In the kitchen: Butterscotch Cupcakes

STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING
And make these cupcakes.

They may just look like plain ol' white cupcakes.
But hiding inside is a lovely little surprise.

Butterscotch Cupcakes
from Food Network here
Cupcakes
* 1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 pinch salt
* 3/4 cup unsalted butter
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 3 eggs
* 1/2 cup milk
Butterscotch
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 2 tablespoons water
* 2 tablespoons Scotch (or other whisky)
* 1/4 cup 35% cream, hot
* 2 tablespoons salted butter
(I used this recipe for butterscotch here instead since i don't use scotch)
Vanilla buttercream icing
* 1/2 cup unsalted butter
* 1 1/2 cups icing sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3 tablespoons 35% cream, hot

Directions
Cupcakes
1. With the rack in the middle position, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Place paper or silicone liners in 9 or 12 muffin cups.
2. In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar with the vanilla using an electric mixer. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until the mixture is smooth. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients, alternating with the milk. Divide the batter among the muffin cups.
3. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the centre of a cupcake comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Let cool slightly. Unmould and finish cooling on a rack.

Butterscotch
1. In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the sugar and water to a boil. Cook until the mixture turns golden-brown. Off the heat, add the Scotch, the cream and butter. Continue stirring until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and let cool completely.

Vanilla buttercream icing
1. In a bowl, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer until fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the cream in a thin stream and continue beating until smooth. Set aside.

Assembly
1. Using a apple corer or a melon baller, cut a pocket from the centre of each cupcake, removing about 15 ml (1 tablespoon) of cake without cutting through. Fill the pocket with 15 ml (1 tablespoon) butterscotch. Ice the cupcakes with the buttercream icing.

I made them for this little girl....

Who's just so happy to be 5.

And I'm glad to make them if that's what she wants.


And on a side note, when I told Alden I was going out to take pictures of Lucy for her birthday last night he said when do I get MY pictures? And I responded, when it's your birthday, remember how I did that for Eli on his birthday and I did that on your last birthday, etc? His response, "yeah but what about right NOW?" And I would have except the light was fading fast and we ran out of light. So coming up for his birthday week - pictures of him, his party, lots of ALDEN. :)

And seriously, make these cupcakes. They are my favorite thing I've made in a while. And I bake a lot. I MAY have had 3 and half today. :)

Lucy at 5

• loves to giggle and laugh and can really brighten the room with her smile
• can still throw a mean screaming fit (did in Kindergarten today - how horrible is THAT!)
• wears a dress or skirt every day. I think she has worn pants twice since starting school
• loves to "mother" Eli and any other small child in her presence
• loves to bake and cook with her momma (hence yesterday's party post)
• favorite foods: chicken nuggets, steak, cranberries,
• loves girlie movies but will put up watching Toy Story every time with Eli
• loves to sing and wants to be good at singing when she grows up
• talks a LOT
• loves to have stories read to her
• i think she can actually read but she just doesn't know it. She will correct Alden as he is reading on words and then when I ask her how she knows that she says "well I saw that word before". And I'll say that's reading and she'll say "I can't read mom!"
• she likes some foods one day and then not the next
• LOVES being in ballet
• prays for a baby sister to come to her house a lot
• loves baby sitters and will ask when the next time she gets one is
• loves to do crafts and glue anything she can get her hands on
• is in a real girls only stage with everyone except her brothers
• can read between the lines quite well (as in get what you are trying not to say)
• has a bout 40 "owies" a day and cries over them and needs lots of snuggles to get over them, while she is hugging you saying owie owie owie she is throbbing hugging you - like squeeze, let go, squeeze, let go
• LOVES polly pockets
• has a bath with Eli every night cause he wants to and is very patient about it
• has a wonderful smile
• says every Sunday after church - "how come I don't have a GIRL primary teacher?"
• creative in drawing and enjoys it
• still loves Anise Wilde and says she just doesn't get to see her enough anymore
• constantly giving me art projects that she has made with stickers and drawings on it
• asks almost every day we check the mail "is there any for me? awww how come I never get mail?"
• loves having her hair short but still asks can I have a bun for ballet?"
• brings lots of laughter into our home.
We love you Lucy! Happy Birthday

Lucy's Bake Shop Party

When Lucy told me she wanted a Bake Shop party I was excited. I mean baking is one of my favorite things! My mind was filling with different ideas. I wanted to do a lot but I tried to reign myself in.
Prepare yourself for LOTS of pictures :)
I let my kids pick their cakes. I show them pictures and tell them kinds and flavors and they can pick whatever they want. This year Lucy wanted a barbie cake. So I had her draw her cake and then I would make it too look the same.


