February 12, 2011

How about another colorful cupcake for Valentines Day?  By the way, have you made the Pomeranian Pomegranate Cupcakes that I talked about a few days ago?  If not, here’s option #2 for your Valentine’s Day, and it’s another vegan one!

These are actually called Crimson Velveteen Cupcakes (I love the name!) and they’re from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s book Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule. I have several of Isa’s other cookbooks, but I just got this one and these cupcakes are the first thing I’ve baked from it.  This cute little cookbook was named the “Cookbook of the Year” by VegNews.

So, back to the baking.  There was nothing weird in this recipe that required an emergency trip to my favorite little hippie health food store (although that would be dandy with me since I love it there).  Just flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and soda, soy milk (I used almond), canola oil and flavorings.  It was super easy to whip up, so the recipe wins kudos for that too.

I also made the icing recommended for this cupcake, Old Fashioned Velvet Icing.  I can’t say that I’m a fan of it though.  I thought I followed the instructions to the letter, but my icing came out grainy, and I hate to say, it was just a tad weird for me.  Sorry, Isa.  I only iced one cupcake for the photo, and just left the other eleven nekkid.  I’d rather have a nice traditional cream cheese icing on my red velvet cupcakes, so I’ll try that the next time I bake these.

And I will bake these again.  They were easy, inexpensive, pretty, and most important of all: delicious and moist!  Run out and buy Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, or use the Crimson Velveteen Cupcakes recipe I found online, but do make these cupcakes!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

~BigSis

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February 8, 2011

You know that age-related memory loss that some of us get?  We forget names and appointments, and sometimes, even simple everyday words evade us.  For some reason, I can’t remember the word Pomegranate to save my life these days.

99% of the time I try to come up with Pomegranate, what my brain gives me is Pomeranian.  It makes no logical sense, but in my mind, these little pink guys have been called Pomeranian Cupcakes more often than they’ve been called Pomegranate Cupcakes.  Sorry cute little yappy doggies, you know I’d never make cupcakes out of you!

But forget what I call these; you should call them delicious! Hannah Kaminsky calls them Pomegranate Ginger Cupcakes in her book My Sweet Vegan.  I successfully baked a bunch of things from this book for our SPCA Bake Sale last December, so I thought it would be a great source for a Valentine’s Day treat.  I’m not a fan of crystallized ginger so I left it out of the cupcake batter, and I also omitted the ground ginger in the icing.  I didn’t miss it a bit.

One bite missing...

This was a super-easy recipe, and I loved that it used 2 cups of the uber-healthy Pomeranian juice.  I mean Pomegranate juice, of course!  Everybody knows you can’t juice a Pomeranian!

The color of the cupcake looks a bit off in the photo, but these were really tasty so don’t let that discourage you from making them.  They were moist and really flavorful!  Half of the POM juice was reduced to a syrup and drizzled over the unbaked batter, and it turned into a nice gooey tangy unexpected treat at the bottom of the cupcake.

I ad-libbed the icing with a stick of Earth Balance and powdered sugar and a bit of tart cherry juice, since I’d exhausted my supply of POM juice.  With a dash of good vanilla and some pink food coloring, the icing was finished.

2 bites gone now...

Make these for your sweetie this Valentine’s Day!  And remember, they’re Pomegranate Cupcakes!

~BigSis

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February 10, 2010

Star Bakery

Star Bakery Valentine Day Cupcake Gift Box. (Photo via Flickr.)

All You Need is Cupcakes

All You Need is Cupcakes

All You Need is Cupcakes (both photos via their Flickr stream)

JujyCakes

JujyCakes (photo via Flickr)

Are these gorgeous Valentines Day cupcakes or what?

I just love these cupcakes adorned with hearts of all shapes and sizes and shades of red and pink. They’re so creatively decorated. It really makes me wish that I had time to bake and decorate some for my guys for Valentines Day.

Unfortunately, the reality for me, and most of us is that we don’t have the time. I’m just hoping that these photos will inspire anyone that may be looking for ideas and might be able to find some time to make homemade cupcakes for your Valentine.

~LilSis

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February 14, 2009

Psyché et l’Amour (Cupid and Psyche). Painted 1798, Oil on canvas, exhibited at the 1798 Salon.

When you think of Valentine’s Day, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Flowers, chocolates, and Valentine’s cards? Probably. I think Valentine’s Day is one of those holidays that most of us don’t even think about how it actually originated.

