Elizabeth wanted to practice her mad icing skills and create a cake for the case, the Neapolitan, a twist on her cupcake creation of the same name.

This yummy delicious cake has a layer of chocolate cake, a layer of vanilla cake, and a layer of strawberry cake iced with first strawberry icing, then vanilla icing, then chocolate icing.

It’s amazing and in the case now!
$4.25 per monster slice.

Oops! I made this post right after Christmas and forgot to publish…

My dad got this tea towel for me for Christmas and I thought I’d share.

It is so freakin’ adorable and it cheers me just to look at it.
He got it on Etsy from the seller LeiLiLaLoo.

Check out her Etsy shop here!

Huzzah!!!

And mad props to AT&T for getting Sanderlin Centre’s lines fixed SO quickly!

The phone lines at our shopping center are broken and AT&T has estimated a repair time of 7pm on Wednesday!

This means our regular phone line has been forwarded to my personal cell phone; if you call during open hours* and get the voice mail, it just means we’re on the phone with another customer so please just try again in a few minutes.

You are also welcome to email us at eat@muddysbakeshop.com. Although our internet is down, I will be regularly checking this email from home.

This also means our credit card machine is inoperable, so please bring cash or checks with you!

I am so sorry for the inconvenience!!!

*open hours: T,W,Th 11am-9pm F, Sa 11am-11pm

Cookies and Things:
toffee bars
chocolate chip
peanut butter
strawberry almond oat bars
ginger kips
molasses cookies
oatmeal raisin
chewy sugar cookies

Cupcakes:
prozac
plain jane
pucker up
capote
classic
strawberry fields forever
frankly scarlett
chocolate decadence
mocha madness
citrus explosion
strawberry lemonade
grasshopper

Other:
‘nana puddin’
pimiento cheese

As usual, our cakes and pies by the slice are chef’s choice!

Muddy’s is now on twitter! (I know, can I get any more technological?)
Follow us at http://twitter.com/muddysbakeshop
Yay!

… fold bakery boxes.

Preston displays his powerful guns after a box-folding marathon.

Ok, so today is apparently one of several “national pie day(s)”, so obviously this is a very important time for me.

We have pulled out all the stops for national pie day and will be selling more than the usual number of pies by the slice as well as 4″ individual pies, 7″ pies, and teeny cupcake-size pies.

We have quite the variety as well:
lemon chess, apple, bourbon chocolate, pumpkin, banana cream, pecan, blueberry, pumpkin with bourbon and pecans…

Yum yum yum.

I cooked!
This may not sound like a big surprise coming from someone who bakes professionally, but I am terrible about collecting recipes from books and magazines with Good Intentions to cook them and then, oops, staying at work 3 hours late and just making peanut butter and jelly.
Poor Thomas… he gets promises of yummy dishes that just don’t materialize!

However, I made myself go on and purchase the fixins for this one so that I’d HAVE to make it and it’s pretty good!
I made a half recipe (better for just two of us with a few leftovers or if you’re a little tight on cash for lamb!), so I’m putting those instructions here. I added my notes in red and edited a little for clarity.

Mild Curried Lamb Casserole with Almonds
from Martha Stewart Living (I think January, but maybe February issue…)

1 1/2 Tbl olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 Tbl fresh minced ginger (I’ll add a little more next time)
coarse salt and pepper
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground coriander
1/8 tsp ground cayenne pepper (I’d add a little more)
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1 pound ground lamb
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted (I’ll use 1/2 cup next time)
2 slices white bread, crusts removed
1/8 cup and 3/4 cup whole milk (I bet coconut milk would be interesting)
1 Tbl apricot preserves (I’ll use 2 Tbl next time)
1 Tbl fresh lemon juice
2 large eggs
pinch ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp lemon zest
2 dried bay leaves (I’d say these are optional)
cilantro and rice, for serving

Preheat oven to 325.
Heat a large saute pan (and if you double the above recipe you will need a LARGE one, you’re putting just about everything into it!) over medium-high heat.
Add oil, onions, and fresh ginger; cook until onions are golden and tender, about 15 min.
Mix turmeric, cumin, coriander, cayenne, cinnamon, cardamom, and ground ginger together, then stir into the onions. Add the lamb also and cook until cooked through, about 10 minutes.
Add almonds and cook 2 more minutes.
Tear the bread into largish pieces and place in a small bowl; add the 1/8 cup milk and a pinch of salt and let it stand until absorbed. Add the bread to the lamb and cook, stirring a lot, about 2 minutes.
Now stir in the apricot preserves and lemon juice; cook 2 more minutes, then remove from heat and season with salt and pepper.
Spoon the lamb/onion mixture into a 6 cup baking dish.
In a small bowl, whisk eggs, nutmeg, lemon zest, and the 3/4 cup milk together, then pour this over the lamb. Place the bay leaves on top.
Bake until the egg mixture is set around edges and center isn’t runny anymore, about 25-30 minutes. Let stand 15-20 minutes before serving (the perfect amount of time to cook your rice!).
I served with rice and chopped cilantro. Martha also suggests mango chutney, sliced banana, and/or unsweetened coconut flakes as toppers.

Yummy!!!

Ok, I’m on my soapbox for just a minute…

In 2007, large toy manufacturers who outsource their production to China etc, sold toys with high lead content, unsafe parts, and made from dangerous chemicals. In response, Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) , which among other things, mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys. This testing will be easy for large corporations who churn out thousands of each toy a year.

However, the way the current act is written, it puts most small toy-making businesses out of business. All the Etsy sellers, crafts fair artisans, etc in America would also have to pay the $300-$4,000 fee for third-party testing for EACH toy that they make. This makes the crafts-fair toymaker extinct while Mattel and Bratz prosper.

Please visit the Handmade Toy Alliance for more information, including a sample letter and a list of state representatives and their contact information:
www.handmadetoyalliance.org

You can also sign the Handmade Toy Alliance petition here:
petition