Party Time Cupcakes

I made some cupcakes a couple weeks ago or so, because I was craving something sweet and chocolatey and I hadn't baked for about a week since that's how long I'd been on vacation and didn't have access to an oven. Chocolate cake, vanilla frosting and... this is a surprise... pixy stick powder ontop of the frosting. Might sound a little crazy, but it was actually really good. It gave the cupcakes a wild burst of color and a flavor that really wakes up your taste buds. Top it off with a cherry and you've got cupcakes pretty enough to bring to a party, or even just to enjoy by yourself on a night in.

Party Time Cupcakes

  Makes at least 20 cupcakes

Cake Recipe: courtesy of Une-deux Senses : Black Magic Cake

Frosting: any basic buttercream will do, or even storebought vanilla frosting if you want to save time and don't have a lot of butter/etc.
Several pixy stix- variety
Sprinkles
Small jar of cherries.

Instructions: 

1. Bake the cupcakes as per the instructions.
2. Wait about 15 minutes for them to cool.
3. Frost them thickly with the frosting, making a well in the center for the cherry.
4. Pour different flavored pixy stick powder around the frosting in a circle- one stick per cupcake, or mix and match colors.

5. Sprinkle on the sprinkles.
6. Enjoy, and refrigerate covered the ones you don't finish.

So this is kind of a lazy post, the cake mix was fantastic but you could really use any kind of cake mix you want-- even a box mix. The main thing for me was the fun, luxuriously thick, tart, sweet frosting.... and I hadn't made cupcakes in a while.

Jen's Favorite Breakfast Burrito

I used to work at a gourmet bistro here in my hometown called Coffee Diem. I loved the food there, especially the breakfast burritos. Of course, I learned how to make these breakfast burritos and enjoyed them at home, too. Here is a variation on the kind of breakfast burritos I used to make there-- hearty, yet simple.

Jen's Favorite Breakfast Burrito

Makes 3 burritos

Ingredients:

3 average size tortillas

4 eggs

~1/2 cup salsa

18 tater tots

About 1 cup chopped leftover tri-tip or other meat on hand

~3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
 

Instructions: 

1. Preheat oven at 450; when it's done preheating, put tater tots in the oven in a pan/tray lined with foil and set timer for 18 minutes.

2. After tater tots have been cooking for about 10 minutes, scramble and cook eggs over stovetop.

3. When eggs and tater tots are done, heat up three tortillas in a microwave for 30 seconds.

4. Lay tortillas out on 3 plates, and on each tortilla, divide up evenly the eggs, salsa, tater tots (6 each), tri tip/meat, and cheese. 

5. Fold up tortillas into burritos.

6. If serving immediately, reheat the burritos in the microwave for 30 more seconds. Then cut in half, separate halves at an angle, and enjoy.

7. If not serving some of them or finishing them later, wrap them up in foil and refrigerate.