German Chocolate Cupcakes

This is one of the MOST DELICIOUS cupcakes I have ever eaten. And I have eaten far too many cupcakes to count. The light, airy cupcake is decadently balanced by the rich, creamy coconut and pecan filling. This past summer, I interned for 100 hours with a dietitian in my hometown for one of my nutrition classes. I interned at a nursing home, and I was able to learn so much about gerontology and the diets of the elderly. So anyways, when my internship was coming to a close, I asked Ken (the dietitian) what his favorite desserts were, and the first thing he said was "German Chocolate Cake"! So I decided to turn it into a cupcake (way less messy and more share-able). 

Well, he loved the cupcakes and so did everyone else! I am definitely filing this recipe away for my future cupcake making business. Also, in the photo above, is a mixture of milk (I used 2%) and lemon juice. Buttermilk is so expensive and usually goes to waste at my house, so I just decided to make my own. Much cheaper and better for me!

Thanksgiving Bundt Cake

It's the day before Thanksgiving, and I am in the middle of baking five desserts. Yes, five. I kind of went crazy and bought way too many cranberries and sweet potatoes in the spirit of the season. I am making a sweet potato pie for Grandmama's, a red wine chocolate cake (not very Thanksgiving-y I know, but Jeremy's mom really likes red wine) for Jeremy's, a cranberry pie for Nana's, random lemon cranberry muffins and sweet potato cupcakes, and a Thanksgiving bundt cake (above) for my mom's best friend. Although I will have full posts on all desserts I'm making, here are the links to what I am baking for Thanksgiving! What is your go-to Thanksgiving dessert?


Sweet Potato Pie
Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Cream Cheese and Brown Butter Frosting
Thanksgiving Bundt Cake (All I did was change the colors: I didn't dye the chocolate cake black, I dyed the yellow cake yellow and orange, and I dyed the icing yellow and orange)
Nantucket Cranberry Pie
Red Wine Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Wasted Cake

My boyfriend's 21st birthday was this past weekend, and this cake seemed totally appropriate. It's chocolate on top of chocolate on top of even MORE chocolate! It's insane. I had to choose between this cake and an Oreo cake, but I really just wanted to go crazy and throw tons of chocolate on a cake. Seriously, that's what you do. And what could be better? Also, chocolate has phytochemicals, which are good for you. Trust me, I'm a Nutrition major ;)

Sadly, my first wonderful cake fell. I waited too long after adding the baking soda to the wet ingredients (about 12 minutes; I was hastily buttering the pans and cutting out parchment rounds) and the baking soda reacted before I had a chance to put it in the oven. I had to resort to box mix for the cake layers, but feel free to try the original cake layer recipe. It has had many good reviews on the original website. All cake batter photographs are from the original cake recipe, not the box mix version. (I used Betty Crocker Super Moise Triple Chocolate Fudge mix).

Pumpkin Bread

Get ready for tons of pumpkin recipes because I have 10 cans of pumpkin puree. TEN. I got freaked out a few months ago when I decided to make some pumpkin dog treats for my loves and I couldn't find any pumpkin. ANYWHERE. It was as if canned pumpkin had completely disappeared from South Carolina. Which is basically what happened: due to a pumpkin disease/shortage/something in 2010, Libby's had less pumpkin than usual. So, rationally, when I saw pumpkin back on the shelf a few weeks ago, I grabbed as many as I could. Now I'm paying the price. P.S. Pumpkin isn't my favorite. I have no idea what I was thinking! This was a delicious loaf bread though, the taste of pumpkin wasn't overwhelming and it was extremely moist. This recipe makes three loaves: enough to freeze, give as gifts, or hoard all winter long.

Halloween Blondies

Tomorrow is Halloween! I'm so excited, although I still don't have an entire costume yet. If anyone wants to donate one before tomorrow, please feel free! As of right now, I'm a cross between a dark angel and a vampire. Anyways, I am not a huge fan of blondies, but my blondie-loving friends declared this recipe a huge success. I thought they used to have blondie mixes at the store, so I went to check for y'all, but I couldn't find any. Also, if you wanted, you could alter the design of the Reese's Pieces to show a pumpkin, ghost, or anything Halloween-themed.

I mixed everything together in the saucepan to avoid piling up unecessary dirty dishes, and it worked fantastic! I'd suggest using a slightly deeper pan than I did though because I had to very carefully mix to avoid getting flour everywhere.

Candy Corn Gelatin with Grand Marnier

IT'S ALMOST HALLOWEEN! Well, kind of. Halloween is two weeks and two days away! I have already changed my Halloween costume plans four times: Alice in Wonderland, Ke$ha, vampire, dark angel. Who knows. My family throws a HUGE Halloween party, so I'll be sure to post some adorable craft ideas in the next few days as well. And as y'all all know, candy corn is the epitome of  Halloween. I had so many ideas involving candy corn, but I didn't want to get too carried away, so I picked the best one. The orange layer has Grand Marnier, but feel free to take it out. The Grand Marnier gave the dessert a deeper, more complex citrus flavor. This recipe is best made in adorable 8 oz glasses (which neither I or Wal-mart had), so I had to use slightly larger glasses and larger quantities.  

This recipe was so easy. You simply layer the jello one layer at a time, and chill in the refrigerator for about twenty minutes each time. And if you leave it in there longer, it's okay! After the layers had set, I whipped up some whipped cream (I whipped about half a cup of heavy cream, a tablespoon or two of powdered sugar, and a dash of vanilla extract). I like my whipped cream very sweet, so edit it to your tastes. 

For the photographs, I piped my whipped cream onto the gelatin, but it looks equally pretty if you dollop a spoonful on top. Just throw on some candy corn, and you're good to go!

Espresso Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies

These cookies are. so. addicting. I ate one nonchalantly and before I knew it, I had eaten 6. SIX. In less than ten minutes. Thank goodness I had a lot left to take to my family reunion that day. They are buttery, melt-in-your mouth, chocolately delicious. Perfect for parties, potlucks, hoarding, whatever. Oh, and be on the lookout for Halloween specials! I will post at least 5 Halloween-themed desserts! What would you like to see?

I didn't have any espresso powder on hand, so I used instant coffee. If you're looking for a deeper intense coffee flavor, use the instant espresso powder and toss in some Kahlua.

Candy Sushi

This is a great project to get kids involved in the kitchen! My friend is gluten-free, so we used gluten-free Rice Krispies, but feel free to use regular Rice Krispies, it will work the same. Rice Krispies treats and candy is used to imitate Japanese sushi in this adorable dessert. Substitute or add any of your favorite candy; this recipe is extremely versatile.