Peanut Butter Cup Cake

Well, another Birthday promise I made months ago, what was I thinking, right?  My oldest turned 13 this year, like I have mentioned before and one day while filling my Pinterest habit I came across and Peanut Butter Cup Cake.  It is just a wee bit of an addiction in our household, those yummy peanut butter cup type thingies.  Reese's is a huge fave with my entire family, any size will do really, the 'Big Cup' is my #1, just in case you were wondering.  Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't turn down any Reese's, even those tiny mini ones :)  mmmmm.  OK, I'm losing track of my thought here.  So, searching Pinterest one day we find a cake, $75 and they ship, but $75 is still a little steep even for a favourite of mine.  I'm in Canada and would probably cost a fortune and they probably wouldn't ship to me, and I would never order a cake anyway, so that thought was dismissed quickly.  hmmmm how to make one myself.....I thought, and thought and thought, a couple of months actually, and the day finally arrived and I was only partly prepared.  I hadn't come up with a way to have the chocolate rippled on the outer part of the cake.  I had looked for something to make the edging, but nodda, zilcho, zip....The morning of the cake making I woke with a startle, and broke the light bulb above my head when I shot upwards in bed.  I got it, we had a CD holder from Ikea around here somewhere that was no longer in use, now where was it.  It was rubbery and had notches in it, and should work.....I think.  Found it, K, so it wasn't quite the way I had imagined (wishful thinking I think) but I could make it work.  Now onto the master piece.
Now keep in mind, when creating this wonderful bit of yumminess, one should not be in a hurry, should not have to pick up kids, drive kids, or help others during this process.  Just a suggestion is all.  I had a blond moment in my process as well, I am not afraid to admit to, and will get to that later on.  Here I go;

I started out by folding double layers of wax paper accordion style.

Then placed the wax paper into the notches on my CD holder.  You can see what I mean, not exactly what I imagined, they are square notches not V notches but thought if I used wax paper and folded it, it could do the trick.  I put a butter knife on top of the wax paper to hold it down, otherwise it would pop up before the chocolate was poured in.

I melted some good quality chocolate (Callebaut) in the microwave, and poured in down the centre.  It was melted enough to pour out, but not runny as to leak  toward the edges.  I spread it out with my spatula and let it cool.

About now I am getting busy at home.  I begin making the cake only to realize I don't have enough flour, grrrr.  So, I hop in the shower, because I have a funeral to go to and, well, I should shower of course.  I was going to shower while the cake baked, but, noooo, I guess not now.  So I put out all my ingredients I am going to need, other than the dang flour of course.  (I may have said more than dang at the time) (I'm pretty certain I said more than dang)  OK enough of that....I needed;
1/2 cup of butter, softened
3/4 cup of sugar
1 tsp vanilla (or so, I never measure)
2 eggs
1/2 - 3/4 cup of smooth peanut butter
1 & 1/2 cups of flour (um, when I get more)
1/2 tablespoon of baking powder
1/2 cup of milk (or so, I judge my batter, 1/2 cup for sure, maybe a splash more)
Let's just say I had the flour, I would begin beating the first 5 ingredients, one at a time, until nice and smooth, then add the flour slowly and the baking powder, then add the milk until the right consistency.
I was only making one 9" round cake pan, so that's why only these ingredients.  This is a filling cake and it is a bit on the rich side.  That's why only one cake pan.  I cut out a round of parchment paper for the bottom of my round pan and greased it, as well as the sides of the pan, poured the batter in, spread it out, tapped the pan on the counter to expel any unwanted air bubbles, and baked at 350 degrees for about a half an hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.  Let cool completely.  Slice in half so as to have two layers, made out of only one cake.
I did not take pictures of this part, or the next part as this is when things were a bit hairy in my household.
Peanut Butter filling;
1 cup smooth peanut butter
2ish tablespoons of softened butter (sorry again, no measuring)
1/2 cup of icing sugar
1/4 cup(ish) of honey
mix well, until smooth, and this is what I put between the cut layers of cake.
I put one layer on the bottom of my cake plate, put my peanut butter filling down, placed the top cake layer on, and now the building process can begin.  And my family starts tugging at me in all directions.  Ugh....
So I removed my melted chocolate, notched CD holder from the fridge to let it warm up a bit, and it is looking perfect I must say.  As it reaches the temperature and softness I want, I decide it's time to cut it and get ready to 'glue it" around the edge.  I butter the outside edge of the cake round, and proceed to cut the chocolate down the centre as that looks to be a good size and will have two pieces to join together only.  So I get my big sharp Henkel knife and begin to cut slowly, really slowly as to not crack the most precious chocolate.  I get nothing, um it's not cutting, what? I press again, and then I put the tip of my knife in the chocolate and again not cutting, I push harder, and the chocolate begins to crack along the ridges....Have you guessed yet, I'm having a blond moment, and forgot to lift the wax paper out of my CD holder mold thingy.  Yeppers, way to go Sharon.  So now I have chocolate fingers, OK I can still make this work, *big sigh* Again, what was I thinking??  So now like a brick layer, I buttered the backs of the chocolate fingers and place them around the edge of the cake, looking good, all is going well, I realize that I should have chocolate icing as my mortar, since I am doing this piece by piece, and little bit of the white icing is showing, but oh well, can't go back now.  After the edging is complete, and looking kinda cool, I melt more chocolate for the top of the Peanut Butter Cup Cake.  Melted perfectly, I pour it on top and using my offset spatula I spread it around.  Now during all of this chocolate process my two youngest are at my sides, asking me questions, wanting a piece of the chocolate fingers, or any chocolate really, can I blame them, hello, it is chocolate :)  Can they lick the bowl, how about the knife, the spatula, please Mom just a little.....Done, the cake is done, in the fridge it goes. Whew, now hope it tastes good!!!

