Hints are everywhere if you know where to look

Wait, wait, wait....what's this?

Baking sign.

Carrie's been baking!

Carrie surprised her new boss for boss appreciation week!

I love it when my wife cooks.

More Baking

Carrie's baking frenzy started around the time of her new job, then there was her work competition and it hasn't let up since.

From my wife's Facebook page:

"Newest creation: The Snickers Cupcake! 

Dark chocolate cupcake cored out and filled with a creamy caramel and salted peanut filling. Then dipped in tempered chocolate and then topped with a peanut butter and nougat buttercream. Finished off with chocolate sauce and Snickers bar shavings."

I snatched one the moment Shane and I got home.

My wife is a cupcake GENIUS. I was a big fan of the mocha and french toast cupcakes, but this one may be my wife's best concoction yet. After one bite, I grabbed a big glass of milk, a lactaid pill, and hid around the corner from Shane.

I did not want to share.

Besides, Shane had milk and cookies for PM snack at school. He got a cookie from Harris Teeter on the way home, too. That's plenty of sugar for a little boy.

I gave another to Daniel's parents, but the last few are in the refrigerator calling to me as I write this. Carrie's reserved them.

I hope I can restrain myself.

Carrie the Cupcake Queen

Carrie offered to make Genevieve and Chris' wedding cake months ago. She's played around and tested multiple recipes since.

When Carrie decides she's going to do something, she doesn't do anything half-assed.

Genevieve and Chris got to do taste tests whenever they visited us, and after some consultation Carrie decided to make them breakfast flavored cupcakes. It was the only range of flavors they could both agree they liked!

Our kitchen was stockpiled the weekend prior. Sunday was for experimenting. Friday was Round 1, and Saturday up until an hour before go-time was a frantic Round 2.

Everything turned out well! Carrie was ecstatic and she had every right to be. God let it all come together neatly.

There were four types of cupcakes:

French toast cupcake with maple frosting and a chocolate covered, candied bacon garnish
Matcha green tea cupcakes with a lemon/citrus frosting
Cinnamon roll cupcakes with a glaze frosting
Mocha-macchiato cupcakes with whipped cream and a caramel drizzle.

I don't know much about the techniques used (I'm next to useless in a kitchen), but I do know Carrie substituted coffee for water in her macchiato cupcakes. I'm all for adding caffeine to things!

On the side, Carrie made fruit tarts, chocolate covered strawberries and two flavors of mousse cups to accompany her cupcakes: dark chocolate and peanut butter.

As I said: my wife doesn't do anything half-assed. I call her my "Passion," because I love how she gets fired up and into things. Carrie even haggled at Home Goods for the shelves she wanted for her display and spray painted it on our driveway, too.

The cupcakes were a huge hit. Carrie's catering service learned two lessons: 1) have a label or display of what's in the cupcakes means you don't have to repeat yourself all night (not that Carrie minded...she boiled with enthusiasm) and 2) if the room is really hot it will melt whipped cream and there's nothing you can do about it.

All-in-all, it was a wildly successful first attempt at catering. People kept asking Carrie if she was a professional. My wife's eyes beamed when someone ate a cinnamon roll cupcake and said "How did you do that? It takes exactly like a cinnamon roll!"

Shane and I enjoyed the leftovers at home.

I was only a little messier than he was.