I think I started a post a few months ago with the words, "I don't knit". Yip, here it is. So, clearly, I'm not the 'handiest' Mom around, but I have a feeling that with the girls in pre-primary and primary school, I'm going to be learning to do lots of things I ordinarily wouldn't have done!
The last two nights have been baking nights. It's Ella's birthday on Sunday so she's taking cupcakes to school tomorrow to celebrate. Some people would take, I don't know, an hour or two to whip up 21 cupcakes - I've taken two nights!
You see, I decided to do things properly and not use ready made kits for either the cakes or the icing. I begged my friends for easy recipes and stopped at Jodees on the way home for the ingredients - the helpful man behind the till had a good giggle when he had to explain to me how to use the piping bags, but that's ok, at least I made him smile ;-)
For the last two years, S and I have baked the girls' birthday cakes. Well, he baked, I kinda stood on the sidelines, tasting, instructing and, with a flourish, adding the final touches. Now that man is infinitely patient, he's also fairly sensible. Of course, I now had to prove to myself that I could do just as well. I've also recently met a man (yes, more on that later) who's ex-wife is a master baker. Seriously, it's what she does for a living. So, the pressure was on! Well, not really, but in my ever-active mind, it was - remembering too that Ella is now at a private school so the majority of Moms can either spend all afternoon baking, or else afford to go out and purchase perfectly shaped and decorated cupcakes!
Anyway, I had intended to make the icing and bake the cupcakes last night, and then decorate them tonight, but it didn't work out that way. Last night, once the girls were in bed, I poured myself a big glass of wine, put some music on and got out all the ingredients. With much support from my good friend, Baker Julie, and the Popsicles on our WhatsApp group chat, I began. I asked Jules how to make butter icing, she told me I needed lots of butter and I said, "Well, that's great, will margarine do?". Really. Did I say that? What was I thinking? I obviously wasn't. She must have realised then that she was in for a long night - luckily we were also WhatsApping, so she could continue with her own evening plans while still responding to my panicky questions.
You see, it's not like I've never baked before, it's just that these cupcakes (as I have already said) were being made from scratch. I like things to be right - they must be right - but I'm terribly impatient which is not helpful when trying to methodically follow a recipe. My impatience also makes me lose my sensibilities and so it was no surprise when my beater broke while I was trying to cream a big block of margarine. Some more wine, frustrated messages to the Popsicles, my hand blender...and I finally had two huge bowls of icing - one blue and one pink. There was no way I was still going to actually bake!
This evening, we had some time before dinner so I got the girls involved and we whipped up the mixture for the cupcakes. We baked the first batch and, boy, are they yummy! I got the girls into bed and continued with the rest, only to find that I didn't have enough mixture so I had to make more. Popped those into the oven and started on the icing - spooning the blue icing into the piping bags...ja, whatever! What a mission! Eventually with a knife and hot water I had my own little production line going. Icing, sprinkles, sparkly fairy dust. Icing, sprinkles, sparkly fairy dust....
And 'voila!' they're done. Packed in the fridge and ready to be handed over to Teacher tomorrow. Eat them at your peril - you'll experience an instant sugar high, and your teeth may fall out by lunchtime!
This evening, as I leaned over Ella to give her a hug before I went to bed, she sleepily smiled at me. I told her that her cupcakes were done and ready to be shared with her school friends. She asked if I had done the sprinkles and I answered, "Yes, and the sparkly fairy dust". She hugged me tighter, and said, "Mom, you're the best". And that alone made it all worth while! They may not be the prettiest or the fanciest, but they're made with all my love.
AND, I'll be repeating the same process in exactly two weeks time when my little Jem has her birthday party at school!
xoxo
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