Damn

My boy sent me this link yesterday:  Let's Cupcake in San Francisco will be giving away free cupcakes on Tuesday, May 31st 2011.


Wanna Cupcake for FREE?

The Let's Cupcake Free Cupcake Day
Enjoy a free cupcake from 11am to 9pm

...Come join us on Tuesday, May 31st 2011 as Let's Cupcake celebrates a pre-opening to our grand-opening we want you to come by and try our SOON TO BE famous cupcakes for FREE. Come swing by the brand new "Let's Cupcake Cafe" in San Francisco and preview the cafe, the people, and of course the cupcakes.

Let's Cupcake
2255 Judah St.
San Francisco, CA
94122


The Let's Cupcake Cafe and our mission:
To be everything you didn't expect at a cupcake cafe, bringing the community together through beautiful art, music, great coffee, and even better cupcakes. A place where people can eat, drink, study, sing, work, and play all at the same time. Where artist can express themselves through creative art and poetry, where starving musicians are no longer starving for a place to play, where a 21st century world doesn't have to have 19th century internet, where coffee is actually good and afforadble(spell check pls!) where a starving community can satisfy its hunger for delicious affordable cupcakes. 

Umm.  Hi.  I didn't know that I was giving away free cupcakes.  LOL.  I guess this means that I'll have to come up with an even better logo.  Sigh.  Any recommendations?

Kid tested, mother approved Peanut Butter Cookies

If you took a peek in my pantry, you would find an excess amount of my baking necessities:  flour, sugar, chocolate chips, and PEANUT BUTTER.  I'm always on the lookout for a bargain at the grocery and stock up.  I know, I know.  I admit I can be a bit impulsive and overzealous at times, but considering all the baking I do, I need to keep my pantry stocked at all times.  LOL.  The bf organized our pantry last nite and we had a total of 3 containers of peanut butter, so I decided to whip up a batch of peanut butter cookies.  

This recipe is very simple to make and requires less ingredients than one would think.  These cookies are soft, chewy, and sinfully good.  Happy baking.  

Peanut Butter Cookies
taken from Brown Eyed Baker
(I use a ton of her recipes...and all for good reason! :)

1¾ all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon salt
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup creamy peanut butter
½ cup vegetable shortening
1¼ cups packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 egg
Granulated sugar, for rolling cookies

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Line baking sheets with parchment or a silicone baking mat. (I use parchment paper).

2. Combine the flour, salt and baking soda in a small bowl and set aside.

3. Combine the peanut butter, shortening, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed until well blended. Add the egg and beat just until blended. Reduce speed to low and add the dry mixture to the creamed mixture gradually, mixing just until combined.

4. Put the granulated sugar in a small bowl. Scoop a tablespoonful of dough and roll into a ball between the palms of your hands. Roll the dough into the sugar and place on the baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Dip the tines of a fork into the sugar and make a crisscross patern on the cookies, flattening them slightly.

5. Bake for 7 to 8 minutes or until set and just beginning to brown. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet before removing to a cooling rack.

Storing: Store these cookies in an airtight container for about a week. You can also freeze these cookies in a freezer bag for approximately 3 months and thaw when you are ready to eat them.

 Be sure to keep the cookies spaced 2 inches apart.  They end up spreading out a bit as they bake. 

 Right out of the oven.

 My cute patootie pastry chef, Kylie.  She wanted to take a picture holding our cupcake cookie jar!  :) 

Happy Easter!

Hope everyone had a great Easter!  This weekend was a quieter one than what I'm used to.  Dinner and drinks with my bff at The Attic on Friday, work at Bliss Bar on Saturday, and an order of cake pops yesterday for my friend Krystle.  She placed an order for 36 cake pops with a simple drizzle of yellow, green and purple.  This is how they came out:

Very simple and the colors along with the pail makes it a decorative display for an Easter dinner.  I received a text message from Krystle and she said she would be placing more orders in the future.  I'm glad you and your family enjoyed the cake pops!  I'm happy that I can make your events a sweeter one with my sweet treats. ;)

Got Munchies?

Today marks a "holiday" for those who smoke the chronic.  I'm sure many people have taken today off to celebrate or called in sick, so maybe you should reconsider.  BMacs sent me this today...good thing I don't partake in this national holiday.  LOL.  

Anyway, I thought I'd post a yummy recipe that I found for those with the "munchies" and more specifically to those with a sweet tooth.  

