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.

_______________________________________________________

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!!!

"Hey, Where's Perry???"

What do you get a 5-year old who loves Phineas and Ferb?  My little Adam turned 5 yesterday, so we decided (at the last minute) to throw him a "Where's Perry" birthday party.

He was thrilled to get some new PEZ dispensers!

He also got the Perry Files...

And, he got many other gifts that he absolutely LOVES!  In fact, he woke me up about 3 times in the night asking when it was going to be morning so he could play with his birthday presents.

His 12-year old sister made him an ADORABLE banner!  I knew if anybody could pull off a cute "Perry" poster, Erin could do it.

We also made him a "Perry The Platypus" Cake!

The base cake was a 14-inch round chocolate cake with a chocolate fudge frosting.  Perry was also made out of chocolate cake.  The cake was definitely the "hit" of the party!

Happy Birthday little buddy!  We can't believe that you are already 5 years old.  We love you so much!!!
Hey...... Where's Perry?

Spiced Cake Doughnuts

I found a recipe today from Taste of Home to make Spiced Cake Doughnuts.  Having never made doughnuts before, I was really excited to make these.  The kids and I got right to work.

Spiced Cake Doughnuts

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Shortening

1 Cup Sugar

3 Eggs

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

5 Cups All-purpose Flour

3 teaspoons Baking Powder

2 teaspoons Salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground Nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground mace

1/2 cup Buttermilk

1 Cup Grated Peeled Apples

Oil for deep-fat frying

Browned Butter Frosting:

1/2 Cup Packed Brown Sugar

3 Tablespoons Butter

1/4 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream

1-3/4 Cups Confectioners' Sugar

Colored Sprinkles

Directions:

In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda,  cinnamon, nutmeg and mace; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition.  Fold in apples.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/2-in. thickness.  Cut with a floured 2-1/2 inch doughnut cutter.  In an electric skillet or deep-fat fryer, heat oil to 375 degrees.  Fry doughnuts, a few at a time, until golden brown on both sides.  Drain on paper towels.

In a small saucepan, bring brown sugar and butter to a boil.  Cook and stir for 1 minute or until lightly thickened.  Pour into a small bowl; let stand for 10 minutes.  Add cream; beat until smooth.  Gradually add confectioners' sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, beating well after each addition until frosting achieves desired consistency.  Frost doughnuts; top with sprinkles.  Yield:  22 doughnuts.

These doughnuts were a big hit at my house!  For me, the frosting was the best part.  What a great Fall treat!

Pumpkin Shaped Chicken Rolls

Today we went to a party at my mom's house, and I was asked to take something to eat with a Fall/Halloween theme.  This is what I came up with.....

Pumpkin Shaped Chicken Rolls!

Aren't they cute?  And they were delicious too.  This is how I made them....

I started out by making my favorite roll recipe, and adding orange food coloring.

NEVER FAIL ROLLS

4 1/2 Cups flour

1/2 Cup Sugar

1/4 Cup Warm Water

1/2 Cup melted Butter

1 Cup warm water

2 Yeast Cakes (2 Tbsp.)

1 tsp. Salt

3 Well Beaten Eggs

Add yeast to 1/4 cup warm water and stir until dissolved.  Add beaten eggs, sugar, 1 cup water, salt, and melted butter.  Mix well.  Stir in flour making a soft dough (will be slightly sticky).  Cover and let rise to double in bulk.  Punch down and place covered in refrigerator.  Will keep 48 hours in the fridge.  Roll out into rolls and let rise one hour before baking at 400 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes.

I rolled my dough out onto a floured surface, and cut out cute little circles.

Then I scooped Chicken Filling onto the center of each one.

Here is my Chicken Filling Recipe.....

Chicken Filling

2 Cups cooked cut-up boneless chicken

3 ounces cream cheese

2 Tablespoons Melted Butter

1 Tablespoon Chopped Chives or Onion

2-3 Tablespoons Milk

1/4 teaspoon Salt

1/8 teaspoon Pepper

Mix All Ingredients Together In a Bowl.

After scooping the chicken filling on all of the circles, I folded them up into balls.  

***Make sure you pinch the seams tight, and put the seams face down on the pan.***

I diced up celery to use as my stems, and I placed them on top without poking a hole in the role. 

 They turned out perfect.

I baked them for about 12 minutes at 400 degrees.

Ahhhh.....Just Beautiful!

Ashley Turns Seven With The Painted Otter!!!

Do you remember a couple of years ago when I posted about a Cupcake Decorating Birthday party?  Well, we did it again!  Ashley had another AWESOME birthday.  She was able to share it with so many of her good friends.  

