Candy Bar Getting to Know You Game

Today we are having our Primary "Meet Your Teacher" Activity.  All of the teachers were asked to come up with a "get to know you" activity to do with the children in their class.  This is what I came up with to play with my 11 year olds.

I bought a variety of candy bars, and will put them in a brown paper bag.  Each child will have a chance to pull out a candy bar.  Each candy bar has a question that goes along with it.  I will go around and have each child answer every question.  

This game can also be played at parties, mutual activities, or anywhere else you would need a "get to know you game".  Below you will find a link to a PDF copy.

Download PDF Here

We Did It Again... Our Annual St. Patrick's Day Dinner!

We really are that family that gets together and celebrates for EVERY. SINGLE. HOLIDAY, but we always seem to have a blast!  This St. Patrick's Day dinner tradition started when my oldest child was a baby.  It has grown over the years, and is now one of the favorite traditions.

Tonight's party consisted of Corned Beef and Cabbage, and everything green.  We had green rolls, green jello, green mashed potatoes, green peas, green broccoli salad, green veggies, green chips, green cookies, green cupcakes, green candy, green punch, etc. etc. etc.  Well, you get the idea!

 Everybody dressed up in green. 

We had green shirts...

green hair bows...

and even green socks!

We always get a picture of the grand kids and great grand kids with Grandma!  We sure did miss our out-of-state cousins.

My kids will always remember the fun times with their cousins.

 Happy St. Patrick's Day Everyone!!!!

My First Naked Cake With Chocolate Dipped Strawberries!

This cake turned out so much better than I ever envisioned!  It is filled with a delicious strawberry butter cream filling, and a chocolate fudge butter cream filling.  The hit of this cake is definitely the chocolate dipped strawberries that cascade down the front.  This cake tastes every bit as good as it looks!

 Congratulations to Mitch and Heidi on your very special day!  I'm so glad that I got to be a part of it.

Walter Mitty Clementine Cake

I found the recipe to this Walter Mitty Clementine Cake on a blog by Cathy Merenda.  In her post she talks about how one of the through-lines in the film (Walter Mitty) is this cake.    At the beginning of the story, Walter’s sister Odessa delivers him one on his birthday.  It's his favorite cake made by his mother (the wonderful Shirley McLane).   

I really like this cake because it is gluten free!  It is flourless and has whole clementines in it.  I also found it super easy to make!

Here is the recipe from Cathy:

CLEMENTINE CAKE

• 375 grams clementines (approximately 5 small)
• 6 eggs
• 1 1/4 cup (225 grams) white sugar
• 2 1/4 cups (250 grams) ground almonds
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF.  Butter and line an 8 or 9 inch springform pan with parchment.
2. Poke each clementine 3 or 4 times with a knife.   Put the clementines in a bowl with a microwave safe cover or plastic wrap.  Cook on high for 3-4 minutes. Cool slightly then dump the clementines (whole) in a food processor and process until smooth.
3. In large bowl beat eggs and sugar until light colored and doubled in volume (about 5 minutes)
4. Add in chopped clementines and mix well.  Then add ground almonds and baking power and mix until combined.
5. Pour mixture into pan and bake for about 45 minutes (when a skewer will come out clean).
6. Cool in the pan on a rack.   Once cake is cold, remove from pan and pull off any parchment.
7. Glaze and add candied clementines to decorate.

GLAZE

• 2 cups confectioners sugar
• 3 tablespoons softened butter
• 1/2 cup clementine juice

1. Mix everything in a bowl adjusting clementine juice and sugar to make a loose but thick glaze

CANDIED CLEMENTINES

• 3 clementines
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
1. Slice clementines very thinly.
2. Put sugar and water in a heavy bottomed pan on medium heat.   Stir until sugar is dissolved.
3. Add clementine slices and simmer on low for about 15-20 minutes.
4. Pull clementines from sugar mixture and place on parchment or silpat until cool.

You can also visit her blog to get her story on the cake.  Click here.

Grounded???

This post has nothing to do with cakes, cookies, brownies, cupcakes, or any goodies for that matter....  but I have had an overwhelming response to my Facebook post yesterday about my kids getting grounded.  So, I thought I would share what I posted.

