I don't think I have put up one new recipe from my "new" menus, that we have already been using for 2 months! This is bad news. But I am going to get to every single one of those, plus some others. Although, I do have one confession. I was in such a non-blogging funk that I made lots and lots of things and didn't even document the process! I deeply apologize, but I promise there is still lots of things to come.

These no bake nutella cheesecakes are not only amazing, but perfect for pretty much any occasion, whether it be fancy or casual. I made them for Valentine's Day for the students, and I have had many requests for the recipe since then, so here you go all ya'll!!!

No Bake Nutella Cheesecake
from My Baking Addiction

red velvet chocolate chip cupcakes*

No better way to ring in the New Year (I know I'm a bit late) then with an absolutely divine dessert! These little babies were dessert for the students last week, and were an amazing little treat (a.k.a. the last amazing thing we are going to eat for 3 months) for me and my staff before we started in on the Biggest Loser. I was excited that there were a couple left the next day so that I could devour one just before the weigh-ins. You may call it cheating, but I call it just another part of my cupcake top - or as everyone else calls it "muffin top".

Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting
from Gingerbread Bagels

peppermint fudge cupcake jars*

Are you in need of a last-minute neighbor or co-worker Christmas gift? Well don't you fret, because I've got your back! Not only are these little jars adorable and look so festive, but they are amazingly delicious! I have given these jars away for gifts for two years straight! I just love their presentation, but even more I love knowing that they not only look great, but taste great, too.

Peppermint Fudge Cupcake Jars
from Our Best Bites

peppermint kiss brownie bites*

Happy December! I cannot believe it is almost Christmas! This year I think we are going to be scrooge's and not even put up a tree. Not because we don't love our Christmas tree, but because right now our front room is still bare, and it would practically be the only thing in the room. It seems like a lot of work for it to just sit there all by its lonesome, without even any furniture for us to sit in to admire its beauty. We are buying each other couches for Christmas, however, so our room will soon not be so bare and next year I will definitely be more festive!

And I swear this year I am going to buy new tree decorations after Christmas when they are on sale! I have told myself that I was going to do this the last 2 years, but I think the hard part is where you won't even get to use them for almost a year. Doesn't make the shopping as much fun as if it would if you were to buy them right before. But this year is the year.

I am in LOVE with these peppermint kiss brownie bites! Only mine didn't really turn out to be 'bites'. I didn't make mine in a mini muffin tin, but in a regular-sized muffin tin. I made these for dessert for the students, and dessert is a really big treat since they only get dessert about once a week, so I figured they were appreciate a bigger 'bite'. And man, they did not disappoint! I could eat one of these every single day, especially during the Christmas season! You must make these for your next Christmas party or family get-together, or maybe just because it's a Tuesday. Whatever your reason, it's a great one if you have one of these little guys in tow!

Peppermint Kiss Brownie Bites
adapted from Picky Palate

apple pie cupcakes*

I am so deeply in love with these cupcakes that it is almost a problem. Although I have not made them more than once (yet), I have a feeling that these are going to be in my life for the long haul. I want to make more apple, some cherry, mixed berry, well basically any kind of flavor that would normally be a pie, then make it into a cupcake! They turned out so dang cute, and they tasted even better! But grab a fork people, because this is no eat-and-go dessert. Unless you want to skimp on the filling, and if you do that then shame on you!

The recipe called for a vanilla buttercream frosting, but I am sorry but I HAVE to have whipped topping on my "pie"! So instead I made some homemade spiced whipped cream, and you will notice some little specks in the picture. That is cinnamon people! Someone told me that they are going to buy me an industrial sized container of cinnamon for Christmas because I use it so much. Although she was kidding, I didn't think it was a bad idea :).

Apple Pie Cupcakes
adapted from Annie's Eats

lemon bundt cake*

Well, the other day I had to part with my beautiful HTC Evo. You see, since we moved to our new house my phone seldomly worked from my place of residence, and it's never worked from the house we stay in St.George or the in-laws cabin. So today I got the iPhone 4s from Verizon, which is where I am blogging from currently! At the house in St. George! Score! I still love my Evo and it will be greatly missed, but I must say that it is nice to receive phone calls on the couch. I am much too lazy to go outside in the corner of the lot in order to conversate (yes, spell checker is telling me this isn't a word - but it is now. Take that spell checker!) with people.

