I’m back…to the blog at least :)  I’ve just spent the last few days in Washington D.C. celebrating my sister Sarah’s graduation.  We had a great time, but boy was it busy!  We stayed in a local hotel, but I think we were hardly ever there…Lots of driving from place to place and from event to event.  But OH there was lots of good food!

It took me a very long 8 hours to drive from Asheville to D.C.  Are you a good driver of long distances?  It was the first time I had ever driven that far by myself (the hubby had to stay behind for work).  I left on Saturday morning and got to D.C. around 5pm…just in time for a quick shower before a family graduation party.  I went to my aunt and uncle’s house and joined 15 other family members for dinner.  We had Italian food, which was amazingly comforting after a long day.  My aunt is such a good host…Check out her table setting, bar, and appetizers…

And then there were amazing cupcakes!!  My cousin went to Georgetown Cupcake earlier in the day and bought 18 yummy cupcakes.  They were delish!  I had never heard of Georgetown Cupcake but supposedly it’s pretty famous up here.  She had to wait in line but it was worth it!  I hear they are filming a reality show about the store.  After eating a cupcake, I say it’s definitely a show I’ll have to watch! 

Here’s the generous (and gorgeous!) cousin

And an infamous cupcake…

Doesn’t it look yummy?  There were four varieties…mint cookies and creme (above), peanut butter fudge, vanilla & chocolate, and chocolate birthday…

I would recommend any of the above!

I was exhausted by the time we called it a night.  But I left with a gift of gardening supplies from my aunt…Thanks Aunt MC!  And the sis left with some beautiful roses…

More weekend updates to come…I am back in the car for 8 hours tomorrow…have a great one and check back soon!

Have you ever seen the advertised classes at your local Williams-Sonoma store? Well, I have, and I had never done one…until Sunday.  I love taking cooking classes and theirs are FREE!  So I finally signed up and went.  And had a great time.  Not much hands-on time for the participants (we did get to taste!), but I picked up a lot of tips and recipes and it was fun to watch a pro at work.  There were about 20 of us there (all women!) and most people came alone like me.  So it was fun to talk to others and again share experiences with making cakes and cupcakes, the theme for the day.  Here is everyone waiting for the class to begin:

Can you see the mirror above her head? We could see everything!

A store employee led the course as she also is a professional wedding cake maker and designer.  I didn’t catch the name of the bakery she works at in Asheville, but if anyone is interested, I can do some research for you!  She was very talented and told us about all her favorite wedding cakes as she worked.  She started by making a butter cream frosting.  She then had a chocolate cake made from their Ad Hoc Cake Mix.  It was very moist and rich, and she frosted that with the fresh icing.

She then pulled out some prepared chocolate cupcakes, again with one of their mixes.  The Sprinkles cupcakes were also very rich.  They sell a red velevt mix that I would love to try!  She showed us how to pipe icing (something I’ve never done!) by just using parchment paper and cutting the tip into fun shapes.  Here’s her creation:

She then let us come and try to pipe designs on the cake.  Here is some of the work:

Overall, I would say it is definitely worth going to a class.  Here’s the link for you to find a class in your area.  I’m still in search of affordable cooking classes where you are actually able to get your hands dirty.  But they have a healthy cooking series coming up, so I may try it again.  And no cupcakes or cakes in my future for the moment.  But next time I’m able to buy some local eggs and butter…watch out!  Butter cream here I come!

I’ll leave you with a couple of pictures of the store display of cupcakes.  Everytime I go into the store, I am so impressed with the merchandising.  I want to buy everything…If only, it wasn’t so expensive!

Baking Mixes

Cute cupcake holders

Love the stand!