but what about the reindeer?

my family likes to celebrate holidays a little "different" than most families. not too different. just a little different. for instance, on halloween my mom would go to this store named 'visions and dreams' and pick up these candles that were all different colors and they were supposed to give off certain energies, she would dim all the lights and light the candles, turn on the movie practical magic and cook up some amazing pumpkin seeds. we did the trick or treating thing as youngsters and were over it pretty quickly.

super bowl is an honorary "holiday" in our family. the 3 things my mom loves the most in this world; 1 - me, 2 - my sister 3 - football. side note, my name was supposed to be Montana....after Joe Montana, until my grandma talked her my mom out of it. the best party we had for this was the 'white trash' party, my mom served chips in their bags, everything was in crock pots, cocktail weenies, jello shots and we had a keg on ice in the living room. our neighbors had a 12 seater van so we took the 3rd row seat out and put it on our front yard...'you may be a redneck if...',

i know what you're thinking...okay this all sounds pretty ordinary...here's where my mom got crafty. christmas is her all time favorite holiday, she loved putting up the lights and the 3 foot tall nutcracker that stood guard at our front door. we had the most beautiful tree on the block and her lights we strung perfectly. we had a tradition every christmas that i'm continuing this year, 'reindeer food', the combination of oatmeal and confetti that is supposed to let the reindeer know to stop at the house below. each year my sister loved this, on christmas eve she would get out the small bag of the mixture my mom had concocted and she would proceed to sprinkle it all over the front lawn. the tradition goes as follows...the confetti sparkles and alerts the reindeer to stop at the house below and the oatmeal is supposed to be a snack for the reindeer (similar to santa and his cookies). i have been asking people all over if they have ever heard of reindeer food and no one has known what i'm talking about so i figured i would spread the word right here! this takes all of 26 seconds to make (longer if you make the festive tag seen below).

see how i packaged mine for the kids this year

do you have any 'different' holiday traditions?

happy saturday

hey ya'll...sorry i've been MIA for so long, it's been a pretty hectic couple of months. the boyfriend got a new job, i got a new job, quit said job and then found my dream job from a friend of a fried. i love my new position, thank goodness, it took almost 4 weeks to get the job. cheers to new jobs! yesterday i signed up for the company softball team, this should be interesting.

anyways...i was fooling around on pinterest this morning, like i do every saturday, and i found the most amazing quote that i hope you enjoy as much as i do! i'm definitely contemplating grabbing some scrap paper, a frame and a glue stick, because i need this in my room somewhere. sometimes i doubt this cupcake thing, thinking i'm crazy but this is a great reminder that even though i may not have a store with my name on it and it may be a slow start, that in my heart i know i was meant to be a baker.

via

i hope you have a great weekend...isn't this weather great, i can't wait for more rain! don't ya just love the smell of rain, mmm...xoxo

OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

well, it's official, Maegs Bakes Cakes is now open for business! i completed my first two orders this week and cannot wait for my next two. i wish they were closer together, but i guess i will just spend the next two weeks planning.

ORDER #1
i was honored that one of my coworkers asked me to make the cupcakes for her twins 15th birthday. one twin requested purple cupcakes and the other, green. i was more than happy to oblige...the one thing they agreed on was flavor. chocolate with buttercream frosting. check out the finish product:

chocolate with green buttercream

chocolate with purple buttercream

mini chocolate cakes - they have to blow out the candles on somethin', right?!

ORDER #2

for my second order, a close family friend asked me to make the cupcakes for a baby shower she was going to this weekend. similar order, but different color scheme. chocolate spice cupcakes with blue buttercream frosting. what do you think?

chocolate spice with buttercream

mini chocolate spice with buttercream

both orders have been delivered/picked-up and i'm pooped! if you have a party coming up and would like to order cupcakes or cookies you can contact me at maegsbakescakes@yahoo.com

until next time xoxo

 

forever missed...never forgotten

wow, I feel like it's been a year since I blogged last and it's only been a week. I have been struggling to find something creative to blog about the last few days so i thought i would focus on a very serious issue.

Breast Cancer Awareness!

We all see people with cancer and we always hope and pray they beat this nasty disease. Over the last few years I have watched my Aunt's best friend battle this disease and last week she lost her battle with breast cancer. Tonya was and will always be one of the strongest, most amazing, caring, funny, fearless people I know. Tonya was a ray of sunshine and such a joy to be around, she never felt sorry for herself or showed any kind of fear. It's women like Tonya that give other women a glimmer of hope, she helped other women daily with their battles while she was fighting her own. We can all learn something from Tonya...no matter what life throws your way, there's always time to help others in need.

