Butterbeer Cupcakes

My sister is a huge Harry Potter fan so when she discovered these Butterbeer Cupcakes she had to make them. If you are a Harry Potter fan, you would know that Butterbeer is a common beverage in the Harry Potter world. She came over with the recipe and was ready to bake.

Butterbeer Cupcakes

Recipe from amybites.com

• 2 cups flour
• 1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon butter flavoring
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup cream soda

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line cupcake pans with paper liners.
2. Combine your flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream your butter until light and fluffy. Add your sugars and beat until well-combined. Beat in your eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Then beat in your vanilla and butter flavoring.
4. Alternate adding your buttermilk, cream soda, and dry ingredients in batches until all are well incorporated.
5. Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 full, then bake for 15 to 17 minutes until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean and cake springs back to the touch. Cool completely on wire racks.

Ganache

• 1 11-oz. package butterscotch chips
• 1 cup heavy cream

1. In a double boiler (heat-proof bowl over a pot of simmering water on the stove), combine butterscotch chips and heavy cream and stir until completely combined and smooth.
2. Cool to room temperature.
3. Fill a squeeze bottle with ganache and insert into the center of each cupcake, squeezing until filling begins to overflow.

Buttercream Frosting

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/3 cup butterscotch ganache
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon butter flavoring
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 16-oz. package powdered sugar
• Splash of milk or cream (as needed)

1. Cream butter in a large bowl until fluffy. Add in ganache, vanilla, butter flavoring, and salt and mix until well combined.
2. Beat in powdered sugar 1 cup at a time until reaching desired consistency. Add milk or cream by the Tablespoon as needed.
3. Frost cupcakes. You can top with a drizzle of ganache or with butterscotch chips.

Compliment the cupcake with some cream soda.

A sweet treat that any Harry Potter fan would enjoy.

Owl Mooncakes

I know what you are thinking, it's another owl! I can't help it. When I saw this idea in a magazine, I thought they were just so darn cute to not make.

The owl consists of a mooncake topped with oreos, m&m's and a candy corn. I used chocolate frosting to make everything stick. The "moon" has chocolate frosting piped around the edge and it is dipped in orange sprinkles. Add a little lollipop stick and you have a cute owl pop.

Stick the pops in any container for a cute way to serve.

My kids loved this.

WHoo doesn't want to make this?

Angry Birds Sandwich

My kids have a collection of angry birds lying around the house at any given time. The red one is E.'s favorite. What he also loves eating are sandwiches so when I found this cute idea online, I knew I wanted to implement it.

Cut a slice of bread into a circle for the body.

Use the same template to cut out a piece of luncheon meat.

I used the left over turkey slice for the feathers up top. Next, cut a piece of mozzarella cheese for the eyes, chedder for the beak and olives for the brows and eyes.

Voila, a cute lunch to serve.

Espresso Cupcakes with Coffee Buttercream

I'm not a coffee drinker, yet I love coffee icecream and anything else that has coffee in it. I'm strange that way. I discovered these espresso cupcakes a while back and have wanted to bake them, but didn't get a chance until now. My sister came over with all the ingredients and we went baking.

Malted Espresso Cupcakes with Coffee Buttercream
Source: from Brandy's Baking blog
yield: 12

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp instant espresso powder
• 1/2 cup malted milk powder
• 1/4 cup freshly brewed coffee
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• 2 eggs
• 2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners.
2. In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt.
3. In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together malted milk powder, espresso powder and coffee until smooth.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, butter and eggs until smooth. Alternately whisk in flour mixture with coffee mixture, beating until smooth. Gently fold in chopped chocolate.
5. Scoop batter into prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely on a wire rack.

Coffee Buttercream

• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp instant espresso powder
• 2 tsp hot coffee
• 2 tsp Kahlua

Stir together vanilla, instant espresso powder, coffee and Kahlua until smooth; set aside. In a medium bowl, beat butter, sugar and salt until well combined and smooth. Add coffee mixture and continue to beat until frosting is light and fluffy. Spread icing over cooled cupcakes.

These were absolutely scrumptious.

Owl Smores

I ran across these Owl Smores on Living Locurto and had to make them. It was so easy. My kids loved assembling them.

Ingredients

• graham crackers
• marshmallows
• chocolate chips
• yellow candy melts
• candy corn

Directions

1. Cut one marshmallow in half and place both pieces on a graham cracker.
2. Put a candy melt on top of the marshmallows.
3. Heat in the microwave for about 5-7 seconds, just enough to make the marshmallows puff up, but not get too hot.
4. Take out of microwave and add a chocolate chip on the yellow candy melt and the candy corn beak while the marshmallows and candy are still warm. Everything should stick together nicely.
   

WHoo doesn't love this?

Caramel Corn Wreath

I had so much fun making my candy corn wreath that I also made one out of caramel corn as well.

Just as before, I used a straw wreath, caramel corn and ribbon to create the wreath.

Glue the caramel corn around the wreath, each row going in opposite directions.

Continue until the entire front wreath is covered.

Add a thick ribbon, and you have a nice fall wreath.

Best of all, it smells delicious!

Breaking and Entering

My neighbor pointed out that some neighborhood runaway dogs broke through my fence one afternoon trying to get in.

Just lovely, huh? After further investigation, they left three more of these broken entrances between my fence and my neighbors'.

After breaking into my yard, they decided to take a swim in my pool. There were paw prints everywhere.

It will be so much fun repairing all the holes and then having to stain it.

Necklace Organizer

My sister converted one of her bedrooms into her dream closet. She needed a way to organize her accessories and decided to hang her necklaces. With just a simple towel rod and shower curtain hooks, she was able to organize her necklaces in such a creative and beautiful way.

I love the way it turned out! It looks like art on the wall.

She chose shower curtain hooks with metal balls on the end so the necklaces do not slide off.

Necklaces done, storage with earrings next.

Mummy Cheese Pizza Please!

My kids love home made pizza. When I don't have time to make home made crust, I resort to using french bread which is always a home favorite. Since Halloween is coming up next month, I thought I would mummify their pizza for some fun.

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound thinly sliced mozzarella cheese
• 1 loaf French or Italian bread
• 1 cup pizza sauce
• 1/4 cup sliced black olives

1. Line 2 cookie sheets with aluminum foil and set aside.
2. Cut the sliced cheese into tapered strips.
3. Slice off the rounded ends of the bread. Cut the bread in half lengthwise. Cut each half crosswise into 4 pieces. Place the bread, cut side up, on the prepared cookie sheets. Toast the bread slices slightly (1-2 minutes).
4. Spread some of the pizza sauce on top of the toasted bread to cover. Arrange the cheese slices, overlapping slightly, on top of the sauce to look like bandages. Add 2 olives for the eyes. Place another slice of cheese over the olives to cover slightly.
5. Working with one pan at a time, broil the pizzas until the cheese is slightly melted, 1-2 minutes longer. Makes 8 pizzas.
   

Witches' Hat

Isn't this a cute Halloween idea? It combines my kiddos favorite treats, Fudge Stripe cookies, Hershey Kisses and a little frosting (use the tube frosting)... everything we had at home already.

It took less than a minute to assemble.

Pipe a small mound of frosting in center of each chocolate-covered cookie bottom

Press a chocolate kiss on frosting. Pipe a frosting band and bow around base of each kiss.

So my bows aren't perfect, but my kids had no trouble scarfing them down.