Blogiversary + Cupcakes for Two

It's official. As of today, I have been food blogging for one year. It definitely was not easy getting started. There were a lot of discouraging moments along the way and I, for one, am glad I didn't give up. Having this blog and being able to express myself in a creative way has made this year one of the best of my life.

When I thought about what I could make to celebrate this momentous occasion, my initial ideas were treats I could share with anyone and everyone. Then I realized that there was really only one person who I wanted to share this day with: David. He knows this blog is important to me and he's been the most supportive husband throughout this past year. There were times where he would have been totally justified in loathing how much time I've had to put into this, but instead he invested everything in helping me chase my dreams. 

So what I needed was a recipe that made treats just for two, and I found it: One Bowl Cupcakes for two. Seriously, these cupcakes are a revelation. They are the perfect cupcake consistency--- not too dense but not too fluffy. They are moist and they taste incredible. I even thought about multiplying the recipe by six just to make twelve cupcakes to eat all on my own.

Because my baby has RSV right now, and I am totally sleep deprived I am just going to send you over to How Sweet It Is for this cupcake recipe. I promise that you most likely have every ingredient you need on hand. So go make them. Right. NOW. The original recipe calls for one teaspoon of vanilla, but we used half a teaspoon of vanilla and half a teaspoon of almond extract--- that is the only thing we changed.

If you have leftover frosting you can use that to top these off. I never have extra frosting... so here's a little recipe just for you.

To get the One Bowl Cupcakes for Two Recipe click here.

Frosting for Two Cupcakes

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon butter, softened
1/2 tablespoon milk
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients together until smooth. Start with 1/2 a tablespoon of milk and add more in until frosting reaches desired consistency. Spread over cooled cupcakes.

One Year Ago: Three Packet Pot Roast & Homemade Egg Noodles for Soups

Shared here: Pin Me Fridays @ Diana Rambles (it's a great link party--- check it out!), On the Menu Mondays @ StoneGable

Strawberry Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake

Lately we have been enjoying the harvest from my parent's garden. You will see a few posts in the coming weeks about the food I have made with fresh herbs, fruits, and veggies. Last night I watched my hubby sit out on the back porch and eat a stalk of rhubarb. He picked it, washed it off with the garden hose, and ate it like it was a piece of celery. I could never do that. Rhubarb is way too sour for my taste. I know that strawberries and rhubarb are a classic combination but I had to share my mother-in-law's recipe for strawberry rhubarb upside down cake.

You see, I felt really guilty that I posted that top secret ice cream cake recipe. It was sort of like I had sat right in front of you eating it without ever offering you a taste. And since I have felt so incredibly guilt ridden, I decided to share this Jenks family recipe with you. As far as I know it is not top secret, plus I did change the recipe a little tiny bit.

Strawberry Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake

3 stalks rhubarb, diced

1 lb strawberries, hulled and sliced

1 cup sugar

1 (6 oz) box strawberry flavored Jello

1 (10.5 oz) bag mini marshmallows

1 box yellow cake mix, prepared according to package directions

Preheat oven to temperature listed on cake mix box directions (usually 350 degrees). Spray 9x13 pan liberally with cooking spray. Evenly spread prepared strawberries and rhubarb in bottom of pan. Sprinkle sugar and jello powder over the strawberries and rhubarb. Top with all of the marshmallows. Spread prepared cake mix over marshmallows. Place on cookie sheet and bake for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. The top will look dark brown but it should not be burnt. Cool for 10-15 minutes. Flip onto cake serving platter. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

This is a beautiful dessert! Just look at that dark pinkish/reddish color. If you are not a huge fan of rhubarb I promise you will love this cake, simply because it is paired with a lot of other sweet ingredients and yet you don't lose that tart rhubarb flavor either. 

Recipe Source: Diana Jenks

get printable recipe here.

Pistachio Pudding Cupcakes

You know how there are varying degrees of fluffiness in different cupcake recipes? Like most cake mixes for instance bake into these light airy little wonders that people spend time trying to mimic with homemade recipes. On the other end of the spectrum are some of my favorite cupcakes; made from scratch and so dense that it is almost like sinking your teeth into a piece of Great Harvest's honey whole wheat bread. Sorry that I am using another type of food to describe cupcakes. The truth is I sat here for about thirty minutes with writer's block trying to think of a non-food item that compared to the density of those types of cupcakes, and I can honestly say I could not think of one. It is not like I walk around all day and bite every chair, plate, or bed mattress I see just so I can describe food better.

In any case, I'd say that THESE cupcakes are definitely closer to the dense side of the fluffiness spectrum. However they still have this mysterious fluffiness to them which is probably due to the fact that they are made from a cake mix.

I know, sigh. I am sure that you must think I ALWAYS make things from scratch, especially considering my last post about ice cream sandwiches. Not to mention several other posts on this blog where I do not begin with a packaged item.

To be honest I don't even remember the last time I used a boxed cake mix. I think David's mom sent us one for his twenty-fourth birthday, and I made it but I don't think I ate it. The real reason why this recipe caught my attention was not that it uses a boxed mix, but because I LOOOOOVE PISTACHIOS.
I also love Jello brand pistachio pudding. So this recipe was automatically a winner for me. Here are some things you should know about making and consuming these delicious cupcakes.

1. If you love pistachios you will love these.
2. If you love cupcakes that are a little more dense and you love pistachios you will definitely adore these. You may even eat more than one. Shame on you.
3. If you love cupcakes that are a little more dense but you don't like pistachios that is okay too. The great thing about the technique used to make these cupcakes is that you could do several different combinations of pudding and cake mix flavors. I know I have some different flavors I am going to try. Say, cookies and cream jello pudding mix combined with a white cake mix? I say heck yes.

4. This recipe is really easy from start to finish. A huge plus in my book.
5. If you make these you will have to eat them the exact same day, and preferably you should eat them right away. This is because the frosting is a finger licking (you bet I did) good combination of whipped cream and, say what? That's right, pistachio pudding.
6. While eating twelve cupcakes in one sitting for a family of 6-12 would not be that difficult, if there are only two of you you may want to consider giving some of these to your neighbors. Or you could just grow an entire pant size overnight. Your choice.

This might just be my new favorite way to make cupcakes. If you make these you will find that you take one bite...

and then another...

after which bite you will be so in love that you will have stuffed the rest of the cupcake entirely into your mouth.

Jenna at Eat, Live, Run originally posted this recipe. Click here to view it and make some pistachio cupcakes of your own!

Cinnamon Roll Cake

I have been waiting patiently for a few days now for my blog to break a certain amount of views. My goal was to reach this number of views before the two month anniversary of my blog and it happened! It made me so incredibly happy, you have no idea.

So in celebration, I made this cinnamon roll cake that nearly every food blogger in the blogosphere has posted about... okay not really but a lot of people have. I thought, hey this must be good. And I only had just enough flour left to make this.

If you love cinnamon rolls, you will love this cake. Thank you for reading my blog. I did not think it would experience this much success in the beginning, and I attribute it all to my readers!

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Cake:
3 Cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 Cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 Cups milk
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup butter, melted

Cinnamon Swirl:
1 Cup butter, softened
1 Cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp cinnamon

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
3-5 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla

Mix all cake ingredients together except melted butter until smooth. Slowly stir in melted butter. Pour into greased 9x13 pan.

Mix cinnamon swirl ingredients together until smooth. Drop evenly over batter with spoon, and swirl in with the tip of a knife.

Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes. While cake is cooking mix together the glaze. Pour over cake while still warm. Serves 12-18.

recipe source: Cookin' Up North