How it turned out.... I made a red velvet cake using Bakerella's recipe here. Some of the girl's didn't like it. But Lucy did (and so did Aimee! She ate most of the left overs for me :) )

The decorations: I made a quick little banner with left over fabrics of various things I've sown her or her friends in the past. It matches her room so that I can hang it in there after. And the tissue paper puff balls are from last year and hang over her bed all the time, so I just reused them!

Instead of gift bags, each girl got a matching apron. I'll show you how to make them this week. Super easy!

Making their mini pies. See their hats? We made chef hats first out of plastic bags and strips of poster board. They each decorated them and then we stuck them all together.

Cutting out Sugar Cookies: All the mini bakers as the cut out their sugar cookies before baking them. You can see the mini pies in the middle of the table that they made first.

Tidbits from the party:

1. Rolling out the pie dough - it was funny to see which girls had been in the kitchen before and which ones weren't. Yes I could tell :)
2. The invitations - Lucy wanted a cupcake. So this is what I came up with.
3. The little boxes I made for them to carry home all the treats they made and one of the pies. I found the box idea here and loved them so much I am going to use them again. So easy and so cute.
4. Snack time - Lucy's favorite - fruit
5. Trying out the icing bag
6. The perfect color Lucy wanted for the cake
7. I took a picture with each guest and Lucy. First the two of them with the present they gave her and then just them. This is Lucy's cousin Alli who's birthday is 6 days after Lucy's.
Lucy was loving the whole party.

Blowing out the candles.

All the guests and Lucy in their hats and aprons screaming with joy :)

Tomorrow is her actual birthday and I'll share with you how to make the aprons this week (and I might have an extra to give away :) )

Feels like Home

Last Sunday I phoned my parents at 1pm and promptly invited myself and my family out for dinner at their house. I was missing my parents. I wish they lived right next door. So we packed up the kids (including their pjs) and drove the hour out to their house.

We had a lovely time eating and talking. My kids got ridiculously dirty playing in the piles of gravel that are my parents yard and had tons of fun.

I love this picture for a few reasons. My mom isn't really a fan of pictures (she's worried about how she looks and losing weight. But I love her just how she is). And frankly, neither is my dad. But I just happened to ask and they both did it. And it is so them.

Grandma happy with her grandkids close. My dad with his Hill Spring basketball t-shirt under his other shirt. The light my mom pushed over by her to be in the picture. My kids in their pjs before we rushed them home to bed.

All of it, just natural. Just THEM.

Before my sister died, my mom and I didn't have a very good relationship. I just saw our differences as a teenager and not our similarities. After Kelly died we became close. We are best friends now. She is my sounding board. Really we talk about almost everything. And no one gets me like my mom. I am sad that it took losing Kelly to get the relationship that we have. But I am so grateful that we have it.

I have good parents. Good people. Who are completely down to earth and absolutely faithful and loyal. I love that we live close enough that my kids get to see them. (I am very lucky my kids get exposure to both sets of wonderful grandparents.)

Sometimes you just want to be at home. Even if your parents don't live in the same house that you grew up in. To me, home feels like these two.

In the kitchen: Apple Crisp

A few weeks ago I was asked to help out with a Relief Society Meeting all about Food Storage and Preparation. I made the dessert for hte evening and it needed to come from food storage.

Well the thing is, we don't have one. As soon as we settle (as in next year when we move out to Raymond - which we are doing after Regan is done residency) it is one of the first things I will be focusing on. But for this event I got some dried apples from two friends out of their food storages. To make these desserts.

So you take a pot of apple slices.


Cover them with water. Add two vanilla beans (sliced and scrape the seeds into it too) and sprinkle with cinnamon.


Add sugar and boil it. On a slow boil for a while.


This is how the filling is supposed to look when it's ready. A yummy saucy pie filling or apple crisp filling.


