A Forest-Themed Baby Shower

I'm not entirely sure who I can credit with this term, but I refer to showers (bridal or baby or whatever milestone reason to have a shower) as "hen parties." Yes, because of the cackling of many ladies combined. Oh and then there's the games...everyone's favorite, right? Cackling and games aside, every single time I leave a shower (especially after experiencing my own), I'm incredibly touched by people's generosity and kindness. To the credit of those who took the time to attend my baby and bridal showers, I'm fortunate enough to have an extremely well-stocked kitchen (which by the way, I LOVE and use ALL.THE.TIME.) and all the necessary baby accessories to raise our little lady. Maybe I'm odd, but to all the people who feel like their shower gifts are just another gift in the sea of blessings a soon-to-be mom or bride receives that day, it really is remembered! I seldom prep a meal in my kitchen or tidy the nursery without a little smile gracing my face as I'm reminded "oh yeah, ___ gave us this."

Tablescape

Now that I'm a homeowner, I have all these aspirations of entertaining...like having a sweet deck party complete with lemonade-filled mason jars with the cute paper straws and those fabulous cafe lights strung about (and no mosquitos). This past weekend I got to host a baby shower and help celebrate one of the beautiful moms in my life. She and my cousin are expecting a little boy in just a few short weeks and with their outdoorsy lifestyle in mind, I opted for a forest theme.

I'm usually not much for themed parties but in this case, I was able to repurpose many of the decorations in my house to create the tablescape pictured. Ahh!!! Wooden mushrooms, a paper mache rabbit, lots of mosses and other natural elements. So much fun. I'm one of those neutral purists and the mere thought of a bright pink or blue baby shower upsetting my calm household palette terrifies me a little bit! Oh yep, the decorator nerd in me has been revealed on the internets. Yikes. Well, here's the proof that a tasteful, natural/neutral baby shower can be done without feeling dull or not festive.

Menu: s'mores cupcakes, forest friends trail mix (with Teddy Grahams and Goldfish crackers mixed in), fresh fruit skewers and a not-too-sweet citrusy punch. (Thanks mom for the trail mix and fruit!)

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2015: New Year, New Brushes

I'm never been much for New Year's resolutions mostly because I guess if something is worth while starting or stopping or changing or learning, anytime is a fine time to start. But this year, my goal is to tackle a couple of things on my list of "Stuff I'm Not Good At." Like many people, there are things I haven't bothered to try more than once because I failed miserably the first time...and it's no fun not to be good at something. Ah! It's scary to do stuff you're not good at, right?!

To soften the blow, I started out with the least daunting of the two items on my list: watercolor. Before I got into drawing, I LOVED painting. Color everywhere. I was like a kid in a candy store picking out acrylics and mediums and brushes. Hobby Lobby took a LOT of my discretionary income between the ages of 18 and 23 and most of it was spent on paint. I took a painting class and failed MISERABLY at watercolor. I felt like there was no control (compared to acrylics, there really isn't...at least not with my "technique"), it was messy, it was pointless, it was hopeless. A little went more than a long way and stuff never stayed where I wanted it to. My attempts at watercolor looked something like the sad results of a fruit and veggie smoothie making without a lid on the blender. Not good.

I've been meaning to get back to my roots after spending WAY too much of my creative juices designing away on the computer and get a brush back in my hands. After a couple of difficult weeks, a little watercolor therapy is just what I needed. A couple trial runs and some practice later, things started to come back to me and feel a little more natural. I mixed this new watercolor thang with some hand lettering (another love) and this is the miniature little painting that was born of my practice of both. I'm pumped to keep going with this!

Next "Stuff I'm Not Good At" endeavor: sewing! Ah! Sewing involves needles...much more scary than watercolor. House before and afters still to come too! I just need to find time to get all my photos organized!

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Plot Twist!

The cupcakes pictured here are some raspberry lemonade ones I made for a farewell to summer get-together a few weeks ago. Farewell indeed! Fall made a pretty swift appearance and I'm totally fine with that as long as it sticks around for a little while! I've had a surprising number of messages inquiring where my cupcake recipes have gone. I have to say, I'm completely flattered and surprised to know that people are using my recipes on a somewhat regular basis! I've pulled them in hopes of starting up a little cupcake baking side business. I've really found a passion in baking, cupcakes in particular. I call it my carb therapy ... and luckily I don't even have to eat one for it to be effective or I'd have to be a marathon runner to offset my calorie intake. Cupcakes and crappy days just don't do together ... unless in reverse order.

