Sweet Sliders

No need to fire up the grill for these hamburger sliders!

With summer soon upon us, our schedules are sure to fill up quickly with backyard BBQ's. Looking for something to bring? Here's a treat everyone will love, even vegetarians!

I came across this great idea when my sister, a cupcake connoisseur, mentioned the idea of making festive cupcakes for her birthday. Looking for ideas we went right to google. After typing 'cupcakes' in the google search box it came to my surprise that several people had uploaded pictures of hamburgers as cupcakes. Confused and intrigued, I decided to click on one of the images and much to my surprise, they were in fact cupcakes. Feeling ambitious I knew right then and there we HAD to make these 'mini hamburger slider' cupcakes. After a quick trip to the grocery store to pick up the necessities and several hours of mixing, baking, slicing and decorating the hamburgers...I mean...cupcakes, they came out better than I expected. They looked so much like a real hamburger slider that my father actually mistook them for real hamburgers! Boy was that a sweet surprise.

Here's my top secret recipe...

Mini Hamburger Cupcake Sliders

What you will need:

1 box of vanilla cake mix (additional required ingredients - water, eggs, oil)

1 box of browny mix (additional required ingredients - water, eggs, oil)

1 quart of vanilla 'white' frosting

1 cup of coconut shavings

3 tbs. of Sesame seeds

2 Ziploc bags

Green food coloring (5 drops)

Red food coloring (10 drops)

Yellow food coloring (2 drops)

Cupcake pan (2")

Preparations Instructions

First take your yellow cake mix and mix it per the instructions (you'll typically need water, eggs, and oil, as directed in mix package). Make sure to mix well so that there are no cake mix clumps. Using a 2" cupcake tray, cook your yellow cupcakes first. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Once your cupcakes are done and cooling, combine your brownie mix per instructions (you'll typically need water, eggs, and oil, as directed in mix package). Fill each cupcake tray only about halfway to make your brownies. Do NOT fill it anymore, because otherwise the brownie 'burger' middles will be too thick.

As your brownies are cooling, take your yellow cupcakes and slice them in half, right under the 'cap.' Next, using a coating brush, brush the top of each cupcake with water and sprinkle them with sesame seeds. The water will make the sesame seeds stick and give it a more authentic 'burger' look.

Next, take your icing and divide it into two bowls. Mix in red and yellow food coloring into two separate bowls to make the ketchup and mustard icing.

Once your icing is ready, put each one into a separate Ziploc bag and cut a tiny corner off with scissors. Stack your slider cupcakes, the bottom yellow cupcake first, followed by the brownie burger middle. Next, ice the cupcakes with with the 'ketchup' icing, then the 'mustard' icing.

Then take the cup of coconut shavings and add 5 drops of green food coloring. This will give the coconut shavings that 'lettuce' look you're looking for. Next, sprinkle the 'lettuce' on top of the 'burger'.

Finally, put your yellow cupcake 'burger tops' on top of the 'lettuce,' 'ketchup,' and 'mustard.' Push down lightly so they stick, holding the bottom bun, burger and top bun with sesame seeds all together.

Voila! There you have it, Mini Hamburger Cupcake Sliders. Enjoy!

* If you thought these were great, wait until you see my 'french fries' and 'corn on the cob.' Soon to come!

Bride and Groom Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Have you ever met a person who DOESN'T love chocolate covered strawberries? What's not to love! They're delicious, healthy, easy to make and when all is said and done, they make for a beautiful dessert or snack. With summer soon approaching, everyone is in 'bikini body mode' trying their best to cut out sweets. Putting chocolate covered strawberries on your menu allows those who are health conscious to make better decisions without feeling guilty or disappointed.

A few years ago I came across a recipe for the 'Bride and Groom Chocolate Covered Strawberries,' and took a stab at making them for a good friend of mine bridal shower. What I thought was going to be a cute accent piece to the shower, quickly turned into the topic of conversation. They were a huge hit! I dare you to take a stab at it, you and your guests won't be disappointed!

Bride & Groom Strawberries Recipe & Instructions

Groom

1. Remove stems from 12 large strawberries (adjust total as needed).

2. Melt one pack of dark and white chocolate in separate bowls in the microwave (on low heat according to package instructions) or on the stove in a double burner.

3. Dip each strawberry in the white chocolate leaving the very tip uncovered - place the dipped strawberries in the refrigerator for 5 minutes allowing the chocolate to harden.

4. Next, dip each white chocolate covered strawberry in the dark chocolate rolling the strawberry from side to side to form the 'V' of the tuxedo - set aside and allow to harden.

5. Using an icing bag (or icing tube from the store), draw the buttons and the bow tie on the white chocolate - allow time for the frosting to harden.

6. If you want to dress it up even more, add mint sprigs to the top of the strawberry.

7. Refrigerate the strawberries until it's time to serve them at your party.

Bride

1. Remove stems from 12 large strawberries (adjust total as needed).

2. Melt one pack of white chocolate chips in the microwave (or on the stove as above).

3. Dip each strawberry in the melted white chocolate - place the dipped strawberries in the refrigerator for 5 minutes allowing the chocolate to harden.

4.Decorate as you desire - here are just a few ideas:

- using melted white chocolate (or white frosting) form a crisscross pattern across the body of the strawberry to create a unique design.

- decorate with candy pearls

- add icing to the top and add a small piece of tulle to form a veil

Both elegant and delicious, these gourmet strawberries are a superb wedding/shower gift or a great addition to the wedding or shower itself.

Enjoy!

Extra Sweet Treats

These sweet cupcakes are so adorable, they look good enough to eat! Not only can they act as a great gift for the Mom-to-be, but they also act as a practical and festive decoration too. I created these cupcakes for a friend of mine who is expecting a little boy. They will be used as table decorations during the luncheon, and will be collected afterwards for the Mom-to-be to use for her new baby.

What You Will Need to Create the Cupcakes:

Each cupcake consists of 5 baby socks. (In the picture above I chose to use several different colored socks to create a layering look.) You can easily find baby socks on sale at Babies R' Us. For this particular project I was able to find a package of 8 pairs of socks for $3.99. (Look for coupons online) To top it off and give it that cupcake look, I chose to use a 'rubber ducky' themed cupcake liner.

How to Fold the Socks:

In the picture above I chose to use several different colored socks to create a layering look. First you turn 1 sock inside out and roll it up starting with the bottom of the sock with the other sock tucked in the middle so as to create a ball. Then take the open end of the sock and bring it around the ball - this is how I created the edge. For the multiple layer look (as shown above) I suggest using 5 baby socks. I kept adding one sock at a time until the cupcake liner was full. This is a little hard to explain so let me know if you have any questions. To finish the cupcakes off I added some baby themed cupcake liners. (Keep in mind, there is no right or wrong way to fold the socks.)

To showcase your creations either place them on a tiered cake plate, a wired cupcake holder, in a wicker basket, around a cake/diaper cake, in a pastry box or let them stand on their own as your table decor. If you're looking to go a step further and 'dress' the cupcakes, why not add a little confetti or a diaper pin to the top of the cupcake for a garnish?

If you thought these were cute, just wait until you see what I can do with little girl socks!