Want to Spice Up a Brownie Mix? Try Peanut Butter Brownie Cupcakes!

So, I know this isn't a from scratch recipe but I made it & I'm gonna post about it anyway.

I wanted to use a brownie mix but I didn't want them to just be plain old brownies. So, I found this recipe. These little treats were eaten by a swarm of boys within an evening! So simple, yet so awesome. Here's what mine turned out like:

Raspberry Chocolate Layer Cake

For Valentine's Day, I tried my first entirely from scratch cake recipe, & it turned out AMAZINGLY! It got great reviews from my entire family, the only complaint being that it was gone too soon! This Raspberry Chocolate Layer Cake was admittedly a lot of work, but tasted like a slice of heaven -- a gourmet slice, at that.

Here's how mine turned out:

Why I Bake

The fall of 2010 was a bad time for me. Everything I'd experienced within the past year came crashing down on me, & I was miserably depressed. When I wasn't in therapy, I was in front of my TV, watching Law & Order under a blanket with my dog. There was nothing else I had the energy or motivation or even want to do. Until I re-discovered baking.

When I was younger, I used to make cookies every so often for my family. I loved everything about it. Mixing everything up, getting messy & making balls of dough & plopping them on the tray, watching the dough transform...it's all good & fun but the best part was sharing it with others. That always made me feel good, because I knew it made them feel good.

So one day my mom came home with a cookie mix because we were having some people over for dinner & she asked me to make them. I didn't want to, but I did it anyway, & the good feelings I had forgotten about came back. Since then, I haven't stopped baking. I'm starting to stray from box mixes & have begun trying recipes from scratch, which is why I created this blog. Here is where I will document & review the recipes I try.