I remember the last time I was with Tonya, I was in Oklahoma with my Aunt Gina visiting my Grandparents. We had planned a trip for me to tour Oklahoma University (Tonya's Alma Mater) and to go to the OU vs. Texas A&M football game. We tailgated all day outside the stadium, watched the game on multiple 60 inch TV's and hung out with hundreds of people and college kids (we do big things in OK). Not one time did Tonya complain, she was along for the fun and later that night we went to this little mexican drive thru that my Aunt insisted we go to because they used to go in high school. I have no idea what the place was called but I remember it was BOMB! This was the last time I saw Tonya healthy, I will cherish these memories for the rest of my days.

We miss you sweet Tonya! I hope you are having fun up in heaven.

With all of this being said, it's up to US to find a cure! 

There are a number of ways to help...check it out HERE

until next time...let's find a cure xoxo

chocolate spice and everything nice

with the arrival of fall we welcome a few amazing things: sunday night football, all your favorite shows are starting new seasons, and my personal favorite, leaves that crunch with every step. this season i will have plenty of time to keep up on my shows because my boss has recently answered my prayers and moved our offices to our homes. this doesn't just keep me from losing my marbles on a daily basis, it will give me the ability to bake more and strengthen my skills. i think a high five is in order!

to kick off the autumn baking season what better recipe to use than "chocolate spice" cupcakes...right? this is one of my favorite recipes, i hope you enjoy it as much as i do. recipe to follow pics..

 

i love how these cupcakes bake in the oven, very clean looking

all pretty cupcakes need a pretty box...
 

and all pretty boxes need a pretty ribbon and a monogrammed sticker...and one last thing

my new personalized maegs bakes cakes sticker...what do you think?

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

chocolate spice cupcakes:

1 stick butter

1 cup light brown sugr

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (i LOVE the Trader Joe's brand)

3/4 cup of milk

using your electric mixer  beat the butter and brown sugar until fluffy.

add eggs one at a time.

in another bowl whisk together ALL dry ingredients.

add the dry mixture to the butter mixture in 2-3 batches alternating with the milk

**i split the dry ingredients into 3 parts and used my 1/4 cup to pour milk in 3 batches

add your favorite liners to your cupcake pan and spoon the mixture - 3/4 full was perfect for me

bake 23-25 minutes

vanilla frosting:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

3 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

cream butter for 2-3 or until fluffy

add powdered sugar one cup at a time and blend until fluffy, i like to blend at least 3 minutes after each addition of sugar

add vanilla and mix well

add a dab of your favorite food coloring, add to a piping bag with a 1M Wilton tip and you're good to go.

until next time, happy baking...xoxo

blueberry state of mind

with summer quickly coming to a close i was inspired to make a fruity treat this weekend. my boyfriend was out of town at a club championship golf tournament so i knew it was the perfect weekend to put my skills to the test and add some flavor to my cupcakes. i hopped in my car, headed to the grocery and went straight to the fresh fruit. it was my lucky day, not only were the blueberries beautiful, they were on sale! who doesn't love a bargain? i grabbed a carton and was on my way.

since I had decided to use fresh fruit I wanted that to be the main part of the cupcake, so I chose to make classic vanilla cupcakes. i chose to add the blueberries once the cupcakes had already been spooned into the pan. i wanted the blueberries to bake in the middle, but you can fold in your blueberries if you want more of a kick.

next, on to the frosting...i went with a classic vanilla frosting and used my Wilton 1M tip for piping

i added a blueberry at the end for decoration....what do you think?

vanilla cupcake: 
1/2 cup softened butter 
3/4 cup sugar 
2 eggs 
2 tsp vanilla extract 
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 
1/2 tsp baking powder 
1/4 tsp salt 
2/3 cup cold milk

blend the butter and sugar until fluffy, add eggs one at a time until fully blended
mix the dry ingredients in a separate bowl and add to butter mixture a little at a time until fully blended
add milk and blend for 1 to 2 minutes or until fully blended

scoop into cupcake liners and bake at 350 degrees, i baked them for 19 minutes and that was perfect for my oven.

frosting:
3 sticks unsalted butter
3 to 4 cups powdered sugar (i try mine after 3 cups to see if i really need another cup)
1 tsp vanilla extract (l love the trader joe's bourbon vanilla)

blend butter until fluffy
add powdered sugar one cup at a time
add the vanilla
blend for 1 to 2 minutes

if anyone has suggestions to amend the above recipe let me know, i love learning new baking techniques

until next time...happy baking xoxo

pretty in pink

Target has done it again....given me fabulous shoes at fabulous prices. today i am rocking a pair pink loafers, tassels and all! the best part about them is that they were gifted to me by my boyfriends mom and she only paid $5.99! i love them, i think they give a classic/audrey hepburn look to my outfit today. love me some audrey hepburn, don't you?

