A Cupcake Cake!!

I know this post is a bit belated, but nonetheless, I got it posted!!

Over the Orthodox Christmas holiday, a friend and I decided to take on the challenge of decorating a cake. I gotta tell you, I did not think I had this in me! Who ever knew I was this creative/”artistic?”

For starters we made red velvet cupcakes.  I’m not going to lie, they came from a box…

After letting the cupcakes sit overnight, so that they were completely cool we made a cream cheese icing, from scratch! We got the recipe from allrecipes.com.  However, we did tweek it slightly.  We read many of the reviews and found that the icing really did taste like cream cheese, and we were looking for a sweeter icing. Problem solved, we added almost 2 more cups of powdered sugar! Many people don’t want to make their own icing because it sounds scary (that used to be me!), but this was easier than making the cupcakes themselves! Honestly, try it!

Ingredients

• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners’ sugar. Store in the refrigerator after use

Now it was time for the fun stuff! We put the cupcakes into the shape of a christmas tree! (Angela’s brilliant idea!) We then started the decorating!!

• Tree: Green food coloring
• Stump: Brown food coloring
• Ornaments: M&M’s and sprinkles
• Snow: Coconut

Our final product:

It tasted as delicious as it looks! I was so surprised at how easy this was.  Not to mention, we had a great time decorating it! I can’t wait to make my next one Yes, i’ve already decided what it will be: A large toothbrush with a piece of thoothpaste on it! How cute of an idea is that for a dental school event?  Totally cute.

Merry Orthodox Christmas!

Today, the Orthodox church celebrates Christmas!! I am Coptic Orthodox and look forward to the Christmas holiday’s each year!  The reason the Orthodox community celebrates Christmas on January 7th is because we follow an old Orthodox calendar.  Growing up, I was taught that on December 25th Santa brought presents and on January 7th, Jesus was born.  Traditionally, on the eve of Orthodox Christmas we attend a church service, celebrating the birth of Jesus.  The church service usually lasts until midnight (or usually later) and then we go home and consume a large amount of food; a traditional meal with many delicious foods.  On Christmas day, it’s custom to partake in another large meal with friends and family…more food, my favorite!! So, it’s pretty awesome being able to celebrate 2 Christmas’ since it’s the greatest holiday, ever.

Merry Orthodox Christmas!!

Hello 2010!

How did it get to be the year 2010?  I swear it was just the year 2000, like yesterday. Even though the past 10 years seemed to have escaped me, I’m excited for the year 2010, I can feel it …it’s going to be a good one!  Not only do I have good feelings about the near, but I also have great plans:

• I would love to take a cooking/baking class
• I will complete my 5k training
• I will work on my spiritual life
• I will do a better job remembering friends/family birthdays (because I’m REALLY bad at remembering birthdays!)
• I will branch out and try cooking new and exciting things
• I will learn to decorate cakes beautifully

So maybe my hopes for the New Year are a bit much, but I’m pretty determined and excited to complete some of the above! I’m welcoming 2010 with open arms!

Cheers to the New Year!