You can see some of the white icing peeking thru my chocolate fingers around the edge, and some of my chocolate fingers are not the same height, but at that point I just wanted the cake done.  My chocolate on top is still freshly melted in the pic, and hasn't cooled and hardened yet, that's why the colour difference from the edging.  If I hadn't had my blond moment and other factors causing me some grief, this cake really was easy to make.  And, it tastes good too, whew, relief.  My daughter's friends were impressed, and I was just so dang happy it was done, and it was edible.  Some helpful hints;  I should have made more of a ganache for the topping, that would have made it not quite so solid, although when you bite into a Reese's cup, the chocolate cracks and that's what I like.  My chocolate edging is rather thick, and I will still continue my search for something better to use for those ridges, cuz I think I would like to make this cake again....improve on it a little, now that I have one under my belt. and have learned a few things.  I would not spend $75 to order this cake, although I would spend maybe $30?  The good quality chocolate makes a difference.

I may have had a bite out of this piece before I thought to take a picture of it, oops, but you can see how it turned out.  the colour is pretty true in the pic, the peanut butter filling layer is almost like a Reese's Cup filling, mmmm and the cake has just a hint of peanut butter flavour, the chocolate it smooth, and a tad think in spots but oooo so deelish.  Hope I inspired you to take on this cake.  Honestly, it is quite simple, and you don't have to fuss over the ridges, you can have a smooth edge, use ganache and cover it all, let it run over the sides and cover the entire thing.  Done, and you have your own take on a most yummy Peanut Butter Cup Cake.
Now I'm hanging up my measuring cups for a while I think, gotta put a dent in my fabric pile.  I have a certain daughter with a passion for purple that needs a duvet cover....

Hope everyone is staying dry out there, no other flooding, we have recovered rather easily, others not so easily, and prayers to them all, hope for no other disasters happening, stay safe my friends, have fun, and see you soon.

Birthday Party ideas for kids...

Well, this weather is not helping my plans of just a little more yard work, boohoo.  I did bake just one more rhubarb treat and I promise I will stop writing about rhubarb, I just can't help myself....

OK, so not only did it smell awesome, but tasted yummy, an apple, rhubarb, strawberry crisp, yup, uh huh, I made it late in the evening and ate a small bowl for breakfast once the kids were gone to school, accompanied by a perfectly brewed, warm, cuppa java, a great way to start my day.

Alright enough already, I know, I know.  Since these grey, drippy clouds have me a bit down and unmotivated to create new things I thought I would share a little passion of mine.   I love prepping for my kids birthday parties, the ideas floweth and consume my mind.  My Mom and I have always decorated the birthday cakes for my kids, ever since they could shovel in cake with their fists.  Usually rental cake pans are used and cakes are decorated up all nice and colourful, but sometimes the kids make requests that don't use a cake pan, and some just get me thinking even more about ideas to go along with the birthday 'theme'.  I thought I would share some of those with you, maybe to help you with ideas as well, and they are just a lot of fun to show.

