Strollerderby : cupcakes

Breast Milk Cupcakes

Brett Singer — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 23:00:00 GMT

I was more skeptical of this one then I was of the snow ice cream. What would inspire someone to do this? (Other than needing something to bring to a La Leche meeting, I mean. I kid.)

Curiosity I suppose. But according to Viceland (note: the site has language and images that are not safe for work, click the "source" link below if you're OK with that), these made with mommy milk cakes are quite tasty. In fact, in a taste test, they beat out cupcakes made from cow's milk.

A comedian whose name I can't recall once wondered about the first person who thought it would be a good idea to milk a cow. "Hey, look at those things hanging down underneath Bessie. I wonder if liquid comes out when I squeeze them. It does! Hey, I wonder if I can drink it? I can! Clem! C'mere, check this out!" Or eggs. "Look what came out of that chicken. I wonder if it would if the goopy stuff inside of it would taste good fried and served with grits. Mmmm. Clem! Get back out here!"

When you look at it that way, breast milk cupcakes don't sound nearly as weird. (Actually, lots of people question whether or not cow's milk is something humans should be putting in their bodies. But that's another topic.)

I always wanted to try breast milk while my wife was nursing. It felt somehow wrong, though. Like it wasn't mine to eat, y'know? I did taste a teeny bit when I was warming up a bottle, and if I recall correctly it was kind of salty.

We had a freezer full of milksicles at one point. I never realized that this was a tasty frozen treat.

Has anyone ever tried cupcakes, or any other food, made with breast milk? Would you?

Source: Viceland via Buzzfeed

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Cookie Monster Cupcake

Brett Singer — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 16:00:00 GMT

For this post, allow me to lapse in to Cookie Monster speak. Because how many chances do I get to do that?

Me like cookie. Me like cupcake. But also cookie. (Mostly cookie.) So put cookie in cupcake? Mmmm. Happy.

OK, I'm back.

This looks complicated to make but imagine what a hero you would be if you could pull this off at your child's next birthday party. The look on their little faces would make it all worthwhile.

Source: Buzzfeed

Kindergartner Gets Best Birthday Present EVER

JeanneSager — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 15:34:00 GMT

I pride myself on being a pretty good gift giver - at least when it comes to my kid. But I can't top Casey Hurles.

The Army specialist came home from Iraq, then let his family wrap him in a box and cart him to son Gabriel's elementary school.

While Gabriel chowed down on cupcakes with his classmates, Casey sat quietly in the box, waiting. When he finally tore off the bright balloon-covered wrapping paper, the kindergartner jumped back and yelped - but it didn't take too long to recover.

The Nevada six-year-old hadn't see his dad since June when Spc. Casey Hurles left for his second tour of duty in Iraq. When Hurles realized his leave would fall right in line with his son's sixth birthday, he hatched a plan that's been four months in the making. Returning home, he had to hide out at his parents' house to make sure the surprise wouldn't be ruined.

Watching little Gabriel burrow his face in his Dad's chest, returning again and again for more hugs, might bring on the waterworks (it did for me), so grab the tissues before you watch!

Now isn't that the best birthday present a kid could get?

Image/Source: Nevada Appeal

An Obama Your Kids Can't Resist: Make the President-Elect in Cupcakes

JeanneSager — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 19:59:00 GMT

If your kids are anything like mine, they fall prey to bribery pretty easily. Bribery in the form of frosted goodness anyway. So if your little one isn't already spouting "President Barack Obama" when you show off pictures of the new commander in chief, how about a convincing them with cupcakes?

Upstate New York cake artist Zilly Rosen put forty hours and plenty of fondant into the recreation of Obama in more than one thousand two hundred cupcakes. Using a photoshopped picture of the president-elect, Rosen mapped out a grid for placing cupcakes iced in nine different shades of fondant. She told Cupcakes Take the Cake the original plan was a bake sale, but she Obama-cakes qualified for campaigning within one hundred feet of a polling place, so Rosen swung by the headquarters of the Obama campaign in Buffalo, NY and dropped her five-foot by six-foot sweet homage to a president-elect off for the hard working volunteers to enjoy.

Think you'll only get a taste via pictures? Think again: a grid is easy enough to make, thanks to this Photoshop tutorial, and this link to the Shepard Fairey Obama Vote poster that Rosen used.

Images: Zillycakes (via Neatorama)

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Let Them Eat Cake, But Not At School

JeanneSager — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:33:00 GMT

It was the one big drawback to the summer birthday. Sure I never got a pop quiz on my birthday, but I didn't get to hear my name broadcast over the loudspeaker during morning announcements either. And with the exception of one year when my mother was feeling overly ambitious, I never got to walk the aisles between the desks, doling out cupcakes.

