Cupcakes!

One of my co-workers asked if I would make some cupcakes for her friends bridal shower! I found an awesome chocolate cupcake recipe (the bride to be really loves her chocolate) and I also found these adorable cupcake cups which made me really excited! The "rings" on top of the cupcakes didn't turn out as well as they did the first time which is a major bummer... I was being silly and rushed it 

Generally when I made my home made cupcakes I love to make home made icing as well (just for the extra originality) However, at school I don't have a hand mixer (which I know I have to invest in asap) so as a result bought icing it is :) 

These were the first ones I gave (as a sample so she could choose what design she liked best)

*note the ring in the top right corner and then note how bad they look in the last photo :( 

 I finally bought myself a nice little piping bag and a few tips! I absolutely love them! 

Baking in my student oven isn't exactly the prettiest site to see :p 

Christmas Party Baking!

I have invited a few of my close friends over for a Christmas Pot luck tomorrow evening. I am so excited to have everyone over all dressed up and finally having a lovely dinner together to celebrate Christmas. Of course for the pot luck I decided to make dessert! I whipped up some home made quinoa brownies as well as some vanilla cupcakes! Here are a few pictures of the baking process as well as the table I have set up for the night! Enjoy! 

Of course I can't go through a whole night of baking without listening to Christmas music. 

My mom was supposed to give me this in my stocking for christmas but gave in and gave it to me early! She clearly knows me too well! I love making cupcakes! 

 Vanilla cupcakes from scratch

Quinoa brownies (as usually), I had to add some red food colouring to make it a little more festive though :) 

 My mom and I love baking! 

Wreath cupcakes!

Granola Bars

I made these once in the summer when I was craving some sort of granola for breakfast, and now, every time I come home my Dad asks me to make it again. These bars are great for a snack, breakfast or even to crumble overtop of yogurt! They are very moist and tend to crumble apart if they are cut while still warm so make sure to wait until they are completely cooled.  

Ingredients:

2 C Rolled Oats 

1 C Unsalted Peanuts

1/2 C shredded coconut

1/2 C rainsins (optional - I didn't put in mine) 

1/4 C Sunflower Seeds

1/4 C Pumpkin Seeds

1 C Peanut Butter 

1 C Brown Sugar 

1/3 C Butter 

2 Tsp Vanilla Extract 

1 Tsp Ground Cinnamon 

1/2 Tsp Ground Nutmeg

1/2 Tsp salt 

1 Large Egg

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F 

2. Toss all dry goods together in a bowl. In a pot over medium-low heat, stir peanut butter, brown sugar, butter, vanilla, spices and salt until melted. 

3. Pour melted mixture over dry goods and stir until blended. Stir in egg and spread granola into pan. Bake for 30 minutes, then cool for 20 minutes.