TeaCupCake in cup by The Queen's Treasures

We all know that cupcakes have their pros and cons. In their favor, the portion control, and short baking time. On the downside, they can feel a little casual for a special occasion. Sometimes, you want the formality of a plate and fork. But, in this day and age, cupcakes are not just for kids anymore. I saw the possibilities for a really elegant way to present a dessert that would be easy, but special. Imagine the drama of individual cakes for special gatherings. Not just a mere cupcake. After a little trial and error, behold the TeaCupCake!

That is how cupcakes got started originally. Cooks were baking left over cake batter in ceramic cups and mugs. The wonderful thing about those Battenberg Tea Cups is the demitasse portion. A standard boxed cake mix will make 24 standard cupcakes (without muffintop). The Battenberg Tea Cups are the same size as a standard cupcake and they are the right shape. Here’s the link to view the Battenberg Tea Cups in Ivory Tower and Princess Pink. The neutral pattern of the Battenberg tea cups is the ideal platform for any decorating theme you want to pursue with the cupcake itself. The ceramic cup bakes evenly, and everything goes through the dishwasher for easy clean-up.

Sponge Cake vs. Pound Cake. – I did need to fiddle with the cake batter. A standard boxed cake mix, baked with oil/eggs/water, will give you a nice sponge cake. That does not work for this project. Unfortunately, on my first try, the batter rose too fast in the tea cups while baking, dribbled over the edge of the cups, and then the cakes fell as they cooled. They looked like sad little sponges after they cooled, and the teacups were a mess. Not very pretty at all! I needed to adjust the mix for a denser batter, more like a pound cake. I added a box of instant pudding mix and an extra egg on my second attempt. I baked in one dozen tea cups evenly spaced on a baking sheet and used the rest of the cake batter to fill a muffin tin with 12 “normal” cupcakes.

Basic tips:

• Add one package of instant pudding and one additional egg to a standard boxed cake mix of your choice. (i.e. I used vanilla pudding with a Duncan Hines Lemon Supreme cake mix.)
• Use a baking spray on the Battenberg Tea Cups.
• Put 12 Tea Cups on a baking sheet evenly spaced, without touching.
• Fill the Tea Cups just over ½ way for a beautiful crown right at the rim of the teacup. You will get 24 cupcakes out of one cake mix. If you overfill, your cups will runneth over!
• Increase your cooking time by 4-5 minutes. Baking in the ceramic tea cups will take a few extra minutes. (If you are using 12 tea cups and one muffin tin, the muffin tin will be finished several minutes ahead.)
• Let the cupcakes cook completely before frosting.

I frosted with my favorite buttercream frosting. A piping bag with a large star tip gave me a beautiful finished look that reminded me of whipped cream but offered the opportunity for more flavor. I garnished with a royal icing violet blossom and leaf that I had made previously.

Buttercream Frosting

• 4 oz. vegetable shortening
• 4 oz butter (1 stick)
• 1 Tbsn. Meringue powder (available in baking aisle)
• 1 tspn. Flavor extract of your choice
• Pinch of salt
• 1 lb. confectioner’s sugar
• 3 Tbsn. of water

Soften the fats to room temperature and cream them. Add meringue powder, extract and salt. Slowly beat in the sugar and add the water. Beat on medium speed for several minutes. Check consistency of the frosting as you are adding the last Tablespoon of water. The consistency of the frosting will vary with humidity. You want something that will be easy to pipe, but still hold its shape.

I usually use a combination of shortening and butter. I prefer the flavor of butter, but shortening is more stable in hot weather. Shortening has a higher melting point and will stand up better to a warm day. The meringue powder stablizes the frosting so it will hold a shape when you pipe the frosting.

Variations: If you like frosting with a sharper taste, substitute sour cream for the butter and omit the water or use cream cheese instead of butter. You may need to add a bit more confectioner’s sugar. Just remember to refrigerate the cupcakes if you are preparing them ahead and storing.

