Meet the newest member of the Cupcake Activist family

Sorry for the lack of posts in the last couple days. My little cupcake in the oven finally decided he was done.

Meet Desmond... the milk activist.

Turkey Day Cupcakes

I seriously LOVE Thanksgiving! I'm not so much a turkey girl, but I enjoy the sides and desserts. This year we're doing two Thanksgiving meals in one day. Normally I would be thrilled, but since I have a huge baby sitting on my stomach, I don't have much of an appetite lately. If you're still looking for dessert ideas, check out these Thanksgiving-themed cupcakes. Happy Thanksgiving!! (Hopefully I won't be having this baby until after Thanksgiving!)

Photo: i heart baking

Photo: Annie's Eats

Photo: Taste and Tell

Photo: Bakerella

Photo: Tonya Staab

Busy Weekend

Between my surprise baby shower/birthday party, a day-trip to San Diego, my family birthday party, my 38 week check-up, and two trips to cupcake shops, I'M EXHAUSTED! But I'm excited to have two more reviews to post soon, including the newly-opened Bubba Sweets. Stay tuned for a recap of this weekend's events!

Thanksgiving in Cupcake Form

Thanks to a tip from a friend, I found these delicious-looking Thanksgiving "cupcakes." They are not quite the cupcakes you'd expect, but Thanksgiving dinner in cupcake form. The idea and recipe for these Thanksgiving Plate Cakelettes comes from the website Fetette.

"These little cups of joy have a base layer of turkey meatloaf that is topped with cornbread apple sausage stuffing. Mashed potatoes are piped like frosting and topped with a dallop of whole cranberry sauce. Turkey gravy is served on the side so guests can drizzle or drench to their hearts' content."

The fun doesn't stop there. They also developed a full menu that includes Candied Yam Tartlettes, Green Bean Casserole Quiche, and Wild Arugula Salad with Mini Brie en Croute.

I really love this menu because everything is in bite form. This Thanksgiving I will be 39 weeks pregnant and my stomach is tiny (thanks baby boy), so I won't be able to stuff my face like I normally do. Check out the recipes and photos on Fetette.

Super Athletes Don't Always Eat Healthy Food

Photo

Just because you're an Ironman Champion, doesn't mean you only eat healthy foods. My triathlon hero, Chrissie Wellington, knows how to indulge from time to time. She recently tweeted a picture of her eating a black forrest cupcake. Well, we definitely have that in common.

Pumpkin Ginger Cupcakes from My Baking Addiction

Photo

I've seen my fair share of pumpkin cupcakes (which I LOVE), but this was the first one that contained crystallized ginger. My Baking Addiction creates a recipe with some great autumn flavors. Although I've never used crystallized ginger before, she notes at the bottom of the page where to find it (spice aisle) and what else it is known as (candied ginger). Thanks for the tips and recipe.

Cupcake Decorating Tips

Photo

As much as I LOVE cupcakes, I actually don't bake them as much as you'd think. So any time I see baking tips, I pay close attention. Bakers Royale recently had a guest post by Created by Diane, which detailed cupcake decorating tips. I've never attempted to frost a cupcake with anything but a butter knife. And you can guess how that turns out. Using her tips, I might have a chance to make some pretty cupcakes. You can read the whole post here.

Happy National Vanilla Cupcake Day!

Did you know today was National Vanilla Cupcake Day? Doesn't matter if you did or not, eat a vanilla cupcake to celebrate!

Turning 30 with Cupcakes

Next week I turn...................30! I can barely say it.

I'm scared. Scared of being considered old. Scared of being a new mom. Scared of not knowing how we will survive without me working anymore. It's all 30's fault.

All I can hope is that my birthday is filled with lots of cupcakes and sweets.

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

Photo

And my favorite...

Photo

Goodie Girls Grand Opening November 20

I've met Annette Starbuck, owner of Goodie Girls on several occasions. She made her first appearance at the LA Cupcake Challenge this past year and she was a fellow judge at Cupcake Camp OC a few months ago.

On November 20, Annette will be opening her first storefront shop in Glendale, CA. Goodie Girls will serve up her gourmet cupcakes, including her signature variety Pumpkin Pancakes, along with her Cake Ups push pops during the "petite treat affair."

According to her press release:

The grand opening event will also feature live music from DJ Arthur Galenstian, savory appetizers catered by Kitchen 12000, a chocolate photo booth by Images Printed on Chocolate, wine by Cupcake Vineyards, decorations by Pom Flair, and sample cupcakes from Goodie Girls. A full menu of Annette's treats will be available for purchase to take home, along with Flirty Girls Aprons, and t-shirts. Also, exclusive specials will be offered for pre-orders on Thanksgiving cupcakes.

Here's the event info:

Goodie Girls Grand Opening Celebration

November 20, 2011

5-8pm

415 East Broadway #100

Glendale, CA 91205

Free street parking is available. Gift bags will be distributed to the first 75 guests..

Baking FAIL

Photo: FAILblog

At least they tried. Thanks for the laugh FAILBlog.

I Baked a Pie!

I volunteered to bring a pie to my church Halloween party. Yes, I was aware that it was pie month at Marie Callender's and that all pies were $6.99. But I've been nesting (I wonder why) and really wanted to make my own pie. Since it's autumn, I wanted to do something with apples, but not a traditional apple pie. After searching a few websites, I settled on an Apple Cheesecake Pie recipe from Tasty Kitchen Blog. After purchasing all the ingredients, I again realized that buying a pie would have been way cheaper. But this was way more fun.

Of course I don't have a handy-dandy apple corer/peeler/slicer. That would have been too easy. I did everything by hand.

Glazing the apples with cinnamon and sugar was my favorite part. I might have saved a stash to eat myself. After glazing the apples, I made the cheesecake part of the pie. It would eventually get poured on top of the apples pieces inside the pie crust.

The bummer part about baking a pie is that you can't taste the final result without showing that you took a bite. My solution was baking a mini pie in a ramekin. It didn't have crust to complete it, but I think it was my best idea ever. (I might have eaten it for breakfast the next day!)

I don't want to pat myself on the pat, but I definitely deserved it. This pie was delicious! I could have eaten all of it myself.

The dessert of the night at the Halloween party was pies. I had to choose from 100 pies. Let me tell you, that's a hard decision. Of course I ate a piece of mine, and I also went for a lemon cheesecake. I will admit that it was better than mine.

I paid the consequences for eating so much sugar. My baby boy was turning summersalts in my belly all night long. I guess he likes pie too.