LAST DAY OF SCHOOL! With Cakes of All Shapes and Sizes

Finally, tomorrow is my last day! I can't even explain how much I've enjoyed my junior year of high school. My teachers were all fantastic and I simply have the best friends in the world. But knowing me and my love of baking, I couldn't help but sign up for nearly every opportunity to bring in treats for class parties. As I looked down the lists, I repeatedly saw the same old things: Chips Ahoy cookies and bagels. Personally, seeing these options made me angry. I grew up with most of these kids, watching their endless creativity shine first hand, and these same people volunteer to bring in bland, dull, store bought cookies, bagels, and other things of the like. Well I knew I couldn't just stand by and let the rest of my classmates be bored into submission by our party food selection, so I decided to go ahead and put on my diy thinking cap. I knew I couldn't go too above and beyond with my creations, but I was determined to make some pretty pleasing treats. So this is what I came up with:

Confetti Cake Cupcakes

(Yeah, yeah, I know, these aren't that creative, but I just wanted to make a little something for the friends at my lunch table.)

Ingredients

Confetti Cake Box Mix

1/4 cup shredded coconut

1/4 tsp. almond extract

Prepration

• Follow the drections on the box.

• Add the coconut and almond extract at the end.

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cupcakes

(They don't actually taste like mayonnaise!)

Ingredients

3 cups flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/3 cups cocoa

2 1/4 tsp. baking powder

1 1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cups mayonnaise

1 1/2 cups water

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preparation

• Mix flour with sugar, cocoa, baking powder and soda into bowl.

• Gradually stir in mayonnaise.

• Stir in water and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla.

• Fill 2 dozen greased or paper-lined muffin pans 1/2 full with batter.

• Bake at 350F 25 to 30 minutes.

• Cool in pans 5 minutes. Remove from pans and cool on rack.

Moist Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

(These make delicious normal-sized cookies as well.)

Ingredients

2 cups minus 2 Tbsp. cake flour

1 2/3 cups bread flour

1 ¼ tsp. baking soda

1 ½ tsp. baking powder

1 ½ tsp. coarse salt (I used kosher)

2 ½ sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 ¼ cups light brown sugar

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 2/3 cups bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks

A pinch of sea salt

Preparation

• Combine flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Whisk well; then set aside.

• Cream butter and sugars until very light and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes.

• Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

• Mix in the vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.

• Reduce the mixer speed to low; then add dry ingredients, and mix until just combined.

• Add the chocolate chips, and mix briefly to incorporate.

• Press plastic wrap against the dough, and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours.

• When you’re ready to bake, preheat oven to 350°F. Remove the bowl of dough from the refrigerator, and allow it to soften slightly. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

• Take chunks of the dough and press down, spreading it along the bottom of the pan until it’s about half an inch thick.

• (If making regular sized cookies, using a standard-size ice cream scoop, scoop mounds of dough onto the baking sheet, making sure to space them evenly.)

• Sprinkle lightly with sea salt, and bake until golden brown but still soft, 15 to 20 minutes.

• NOTE: If you intend on frosting the cake, wait until it has cooled completely before doing so.

I was planning on just frosting the cookie cake, but I had so much frosting left over that I just went ahead and frosted everything! I must be a frosting fanatic! Oh, and as a last note, I would suggest keeping any one of these items in the fridge after you're done preparing them, so they keep fresh and the frosting stays hard.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting/Icing

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 2/3 cups confectioners' sugar

1/3 cup half-and-half cream or milk

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions

• Cream the butter in a small bowl.

• Blend in the cocoa powder, vanilla, confectioners’ sugar, and cream.

• Beat with an electric mixer, until the desired texture is achieved.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting/Icing

Directions

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

6 to 8 cups confectioners’ sugar

1/2 cup

half-and-half cream or milk

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preparation

• Cream the butter.

• Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes.

• Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency.