Pumpkin Cupcakes

Hi everyone,

As promised, here is my pumpkin cupcake recipe that I found on Pinterest:

Pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting
Salted caramel drizzle

Even the mix looks like fall. :)

All 48 cupcakes!

On my new cake stands - one DIY, one a thrift store find!

I think this might have been my best batch yet, and at 48 it was definitely my largest... I made them because we had 16 people over to our house last week and I was in charge of dessert, plus I had to make extra to bring to work, of course. I had been wanting to make pumpkin cupcakes for quite a while anyway. Molly and I finished off the last two tonight. :) Still delicious!

Are you ready for Thanksgiving? Mr. G and I bought our turkey this week. We're actually having Thanksgiving with his family and his brother's fiance's family since their wedding is on Saturday and her whole family is in town. There will be a ton of people there, but I'm only responsible for green bean casserole. Still, we bought a turkey because Mr. G loves turkey leftovers, so after a big Thanksgiving lunch we'll have a 14 lb. turkey for dinner. Just the two of us... At least his sister and brother-in-law will be staying at our house to help us finish it off. Between Thanksgiving, bachelor/bachelorette parties, the rehearsal and the wedding, this will be a busy week for us... Wish me luck! It will be fun, though.

Happy Thanksgiving! Feel free to share any yummy recipes. :)

<3 Mrs. G

Mexican Shrimp Bisque

Hi everyone,

Hope you've all had a lovely weekend. I had a simple but relaxing one that ended tonight with one of my favorite soups: Mexican shrimp bisque. I made it for the first time last fall but tweaked it a little this time, and I have to say it was better! If you followed my previous blog, you'll recognize this recipe, but note the changes. Also, I've doubled (and occasionally tripled) everything from the original recipe to make enough for 3-4 (which is usually enough for Mr. G and me). This is another great fall soup, but like the southwestern corn chowder, it is a bit spicy.

P.S. This was my third soup this weekend and the second I've made in a couple weeks. I think fall is officially here?

Mexican Shrimp Bisque

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chopped onions
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
• 3 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 3 tbsp chili powder
• 5 sodium-free chicken bouillon packets/cubes
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp ground coriander (I recommend buying it ground as opposed to grinding it yourself)
• 1 pound uncooked medium shrimp, peeled and deveined (I bought them cooked this time, but either way is fine)
• 1 cup sour cream

Directions:

• In a large saucepan, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until tender.
• Pour in stock pot and stir in flour until blended.
• Stir in the water, cream, chili powdeer, bouillon, cumin and coriander - bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.
• Cut shrimp into bite-size pieces and add to soup.
• Simmer 5 minutes longer or until shrimp turn pink.
• Gradually pour 1/2 cup hot soup into sour cream; stir and return to pan, stirring constantly.
• Heat through (do not boil).
• Enjoy!

I also have to catch you up on a couple other recipes - Mr. G's favorite banana birthday cake (also with a couple tweaks from last year) and my mom's amazing sauteed mushrooms. So stay tuned for those! I also have a nearly complete bucket list ready to share soon.

Unfortunately, I still haven't finished my mossy monogram... I'm finding lately that I just don't have the energy for crafting AND cooking, so I tend to pick the one that keeps us alive. Go figure. I bought the extra glue at least, so my hope is to have the G done by next weekend. In the meantime, I'll continue gathering inspiration on Pinterest. :)

<3 Mrs. G

Chocolate Cupcakes & Fall Bliss

Hi everyone!

Hope you're all having a lovely week. I don't know about elsewhere in the country, but our weather here in the Twin Cities has been AMAZING this week. Fall suddenly came with a vengeance; the temperature hasn't risen above 60 the past couple of days, and I couldn't be happier about it. I'm so excited to break out my boots again. :) Fall is definitely my favorite season - I love the weather, the leaves, the clothes, the holidays, the activities and, of course, the food! In fact, I was thinking about making some fall treats this weekend... namely apple cider and either chili or corn chowder. I would also love to make some pumpkin spice and/or chai cupcakes soon. So many ideas! Let me know if you have any goodies to recommend. :)

For now, though, I have another cupcake recipe as promised! For my mother-in-law's birthday last weekend, I made classic chocolate fudge cupcakes topped with a yummy coffee buttercream. I wasn't crazy about the recipe I used for the cakes - they were a little bland and very dry. The dryness may have been my fault, though, because I stuck them in the fridge without covering them. Nevertheless, the buttercream was delicious. I decided to go with coffee because Mr. G's mom is an avid coffee drinker and it's more fun than plain buttercream. :) I got my recipes from my 200 Cupcakes book. If you have a delicious chocolate cupcake/cake recipe, please share!

Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup lightly salted butter, softened (I always use unsalted - not sure if that makes a difference)
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup self-rising flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Directions:

• Line muffin pan with paper cake liners.
• Put all ingredients in a large bowl and beat for about a minute, until light and creamy (I started with dry ingredients then added wet).
• Pour mix into pan - fill each cup about 2/3 full.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until risen and just firm to the touch. 
• Make buttercream while cupcakes are baking.
• Makes 12 cupcakes.

Coffee Buttercream

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp espresso coffee powder (I just used regular coffee)
• 2 tsp boiling water (add any more and it's too runny)
• 7 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1 3/4 cups confectioner's sugar
• chocolate chips for garnish

Directions:

• Beat ingredients in a bowl until pale and creamy.
• Spread or pipe buttercream on cupcakes after they are cooled down.
• Makes enough for 12 cupcakes.
• Enjoy!

I have to admit that I almost messed up the buttercream, too... I wasn't thinking and put the whole stick of butter in, then I tried to fix it by adding more of the other ingredients, which was a complete fail. So I ended up throwing it out and starting over. Ha oh well, at least I got it right the second time.

Let me know your fall recipes! I'll post mine if I end up making them this weekend. 

P.S. If you're on Pinterest, you should follow me. :) If you're not, read my post from yesterday to see why you should be!

<3 Mrs. G