So on Sunday I turned 25. Scary huh. This was the first year where I didn't get the least bit excited that it was my birthday. I wasn't depressed about it, but it truly felt like just another day. The first sign that I am getting old. Now that is depressing.

For my big quarter-of-a-century day, the hubs gave me a gift certificate to Williams Sonoma (he is so good to me!), and one of the treasures I purchased was a bundt pan. I love it, LOVE it! So I made my own birthday cake! I decided on a lemon bundt cake, and I am telling you right now that it was simply AMAZING! We served it with some french vanilla ice cream, and I ate two enormous pieces. And secretly could have eaten more! I am currently planning the next time I can make this beauty again. Maybe tomorrow... :) So here she is!

Lemon Bundt Cake
from allrecipes.com

mini chocolate trifles*

Back in the day I would make a chocolate trifle in my trifle bowl with chocolate cake, pudding and whipped cream (not homemade at that point. I wasn't that fancy when I was 15). It was one of my favorites that I made on several occasions. Awhile back I needed a dessert for one of the sports banquets that was being held for the students, and I wanted something that looked fancy, tasted great, and wouldn't take me all day. I decided to try and make some little individual chocolate trifles!

I wanted to be able to cut a little circle into the cake to put in the bottom of my little glass, but just knew that any old chocolate cake would probably fall apart the minute I tried to take the circle out of the pan. Then it dawned on me. Sponge cake! Honestly, I had never made sponge cake in my life, but it just HAD to stay together. It's like sponge - right?? Well, the end of this story ends fabulously, and my sponge cake came right out of the pan just as expected! The day of the banquet was the day that I went to Taylor Swift, and I had to leave early and was so stressed that I was leaving everyone hanging that I didn't even remember to try a trifle for myself, but I heard that they were very delicious! And I just loved the presentation!

Mini Chocolate Trifles
Serves 6

chocolate chip cookie cheesecake*

If you are having a hankering for something sweet, this is it folks! I am absolutely in love with the presentation of this dessert, but it's the amazingness of it's sweet being that takes the cake - literally. It might even be too sweet for some, but even if you just take a bite or two, I promise you won't regret it.

If you would like to make it in one 9" springform pan, instead of 6 mini pans, the bake time will take about 20-25 minutes. It might even take longer, because I have made this twice (yes, twice in one week - get off my back) and it still was pretty doughy in the end - even after 25 minutes. So just a heads up, in case you are making this in a rush. Plan accordingly :)

Chocolate Chip Cookie Cheesecake
from In Katrina's Kitchen

soft brown sugar cookies w/ browned butter frosting*

I saw these cookies on Pinterest and dreamed about them for days. There were several occasions that I about made them after dinner, but I really have done fairly well at eating pretty good and working out before work. So I did the next best thing. I made them for dessert for the students! Man oh man, these little babies are DELICIOUS! That frosting is something else. And the cookies literally melt in your mouth!

The next day I was still dreaming of eating another cookie. So what did I do? I made them after dinner :(. In the end I broke down anyway, but it wasn't fair that I had tasted this little piece of heaven and that Landon was left out. That is the true meaning of cruel and unusual punishment. I had the share the goodness with the one I love. So get off my back :). (And don't ask me how, because I made them twice, but I didn't take any pictures of the process. Sorry!)

Gooseberry Patch Soft Brown Sugar Cookies w/ Browned Butter Frosting
from SusieQTPies

pumpkin cupcake w/ salted caramel buttercream*

It seems like salted caramel is the new "thing". It is everywhere. I have always thought it sounded good, but really didn't get the big deal. Then I made it for this buttercream. Man oh man, this stuff is GOOD. I was skeptical about the buttercream, since I really am not a huge fan, but this buttercream is pretty tasty. I am still not the biggest fan of the texture, but the salted caramel flavor is really so amazing!