Decorating is limited only by your imagination! Royal Icing Flowers are a fabulous way to dress these cupcakes up. You can buy a variety of flowers already made anywhere that sells cake decorating supplies. Check with your favorite local cake decorator or bakery. Our local craft superstore carries readymade flowers with the Wilton products. If you want to have a go at making your own, you can find instructions for piping many different flowers on the Wilton website. Here is the link for the violet blossom pictured above. http://www.wilton.com/technique/Violet-2

The advantage to Royal Icing Flowers is that you can make them far in advance. They dry like hard candy and store at room temperature for months in an airtight container. I just opened a box and popped on the violet flowers before serving. The Royal Frosting Flowers will absorb moisture from the buttercream frosting. It is best if you don’t try to refrigerate the royal icing flowers. Add them prior to serving.

Imagine the possibilities for your book club meeting, a baby shower, a bridal shower, your next holiday dinner. I took these to a summer picnic and the ladies just lit up. (The men didn’t complain, either!) To travel with the teacups, just set each cup in the well of a muffin tin and pop them in a cupcake carrier or box. Set the teacups on their saucers with a fork and you are ready to serve. The TeaCupCakes display beautifully on a buffet with no cutting and serving required.

I’ll be exploring more TeaCupCakes for Fall and Winter.

from the Buttercream Duchess

TRUE Cup Cakes Decorated by The Buttercream Duchess

I am a woman of a ”particular age” who has been known to dabble in domestic excess. I freely admit that I like pomp and I like circumstance. For example, I am the woman with 43 pairs of lead crystal candlesticks that get mixed and matched for holiday dinners. The candlelight can set a mood like nothing else.  I like the sparkle and I am trained with a fire extinguisher. The collection grew over several years. It became a game to find the sparkly object at the home discount retailer,  to pay no more than $10 for any single piece of sparkle and then the hunt was on to find its mate. I stopped when I realized I had too many. Now I joyously share them with young brides accompanied by a box of candles.

I have my grandmothers’ silver, my mother’s crystal, table linens from every adult female relative and cloth napkins that I am not afraid to use. And, because I waited tables through high school and college, I can fold those napkins with the best. I confess that I rarely iron the linen tablecloths. I will put them on and spritz them with cool water and smooth out the wrinkles. If I stretch them over the table the night before they will be beautifully crisp and dry when I set the table. And If I’m lucky there will be no cat fur in evidence.  

But, back to the Buttercream Duchess…It all started with a gingerbread house and a dream. My daughter, Natalie, was turning 6 and, in that crazy way I have of being excessive and cheap at the same time, I had a vision which became a plan. Imagine a diningroom filled with 16 gingerbread houses that I had baked obsessively in the two weeks preceeding her birthday. The houses are standing assembled but naked. Imagine a candy buffet with everything from necco wafers to jellied fruits and spearmint leaves. Imagine several anxious mothers holding piping bags of medium consistency royal frosting with #16 star tips and the 16 little girls so hard at work that they weren’t even eating the candy they were touching. It was magnificent…but I had the good sense to never do  it again!

I still bake gingerbread for family for the holidays. I also bake extra houses and coax several boys from the neighborhood over to decorate houses to give to their families or to a charity.  It’s our little secret. They were 17 years old this Christmas and they still came.  SSHHHH!!!!

And then those spectacular cake shows started on the cable channels. There I was with meringue powder in my fridge,  piping bags, a few frosting tips and and a spectacularly talented friend who teaches Wilton Method Cake Decorating. It was my new year’s resolution for 2009 to learn something new. I thought I would at least gain an appreciation for what I was watching other people do and maybe I would learn how to make a rose out of frosting. That was 18 months ago.

10 classes (I took the courses twice) and a treasure trove of supplies bought with 50% coupons from A.C.Moore and I am lovingly baking for friends and family. I play in sugar and butter. It is very freeing creating art that isn’t going to get dusty, it’s going to get eaten! Cake decorating captures my love of occasion, the joy and satisfaction of an intensely creative moment, and it tastes good. Here’s a link to some of my fun: Enjoy the Photo Album.

I’ll be sharing some of my zany creative hostessing moments from time to time. Let me know what you think.

Fondly,

The Buttercream Duchess

According to Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Action_figure The term “action figure” was first coined by Hasbro in 1964, to market their G.I. Joe figure to boys who wouldn’t play with dolls…

Wikipedia continues…An action figure is a posable character figurine, made of plastic or other materials, and often based upon characters from a movie, comic book, video game, or television program. These action figures are usually marketed towards boys and male collectors. Redressable action figures are sometimes referred to as action dolls as a distinction from those which have all or most of their clothes molded on. There are more than 40,000 known unique action figures and more than 700 brands.