The last week or so has been an extremely busy time for me, and my house really shows it!  My kids got themselves grounded for being late to school, so I thought I would use it to my advantage. I came up with a clever way to get them ungrounded.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/14GWqhk96Kh9IftPzn8y_643JSFs-Wp2dBvAoVadne6w/pub

This worked out better than I could have ever imagined!  My oldest son got right to work and earned his 500 points in one day.  The other two are getting closer and working hard too!  We had a nice dinner last night prepared by my son.  I found super nice letters on my pillow last night, and my house is looking SO much better!  I just never thought that so many other people would like my idea.  AMAZING!  If you would like to print a copy of this list just click HERE.   Hopefully this will work for you like it did for me!

Jodi's Cupcake Wedding Cake

I haven't done much with wedding cakes in the last couple of years, and it has been especially hard since adapting a Paleo Lifestyle.  But.....  I had a friend get married yesterday.  When I heard that she wanted a "cupcake" cake, I was totally on board.  I REALLY LIKE MAKING CUPCAKES!

I thought that the combination of Coral and Blue was stunning!

This turned out so Beautiful!  Better than I had envisioned, and even better in person.  Congrats to both Jodi and Kurtis on your big day!

Sam's CARS Birthday Cake....Starring Lightning McQueen!!!

Our little Sam turned 3 years old yesterday, so we celebrated with his favorite things....CARS!

He requested a "Sketti" Dinner (Spaghetti)....

And a CARS Cake!

This was a Triple Chocolate Fudge Cake, topped with a creamy homemade butter cream frosting.  The black and white checkers were totally edible and made using Wilton Sugar Sheets.  The Grandstand was constructed out of Rice Crispy Treats, which was then frosted and topped with M&M's.  This cake was definitely the hit of the party!

Here's the Birthday Boy!!!

His Brother was a little excited too!

And, his sister played the Happy Birthday song on her Violin.

Happy Birthday Little Buddy!  I hope all of your wishes come true.

Peach Streusel Cupcakes

PEACH STREUSEL CUPCAKES

The other night, the Young Women of our Ward put on a fundraiser dinner and dessert auction.  I have a daughter who is in Young Women's, so we had the privilege of making some desserts to be auctioned off.  We decided to make some sort of Peach cupcakes, and this is what we came up with.  It was scary just making something up and expecting it to work, but not only did these work.... they were AMAZING!  Upon requests from many people, here is our recipe:

Peach Streusel Cupcakes

1 Box Betty Crocker White Cake Mix

1 Large Can of Sliced Peaches(Chopped), with the syrup

2 Large Eggs

1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon

Chop up your peaches until they are as fine as you would like them (I used my Pampered Chef food chopper).  Combine the peaches, along with their juices and syrup, with the dry cake mix, eggs, and cinnamon.  Mix well, and put in muffin tins (about 2/3 full).  

Before you bake them, make a streusel topping and spoon it over the cupcake batter.

Streusel Topping

1/2 cup Flour

1/4 cup brown sugar (packed)

1/2 stick butter

1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a bowl using a pastry blender or a fork.  When it is mixed well and crumbly, spoon it over the cupcakes.  Bake at 350 degrees for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Glaze

1 Cup Powdered Sugar

4 teaspoons milk

1/4 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon Peach Flavoring (Optional)

Stir all ingredients together until mixed well and smooth.  Drizzle over the cupcakes when they are still warm.

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My daughter also wanted to make a Strawberry Rhubarb Pastry to auction off the other night.  We made a couple pans, which we auctioned off with a quart of vanilla ice cream.  You can find the recipe to the Strawberry Rhubarb Pastry Here.

Everything that we took to the auction was a hit, and we had many requests for the recipes.  I hope you all enjoy them!

We Love To See The Temple

Every once in a while we like to take the kids down to Salt Lake City to visit temple square.  It is always fun to see the temple.  Our kids get excited to see it and can't wait for the day that they can go inside.  We took this beautiful picture on one of our visits a couple of years ago.  I wanted to share it with you.  

“I think there is no place in the world where I feel closer to the Lord than in one of His holy temples.”

—President Thomas S. Monson

Skylanders Portal Of Power Cake

We Made A Skylanders Portal Of Power Cake!  Isn't It Cool?

My son, Ryan, turned 11 years old today.  One of his favorite things to do lately is play Skylanders on the Wii.  The real genius of the Skylanders games is how it blends the fun of toys and video games into one experience.  Ryan can collect the Skylander figures, put them on his portal of power, and then that character is introduced into the game on the TV.  This provides hours of entertainment for my boys.  The biggest bonus for me is that I can get my boys to do anything (Hey Ryan, if you do 10 loads of laundry I will buy you a Skylander)!  If you are interested in Skylanders for your kids, you can purchase the game Here...