So, I found this recipe on Pinterest - of course - and tried to follow it word for word. But this was my problem. The cupcakes turned out fabulously. Really - so good! Then I got to the frosting. I tried to make the "salted caramel" twice, then gave up. In the recipe it says to let the sugar and water boil until it reaches a deep amber color. The first time I tried to wing it, while not really 100% sure what a deep amber color looked like. When I added my cream to mix in once it had reached what I thought was deep amber, the caramel got hard as a rock and the cream did not mix in at all. So I knew I cooked it too long. So I tried again. This time, however, I decided to Google what deep amber looks like. That was as much help as trying to get my puppy help me bake. Please, I beg you, Google what deep amber looks like. It is about as clear as mud. So I decided I would just let it be a bit lighter than my first attempt and was really feeling good about it this time. I added my cream, and again - hard as a rock. This is when I gave up. At least on that caramel recipe.

I decided to look up another recipe for a salted caramel buttercream, but I wanted one that used a candy thermometer so that there was no color guessing, no texture guessing. I wanted crystal clear directions. After looking over a few recipes, I still couldn't find one that used a candy thermometer. However, I decided to just pick one and try it.

These were my directions. Simmer until thickened; about 3-4 minutes. Ugh. How thickened would they like it to be? I had no idea. I attempted to guess for awhile, at least to what my idea of what the thickness should be, which was way longer than 3-4 minutes I might add, until I had a genius idea. I have made caramel a time or two and decided that I would just use a candy thermometer anyway. I figured if I let it get to about 230 degrees, just under soft ball stage, that it would work great because it would still be pourable, yet still have a firmness to it. So that is what I did, and it WORKED! Yay. You can try and guess if you would like, and if it works my hat goes off to you. I need much more clear directions, because I am just simply not that cool.

Pumpkin Cupcakes w/ Salted Caramel Buttercream
cupcake recipe from Made In Mel's Kitchen

strawberry cream puff marshmallow kabob*

Remember the strawberry cream puff kabobs that I made here? Well, these are exactly those kabobs, only with a yummy marshmallow added into the mix! Not only is it a delicious addition, but I love the contrast of colors that the marshmallows add.

All you need are some strawberries, cream puffs (I got mine from the frozen section), marshmallows, semi sweet chocolate chips. and some skewers.

Skewer the strawberries, cream puffs and marshmallows in any order your little heart desires. Over a double boiler (or in a microwave safe dish if you prefer that option), pour about 1 cup of chocolate chips and stir until completely melted and smooth. Drizzle the melted chocolate over your skewer of delicious goodness.

Set aside for 5-10 minutes, or until the chocolate has hardened. Now eat your little heart out!

*as seen on Pinterest*

-alyssa*

s'more pops*

I am fresh from a mini vacation to St. George, and I must say that it was just what I needed! September was a CRAZY month, and I am so happy that we all made it through. But I have never been more excited to go somewhere where I didn't have to think about work and could truly relax. And relax we did. Both days we slept in until 11:00, and took a 2 hour nap on Friday. Then we went and saw The Help (SO GOOD!), and ate at our favorite breakfast spot, Bear Paw, twice! And that's it folks. That is all we did. A whole bunch of nothin. It was amazing!

And now we are back to the real world. Wish our mini vaca could have lasted a little longer, but work awaits us. Oh, and did I mention that Taylor was so fun?? This is the first concert I have ever been to with the hubs. He even liked it! She sang and played acoustic the song "Animal" from Neon Trees (since they are from Utah) and it was SO GOOD! My favorite song that she sang. But I loved how she learned to play that song so that she could sing it here and only here. That is so cool! LOVE her!

And again I continue with my s'mores obsession. I loved these s'more pops. And man, are they easy! Seriously. I wish cake pops were as easy to make as these little guys. And they are equally as delicious. We served these at our parent conferences last weekend, and they disappeared very quickly!