Once I pulled all my cupcake recipes, I realized that the majority of my posts were, in fact, cupcake recipes. This means some exciting changes are in store for my blog! I hope to start featuring some posts of before and after projects of our home renovation (by FAR my largest undertaking since growing a human), some of my DIY projects, and of course, recipes will still be part of the mix. It'll be transitioning into what it was intended to be in the first place (hence the name Pretty.Nifty.Tasty). It may be a little slow going at first but my goal is to create a new post at least bi-monthly. Life has been SO busy over the past several months but with our home reno coming to a close, I'm hoping to be able to devote a little time to my passion projects and share them with all of you! Stay tuned! Pin It Now!

How To: Strawberry Roses

Add a little extra love to your Valentine's Day desserts with a pretty strawberry rose garnish. Follow the step-by-step photos below and after just a few minutes of careful cutting, TA-DA!, you'll be ready to wow your guests! Who doesn't love artfully carved fruit?!











Using a sharp paring knife, make four thin slices on the outermost part of a strawberry, folding the "petals" down as you go. Be careful not to slice all the way through your strawberry but deep enough that you're able to fold out the petals far enough to achieve the flower shape you want.





Your strawberry should look something like this.







In the middle of your petals from step one, make 4 more slices to complete layer two of petals. These petals should fill the gap between your first layer of petals when folded out.







Now it's starting to take shape!





Repeat step two to create your third layer of petals. This is the most difficult step as you're now working with the smallest bits of strawberry so it's crucial to be working with a very sharp knife and to be careful not to accidentally cut your petals off. Since this layer is so delicate, you really won't have to fold these petals out much.





Ta-da! You did it!!!

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Valentine's Day In

Ugh. Valentine's Day. Hallmark's handiwork at its finest. I am not and never have been a fan. I am the scrooge of Valentine's Day. My dislike for it started rather early on in my life (circa 1st grade) when I decided that red and pink was possibly the most heinous color combination known to man. Top that color clash off with lace and doilies and all things frilly and my first-grade-self was just cringing at the sight of the Valentine's aisle and jonesing for Easter to make its department store debut. I have since developed a more open-minded outlook on color combinations (I had to ... its my job), but my dislike for Valentine's Day has endured the test of time.

Not to brag, but I'm fairly certain I have the most wonderful person to celebrate Valentine's Day with on the planet. Luckily, he shares my dislike for the holiday so we really don't feel the need to get all dinner out-flowers-chocolates-and-store-bought-cards about it. Our ultimate Valentine's date night would be cooking a nice dinner together at home, sharing a homemade dessert and maybe having a movie night. My Valentine's Day hate aside, let's be honest, you can't just make ANY old dessert for this occasion, right? That's where these deliciously decadent lava cakes come into play. They look so much fancier than they should for their ease of preparation and they are TO DIE FOR. Come ON... the chocolate lava flows out of these things like money out of the pockets of those who go out to celebrate and you can have all this chocolatey goodness and enjoy it in the comfort of your own home. So much love in a personal-sized dessert. Don't share though. You'll want the whole. Darn. Thing. This recipe makes four servings so it's perfect for a double date Valentine's dinner OR, *tested* heating up your two leftover lava cakes the next day for round two.

I went extra special for these and cut out a simple paper heart and sprinkled powdered sugar on top and cut strawberry roses for a festive look (tutorial to follow). The scoop of vanilla ice cream in the picture? That part isn't optional in my book. The contrast of the creamy, cold vanilla melting into the warm, gooey chocolate cake is pure bliss.

Double Date Lava Cakes

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c. butter
• 1/2 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 (4-ounce) unsweetened baking chocolate bar
• 3 large eggs
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 tablespoons very strong brewed coffee or espresso
• 1/2 c. flour
• 1 1/2 c. powdered sugar + additional for garnish

Directions:

Grease 4 (8-ounce) ramekins. Preheat oven to 425F. In a microwave safe bowl, melt butter, chocolate chips and baking chocolate. Stir until smooth. Add eggs and eggs yolks, vanilla and coffee to chocolate mixture, stirring until well combined. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour and powdered sugar. Add flour mixture to chocolate mixture and stir until smooth. Divide batter evenly among greased ramekins and place on a baking sheet. Bake 14 minutes (centers will still jiggle a bit when these are done). Run a knife around edges to loosen and invert onto dessert plates. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and garnish with a sprinkle of powdered sugar and a strawberry (optional). To reheat, simply microwave for 20-30 seconds.

