National Chocolate Cupcake Day

Today is National Chocolate Cupcake Day, and it was impossible for me to let this occasion go by without baking chocolate cupcakes. As always, I used the "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake recipe from Hersheys. I usually make a 9"x13" cake from this recipe, and this is actually the first time I've used it for cupcakes. There aren't any baking directions for the mini-cupcakes (about 1" across) pictured here, so I baked them for 9 minutes and they turned out just fine. For the frosting I used the "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Frosting that follows the cake recipe. This frosting is very soft and creamy, so I usually don't do anything decorative with it. However, I couldn't possibly photograph my cupcakes without something fancy on them, so I pulled out the decorating tips and got busy.

Today also happens to be our 5th wedding anniversary. And our friends, Dottie and Joe, are celebrating their 22nd (wow!) anniversary today. My brother is down from Georgia for a visit as well, so I'd say it's a pretty good day. It's just too bad Dottie can't be here to share these cupcakes with us!

Tagged!

I was tagged by Amanda to reveal 6 random things about myself. I don't think I'm terribly interesting, but I'll play along anyway.

1. I have an insatiable sweet tooth. I would rather have dessert than any other part of a meal (except maybe bread), and I use any excuse I can come up with to bake cookies and cakes. It is absolutely astounding that I'm not big.

2. I think maybe I'm a cat whisperer. No, really! Although I'm extremely allergic to cats, they do love me, and when I walk through my yard there's usually a trail of kitties right behind me. They tell me lengthy stories. And they hang on my every word. Great conversation, for sure!

3. I am one of the most stubborn people you will ever meet. I hate to give up. It's not my fault -- I inherited this from multiple family members.

4. I have the ability to tune out almost anything (including D's high-volume trumpet-playing) - my mind will travel far, far away and I'll be completely oblivious to everything that's going on around me. This isn't my fault either - I inherited the gift from Daddy.

5. I have extremely vivid dreams, and I usually remember them because they're so bizarre. I'm afraid to know what this says about me.

6. I take at least one photograph every day, but I'm so picky that I delete a lot of them.

I don't have many blogging friends, so I'll have to think about who I'll pass this tag along to.

And speaking of my sweet tooth, I thought you'd all like to know that tomorrow is National Chocolate Cupcake Day.