S'more Pops
from Gimme Some Oven

red velvet brownies*

Tomorrow I am going my first concert in about 6 years! Back in the day, I was a big fan of Keith Urban, Kenny Chesney and of course - *NSYNC. Well, I am still a fan of all of them, but I went to Keith twice, Kenny three times, and *NSYNC only once, but that was my first concert and will forever be embedded in my memory. I hate to admit it, but I used to be absolutely obsessed with the teeny bopper boy band. Like - internet stalking, every-TV-show-that-mentions-the-group recording, book collecting, poster hanging, and truly thinking in my young brain that Justin Timberlake would fall in love and marry me one day - kind of obsession. However, I was 12 so I'm OK with it :).

Anyway, on to the concert that I am attending tomorrow. The hubby and I are going to Taylor Swift! Oops, don't tell him I told you. He said that he will go if no one finds out, but we all know I am not going by myself - so sorry honey! You are ratted out! I didn't used to like Taylor. I don't really know why. But then something happened. Now I just cannot get enough! I love that she writes her own music and says it like it is. She doesn't care if she just flat out calls someone out in a song. She just does her thing. LOVE her!

These brownies were another one of the goodies that I made for parent conference. They were a huge hit and I am getting requests for the recipe left and right! So here you are all ya'll!

Red Velvet Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting
adapted from Smells Like Home

s'more cookie bars*

I love making different versions of s'mores as much as I love Pinterest - which is where I found this yummy recipe! I have yet to have an official "over the fire" s'more, so I need to fill that void by making every s'more recipe possible! I think I am doing a pretty good job :)

S'more Cookie Bars
from Baked Perfection
as seen on Pinterest :)

dark chocolate cake*

We made this cake for one of the students' birthdays. They wanted a dark chocolate cake, with cream cheese frosting and topped with some Reese's and Oreo's. Luckily some of the cake got stuck to the bottom of the pan, so I got a little smidgen of a taste, and it was amazing! I was excited that this chocolate cake didn't call for coffee, because a lot of chocolate cake recipes do. I added some cocoa powder to the cream cheese frosting, then added some swirlies to the side and topped the cake with the candies. I think it turned out super cute!

Isn't it precious??

I saw the swirly idea somewhere, but I can't remember where. Probably Pinterest. I really cannot get enough of that site. I haven't ventured to anything but the food and drink section. I spend so long just looking at all the goodies that if I were to look at anything else my husband would probably trade me in for a more fun and exciting model :).


Dark Chocolate Cake
from allrecipes.com

2 cups boiling water

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, softened

2 1/4 cups white sugar

4 eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 3 - 9 inch round cake pans. In medium bowl, pour boiling water over cocoa, and whisk until smooth. Let mixture cool. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla. Add the flour mixture alternately with the cocoa mixture. Spread batter evenly between the 3 prepared pans.

Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Allow to cool.

-alyssa*

cookie dough brownies*

I have been contemplating what to make for dessert for our parent conferences that are coming up next week, and DING DING DING - I think we have found a winner! I have seen cookie dough brownies on a few food blogs here and there and have always wanted to try them. However, I don't think I was prepared for the deliciousness that was about to enter my life. The cookie dough is really soft, and then having a fudgy chocolately brownie as the "crust" - BRILLIANT! If any of my readers are going to be around during parent coference - you absolutely must grab one of these!

Cookie Dough Brownies
from The Daily Herald

cherry limeade cupcakes*

Last week we had a luau for the students, which also happened to be our first BBQ of the summer. No, I did not just get the memo that it has been summer for the last several months, but because of different restrictions from the health department it is really quite the process to be able to cook outside. However, we got a temporary event permit, so I decided that we needed to make it more than just a plain old BBQ - and what better way than to have a fun luau! We had decorations and leis and of course - some cherry limeade cupcakes topped with a little paper umbrella! LOVE IT.

I really liked the lime cupcake, but I must admit - the cherry frosting really didn't do it for me. It didn't have a very cherry distinct flavor, and I absolutely love cherries, so that was a huge disappointment. I even added extra juice from the maraschino cherries, but it still wasn't very cherry-y. But the cupcake - so good!!! My suggestion: add even more of the juice or possibly get some cherry flavor extract. (I have a confession, I didn't know if cherry flavor extract existed - so I just googled it. It does! Phew.)

Cherry Limeade Cupcakes
from Java Cupcake