Action figures are particularly popular with boys because they represent traditional masculine traits and are closely associated with the public sphere. While most commonly marketed as a children’s toy, the action figure has grown wide acceptance as an adult collector item and has been produced specifically with this in mind. In this case, the item may take on the statuesque properties of being intended solely for display.

HMMMMM…Sounds like a doll to me!

Listen to what the Wikipedia entry has to say about dolls: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doll Wiki says:… – A doll is a model of a human being. Dolls have been around since the dawn of human civilization, and have been fashioned from a vast array of materials, ranging from stone, clay, wood, bone, cloth and paper, to porcelain, china, rubber and plastic.

While dolls have traditionally been toys for children, they are also collected by adults, for their nostalgic value, beauty, historical importance or financial value. In ancient times, dolls were used as representations of a deity, and played a central role in religious ceremonies and rituals…

Archaeological evidence places dolls as foremost candidate for oldest known toy, having been found in Egyptian tombs which date to as early as 2000 BCE. In Egypt, as well as Greece and Rome, it was common to find them in the graves of children. Most were made of wood, although pottery dolls were buried with children from wealthier families. Dolls with movable limbs and removable clothing date back to 200 BCE….

Talk about a time honored tradition. We humans have been using dolls for millennia. Having that little model of ourselves to play with as a comfort, companion, surrogate, or superhero is intuitive for us. We all just get it. So, who was your first Action Figure?

www.thequeenstreasures.com

It won’t happen overnight. It shouldn’t. I’m dealing with years of neglect and a lot of beds of shrubs and perennials. My life is not a reality TV show and there is no rescue or end in sight. Many of the plants in my garden have a story to tell. Some are divisions from garden friends who have been generous with plants and seeds. Some were shrubs or trees that were planted in honor of family members. I can walk through my jungle and look at it with love and remembrance while my friends politely smile at my foolishness.

So, after years of begging, my husband actually got me 8 yards of mulch for my birthday this year and the reclamation project has begun. It’s not happening all at once, just a bit at a time. I am strategically working on the parts that bug me the most, are the most visible, or are reaching critical mass. And I coax the rest of my family into participating now and again.

One of the big To Do’s on the list is weeding. The Need to Weed. I’ve got baby trees in beds. I’ve got nut sedge, ground ivy, knot weeds, various grasses, and a few things whose names I haven’t looked up yet. There are  also wild and uninvited morning glories, wintercreeper that somehow manages to disguise the poison ivy, and some lovely perennial ground covers that I planted naively and now have to eradicate because they behave badly.  I’m not much for chemical warfare in my yard. But, I do have a ½ gallon of a herbicide, which I reserve that for special circumstances (thistles). I’m more of a yank and mulch girl which requires sweat equity.

But my biggest rule of thumb in my lazy woman’s garden is: Don’t let the weeds go to seed. A seed is a powerful thing. If they drop seed before I can yank the parent plant than I’ll be looking at those babies for years. It is one of the big life lessons that the garden has to teach us. We must learn about the power of seeds. They become a living metaphor for most of your choices in life. We reap what we sow.

My garden offers me lessons and treasures every day. This year, I have tried to be more diligent in creating a photo journal of my garden fairies at play. I love taking portrait shots of flowers in bloom. They inspire me in the winter. My garden is a habitat for local wildlife. We are at the edge of a hardwood forest and near a creek. We are still filled with fireflies. The twin fawns who have been helping themselves to my hostas were waiting for me in my driveway tonight. My butterfly bush was filled with tiger swallowtails last week. It offers me moments of wonder if I am wise enough to listen.

And now, my garden is also mature enough (after 15 years), that I am redesigning beds, removing, pruning, or transplanting overgrown shrubs, and perennials and I can be as generous with newer garden friends as old garden friends have been with me in the past. It is a comfort and joy to share plants and seeds with friends. I get to pay things forward by sharing plant materials, even as I deal with my weedy-seedy past.

www.thequeenstreasures.com

Sometimes we find ourselves placed in a position to teach, and sometimes to learn. Usually, it’s both. When you reach a particular age, you recognize those moments in time. Honor them, even seek them out. As a parent, that is my job.

We come into the world with basic traits, some aptitudes, and a boatload of potential. And then the life lessons start with our first breath. And they just keep on coming. What we learn and how we learn defines us in many ways. It all shows, either on the outside or on the inside.

