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Happy Birthday to Indy!

Thanks to everyone who bought something from TOPSTITCH today. I appreciate it! The money is going to a great cause. Keep buying! You have until midnight West Coast time.

Indy turns two years old today. Time flies when you’ve got a four-legged child. It seems just like yesterday he was 35 lbs, chewing on people’s shoelaces & peeing in the dining room. Now he’s a 100 lbs of lean, not-so-mean pupcake-eating machinery, who enjoys sleeping on “his couch”, running around with his girlfriend Miley, Bully Sticks, Greenies and of course… hanging out on the deck (or romping in the snow).

Indy & Miley!

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Since we’re not really sure when he was born exactly, we decided September 2nd would be his birthday. I’ve made Indy many, many homemade treats before. He adores them. Inhales them, in fact. I like doing it, besides knowing exactly what goes in them, it beats paying $4.50 a piece for a mass-produced, hard as a rock “pupcake” from a pet shop. Same reason why I make my own baked goods & food, and why I grew my own vegetables & herbs. Just makes more sense to me, you know? I like knowing exactly what’s going into my food, and my body. And my family’s body… and my pets’ too! Even if it is cream cheese, honey, and peanut butter-based *wink*

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Luigi (left) & Mario!Luigi (left) & Mario!

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Indy was kind enough to share these with his friends Mario & Luigi (above) who also had birthdays recently. Okay, actually, Indy’s mom & dad shared them, Indy would’ve eaten them all if given the chance. What can I say, he’s an only child. Oh! And Mario & Luigi’s mom & dad got married a week ago- congrats to them!

PUPCAKES WITH PEANUT BUTTER, CARROTS & OATS

Ingredients:

  • 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 egg lightly beaten
  • ½ cup organic peanut butter
  • ½ cup greek yogurt
  • ¼ cup honey
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • ½ cup shredded carrots
  • ¾ cup LOW FAT milk
  • 16 ounces low fat cream cheese (or Neufchâtel)
  • another ¼ cup honey

Directions:

  1. Mix dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix the egg, honey, peanut butter, yogurt and oil. Mix the milk in with the dry ingredients, blending well. At this point mix your carrots into the honey mixture, then mix the honey mixture into the flour/milk batter.
  2. Put in muffin tins and bake for 15 – 20 minutes. These pupcakes freeze well. Frost if you like using a mix of the cream cheese and ¼ cup honey. Beat those two ingredients until well combined, then cover the tops of the pupcakes with it.

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I used ground cinnamon to make little paw prints on the frosting using my thumb and pinky. You could also just frost them with peanut butter. But you don’t even have to frost these, if you don’t want to. You could just leave ‘em plain and make ‘em doggie muffins. You could even substitute shredded zucchini for the carrots, use mashed peanut butter or diced apples instead, or frost them with plain peanut butter.

I’d store them in the fridge because of the cream cheese frosting & the yogurt, but they probably won’t last very long. They never do around here. Indy eats ‘em in two bites, if he isn’t licking off all the frosting first, that is.

*Insert long sigh here* They grow up so fast. Happy birthday, Indy, and many more. You’re a good boy, and we love you.

Comments (0) · Tagged: · Posted 02 September 2010

Donation time: NYC PBA Widow’s & Children’s fund.

Like I’ve said for a few months now, on the second of every month this year, I’m going to be asking you, my readers, to do something. It’s nothing that will drastically change your life in any way, or your financial situation, but it will help others. And potentially, in some cases help to save a life, to bring people together, to provide soldiers with things that will comfort them in war zones, provide a safe place for animals until they’re adopted (if ever), or help the children and families of police officers killed in the line of duty. Which is what this month’s charity will do.

Every month in 2010, as you can see here, my GENEROUS & BIG HEARTED friend Yoyo is donating 100% of one days’ profits in her webstore to a different charity. January was the Villalobos Rescue Center, February was the Adelphi NY Statewide Breast Cancer Hotline & Support Program, March was Mollie’s Fund, April was Let’s Bring ‘Em Home at LBEH.org, May was Soldier’s Angels, June was Green Beans Coffee, July was Adopt-A-Bull, and August was Just A Dog. This month, however, is something that’s really close to home for me- the NYC PBA Widow’s and Children’s fund.