Now it looks like the cupcake kid is a thing of the past. Schools around the country are beginning to ban birthday celebrations in the classroom. They take away from teaching time, says one Minnesota principal. They sugar the kids up, and they make kids feel bad when they don't have a Martha mom at home mixing up batter before the bell rings.

I can recognize a bit of truth in all of that. But I wonder if this is just another case of taking the sweetness out of childhood.

I still cling to every detail of the late June day in third grade when my mother arrived with platters of cupcakes. Row after row was generously heaped with frosting in shades of red, white and blue - not, as most of my friends thought, for July 4th but for Bastille Day, the French holiday that falls shortly after my birthday. Glad I was showing at least a modicum of interest in the Saturday morning French lessons I'd been moaning about all year, my Mom gladly fulfilled my request for French-themed goodies. And I finally got to be the kid prancing from desk to desk, fulfilling requests for the blue, the red, the white one with the little flag on top.

So maybe I just proved their point - it sucks to be the kid who doesn't get to do what every other kid gets to do. But, by the same token, the in-the-classroom birthday parties are one place where kids have to be all-inclusive, where they have to be nice to EVERYONE. The same can't be said for the parties outside of the class, the parties a group of select kids are always chatting about at the lunch table while the classmates who weren't invited eat quietly, their eyes trained on the PB&J in front of them. For those kids who aren't invited out to hop around in the bounce house or build a bear, there are those in-school mini-parties, the chance to be just like every other kid. For the kids handing out the cupcakes, there's a chance to learn to give of themselves, to share with everyone, to learn the gift of making other people happy.

As for the time taken away from instruction, I'm not buying it. In a classroom of 25 kids, there are 25 possible days when a half hour will be taken up by a little song and cake routine. That's assuming none of those kids have a summer birthday, none have a birthday over spring break. So we've got a possible 12 1/2 hours of instruction time lost to a chance for kids to be kids over the course of 180 days . . . hours that could just as easily be lost to two-hour snow delays, to the busywork assigned when a substitute teacher's at the helm of the class.

At the end of the day, school is a place for learning about life - not just about Washington and the cherry tree and the multiplication tables, but socialization, sharing, celebrating, embracing the good things life throws at you to overcome the bad. If life throws you cupcakes, you eat them.

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Eric Carle is Our New Grandpa

editors — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:05:00 GMT

One of the highlights of my job as a Babble editor is getting to read lots of children's books and occasionally meeting my favorite authors. When I wrote about the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art a year ago, I was hoping to meet the author-illustrator himself -- but he had fled for the winter so we had to talk over email. Luckily, the gods of Very Hungry Caterpillars and Brown Bears were smiling on me last week, because I got a last-minute invite to meet Eric Carle at the Cupcake Cafe. And I brought my baby, who, while he doesn't yet appreciate the rhythmic cadences and thematic significance of The Mixed-Up Chameleon, sure likes to squeal at the pictures. The day in photos, after the jump!

At first, my son didn't know what to make of Eric Carle.

Then he found his hat, and all was well.

Eric was there to promote Kodak's spiffy new line of cards inspired by his work.

He read us Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See? (which he clearly had memorized) and The Very Lonely Firefly...

... and talked about how The Very Hungry Caterpillar was inspired by playing with a hole punch, and how the rhythms of Brown Bear Brown Bear came about because the author wrote it on a train.

My son was amused.

Next he talked about The Mixed-Up Chameleon, and the kids in the audience helped him create a mixed-up creature of their own. (This drawing was immediately rolled up and whisked away after the presentation, presumably for posterity.)

Barbara Carle attempted to steal my baby and was absolutely lovely. Look closely at her necklace!

Mmm... cupcakes.

Later that night, signed copy of The Very Lonely Firefly on his bookshelf, the baby crashed while I blogged. The End. -- Gwynne Watkins

Kitchenista: Cupcake Update

Adrienne Martini — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 18:00:00 GMT

I'm still not sure if this would be a Crafty or a Kitchenista. Ah, the quandaries of the Strollerderby blogger.

Prompted by the recent announcement of that my favorite cupcake blogger is calling it quits (but is still leaving her recipes up, thankfully), I've been on a quest to fill the cupcake-sized hole in my heart. So far, I've not had much luck.

In my quest to find a cupcake pornographer I love as much as the one above. I've stumbled over a few ideas that would be perfect for a kid's party. Like the ones pictures at right. You have to admit that these Yo Gabba Gabba treats are either horrifying or the cutest things ever. And at my next birthday party, I want a frosting shot.

