Scrumpdillyicious Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting

It's been a very lovely Valentine's Day.  How has  your day been?  Hope it's been full of love and laughter.  Dan and I made really adorable play tents for all the grandsons for Valentine's Day this year.  (You'll hear more about those later.) We delivered those yesterday because they had to be set up and we didn't know if there would be a new grandson today.   No baby has arrived yet today, but there is still time and we all have our fingers crossed doing the "come on baby" dance.  We did have fun spending the afternoon with our daughters and grandsons though while they all enjoyed cupcakes and they LOVED their tents.  I received a dozen beautiful pink roses from the grandsons.  : )

Today was started by baking some scumpdillyicious chocolate chip cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.  Oh my, they are good!  I tinted the frosting a lovely shade of pink to make the cupcakes look a little more "Valentine-ish."  Now, they needed that final touch, you know  - a special decoration.  So, I made some chocolate covered strawberries.  Why you ask?  Because they are delicious of course (and pretty too).  I used them on some of the cupcakes and on the gift trays.  I also made gluten free red velvet cupcakes for our son in love who cannot eat gluten.  I will post that recipe later.  They were really pretty.

This recipe made 24 cupcakes which gave me enough to make trays for both families here in town, a cute little tray for our grandson's nanny and her boyfriend, and of course - one for us.  Kristen is so loving and sweet to G, and I wanted her to know how much we appreciate her.

Now, I am going to say this is another "must make" recipe for you, because these cupcakes are outstanding!

Here is what you will need.

1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)
4 eggs
3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup milk
4 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting

2 8 oz blocks cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar
2 TBSP milk (if needed, I didn't need the milk)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Line muffin tin with papers for 24 cupcakes

Cream the butter and both sugars until light in color and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time.  Sift the dry ingredients in a separate bowl.  Mix wet ingredients in another bowl.  Add dry ingredients and wet ingredients alternately to the butter/sugar mixture.  Fold in the chocolate chips.  Fill the muffin papers 3/4 full.  (I use a 1/4 cup measure)  Bake for 17-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Remove from oven and let cool.

To make the icing:

Cream the softened butter and cream cheese.  Add the vanilla.   Add powdered sugar a little at a time until the frosting is the consistency you want.  If needed, add tiny bits of milk until you get a spreadable consistency.  (I added 3 drops of red food coloring to make my icing pink)

Here is an easy way to pipe frosting onto your cupcakes for a more decorative look.  Cut the corner off a gallon sized storage bag and insert an icing tip (which you can buy at the grocery) for the look that you want.  I used a star tip and made swirls instead of stars.

Next, fold the top of the bag back on itself and place it in a container to hold it while you fill it with icing.

Zip the top closed while squeezing all the air from the bag.  Now, you are ready to pipe.  Simply choose the design/look you want and go to it.  I don't like tons of icing, so I made swirls in the middle of the cupcakes like this.

I decorated a dozen cupcakes with chocolate covered strawberries, a dozen with Hershey's kisses and a dozen with sprinkles because the grandsons love sprinkles.  Then, I covered trays I already had with Valentine tissues paper and placed cupcakes, chocolate covered strawberries and kisses on the trays.  Each one was a little different.  Now, it was time to make deliveries.

Anytime there is a special occasion, it's always thoughtful to bake something.  This is a great recipe that is absolutely delicious.  Give it a try because I know you will love it.  I found this recipe on a site called Your Cup of Cake and it is a keeper!  Dan declared it amazing and he is the world class chocolate expert around here.  I believe they are referred to as "chocoholics."  So now you know, you must give these a try.  I'll keep you updated on the newest grandson.  Keep your fingers crossed!

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

Chocolate is the first luxury. It has so many things wrapped up in it: Deliciousness in the moment, childhood memories, and that grin-inducing feeling of getting a reward for being good.
Mariska Hargitay

This Baked Pasta Recipe May Knock Your Socks Off!

We have been working feverishly getting the little yellow cottage ready for Christmas.  So much decorating to do!  Last night I was tired and wanted something easy to fix for dinner.  I decided to try this recipe I found on Pinterest last week because, well, it sounded yummy.

The recipe is for baked spaghetti, but I am not a big fan of spaghetti.  I like heartier pastas that grab the sauce and have some "chew" to them.  I had penne, so that is what I chose to use.  If you want to use spaghetti, feel free to do so.

Here is what you need.

12 ounces pasta, cooked according to directions

1 pound ground beef

one medium onion, diced

one clove garlic minced

1 jar of your favorite marinara sauce

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese (I grate fresh, prefer it to canned)

1 8 oz block of cream cheese

salt and pepper

I added these two ingredients

a couple pinches of red pepper flakes

mozzarella cheese for the top of the casserole

Cook your pasta according to directions.  Brown the ground beef, onion, and garlic.  Salt and pepper to taste.  When beef is browned, drain.  Add the jar of marinara sauce and heat.  Cut cream cheese into cubes and add to sauce when it is bubbling until cheese melts.  Add parmesan cheese and stir to mix.  Spray a 9x13 casserole with cooking spray.  Place drained pasta in casserole dish.  Cover with marinara sauce and stir to mix well.  Grate some parmesan over top of casserole and add mozzarella.  Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Oh my goodness good!

We had this quick and easy baked pasta with a green salad and crusty bread.   Our youngest son joined us for dinner and he and Dan agreed this was one of the best pasta dishes they had ever eaten.  Yes, it is fantastically good.  The cream cheese makes the sauce creamy and delicious and causes the sauce to adhere to the pasta in a wonderfully delicious way.

Give this recipe a try the next time you want something quick and easy.  You will make it again.  I know I am going to!  Enjoy,

Everyday Donna

Things to Remember:

 “Life is a combination of magic and pasta.” ~ Fellini