My daughter loves to read...actually we all love to read. Our favorite adventure is a trip to a library! After Santa brought Amulet 1 and 2..well the rest had to follow. The Amulet Series is a graphic novel that my children have eaten up. To see a book trailer...check out The Stonekeeper.
Here...an attempt at an Amulet cake! We made a yellow cake with caramel frosting. Both recipes from the King Arthur Flour Baking Companion. I love that cookbook.
We had maps that lead us on adventures from the book.
Here a satchel full of needed items...party made Amulets, walking stick, sword, snacks, map, and word search.
Our first challenge was levitating seeds with our new amulet powers.
Sculpting Demon's Head mountain..a place from the book.
Here we had the challenge of eating Gadoba fruit off of the Gadoba tree. Joel did our party decor!! Another success: the house was transformed into places straight out of the book.
This character from the book...became our "pin the tail on the donkey" game. Instead we blindfolded the party goers and had them put pieces of "Cogsley" on the board. They were close!!
Super fun!!
Family night treat!! Perfect for making after school and then eating after dinner. I had the recipe sitting out for the Avid Baker's Challenge when my youngest asked to make a treat for our family night. PERFECT timing.
3 year old friendly..she dumped everything in the blender, put the papers in the pan, and decorated them. (Did I mention that she taste tested everything too!!!)
Frosting has a magnificent texture...beautiful and easy.
The cake is very delicate..tender with great chocolate flavor. I do like my cake to be a tad more substantial and not so fluffy. I want to try to add chocolate chips...mini chocolate chips next time.1 cup flour
1/2 unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup hot water
1/2 cup canola oil
1 large egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Heat oven to 375°. Line 12 regular-sized muffin cups with paper or foil liners.
Combine flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a blender. Cover with the lid and blend on medium speed until blended. Pour in the water, oil, egg, and vanilla. Cover with the lid and blend on medium-high speed until smooth and well blended, stopping to scrape down the sides once or twice. Pour into lined muffin cups, dividing evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of one cupcake comes out clean, 17–19 minutes. Transfer to rack to cool for about 10 minutes, and then carefully remove the cupcakes from the pan and set them on the rack to cool completely before frosting.
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 cup sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Pinch salt
Melt chocolate and butter in the microwave. Add condensed milk, corn syrup, vanilla and salt. Whisk until well blended. Set aside at room temperature, whisking frequently. If really in a hurry...put in fridge and stir every 5 min until perfect consistency. It will thicken as it cools. When completely cool, cover with plastic wrap until ready to frost.