The holiday is named after two among the numerous Early Christian Martyrs named Valentine. The Roman Martyrology, however, only mentions one Saint Valentine and he was buried north of Rome on February 14th. If you’re interested, here’s more about Saint Valentine.

Modern Valentine symbols include hearts, doves, and the figure of the winged Cupid. In Roman Mythology, Cupid is known as the God of erotic love and beauty. For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved Cupids. I’ve had a print of this painting in my bedroom for many years.

Cupid and Psyche as Children (L'Amour et Psyche, enfants) William Adolphe Bouguereau

I’ve always admired the work of Michelangelo and have always had a fascination with Rome. This painting is one of my favorites. I have a huge print of The Creation of Adam hanging in my foyer.

Michelangelo. The Creation of Adam. 1508 - 1512. Fresco. The Sistine Chapel.

I’ve been wanting to go to Rome for many years, mainly to see the Sistine Chapel. I just have to see this in person!

Sistine Chapel (Flikr photo by vgm8383)

I hope everyone has a Happy Valentine’s Day. I’m not thinking about boxes of chocolates or a dozen roses this Valentines Day; I’ve got visions of cupids dancing in my head. I’m dreaming of the day BigSis and I are able to take our dream vacation to Italy.

~LilSis

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February 13, 2009

Valentine’s Day generates so much buzz, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to send these random last-minute ideas your way:

• Need a great gift idea for the animal-lover in your life?  Sponsor a Snip in their honor…a neutering or spaying, that is!

Do it for the animals!

• Papa John’s is making heart-shaped pizza this weekend. You get a thin crust pizza with one topping plus Chocolate Pastry Delights (whatever those are) for $14.99.  PJ isn’t my favorite pizza (I love you, my dear i Fratelli) but you can’t beat this price!

How cute is this?

• Eggs on Sunday has a really cute Valentine’s Day breakfast menu. Since the 14th is on Saturday, this is definitely doable!

Valentine's Day Breakfast

• This Green Rice Casserole from Lottie + Doof has nothing to do with Valentine’s Day, I admit it, but I’m so dying to have it this weekend!  Perhaps it would make an unusual unexpected side dish if you’re cooking your Heart Day meal at home?  You might serve it next to a crispy roasted chicken, but I’m imagining it piled into a nice tender portabella/portobello mushroom cap, and broiled with more cheese on top!

It's not pink, but still looks delicious!

• And, last of all, in the spirit of loving your neighbor, check out this video!

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!  If you’re missing your sweetheart this year for whatever reason, we send you our love.  God bless you!

~BigSis

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February 12, 2009

Some people think Valentine’s Day was dreamed up by Hallmark or Russell Stover.  That’s a pretty cynical view though, don’t you think?  Most people do think Valentine’s Day is just for people who currently have a sweetheart, but I don’t buy that either.  I don’t have a Valentine this year, but it’s ok, really.  Don’t cry for me.  For me, Valentine’s Day is a genuine, validated, honest-to-goodness reason to celebrate my favorite color…pink!   It’s a beautiful thing.  Let me count the ways I love pink pink and more pink!

• Pink - in some shade – looks good on everyone, whether it’s clothes or makeup.
• Pink goes with every other color.  Think about it. Pink with neutrals: brown, gray, black, white.  Pink with brights like orange and yellow sends you off on a crazy fun 60s trip.  Pink with green is fresh, pink with blue is sweet, and pink with red is beyond fun and cheerful.  What have we missed?  Pink with purple?  With aqua?  It all goes together.  Can you say that about any color?  I think not!  Pink rules!
• Pink works in unexpected ways in decor.  It doesn’t have to be Barbie or Strawberry Shortcake.  It can be a subtle accent shade, or it can be a strong punch of unexpected color.  How brave are you?  I’m pretty brave…the condo I lived in for 10 years had pink living room walls.  I mean pink!  Ralph Lauren Duchesse Satin metallic luminescent pink walls!  Sadly, they discontinued this paint, so I can never recreate that room that I loved.
• Pink‘s music is a great choice for your iPod cardio playlist!

Pink being Pink!