What's better than rice krispies?  Rice krispies drizzled with chocolate and peanut butter of course!  Combine the three ingredients together and you get:  Peanut Butter Cup Rice Krispies.  

 Pictures taken from Brown Eyed Baker

The pictures should be all the motivation you need to satisfy your chocolate and peanut butter cravings.  Happy Holidays.  :)




Peanut Butter Cup Rice Krispies
taken from Brown Eyed Baker

6 cups Rice Krispies
1 bag (10.5-oz) miniature marshmallows
¼ cup (2 ounces) unsalted butter
2 cups creamy peanut butter
1 bag (12-oz) miniature peanut butter cups (about 40), quartered
1 cup milk chocolate chips (or 6 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped)

1. Butter a 9×13-inch pan and set aside.

2. Measure the cereal into a large mixing bowl and set aside. Melt the marshmallows and butter together in a medium saucepan over medium heat (or in the microwave for about 3 minutes, but keep watch so the marshmallows don’t puff over the sides of the bowl!). Pour the melted marshmallow mixture over the cereal and mix well so the cereal is coated. Pour into the prepared pan and use a buttered piece of wax  paper to press evenly into pan.

3. In the microwave, melt the peanut butter until thin, about 1 minute. Gently stir in the quartered peanut butter cups and then pour over the treats. Using the back of a spoon, gently spread the peanut butter mixture evenly across the top.

4. Again in the microwave, melt the chocolate chips. Using a spoon, drizzle the melted chocolate across the top. Place the pan in the refrigerator to set before cutting and serving. Store in an airtight container.

Oreo Truffles

My co-worker, Angie placed an order for oreo truffles for her bf and the Nuclear Medicine department she just completed a study with.  Here's how they turned out:  

I rolled the truffles into inch sized balls using a cookie scoop and chilled them on parchment paper for about 30 min.  Then, I melted dark chocolate and used a candy making spoon to dip the truffles.  This made it really easy and the coating was very even.  Once the chocolate set, I drizzled white chocolate and placed them in a 1lb candy box with white wrapping.  Tada! 

STARToftheweekitis

If you have the case of the mondays like I do, this recipe will do just the trick.  I tweeked a recipe that I found at Karly's website and added a bit of dutch process cocoa powder and chopped up oreos.  Its a twist on the cookies n cream cookies from Anthony's Cookies in the city, but mine are a bit cake-like without the "puff."  Here's a pic for your hungry eyes:

 These cookies are a huge hit and so easy to make for any special event or day of the week.  I made some for my girlfriend, Lauren, who I had dinner with a few months back.  I wanted to make her and the Mandapat girls some sweet treats and knew that this was a cookie they would all enjoy.  Its very simple to make and a sure way to test out your  baking skills.  

Cookies and Cream Cookies
adapted from Karly of bunsinmyoven.com who adapted the recipe from allrecipes.com

1 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar

3.4 oz. package vanilla instant pudding mix

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

less than 2 cups all-purpose flour (the original recipes calls for 2 1/4 but I used less since I added more ingredients)

1/4 cup dutch process cocoa (I used Guittard...its the best!)

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

5-8 chopped oreos

Beat together butter and sugars until creamy. Beat in pudding mix, eggs, and vanilla. Stir together the flour, dutch process cocoa, baking soda, and salt, and slowly mix that into the butter mixture until well combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and oreos. Drop by rounded spoonfuls (I use a cookie dough scoop) onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake in a 350 degree pre-heated oven for 10-12 minutes. Cool on a baking rack. 

Samoas Cake Pops

Its funny how the bff and I think so much alike and usually during the same time.  She recently made samoas cake pops and I was just about to email her a recipe for samoas cupcakes.  Samoas cookies are my all time favorite Girls Scout cookies and the reason for the extra love in my tummy.  :)  I was able to find a recipe for samoas cupcakes online but I'm gonna tweek it a bit.  I'll let you know how it turns out and post up pics as soon as I bake them.  I've been having issues lately since moving to our new place because our oven is electric! I want my conventional oven back.  Waaaah!  My goods are baking too quickly and not turning out as well as they used to.  

Here's the bff's pics and recipe.  Enjoy! 
Samoas Cake Pops
taken from Shellski 

INGREDIENTS
1 yellow cake mix
lollipop sticks
1 pkg chewy caramels (I used Kraft)
4 c shredded coconut
2 c semi-sweet chocolate