This week’s post comes from Lead Consultant Melanie…ENJOY!
 
No matter how many times my husband tells me, I just keep forgetting: we don’t always have to go completely crazy with party planning. The My Little Pony Birthday Party I had in my head was going to be a grand affair: lawn games, watermelon eating contests, amazing apple-themed dessert table, live music, a barn-shaped bounce house and 20 four and five year olds running amok sounded amazing to the go-all-in party planner in me. However, a new job and a lot less free time meant that those things all just fell completely off the map as even remotely possible. But that didn’t mean that I couldn’t make my daughter’s 4th birthday something really spectacular and memorable. Sometimes you just have to go with what you have. For me, that means baking.
 
In my initial party-planning brainstorming months prior to “the big day”, I was, naturally, scouring Pinterest for any good Pony Party ideas. I came across someone who had pasted together a few cupcakes I’d seen around that were all themed to match all the main pony characters from the show.
 
Side note: if you’re not familiar with the new generation MLP, FiM (Friendship is Magic) is totally amazing. And I don’t just mean for kids. I mean for everyone. If you’re out here on the internet you’ve probably at least heard some of the noise surrounding this show, or at perhaps the term “Brony” (A “bro” who loves these ponies), but if you haven’t seen it for yourself, I heartily recommend it… from one grown-up to another.
 
In any case, the My Little Pony cupcakes alone were all we needed to feel like it was a real festive occasion. Instead of 20 kids, we had 3 of her closest friends. Instead of a huge party at our house, we had a mostly-potluck barbecue for family and friends at a local park where entertainment was cheap and easy: an enormous playground. And the cupcakes, of course, were the star of the show. They were the one single thing (aside from a big bunch of balloons and a few streamers) that made it really feel like a party. And not just anyone’s party, but a party that was made for my Friendship is Magic-obsessed daughter. She was so unbelievably happy to lick all the frosting off of her very own Pinkie Pie cupcake, she didn’t notice that anything else was missing.
 
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Strawberry Cupcakes
This is my go-to standard delicious-cupcake-in-a-hurry strategy. I spend most of my time on frosting, and cheat a bit by going with a souped-up boxed mix. It tastes good, and as long as it’s bulked up a little bit (I usually use instant pudding, but this recipe uses Jello), they won’t fall apart on you like as-designed plain boxed cupcakes.
 
1 box of white cake mix (just the powder, don’t follow directions on the box)
1 small box of strawberry Jello
1 stick of melted unsalted butter
3 eggs
1/2 c thawed and pureed frozen strawberries
1t vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
Mix all the ingredients together on low for 30 seconds til combined, and then bump up the speed for another couple of minutes til the mixture looks fluffy & lighter pink. Distribute into cupcake tins (definitely line the tray with cupcake papers, these puppies are sticky). Bake 30 minutes @ 350. They’re done when a toothpick comes out clean.
 
Strawberry Buttercream
I can’t make frosting without my KitchenAid stand mixer. I sound like a commercial, but I’m totally serious. I wouldn’t know how to do any of this without it. So if you don’t have a stand mixer, your mileage may vary. Maybe a hand mixer could do it, but I don’t think it would come out the same way.
 
4 sticks of butter, room temp
6 cups of sifted powdered sugar
1/2 c thawed and pureed frozen strawberries
1t vanilla extract
pinch of salt
Put all the sticks of butter into the bowl of your stand mixer. Use your paddle on med/low to get the butter going. When the butter is starting to look fluffy and homogeneous, lower the speed to stir and add 1/2c of the sugar. Let it stir gently til the powder disappears, then increase the speed gradually to high, and let it whip for 10 seconds or so. Then back down to stir, and add another 1/2c of the sugar. Do the same as before. Repeat this til you don’t have much sugar left in your bowl. What’s awesome about making your own frosting is that you can take it to whatever sweetness level you want. Make sure you keep dipping in and tasting to see if it’s sweet enough, because if it gets TOO sweet, there’s not really any turning back. Once the frosting tastes like you like it, add in the vanilla, strawberries, and salt, mixing slowly until it comes together. The strawberry puree may slosh around for a moment, but it’ll mix in — I promise! Just take the speed back up to high when it’s all mixed in so it gets nice and fluffy.
 
If you need help planning your special celebration, feel free to contact us!