This cake was made with a cake pan and we decorated it as to my daughter's colour preferences.  Hannah Montana was the theme, we sent out guitar shaped invites and the party was at a photo finishing/studio.  The girls had a blast.  The party included an hour long photo shoot to my daughter's chosen songs, (Hannah Montana of course) pizza, and we provided the cake.  Their loot bag after the party was a picture of the group of them taken by the photographer in frames I purchased at the Dollar store and chocolate shaped guitars I had made up by a local chocolate business.  I also gave each girl a glittery scarf for the photo shoot. (also purchased at the Dollar store).  The girls had the option to purchase a DVD of the entire photo shoot, with special effects, music and all.  The studio also provided a link for the families to see and share the video for a certain period of time.

My son's party was hamburger themed, as you might have guessed.  The invites went along with the theme, and the food served was mini burgers (and hot dogs for those that did not want burgers)  The cake was made with two Pyrex bowls and a circular cake pan.  It is a large cake, just to let you know.  We chose real sesame seeds for the top of the bun, way easier than dots of icing, and we used icing as the ketchup, lettuce and mustard, as I don't let my kids eat fruit by the foot, or otherwise, but you can cut different shaped licorice gummy type of things to look like the lettuce etc... if you wish.  My kids remind me often that their friends get fruit by the foot ALL the time (apparently) and why can't I just be a normal Mom....Yep that's me, abnormal.  I think I've said that before in a round about way.

This cake was when my son was loving Lego, a short phase for him, thankfully really.  He chose a costume party theme and had a joint party with his sister.  Their birthdays are only two weeks apart, so that made for an interesting couple of hours.  We sent out mask shaped invites, and had good old fashioned party games.  The kind I used to have, the kind that kids nowa days aren't really aware of.  Hot Potato, musical chairs, etc....  We rented our rural Rec Centre for a whole $45.  Totally worth more, but shhhh, it's all good.  The cake is 4 separate cakes covered in marshmallow fondant.  So much more tasty than almond paste, bleh....Anyway it came together relatively easy, the little Lego dude is a little out of scale in comparison to the cake, but you get the idea.  For the party we added a few more Lego people and I iced a couple of cookies with Happy Birthday written on them and his name and leaned them up like a sign on the cake Lego pieces.  It was a hit with the boys at the party, that's for sure, I was like, totally cool Mom with this one.  Oh  and my son dressed up as a Lego man, easiest costume ever, face painted his face, good ole Lego yellow, purchased a red shirt like the Lego dudes at the Salvation Army store, and used a Sharpie marker to draw on the shirt just like the Lego dude.  Ta Da....

These little ice cream cones are my daughter's cakes.  It was an icy themed party.  We had an outdoor skating rink in our back yard that year, so we sent out skate shaped invites and had a skating party.  Her birthday is in February, the 13th, to be exact.  I filled the ice cream cones only about half way with cake batter, some were a little more full and rose up quite a bit, but no biggie, it's cake, it's all good.  Iced the cake cones to look like ice cream and added sprinkles.  Awesome!  The cones were a little soggy, not crazy soggy, more like a little soft after baking, no crunch when you bit into it, but they were still yummy.  The loot bags were cookies in a jar, recipe attached and a bag of some already made cookies to sample for each girl.

These fun little bears are relaxing in their cupcakes pools under an umbrella, chillaxin.  The theme, you guessed it, a pool party.  Fun summery invites were sent out (made on the computer as my daughter's birthday is in February)  and the girls swam and had fun.  Easy peasy.  Pizza was served to eat, as well as other snacks.  A few girls slept over at the hotel and got in one more swim the next morning.  My other daughter had a pool party one year too, and we planned ahead for that, giving away flip flops from Old Navy as gifts.  Gift receipts were attached but I think we pretty much nailed the sizing for the girls.  Old Navy just happened to have a flip flop sale weeks before, how perfect for us.
Finally one of my daughters last birthdays;

  Larissa

            Birthday Mall
             123 Holly Lane
           Anywhere, CA
           (123)456-7890
-----------------------------------

Store: 011
Cashier: mom007

-----------------------------------

*Shopping special, one day only*

Larissa is turning 11, it’s a
Birthday madness event …….

Meet at my house, we’ll have
Supper at the Mall, shop for
Deals and return home for cake

*Super blowout special of the day*

Sleepover, bring sleeping bag,
Pillow and whatever else you
Need!

