We did ice carving in my Garde Manger class last weekend and my team, the girls team, made this butterfly and a swan, but the chef accidentally decapitated the swan with the chainsaw.

The frosting has the flecks of strawberry through it, I love the way it turned out..

Someday I will cover how to make pretty strawberry garnishes in a how-to series here on my blog… I love strawberries!

Yum.

Strawberry Frosting

3 1/2 C. Sifted Powdered Sugar

1 C. Butter, unsalted (2 sticks)

1 tsp. Vanilla

1/2 C. Strawberry Puree

Cream the butter, then slowly add the sugar with mixer on low. Add the vanilla and finally the strawberry and increase the speed to mix it well. If you don’t want flecks and things in your frosting then run the puree through a chinois (strainer) a couple times. Use leftover puree to make yourself a delicious strawberry milkshake!

I’d been wanting to make these for a long time and I finally came across a recipe I like at Tidy Mom. She mentioned in the recipe to cut the amount of Root Beer concentrate because it was too strong but I think my flour made the taste change because there wasn’t nearly enough flavor for my liking. I am going to try next time with all purpose flour and see if that changes. The frosting recipe is spot on though!

They were definitely kid approved though!

Root Beer Float Cupcakes – Adapted from Tidy Mom – This is the recipe on her site that she adapted from Bittersweet

Root Beer Float Cupcakes

(from Bittersweet)

yields 12 cupcakes

1 Cup Rootbeer Soda (non-diet)
1 Teaspoon Apple Cider Vinegar
3/4 Cup Sugar
1/3 Cup Canola Oil (Didn’t have canola I used corn oil)
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
2 Teaspoons Root Beer Extract *(if you use root beer concentrate then only use 1/2 teaspoon)(Candy’s Note: I did not follow this for me it wasn’t enough I used nearly 3 TSP)
1 1/3 Cups Flour
3/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon Baking Powder
Pinch of Salt

• Preheat your oven to 350

• Combine root beer soda and vinegar and let stand for a few minutes.
• Add in the sugar and oil, whisking until slightly frothy.
• Mix in your extracts, and slowly add the flour, along with the baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Careful not to over mix.
• Fill cupcake liners approximately 3/4 full. (At first I thought I had a lot more batter than 12 cupcakes, but then I noticed the batter would settle, so I went back and added a little batter to each liner, which made 12 cupcakes)
• Bake for about 18 – 22 minutes.

Vanilla Frosting

The vanilla frosting gave the flavor of  the “ice cream”, though like I mentioned, these might even be good unfrosted and served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream instead.

1 (8 ounce) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1.5 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

Its obviously no secret that I am a super busy mom. I am busy so much that I don’t often get to cook a hot meal for my family. Recently I was invited to try Bertolli Meal Soups, which are purchased frozen but take only 5 minutes to cook on the stovetop. All you add is one cup of water. Sounds simple enough. The plan was to make my husband and I a nice hot meal and enjoy it before evening activities.

I just openend the bag

cooked it

and in 5 minutes I had set a beautiful rustic place setting with our bowls and garnished the soup with toast.

…and then my husband and son proceeded to eat both bowls in lighting fast speed. So much for a special dinner for me and hubs! But I do appreciate the fact that in 5 minutes I was able to easily make a nice hot delicious meal, something I can’t do from scratch in that time as I usually do being that I am a culinary student who will be a chef soon! So even though the challenge was sort of successful I hope I at least get to taste it next time. Or plan to feed the hungry teenager before he eats my entire bowl while I am cleaning up! And the fact that my guys loved the flavor I am pretty convinced that it tasted good!

About Bertolli Meal Soups:

• Bertolli Frozen Meal Soups are hearty and fresh-tasting with vegetables, meats, pasta and herbs individually flash frozen at the peak of freshness.
• Bertolli Frozen Meal Soups are available in the frozen aisle, and can be prepared on your stovetop in minutes.
• With robust flavors and rich textures, new Bertolli Frozen Meal Soups are available in four varieties: Chicken Minestrone, Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta, Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken, and Tuscan-Style Beef with Vegetables.
• Bertolli Premium Meal Soups for Two are available in 24 oz. packages, and with the addition of one cup of water, yield 32 oz. of mouthwatering soup. The new line of hearty, fresh-tasting meal soups are available in the frozen aisle of grocery retailers nationwide, including Walmart and Target, in four varieties reminiscent of flavors created by Italian Chefs:
• Chicken Minestrone – Roasted white meat chicken, beans, zucchini, yellow squash, carrots, tomatoes and pasta in a hearty vegetable broth
• Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta – Roasted white meat chicken, pasta, zucchini, yellow squash, carrots and celery in a savory chicken broth
• Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken – Cheese-filled tortellini, white meat chicken, spinach and tomatoes in a rich tomato bisque with a hint of basil
• Tuscan-Style Beef with Vegetables – Tender beef, mushrooms, yellow squash, zucchini, carrots and celery with bowtie pasta in a savory broth

About Bertolli:

With a brand heritage dating back 150 years to Lucca, Italy, Bertolli celebrates the authentic restaurant-quality Italian dining experience. Through their variety of pasta sauces, frozen meals and olive oils, Bertolli brings flavors reminiscent of kitchens of notable Italian chefs.

Connect: Want to know more about these soups and other Bertolli products? Fan them on Facebook and Follow them on Twitter!!

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I was compensated by Bertolli to participate in the Weeknight Meal Special Challenge.

