All Aboard!

A cake made for the train park! This was a marble cake with classic buttercream, and some skittles in the back for the birthday girl! The rocks were little edible candies from the local cake supply store.

Kids love to snack from the caboose until it's time to cut the cake :)

After I was finished, a certain someone snuck into the kitchen and took the left over icing off the counter... she was very quiet and suuuuper sneaky!

Chocolate Bread Pudding!

Oh my! This one is for chocolate lovers! This recipe is from Cuisine at Home. It is very rich and very moist. Don't let the words "bread pudding" scare you away; it is delicious! I drizzled chocolate sauce over it and topped it with whipped cream and raspberries. Vanilla ice cream is great with it also. However it is wonderful without anything; it stands very well on its own!

Thick Texas Toast gives the cake just the right texture.

Here it is, so "chocolatey" and ready to go into the oven.

And there you have it!

Chocolate Bread Pudding- Cuisine at Home

Melt-

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (12 oz.)

1 cup brown sugar

1 stick unsalted butter, cubed

Whisk Together; Pour Over-

2 cups whole or 2 % milk

3 eggs

2 T. vanilla extract

2 t. instant espresso powder

1/2 t. table salt

13 slices Texas toast, staled and cut into 1" cubes ( I didn't have staled bread so I toasted the bread lightly in the toaster oven)

Fold in-

Chocolate mixture

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; coat a 9" springform pan with 1 T. softened unsalted butter.

Melt chocolate chips with the sugar and butter in a saucepan over low heat. Stir frequently until chips are smooth, about 8 minutes.

Whisk milk, eggs, vanilla, espresso, and salt together and pour over bread cubes. Toss well so the bread absorbs most of the liquid and begins to lose its shape.

Fold the melted chocolate into the bread mixture, then transfer to the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until the center springs back when gently pressed. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes, remove the sides of the pan, and slice.

Halloween!

This is by far my favorite party of the year! I have so much fun with it! To start the party off right I made a lot of cupcakes! The mini ones are my favorite because you can sample a few and still have room for more :)

Mmmmm... Candy Corn! In the backround are spooky ghost cupcakes, looking very smug.

Classic sugar cookies! This recipe is handed down from my mom and is a family favorite.

To make the spider web icing I covered the cookie with orange icing and then piped  winding circles of chocolate icing. After that, I drew a toothpick from the center to the edge of the cookie repeatedly.

These are the "shrunken heads" getting ready to soak in apple cider, lemonade, and spiced rum. The rum really completes the cider, delicious! They are Granny Smith Apples that are cut in half and baked at 250 degrees for about an hour and a half. I then raised the temp to 350 degrees for about 5 minutes to brown them a little bit. After baking use whole cloves for their eyes. I saw this idea on Martha Stewart last year.

They seem to have mixed emotions about being plopped into hot cider ;)

Here they are, super spooky!

A collection of favorite candies to top off the sweets!

For dinner we had bruschetta with goat cheese, carmelized onions, steak and roasted sweet peppers. We also had homemade macaroni and cheese with gruyere, and pumpkin soup with sour cream garnish.

The garnish is made the same way as the sugar cookies. With everything ready, it is time for the guests to arrive!

We had a tough costume contest this year, complete with an awards ceremony!

And the Oscar goes to...

"Dancing with the Stars!"

"Wheel of Fortune" took the silver!

Spooooky decorations are my favorite and the kids love them!

That's all folks!

Sugar Cookies-

3/4 C. Butter
1 C. Sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 tsp. Lemon Extract
2 1/2 C. Flour
1 tsp. Baking Powder
1 tsp. Salt

Mix butter, sugar, eggs, and flavoring thoroughly. Measure flour by dipping or sifting. Stir flour, baking powder, and salt together; blend in. Chill at least 1 hour. Roll, cut and bake at 400 degrees. Bake for 6-8 minutes.

Sugar Cookie Icing-

2 C. Sifted Powdered Sugar
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Vanilla
3 T. Cream (add more or less to desired consistency)

Blend sugar, salt, and vanilla. Add cream to make it easy to spread. Tint with a few drops of food coloring. Spread on cookies.