The Widow’s and Children’s fund provides assistance and relief to widows and families of Police officers who are killed in the line of duty. As you know, or may not know, Jay is a New York City Police officer. I know that it’s not an easy job, and while day-to-day he might not be called upon to do wildly dangerous things, every car stop has the potential of going wrong, and there is a chance that someday he might have to put on the Haz-Mat suit or use the gun. And I hope every day that that day never comes. But reality is- it’s a dangerous job, especially in a post-9/11 world. And for the officers who have families and children, the PBA has this fund which I think is wonderful. It might give a wife (or husband) some peace of mind at a terrible time in their lives. My great-uncle was Vice President of the PBA back in the day, and another great-uncle of mine was also in the NYPD (he then switched to the Fire Department). I have other cops in my family aside from them, and my father was a HAZ-TAC Lieutenant in the FDNY EMS who worked tirelessly on 9/11 and afterwards at Ground Zero. I take a lot of pride in the professions mentioned, and I wear my little white gold replica of Jay’s shield around my neck proudly. I’m so glad Yoyo chose this as one of her charities, as it means a lot to me. Civil Service isn’t always about eating donuts & drinking coffee.

As Jay put it: “I don’t get paid for what I do every single day, I get paid for what I might have to do.”

So again, what am I asking of you?

I’m asking you to buy something from TOPSTITCH on September 2nd. That’s TOMORROW. You have one whole day to prepare, and then once it’s actually September 2nd, you have a whole 24 hours to make a purchase. It doesn’t have to be a big purchase… even a small $2.00 order can mean a lot to an organization that needs money to help people who need it. So go check out what TOPSTITCH has to offer and then tomorrow, don’t forget to go back and buy something! Yoyo  always has a ton of awesome, unique, handmade one of a kind merchandise in her store- pouches, mini-pouches, key fobs, wristlets, APRONS, even catnip toys for your kitty! The inventory cycles and not everything I listed might be in stock tomorrow, but it doesn’t matter. Anything you buy is going to be awesome. Everything is very well made and even better, made with love. The bigger pouches are great for carrying your makeup in your bag everyday or for using as a small purse to just run to the store with, and the smaller pouches are the perfect size for personal items & “unmentionables.” Although the small ones can also fit a camera or iPod too. I definitely have been making my contributions each month, and so has Brianne! So then should you. She has plenty of affordable items, and they’re all one-of-a-kind and well made. So please think about contributing to this cause and in return getting an awesome handmade item! What could be better than helping people and getting something unique in return?

And- get this- anyone who mentions me by name or mentions ‘Cupcake Rehab’ when ordering gets extra goodies!

And don’t just shop at TOPSTITCH today, shop there everyday. Because we should all support our local artisans and craftspeople! Buy handmade!

Comments (2) · Tagged: · Posted 01 September 2010

Military Monday.

A beautiful photo of patriotic candies by dklimkle on Flickr

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Thank you to all these soldiers & their families. The longer I do Military Monday, the less I feel I need to say on each post. But I know not everyone who comes here knows what Military Monday is… but I’ve been doing Military Monday for 63 weeks now, and it’s a weekly tribute to our fallen soldiers. Please view the archives for more information. I hope it inspires you to do your own version of Military Monday; be it on Twitter (hash tag is #MilitaryMonday) or your blog or even on MySpace or Facebook. “Music Monday” is great, and fun, but let’s also try and remember more important things on Mondays than our favorite songs.

