Here’s a peek at my dining room table… I mean “craft room” today. I’m busy working on 4 different projects… Christmas presents for friends, bowling themed cookies for a friend’s son, and two other little projects I’ll share soon.
I was a bit slow, but I just posted the winner for the giveaway from
Simply Caked (I posted on the original giveaway post,
HERE).
The winner is comment #118- Kristi. Yay! Please e-mail me (since you didn’t leave yours, opps!)
glorioustreats@gmail.comFor those of you who didn’t win, I have a litle treat anyway…
Thru November 30th use the coupon code GLORIOUS15 to receive 15% off all of their great baking supplies! Head on over to
Simply Caked and stock up for all your holiday baking.
Happy Shopping!
Now, I’ll head back to my cookies…
It’s a little hard to tell by looking, but the pretty cake above is a delicious apple cake.
Here, does this photo help…
Yesterday I bought a dozen apples from Costco, and then came home to realize I already had about 6 apples in the fridge. Time to make something with apples!
I dug into my little recipe file and pulled out a hand-written recipe from a good friend (thanks Pam!).
Then last night after the rest of my family was asleep, I enjoyed a quiet evening of baking. The recipe comes together pretty quickly, and creates a delicious aroma while baking! After it was baked and cooled a bit, I set it on one of my new favorite cake stands. It was little a pretty little gift waiting for me in the morning to see a fresh baked cake on a pretty stand. For breakfast I had a glass of milk and a slice (or two!) of moist, delicious apple cake.
Fresh Apple Cake
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
4 cups chopped apples (no need to peel)
1 3/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs, well beaten
2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350*F.
Grease and flour a bunt pan or angle food cake pan.
Stir flour, baking soda and cinnamon together in a medium bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl combine chopped apples, sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla and nuts. Stir until well combined.
Add in flour mixture and stir until fully incorporated.
Pour (or scoop- the batter is a bit thick) into prepared pan.
Bake 50-60 minutes (test with toothpick for doneness… yes I know “doneness” isn’t a word!).
Cool before removing from pan.
Dust with powdered sugar just before serving.
Cake will keep well (if covered) at least 2 days (maybe 3, but I always eat it before then).
Recipe Source- Recipe shared from a good friend (and one of the best cooks I know!) Pam S.
Last month I had the pleasure of spending a week in San Francisco with a good friend (Sharnel). When I first got home I posted a little re-cap of our trip HERE. I’m back today to share more details from a couple of our favorites stops.
One of the highlights of our trip… well, other than all the late night girl talk… was a visit to Ghirardelli Square to have brunch at Crown and Crumpet.
Now I consider myself a bit of a tea room connoisseur. I have two girl friends in particular who share my love for tea parties and we have visited at least a dozen different tea shops all over California (over the past 12 or so years). So I have quite a lot to compare to when I visit a new tea shop.
Crown and Crumpet is the cutest tea shop I have ever been too! The decor is not the typical formal English styling. The shop design has taken it’s cue from Cath Kidston, with bright colors, beautiful floral patterns, and a bit of a shabby-chic feel. Crown and Crumpet includes the tea room itself, and a small shop on one side. Sharnel and I enjoyed the food, but it was the atmosphere and decor that really puts this shop high on my list of tea shops I’d like to visit again.
Enjoy a peek into Crown and Crumpet…
(The candies and cakes above are just decor, not for sale.)
Pretty adorable shop, isn’t it?
After our brunch at Crown and Crumpet, Sharnel and I made a stop at Kara’s Cupcakes (just a few doors down). I’ve enjoyed a few cupcakes from Kara’s before (at a different location). Kara’s Cupcakes is a small, sleek shop that sells just what their name suggests, cupcakes. Sharnel (looking beautiful as always-in the photo below) chose a Fleur De Sel (Chocolate cake with caramel filling) and I chose Meyer Lemon (Vanilla cake with lemon filling and lemon buttercream). Both cupcakes were delicious.
Crown and Crumpet and Kara’s Cupcakes were just two of the sweet stops on our trip. I’ll be sure to share a few more soon!
I know I’ve mentioned several times my love for beautiful cupcake liners…
When I find great suppliers of quality cupcake liners, I get very excited, and then I want to share my excitement with you!
I’m very pleased to introduce to you one of my new favorite finds, and also one of my fabulous blog sponsors,
Simply Caked.
Simply Caked stocks a beautiful variety of specialty cupcakes liners, as well as being a great source for plain white and plain brown liners (the ones I find I really use the most!). And
Simply Caked is adding new products all the time. They just began stocking an adorable variety of cookie cutters, and more products are on their way!
Look at these gorgeous liners…
Now how about a little fun?
You know I love to share treats with you, my lovely readers, and
Simply Caked is here to help…
Simply Caked has a package of 600 (that’s right 600!!) high quality brown cupcake liners waiting to be won. And if you don’t know what you would do with 600 liners, how about a copy of Martha Stewart’s book,
Cupcakes
? That should get you started!
And just for fun,
Simply Caked is going to add in two cute cookie cutters, a perfect fall pair.
So,that’s
a copy of Martha Stewart’s book,
Cupcakes and two cute cookie cutters.
(Total value over $42.00!)
Ready to win?
For one entry- Head on over to
Simply Caked and have a look at their gorgeous selection of cupcake liners and cookie cutters. Come back here and leave a comment telling me your favorite item from the shop.
Leave a separate comment for each entry.
A maximum of three entries total per person.
Please make sure to include your e-mail address, so I can contact the winner.
This giveaway ends Sunday, Nov 14th, 9:00 pm Pacific.
Winner will be chosen using Random.org and will be announced Monday, Nov 15th.
~ Giveaway Closed ~
This weekend I made some blue and brown sweets for a friend’s baby shower. Pretty cookies and cupcakes to help celebrate the baby boy to come. I made sugar cookies (
recipe) decorated with royal icing (how-to’s
HERE) and cupcakes to match. The cupcakes were chocolate cake (
recipe) with vanilla cream cheese frosting (
recipe) and decorated with fondant accents made by me (how-to coming…eventually).
I love the classic blue and brown color scheme, and I’ll look forward to someone having a girl, so I can play with pink and brown.
