DIY S'mores Wedding Favor

Since we got married in the winter I wanted a wedding favor that somehow related to it. I found some ideas on Pinterest and the one I loved the most was S'mores in a box. It was quite simple. We ordered boxes that opened like a match box only bigger. *Finding deals online was a HUGE saver for the wedding in almost all the decorating part! We bought a bag of mini marshmallows, graham crackers, some full sized Hershey bars, toothpicks, thread and matches (I will tell you how we waterproofed matches in another post.)
My mom and I popped in a movie and got to work. We found that the name brand Honey Maid was far better at breaking into the quarters where the perforation was compared to generic. Plus they taste better. We cut them with a knife, carefully, and one by one. There was still a lot of breakage. Good thing those are tasty!
Then we cut the Hershey's bar up. Each box was to receive two graham cracker sections and two chocolate sections. The chocolate bar cut easily if we also did it carefully, not going to fast or applying too much pressure. There was some breakage. Good thing those are tastier!
Then we stuck 3 marshmallows on a toothpick. There was no breakage there. It was quite easy.
Next we tied 2-3 matches together with thick thread (twine would've worked too) and stuck them in the box.
We printed off witty labels that said our names, the wedding date and things like S'more happiness or S'more fun. The labels came with a link to the company's website where you could put the design you wanted and print them right.
And ta da! S'mores in a box!

(I will post pictures tomorrow, They are not on the computer I am using!)

S'mores Delight (and giveaway winner!)

Last week, I made attempted to make a pie called s'mores delight pie--but there was nothing delightful about that experience. Once I finished the "bake fail," I analyzed what the pie was supposed to have been, from the bottom up:

• Graham cracker layer
• Marshmallow pudding layer
• Graham cracker and chocolate layer
• Whipped cream/marshmallow cream layer
• Toasted marshmallows

Some of those layers sounded a little too . . . familiar. It was a chocolate eclair cake dressed up with marshmallows!

The original pie took five+ hours of prep, then chilled for 12 hours, then another half hour of garnishing. With a classic chocolate eclair cake, the prep could be cut to half an hour at most, chill time, then a five (maybe ten) minute garnish. (And I'm a sloooow cook.)

This recipe is the soft, cool, creamy classic with a s'mores twist. The marshmallows in the center filling begin to dissolve to soft pillows, while the browned marshmallows and melted chocolate on top add a warm crunch. The combination of temperatures and textures is a new take on two classics!

So here's my original recipe: S'mores Delight!

based on Paula Deen's Chocolate Eclair Cake recipe

• 1 (1-pound) box graham crackers
• 2 (3 1/4-ounce) boxes instant French vanilla pudding
• 3 1/2 cups milk
• 1 (8-ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed*
• 3 cups mini marshmallows, divided
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips (milk or semi sweet), or as desired#

Butter the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan. Line with whole graham crackers. In bowl of an electric mixer, mix pudding with milk; beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Fold in whipped topping. Add 2 cups marshmallows and stir until just combined. Pour the pudding mixture over graham crackers. (Paula divides the pudding in half and places another layer of graham crackers between them.) Cover with another layer of graham crackers. Refrigerate overnight.

Before serving, sprinkle remaining 1 cup mini marshmallows (or more, if you'd like!) over top of the cake. Place under the broiler until marshmallows just begin to brown. Melt chocolate chips in the microwave (you may want to add a small amount of oil or shortening to loosen the chocolate up). Drizzle melted chocolate over marshmallows and serve.

*If desired, half the whipped topping may be replaced with marshmallow creme. Mix the marshmallow creme in the milk thoroughly, then add the pudding. Once mixed, fold in the whipped topping then mini marshmallows.

# The traditional frosting can also be used instead of or in addition to the melted chocolate chips. I'd actually recommend doubling the frosting to put one layer over the bottom layer of graham crackers, before the pudding, as well as on top. Paula Deen's traditional frosting recipe:

• 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1/3 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Blend together sugar and cocoa. Add butter and milk, mixing well. Add corn syrup and vanilla. Stir until creamy. Pour on cake before refrigerating.

Believe me, even if you want to make the chocolate frosting from scratch (which, by the way, I totally recommend, though I didn't do it), the amount of effort this takes is minuscule compared to the original recipe's call to make hot fudge sauce from scratch, then a pudding from scratch, then marshmallow whipped cream from scratch--and the results are waaay more reliable!

Enjoy!

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And the winner of last week's Ivy Sweater Giveaway, chosen at random by the Random Number Generator, is . . .

Ruthhill74!

Congratulations! Please send your mailing address to waywardgirlscrafts at gmail dot com and we'll get that in the mail to you as soon as possible!

Thank you to everyone who entered--seriously--and stay tuned for more giveaways throughout the month of October (aka birthday central!).

Perfect S'more Cupcakes (+ giveaway winner and update on Sister Saturday Challenge)

For my son's fifth birthday a few months ago, I wanted to make s'more cupcakes. (To be honest, this was completely for me and the other moms, since my son wouldn't eat marshmallows that were "aww mewty!" Thus he did not appreciate the joy of s'mores, though he did enjoy lighting a marshmallow on fire while camping this weekend.) Since summer officially begins this week, I thought this was the perfect time to share! What says summer better than s'mores?

