Berry Cupcakes

This is a recipe I adapted from the Strawberry Cake by the Cake Doctor.

1 french vanilla or yellow cake mix
2 cups mixed berries
1 cup oil
1/2 cup milk
4 eggs

Puree mixed berries.  Beat together berries, oil, milk, and egg.  Mix in cake mix.  Bake as three 8-inch rounds, or 30 cupcakes at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

Tastes awesome with Cream cheese icing:  1/4 cup butter at room temp, 1 (8oz) package cream cheese at room temp, 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla--whip all ingredients together.  Normally I would frost with the cream cheese frosting and top with a fresh berry.

I served mine as Diva cupcakes to represent Rachel Berry on the show Glee.  Since she loves gold stars I frosted mine with vanilla frosting, sprinkled with Wilton's Gold glitter sprinkles and topped with a gold star.

Krystal made the awesome Slushee cup cakes as inspired by here.

Tastes like fall...

Some recipes I have made recently that taste a bit like fall:

Orange-Cran Chicken Salad  (recipe adapted from the Our Best Bites cookbook)

2 cups chopped cooked and cooled chicken breast (2 chicken breasts or 1 can chicken.  I think at Thanksgiving left over turkey would be perfecto for this recipe as well.)
1/2 cup chopped celery
3 chopped green onions
grated orange peel zest (from 1 medium orange )
1/2 cup craisins
1/2 cup mayo
1/4 cup jellied cranberry sauce
1 tsp grainy dijon mustard
juice from 1/2 half orange (i just cut the orange I grated in half and gave 1/2 a big squeeze)
pecans (optional)
rolls

Mix together chicken, celery, green onions, orange zest, and craisins.  In a seperate bowl whisk together mayo, cranberry, mustard, and orange juice.  Pour mayo mixture over chicken mixture and stir to coat.  Refridgerate for at least an hour.  Add chopped pecans if desired and serve sandwiched in rolls. Serves 12 rolls.

Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Cookies (recipe adapted from the 1976 Betty Crocker's Cookbook)

3/4 cup shortening (I know shortening is bad...I'm over it)
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup chocolate chips
3 cups rolled oats

Mix together shortening, sugars, egg, water, and vanilla.  Add salt, cinnamon, baking soda, cloves.  Add flour.  Add oats.  Stir in raisins and chocolate chips.  Form into balls and space 1 in apart. Bake at 350 degrees for 13 minutes on a greased pan.  Allow to sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after baking to set.  Cool on cooling rack.  Makes 30 large cookies  (These cookies are crisp and chewey.  You need the raisins to balance the sugar).