Cupcakes are mad cool.

I have never been cutting-edge. I am okay with that. So it does not bother me that the whole world has gone cupcake-crazy in the last decade, and that we are nearing the end of the craze. (I hear pie is the next big thing.) Anyway, I have never loved cupcakes, maybe because I've never had a really good one, and I've tried some of the popular cupcake chain product. But, they are so practical. I mean, a personal cake. Silverware optional. Plate optional.

Inspired by Orangette's recipe (and an episode of Cupcake Wars watched while ellipticizing), I decided to try out cupcakes for a picnic on Saturday. Chocolate cupcakes injected with Raspberry-Key Lime jam, topped with Tiffany's-blue vanilla frosting. (I intended to make the chocolate ganache, but neglected to buy an important ingredient - the chocolate.) This photo is from the test batch. And the test batch results are in: this picnic is going to have some mighty tasty cupcakes!!

Success has given me wings, and I'm now going to try making Chai Cupcakes. Welcome to my personal cupcake craze. Radical!

roasted cauliflower

Thanks to Orangette for this!

http://orangette.blogspot.com/2004/09/tremendous-things-what-im-eating-and.html

I'm jealous of the green cauliflower, but the white didn't disappoint, taste-wise.

oatmeal cream pies

Recipe http://lookimadethat.com/2011/01/10/oatmealcremepies/

Notes: (1) I didn't have dates, I used golden raisins. I probably should have chopped them up a little - I used them whole. (2) I made the cookies too big. (3) I should have undercooked the cookies a little. Too crunchy for practical sandwichosity. (4) My meat thermometer (the only one I have) doesn't work, so I had to guess on the temperature of the eggs. (5) Maybe I should have kept whipping, but fluff is still a little soft, my cookies were sliding off of one other. And fluff is kind of intense. I have a lot left over (I didn't sandwich all the cookies), so now I need to know what to do with extra fluff. And egg yolks.

It looks good in the picture though! :)

latticed pie crust

The lattice top seemed so easy in my head, but translating that to the actual crust proved to be a challenge. Something to shoot for...

capricci con zucchine

I am doomed to repeatedly buy perishable items with the best of intentions, put them in the fridge, and then completely forget about them. Que lastima! Fortunately, these organic zucchini hadn't lost their life yet. Sauteed with garlic, tsp butter, and tbsp olive oil. I didn't time pasta right, so they were a little softer than I would have liked, but pretty delicious nonetheless. Sprinkled with 1/2 cup parmesan/romano/asiago mix. Added pasta. Drizzled with extra virgin olive oil. Not heavy like a cream sauce, but with the same satisfying texture.

Close up below shows the beauty of these capricci. I spent more than usual for this pound of pasta, but I'm not regretting it in the least. I used 3 medium size zucchini to the pound of pasta - I would halve the pasta or double the zucchini next time. Oh, and salt and pepper to taste, of course!