Goodbye 2010, Hello 2011

ONE MORE DAY until 2011! I can't believe 2011 is almost here. That's the year I graduate. I feel like I've been talking about how I'm in the class of 2011 forever, but I never thought it would actually get here!

To finish up the year, I have one more Christmas treat and a giant birthday cupcake to share.

The first, obviously, are just traditional Christmas cookies.

]

And Happy Birthday to my wonderful grandmother! Her birthday is on New Years Day, so this GIANT cupcake was an early cake for her!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and has a Happy New Year!

Kristen

Baking Bonanza

As we had our third annual Christmas party last night, there was a need for an abundance of delicious desserts :)

Fudge, chocolate cupcakes, gingerbread men, and snickerdoodles were the main items on the menu. Nothing was extra fancy, but nonetheless, they're items I baked and must be posted to the blog!

Merry Christmas!

"Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
'Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests'."
Luke 2:13-14

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

So as popular as Christmas baking is, and as much as I do it, I've hardly had ANY time to take pictures of/post pictures of my food. I've made pretty generic things, anyway-- fudge, white chocolate covered foods, peanut clusters, etc. These are the first "photo worthy" foods I have made, and now that school is over, I actually have time to post about them. So here they are--

The first ones are reindeer cookies made for a preschool teacher luncheon/gathering. They're just nutter butters covered in melted milk chocolate, m&m noses, and pretzel antlers. They taste delicious, too!

And this is just a generic cake made for my family gathering this weekend.

There's much more food to be made as Christmas is only 8 DAYS AWAY, so I'll be busy in the kitchen for the next week! Of course, that's not a chore for me. I do love to bake. :)

Giving Thanks

Well, Thanksgiving break is officially over. I think it's safe to say we had some DELICIOUS food over the past few days. Not everyone has the luxury of having so much food, and I'm so thankful for the wonderful blessings God always provides. Since my blog is all about food, here are some snapshots of our Thanksgiving desserts!

We had 4 pies...for 4 people. Each person had to have their favorite flavor, and no compromises could be made, so we made them all!

 Pecan

 Chocolate Chip

 Pumpkin

 Apple

Surprisingly, there isn't much left of these pies. We southerners know how to eat! :)

Turkey in a Bag

The countdown has begun. 6 days until Thanksgiving, 7 days until Black Friday!

In honor of Thanksgiving, here are some Turkey cupcakes I made for all the kids in a little boy's school class. And no, they aren't made out of turkey. They're simply decorated like one. These were a CHALLENGE (and I mean challenge) to get into the bags without messing them up. I lost some eyes along the way, but were eventually all stuck back on.

The next couple of cupcakes were made for a class at church. They're cookies and cream and pumpkin spice. Both of these recipes are fantastic.

Mom even got to have one of the extras for her birthday. Polly enjoyed the down time, too :)

And finally, these pretzel sticks were also for the class at church. They can even be individually wrapped for gifts!

Well, with Thanksgiving next week, there will be PLENTY more food pictures to come!

Happy Birthday Drewski!

Today was Drew's birthday, so of course, a sweet treat had to be made. Happy cake day, Drew!

Jumping on the Bandwagon

Well, I've done it. I've jumped on the blogging bandwagon. This isn't necessarily going to be a blog all about the life of Kristen, though. It's simply for me to post pictures, recipes, and stories about my baking endeavors. It's a way for you to see what I bake. It's a way for you to follow my learning process as I learn more about baking and cake decorating. It's a way for you to see if you're interested in purchasing any of my baked goods :)

Though I like to bake and cook anything and everything, cupcakes are my specialty. They're my favorite. For now, I'll post a few pictures of things I've done in the past. Then, from here on out, I'll post as I go. I'll post pictures and stories any time I attempt something new. These date back to the beginning of 2010. So...enjoy!

Like I'll always say, if you're interested in purchasing anything, e-mail me at kristenmcg@bellsouth.net.