Sameer A. M. Rateb, 22, Army Sergeant, May 06, 2007 Absecon, New Jersey
Vincenzo Romeo, 23, Army Staff Sergeant, May 06, 2007 Lodi, New Jersey
Kyle A. Little, 20, Army Specialist, May 08, 2007 West Boylston, Massachusetts
Dan H. Nguyen, 24, Army Specialist, May 08, 2007 Sugarland, Texas
Blake C. Stephens, 25, Army Sergeant, May 08, 2007 Pocatello, Idaho
Bradly D. Conner, 41, Army Sergeant Major, May 09, 2007 Coeur d”Alene, Idaho
Walter K. O’Haire, 20, Marine Lance Corporal, May 09, 2007 Lynn, Massachusetts
Michael Frank, 36, Army Specialist, May 10, 2007 Great Falls, Montana
Roy L. Jones III, 21, Army Private 1st Class, May 10, 2007 Houston, Texas
Anthony J. Sausto, 22, Army Private, May 10, 2007 Lake Havasu City, Arizona
Jason W. Vaughn, 29, Army Sergeant, May 10, 2007 Luca, Mississippi
Douglas Zembiec, 34, Marine Major, May 10, 2007 Albuquerque, New Mexico
William A. Farrar Jr., 20, Army Private 1st Class, May 11, 2007 Redlands, California
James David Connell Jr., 40, Army Sergeant 1st Class, May 12, 2007 Lake City, Tennessee
Daniel Courneya, 19, Army Private 1st Class, May 12, 2007 Vermontville, Michigan
Christopher E Murphy, 21, Army Private 1st Class, May 12, 2007 Lynchburg, Virginia
Anthony J. Schober, 23, Army Sergeant, May 12, 2007 Reno, Nevada
Andrew J. Bacevich, 27, Army 1st Lieutenant, May 13, 2007 Walpole, Massachusetts
Rhys W. Klasno, 20, Army National Guard Specialist, May 13, 2007 Riverside, California
John T. Self, 29, Air Force Staff Sergeant, May 14, 2007 Pontotoc, Mississippi
Allen J. Dunckley, 25, Army Sergeant, May 14, 2007 Yardley, Pennsylvania
Christopher N. Gonzalez, 25, Army Sergeant, May 14, 2007 Winslow, Arizona
Nicholas S. Hartge, 20, Army Private 1st Class, May 14, 2007 Rome City, Indiana
Thomas G. Wright, 38, Army National Guard Sergeant, May 14, 2007 Holly, Michigan
Jeffrey D. Walker, 21, Marine Lance Corporal, May 14, 2007 Macon, Georgia
Jesse B. Albrecht, 31, Army Sergeant 1st Class, May 17, 2007 Hager City, Wisconsin
Victor M. Fontanilla, 23, Army Private 1st Class, May 17, 2007 Stockton, California
Aaron D. Gautier, 19, Army Private 1st Class, May 17, 2007 Hampton, Virginia
Jonathan V. Hamm, 20, Army Private 1st Class, May 17, 2007 Baltimore, Maryland
Steven M. Packer, 23, Army Sergeant, May 17, 2007 Clovis, California
Coty J. Phelps, 22, Army Specialist, May 17, 2007 Kingman, Arizona
Ryan J. Baum, 27, Army Sergeant, May 18, 2007 Aurora, Colorado
Scott J. Brown, 33, Army Sergeant 1st Class, May 18, 2007 Windsor, Colorado
III, Anselmo Martinez, 26, Army Sergeant, May 18, 2007 Robstown, Texas
Marquis J. McCants, 23, Army Specialist, May 18, 2007 San Antonio, Texas
Casey W. Nash, 22, Army Specialist, May 18, 2007 Baltimore, Maryland
Joshua G. Romero, 19, Army Specialist, May 18, 2007 Crowley, Texas
David W. Behrle, 20, Army Specialist, May 19, 2007 Tipton, Iowa
Ryan D. Collins, 20, Army Corporal, May 19, 2007 Vernon, Texas
Joseph A. Gilmore, 26, Army Specialist, May 19, 2007 Webster, Florida
Travis F. Haslip, 20, Army Private 1st Class, May 19, 2007 Ooltewah, Tennessee
Jean P. Medlin, 27, Army Sergeant, May 19, 2007 Pelham, Alabama
Christopher Lee Moore, 28, Army Staff Sergeant, May 19, 2007 Alpaugh, California
Jason A. Schumann, 23, Army Sergeant, May 19, 2007 Hawley, Minnesota
Alexander R. Varela, 19, Army Private 1st Class, May 19, 2007 Fernley, Nevada
Justin D. Wisniewski, 22, Army Sergeant, May 19, 2007 Standish, Michigan
Brian D. Ardron, 32, Army Sergeant, May 21, 2007 Acworth, Georgia
Michael W. Davis, 22, Army Specialist, May 21, 2007 San Marcos, Texas
Shannon V. Weaver, 28, Army Staff Sergeant, May 21, 2007 Urich, Missouri
Steve Butcher Jr., 27, Army Staff Sergeant, May 22, 2007 Penfield, New York

Comments (0) · Tagged: · Posted 30 August 2010

The grilled pizza experience.

