cupcakes: 3 flavas.

Life is absolutely crazy right now. As a more-than full-time PhD, a part-time research assistant, the owner of a high maintenance dog, and someone trying to recover her health, coordinate international travel, plan a major move, AND maintain relationships…this year has been quite something. Now, this may sound like complaining but I swear that is not my intention. It may even sound like bragging,…but I am also not trying to “busy brag” as is so damn common in Western culture. You know…when you ask someone how they are and they reply “I am sooo busy.” It makes my eye twitch. I have willingly taken on my workload and know that it is entirely unremarkable. Plus, I fully admit that I enjoy and thrive off of going from one activity to the next.


The problem is that I have a hard time creating boundaries and often feel that I need to commit more time to “me” and to non-work-related hobbies to balance the scales. So, in spite of my other time commitments, when a co-worker asked if I would be up for making some cupcakes for her daughters baby shower I jumped at the opportunity.

Baking is something I do as a hobby because it is enjoyable. It is also a challenge, and I find it is a great way to escape my own mind. Baking takes precision, and I find myself being less focused on my to-do list when I am in the kitchen with bags of flour and sugar.


For the cupcakes I could have just gone with 3 dozen vanilla but where’s the fun in that? After a search on one of my most trusted baking blogs - Sallys Baking Addiction - I settled on a combination of vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry. Ok, just realized I made Neapolitan. Huh.


The cupcakes took a lot longer than I expected, but I figure that time away from work was the kind of mental health retreat that we all need now and then. It also warmed my heart when I got a text after the shower telling me the cupcakes received rave reviews and that my co-workers daughter wanted me to do the cupcakes for her wedding. Ok, now I am bragging. Apparently, her daughter also proposed that my co-worker and I go into the cupcake-making business together. Hey, what’s one more job?

Cupcakes: Vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.

Each recipe yields 12-14 cupcakes

Recipes from Sallys Baking Addiction:

  1. Vanilla cupcakes

  2. Chocolate cupcakes

  3. Strawberry cupcakes

For the frosting, I made a triple batch of the following:

  1. Vanilla buttercream