Funk cupcakes, double chocolate cupcakes, buckeyes and a baking fail

Saturday was a day of basketball for me. The best kind — college basketball, in person. My friend Erin was in town from Colorado, and we went to the KU-Colorado game with some other friends. It was fun, as men's games always are. I always get chills when I see that pregame video, with the likes of Danny Manning, Wilt, Mario's shot. It's awesome. But the second game we went to was the women's basketball game, and I'd never been to one before. We sat with Malcolm, our Kansan news adviser. It was really fun, and we were only a couple rows up. One player scored 31 points. 31! And we were playing Mizzou. No matter what sport it is, I will always be happy when we beat Mizzou. Pretty sure I was raised to hate the Tigers, and I actually have to check myself from hating them too much. Whatever, it's a college rivalry. And I love it!


Well, it's kind of the opposite of that hatred, but for Valentine's Day, I made some really chocolate-y cupcakes. I'm not a chocolate person, really, but someone at work asked me to make cupcakes for his wife for the holiday and include lots of chocolate. So I made these. Nothing out of the norm, really: they're my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe and that fudge frosting I used for my Kansas Day cake. Super yummy.


My other cupcakes of the week were inspired by my friend Christy at work. She said I should make funk cupcakes, and these were born. They're red velvet (for crushed velvet, get it?!) with a cream cheese frosting. The frosting was originally based off George Clinton's hair...and if you don't know who that is, please go listen to "Give Up the Funk" right now. A little multi-colored edible glitter and we're good to go! I posted these over at Hoosier Homemade's Cupcake Tuesday. (Edit: I was asked how I got the frosting that way. I painted a piping bag with stripes of gel food coloring and put the icing in, and voila! rainbow-striped frosting.)


Then on Sunday I did another baking day at Aunt Betty's. We did buckeyes again. They're darn tasty. I took them to a city-wide trivia contest I did with Jonathan, Trevan and Nick. A few people came by to sample them...so I didn't have a whole lot to share. These are one treat, though, that I don't mind keeping to myself.


Last, and least, might be the worst dessert we've made. These are madeleines, a traditional French cake shaped like a sea shell. We got the recipe from a Martha Stewart cookbook, and they're rosewater madeleines. They look darn pretty, but they used SO much rosewater (two tablespoons PLUS two teaspoons) that when you tasted them, it was like gulping perfume. Or eating a bar of soap. YUCK. They sure looked nice though!