Everyone loves grilling in the summer. And even though it’s the end of August, as far as I’m concerned there’s a lot of life left in summer & the grill. Along with the love of grilling, I have a love for pizza. It’s obvious to anyone who reads this blog even fairly regularly that I like to make (and eat) pizza. I have a gazillion different pizza dough recipes on here, all of them delicious in their own right. And here’s another!

This recipe isn’t mine, but it happens to be Joe & Jill Bidens’. Yes. The Vice President, Joe Biden. That guy. You know him? Yeah, apparently he’s got a mean grilled pizza recipe. It was in the September issue of the Food Network magazine, and I had been wanting to try grilling up some pizza, so really it was perfect timing. And the day I chose to make it was a beautiful day, sun was shining and no humidity. Lovely day for eating outside.

This dough requires not only a stand mixer, but an overnight resting period. If you don’t have a stand mixer/dough hook, you’re not into that or want to make this on the fly, check out this recipe for dough. It doesn’t require anything more than your hands and 10 minutes of resting and you can be on your way to grilled pizza paradise. This recipe also doesn’t have to make 6 pizzas, just make yours a bit thicker. Or you can refrigerate the dough for another day, or use it to make rosemary focaccia on the grill another time. I definitely plan on doing that. You’ll also probably have sauce left over, but it would be delicious on pasta too.

THE BIDENS’ GRILLED PIZZAS

Ingredients:

For the dough:
  • 5 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 ¼-ounce packet active dry yeast
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • Kosher salt
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil,  plus more for the bowl
For the toppings:
  • 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
  • 6 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
  • Pinch of red pepper flakes
  • 1 28-ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes
  • 1 bunch fresh basil leaves, torn
  • Kosher salt & freshly ground pepper
  • 1 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced and drained
  • ½ cup parmesan cheese

Directions:

  1. Make the dough: Put 1 ½ cups warm water (110° to 115°) in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. Whisk the flour, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt in a separate bowl, then add to the yeast mixture along with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together and look smooth, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium low and mix until the dough is smooth and elastic, 4 to 6 more minutes (it should stretch 3 inches without breaking). Transfer to an oiled bowl and cover with a damp towel or plastic wrap. Let rise in the refrigerator overnight.
  2. Lightly press down on the dough, then divide into 6 balls. Put on baking sheet, cover and refrigerate until ready to grill.
  3. Meanwhile make the toppings: Heat the olive oil in a pot over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes and cook about 3-5 minutes. Crush the tomatoes with your hands; add the juices. Rinse the can with 1 cup water and add to the pot. Add a handful of basil and season with salt & pepper. Increase the heat to medium and simmer until thickened, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool slightly.
  4. Preheat one side of the grill to high, the other to medium. Brush 2 baking sheets with olive oil; stretch the dough balls into thin ovals (about 8 x11″) on the sheets. Brush the tops of the dough with more oil.
  5. Working batches, grill the dough over high heat until bubbly on top and marked on the bottom, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip the dough onto the cooler side of the grill. Quickly top with sauce & cheese. Cover until cheese melts, about 2 minutes. Transfer pizza to a cutting board, sprinkle with parmesan and remaining basil leaves. Serve!

Okay this was easily one of the best pizzas I ever had. Hands down. It’s a must-try for all of you. And yes, it can be done on a charcoal grill too, just keep an eye on it, it might very well cook faster because it’s unregulated heat. And the sauce? The sauce is fantastic.

As childish as it may sound, I’d be lying if I said a part of me wasn’t secretly filled with glee that I voted for his ticket in the 2008 election, and now I find out his pizza rocks. It was like a replay of my Clinton’s Chips all over again. I wonder if I could make those on the grill…

Comments (1) · Tagged: , · Posted 27 August 2010

This post is brought to you by the 1930′s & Sutton Gourmet Paper.

