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"Cakes and Cupcakes"
Every spring I eagerly await the return of my garden from its wintry sleep. I don’t have a lot of perennial plants, but I love my daffodils, peonies, and irises, and I wish their blooms would last till fall. I also have several hearty herbs that come back every year, a very vivacious raspberry bush, and— perhaps my favorite— three rhubarb plants that take over everything in their path each summer.
I’ve been waiting for my rhubarb, looking for the first of the bright red shoots to uncurl from the ground. Last weekend when I checked their progress I was excited to see that they were well on their way and could not resist the urge to bake.
I can’t decide if this is the worst or greatest idea I have stumbled upon— a chocolate cake, baked in a mug, in a microwave, in just two minutes.
You can go from hankering to satisfaction in a matter of mere minutes. It’s dangerously wonderful.
Over the weekend I turned the big 3-0. A big milestone, sure, but not as big of a deal as I thought it was going to be. I guess by the time you actually reach 30, it no longer seems so old and scary. I had a lovely birthday, filled with pampering and love from friends and family. And of course, there was cake.
Baking my own birthday cake definitely doesn’t bother me at all, and I actually rather enjoy it. I get to pick out exactly what I want (and I spend weeks making that decision, you only get one birthday cake a year!) and I have a lot of fun putting it all together. I decided this year that I wanted a vanilla cake with a burst of something fun in the middle.
In preparation for my husband’s birthday last week I handed him one of my favorite cookbooks, Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes
It took him a few days to select the one he wanted (I don’t blame him, it’s a hard decision when faced with so many tasty options!) and finally chose this chocolate cola cake with toasted coconut and pecan icing. It’s a long title, but you can think of it as a variation on german chocolate cake.
Happy New Year everyone!
Here’s a simple recipe to start off your baking in 2012. I know this time of year everyone is looking to cut down on the sweets and get back to healthy eating, and maybe this isn’t the best recipe for me to lead off with. But I will continue to be an advocate for dessert and if you ask me, no one should go without it completely.
So go ahead and eat a big healthy salad for dinner, and consider these cupcakes for dessert. I’m not going to tell you they’re good for you, but the portion control is built right in. And thanks to the pink grapefruit, they’re light in flavor and very refreshing.
about me
Hi, I'm Annalise and I love to bake. Welcome to my blog! Follow along as I try new recipes, share baking tips and tricks, and overindulge my sweet tooth.Current Favorites
Strawberry Rhubarb Coffee Cake
Butterscotch Pecan Ice Cream
Old Fashioned Donuts
Shortcakes with Lemon Curd & Berries
Grilled FlatbreadNeed Baking Help?
Learn about baking ingredients and methods on my Baking Essentials page.
See what I use in my kitchen on my Baking Tools page.
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