Graduation Cupcakes

Last month I made some cupcakes in honor of a friend who just graduated from college. I was given carte blanche on the design, pretty much, so decided to go with these cute owls (owls=wise=graduation), some stars in the school colors, and some little fondant diplomas. I think they turned out well, don't you?

I made the decorations out of fondant, as you can probably tell. There are TONS of tutorials online for making owls of all different styles. I just kind of looked at them and decided to wing it (get it? wing it! ha!) The owl's body was made with an oval cutter and then I took another round cutter to take a piece out of the top to make the ears. The wings were originally half circles but they were too big so I cut them down to kind of a tear drop shape. Everything else was pretty easy. I used the end of a frosting tip to make the circles for the eyes and also used it to make the "feather" impressions on the body.

The diplomas were pretty simple. I just cut out strips of fondant and rolled them up! Then I cut out a litte strip of gray fondant for the "ribbon", put a dab of water on the diploma to make it stick, and wrapped it around.

The best way I've found to transport a large quantity of cupcakes? Plastic storage bins with snap-on lids. They leave plenty of head room for the cupcakes so you don't smoosh your frosting or decorations. They also can be stacked and are pretty sturdy (sturdier than cupcake boxes and ESPECIALLY the pieces of garbage they sell at Michaels). Also - reusable!

Links and Stuff

Why, hello, Little Bloggy! It's been a while. Today's post is what one blogger (wish I could remember who!) calls a "faux-st" or faux post. It's when you want to post something on your blog but don't have any new projects to post. I've been so busy working and baking that I haven't had time to upload pics of anything!

On a side note, did you know that most of the chain thrift stores (Savers, Goodwill, Arc, etc.) have 50% off sales on July 4th? I'm going to try to sneak out in the morning before my BBQ.

In the meantime, here are some flower pics from weeks ago (we had a great peony season here in Minnesota, didn't we?) and some awesome links:

• http://www.jimspancakes.com/ - art made from pancakes!




• http://www.oldbookillustrations.com/ - just what you'd think - a place where you can find old book illustrations that are categorized and free to download




• http://www.etsy.com/shop/HeyYoYo - a great Etsy shop that has all kinds of cool cupcake supplies and a good selection of paper straws. Retro stuff, too!

Some new decor

I got these two little framed pictures at a thrift store for less than five bucks. I guess they aren't very sophisticated (that may be a huge understatement) but they make me smile. This little triangle at the bottom of the stairs had grimy, off-white paint on the wall with smudgy marks left by previous tenants. I think the kitty pictures, butterflies, and blue paint are much more cheerful.

Dinosaur Cake

A little bit ago, I had a request for a dinosaur themed cake for a little boy. I came up with the idea to cut out dinosaur shapes (free hand but having cookie cutters sure would've been convenient) and paint them with black food coloring to make them look like cool illustrations. If I had more time I would covered the entire side with dinosaur cut-outs but I thought the final cake looked pretty good.

Strawberry Rhubarb Bars

I love rhubarb season! It's one of the first things to appear at the farmers market each spring and leads the way for all the other local fruits and veggies to come! I came to my love of rhubarb later in life, as I don't think I was ever exposed to it until after college.



These bars are typically make in a square or rectangular plan, but as you can see, all I could find was a round one. I put the excess in a loaf pan and baked that up, too. Whatever works for you; this isn't one of those fussy desserts. The star of the show is the taste and texture - crunchy, buttery top and bottom layers and the nice sweet/tart filling sandwiched in between! I had a piece still warm from the oven and topped it with a scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt. The bars firm up quite a bit after they are cooled.

I adapted a recipe from Culinary in the Country, which is an awesome blog that you should check out: http://desertculinary.blogspot.com/2005/05/strawberry-rhubarb-oatmeal-bars.html I added cinnamon and coconut to mine because I think they go together so well with rhubarb.



Recipe

Filling:

• 1/2 cups 1" chopped fresh rhubarb



• 1 1/2 cups sliced fresh strawberries



• 1 tablespoon lemon juice



• 1/2 cup granulated sugar



• 2 tablespoons cornstarch



• 1/4 cup cold water

Crust:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  


• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
  


• 1/4 cup shredded coconut (I used sweetened but unsweetened would be good)
  


• 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
  


• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  


• 1 tsp cinnamon
  


• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  


• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  


• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  
  

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease 9"x 13" pan.

Prepare Filling:

1. Cut strawberries and rhubarb into roughly 1" pieces.


2. Cook rhubarb, strawberries, lemon juice, and sugar in a saucepot over medium heat until rhubarb begins to soften - about 8-10 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent any burning or sticking.


3. Dissolve cornstarch in cold water (this is called a slurry and prevents the cornstarch from clumping) and then add to rhubarb strawberry mixture. Stir mixture vigorously and continuously, boiling for about a minute (make sure there are bubbles in the middle, not just around the edges of the pot).


4. Remove from heat and transfer to a bowl or other container (to stop cooking and prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan). Set aside.

Prepare crust:

1. Combine all of the crust ingredients in a bowl, except the walnuts.


2. Stir until mixture resembles coarse crumbs but is well-combined.
   

Assemble:

1. Press 2/3 of crust mixture into even layer in your pan.


2. Spread filling evenly on top, making sure to get into all the corners!


3. Sprinkle remaining third of crust mixture and the chopped walnuts on top.

Bake for 25-35 minutes or until golden brown. Once cooled, drizzle on a simple glaze made from powdered sugar and milk or cream (just whisk it together until you like the consistency. Start with a smaller amount of liquid then you think you'll need - it doesn't take much).

Spring Flowers, Delayed a Bit

We had a late spring here in Minnesota. Even so, I am very laste posting these photos I took weeks ago. Once it did warm up, everything started greening up fast and flowers started blooming like gangbusters.

Easter

Here are some pics of the Easter festivities. Do you like the Peep Bunny garland above? I saw one made of felt and decided paper would be easier, faster, and cheaper: http://www.thesweetestoccasion.com/2010/03/felt-peeps-bunny-shaped-easter-craft-decoration-ideas/

Easter eggs!

These eggs are a little...different. More about them later.

Dinner was chicken meatballs with sweet potato, zucchini, and summer squash pasta. My sister was inspired by the sweet potato pasta made by Richard Blais on Top Chef All-Stars. The vegetables are peeled very thin and then cooked very quickly in a skillet with just a little liquid. Delicious!

Almond cupcake frosted with sweetened whipped cream and garnished with chocolate-covered almond.

I'm not sure what kind of plant this is exactly. Isn't it beautiful? My mom brought it over for us for Easter.

The aftermath of the cascarones! I had heard of these confetti-filled eggs before and was thrilled to find some at the local Walgreens for only three bucks. I had read that people often crack them over each other's heads to break them open. Unfortunately, these were quite a bit harder than I had imagined and I just ended up hitting my sister in the head with an egg; it didn't even bust open! I think it's because both the inside and outside were painted, which made them a little too...sturdy...for cracking over heads! If I make them at home at some point then I'll just paint the outside.

Here's more info on cascarones: http://www.highlightskids.com/Stories/NonFiction/NF0302_cascarones.asp