It's a Bake Off!

So. My school is having a bake-off among the teachers on Wednesday. Guess what beautiful babies? I am entering that crap. The competition is on best looking, best tasting and most unique. I decided that I want a clean sweep. So I am hitting them with my cake pops (decorated with the school colors and logo) to win the most unique and best looking. I am also going to be making the chocolate chip cookies that Lauren recommended (NY Times recipe by Jacques Torres) because HOLY SMOKES!! they are awesome. They are time consuming to make since they sit for at least 24 hours to develop their caramely flavors...and they also include some strange flours (cake and bread). However, they are sprinkled with salt before they bake, they have a crispy shell with the most delicious chewy inside. So yeah, I am going for best tasting with those babies. Anyways, tonight I did my cake pops, my cookie dough is resting, and life is good.


In other news, there was a HUGE snow storm here...so school was cancelled today (Monday), there is a 2 hour delay on Tuesday and Wednesday the kids are off, so we have an in service day...I LOVE THIS WEEK!

I piped the logos in dark chocolate.

There they are, aren't they cute!?

Red velvet balls.

Dipped the sticks in the chocolate then let them chill a bit to cement them in

Diiiip

Swirlllll

Ta-daaaa!

Then ya stick the logo on

**These pics make it seem very easy, however, I must admit this was a messy and difficult process. These pictures just showcase a moment in time...It maybe means that the cake pop slid off of the stick and the logo fell off...

It maybe means that I am not perfect people.

But my pop's sure are :D

Ok, now for the cookies.

Here is the dough at first...kinda grainy.

Lets see what it looks like when it gets WHIPPED! for 5 minutes.

Look how fluffy 2 1/2 sticks of butter and about 3 cups of sugar can get.

Hey- I did not say these are good for you, but I am not the one eating them, the judges are. And guess what- BUTTER AND SUGAR TASTE AWESOME!

Look how much dough!! geesh. This recipe makes a million cookies.

A million.

A hilarious text message situation.

A random person texted Paul...and he decided to mess with them.

My cute hat and ring. I wore this too the tattoo place when Paul got his tat done on Saturday. People liked.

Camera Crisis!

So we had a mini camera meltdown here in the Haggerty household! We thought we had lost the battery charger for our beloved Nikon D40...however, tonight after making the most gorgeous cupcakes in my whole lifetime, I was distraught and wasn't able to give up hope. So I made a camera charger search effort take place. Still no avail. I couldn't find it anywhere- I looked in boxes, in drawers, in nooks and cranny's, in Tupperware*, so yeah, everywhere. So as I sat on the floor, in near tears...pleading with Paul to look again, he decided to take me up on the offer and took one last look. Well he walks into the bedroom and looks right in front of my dresser. And it is laying there.

IN PLAIN SIGHT.

So yeah...a Christmas without a camera, a month without pictures (in this normally camera active home), a month with no blog posts, a month where family visited this very apartment and knew of the lost charger...NO ONE SAW IT.

But here is the good news. I made earl grey cupcakes tonight that are the prettiest, yummiest, nicest cupcakes ever. AND- I have pictures to prove it :D

*I was desperate. What can I say...

A Christmas present my sister knitted for Paul! He loves this thing.

Here I am modeling the hat my sister made me! I love it- colors, fit...everything! Go Mandie!!

The awesome new decorations I got for our place. Courtesy of TJ Maxx and Target babe. (Goooooooo BARGAIN!)

Me showing scale...Excuse my dirty gym clothes.

Leeloo still life

Our new electric tea kettle and amber sugar crystals for tea.

Let me reassure you that these little sugar pebbles make tea taste so clear and perfect. I have had 3 cups of tea already today.

SO GOOD!

Close up. Gorgeous.

Earl grey cupcakes...yesyesyesyes.

The recipe actually calls for ripping open tea bags and pouring the leaves into the batter. Mmmmm. Then the frosting is vanilla bean with orange essence buttercream.

Tis been a tea day.