Mint Chocolate Swirl Cupcakes

I was craving mint and chocolate so I made some chocolate cupcakes and swirled chocolate and peppermint buttercream for the decoration. I'd heard about the technique a few years ago, but never tried it because it requires three piping bags, and I don't usually have that many on hand. I got an 8-pack of them for Christmas, so now was a great time to give them a go.

I did a Youtube search and found a quick video that shows the basics of how to swirl the icing.

I made a small batch of butter cream frosting and divided it into two bowls, so I could make one half chocolate and the other mint. For the chocolate I added cocoa powder and vanilla, and for the mint I added green food colouring and peppermint extract. I ended up with about a cup of each flavour. The best part about making two kinds of icing is that there are twice as many beaters/bowls/and spoons to lick. I highly recommend swirl cupcakes for this bonus alone.

I put each colour in a piping bag and tied an elastic around the top.

Then I cut off the tips of the piping bags, and placed them side by side in a third piping bag, with a coupler and a 1M tip.

Then I just decorated like normal and got a very fun result.

The mint and the chocolate were amazing in swirl form. One bite was minty chocolate, another bite was chocolatey mint. Really fantastic. I would definitely try the swirl method again and am already thinking about fun flavour/colour combos for next time.

Sour Gummy Worms #FoodPicFriday

I have quite a few contenders for my favourite candy, though I don't think I could ever pick just one, as there are so many candies I enjoy. Red licorice, cherry nibs, sweet tarts, caramels, and suckers (to name a few) are all in my top ten. Chocolate bars are in a different category, as when I think of candy, I think of "penny candy", or what I knew as "nickle candy." Candies you could purchase individually at the corner store and come home with a dollar's worth of goodies in a cute little paper bag. The best.

Edging pretty close to my number one fave (these are in my top three for sure), is sour gummy worms. I love gummy. I love sour. And putting them together brings me a whole lot of joy. There are several varieties of sour gummy worms, of various sizes and colours, but I tend to enjoy them all equally. As long as the gummy isn't too hard to chew, I am in treat paradise.

Chunky Quick Knit Winter Hat - Finished Object

I had leftover chunky yarn from making slippers and wanted something quick and easy to knit. Though a Ravelry search I found the perfect pattern for a quick knit hat. The pattern used chunky yarn (which is thick yarn) and size 15mm needles (which are big needles), so the whole project took less than two hours to make. It is a light winter hat, so perfect for these mild winter days, as we head towards spring.

I used a pom pom maker that my grandma gave me to make the pom pom. It turned out great!

Banana Bread Muffins

There were two overripe bananas on the table the other day, and my normal practice is to put them in the freezer and save them until there's enough to make a couple loaves of my Mom's banana bread. I hadn't had banana bread in a while and decided I didn't want to wait and converted the recipe amounts in order to make a half dozen muffins.

I've altered Mom's recipe a tiny bit over the years (I use applesauce instead of melted butter), and the following is my version of the recipe.

Banana Bread Muffins (makes approx. 7)

Ingredients:

{Wet}

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 tbs applesauce

1 egg

{Dry}

3/4 cup flour

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

Mix all wet ingredients in a bowl. In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients to wet and stir until mixed. Fill muffin cups to about 2/3 full. Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes.

Enjoy!!

Curried Chick Peas and Potatoes #FoodPicFriday

One of our favourite dishes is curried chick peas and tomatoes served over basmati rice with a dollop of cucumber dressing. If we're in the mood for a complimentary taste, we'll add a side to it. For this meal we served it with pan fried potatoes and onions, which were crispy and delicious.

We use a full can of both chick peas and diced tomatoes in this dish, which makes a lot of amazing food. We have it on rice two nights in a row, and for the third night I'll make up some tortillas to finish them up in wraps. I absolutely love a three day meal, especially when the food is this good.