the in store price is way cheaper but you can order them online here PINK LOAFS

side note: check out my friend Holly's blog, GlamourMash - she too loves the shoe department at Target - check out her adorable Leapoard Loafers, and be sure to stop by GlamourMash

since i am in a pink kind of mood i was going through an old issue of VOGUE magazine and i stumbled upon some PINK inspired fall fashions...enjoy!

 via

 via

via

until next time...xoxo

blue suede shoes

don't you step on my blue suede shoes...sorry, but i had to reference the king on this one. okay, now on to the important issues, like shoes and such. with fall and winter quickly approaching i am getting my closet ready for my transition to sweaters and scarves. when i was going through everything i noticed i have an abundance of black in my wardrobe.

i used to travel with motivational speakers and anyone that travels for a living knows that black is the way to go for many reasons; (1) you can take 5 items and have 13 different outfits, (2) if you spill pen ink or food its less noticeable and (3) lets be honest with ourselves, yes we are women, and yes sometimes we sweat. a nice black sweater or top can help hide those awful stains.

with all of this said, i probably wont stop wearing black anytime soon so i had to come up with a way to add a pop of color to my Johnny Cash inspired wardrobe...SHOES!...all girls know that any really good pair of shoes can spice up any outfit. over the weekend i went to target and i don't know that last time you hit up the shoe department, but it seems to me that they finally caught up with fashion and i wanted every pair they had! i was able to find one pair that i loved...a beautiful pair of blue suede flats, the best part about them is that they were only $14.99, gotta LOVE Target...

now that i have my first pair of blue suede shoes, below are some other blue shoes that i fell in love with, what do you think?

1. via 2. via 3. via 4. via 5. via 6. via 7. via 8. via

until next time...happy shoe hunting xoxo

it's that time of year again...

baby season! it has officially started in my house. don't get ahead of yourself over there, this has nothing to do with me and everything to do with a couple of my wonderful girlfriends. as much as i can't wait to have my own little bundle of joy one day, for now i'm happy buying the gifts.

last weekend i went to the most adorable little shower for one of my friends that i have known since high school, Raeanne. i went to her wedding last year and there was so much love in the room, i know little girl is going to be greatly loved and adored.

weeks before the shower i was racking my brain to come up with either the perfect 'gift' or the perfect compilation of small 'gifts'. i began my journey at Wally World (Walmart for those of you who aren't from the South) because i know they have the best prices on diapers and toiletries. i ended my journey at Target because i know they always have great weekend sales, we all know we LOVE the dollar section!

**buying gifts on a budget can be easy but you may have to go to multiple places to find everything you need/want.

here's a few inexpensive ideas:

i wasn't able to find any boots small enough, maybe for Chloe's first birthday ;-)

now on to the wrapping! a creative gift needs some creative wrapping to be complete. i went with a brown bag and pink tissue (i prefer a vintage look). i was putting the package together and the bag looked so boring so i grabbed my scissors, some scrapbook paper, my glue stick and 2 letter 'C's to trace.

what do you think? i used a sticker to address Mommy's envelope since i don't have the best penmanship

until next time...happy gifting xoxo

cupcakes galore

lately i have been on a hunt for all things cupcakes. if i want to own a bakery one day i gotta learn the ladies that are already doing it right!

one of my favorite cupcakerys in irvine is Casey's Cupcakes, her love for glitter and all things sweet inspires me daily...if you aren't already, you should follow Miss Casey on Facebook

this next cupcakery is new to me, in fact we were just introduced this morning. my coworker brought me a belated birthday cupcake from Frostings Cupcakes. i love the packaging, don't you?

next time you need a weekend pick me up be sure to stop into one of these fabulous bakeries...until next time xoxo

birthday blues

with my birthday coming up this sunday (the big 2-6!) i've been feeling a little bit of the birthday blues, you could probably compare me to eeyore.

my mom and sister recently moved back to our home state of Oklahoma and it has been a very tough transition for me...i'm the daughter that enjoys showing up at my mom's house unannounced just because i can; i think it's more fun that way! 

my sister graduated high school this year and started her first year at a community college near my mom's house in Moore and she is working part time at Buffalo Wild Wings (Yummmm!). i am so proud of her and can't wait to see her again....birthdays / life just aren't the same without her!

