I made these cupcakes for the first time last week to bring to the big movie screening. They were a huge success with everyone, and I somehow ended up eating three in one sitting, oops!

These cupcakes are amazing. They are a very spongy cake, and seriously addictive. I had to fight with myself today not to eat one before dinner!

Ingredients:

♥ 2 cups all purpose flour
♥ 2 cups white sugar
♥ 2 ripe bananas, mashed
♥ 1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, with juice
♥ 2 teaspoons baking soda
♥ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. In a large bowl mix pineapple, bananas, and vanilla extract. In another bowl sift together flour, sugar, and baking soda. Whisk dry mix into pineapple mix.
2. Line muffin tin with papers. Fill each tin 2/3 full. Bake for 25 minutes or until toothpick tests dry.
3. To make frosting stir together 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 stick butter, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Slowly drizzle in coconut rum, while stirring, until frosting is desired textured. After frosting each cupcake dip it in shredded coconut to coat the top.

This weekend was one full of birthdays. I had so many parties to attend, and so many cupcakes to make! Chocolate and mint cupcakes seemed to be the only way to go!

I am going to be completely honest; while I love making cupcakes, I can not make frosting for the life of me. I don’t know what my problem is! I have tried many recipes, and while some turn out okay, they just aren’t right. This time I followed a recipe from my Joy of Cooking cookbook, and it turned out not very sweet and sort of gummy in texture, so I went to town adding powdered sugar and milk, and it became much better. If any of you dolls have a recipe for frosting that is wonderful (and not too difficult!), or any pointers about making frosting, I would really appreciate hearing them.

Despite that the frosting on these cupcakes wasn’t exactly how I had envisioned them being, they turned out fabulous. The flavor was just right. Though the frosting tasted extremely strong and minty by itself, it balanced perfectly when it was paired with the light and fluffy chocolate cupcake.

♥ 2 cups white sugar
♥ 3 cups all purpose flour
♥ 2 teaspoon baking soda
♥ 1/2 teaspoon salt
♥ 1/2 cup cocoa powder
♥ 2 cups water
♥ 1 cup canola oil
♥ 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
♥ 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C).
2. In a large bowl sift together sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. Stir in water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
3. Pour into line muffin tins and fill 2/3 full. Bake for 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out dry.

For the frosting:

1. Follow your favorite vanilla frosting recipe. Substitute mint extract for vanilla, and add 3-4 drops of green food coloring.

Photo by Ben30

So many people are intimidated by the idea of having guests over. When one mentions dinner party an image of slaving away in front of a hot stove for an entire evening comes to mind. If you are one of these folks, I suggest having a tapas party!

For those unfamiliar with tapas, they are a small Spanish dishes, brought to the table, and shared by everyone. Not only is the food spectacular, but the sharing of all the platters creates a warm intimate setting for you and your guests to enjoy.

Food

Naturally, the most important part of a tapas party is the food. The wonderful thing about making tapas is that most everything can be made ahead of time and there is very minimal cooking after the guests arrive. Tapas are meant to be served in bite sized portions. All the platters you fix should be similar in size to an appetizer you would order in a restaurant or you would snack on at a cocktail party.

What makes for good tapas? Marinated olives are an absolute must, and all the work that you do is go to the store! Tapenade with bread or crackers is a delicious choice that can be made the day before, and stored in the fridge. Par Boiling potatoes before hand, then pan frying them right before eating is a quick and tasty choice, that can be served alongside a dipping sauce. Meat or vegetables on skewers make cooking time quick, as the pieces are so small. Just remember when planning your menu; guests should not need to use a knife, and platters should be easy to share.

Black Olive Tapenade

• 10 cloves garlic
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 (10 ounce) can black olives, drained
• 1 cup chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped basil
• 1 1/3 cup walnuts
• 3/4 cup olive oil

1. In a food processor add all ingredients. Grind until it is a finely ground paste.
2. Serve with toasted baguette slices and crackers.

Chorizo Rioja Tapas
Recipe from Recipezaar.

• 1 1/2 pound good quality chorizo
• 8 ounces rioja wine
• 5 black peppercorns
• 3 dried bay leaves
• Flat leaf parsley for serving

1. Prick the sausage all over and place in a dish.
2. Pour the wine over sausages and add peppercorns and bay leaves. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
3. Drain the chorizo sausage and cook them on a well oiled, medium-hot griddle pan for about 6 minutes each side, or until evenly browned and crispy.
4. Slice the sausage thickly and at an angle. Arrange on a serving platter.

For some more wonderful authentic tapas recipes check out Spain-Recipes and Tapas-Recipes.

Drink
Drinks are just as important as the food at any dinner party. Having some nice Spanish wine available for your guests is the perfect compliment to your bite sized meal. Check out this simple guide to Spanish wines for some very helpful information on choosing a wine.

If you really want to go all out, make your guests a nice big pitcher of Sangria. It is tasty, refreshing, and a great way to get the conversations rolling. Just make sure your guests aren’t planning on driving home for a while!

Sangria
Be warned, I like my Sangria strong. A little bit goes a very long way! If you prefer a little less alcohol, omit the white rum and brandy.

Ingredients:

• 1 bottle red wine, I use a Cabernet
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup white rum
• 1/2 cup spiced rum
• 1/2 cup brandy
• 1 star anise pod
• 1/2 stick cinnamon
• 3 various fruits sliced into wedges or rings. I like using oranges, nectarines, lemons, limes, peaches, plus or grapes.

1. In large punch bowl or a large pitcher, add sliced fruits and sugar. Muddle with a wooden spoon to bring out juices.
2. Add remaining ingredients and refrigerate for at least two hours. Serve with slices of fruit in glasses.

On the Table

A tapas party does not require a formal table setting, but rather a bunch of small plates, some forks, perhaps even toothpicks. Much of the food will be eaten with fingers, so having plenty of paper napkins, or some nice cloth napkins is a necessity.

For decorations, keep it simple. A few candles, and a small vase with some sprigs of rosemary in it are great for setting atmosphere.

Music

You may already know what you and your guests would like to hear over your dinner. However, if you are going for a more authentic Spanish tapas party you will need to have some Spanish guitar or flamenco music. I suggest downloading Pepe Romero, Carlos Montoya, Paco Pena, Sabicas, or Sabu Martinez. Your guests will really be blown away by how much work you put into your dinner party!

Photo by Ben30

So darlings, phone up your friends and start planning your menu. Tapas parties are so fun with minimal effort on your part. Guests get a chance to enjoy a new eating experience while sitting in an intimate setting and enjoying good conversation. What could be better than that?

xoxo,
Cedar

As I was flipping through my bartending book a while back this drink caught my eye. Not because of it’s list of ingredients, but because I have a cousin by the same name.

More times than not I have terrible luck with the bar book. Most drinks are either far to sweet or have such ridiculous names that I would be too embarrassed to ever order them at a bar, much less serve them to guests in my home.

This ones list of ingredients however sounded normal enough. Nothing to unheard of, no unnatural colors, no artificial flavors…..just simple ingredients for a very simple drink. As expected it turned out quite tasty. Light, refreshing, with a nice splash of citrus flavor, this drink is so easy going down.

Now I just need to make this drink next time my cousin stops by, I know she is going to love it!

Recipe from the Bartender’s Little Black Book

Fill a glass with ice. Add 2 ounces light rum and 1/2 ounce fresh squeezed lime juice. Fill with ginger ale and garnish with a fresh lime.

I made the most incredible cupcakes on Friday for Russ’ 27th birthday. Because of the boxed cake and pudding mixes, these cupcakes were incredibly easy to make. Don’t let the boxed mixes fool you, they were incredibly tasty and unlike any other cake I have made before.

I found a simple banana cupcakes recipe and decided to fill it with Nutella. The cupcakes turned out great, and the Nutella center was a nice little surprise. The only complaint I have is that the Nutella sunk down a bit because it was heavier than the batter. Next time I make them I will definitely put the Nutella closer to the top, with just a small layer of batter covering.

♥ 1 (18.25 oz.) box yellow cake mix
♥ 1 (3.4 oz.) box instant banana pudding
♥ 4 eggs
♥ 1 cup water
♥ 1/4 cup vegetable oil
♥ 3/4 cup mashed banana
♥ 1 jar Nutella (there will be a little left over)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pan with papers.
2. In a large bowl combine cake mix and pudding mix. Stir together and create a well in the center.
3. Add eggs, banana, water and oil to the center. Use a mixer to combine. Scrape sides down, and mix for about four minutes on medium speed.
4. Pour batter into muffin tin, until about half filled. Add about about a teaspoons worth of Nutella, then cover with batter.  Muffin papers should be about 2/3 filled with batter.
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until tests done. Since there is Nutella in the center, you may need to stick the toothpick towards the edge to assure that they are finished.

Icing

♥ 4 cups powdered sugar
♥ 1/4 cup milk
♥ 1/2 cup softened butter
♥ 2 teaspoons vanilla

1. Mix all ingredients with a whisk. Put a small spoonful over cupcakes, and allow to drip down sides.

What do you do when life (or grandma) gives you lemons? Well personally, I make lemon bars! My sweet grandma has a tree on the side of her house, and far too many lemons growing on it for her little old self, so I like to grab a bag of them every time I go over there.

Lemon bars are the perfect dessert for this time of year. They are light, refreshing, and full of flavor. If only it would get just a tad warmer, I would love to bring a box of these and lounge around the beach all day!

I can’t quite remember where this exact recipe came from, but it is darn good!

Ingredients:
♥ 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
♥ 2/3 cup confectioners sugar
♥ 3/4 cup softened butter
♥ 6 eggs
♥ 1 1/2 cup sugar
♥ 6 tablespoons flour
♥ 1 cup lemon juice
♥ Confectioners sugar

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, 2/3 cup confectioners sugar, and softened butter. Using your hand pat into the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 baking dish.
3. Bake 15 minutes.
4. In a large bowl whisk together eggs, white sugar, flour, and lemon juice, until well mixed, and frothy. Pour onto hot crust in pan.
5. Return to preheated oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, or until slightly golden on top. Sprinkle confectioners sugar on top, allow time to cool, and cut into squares.

I have been seriously wanting a good scone for a few weeks now. I considered making blueberry, because it is such a tasty classic, but silly Cedar forgot to put blueberries on the shopping list! This morning I started browsing for a good scone recipe, and I came across this one on recipezaar.com. It had a lot of good reviews, and I had all the ingredients on hand, so I made a batch of these this morning.

The scones turned out perfectly, and really satisfied my scone craving!! I didn’t have any regular milk on hand, so I used 1 part soy creamer and 1 part soy milk in place of the whole milk. They were so nice and moist in the center, but still dense. What a perfect afternoon snack these will make alongside some coffee or tea!

Ingredients:

♥ 3 cups all-purpose flour
♥ 1 cup sugar
♥ 1 tablespoon sugar
♥ 3 tablespoons poppy seeds
♥ 1 tablespoon baking powder
♥ 1 lemon zested
♥ 1 teaspoon salt
♥ 10 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
♥ 1 large egg
♥ 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
♥ 1/3 cup whole milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F degrees.
2. Position rack in top third of oven.
3. Mix flour, 1 cup sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, lemon peel and salt in food processor.
4. Add butter and cut in, using on/off turns, until mixture resembles coarse meal.
5. Whisk egg, and lemon juice in medium bowl to blend.
6. Add flour mixture.
7. Using on/off turns, process until moist clumps form.
8. Add 1/3 cup milk.
9. Using on/off turns, process just until dough comes together, adding more milk if dough seems dry.
10. Using floured hands, gather dough into ball.
11. Flatten to 8″ round.
12. Cut round into 8 wedges.
13. Transfer scones to large baking sheet; brush with milk.
14. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tbs sugar.
15. Bake until scones are golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes.
16. Transfer to rack and cool.

A while back a reader recommended that I try this drink. I looked it up in my bartending book, and knew right away that I would love it. Does anyone not love the combination of chocolate and mint together?

Well I finally picked up some green cream de menthe at the store this week, and got to making it! Since I gave up dairy a while back I made mine with soy milk. This drink is so tasty. It is slightly sweet, but not so much that your teeth hurt. Because it is made with liqueurs it doesn’t taste like you are drinking an alcoholic drink at all.

It is so gorgeous too, this cocktail and I had a lovely little photo shoot, while I admired it’s beautiful color. How fun this would be to serve at a cocktail party. A room full of people holding mint green beverages!

♥ 1 ounce green cream de menthe
♥ 1 ounce white cream de cacoa
♥ 1 ounce light cream or milk

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake, strain into martini glass.

This evening Russ and I went over to my dad’s house to celebrate his birthday with him. I found a great recipe on AllRecipes.com called Chocolate Lover’s Favorite Cake this morning, and decided to try it. It was so simple to do, seeing that you used boxed cake mix, but it turned out beautiful!

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package devil’s food cake mix
• 1 (3.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
• 2 cups sour cream
• 1 cup melted butter
• 5 eggs
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 10 inch Bundt pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together cake mix and pudding mix. Make a well in the center and pour in sour cream, melted butter, eggs and almond extract. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl, and beat 4 minutes on medium speed. Blend in chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

The cake was magnificent. It was so incredibly rich, and very moist. The strawberries were nice alongside it to balance out all the rich chocolate flavor. I used vanilla extract instead of almond, and instead of just greasing the pan before hand, I lightly dusted it with flour, to ensure that it came out easily. It turned out perfect!! For a glaze I melted 3/4 cup chocolate chips, 2 tablespoons butter, and 1 tablespoon corn syrup. Definately try this recipe, it is delicious and easy!

Want to surprise your special someone this Valentines Day? Start up a fire in the fireplace and make a round of these chocolate martinis. This sweet and festive drink is can satisfy any chocolate craving, and set the mood for how your evening goes.

Photo by MisterBisson

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Vanilla Vodka
• 1/2 oz Cream de Cacao
• 1 Cherry
• Coco Powder

Directions:
Mix vanilla vodka and chocolate liqueur in shaker filled with ice. Strain into either a martini glass rimmed with coco powder. Garnish with a cherry.