So, what do we teach our children? What are the tools in our maternal arsenals to bring them through whole. How do we get them ready for a complicated world? You know what…this conversation has been going on since we were living in caves. We look back through time with understanding and recognition. We look forward with hope and expectation. But today? Today is ours.

• Role-playing – Allowing children to act as caregivers, teachers, brides, stylists, designers, stage directors, hostesses,  doctors, etc.  Spring-boarding the imagination in this way, allows children to identify which roles they have an affinity for. Some doll outfits let little people be big people for a while.  (Don’t we all wish we could be adults only when it is convenient and then revert?  …Oh wait, I may know a few adults who have mastered this – not always to their credit.)

OR

• Carrying traditions forward from generation to generation – Historical costumes help bring the past to life in a way that preserves embellishments and conventions that might otherwise be forgotten.  Books and movies can show it, but there’s nothing like hands-on for learning how something works – or doesn’t work. Outfits with period details like oversized pinafores, nightcaps, hand muffs and capes introduce play pieces which are no longer commonplace in today’s juvenile department.

AND

• Color, pattern and design – fostering experimentation with the visual and tactile elements of doll apparel promotes creativity and an understanding of textile engineering.  Plus – who doesn’t like changing up colors and patterns on themselves or the things they love?  “Project Runway” has plenty of adult viewers and I don’t care if it’s your Gucci bag or your latest model of farm equipment – changing things up can be a feast for the eyes and build a brand.

- All very sensible and wholesome reasons for encouragement.   But…there’s got to be another component that makes it so universal and involuntarily motivated.

Here’s my take on the whole thing:

…..Fun and (let’s face it…) Convenience

• A doll is a friend who is always around

• Shares secrets and keeps them better than anyone

• Doesn’t judge or need to be impressed

• Travels well under an arm or in a handy trunk

• Needs you only when you need to be needed

• Sleeps when tucked in

• Stays awake when you can’t sleep

• Doesn’t ask to share your candy or sweets (but may share if you offer)

• Wears whatever you say looks best –

This leads me to an example of the enormous popularity of it all and of some places where the good reasons and good causes come together.  Below, is a listing of upcoming American Girl ® Doll Fashion Shows to which children AND adults are going in droves:

Franklin, TN – Special Olympics TN – October 24-25, 2009

Plano, TX – Junior League Plano – October 24-25, 2009

Colorado Springs, CO – Kid Power of Colorado Springs – October 25, 2009

Mayfield Heights, OH – University Hospital Cleveland (Ireland Cancer Center) – November 1, 2009

Lindenhurst, NY – Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church – November 6-8, 2009

Tulsa, OK – Junior League of Tulsa – November 6-8, 2009

Concord, NH – Junior Service League Concord, November 7-8, 2009

Verona, NY – Upstate Cerebral Palsy – November 8, 2009

Potomac, Washington, D.C. – Prevention of Blindness Society of Met WA – November 8, 2009

Mandeville, LA – Our Lady of the Lake Roman Catholic School – November 13-14, 2009

Los Altos, CA – Palo Alto Auxiliary – November 13-14, 2009

New York, NY – The Epiphany School Foundation – November 13-15, 2009

Kalamazoo, MI – Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra League – November 13-15, 2009

Buckhead, GA – Junior League of Gwinnette & N. Fulton – November 14, 2009

Boston, MA -  Junior League – November 14-15, 2009

Ringwood, NJ – American Diabetes Association – November 14-15, 2009

Fairport, NY – Rochester General Hospital Association – November 14-15, 2009

Staten Island, NY – Snug Harbor Cultural Center – November 14-15, 2009

Orlando, FL – Kids Beating Cancer – November 14–15, 2009

Houston, TX – Hits Theatre – November 14-15, 2009

Austin, TX- Children’s Medical Center Foundation of Central Texas – November 15, 2009

Hampton, NJ – Immaculate Conception School – November 15, 2009

Pittsburgh, PA – Junior League of Pittsburgh – November 20-22, 2009

Joliet, IL – Easter Seals Joliet Region – November 20-22, 2009

Santa Barbara, CA – Junior League of Santa Barbara – November 20-22, 2009

Charlotte, NC – The Assist by Knight Foundation – November 21, 2009

Lancaster, PA – Hands on House (Children’s Museum of Lancaster) – November 21-22, 2009

Litchfield Park, AZ – Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation – December 4-6, 2009

Enjoy,

Prince Stephen

www.thequeenstreasures.com

I am blessed.  I have my health.  Great well-adjusted kids.  I have a wonderful husband who supports me 100% and believes my ability 1000%.  Friends….. I have a few REALLY good ones that get me through when I need it.  I can pay my bills (because my husband and I work like MANIAC’S).

