Better Late Than Never

So glad everyone enjoyed the Dialect Vlog. But lets face it, I guess there’s no hiding that I am from Minnesota! :-)

So everyone knows how you have intentions to do something, you push it aside for “just a day”. Well that day turns into a week, and eventually other life happenings come about, and before you know it, what you had originally planned to do about a month ago becomes a case of the better late than never fashion. I’m a big believer in realizing that procrastination is a serious art that you have to master, and I am determined to not let it creep up on me near as much as it has been lately!

So coming to you in a better late than never fashion….

Sometime before Christmas I was trolling the aisles of the Dollar Tree. Everything was pure craziness due to the fact that it was only a week or two before Christmas. So as I was pushing my way past people trying to make my way to the food aisle to check out their new offerings, I saw this…

And there was only one left of the shelf, so I immediately swooped in and grabbed it and knew I had to have it. I mean, anything with Paula Deen on it has to be rich and delicious, right? So as I was giddy with joy at the super buy I got, I spotted a box of the vanilla cupcake mix as well. So keep an eye out for the review for those soon!

It’s your basic cupcake recipe—add eggs, oil, and water—nothing fancy.

Mix well..

Get your liners ready. I used Wilton pastel colors.

Once the oven is preheated, put em’ in..

Meanwhile..I wanted to make these as New Year’s cupcakes, so I got out my Wilton tips and bags..

Bag holder..

And some milk chocolate chips that I melted in a double boiler and put into a pastry bag. I made chocolate letters that said things like, “Happy New Year” and “2011”. I piped them onto wax paper and let them cool for about an hour, then removed with a metal spatula.

I found a recipe for Coconut Sour Cream frosting so I..

• whipped up a batch of frosting (subbing coconut extract for vanilla)
• frosted the cooled cupcakes
• rolled in sweetened coconut flakes
• topped with the chocolate letters

REVIEW: Paula Deen has done it again y’all! The cupcakes all domed up perfectly, the texture was a great balance between moistness and crumb. The chocolate flavor was right at the point where you know it’s chocolaty, but it’s not overdone. And for a buck? You just can’t beat a box of these when you need a quick cupcake fix!

 

What do you normally buy at dollar stores?

Another steal I always stock up on is jarred red bell peppers..they are identical to more expensive brands!