• Pink food is almost always delicious!  Think about strawberry ice cream, raspberry mousse, pink lemonade, cranberry applesauce, that strawberry jello cake we used to make, vodka pasta sauce, and salsa cream cheese dip.  Oh, and then there’s the goat cheese roasted beet tortellini at Stephen Pyles in downtown Dallas.  Can you think of any yukky pink food?
• Pink is an awesome happy color in kitchen appliances.  Case in point, my pink Kitchenaid beauties!
• Pink is the universal favorite color of 90% of all little girls under the age of 10.  Want to make a friend with a little girl?  Admire her pink Dora the Explorer sandals!
• Pink is a gorgeous color in nature…roses, azaleas, fuschia, tulips, hydrangea, you name it.  And sunsets!
• Pink is so fabulous that it can be a project!  Check out JeongMee Yoon’s Pink Project!

So much perfect pink!

The next time you think about Valentine’s Day, remember it isn’t just about candy and jewelery and a dozen roses…it’s an excuse to celebrate the pinkness!

~BigSis

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February 11, 2009

I think Valentines Day is actually more fun for the kids than for us adults! HayHay always loved giving the little boxes of these sweetheart conversation hearts to his friends along with their Valentine card.

It was always so much fun for the kids to address all their Valentine cards and decorate a shoebox or little brown bag to take to school to collect all their treats. I miss those days!

Even when HayHay was too young for school, our neighborhood playgroup hosted some very fun Valentines Day Parties for all the kiddos.  HayHay is too old for that now, but for those of you with the little ones, here are a few ideas.

Whether your hosting your own Valentines Day Party or taking some goodies to a  school party or a friends house, here are a few cute and easy ideas.

Check out this recipe for the Cupid Crispies from Parents.com.

These Passion Pops, also from Parents.com are easy and very cute.

My friend, J, made these adorable pretzel rods for our Race for the Cure bake sale, but they would be perfect for a Valentines Day Party. You could decorate them with more pink and red hearts and pink sprinkles.

Again, these are pretty easy! Just melt the white chocolate squares, dip the pretzel rods into the melted chocolate, and roll in various decorations. It would even be more fun to do this at the party and let the kids decorate their own.

This next photo is a great, easy way to decorate cupcakes for Valentines Day. I’ve hosted many Valentines parties where we let the kids decorate the cookies at the party. But, since cupcakes are the rage these days, I would do the same with the cupcakes. Just set up a big table with baked cupcakes, icings in red, pink, and white, and loads of different decorations and let the kids decorate their own. Messy? Maybe! But, lots of  fun for the kids!

And, no, there is not a recipe for the cupcakes. I was trying to keep these ideas fast and easy, so, shame on me, I would use a cake mix to make the cupcakes. I didn’t feel this was the right place to post a homemade cupcake recipe from Martha. Honestly, the kids couldn’t care less if you make them from a mix instead of from scratch.

And here are some very cute, very pink cupcakes for those that want to go really pink this Valentines Day. The photo is from OC Moms Blog.  Another great, fun idea for decorating cupcakes.

This last treat might be a little more time consuming than the others, but the end result looks like it will be worth it. These Chocolate-Dipped Heart Brownies from The Recipe Girl look like the perfect ending to a perfect Valentines Day Party!

I hope this might give someone an idea or two for a Valentines Day Treat for the kids! Enjoy while your little ones still celebrate Valentines Day by decorating cupcakes and exchanging little cute cards bought at the drugstore. (Those were the days!)

~LilSis

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February 10, 2009

Valentine’s Day is sneaking up on us just like Christmas did, and 2009 did.  It’s February already?  Mid-Feb, in fact?  Oy vey, time goes by fast!

Now that I’ve made myself sound like a 110 year old woman – not that there’s anything wrong with that – let me get on with Valentine’s Day Food of Love!  If you’re looking for some new ideas for your Heart Day, check out these.  They aren’t your Grandma’s sugar cookie cut-outs, but again, nothing wrong with that. 

• Strawberry Shortcake Trifle from Bakers Banter
• Fast and Easy Valentine’s Treats from Bakerella
• Heart Shaped Nutella S’Mores with Homemade Chocolate Graham Crackers from Baking And Boys
• Cherry Filled Chocolate Wafers from Little Window Shoppe
• Raspberry White Chocolate Mousse Parfaits from Peanut Butter and Julie
• Valentine Treats from Pillsbury
• Raspberry Cheesecake Brownies from BakingBites
• Chocolate Mascarpone Cheese Pie from Sticky, Gooey, Creamy,Chewy
• Valentine’s Day Desserts from Joy of Baking
• Valentines Day Chocolate Desserts from Gourmet

Check back for more Valentine’s Day stuff coming your way this week!

~BigSis

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