Let's Play Catch UP!

March- St. Patrick's Day on the 17th, and my BIG brother's 21st birthday on the 18th. So, I made vanilla cupcakes and my favorite brownies (recipe below) and sent them with him to share with my Dad's office. (I would have taken them myself, but this blog is also about my lack of driving privileges.) Okay, stopping my self loathing now.

This was before I owned a proper icing tip, so the swirls (created with a snipped ziploc) look more like soft serve ice cream than light, fluffy frosting!

The cupcakes and brownies were soon devoured and all I had left was this picture, compliments of my dad:

My "go-to" brownie recipe: Brooke's Best Bombshell Brownies on http://www.allrecipes.com/

Ingredents

• 1 cup butter, melted
• 3 cups white sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish.
2. Combine the melted butter, sugar, and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each, until thoroughly blended.
3. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Gradually stir the flour mixture into the chocolate mixture until blended. Stir in the chocolate morsels. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared baking dish.
4. Bake in preheated oven until an inserted toothpick comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove, and cool pan on wire rack before cutting.