A Sibling Getaway

My brother and sister both came to visit for a loooong weekend last week. We had a blast! Here are a few highlights:

Yummy sushi dinner on Dad, all the way from Tennessee (Thanks, Dad!)


Wandering around downtown




Our first ever NBA game - Nuggets vs. Pacers



2 days of skiing/snowboarding on fresh powder in beautiful weather




Ice butt


A cute puppy face


Curling!


A fun joke on Mom :)


Can't wait for the 2nd annual Sibling Getaway!

My Cupcake Contribution

Since I was 12 years old, March 4th has always meant one thing - Meg's birthday.My friend loves her birthday and has spent her life making sure that everyone around her knows when it is. What can I say? She loves a party! In honor of her birthday, she collected her favorite cupcake recipes over on Musings from the the Front Porch. I decided to contribute my new favorite.

I have recently began flirting with veganism (more on that later). When I mentioned this to Meg, she was very concerned about losing the ability to bake since most cakes and cake-like things tend to require eggs. I was intrigued when I saw this recipe on Manifest Vegan and decided I had to try it out and report back to Meg. I am happy to report that they are SO GOOD and totally vegan! The cake is so light and fluffy. Make these. You will not be disappointed.

Chocolate Filled Vanilla Cupcakes (via Manifest Vegan)
makes about 18 cupcakes

Ingredients

Cake:

• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup melted vegan margarine
• 2 cups almond milk (or your fave non-dairy milk)
• 2 tbsp vanilla extract
• 3 cups flour (either “all purpose” flour or a Gluten free flour mix… be sure to check and see if the mix needs to have xanthan gum added)
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 4 tbsp vinegar

Frosting:

• 4 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 1 cup cocoa powder
• 7 tbsp almond milk
• 2 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup Earth Balance margarine

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cupcake pans with liners, or grease and flour pan.

In large mixing bowl, combine melted margarine and sugar until well mixed. Add vanilla extract and baking soda. Alternate adding almond milk with flour until all has been incorporated (if using gluten free flour, mix by hand about 50 strokes, or about 1 minute on medium speed with mixer). Gently stir in vinegar one tablespoon at a time. Mix well.

Using a measuring cup or something similar, fill cupcake liners about 2/3 of the way full with batter. Bake in preheated oven for about 17- 20 minutes, or until knife inserted into center of cupcake comes out clean. Let cool on wire rack.

Now, make icing:

Combine confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder well. Mix in almond milk and vanilla. Mix in Earth Balance and then whip until light and fluffy.

Once cupcakes are cool, you are ready to fill. You can use that special tip on your piping bag, or if you don’t have one of those, that’s okay. It’s easy!

First, take your cooled cupcake:

Next, take a sharp or serrated knife and cut out a spot on the top, and set the top aside. I like to cut a cone shape out, so I don’t accidentally cut through to the bottom. Then I cut the very tip of the “cone” off to make extra room for the frosting. You can use the handle of a spoon to push the cake to make a slightly larger hole.

Now, take a small spoon and scoop a little bit of frosting up and fill the cupcake with frosting. Make sure to level it. It doesn’t have to be perfect, though.

And now, replace the top. It’s okay to push down slightly to get it to fit… this cake is super spongy.

See, easy, huh? Now just pipe or use a knife to spread on the rest of the chocolate frosting and your done!

Store in cool place in covered container. :)

Happy Birthday, Meg! Have a drink on me!

Short escape to Silverthorne

Although I had never been, I recently became obsessed with going snowshoeing. It seemed like a great alternative to skiing which I haven't fallen in love with quite yet. Sorry. You still get to be outside in the beautiful snowy mountains and get a great workout at the same time. So, when the opportunity arose to go to Silverthorne for a couple of days and go snowshoeing, I jumped on it!

We went up on Saturday, and I was blown away by the views from the cabin.











We spent Saturday relaxing and reading in front of the fire. I got a little obsessed with a giant book of crossword puzzles but managed a long enough break to take a much needed nap. Scarlett, of course, loved the fire.



Sunday morning, we got up early and got ready for some snowshoeing (!). We suited the pup up in her jacket and boots and got our snowshoes on.







The cabin backs up to a national park, so once we were ready, we just headed out the backdoor. Pretty convenient, huh?

I have to say, one of the best parts of snowshoeing - and by best, I mean funniest - is that if you fall down and try push yourself up, you're actually pushing down on 3-4 feet of snow, so you just sink. Watching someone fall and try to get up is hilarious! And, by the way, I laughed more than Danny did. Just saying.

The views the whole time were beautiful. We were surrounded by amazing mountains and untouched snow.













Although we never found the road or path we were supposed to find, we had so much fun. Scarlett had a blast too (She slept for about 16 hours once we got home). I'm really looking forward to snowshoeing again. Hope it's soon!