We decided to surprise Ryan with a portal of power cake.  He was super excited, and couldn't believe how closely the cake resembled the REAL portal of power.  Below is a picture of the REAL portal.
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Ryan loved his cake, and couldn't be happier.  

He got his slice, and now he is off playing "Crusher" on the Wii.

Happy Birthday Buddy!

Our Creative Halloween Dinner Party

Last night we had a fun Halloween Dinner Party at my Mom's house.  Almost everyone in the family was able to make it.  We sure did miss those that couldn't come.  This wasn't the healthiest of dinners, but it will definitely go down in the books as one of the most fun and creative dinners.

We started off with some "Chucky's Upchuck" (Creamy Vegetable Soup).

We enjoyed eating "Egor's Eyeballs" (Deviled Eggs dyed green with an olive and pimento). 

The "Severed Fingers" were divine (Egg Rolls)!

One of my favorites was the "Gizzards in Wizard's Blood" 

(Meatballs simmered in BBQ sauce and grape jelly).

The kids liked the "Wormy Jello" the best (Flavored Gelatin with gummy worms).

Our "Hot Dog Mummies" were a hit 

(hot dogs wrapped in crescent roll or biscuit dough).  

We made bread dough from scratch for these scary treats.

And, what is a Halloween Party without "Witches Brew"?

(Sprite, Green Punch, Lime Sherbet, and Dry Ice made up this fun drink)

You should give a fun, creative Halloween dinner a try.  The adults loved it just as much as the kids did, and I'm certain we will be doing this again.  

Rolo Pencils.... A Back To School Treat

I was looking for something fun to give my Young Women (I have the Mia Maids) as a back to school gift.  Of course, the first place I always look is Pinterest.  I came across these cute pencils, made with a pack of Rolos and a Hershey's Kiss.  Cute, huh?  They were so easy to make!

Of course, I must give credit where credit it due.  I found them on a website called Simply Creative Insanity. This blogger has a handful of fun back to school tips.  She has step by step instructions on how to make these cute pencils.  She also has tips on taking creative "back to school" pictures.

You'll have to go check it out. 

Anyway, I thought these pencils turned out cute.  I know my Young Women will love them!

Oreo Cupcakes, Zucchini Cupcakes, and More Cupcakes....

This week I had the privilege of making some cupcakes 

(well, actually it was A LOT of cupcakes) for my nephew's wedding luncheon.

It all started at 8:00 in the morning with this CUTE couple...

(My nephew Ronnie and his beautiful new bride, Taylor)

They made a promise to Love each other for time and all Eternity in the 

Salt Lake LDS Temple.

It was a beautiful ceremony, and a wonderful time.

After the wedding they had a marvelous wedding luncheon.  This is where my cupcakes made their debut.  I made Oreo Cupcakes (which were to die for, by the way), Zucchini Cupcakes with a Caramel Frosting, Yellow Cupcakes topped with a Lemon Whipped Cream Frosting, and last but not least... I made White Cupcakes that were filled with a Raspberry filling and topped with a Raspberry Whipped Cream Frosting.  

(There were so many wonderful people there to help set them up)

The cupcakes were all so good!  I do have to say that the Oreo Cupcakes were my favorite.  A lot of people at the luncheon would have to agree with me, but people LOVED all of them.

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I have had a lot of requests for the Oreo Cupcake recipe, so I will post it for you to enjoy.  I can't take all of the credit for them, because I got the recipe here .  This recipe was posted by someone by the name of FoodSnots, and the recipe was called "Death By Oreo Cupcakes".  After reading the MANY reviews, I had to give them a try.  And now you can too....

DEATH BY OREO CUPCAKES

Ingredients
1 package Oreo Cookies, regular size
1 package Mini Oreo Cookies, for decoration (optional)
1 package chocolate cake mix (mix according to directions on box)
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), room temperature
3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
cupcake liners

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix packaged cake mix according to directions (do not bake). Line cupcake tins with liner, place a regular size Oreo cookie in the bottom of each liner. Take 1/2 of remaining cookies and chop coarsely and add to cake mix. Fill the cupcake tins. Bake for 15 minutes (or according to box directions). While cupcakes are baking make the frosting.

Cream together butter and cream cheese. Add vanilla, then add powdered sugar slowly until blended well. Chop remaining regular-sized Oreos very fine (I put the cookies in the food processor instead of trying to chop them up super fine and it worked out really well). Add to frosting. After cupcakes have cooled frost and decorate with Mini Oreos.

Congratulations to Ronnie and Taylor.  

It was fun being a part of your big day!!!