Tiers

On Friday night I hosted an Olympic’s Opening Ceremony party which consisted of A LOT of drinking and then Saturday consisted of me being completely out of commission which meant that my weekend here in DC (that I wanted to do so much) ended up being one of the laziest weekends I’ve had in a very long time, which I am totally fine with! But Sunday night after the gym and some cleaning my sister and I decided we were going to venture to one of our favorite pizza places in Arlington, Pete’s Apizza. It was delicious and a reason for me to actually throw on something other suitable to be seen in public!

Maxi Dress, Old Navy/ Flip Flops, BCBGirls/ Necklace, via my Great Grandmother/ Purse, Coach

Touches of Turquoise

Turquoise is seriously one of my most favorite colors in the summer… pair it with a bright colored top and tanned skin and it pops prettier than neon!

If you like pina coladas…

So this past weekend was my mother’s birthday and no one loves the summer more than her. My family rented a beach house for the week and being that I just started a new job wasn’t able to take off any days but drove (6 hours) up to Bethany to celebrate with my beautiful mom and of course I was in charge of the cupcakes….

This is the recipe I used but after tasting it I would add rum to the cupcakes and throw in some coconut to make it taste more tropical.

To make the pina colada cupcakes you’ll need….

Pineapple Cupcakes
(recipe by Glorious Treats)

2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups canned crushed pineapple (drained slightly)

Directions-
1. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until slightly thickened and a light cream color (about 2 minutes).
3. On low speed, mix in the oil and vanilla until blended.
4. Add in the pineapple and sour cream and mix until fully incorporated.
5. Add the flour mixture and blend until just combined and smooth.
6. Line a cupcake pan with 12 paper liners and fill about 2/3 full.
7. Bake cupcakes in a pre-heated 350*F oven for about 22 minutes.
8. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.
9. Frost with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below)

For the Frosting you’ll need…

½ cup (1 stick/8 Tablespoons) butter, at room temperature
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (always use pure vanilla extract if possible)
1 1/2 teaspoons coconut extract (you may want to start with just 1 teaspoon of coconut extract, you can always add more, but you can’t take it out!)
4 cups powdered confectioners sugar
1 Tablespoon heavy cream, heavy whipping cream or milk
1 Tablespoon (or more) of Rum

Directions:
1. Place butter and cream cheese (both at room temp) in a large mixing bowl and blend until smooth.
2. Add vanilla extract, rum, and coconut extract
3. Beat/Whip until all blended

Apologies

Sooooooo I did exactly what I said I wouldn’t (such a hypocrit) BUT let me explain why there has been a HUGE lack of posts recently…

1. I started a new job. Really exciting, really nerve wrecking, and really time consuming

2. I have been gone most weekends and for whatever reason always seem to forget my camera

3. I have misplaced my tripod which means I have to have someone take pictures of me which means I have to coordinate with my sister or whoever can take pictures of me which isn’t really my strong suit

 

So I am apologizing. More posts soon. I feel a sweet tooth coming on so maybe some baking in the near future? Olympic themed? Stay tuned!