Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

I am JUST NOW getting around to posting this! I made these for my son's 8th birthday. He couldn't decide if he wanted a big chocolate chip cookie or a cake...I did a little googling and came across this lovely PIECE OF HEAVEN. I KNEW the kids would LOVE them.

I didn't follow the instructions completely, as I wasn't about to make a cake from scratch when I was short on time. So I got a yellow cake mix (the kind with the pudding in the mix) and went to town. :) This is my edited version of hers.

For the filling:

4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 tbsp. light brown sugar, packed
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
about 3/4 c regular 2% milk (Hey, I don't carry condensed milk in my house on a reg basis)
1tsp. vanilla extract1/2cup REGULAR semisweet chocolate chips
  *note* 8oz is a cup. You may have to adjust up a bit.

For the frosting:
3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup light brown sugar, packed
3½ cups confectioners’ sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ tsp. salt
3 tbsp. milk
2½ tsp. vanilla extract

I just used regular sized choc chips or the decorations, too. Not mini.


Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350° F.

Make your cake batter like you normally would according to the directions on the box.

Cookie dough: This is easy, it's pretty much everything BUT eggs. It is an egg free filling!!! That means, YOU CAN EAT IT RAW! 
Combine the butter and sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high.  Add the flour, sweetened condensed milk/ or MILK  and vanilla until smooth.  Stir in the chocolate chips.I rolled mine in little balls using a teaspoon or something, I can't remember which. I have an ice cream scoop, so maybe that? Anyway, I froze mine for about an hour.

Fill the cupcake liners about 3/4 way full.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, allow the cupcakes to cool. I test mine with a toothpick, which is what most people do. :)

Here is where we did things differently. I BAKED the choc chip cookie dough in with the cupcake batter. I just dropped a chunk of dough in the cupcake. See:

She doesn't in hers.




Frosting: (also egg free!!)  Mix the butter and brown sugar, add the powdered sugar, beat. Add in the flour and salt.  Mix in the milk and vanilla extract until smooth.

Frost as you want!

Made it

I made it out from under that laundry in my dining room! I didn't need a boat or paddle as I did not drink enough water yesterday. :( So that is what I am drinking now. Yummmm. not.

I am pretty stressed right now. My daughter is sick (cold/allergy stuff). Dh's job is going to start cutting out overtime in 4 weeks. This sucks right before Xmas time. Hell, it sucks in general. His overtime is what keeps me from not having to work. I looked at DayCare's near us and was floored. FLOORED I tell ya. Cheapest was $145 a week for our 3 year old. (not bad, in reality, but then you add the other kids) $49 a week PER CHILD for before/after school care. So...We would be paying $295 a week for daycare and I wouldn't even have 4 in daycare FULL TIME. $1200 a month. LOVELY. Another daycare was $2040 a month. Yikes. I'd be working to keep them in daycare. Not cool.

So I am thinking I am going to start watching kids in my home. That in itself is a scary thing as far as it's been a while since I have had to work on someone else's schedule and not just mine and my kids, ya know? But, what are you gonna do? I don't want to let our house go or our cars go. Been there, done that, not going back. :)

Anyone else in this predicament?

My Wall Art

Here are a few of the ones I have done. I don't really have it all finished yet, (suh lacker) but at least you get the gist. I promise when I finish the last 2, I will post a pic of it all done and hung up (the right way) and looking BOOtiful. :)

Oh wow. These pics look MUCH better when I edit them and put borders on them. lol. Oops. Maybe the finished product. :)

Curtain Rods and Curtains

  Well, I have had my eye? eyes? on these CURTAINS for months. JcPenney has had them on clearance and then they haven't, then they did, then they didn't, and I caught them again when they did. Yay me! I only bought 2, at $.9.99 a piece, after shipping, etc it was $27ish. Blech. But, overall, not horrible.

I went to my local Lowe's and found some dowels and some finials. The dowels were like $2 or so a piece. I spent like $5 on 2 of them. They are 36 inches long and 5/8 thick. The finials were under $5, too or $5 total for 4 of them. WOW! I was SHOCKED. SHOCKED, I tell ya. I can't believe I haven't done this before now. I have $35 curtain rods sitting behind my couch right now. It makes me sick. I know that is "cheap" compared to some, but it hurt me paying $35 for curtain rods. Anyhoo, I bought black indoor/outdoor spray paint (my first time buying spray paint in over a decade). I got the glossy finish.

