{Busy Bee} Martha Stewart Halloween Ideas

Leave it to Ms. Martha Stewart and her team to come up with so many great ideas for Halloween! If you are looking for some last minute ideas for your Halloween party or to decorate for this weekend's festivities, look no further than Martha Stewart's website. There are tons of ideas, instructions, clip art, recipes...you name it and they probably have it. I have chosen only a handful of ideas to share with you, but it seems as though Martha's ideas are endless!

{Busy Bee} Halloween Goody Inspiration

Halloween is almost here and I am so very excited! I have always found this holiday to be so much fun ever since I was a little girl. It all started when I was young and my parents would turn our house into a great haunted house for kids and their parents to walk through before getting their candy. Ever since then this holiday has been a day to have a lot of fun with. Now with a child of my own I want to start Halloween traditions that we can enjoy together as a family. I probably will never be able to live up to the phenomenal haunted house my parents used to put on, but I think decorating cookies and cupcakes would be just as memorable. So to gather inspiration I looked online and found some amazing treats!

Country Living has some great ideas for simple yet elegant cupcakes and cakes.

The Sweet Adventures of Sugarbelle created these fantastic Leggy Witches this year. She even provides a tutorial! Can you believe she reused a onesie cookie cutter for these? Absolutely incredible!

Anj from Snowy Bliss created this jaw dropping cake decorated with an adorable spider on top. Even more, when you cut into this cake there are orange polka dots!

These super fun witch hat cupcakes were made by Loali on Cake Central. I love the bright neon colors of the cupcakes...so cheerful yet still Halloween!

Simple Jack O' Lantern cupcakes that kids would love to help make!

How creative is this Halloween Mummy Head Cake by Inspired by Michelle! This looks like so much fun to make! I can picture this on the center of a dessert table at a Halloween party....guests would just die!

Following the mummy theme...here are some mummy cupcakes created by King Arthur Flour. These look pretty easy to make and turn out adorably! Not to mention how fun it would be for the little ones to get one of these!

I am such a sucker for pumpkins and Jack O' Lanterns...they are so cute and represent the holiday so well! Not to mention even the youngest of children aren't scared of pumpkins. Here are some sweet faced pumpkins created by Rolling Pin Productions. I am so impressed with the shadowing technique of the actual pumpkin!

These Sugar Ghost Cupcakes featured on Taste of Home are sure to be a scream!

These Eyeball Cupcakes created by Cupcakes by Lynn are so different and so fun! Kids would love the eyeballs!

If you haven't ever checked out The Painted Cookie, you are in for a treat! This sugar artist and mother of two creates some spectacular works of art! I love the Grim Reaper and Halloween Cupcakes! She is also featured on Copper Gifts website...you must check out this site, I get so many of my cookie cutters here...they are awesome! 

Hope you have been inspired to create some spooktacular treats this Halloween!

{Queen Bee} Cake Surprise!

A couple months ago my husband and I found out that we are expecting another baby and the entire time that has passed we have been waiting in anticipation to find out what exactly we are having. It is very hard for us to be patient with things like this...we always want to know right away. Especially because it is hard not to go into the baby section of the store and not buy something.

 (The front of the cake)

I am finally half way through my pregnancy and we just found out the baby's gender! But of course my husband and I like to do little surprises here and there for our families, so this time we surprised my parents with a cake. This wasn't just any ordinary cake, but a special cake that once cut into would reveal the gender of our baby. It was a lot of fun and they were happy and excited beyond words! Can you tell what we are having?

(Yes, we are having a girl!!!)

Now our little family will be complete and we will have a little boy and a little girl! Life is good! And so is this cake!

{Sugar Bee} Mocha Espresso Cupcakes

Buon Giorno everybody! I have been M.I.A these past couple of months due to some heavy traveling...most recently to ROMA! Let me tell you, the city was AMAZING and the time spent abroad was absolutely awe-inspiring. Everywhere I looked was history and art...two of my favorite things! And of course I couldn't come back after viewing the Colosseum, Vatican City, The Roman Forum, numerous art museums, and eating the most delicious food without being inspired to create! Thus, I wanted to create mocha espresso cupcakes in honor of my trip to Rome where the coffee is completely divine!

After researching online, I came across a recipe by the incredible Brown Eyed Baker and made what is indeed the most delectable mocha espresso cupcakes I have tasted thus far. I of course wanted to add a little something extra and I put a dark chocolate covered espresso bean on top to garnish the cupcake. I definitely encourage you to give these a try!

Mocha Cupcakes: (Created by the Brown Eyed Baker)
Yield: 12 cupcakes

1 1/3 C. All Purpose Flour
1/3 C. Unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. Baking powder
1/2 tsp. Baking soda
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/2 C. Whole milk
1/2 C. Strong brewed coffee
1 1/2 tsp. Espresso powder
1 tsp. Vanilla extract
1/2 C. (1 stick) Unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 C. Granulated sugar
1/2 C. Light brown sugar
1 Egg, at room temperature

1. Mix the espresso powder into the brewed coffee until dissolved; set aside to cool to room temperature.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard size muffin tin with paper liners.
3. Combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
4. Beat the butter and both sugars together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined. In a measuring cup, combine the milk, brewed coffee mixture and vanilla. Slowly add the flour mixture, alternating with the coffee mixture.
5. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 liners. Baking for 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting the cupcakes.

