Cupcakes!!

Today we made a plethora of delicious cupcakes. Cassady's school is having a carnival and needed scrumptious baked goods for the Cake Walk, so I volunteered. I can get a wee bit carried away for this sort of thing, so I am proud to announce that I only made two different types of cupcakes.

I do confess to sending my husband to the store for packaging materials for said treats and becoming rather despondent when he was unable to find the cellophane. I had to use pink saran wrap and curling ribbon. I am still a little sad about this.

On with the Cupcakes!

First I made Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting. I found the recipe here, at Mommy's Kitchen. You should make these. They are divine. Please make them. Trust me.

Cassady and I worked together to make rainbow cupcakes. They are so pretty! (I know this is hard to tell from my photo, since the lighting is all weird). We used a white cake mix, made the batter as directed on the box, then divided it into 6 equal portions. Then you get to make it pretty, by adding food coloring. See?

Once that is all mixed, you can put the batter into your cupcake liners. The first time we made these, I took the time to spread each color evenly in layers. For the carnival, we just sort of dropped the batter into the liners. It made for some funky cupcakes!

We baked the cupcakes as directed on the box, let them cool, then used white frosting to jazz them up. Since I went all out and made homemade frosting for the Peanut Butter Cupcakes (have you made them yet?!), I was a bit lazy and used store bought frosting for these. We did, however, use rainbow Nerds candy to sprinkle on the top. So awesome!

Oh, and if you're wondering about a good batter to food coloring ratio? Go here. This is where we got the idea originally. Also, they have better pictures!

Split Pea Soup

Here's another meal that my rather picky 10 year old will eat. I still haven't figured out if she really knows that this is a veggie based soup...but at least she'll eat it without complaint! Yesterday was cloudy and overcast, so this was the perfect thing to come home to - the house smelled so yummy. I got the ingredients ready the night before while cooking dinner, then threw it all in the crock pot at 5 am on my way out the door.
The recipe was found in its original form here, but I have changed a few things around to suit our tastes. I love that it tastes amazing, is something everyone can agree on to eat, and is healthy to boot! Oh - and it is super easy. It's the perfect recipe!

Split Pea Soup

1 (16 ounce) package dried split peas, rinsed
2 cups diced ham (we use turkey ham)
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, plus leaves, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon seasoning salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh pepper
6 cups hot water

Layer ingredients in the crock pot in the order shown. Pour in water, but do not stir. Cook 4-5 hours on high or 8-10 hours on low. Enjoy!

This serves 4-6 depending on hunger levels. It is a really thick soup, so even my starving husband is generally satisfied with only a cup or so :)

This recipe was shared at The Grocery Cart Challenge

Chicken & Dumplings

My daughter loves chicken & dumplings. I am pretty sure this is the only meal she has eaten so far this month without complaint (she can be very picky). I found this recipe on Recipezaar, and have modified it a bit to suit our tastes. It's not the healthiest recipe, per se, but my daughter loves it, so we enjoy it every once in awhile.
Again, I am without pictures since Jack was crying and we were in a hurry to get to the talent show at Cassady's school. I will get around to pictures someday!

Chicken & Dumplings

2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed (or shredded)
1 onion, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 cup water
2 cans cream of chicken soup
3/4 cups milk
1 package frozen mixed vegetables
1 package refrigerated roll of biscuits

In a dutch oven, saute the onion and minced garlic in butter until onions are soft. Add seasonings and water, allow to simmer for 10 minutes. Mix in cream of chicken soup, chicken, milk, and veggies. Allow to simmer for another 10 minutes. Next, cut biscuits into quarters (I love kitchen scissors for this) and drop into stew. (You can also make biscuits with 2 cups of bisquick and 2/3 cup of milk. We just happened to have the ready made kind this time.) Put the lid on, and simmer another (you guessed it!) 10 minutes. Serves 4-6, depending on hunger levels!

Oh...and this is very optional, but I generally try to add some ground flaxseed (usually 2 tablespoons) along with the chicken. Makes me feel like there's at least a small amount of nutritional value in the meal!!