Easter Happenings @ Spottswood Place

What a beautiful Easter day we had here in central Virginia.  The sun was shining bright, there was a light breeze and temps in the high 60's - low 70's.  Family at church what a blessing, the music was a blessing and the sermon was a blessing as well.  Couldn't have asked for a better day for many reasons....

I baked these shortbread cookies earlier in the week and just kept them in the refrigerator.  I finished decorating them with the Violets yesterday.  I copied this recipe from Yvonne and StoneGables blog, click here.  Hubby was very skeptical in eating this but he finally caved and guess what, he's still alive! :)

I made the following gift boxes thanks to Monique's blog at La Table de Nana.  She is a very talented artist, photographer, baker, Grandmother, cook, etc.,).  My boxes don't compare to hers but I had so much fun making them even though it took me most of this past week.  Here they are:

 

German Cottage

Farm House (front side)

Farm House (back side)

Old Brick House

English Cottage I

Victorian House

English Cottage II

Beach Cottage (front side)

Beach Cottage (side)

Each house box had some treats inside, my Violet Shortbread Cookies (picture near top of this post).

Here's a link to the template for a house.  Have fun and create!
HOUSE TEMPLATE
I downloaded it from coveredinglue.blogspot but since hers was a shorter house, I went ahead and extended the house to make them taller. 

These two pictures are of my new Beatrix Potter-Peter Rabbit collection.  They arrived yesterday just in time for Easter.  I will purchase two a year ;) 

These are some cutie-patootie cupcakes my daughter made for our Easter meal.  Green coconut held down by chocolate frosting.  Peeps top them off.  Cute and delicious!

I created this drawing (copycat from a Beatrix Potter painting*) on my Wacom art tablet and gave it to my granddaughter.  It's supposed to be  Grandma helping her put on her jacket.  I added the wooden crate because I drew the little girl bunny too high.

This is another drawing (Beatrix Potter copy cat) that I made for my grandson.  A grandmother hugging  her grandson.

This third drawing is for both kids.  The grandmother is a copycat from Beatrix Potter painting but the grandfather and the rest of the house I created.  I wanted to draw a Grandpa and Grandmother with their precious grandchildren.

and here are my grandbabies and I (grandpa was inside taking a nap).

We are so blessed.

I pray you had a wonderful, blessed Easter.

*I create my drawings by hand using my Wacom art tablet.  They are not traced, they are not photocopied in any way shape or form.  Most of all, these are never, ever sold.

Bad Bunny Cupcakes

20-24 chocolate cupcakes

1 pkg. Wilton cupcake wraps - white picket fence style

1 tub of dark chocolate frosting (must be dark in order to blend in with the "dirt")

1 large bag of shredded coconut

1/2 block, of fondant divided in half

3 tbsps. corn syrup

Orange gel food coloring (I had to mix yellow and red)

1/2 tsp. of pink shimmer powder food paint

Almond extract

Green gel food coloring

Blue food coloring

One pkg. Oreo cookies with the middle removed, and crushed down to look like potting soil

1 bunch of curly Parsley

I bought these wraps in February just because they were so cute, not knowing then what exactly I was going to do with them.

Using 1/2 tsp of the orange food coloring add it to half a fondant block,  Keep rolling until most of it is distributed throughout the fondant and finally to a 1/8" sheet.  Cut 1 cm. thick long strips like picture above.  Then cut the strips into about 10 - 3/4" pieces.  Take each 3/4" piece and roll between your forefinger and thumb and shape into a carrot.  Make around 60-75.  Enough for each cupcake to get three carrots.  Set the carrots aside for about an hour to harden and dry.

Now. . . . hmmm. . . . what should I use to top each carrot with?  Yes, Parsley!!  Cut a sprig small enough to top each carrot.

Dip the tip of each carrot top into the corn syrup
(yes, one bit the dust)

quickly attach to a sprig of Parsley.

Place all the carrots on parchment paper and set aside. . . . aren't they adorable?

Take the package of coconut and pour it into a mixing bowl, add a tsp. of green gel food coloring and with the paddle attachment, mix on low until the coconut is completely green.  I tried at first mixing it it with a spoon but I was having trouble trying to make the coconut a  uniform color so using the mixer ended up being a good idea.  It didn't ruin the shape of the coconut shreds at all.  Set aside.

Roll out the other half of fondant about 1/8" thick.  For the Bunny "bottom", cut out 1" or 2" circles, one for each cupcake, flatten the top edge of each "bottom".  For the feet,  I rolled up a small ball, flattened it into an oval shape, make two for each cupcake.  Lastly,  for the tail, pinch off a small piece of fondant, roll into a small ball.  With a small brush, stroke a smidgen of corn syrup to attach the feet and the tails to the "bottoms" like picture above.  Set aside to dry for about an hour.

Mix the pink shimmer powder food paint with a drop of Almond extract, use more if needed.

With a small paint brush, paint on the heels and toes on each foot.  I used this same method with my Bunny Cookies from last year.  

 I also added some blue paint to make it look like the bunny was wearing a blue jacket. . . .

Set the Bunny bottoms and feet aside, give them time to dry (about 1/2 hour).

Frost each cupcake with the dark chocolate frosting then take each cupcake and dip one side into green shredded coconut.

Now dip the other side into the Oreo cookie crumbs.

So one side looks grassy and the other side looks like the dirt has been dug up. . . . hmmmmmm, I wonder who could have dug up the dirt?
I got this idea to use the Oreo cookies from a cake some friends who were visiting from out of town (the Ennis Family) brought me.  They brought it in a clay pot too and it looked so real I couldn't believe it was a cake.  They even put gummy worms in it too.  So cute, can't remember what they called it,...possibly "Dirt Cake"?

 Take each Bunny bottom (the pink paint should be dry by now) and turn it around.  Add a smidgen of chocolate frosting to the back side

Then place right side up and gently press it into the top of the cupcake with the feet over the "dirt" like picture above

Start adding the carrots, any which way you want.  If you poke them into the cupcake, make a hole for it first so that you don't break the carrot.  I used the tip of a metal skewer, worked perfectly.  Don't the carrots look real??

Now wrap each cupcake with the Wilson cupcake wraps.  Doesn't the "dirt" look like real potting soil?

These cupcakes came out really cute I decided to place them with some of my Peter Rabbit vignette I had used on the mantel.

Too many bad bunnies to keep up with.  They're digging up all the carrots in the garden!!

Looks like Mr. MacGregor is after one already!!  Run Peter, run!!

 Use the left over "grass" and "dirt" for decoration around a platter where the cupcakes will be placed.

The End. . . .

No pun intended

These cupcakes took me probably a total of eight hours to make.  From baking the cupcakes from scratch to placing the last fence around the cupcake.  Whew! so I advise you take two days to make these.  As much fun as I had making them, I was pooped by evening time yet very satisfied and content.

I pray you have a blessed Easter and may the reason of new life, new growth, new beginnings remind you about the new life Christ gives.

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature:  old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.  -2 Corinthians 5:17

R.I.P Thomas Kinkade, "Painter of Light"

I'm sharing this with:

StoneGables: On the Menu Monday

Table Scaper Seasonal Sunday - Easter