maybe i'll make some cupcakes tonight, that always helps...remember "you can't buy happiness but you can buy cupcakes, and that's practically the same thing"

until next time...have a great hump day! xoxo

S is for Snickerdoodles

recently my boyfriend and I started a weekly tradition, sunday dinner at his mom's house. his mom makes a new fun dish each week and i bring the dessert. sunday dinners have become something that we plan around and look forward too. this week i made snickerdoodles for dessert...

side note: i used the ribbon and another box from my last trip to Michael's

until next time...happy baking xoxo

sometimes all you need is a can of paint.

happy monday to all and i hope you had a wonderful weekend...i know i did! for the last few weeks my boyfriend and i have been staring at our side table trying to figure out the perfect place for it in our apartment. it finally hit me last weekend....if i change the color i will probably be able to find a nice place for this piece in our home. our house is mostly grey and white with a little bit of black, so the original bright red color of this piece didn't exactly work well with anything. after much debate we decided that a couple coats of paint would be best and of course we agreed on white.

this saturday dustin and i headed to Vista Paint (they have the best prices!) to pick up a quart of paint. i assumed this would be an easy process, all i needed was a can of white paint. not as easy at it sounds, there are about 500 different shades of "white" and after going back and forth with the gentlemen that was helping me, i ended up with the perfect shade of Egg White (only $8 a quart and $0.84 for a brush). i started by lightly sanding and then painted a light coat of paint and waited for it to dry completely before i added a second and third coat. i'm pretty happy with how it came out and i can't wait to go to Ikea to stock up on goodies to add to my "new" side table.

before...

after...

 until next time...happy painting xoxo

they're called cupcake liners...not pancake liners

i don't know about you guys but i get so frustrated when my cupcake liners flatten and they no longer fit correctly in my cupcake pan, how can i possibly achieve the perfect cupcake with cupcake liners that look like pancake liners? so last night a sought out to find a way to make sure my liners stay in tact. i was going through my kitchen trying to find something, anything that would help....and of course i found one the thing that should have been my first guess....my handy dandy cupcake pan! i placed each stack of 25 in a separate spot and let them sit for 30 minutes and when i pulled them out they were good as new!

such an easy idea and you can use something that is already in your cabinet

until next time...happy baking xoxo

peanut butter birthdays

today is my friend Sarah's birthday and because she is a lover of all things purple and all things peanut butter i decided to combine the two for her on her special day. so i set out to find the perfect combination of purple party favors to jazz up her cubicle. here's what i found:

now that i have all of my supplies, the madness can begin. first i started by making chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter buttercream frosting, basically a large peanut butter cup.

the finished product -- all supplies from above were used (all from Michael's with a 40% off coupon)

don't you love the purple glitter bag with the matching ribbon and of course the monogrammed sticker! the bag has a loofa, bubble bath and a nail file from bath and body works (also used a $10 off coupon). i want people to know that it's not hard to put a fun gift together even when you are on a budget. in total this cost $30 and i have 10 more yards of ribbon, an entire set of stickers and 2 more cupcake boxes that i can use for the next birthday.

next time i think i'll do red on black...what do you think?

until next time...happy baking and happy birthday to my wonderful friend Sarah who inspired this post xoxo

it's all about the presentation

in my last post i talked about my house being the crafters version of hoarders. i have recently become very into ribbon and matching stickers. this probably seems pretty juvenile seeing as i am a almost 26 year old woman, but the stickers make great gift tags. i've never been a fan of huge gift tags that dangle around ribbon, i think it takes away from the elegance.

any time i am going to visit someone or even if i just feel like surprising someone with a sweet treat, i pull out my wilton cupcake boxes that i picked up at michael's with my 50% off coupon (if you haven't already downloaded the phone app, do it now, i save a ton of money!), a colorful ribbon that matches the person i am delivering too and of course a matching monogrammed sticker to address the box.

see my examples below.

boxes - pack of 3 $4.99 at michael's
ribbon - 1 spool $2.99
stickers - 1 pack $2.99
total price = $11.00/plus tax
but if you use your handy dandy michael's coupon you can save up to 50%

until next time...happy baking xoxo

s'more cupcakes, please...

like most girls i often catch myself dreaming about my future home, picket fences, black shutters, a beautiful garden, a kitchen that will allow more than two people comfortably and last but not least, a huge fireplace. my moms old house had a beautiful fireplace, it was the center piece of our living room, my sister and i often found ourselves sitting in front of it for heat or just because we knew it was the only place other than the table that we could have food and mom wouldn't say "are you crazy, take that in the kitchen", in her defense, i do spill all the time.