So then you put it in the pans and add your topping. I made mine out of oatmeal, flour, sugar, salt and butter cut it.

Then bake it just like normal apple crisp.

We served it with homemade vanilla bean ice cream. mmmmmm
Does that explain how to make it for ya?
Do you have any sort of food storage for an emergency?

Today my oven is getting fixed (FINALLY) and I feel the need to bake multiple TREATS. :)

Did you know

.....that my oven has not been working since LAST friday?! As in I have not been able to bake anything in the oven in over four days. It is KILLING me. Lucy wanted muffins for her snack day today. Couldn't do it. No oven. And this weekend we are having her birthday party - which she wants as a Bake Shop party. Kinda hard to bake without an oven. All I have to say is, that part better come in like today!!!!!

...I loooove going on photo walks in the evening. Just taking my camera out and seeing whatever I see. These three first ones were taken like seconds apart. But I was manipulating the dials to get different effects. Aren't cameras COOL!!!!



... speaking of photo walks. Regan has taken to using my old Camera. I never did send it away yet to get fixed. So sometimes it doesn't even work. But he is playing with it and we are out taking pictures. It's kinda fun :)


.....that the older I get the more I am grateful for my parents. They give and give and give and give. And have sacrificed so much over the years. I wish they got more credit for all they do and have done.

......the Eli has officially made it to the terrible twos. He has started being a little stinker and shouting NO if he disagrees or he just feels like it. He is talking a lot lately. Saying really funny things. Two is such a funny age. It is filled with lots of terribly cute things and terribly frustrating things.

....I am really enjoying my Macro lens. A lot. This is little Harrison whilst I was babysitting him last Thursday.


.....the upcoming weekend I have a wedding in Calgary to shoot. But since Regan is on call I am going to have to drive up the morning of the wedding and drive home the same day. With 8 hours of shooting in the middle. Wowee that's gonna be a LONG day.

...I have become obsessed with CLOUDS.


.....I am doing lots of cute things for Lucy's upcoming birthday party this weekend. Sewing things and making invites. I'll share it all next week.

.....I finally decided to cut Lucy's hair. She HATES having it done. And really, I'm not that good at doing her hair. So I convinced her to get it cut. And I LOVE it. It is sooooo much easier to do now. :)

.....I love it when Regan and I just get time to talk to each other. About whatever. Everything and anything. Love Love Love it. Love Love Love him.

Spiritual Sundays

Thanks

I know around 125-140 people read this thing every day.

But to Amy, Kathleen, Carmen, Whitney, Lora, Abby, Megan, Kristin, Marie, Heather, Brooke S, Jen, Kristi and Crystal....

You guys are the ones who most often post comments.
And just so you know, I appreciate it.

Art in the Living room

This is a snap shot of my living room wall. I just got it to look like this. As in on Saturday I started getting out the ladder that my brother Bob had left here (like I asked him too) and started getting all the hangers out and then my dear husband got the hint and actually did the job :)

I take lots of pictures. Lots of ones that mean a lot to me. And sometimes I don't get many printed. Why NOT?! Who knows. I get some printed for scrapbooking (although I need some printed from lately to scrapbook). But I need to display some of my art. My photography. So I bought that big frame from Ikea last time I was in Calgary. And got a large 20x28 print done at London Drugs. And trimmed off a tiny bit so it would fit in the frame (ever notice Ikea frames NEVER fit regular printing sizes?).
This is the picture in case you are wondering.


The Alphabet art is something I've been working on forever. I had all the letters done a month or more ago but it wasn't antiqued. So finally I did that too and my wonderful husband hung them all up for me. It is TOTALLY inspired from The amazing Susie Haarris. She has lots of other ones I am going to make on my own to hang in my house!

I want to add a small wooden word "love" and perhaps one other thing since it's best to have an odd number. But I love how it looks.

Have you blown up any BIG pictures lately and hung them up?

And thanks for all the comments on yesterdays post. I wasn't looking for accolades on my mothering at all, just sharing my thoughts. I used to spend more time writing about things more on here and I've decided I need to do that more often.

Motherhood

I've been thinking a lot lately about parenting. About my job as a mom.
I do a lot of other things. Photography, which is fun and something I think about a lot. I spend time scrapbooking and crafting and sewing. And there are books to read and magazines to peruse. Recipes to try and cookbooks to finish. Curtains to hang and dresses to mend. Blogs I'd love to read.