             Total:  $$ Lots of fun!!
-----------------------------------

       CUSTOMER COPY

Date (Friday, February 10^th)
Time (arrive around 5:00pm)
Pickup (11:00am Saturday)

             Thank You  J

Insert a picture of a bar code here,
I googled bar code images and chose
one to insert
So I'm not the most techie person and didn't know how to post my document of the invite we sent out, so, I copied and pasted it on my post, sorry.  As you can see it was a shopping party.  I did up invites on the computer to look like shopping receipts, cut them into the proper width, used our own address and phone number of course, and inserted a bar code at the bottom.  we rolled them up and put them inside bags to give to the girls, kind of like a shopping receipt in the bottom of your shopping bag, lol.  The kids thought it was a great invite, and when we returned home each girl got a pretty little cake of her own to eat.  I gave each girl $10 to shop with, and at Ardene's they can buy loot bags 2/$5 for small ones, or 2/$8 for the larger ones.  Which the girls then opened and traded and wore all the neon accessories and humongous earrings, and bangles etc...

Alrighty sorry about the length of this post I got a little carried away.  My birthday planning days will soon be ending and I had to reminisce.  Both my girls are now at the ages where they just  want to go out with their friends, the mall is always a good choice to them, and my son who knows when he will decide to be done, his this year was only with a few buddies and they went all over the city doing whatever boys like to do, bowling, video games, ice cream, and home to run around screaming and getting scratches on their knees from tackling each other on the lawn.

We just had a momentary power outage here.  Whew....Those darn leaky clouds...thunder and lightening, which, I am a storm lover, so I am not complaining.

Till next time my friends, hope I have given some of you a few ideas, and if not, hope you liked what I posted.  I am always open to more ideas, I have neices and nephews still that I can plan for, heehee...leave me a comment please.  Chat soon

Here I go...

Well, I have thought long and hard on this and here I am, taking the plunge to begin a blog, who'd a thunk it.  I've been following a few blogs for a while now, and have loved the reads, pics, and general sincerity and openness of the women I have followed.  They have inspired me more than I thought possible.  I have a busy chaotic life with three kids, a husband, full time job (hubby and I work opposite rotations of 4 on 4 off) plus a dog (T-Bone) a couple of fish and a couple of hermits crabs, just for fun!  I've always liked simple things, truly I am a hippie deep down, lol.

As T-dog nudges my hand for attention, I don't even know where to begin.

I can back track a few days to Easter and what our goings on were;

My Easter Vignette

I should give some credit to a couple of blogs that inspired me, because if it weren't for these couple of  women I certainly would not be writing this right now.  Diana at Our Vintage Home Love is absolutely fantastic.  Her home is so welcoming, and her ideas are an ispiration and motivation to me.  Shannon at {aka}design is also another fave of mine, with super ideas, and I have to say, I can relate to most of what she says and does, lol. 

OK so the long weekend was upon us and what should we do;  well decorate eggs of course, I won't post the pics of that event as I didn't take many.  We may have had the odd spillage of coloured water here and there, which I cleaned up with a white and pink tea towel.  Yup, I did, so I then proceeded to dip the towel in all the colours of water/dye so as to have a memento......well the towel cleaned up so well, not a drop of dye on it after washing.  The kids thought I was a bit crazy dipping it in the colours, but hey might as well have some fun too, oh well we now know the colours are washable, haha.

Dinner was of course an engorgement of all the fixings and a buffet of desserts, mmmmm....

 

Yes I made a bunny cake, I HAD to.  Isn't it cute, and made of butter pecan, yummm, it was tasty too.  Made some bird nests but used some goodies that we like.  The nests are made out of Hickory Sticks, pretzels, and some coconut, add some melted chocolate and holy yum :)  Had to chase down the bag of Hickory sticks from my son, who caught me at a weak moment while melting the chocolate in a double boiler.  He asked if he could have some, I said yes and he said thanks..... off he went with the bag, needless to say there wasn't as many Hickory sticks in the nests as I would have liked but that salty mix with the sweet of the chocolate was simply deelish.  Add a few other treats with a side of coffee, and, ugh, good thing I thought ahead to wear stretchy leggings to the family dinner.  Haha!  But seriously thank goodness :)

Well I think that's all for now, gotta get a few things done around here, but will return shortly, hope you enjoy your day, the sun is shining here, going to put some laundry on the clothes line....love that fresh outdoors scent that you can't get from a bottle of dryer sheet.