With a little luck...

 ...these rainbow cupcakes turned out for us!  My son and I spent the last few evenings baking our little hearts out all for a good cause - my company bake sale being held today.  It's been awhile since I've gotten to participate in a fundraiser, and it feels great to get one in this early in the year.  This particular one will be kicking off what I hope to be a lucrative year of giving.  Now that my son has reached an age that allows him to feel the gratification of giving (he is excellent at sharing) I hope to instill that in him for a lifetime.  When I was young, volunteering was something my heart called out for, though I wasn't particularly savvy enough to figure out how to get involved.  Already this year, some pretty amazing opportunities have presented themselves, and I'm looking forward to taking advantage of some of them.  Looks like the luck of the Irish is on our side.  Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

A Simple Happy Birthday

Yesterday we celebrated my husband's birthday.  He's officially one year over the hill, and has never been much into parties that solely celebrate him... humph.  But he is very generous when it comes to Lars and I celebrating him, and we started the day off by presenting a couple of handmade birthday cards to him as soon as he woke along with lots of jumping on the bed.  We enjoyed a long relaxing morning just hanging out, then when we finally got hungry headed to a favorite eatery of his for some french dip sandwiches.  Once home, it was time for cake.  I made this one I talked about here and it's  made it's way into my permanent collection.  It turned out so delicious that I think it will be making a regular appearance on this special day for years to come.  To top the day off, I captured this iconic image below... Sixteen Candles anyone?

Happy Birthday to my honey.  Here's to another 40+ years!

Let it Snow

While I worked on my husband's birthday cake my son was more interested in making tracks with his hot wheels through piles of flour.  This, combined with his santa pj's ended up being a cute holiday photo op, especially as he pretended it was snow.  Although it created a big mess (with flour making it's way even into our front room) I was relieved he was contented to play while I constructed the three layer cake we're looking forward to giving my husband on Thursday.

Baking In Anticipation

My husband's birthday is coming up, and every year we celebrate with his favorite flavor of cake, german chocolate. For the first five years or so, I ordered the cake, with one coming memorably from this bakery (amazing). Then a handful of years ago I got the brilliant idea of attempting to make the cake myself. The first year I attempted this, we ended up with cupcakes. But after some years, and time and practice, I managed to pull together this one here without completely losing my sanity. With his big day less than a few weeks away, I'm looking forward to trying yet another new recipe, this delicious looking one I found here.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

A couple of years ago I went on the hunt for the best chocolate chip cookie recipe I could find.  I bake them often and since I do I wanted them to be the best-tasting they could be.  I found the recipe here, and haven't looked back. 

Be sure to read the troubleshooting notes in this recipe.  The first few times I made these cookies, they turned out flat.  I had to adjust the amount of flour used and added more to the dough; instead of leveling the cups, I just keep them heaped and then I get the results I want.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Anytime we have over-ripe bananas, which is nearly every week, I throw them into our freezer in a freezer bag.  The only recipe I ever use them for is this one.  I should break out and try something new, like maybe muffins or some other banana flavored sweet, but this bread is so good I can't seem to resist.  Best eaten still warm out of the oven, it's moist enough to enjoy over the following few days; preferably sliced extra-thick with a great deal of butter. YUM.

Ingredients

1/4 c. vegetable oil
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. sugar
1 t. baking soda
1 t. grated orange zest (or not)
1/2 t. salt
2 large eggs
1 c. mashed bananas (about 3 medium)
1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  

Grease and flour a loaf pan.

 

Put all ingredients in a bowl and whisk just until mixed. (so easy)

 

Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake 70 - 80 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean. (My oven seems to run hot; I check the loaf after 50 minutes, and add time on from there to get it just right.)
Let loaf cool 10 minutes in pan , then turn out on a rack and cool completely.