But nothing is as important as being a mom. I know it internally. Am I living that?

I love this quote from President Gordon B Hinckely:
"You have nothing in this world more precious than your children. When you grow old, when your hair turns white and your body grows weary, when you are prone to sit in a rocker and meditate on the things of your life, nothing will be so important as the question of how your children have turned out. It will not be the money you have made. It will not be the cars you have owned. It will not be the large house in which you live. The searing question that will cross your mind again and again will be, How well have my children done?

If the answer is that they have done very well, then your happiness will be complete. If they have done less than well, then no other satisfaction can compensate for your loss. And so I plead with you tonight, my dear sisters. Sit down and quietly count the debits and the credits in your role as a mother. It is not too late. When all else fails, there is prayer and the promised help of the Lord to assist you in your trials. But do not delay. Start now, whether your child be six or 16."

I have been thinking about this a lot lately. Am I putting my best foot forward for my kids? When I kneel down to pray at night and in the morning, are my children forefront in my mind? Their needs, their happiness, their concerns and troubles. Am I putting more effort and preparation and planning into my parenting as I am my photography or my baking or my crafts?

I always thought I would be blessed with piles of kids in a short amount of time. Like my mom had. But apparently that is not what God wants for me. And I've realized that that wouldn't work well for me. I have needed the space between my kids.
I am not one of those women who gets to plan what month they want to have a baby, since you know, it'll be better to have a baby in this month cause of whatever. That's not me and it's not my body. But that is okay. Today it is okay. Yes pregnancy is hard for me. Eli's was, well horrific. But I know that they are more kids to come to our home. At least one more. Maybe that is all. I don't know. I'm not sure I can BE pregnant more times that once more. (unless I get some crazy awesome pregnancy that other people experience.) I'm sure I will know when our family is complete. But that's not the point. The point is, am I doing my best in my mothering? Am I saving the best of me for something else or for home?


I'm not sure why I am sharing all this today. Perhaps cause it has been on my mind so much lately. Perhaps I want to encourage you to be putting your best foot forward, whatever that best is. Cause everyone's is different. And that is okay. Because we are all crafted in the Lord's image. He made mother as on of the most important roles on this earth. And we've got it.

So what are we going to do with it?

Spiritual Sundays

Numerous leisure hours have been made available to men. It is noticeable that many use these extra hours for fun and pleasure. Certainly an increased part of it could profitably be used for gaining knowledge and culture through the reading of good books.
Numerous people fail to take advantage of these opportunities. Many people spend hours in planes with only cursory glancing at magazines, and in the train or bus, time is spent "sitting and thinking," and in many cases, "just sitting," when there could be such a constructive program of reading. People in beauty parlors, professional offices, waiting rooms, and elsewhere waste precious hours thumbing through outdated magazines when much valuable reading could be done in these islands of time.... Even in the beginning there was the written word, for Adam and Eve were conscious of the need for the development of the mind, "And by them their children were taught to read and write, having a language which was pure and undefiled." (Moses 6:6.)
- Spencer W. Kimball on Reading

My Wednesday

1. My sewing machine died right in the middle of some projects I need done for tomorrow night.

2. All three of my kids had multiple crying episodes.

3. I couldn't sleep cause my back has been killing me lately. I have started getting up to do yoga before the kids are awake but it is still waking me up lots during the night and in the morning.

4. Eli no longer naps and that means I have less time to myself during the day. Some days he is learning to play a bit with Lucy and by himself, but not today AT ALL.

5. I got ready early and got Eli into the van and drove to the north side for his gymnastics that apparently doesn't start for another week.

6. I drove to London Drugs to print off a BIG print of one my pictures that I am planning to hang above my door and the file was corrupted and didn't work.

But on the plus side

1. I figured out what the theme for Lucy's party is going to be and what I am making for all the girls who attend it as their "gift bag"

2. I hand painted two signs for the RS meeting.

3. I exercised this morning.

4. I ordered the picture I wanted printed online when I got home and it worked.

5. I got asked to contribute to a book that is going to be published about crafty things. :)

6. I edited a whole bunch of Nicole and Derek's wedding.

So the good balanced out the frustrating.