so last week i found myself daydreaming yet again, except this time i was inspired to make a cupcake that matched my mood at that moment. since i was thinking of all things snuggly, a fireplace instantly came to mind, and what is the all time most amazing thing that can be made with a fireplace...s'mores...i give you the s'more cupcake with homemade marshmallow fluff frosting

pre-heat oven to 350 degress

chocolate cupcake:
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 unsweetened cocoa (i use trader joe's brand)
1 1/2 tspns baking powder
1 1/2 tspns baking soda
1 tspn salt
3 eggs
1 cup milk (i used skim)
1/2 vegetable oil
2 tspns vanilla (i like the bourbon vanilla from trader joe's)
3/4 cup hot water

1. stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt
2. add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla - beat on medium speed (i like to use medium high but whatever you prefer)
3. once combined, stir in the hot water (batter will be very runny at this point)

fill your favorite cupcake papers (i used red) 3/4 way high and bake for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean
(let cool completely before icing, i let them sit for 3 hours)

the fluff part seems tricky but is actually pretty simple

marshmallow fluff:
2 egg whites
1 cup sugar
6 tbspns water
1 tbspn light corn syrup
1/2 tspn cream of tartar
1/4 tspn salt
1 1/ cup mini marshmallows
1 tspn vanilla (i use bourbon vanilla from trader joe's)

boil a cup of water in a small sauce pan - this is for step 2 below

1. in the metal bowl from your mixer combine egg whites, sugar, water, corn syrup, cream of tartar and salt
2. place the metal bowl on the small sauce pan (make sure bowl is not submerged in the water) stirring
constantly until sugar has dissolved (i set the timer for 5 minutes and that seemed a perfect amount of time)
3. pull bowl from sauce pan, using your electric mixer blend on medium high for 2 to 3 minutes (i blended
until it was fluffy and peaking)
4. place mini marshmallows in small bowl and heat in the microwave for 45 seconds (just make sure you
don't burn the marshmallows)
5. place the heated marshmallows in the fluffy mixture and continue to mix on high for 3 to 5 minutes

the mixture will appear liquidy but is actually a very firm fluff

place in your piping bag with your favorite tip (i didn't use a tip) and pipe on cooled cupcakes

i added a hershey square and a cinnamon sugar pita chip for decoration

happy baking and until next time xoxo...

in this house we eat cupcakes for breakfast...

i have this idea that cupcakes are perfect for any occasion...breakfast, lunch, dinner, brunch, fourth meal (thank you very much taco bell)...so i have been trying to find a cupcake that is perfect for breakfast that isn't too sugary and will make them want to come back for seconds. last week i tried a brand new cupcake, brown sugar with a brown sugar cream cheese frosting. the brown sugar made me think of a cinnamon roll without the mess (i don't know about you, but i hate getting my hands dirty with food). this was a super easy recipe and they are super moist...enjoy!

 

Oven Temp - 350 degrees

Brown Sugar cupcake -

1 stick butter, softened

2/3 cup light brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract (i prefer the vanilla-bourbon extract from Trader Joe's)

2 eggs

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

2/3 cup milk

combine butter and sugar until fluffy, add vanilla

add eggs one at a time

sift flour and baking powder together

fold the flour mixture into the butter mixture,

alternating with milk, 

start and end with the flour 

spoon into cupcake liners

bake for 18 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean

Brown Sugar Cream Cheese frosting - 

1 8 oz. package of cream cheese

1 stick unsalted butter

1 1/4 cup light brown sugar

blend until fluffy 

enjoy and until next time...xoxo

sunday night sweet tooth

do you ever have those days where you want to eat nothing but candy and junk food? today was one of those days. a case of the sweet tooth Sunday's I like to call it. with candy on the brain I was inspired to make a classic cupcake with a sugary treat for decoration.

today's feature cupcake is a vanilla cupcake with a butter cream frosting and as decoration a lemon head or a sour patch watermelon candy.

 

until next time...xoxo

a little cup of tea

a lot of people ask me what is it about cupcakes that interest me so much...maybe this is just me, but there is something sort of chic about serving each guest at any kind of event their own individual dessert. as opposed to serving a beautiful dessert that has been hacked into thus creating smaller, less appealing cakes that are all different shapes and sizes. its stressing me out just thinking about it...especially the clean up. the aftermath of any birthday cake or wedding cake reminds me of scenes from Scream or Halloween. the only movie i want my desserts to compare to is breakfast at tiffany's.

before i do anything i ask myself "what would audrey do?"....audrey hepburn is the epitome of class and beauty. she turned a simple turtle neck and jeans into a world wide trend. this is one of my favorite quotes from her

“I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day, and I believe in miracles”

the movie breakfast at tiffany's always makes me want to curl up in a nice cozy blanket with a cup of tea and a charming little cupcake.

until next time....xoxo