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Vanilla Coconut Mocha Sugar Scrub

Well, here I sit in the thick of winter once again wondering why on Earth I choose to live in a place with next-to-unbearable winters that long out-stay their welcome. Every year, I complain about it and without fail, here I'll be again next year yaking on about the same thing. In a perfect world, I would live in a place thats climate hovers comfortably between 60 and 72 degrees and sunny (with a rainy day tossed in the mix every week or two for baking, cuddling and movie watching) and I'd get to experience all four seasons ... but fall would last 6 months of the year, sweltering summer would come and go in a month or two, winter could stay from Dec. 23rd until Jan. 10th-ish and sloppy spring could have the remainder of the year. Is that too much to ask? 

One of my troubles during the winter is dry skin. Not your average dry skin, I'm talking splitting, cracking, bleeding, borderline gator scale skin. This year, my hands took a special beating. It turns out when you welcome a baby into the world, Purell and antibacterial hand soap become your (and forcibly all your baby's guests') best pals. Use after use after use, they really do a number on your hands. I did a bit of Googling and combined a few ideas to come up with a wonderful sugar scrub that will leave your skin incredibly soft and smooth using ingredients that most people already have in their pantry. This recipe makes the perfect amount for a standard 16 oz. mason jar...which makes a great gift!

Vanilla Coconut Mocha Sugar Scrub

Ingredients:

• 1 c. white sugar
• 1/3 c. coffee grounds
• 1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/3 c. coconut oil

Directions:

In a medium mixing bowl, combine sugar, coffee grounds and cocoa power. Mix thoroughly. Stir in vanilla and coconut oil until well combined. Store in a 16-ounce mason jar or other air tight container. To use: wet hands, use 1 tbsp. of mixture and scrub hands for 1 minute. Rinse thoroughly with warm water and pat dry. This can be used for other areas of dry skin as well - simply adjust quantity of mixture used accordingly.

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Salted Caramel Poked Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

One of my favorite parts about fall is the return of two of my very favorite coffee drinks: salted caramel lattes and pumpkin spice lattes. Salted caramel has become all the rage these days, and for good reason. It's a perfectly sweet and salty combo that I love in my coffee and desserts alike. In trying to decide what on earth to concoct for a foodie friend who is an incredibly accomplished baker, cook, cookbook author, food stylist, etc. herself (intimidating, right?!), I landed on combining my love for two great fall flavors to create a lovely fall dessert that is absolutely to die for. Not only are these delightfully spiced cupcakes balanced with a tasty salted caramel buttercream on top, they're drenched from the insides with salty caramel goodness. So good, they deserve a spot right next to (or maybe even in place of?) the traditional pumpkin pie at the Thanksgiving table. Give em a whirl!

Salted Caramel Poked Cupcakes

Makes 1 dozen standard cupcakes

Homemade Salted Caramel

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. salted butter
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 tsp. sea salt

Directions:

Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Add brown sugar, heavy whipping cream and salt, stirring constantly. Allow mixture to boil for 1 minute and remove from heat. Cool completely.

Note: Reserve half of caramel for pouring into pokes and drizzling over the top of the cupcakes. I re-heated that portion for about 10 seconds in the microwave just to make it a little easier to work with. The remaining cool caramel was mixed into the frosting (see recipe below).

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1 c. flour
• 1/2 (3.4 oz) pkg. instant butterscotch pudding mix
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/2 c. (1 stick) salted sweet cream butter, room temperature
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 8 oz. pumpkin puree
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease muffin tin or prepare with paper liners.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, pudding mix, soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing in vanilla and pumpkin with last egg. Stir in flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated.

Pour batter into prepared muffin cups. Bake 20-22 minutes or until tops are golden and spring back when lightly pressed. Cool in pan 10 minutes and transfer to rack to cool completely before filling and frosting.

To fill cupcakes, poke three 1-inch deep holes into each cupcake and spoon cooled salted caramel on top, allowing it to seep into cupcakes. 

Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c. butter, room temperature
• 4-6 c. powdered sugar
• remaining salted caramel (from recipe above)

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, beat together butter and salted caramel. Add powdered sugar slowly to desired thickness. Spread or pipe frosting on cupcakes and drizzle with reserved salted caramel. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt if desired.

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