At this party, the kids were able to use their creativity to decorate cupcakes and cookies.  They had so many options to choose from!  Pink, white, or chocolate cupcakes and sugar cookies (some regular, and some gluten free).  Chocolate or white frosting.  And oodles of candy to top them with.  All of the creations were unique and delicious!

The highlight of the party was Melissa from THE PAINTED OTTER!

Melissa is a super talented artist who just started her own face painting business.  I can't even put in to words how amazing her work is.  Not only does she paint well, she is really good with kids.  All of these little girls were so excited to get their faces painted.

She puts in so much detail.

And each design was unique....

.....and colorful.

Some had creatures...

...and some were just plain cute!

This party was a big SUCCESS!

THANK YOU SO MUCH MELISSA!

Right now The Painted Otter is having a drawing for a free deluxe Halloween face paint job.  It is a $20 value!  Alright my friends, all you have to do is like "The Painted Otter" on Facebook or subscribe to The Painted Otter's Blog.  I would love for you to enter, and so would Melissa.

Vote For Me!!!

I was recently nominated for Babble's Top 100 Food Mom Bloggers.  I would love it if all of my dear friends could vote for me!  Click Here to vote now.  Thanks for all of your support!

An Edible Animal Cell Model

My friend's son had an assignment for school where he was required to make a 3d animal cell model.  It had to have all of the cell parts, such as the Nucleus, Nuclear Membrane, Mitochondrion, Golgi Bodies, etc.  He was told that he could make the model out of anything as long as it wasn't something that could get smelly in a couple of days.  Since one of his favorite shows is "Cake Boss", he decided he wanted to make it out of Rice cereal and fondant.  He came over tonight so that I could teach him how to work with fondant.  It was a lot of fun!  After showing him what to do, it was fun watching him create his animal cell.  I think it turned out great!  His work was phenomenal.  What do you think?

Pink Cupcakes...... A lot of Pink Cupcakes!

Today I made 6 dozen cupcakes. They were for a Young Women New Beginnings.  I thought they turned out great.  They were frosted with about 5 different shades of pink frosting.  And.....they were DELICIOUS, if I do say so myself!  I experimented with the frosting and made it using butter, heavy whipping cream, milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar.  I really think it was the best tasting frosting I have ever made.

Now on to my next project....  A Girl Scout Thin Mint cake.

Cake Pops....Ryan's Class Treat

I have been a room mother many times in my kids classrooms.  Our school has a rule that  you have to take treats that are store-bought.  Well, I recently learned that if you have a Food Handler's Permit you can make treats at home.  It's amazing that I just barely figured this out.

Anyway, I am the proud owner of a Food Handler's Permit.  So, to celebrate Ryan's birthday I made cake pops for his class.  Cake pops are some of my favorite treats to make.  I didn't get too fancy with them, but I think the 8 and 9 year old kids in his class will LOVE them.

Happy 9TH Birthday, My Dear Ryan!

You can check out more of my cake pops HERE.

One Of My Favorite Blogs......

There is a blog that I love to follow, because it always has a lot of good and easy recipes.  I follow it by email, and look forward to each new post.  And it really is one of my favorites.  She is right up there with Pioneer Woman and Bakerella.  Well, not too long ago, Tina at Mommy's Kitchen did a post on Sour Cream & Cherry Coffee Cake.  Her post and pictures were AMAZING........enough to make anyone want to try it.  Doesn't it sound heavenly?  I had to give it a try because not only did it look delicious, but it looked simple to make.  I like anything simple.  

It only takes a few ingredients....

Here is Tina's Recipe........

Sour Cream & Cherry Coffee Cake
1 - 18 oz package white cake mix (I used a yellow mix, because that is what I had on hand)
1 - 8 oz container sour cream
3 - eggs
1/4 - cup water
1 - can cherry pie filling
1/4 - cup sliced almonds, optional

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a jelly-roll pan or 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Mix together the sour cream, eggs and water. Combine with the cake mix. Spread mixture into a greased baking dish and drop the pie filling over the batter in spoonfuls.

Make sure to swirl the pie filling throughout the batter. If not the pie filling will settle in the middle.Bake for 30-40 minutes or until lightly browned and cooked through. Test with toothpick for doneness. Cool in pan and drizzle with a simple icing if desired.


Simple Icing
1 ½ - cups powdered sugar
2 - tablespoons milk
½ - teaspoon vanilla or almond extract

Blend all the ingredients together until smooth. Drizzle over coffee cake and garnish with sliced almonds.

I went right to work making my own.

Here is my Sour Cream & Cherry Coffee Cake

I also made.......

Sour Cream & Apple Coffee Cake

and.......

Sour Cream & Blueberry Coffee Cake

I was so excited that I could substitute the cherry pie filling for other flavors.  They were all so delicious, but my very favorite was the apple.  You will have to give them a try and let me know what your favorite is.