Craftfully Made

Ingredients:

1 (12-ounce) can Guinness stout

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3 large eggs

3/4 cup sour cream

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

2 cups sugar

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 8oz. bar of cream cheese, softened

1 4oz. stick of unsalted butter, softened

2 C confectioner’s sugar

4 – 6 Tablespoons of Bailey’s Irish Cream

Aluminum foil

Green food coloring

Green licorice (Twizzlers Rainbow Twists, or green apple licorice found at Whole Foods)

Making the cupcake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  In a large bowl, combine all the wet ingredients: Guinness, milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Mix in the sour cream (don’t worry, you can’t taste the sour cream).  In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: cocoa, sugar, flour, and baking soda. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.

Place baking cups into pan.  Fill half way up with Guinness mixture.  For each cupcake, you will need to make three balls of aluminum foil 2/3 inch in diameter.  Place the foil balls between the paper liner and the pan equidistant around each cupcake.  The foil balls will create the shamrock shape.  Bake 25 minutes.  Makes 24 cupcakes.

For the frosting:

Blend together cream cheese, butter, and confectioner’s sugar.  Beat until light and fluffy. Slowly add in the Bailey’s, and beat until completely incorporated into the frosting.  Add green food coloring and blend until you have the desired color of green.  Using a spatula spread the frosting on top of the cupcake.  Be careful to keep the frosting within the paper liner so you don’t lose the shamrock shape.  For the stem, cut the green licorice into 1 inch pieces and insert into the cupcake. Top with green sprinkles if desired.

I couldn’t let the cool looking beer can go to waste, so I bought a few green carnations from the store and used the can as a vase.  It added to the Irish spirit as friends came by to grab a yummy cupcake.

This project makes the most adorable cupcakes.  You will need some patience to make all 24 cupcakes in this rainbow fashion.  Children over 6 may enjoy this project but don’t expect perfect cupcakes.  Seeing and eating the finished product is the most fun part of this project.

Materials:

Box of white cake mix (enough for 24 cupcakes)

Food coloring

Cupcake liners (I used reusable silicone liners)

Prepare your favorite white cake mix.  Divide the batter evenly among six small bowls, about 1 cup for each color.  Using the guide below, add food coloring to each bowl of cake batter and mix well.

Purple: 9 red and 6 blue drops

Blue: 12 drops

Green: 12 drops

Yellow: 12 drops

Orange: 2 yellow and 4 red drops

Red: 18 drops

Drop in the cupcake liners into the pan.  Using a small spoon add a ½ teaspoon of the purple batter and spread around the bottom of the liner.  Make sure the batter is level and touches all around the sides of the liner.  Next add a spoonful of blue batter.  Tilt the spoon on its side and pull the batter to the side of the liner being careful to not allow the purple to mix with the blue.  I found it easier to spin the pan instead of twisting my arm around (a little trick I learned from cake decorating class).  Continue adding each color in the following order: green, yellow, orange, and then red.  Bake as directed on the cake box (probably about 20 minutes).

Allow cupcakes to cool and the remove liner.  It is like magic to see the rainbow throughout the cupcake.  Top with frosting as you desire. You can also use this idea to make a fun and exciting birthday cake.  Be sure to only frost the top so the rainbow sides are displayed.

Here is a great idea for kids to make for their friends, teachers, and loved ones for Valentine’s day.

Materials:

3 tbls butter or margarine

1 package (10 oz., about 40) marshmallows

6 cups Rice Krispies

Funnel

Aluminum Foil

Paper

In large saucepan melt butter over low heat.  Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted.  Stir in food coloring and flavoring if desired.  Remove from heat.  Add Rice Krispies. Stir until well coated.  Let cool for 2 minutes.

Spray funnel with Pam.  Spoon mixture into funnel and compact down to form the kiss shape.  Turn funnel upside down releasing the mixture on a cookie sheet.  Let cool for 30 minutes.

Using foil squares, wrap each kiss.  I found that pulling the foil in a diagonal motion looked more realistic compared to a chocolate kiss.  Print out a special message and cut into strips.  Add your special message before sealing the top of the kiss.