Espresso Buttercream Frosting (Created by the Brown Eyed Baker)
Makes enough to frost 12 cupcakes

1 C. (2 sticks) Unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/2 C. Powdered Sugar
1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp. Espresso powder

1. Mix the espresso powder into the vanilla until dissolved; set aside.
2. Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time, waiting until it is mostly incorporated before adding more. Whip until fluffy, about a minute or two. Add the espresso and vanilla mixture and continue to mix at medium-high until it is completely incorporated. If the frosting appears too runny, add a little powdered sugar until consistency is to your liking.

Here I am with my mom in the middle of the Roman Forum.

Ciao! And Happy Baking!

{Party Bee} Client Feature: Felix's Baptism Celebration

Recently I had the pleasure of working with Johanne, customizing party printables for her son Felix's baptism. She was such a joy to work with and her ideas for customizing this collection for Felix were great. Not only did we change some of the printables to read French but she had a wonderful idea for party favors. Johanne used the Jake Baptism Party Collection to decorate her son's party and the results were quite remarkable.

The dessert table is set up beautifully! I love how she used her own furniture, it looks so charming! The cross banner really looks great and adds to the celebration decor. And don't think I didn't notice the napkins to the side of the dessert table- such a lovely way to display napkins and utensils!

Not only did Johanne do an amazing job with the assembling the party printables, but check out all of the work she and her mom did with the desserts. They actually made all of the cupcakes and cake pops on the table! There are several different flavors of cupcakes and they all look delicious. I especially love how the cake pops match the color scheme and add a punch of color to the table.

Johanne came to me with a great idea of creating bookmarks that match the collection that she could use as party favors. What a brilliant idea! She wanted to have Felix's picture on it along with the names of the godparents and parents, and the date of the baptism. Now all of her guests can remember this special day when they use their bookmark while reading a novel or their bible.

Here are the lovely Johanne and Felix admiring the dessert table. Doesn't Felix look adorable! His face is so expressive- he looks like he wants to dig into the delicious desserts!

Such a beautiful family!

Thank you so much, Johanne, for sharing Felix's special celebration with us. Everything looked absolutely amazing! Happy Baptism Felix!

{Party Bee} Lovebirds Bridal Shower Collection

Now for the brides-to-be, the Lovebirds Bridal Shower Collection! With a color palette consisting primarily of blue and green, with accents of black and gray, the bride will have her "something blue" even at her shower! This collection is a fun, retro, and lovely way to celebrate the upcoming marriage of two lovebirds!

The entire collections is $30.00 and comes with the following:

- Invitation (envelope not included)
- 6 Circle tag designs: These are perfect for creating cupcake toppers, cookie tags, table decorations, etc. With a little bit of creativity, the uses are endless!
- 2 Treat bag labels
- 2 Water bottle label designs
- "Lovebirds" banner
- "Best Wishes" banner
- Candy bar wrapper design
- Mini candy bar wrapper design (designed to fit Ghirardelli chocolates)
- Goody/menu tent cards
- Coordinating patterned paper in 6 designs
- Large lovebirds in 6 different patterned backgrounds. These are great for on the wall, hanging decorations, centerpieces, etc.

Just send me the name of the bride-to-be along with the party information (i.e. time, place, contact, etc.) and I will send you the files electronically.

{Healthy Bee} Lemon-Garlic Shrimp & Vegetables

I don't know about you, but I am always looking for recipes that will satisfy the entire family and when I come across one it is like striking gold and it instantly becomes saved in my recipe holder! I recently struck gold when I made Lemon-Garlic Shrimp & Vegetables on Linguine for my family. Not only did my husband like it, but my one year old son devoured it!

I found this recipe on the Eating Well website, and although I do have a subscription to the magazine, it is nice to be able to go back and search their online archives and look for new and different recipes at my convenience. This dinner generously serves four and only takes about 35 minutes to make. Quick, easy, delicious, and nutritious! What else could you ask for?

Lemon-Garlic Shrimp & Vegetables
(From EatingWell: March/April 2008)

Ingredients:
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 large red bell peppers, diced
2 pounds asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound raw shrimp, (26-30 per pound), peeled and deveined/ frozen shrimp will also work
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preparation:
1. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, asparagus, lemon zest and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to soften, about 6 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl; cover to keep warm.

2. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and garlic to the pan and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add shrimp and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Whisk broth and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth and add to the pan along with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring, until the sauce has thickened slightly and the shrimp are pink (or unfrozen if using frozen cooked shrimp) and cooked through, about 2 minutes more. Remove from the heat. Stir in lemon juice and parsley. Serve the shrimp, sauce, vegetables over linguine, quinoa or brown rice. Enjoy!

Nutrition:
Per serving: 227 Calories; 7 g Fat; 1 g Sat; 4 g Mono; 174 mg Cholesterol; 14 g Carbohydrates; 28 g Protein; 4 g Fiber; 514 mg Sodium; 670 mg Potassium

1 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges; 2 vegetable, 3 lean meat, 1 fat