My newest favorite is those french vanilla snowmen marshmallows with the Milk hot chocolate. My 3 year old son calls them “frenchfellows” I call them delicious in this cocoa and since it was raining slushy stuff on my drive home from work tonight, having a warm cup of yum helped me escape for a minute from the dreary frozen tundra!

SAVE$$!!! USE MY DISCOUNT!! Just use the code AM0016-3603 to save 15% on your order and free shipping at www.greenmountaincoffee.com! offer valid through Feb. 29th.

Another thing they sent was samples from Birchbox, a company that sends monthly shipments of cosmetic samples from brand name companies. For just $10 a month you get:

Every month you’ll receive 4-5 hand-picked beauty samples form the best brands around – from the luxe lines you covet to the new and niche companies you’ve yet to discover.

But Birchbox is so much more than that! Your will also enjoy:

-An online mini-mag filled with how-to videos, articles, and tips from the pros

-An online Shop filled with the best skincare, haircare, makeup, and more – we’ve done the editing for you!

-Birchbox Points, a super generous rewards program – so easy to earn, track, and redeem points

-Great shipping offers on full-size orders, including free shipping on monthly product picks, and all orders $50+

If your escape is to try new cosmetics than you should look into it and you can buy full sizes if you like the samples! I know I am guilty of not branching out and trying more cosmetics but the truth is I wear makeup every time I leave the house so trying some new products is something I am planning on doing this year for skin care and cosmetics!

YOU CAN WIN A ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTION TO BIRCHBOX!!  The wonderful folks at Green Mountain want you to take your moment of me time too! To enter just use Rafflecopter below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I don’t get food from the arches often but when my son handed me his little fry box I thought it was the cutest little thing! And by little I mean tiny compared to my husband’s large fry!

My best friend of 7 years and avid blogger at onescrappymom.com was recently in a car accident. My husband and I are so close to her we ended up tracking her down and got the report on her injuries. She has seriousl injuries to her leg and face and right now is sleeping and has had surgeries. Thank heavens her kids were not hurt. Her husband has minor injuries. Many MANY bloggers and friends have shown an immediate outpouring of love and donations for her for flowers and gift cards for meals and things. She has a rough recovery ahead of her.

I am holding it together for her because I know she would do the same for me. She is the sweetest person you will ever meet. Every blogger that has met her has said the same thing. She asked me about a year ago or so to help her start blogging like I do and she has taken off like a lightning bolt. She is invited on brand trips even more than me. She works hard and she is the same with her friends she works hard to make sure you feel loved.

Please keep my dear friend Bobbie in your prayers, I know she would appreciate all the prayers of healing that she can get!

My oldest son is a normal 14 year old. Ok that isn’t true either. Most kids his age have a cell phone with calling abilities, he does not, because I am not supporting his iPhone habit when cell service sucks out here and, well, the poor kid never goes anywhere. The sad part is now that I have money occasionally he could ask for extra allowance but he doesn’t. What is worse is we live in a town where there is NOTHING to do, no theaters, no shopping, NOTHING but farms. Sadly the coolest hangout just happens to be the pizza place that I am currently interning at.

I try so hard to connect with this kid as a friend. Its not often that I have to discipline him he minds us very well and does his chores without fuss. He is extremely helpful with Aiden who is very high energy and demands attention a lot. He knows that when we really need a break that we love him forever because he will take Aiden and play in his room on guitar or something. I don’t have to be his best friend but being his mom I want to make sure I am connecting with him. I don’t want him to ever feel sad. I want to make sure he is doing well.

Its a hard thing to know that I have no idea what I am doing I am just parenting with my heart. Our kids have a bit harder life than most because we aren’t rich. Colton never complains but deep down I feel bad that we can’t offer him the same things that his friends have. Within reason of course, there is no reason for him to have a $250 jacket for a stupid logo. I count myself as lucky because we haven’t yet dealt with any big major problems (knock on wood) . I feel bad this kid had to have rookie parents and honestly I am shocked that he is such a good kid at this point. I will say I am glad he is around because parenting him has made it so much easier to parent his sister and brother. That is of course until said sister hits puberty. Why can’t kids just stay young and innocent?

There is one thing I need to mention and that is that I am so happy I am taking THIS class because Chef Nick said at the beginning of class that we would be required to do plate presentations from now on. This means all that artistry that I didn’t learn from class last semester will have a chance to enter my brain this semester. I nearly hugged the chef when he said it and of course had to explain to him why I am so happy. He wasn’t very pleased when I told him what happened. But we get along so well. I was nervous he is pretty acclaimed and a bit of a celeb around Lansing but he is funny and smart.

In my class there is one other guy that has been through the program and this is his last class, everyone else is new. It feels weird to be the 2nd year know it all sometimes but hey I know where everything is and little secrets, and I don’t mind helping anyone so it makes it fun. So far there is only 6 or 7 people in the class though. its nice its not crowded! I think my favorite, aside from cooking PRETTY food again, is the fact he is teaching us authentic recipes.

Without further ado I will just go ahead and share what we made. As a class we each had to make 2 dishes for a total of 12. I made the Caprese..

and Tiramisu. I have made Caprese before but Tiramisu was completely new for me, I hadn’t even TASTED it prior. It is SO good!!’ My caprese has olive oil, this one has balsamic vinegar.

(Caprese Salad, Peach Cobbler, Risotto, Spaghetti Squash with lime and basil, Prosciutto Melon, Three Pasta, Tiramisu, Seafood moule (stew), Potato Gnocchi, Pasta Carbonara)