I've had a s'more cupcake at our local cupcake shop, but I wasn't impressed. I think it's a texture thing: you just can't replicate the experience of warm melted chocolate, even with chocolate cake. And a crispy-gooey marshmallow is nothing like a boiled meringue frosting.

So I sent Jasmine off to do some digging for me, and she came up with a couple s'more cupcake inspirations. I found a quick graham cracker cake recipe on All Recipes—and then I did what I wanted. (Hello! Wayward!)

To start, I made a milk chocolate ganache by bringing 1/4c heavy cream to a boil, then taking that off the heat and adding 1/2c milk chocolate chips. Once the chocolate chips were fully melted, I poured that into my small mixing bowl to cool and refrigerate.

For the cake, I crushed one cellophane package of graham crackers into fine crumbs (about 1 1/4 c crumbs, but I think 1 1/2 c would be better):

Baby helped me dispose of the extra graham cracker pieces.

I added the crumbs an 18.25 oz dry yellow cake mix:

Since we're at a high altitude, I figured this would be okay. And since I didn't feel like getting out a whole 'nother egg carton just for the third egg, I only added two eggs with the other indicated wet ingredients.

I took a page from Cupcake Wars and used an ice cream scoop to fill the cups.

Yes, baking is an exacting science, and an exacting scientist, I am not. Luckily for me, this time it turned out even better than okay: the cake was moist and delicious!

By now the ganache was cool (I started it in the morning and baked the cupcakes in the afternoon). I took it out of the refrigerator and whipped it in my mixer.

Then I scooped the middles out of the cupcakes with a serrated spoon which called itself a "tomato corer":

Holy cupcakes!

And filled with the whipped ganache:

I used a plastic baggie with a corner snipped off for both the ganache and the frosting: marshmallow crème.

I'd show you how I piped it on, but 1.) it took both hands and 2.) it's not impressive.

Now, marshmallow crème will run together after it sits a few minutes, so I recommend only "frosting" a few at a time (at most 6, less if you're going slowly). Once you have a small batch frosted, pop 'em under the broiler:

I like to keep my oven open while I do this because I do tend to burn things under the broiler.

But if you burn these, it's okay! The burnt marshmallow pops off like a lid:

And you can try again.

These actually keep pretty well in airtight containers overnight. The delicious golden brown crunchiness of the marshmallow will dissolve but it keeps the coloring and the shape. But nothing beats a warm, fresh one! (Reheating under the broiler made the frosting crack, but it tasted amazing!)

Next time, I might even brave making a cake from scratch.

Recipe

Whipped chocolate ganache filling
1/4 c heavy cream
1/2 c milk chocolate chips
Boil cream. Add chocolate chips. Stir until chocolate chips are fully melted and mixture is deep brown. Pour into bowl. Cool and refrigerate. Once cold, beat with electric mixer until you reach the desired consistency (like frosting).

Graham cracker cake
Add 1 1/2 fine graham cracker crumbs to yellow cake mix. (May omit 1 egg.)

This recipe was prepared at high altitude

How would you make s'more cupcakes?

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And a few updates:

The first ever Saturday Sister Spotlight was so much fun! I loved getting to know the Three Sisterz better—and I loved seeing how they took up the Saturday Sister Challenge! You can see all their watermelon-inspired crafts in the challenge update here!

And the winner of my ribbon runner from last week, chosen completely at random, I swear, is . . .

Flannery of Three Sisterz!

Send me your address, Flannery, and I'll get that in the mail to you this week!

Homemade Marshmallow Peeps!

Easter is fast approaching and I was struck by inspiration for a craft:

I thought this would be 1.) brilliant and 2.) very difficult/messy. I was pleased to be half-wrong: the marshmallows were easy to make and everything came together pretty quickly!

First, I made the outside coating for the peeps. Colored sugar is OH so difficult.

1. Start with white sugar.

2. Add food coloring.

3. Mix.

4. Mix some more.

Once your colored sugar is ready, you'll need a little bed of it for each peep. I sprayed some cooking spray on a piece of foil and put down my colored sugar:

Then it was time to make the marshmallows using a recipe courtesy of Google. Seriously, this took maybe 30 minutes:

After giving the marshmallows a couple minutes to start to set, I sprayed a spatula and the inside of a Ziploc baggie with cooking spray. I used the spatula to fill the baggie with the soft marshmallows and then piped the peeps onto their waiting beds:

The bunny is just two lines with a small circle at the base for the head (though I think trying to get the ears on top of the head is a good goal), and a larger circle below that for the body. The chick is almost a Z shape: pipe a thick line for the body, then lift up and back over the body, then forward to end in the beak. I was afraid the peeps would devolve into shapeless blobs, but they held up really well!

Sprinkle with more colored sugar (you could also shake them in a bag full of colored sugar for better coverage, but sprinkle them first: too much exposed marshmallow will stick to the inside of . . . well, anything!):

Add some chocolate sprinkle eyes:

And have a happy Easter!

I used this marshmallow recipe, but I'll tell you all about it another time!

Oh, and the best Peeps site ever: Peep Research. (What happens when they're subjected to a "fear chamber," AKA the microwave?)

This recipe was prepared at high altitude.

Linking up with:

• Tip Junkie's Tip Me Tuesday
• Beauty & Bedlam's Tasty Tuesday
• 33 Shades of Green's Tasty Tuesday