Challenges…. Oh yeah!  I’ve had those.  Mostly – they’ve been related to relationships in business. Relationships that I thought were mutual friendships even outside of business.   I’m a “fixer”.  I take on other peoples challenges – and- if I’ve got a good “thing” or an idea that I think will help – I want to share and help “fix” things.  

I come from a place of trust and honesty.  I just think – that’s not the place “most” people come from these days.  It seems people are always searching for “hidden agenda’s”…..  “ulterior motives”……  and expecting failure or bad things to happen despite evidence to the contrary.   They assume the bad without checking the facts.  They psyche themselves out of what may be the best opportunity of their lives.   Opportunity STILL exists in America. I am a living example of that

This blog relates to recent challenges I’m facing.  The challenges reminded me to look at a plaque hanging on the wall of my office.  The author is unknown – but the words are POWERFUL.  I’d like to share and hope it puts whatever difficulty you may be facing in perspective….

I asked for Strength…….      And God gave me difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for Wisdom……      And God gave me problems to solve.

I asked for Prosperity….    And God gave me brain and brawn to work

I asked for Courage……     And God gave me danger to overcome.

I asked for Love……             And God gave me troubled people to help.

I asked for Favors……        And God gave me opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted……….

I received EVERYTHING I needed!

Be good to others and play nice!

Best!

Joann

The Queen’s Treasures

* You feel helpless at times

* You run in circles

* There is no privacy

* No instant replays

* Your baby will eventually insult you

* You have to force yourself to back off

* You won’t know if you did a good job for 20-30 years

All very true,

Queen Stacey

www.thequeenstreasures.com

Job description: Long-term position in a chaotic environment filled with crying, laughing and screaming. Must be willing and able to multi-task. The boss can be extremely demanding. Overtime required, including evenings, weekends and 24-hour shifts. No room for advancement or promotions.  Job titles: nurse, teacher, driver, cook, housekeeper, manager and more. Compensation: This job is a reverse-salary deal. You actually pay for the privilege. Benefits: No health insurance, paid holidays or 401(k) plan. So who applies for this job willingly? Mothers

Mothers work harder and longer hours than pretty much any profession, and yet they don’t make a cent. However, as any Mother would say, “The benefits outweigh the work.”  Watching a child grow up and become an independent citizen with goals, manners and motivation is all the pay that most mommies need!   

For all you Mothers out there- You Rock!!!!!!

Queen Stacey

www.thequeenstreasures.com

One day a woman named Lisa, who has a daughter Abria finally invited my daughter over for a play date. Well, it was all my daughter talked about for a week. To be honest I don’t seek play dates because of our very busy schedule. 

I reluctantly agreed to the play date, knowing my daughter would be upset if I cancelled. Lisa lived about 15minutes from the school. The whole time driving there I was getting impatient, thinking about all the things I had to do when I got home. This was the last thing I wanted to be doing.

The play date carried on- the girls got along very well. When talking to Lisa, she mentioned that she was diagnosed with Breast Cancer two days ago. I was stunned and didn’t know what to say. Here she was carring on with this play date and being so happy and positive. I had goose bumps on my arms.

She told me about all the procedures that she had to go through. I looked at her georgeous curly long hair and thought- how absolutely tragic.   I told her if there was anything I could do please don’t hesitate to ask. I felt like an idot after I said it.

On the way home I started to cry. I never personally met someone who was going through Breast Cancer.  It became all to real- and I said a prayer for Lisa. You see the statistics, but they never sink in until you meet someone who is going through Breast Cancer.  I looked at my daughter in the rearview  mirror- knowing that she needs her mother. I can’t even begin to imagine how Lisa feels about her daughter.

I am grateful for that play date. I needed to get real about the important things in life and not get caught up in all the little day to day stuff.  I am going to bring Lisa flowers next week and try to be a friend!!!

Queen Stacey

www.thequeenstreasures.com