Mom

A Very Merry Birthday

Mini Cupcake Maker & Card available at Target

I decided baking the cupcakes just wasn't enough. I found this little cupcake card (and mini cupcake maker) at Target and decided it was perfect. I know cupcakes have become my thing recently since I suppose it's about as in fashion as those feather hair extensions (which I also have... :/). But my mom has a sweet tooth like me, and has accompanied me on many a cupcake journey.  I think having this mini cupcake maker at home will be good for us to do some baking together, more of a spending time together deal. 

  

"Webisode" : A word from Austin

INSTANT. IS. EASY.

So, Austin decided to bake some banana bread tonight, however, we have no bread pan for this instantly wonderful bread. I suggest we make banana bread muffins. We added in real bananas and chocolate chips... delicious. We now have enough banana bread for an entire week...  I topped this one with peanut butter, a fresh banana slice, marshmellows and chocolate sprinkles. YUMMMM. Austin doesn't really like really decadent flavors so this banana/peanut butter combo is great for him. He used the pillsbury instant box of banana bread, with 2 eggs, a cup of milk and some vegetable oil- bake for 15-19 minutes. 

Episode 2 Blue Velvet Cupcake

YES> PICTURES!  

I didn't post too many pictures in the last blog because frankly, they are all over the website! This little concoction was a task, let me tell you...  The directions are misleading, because the recipe calls for the creation of a curd filling- which you have to apparently leave covered overnight in a fridge... (Which still didn't quite work for me). Also, no matter what you see on cupcake wars-  putting your cupcakes in the fridge right away makes them a little bit harder than you may want them... Luckily, you love me and won't hate on me for not knowing how to whisk something, right? Yeah, I know. You could probably host this show and make a much better cupcake than I... but are you doing that? No. I think taking the approach of a self effacing attitude during the show really helps me to admit my flaws and come to terms with my backwards way of thinking. I often wonder why I'm doing this show- but it really is a learning experience for me (and hopefully you?). I mean, it's targeted toward college students- how many of you know what zesting a lemon is? Probably more than I think... Okay, what about making curd? Exactly. It's hard baking from scratch- but much more rewarding.

The Blue Velvet cupcake- just to clarify- consists mainly of the blackberry curd filling and lemon-blackberry cream cheese icing. The cupcake itself has almost no flavor, taken from a recipe from Cupcake Wars. I'm not sure why they'd make it this way... But I would have preferred some blackberries baked in or something! Oh well... My mom ended up loving them (they were for her birthday). We went to Joe's Crab Shack after I fed her these plump purple treats and split some salmon with a perfect view of the Ohio River and Cincinnati. I do love this city, but I hope it loves me enough to hire me when I graduate... I might bribe it with Skyline Chili cupcakes. But anyway... 


If you have suggestions for a cupcake flavor next week, e-mail me at stephanie.mathena@gmail.com 


And check out the second episode featuring July for Kings only on NorseMedia (which streams lives for those of you out of this world) 

 




http://norsemedia.nku.edu/  <<Watch.  It will be airing sometime within the next week.

Happy Back To School Amigos! (friends) 

-Steph

Blue Velvet Recipe

Episode 1 Lemon Blueberry Cupcake

When I first pitched the idea to myself to star in, produce, finance, edit and film my own baking show in my smaller than small kitchen on a college student's budget and time- it didn't sound so bad.... Don't get me wrong, I had a blast making (but mostly eating) these cupcakes. Luckily for me, I am not a perfectionist- but I like to get close... even if it means looking like a fool while doing it. You will witness me screw up here and there and be honest while admitting that I cannot bake- and this show and blog is simply an outlet for me to create cupcakes and share them with the world. You might shake your head and say, "I could do this so much better than her" but that's the point of the show! Seriously, anyone can have a television show nowadays. I try to keep a positive head about the entire process of coming to a final product- and it helps when I can make fun of myself. They don't show the messy stuff on Food Network, ya know? This is reality, REAL baking in real time- I won't lie and tell you it took me 4 minutes to make an entire batch of cupcakes, frost them- and then go on to make a stuffed turkey for Thanksgiving dinner... 

 


Honesty. Is. The. Best. Policy. I've never met an honest cupcake I didn't like. So my thoughts on this first episode? Comical, Puppies, Delicious, Success. How could you ask for anything less? Check out the first episode on NorseMedia (which streams live on the internet for you folks in other countries) http://norsemedia.nku.edu/      What time, you ask? It'll be Central/Eastern time. But I'll have to get back to you on when my programmer is scheduling it. 

-Steph