Five Years Ago Today…
I met you and my heart nearly burst when I finally got to hold you in my arms.
You taught me about ninjas, cowboys, space aliens, superheroes and dragon fighting.
You had a lot of hair, which was adorably hilarious, by the way.
I had never seen so much hair on something so tiny and cute, which definitely lightened the mood at 4am feedings.
You make me giggle and smile every day, my little comedian. I love you.
Now, I will make you cupcakes, since that’s what you asked for. Specifically, “chocolate birthday cake with chocolate cupcakes on top and cookies and candy and an alien on top of that!”
Took me a minute to wrap my brain around such a request, but I think I’ve figured it out and I hope you like it. My big five-year old boy, I’m so proud of you.
One Bowl Chocolate Cake and Cupcakes
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup warm water
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- 3 tablespoons safflower oil
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9 muffin tins and one 9-inch cake pan with floured baking spray; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, sift together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the eggs, the warm water, the buttermilk, as well as the oil and vanilla. Mix until smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed.
- Pour half of batter into cake pan. Divide remaining batter evenly among prepared muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.
Chocolate Frosting
- 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 to 8 tablespoons milk
- Melt butter and chocolate in top of double boiler over hot simmering water. Remove top bowl from double boiler, set aside and turn off heat – allow to cool for 5 or 10 minutes.
- With an electric mixer add the confectioner’s sugar slowly to the chocolate mixture. Beat until mixture resembles chalky beads. Add the vanilla and the milk 1 tablespoon at a time until a spreadable consistency is reached.
- Beat until fluffy — adding more milk if necessary.
Candy Topping
- 3 “fun-size” snickers bars
- 1 Reese’s peanut butter cup
- 2 ounces “bite-size” Oreos
- Roughly chop all ingredients and add to bowl. Mix with fingers and sprinkle on top of frosted cakes.
5 years ago I also met this wonderful little boy with all the hair! He’s brought such joy to my life! The only baby I every saw with even more hair was his mama – gorgeous black curls which turned into long beautiful golden curls! Time flies – Cherish it always!
Beautiful post. Such a fun cake.
What a sweet post:) Love the cake. Happy b-day to your little boy:)
Beautiful post, Kate! Happy Birthday to your little boy… My little girl had a head-full of hair, too and now it’s down to her waist, and she’s only two! Aren’t they adorable when they’re little? Little miniature people
Great post, and yummy cake!
One of the most touching posts EVER!
I just LOVE everything about this post and that cake! Happy 5th birthday to your little one!
So sweet – Happy Birthday to your little guy! What an awesome cake!
Aw, happy birthday to your boy!
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing!
A very Happy birthday to your little Boy….! Time just flies in the company of these innocent kids and making you relive your life again, its a wonderful feeling. This cake is looking awesome and am sure ur little heart had relished it to the core as it is especially made for him on this special occasion. Congrats on top 9. Thanks n regards, sonia !
i can’t wait to bake cupcakes for my future kids one day
Happy birthday !!!he’s very cute!!!!!
Happy birthday to your little man! I just love the baby pics. And all that hair! Definitely extra cool mom points for the alien.
Oh sweet baby boy! I miss my little baby bundle- he will be 5 in January. It seems like just yesterday. {{hugs}}
What a great birthday post! Love all the pictures!
Adorable.
Aw, what a perfect cake for your birthday boy! Such fun photos~
Congrats on your son’s birthday and for making the food buzz. Your post made my dreary monday morning brighter.
So, so sweet and well “constructed”!
Awww…what a great post! Five years of love and joy! Congratulations!
That is awesome! What an amazing cake to meet exactly what he wanted!
Oh how very sweet! What a special day for the both of you! I love that cake!!! I love looking back on all the cakes I’ve made for my boys over the years! This one is just so cool! : )
Those photos are so cute! And those cupcakes look delicious!
Amazing story, such heartwarming emotion.
Time goes by so fast. Looks wonderful!
So cool and made with love. I cannot believe you did not know about Aliens and Dragon Fighting before eww you must be a girl LOL
I would be pretty happy with a birthday cake like that. Looks like you have already instilled a good sense of fine food in him. Beautiful boy!
They grow up so fast dont they. My daughter had a lot of hair also. Hence her knick name monkey girl. Thanks for sharing.