The 4-1-1

So....you volunteered. Now what? You search the web aimlessly...okay, frantically, for that perfect something to show your child (and the world) how special they are. Send in ordinary cupcakes- out of the question. Store bought - never! But, you also don't want to repeat what the last mother did...no matter how fantastic.

You have just entered the mind-set of the "ROCKSTAR" parent.

Pretty soon, mothers and fathers will be saying "How did you do that?" and "That's so cool!" or "Mmmmm, delicious! I MUST have the recipe!" Before you know it, you will be called upon so regulary for contribution that you will almost hear the crowd cheering and see your name in lights!

That's exactly what my road to stardom was like. But, it didn't end at kid functions. Nope. My family and friends noticed the extra-special attention I gave to gatherings. Whether it was a weekend at the lake or Thanksgiving dinner, there was always something extraordinary to make my loved ones feel exactly that~ loved. So, my input is regularly given and I love it!

Within this blog you will hear just about everything; including successes AND failures. (Afterall, you don't have to be perfect to ROCK!!) Favorite recipes, party ideas, ways to save time and $$$ - you name it. A lot of things are pulled from the Ultimate Resource Guide (aka "the www"); but, others are my own tricks. The beauty is that it's all right here.

Are you ready to ROCK??


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Thursday, October 7, 2010

Chocolate Cupcake Toppers

Better late than never! My schedule as a SAHM is anything but dull.  I have been super busy with birthdays, back-to-school and just finding my groove.  Hopefully this post gives you more reasons to ROCK!

Emily recently turned 3 with a Dora birthday celebration.  If you have spent anytime at all watching Nickolodeon, you saw their idea for Dora cupcakes.  Being that I love cupcakes and Emily loves Dora, we just had to include them in her party!  You can find the directions here: http://www.nickjr.com/recipes/dora-cupcakes.jhtml

But who is Dora without Boots. So, I searched "Boots coloring pages" in Google images and found a picture with his head about the same size as Dora's.  I used black food coloring and white chocolate to make him gray and pink food coloring to fill in his ears.   Then, it hit me.  Why don't I use this technique to make custom cupcake toppers that are as delicious as they are decorative?

Here's what you need:

  • Melting chocolate : I used white and chocolate almond bark from my local grocery, but you can also buy it pre-colored by Wilton.  The pre-colored is sold at many local retailers, including Wal-mart or Jo-Ann's.
  • Food coloring
  • Wax paper
  • Heavy duty zip-lock bags or pastery bags
  • Tooth picks
  • Print out of the image of your choice
Begin by locating your design.  The best way to do this is type in your subject as a coloring page and search google images.  For example, I searched "ghost coloring page" and "bat coloring page".  I added the word coloring page, so it would give me nice, simple, one-diminsional images.  Since we are nearing Halloween, I am going to be making ghosts and bats.  Try to locate pictures that are approximately the size of your cupcake top.  So, if you are making mini's be sure to select a smaller size.




First, lay your wax paper over your print out.










Melt your chocolate in the microwave according to package directions.  Fill your bag.  Cut the tip off the corner of the zip-lock baggie or end of your pastery bag to create a small opening.  You don't want the opening very large at all, or the chocolate will come pouring out.  Twist the top of the bag or secure with a rubber band.


Second,  trace the outline of the image and fill it in most of the way.

Next, take a tooth pick and spread the chocolate in the center around to fill up the entire image.






Continue sliding your image underneath the wax paper until you have created enough images for your cupcakes.  Since you are working with chocolate, I would encourage you to make a few extra in case some get broken (or eaten!) 

Once the images have dried, you can add detail with another layer of chocolate (like I added pink chocolate to Boot's ears).  Or with food coloring, as I am planning on adding a mouth and eyes to the ghost.

The chocolate cupcake toppers can be made several days ahead of time and stored in an airtight containter.  I would keep them on the wax paper while storing. 

Also, be careful when removing the images from the wax paper.  Try to pull the paper away from the image and NOT the image away from the paper. 

I think these would be cute around the edges of a cake, too. 

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