I am not experienced in this, to say the least. My grass is black now, since I sprayed this stuff over the grass. Then, my notthinkingself laid the rods on the grass to dry, placed the finials in between the stones of my flower garden, and went inside for 15 mins. I came back out and it was mostly dry, with some grass stuck all of the rods. I pulled the grass off and it was kinda funny. It left like a design on the rods. A textured type thing. And....I figured no none would really see it up close, so I left it. Hee hee.

I found some brackets that would fit the rods at Walmart in a package that sold a curtain rod with it. They didn't have them separate. So I bought 2 of them for $6 total. When I looked at Lowe's they were like $5 A PIECE. Same with the finials. I wasn't paying $20 for finials and then $10-$20 for the brackets. Uh uh. Not this momma.

Oh, I did end up cutting the rod in half. I still have a 36 in one, but I didn't need it. When I cut the one in half, it made a total of about 24 inches WITH the finials. That was fine for what I needed. My curtains are only 42 inches wide. I figure this way, they look a bit fuller. I didn't want to buy another 2. I know, I am cheap, but I would seriously cry if I spent another $27 when I could have shipped them all of $47. kwim?

Here is the finished product: 

It isn't WONDERFUL, but I like it. I couldn't have done it without Thrifty Decor Chick though. That girl kicks ass when it comes to decorating and ideas. Thanks, Sarah!

Aren't the curtains ADORABLE????? They had them in blue, which would look AWESOME in my bedroom, with the Steel Blue paint by Glidden (that I still have to finish up) but when I bought the brown ones, they were out of blue. :*(

What?! It's been HOW long?

I can't believe it (AGAIN). I have been meaning to update my blog and then LIFE happens. I have pictures, recipes, stories, etc to post about that have been pushed aside....You may get hit with a few today. :) I have a few minutes to spare. Well, not really, if you saw my dining room table that is covered in clothes, you may think I should be taking care of that instead. Part of me agrees. :)

What's been going on? Kids' school, PSR classes (Public/Parish School Religion), family events, funerals, Doctor appts for the inlaws, etc etc etc. Homework, staining the deck (still! We had a few boughts of rain) I recently came out from underneath my huge pile of laundry. That lasted for a week or 10 days. Now it is right back where it was. We celebrated our oldest son's 8th birthday in between all of this. Been on again, off again with WW. *Surprise* Had a few girls' nights out with the girls. Made a pillowcase dress for my daughter, removed the shower drain, bought a new one, installed it, complete with putty and all, glue the tile down in the kids' bathroom that is coming up near the tub, made a few pieces of wall art (pics to follow) etc etc.

No judging please. It's just my reality.  

I gave myself a crown for the messiest room of the day. The clothes ARE clean. I don't need to be on the Messiest Homes show or Hoarders, I promise. 6 people=massive amounts  of clothes. I can only fold and put away so fast. (oh and don't mind the deer head in the corner on the left. I keep telling the Hubs that if he doesn't get rid of it and put it in the basement, it is G O N E. Who wants to eat in a room with that staring at you? Not me. HA!)

Anyhoo....today I am started fresh again. One of my friends from grade school's dad died Saturday night. He had lost his mom when we were in 6th grade. She died from breast cancer. He is married and has a daughter now and I just can't imagine how hard all of this must be on him. I have been through some pretty shitty stuff in my life, but this would be H A R D. My dad lost his best friend last week to pancreatic cancer. We had the service on Friday. My dad did the service since he is a deacon and his friend requested it. Yesterday was the 2 year anniversary of my best friend's dad's death. He, too, died from cancer. Cancer sucks, peeps. It really really does.

On a lighter note: I have started my Buffalo Chicken Pasta in the crockpot. YUM. The plan is to use my crockpot 5x this week. Can I do it? I THINK I can. I hope I do. It makes life easier. lol.

Plan for the day:

1. clean the kitchen
2. tackle the mounds of laundry
3. clean the loft
4. work on my blog
5. finish the damn Buzz Book for the kids' school.
6. drink water water water

I will either drown today in water or smother under the piles of laundry. You may not hear back from me for a month. lol. JUST KIDDING. But here is a pile that is NOT clean. :) That will need to be done today, too. :(