An Important Time of the Day

I think one of the hardest parts of the day is between 330pm until bedtime. Kids come home hungry and tired. They come home needing reassurance and some come home needing some time to themselves (Alden). Some come home bursting with excitement about whatever happened during the day. It's also the time before supper where you are supposed to be getting that ready. And the time for homework. And the time for baths and lots of other things. Play time that kids missed. If you do piano or soccer or any of those things. It often all seems crammed into those I'm-so-tired-and-sleepy-myself-so-I'm-crabby-and-when-is-dad-coming-home moments. I have a hard time around then.

But I do think that that is one of the most important times of the day. When I can provide moments with my kids that are important. I wonder if I need a schedule. If I need to be better prepared for when they come home. To focus more on having a good healthy snack first thing, a little bit of time for them to relax and play and then time at the table for home reading and homework, with some inkling of what I am making for supper.

Seems I haven't gotten all that together since we started back to school. But I want to. I want to get my ducks in a row and be serious about greeting my children with a smile and being fully involved with them at this important time of the day.

How do you handle the after school pre-supper time?

And since I can't have two posts in a row without a picture... here's a random one.

In the kitchen: Cookbook Review: Small Batch Perserving

Small Batch Preserving
by Ellie Topp and Margaret Howard

This is one great book! I have really enjoyed this book on canning!! It covers how to's. It covers jams, jelly's, conserves, relishes and pickles. Lots of recipes that are unusual and totally good!
I've made Pear Raspberry Jam, Peach Pear Jam with Lime and Sweet and Chunky Apple Butter.
I bought the book at chapters for $19.95. If you like canning at all, go and get it!

5 Things

1. I am trying to switch Eli's sleeping (since he's going to be the death of me - 4 am on Saturday morning!) and now when I wake him up from his 30 minute naps in the afternoon he is still el-zonko. So I get to sit and hold him. And I've been enjoying it. Since he's was past the snuggly stage (way to many things to do other than snuggling) I enjoy that I get to hold him. And take pictures of him while he sleeps. Although I am supposed to be waking him ;)

2. My friend Megan brought me back this pile of fabric from the states. I am making it into lots of fun things to sell. Megan and I are going to have a table at a craft table in November and since she told me about it and I decided to do it I have been making piles of lists of cute things to make and sell. Dolls and aprons and car rolls and all sorts of cute things. I'll be doing lots of wooden things too - but I'm starting with the sewing!

3. I really enjoy making donuts. I think it's fun. And I love serving them too since people always enjoy eating them. I made a bunch for our ward's corn bust last week. mmm donuts.

4. Now is the time of year for many photo shoots for me. One of my most recents that I really love. And there are LOTS more on my site from this shoot and lots of other ones - with more coming all the time!

5. I am surprised how much my ankle is still sore when I stand on it too much or walk too far. I thought it would be done hurting but I was definitely wrong!

Spiritual Sundays

Joseph Smith said of that precious book, “I told the brethren that the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book.”

Birds

Nothing to say today.
So I'll just share a picture instead.

MSBH Challenge Update

It's been a while since I updated my list.
I made this not long ago which I LOVED!

125: Classic Crumb Cake
126. Crumb Topping
127. Peach, Apricot and Cherry Pie
128. Apple Crumb pie
129. Slab Pie
130. Almond Crumb Crust
131. Fourth of July Blueberry Pie
132. Gooseberry pie
134. Tender Pie Dough
135. Struesel
136. Nectarine Tart
137. Tart Dough

I am planning a baby shower and I am making treats to go to that... so I will hopefully be able to knock off about 4-5 more recipes for that today. :)


This child is adjusting to having the other kids in school. He is lonely. And doesn't know what to do with himself. I set up the tent in the living room and he played for a bit. He spends a lot of time whining and crying that the other kids aren't home. Hopefully we adjust, so that we both can be happy and I can still get some things done during the day!

In the Craftroom: Scrapbooking Lately

I have not had the time to scrapbook lately. If I have free time I feel like I need to edit pictures. I have lots of shoots to edit and some that need to get done soon for posters for a violinist and weddings and newborns and families. But I did take a little window of time on Sunday night and about an hour Monday to scrapbook. And it was mmmmmmaaaaarvelous! Some fruits of my labor.