Above all else, remember that cupcakes can kill, according to The Daily Show's Dr. Rob Riggle, who I'd also like covered in frosting at my next birthday party.

Photo credit: Flickr user AmandaAhHa via the Craftzine Blog

Kitchenista: Pee Wee in Your Pantry

Adrienne Martini — Tue, 27 May 2008 18:00:00 GMT

If you've ever mused to yourself that the best person to get your kids in the kitchen and cooking would be Pee-Wee Herman, meet Clare Crespo. And if you've never had that thought, well, your inner world is a sad and boring place, isn't it?

Crespo is the cook behind YummyFun, which is a DVD based series that walks kids through such treats as Chocolate-Covered Monkeys and Potato Flip-Flops. Rather than simply present her treats in cooking show dump-and-stir style, she invites kids into her own whimsy-filled Playhouse-esque kitchen.

For more on YummyFun's style, Crespo's books The Secret Life of Food and Hey, There, Cupcake should provide plenty to chew on. Suddenly, I find myself craving some Candy Bugs and Tarantula Cookies -- and it's not even Halloween.

Photo credit: www.gothamist.com

'Cuz it's The Chronicles of Narnia - Giveaway!

editors — Fri, 16 May 2008 15:07:00 GMT

If you haven't yet immersed yourself in Gwynne's Summer Movie Guide, perhaps you can be excused for not knowing that the second in the series, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian hits theaters today, May 16th! If you want to brush up on your Narnia before heading out to the movies, Babble has the special edition book which features an exclusive pull out of the Narnia timeline originated by C. S. Lewis. Very cool giveaway, this book, which contains all seven in the series. And so we will be shipping the special edition to the seventh reader who emails babblecontest@gmail.com. Good luck! - April Peveteaux

Kitchenista: Cupcake Porn

Adrienne Martini — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 18:00:00 GMT

Usually, my goal with these Kitchinsta posts is to point to easy recipes that mere mortals -- the ones who are trying to get dinner ready while a kid hangs on your leg and the cat barfs in the corner -- can do. But there are those special moments where you just want to fling yourself into a full-fledged fantasy. For those special times, I give you pure, XXX cupcake porn.

Chockylit's Cupcake Blog is a one stop shop. The pixs -- like the one at right -- can make anyone all wet (with drool, natch) and tingly. But the recipes also make your pulse race. Like this tutorial on frosting. Or this one for Sweet & Salty Honey Peanut Cupcakes. There's even a Gluten-free option. I'm all trembly just typing about my cupcake lust.

Mmmmmm. Don't stop the cupcakes. Don't stop.

LEGO Cake Looks Just Like LEGOs!

Madeline Holler — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 11:48:00 GMT

I am very opposed to exerting more than pleasurable effort for children’s birthday parties. I think parents owe it to themselves to hold back, especially early on, because the inclination to ramp up a little more each year will leave you with no other options than to bus in strippers for Junior’s 13th birthday celebration.

This goes for cakes too – keep it low-key, keep it simple, keep it cheap. Granted, I’m religious about homemade cakes around here (read: saves money while faking maternal devotion!). But my lack of patience, talent and odd-shaped cake pans limits the outcome.

Thanks to Swiss Miss for pointing me to Betty Crocker (I'm as surprised as you are): the LEGO Cake. Hey! It looks just like a LEGO! All you need are square pans (check!) and cupcake pans (check!) and probably some skewers to hold everything in place until it’s frosted.

Think the cakes actually interlock?

Strollerderby Playdate: Favorite Things

Kelly Mills — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 11:36:00 GMT

Jess shared her favorite parent bloggers with y'all, and I was set to do the same. There's totally people out there I love and posts that make me laugh, like this one on noisy toys. I have a huge crush on Cheeky Lotus. Rockstar Mama is totally that. Her Bad Mother is so dang smart it thrills me.

Thing is, I'm sure there's other people out there I just haven't found yet. Funny, smart parents who don't take shit too seriously, or when they do, they write about it with grace and self-deprecation. I mean, I spend hours clicking on this link and that link, but I can't cover the whole internet. It's a biiiig place. So maybe you can help. Lemme tell you: I like dark and funny. Know anyone like that you haven't seen here lately?

Okay, in the meantime, this mama is going to check out with my three favorite things...um, besides my child, of course. My trifecta: Cupcakes. Exercise. Porn. I'll let you know when I've gotten sufficient quantities of each.

