Birthday Cake Alternatives

So my birthday is this Monday and after 21 birthdays I want to do something different for the 22nd. Don't get me wrong I love me some white cake with white icing BUT it is getting a little old. The same exact thing EVERY single year.

Therefore, this post is not going to provide a recipe but it is going to provide two alternatives to the traditional birthday cake.

Option 1: A cookie cake

Simple and easy. Use the same exact recipe of your favorite cookie but instead of making a bunch of small cookies you make one big one! All you need to do is find a pie plate and place the dough in it and spread it out evenly. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Make sure to test the middle to see if it is cooked the whole way through by using a tooth pick. If it is completely cooked the tooth pick will come out clean.

Option 2: cupcakes shaped into a cake

Sounds weird, like a cop out and impossible to do....BUT it really is simple. Take your favorite object such as a jack-o-lantern, mountain, broomstick and pick out the colors you wish to use for the icing.

Arrange the cupcakes into the desired shape and ice them as you wish. After you are finished icing them place them back together into the shape you have selected.

TA- DAH! There you have it. Two new and SIMPLE alternatives to the traditional cake. So next time you are looking to make a birthday cake try one of these and you will be asked to make the cake every year from there on out.

(The picture at the top of the page is the birthday cake I made for my nephew for his 7th birthday last year. It is a cake made out of cupcakes in the shape of Sugarloaf Mountain which is in Sugarloaf, Maine.)

Lets Bring it Back Old School

For the past couple of posts I have been focusing on the season and making all different kind of pumpkin flavored treats. So this weekend when I found myself in the kitchen baking instead of writing a paper I decided to take it back to old school cooking.

Okay so it might not be old school but it is traditional. I made home made chocolate chip cookies. I you google search for a chocolate chip cookie recipe you will find a million different recipes but I have been using the one I am going to share with you since I have been backing and I have never had a complaint from anyone!

Preheat your over to 375 degrees. Mix together in one bowl your dry ingredients of 2 1/4 cup of flour, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, and a dash of salt. In a separate bowl you are going to cream two sticks of butter, then add 3/4 cup of brown sugar followed by 3/4 cups of regular sugar. Then add in two eggs and a teaspoon of vanilla. Slowly add the dry ingredients to to the butter, egg and sugar mixture. Finally mix in the chocolate chips! Scoop the dough on to trays keeping them one inch apart from each other. Bake for eight to ten minutes and you will have brought it back old school!

Oatmeal Pumpkin Spice Cookies

I said I would be using pumpkin spices a lot and I wasn't lying. I can't resist. I LOVE October and the smells and feel of the season. So here is a post on how to add a twist to old fashion oatmeal cookies.

Take prepackaged oatmeal cookie mix and a stick of butter, one egg and a table spoon of water. Then add one table spoon of pumpkin spice mix which includes clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, anise star, all spice, and cardamom.

It takes seconds to make a traditional cooke into the perfect fall treat. The table spoon of pumpkin spice mix adds a nice but subtle flavor to the cookie.

Baking with the Boys

I have been spent the past couple of days in Seattle, Wa watching my three nephews while my brother and his wife are out of town. I have been running from baseball practice, to football practice to basketball practice. The boys are 11, 9 and 7 and they are active!

With all the whirlwind of activities we still found time to bake of course! The boys loved helping make all sorts of things. We made sugar cookies with jock-o-lanterns on them, chocolate chip cookies and pumpkin muffins.

We went back to the basics of traditional home baking and they loved it. So this week my tip for you guys is simply this...bake with friends, family or with anyone who is willing to lend a hand. It is a great time to spend time with one and other and it is fun and makes time fly by!

So pick your all time favorite treat and find sometime to bake with someone!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins with a Cinnamon Glaze

Happy October everyone! Fall is my FAVORITE season and October is my favorite month so the next couple of post you will most likely have to do with the season or the month.

For this post I have decided to share my pumpkin muffin with a cinnamon glaze recipe with you guys. It is simple, fun and delicious! They are perfect for breakfast on the go, dessert or when you are looking for that late afternoon snack.

Start out by buying a pumpkin cake, bread or muffin mix. Most grocery stores carry it during the fall and holiday season. If you cannot find it then you can just buy a boxed spice cake mix and make them into cupcakes.

Follow the instructions on the back of the box for the muffin mix then to add some "zest" add in a tablespoon of cinnamon and a teaspoon of vanilla and people will think you made them from scratch!

Bake as directed on the box. While the muffins are baking mix a 1/2 cup of confectioner sugar with 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1 teaspoon of milk. Add more milk slowly to the mixture if you do not like the consistency.

Glaze the muffins after about five minutes of cooling. Then ENJOY!