Friday, June 24, 2011

cue the sun


A few weeks ago I got the opportunity to help chaperone a trip to the King Center with a group of students  from school.  I was really excited because, even though I've lived near Atlanta my whole life, I had never made it to the King Center (and I also particularly love this specific group of students). Many of the students had never been to Atlanta before and they even got to ride MARTA-what kid doesn't love that!? They had a great time and we even managed to get all of them home safe and sound (no small feat I assure you).  I thoroughly enjoyed myself as well, although I was beat by the end of the day.  Once I got home, I used all the energy I could muster to throw together what most wouldn't even consider a dinner and passed out on the couch before the 6 o'clock news.    


I was asked to make thank-you gifts for the volunteers that came along (and was given free reign to make whatever my sugar-filled heart desired).  I needed to make something that could travel well and had recently noticed a trend of 'desserts in a jar'- what a perfect occasion!  Okay, and I'm a sucker for anything served in a Mason jar.


I layered chocolate cake with a cookies and cream filling topped off with buttercream and chocolate sprinkles (duh).  I used this recipe for "the best chocolate cake" and buttercream, and have come to the conclusion that anything titled "the best chocolate cake" is in fact not.  I found it a tad dry for my liking.  The buttercream on the other hand, DELICIOUS!  I used salted butter so the frosting was on the salty side, which I loved paired with the chocolate.  For the filling I used a recipe out of the Whimsical Bakehouse cookbook.

I wonder what other desserts I can squeeze into a jar...