Take it to the next level:

-Add food coloring to the melted marshmallows for colored kisses (I used 8 drops of red to get this shade of pink)

-Use Cocoa Krispies for a chocolate flavored treat

-Add flavoring to the melted marshmallows (I used peppermint)

Krispie Kisses Message

For another idea using Rice Krispies Treats check out http://www.ricekrispies.com/#/recipes/valentine-cut-out-treats

The Hallmark holiday is quickly approaching…will you be in a loving spirit?  Although many people brush off Valentine’s Day as a useless holiday, I find the holiday to be more than just chocolates and cheesy cards.  If you allow yourself to celebrate love I am sure you will wear a smile on your face and have a better attitude.  Even if you are not in the arms of the perfect mate, Valentine’s Day is a time to celebrate all the love in your life.

Here are a few ideas to get the love flowing in your life:

-Add a few spots of red, pink, and white into your decor.  Hearts are a must!

-Find some local valentine’s cards to send out to family and friends

-Bake.  Food warms the soul and makes even the coldest heart smile.

-Make plans for February 14th no matter your romantic situation.  Not having any plans will just leave you miserable, even if you are in love.  No matter how hard you fight it, this is an important date.  If you find yourself alone, celebrate yourself by eating a delicious meal and taking a bubble bath.

Materials:

Large vase

Small vase (needs to fit inside large vase)

Flowers (real or artificial)

Candy (I used conversation hearts and red hots)

Ribbon

This is a cute idea to bring drama into a centerpiece for Valentine’s Day and is simple to do.  Gather all your materials and have them close at hand.

Place the small vase inside the larger one.  Pour 2 inches of candy into the large vase to make sure the smaller vase is secure.  Place your flowers in the small vase and arrange as you desire.  Continue filling the larger vase with candy up to the brim.  If you have difficulty getting the candy into the vase, roll a sheet of paper to use as a funnel.  To add a finishing touch, use any ribbon to tie a bow around the vase.

So for anyone who is scared to try new ideas out of fear of failure…get over it.  I saw this cute idea online and thought it would be super fun and easy.  Through a little trial and error I got one good looking cookie out of a dozen.   Don’t take shortcuts on this one and you will be more successful than me plus have beautiful cookies.

Start with your favorite sugar cookie dough.  I took the easy way and got a box mix at the store, which turned out to be a big mistake.  Make sure the dough is nice and cold.  Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and spray with Pam.

Roll out the dough to ¼ inch thick on parchment paper with flour so the dough will not stick.  Cut out cookies with a large shaped cookie cutter. Using a smaller cookie cutter remove the center of the cookie.  Place on the cookie sheet.

Place hard candies (I used Jolly Ranchers) in a zip lock bag and crush them into smaller pieces.  Place the crushed candy into the center of the cookie.  Be careful to not overfill the center.  Bake according to your recipe, about 8-10 minutes.  The edges of the cookie should be light brown and the candy melted.  Let cool for 5 minutes or until the candy has hardened.

A few tips and tricks:

-try coloring the dough red or pink

-use a textured cookie cutter to add a ruffled effect to the edge of the cookie

-make sure the cookie sheet is placed in the middle of the oven for even cooking.  Rotate the sheet half way through the cooking time.

Here are my results:

Here is the original recipe:

http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/lovin-from-the-oven-685398

A friend sent me an article all about Groundhog Day cupcakes that I had to share.  There are some great ideas.  Take a look at the pictures and you can dissect each part and find candies and cookies that can turn into a groundhog with a little creativity.

http://entertainment.comedy.com/2010/02/02/15-silliest-groundhog-cupcakes

Get Crafting!

I am getting ready for the next holiday and wanted to share my decorating calendar.  Don’t be one of those people that have Easter decorations colliding with Halloween.  If you stay organized, changing your themes should be fast and simple…unless you add to your collection like I do.

Here is a schedule of when I like to put up my decorations for each holiday.  Some of these holidays I skip over so don’t think I am that crazy to have a storage tote for each of these.

Links for more details and holidays:

http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar

http://www.madmanmike.com/us_holidays_dates.html