I'm So In Camp Cupcake

Kelly Mills — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 20:57:00 GMT

I know they are trendy, I know Katie Holmes is devoted to them. That won't dissuade me, cuz I still like bands that supposedly sold out. I know the food lobby has invoked them to show how out-of-control anti-obesity advocates are getting, and I know Texas Republicans use them as a rallying cry. And I know schools actually do try and ban them because of concerns about obesity. But you know what? I'm still pro-cupcake. I'll bring wheat- and dairy-free versions for the kids with allergies, I'll do sugar-free if I have to, and I'll limit my offering to my kid's birthday. But I cannot be broken of my cupcake love. Nothing. Can. Stop. My. Cupcake. Love. You hear me?

Look, the NY Times article says we are devoted to cupcakes because they are so American or chic or whatever. Can I tell you what I think? Cupcakes are just dang good. They are cake in just the right size, perfect and portable and good from a box or made from scratch. I like an equal frosting-to-cake ratio myself. And here's the thing: while I am very committed to healthier eating for kids, I just think there has got to be room in everyone's eating for some sweet joy, for a little pleasure that can be easily pulled out of its paper baking cup and greedily licked off the fingers. Therefore I reject the cupcake bans unless someone's life is at stake. They'll have to drag me from the schoolyard, balancing my teetering cupcake tray in one hand and most likely eating a chocolate one with cream cheese frosting with the other. This is my cause, people.

Kitchenista: Cupcake Cuteness

Patti — Fri, 24 Aug 2007 18:00:00 GMT

When a friend showed up to our barbecue last weekend with this pan of cupcakes, I assumed she'd picked them up at Whole Foods (it's what I would have done). Turns out these treats were home baked, and the pretty little daisies were placed with the help of a five-year-old kitchen accomplice. Slices of marshmallow naturally warp themselves into flower petal-ish shapes when cut, and surround a gumdrop center. Fun to make, fun to eat, and a week later my kids are still wistfully reminiscing about them.

Use Me: Playing With Kids For Their Toys

Kelly Mills — Wed, 15 Aug 2007 12:29:00 GMT

There's a good post on mothertalkers about kids and the cool toys, and how some of us try and live vicariously through kids by getting them every lead-paint-riddled thing we ever wanted as a child. (I love the way this references the Seinfeld episode where Jerry lulled his girlfriend to sleep so he could play with her awesome toy collection.) I'm pretty sure my daughter's large haul of tiny little toys with a thousand little pieces has more to do with my freakish fascination with the miniature and the fact that we had few toys with li'l parts when we were growing up. Like, how many teensy weensy cupcake sets does one kid need?

But perhaps you too have walked into the toy store and started slowly drooling on some item you begged for and were denied in your own youth. I'm guessing this is the case for many, if the wave of nostaligia toys like Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake dolls (albeit sluttier ones) are any indication. Me, I was also enamored with a big pink doll house and a play makeup set. So guess whose kid looks like a painted trollop while she arranges furniture in the drawing room?

What toys did you pine for as a kid?

Kitchenista: Because Mondays are for Giant Cupcakes!

Karen Murphy — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 19:27:00 GMT

My cakes are legendary in my house: stunningly ugly, but at least they taste good. One year I forgot to let the cake cool completely before icing the multiple layers (to hold more icing, of course), and no number of toothpicks unskillfully placed could keep the layers from sliding off and becoming the Leaning Cake of Pisa. Martha Stewart, I am not. Though I do make everything from scratch which almost makes up for the ugliness of my cakes.

My kids made a cake this past week at their dad's house. I'm pretty sure he had never made one before, either, and even though they used a mix I am told that the project took about 4 hours. They brought the leftovers over this morning,and you know what? It was pretty good.

And it's totally got me thinking about this huge-ass cupcake. Doesn't this picture make you want one? I mean, like RIGHT NOW? Forget icing 3 dozen tedious little things, why not just slather on a can of frosting (or make your own!) on this baby and you've got a delicious heart attack all ready to happen!

Cake. What a way to go.

Crafty: Martha-Worthy Cupcakes Without the Effort

Karen Murphy — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 18:48:00 GMT

Why do I do things the hard way? In my life, I'd get word the day before that my kid needs 24 celebratory snack items to take to school the next day. I'd set to work with my organic stone-ground whole-wheat flour and my barley-malt syrup and craft some little macrobiotic taste bite that will be reduced to a bunch of oatmeal-topping crumbs on the classroom floor the next day, completely forgotten, disdained.

Why not make it easy on yourself and create something memorable at the same time? J. Caroline Designs totally knows how to do this. Order cupcakes from the grocery store bakery? You can do that? Well, hello, NOW I know! Top them with an easy take-home-and-enjoy flower made from paper? and a straw? Yeah, this is totally my kind of craft.

Brilliant. And OMG how cute.