I know you’ve been missing the cupcakes, so here they are. The lovely Kellie at Sutton Gourmet Paper sent me an assortment of these beautiful liners, and coincidentally the next day I received a gift from my mother of a vintage 1930′s white enameled metal cake carrier, with hand-painted detail.  I think I’ve mentioned before that I’m slightly obsessed with vintage anything. Especially vintage kitchen-related material like aprons, mixers, cake plates, etc. And this cake carrier is really lovely. It’s so pretty, and in excellent condition. The colors in the liners reminded me of the cake carrier, very vintage-y and bright, and I thought using them together would be a great photo opportunity…..…

Sutton Gourmet Paper liners pride themselves on the fact that their liners are greaseproof and will stay just as colorful and crisp looking after baking as they do beforehand. I admit, I was skeptical. Of course, I’m always willing to try something new and give my honest opinion. And I found that what they say is true. I made a chocolate cupcake, my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe actually, and I’ll be damned- the liners did stay, for the most part, pretty clear, even after baking. Much better than regular liners. I have never had that experience with a chocolate cupcake + paper liner combination. Ever. As a matter of fact, I haven’t had that experience with many vanilla or white cupcake recipes + paper liners! The zebra ones, red damask, and red & white checked ones did get a bit darker than the rest, but all in all they were much better than I expected them to be. The red/turquoise and the brown/turquoise ones just stayed so bright and beautiful, so did the brown/white damask, which made me happy, because they looked so pretty next to my new vintage cake carrier. These liners would be outstanding for a vanilla cupcake as well, the color would be so amazingly bright. The green and pink checked ones also stayed lovely.

Look how gorgeous that turquoise one is!

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As far as the recipe goes, like I said, it’s my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe from Billy’s Bakery in NYC. I cut the recipe in half because I didn’t need 27+ cupcakes. But just so you know, this full recipe does indeed make that much, so it’s perfect for a party. This recipe isn’t a particularly greasy or oily recipe, neither is it the darkest chocolate, but it’s dark enough to know whether or not the liners do what they say they do. And they do! That’s a lot of ‘do’s.’ I frosted them with a vanilla/orange buttercream. Another excellent chocolate cupcake recipe that has a bit more of a punch to it (thanks to coffee) is this one, also frosted with a vanilla/orange buttercream. I have other chocolate cupcake recipes, including a S’mores recipe, if you’d like to see them. Just search or nose around in the archives over there to the right. But now, I give you Billy’s chocolate cupcakes.

I wonder if Lou Ann Stallings will steal these pictures too. They’ll probably be on Craigslist tomorrow! Haha. Speaking of that, let me reiterate once more (despite it being written on almost every fucking page here) that these photos are my property. If you steal them, that’s theft. Plain & simple.

BILLY’S BAKERY CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

Ingredients:

  • 2 sticks unsalted butter (8 ounces)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar (7 ounces)
  • 1 cup light brown sugar (7-¾ ounces)
  • 4 large eggs (one at a time)
  • 6 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate
  • 2 cups cake flour (9-¼ ounces)
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup buttermilk (room temperature)
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. Cream butter, granulated sugar and light brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer.
  2. Add 4 large eggs (one at a time) and beat each until thoroughly combined, then add chocolate (chocolate should be melted, then cooled for approximately 15 minutes before being added)*. Add and alternate cake flour plus baking soda with buttermilk (room temperature) plus vanilla extract.
  3. Place cupcake paper into each cup of 2 muffin pans (each pan yielding 12 muffins). Then fill each cup with 1 leveled off scoop of an ice cream scooper.
  4. Bake at 350 degrees in regular oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until tester comes out clean.

*If you only have unsweetened cocoa powder, not baking chocolate, and still want to make these cupcakes, you can. For every ounce of baking chocolate required, simply use 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon oil or shortening. Ta-da! If my calculations are correct, which I’m sure they are, that roughly means 6 tablespoons shortening or oil plus ¾ cups of cocoa powder for this full recipe. You do not have to melt it together separately. Just add it when it says to add the unsweetened chocolate. Or, alternately, you can just add unsweetened cocoa powder to the dry ingredients. That’s what I did.

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All in all I was extremely satisfied! I would definitely buy from Sutton, absolutely. I was super pleased with the end results. There’s really nothing I hate more than greasy liners. Well, there are things I hate more, actually. But greasy liners are up there on the list.

And on that note, here is a picture of me being very awesome lame with my new(er) short(er) hair that I mentioned previously. And please don’t tell me I look like Pink. Not that there’s anything wrong with Pink, I’ve just been hearing that for 10 years now, and I absolutely do not see it at all. By the time you see this, my hair might be a is a totally different color. Oh- and my hair is slick with product in this picture, so don’t think I just have a greasy head. Haha.

Comments (8) · Tagged: , · Posted 24 August 2010