St. Paddy's Day

I've been busy this week. Papers, reading, grading, the last week of training before tapering for a half marathon, dealing with insurance after my car got bumped in a parking lot, my sister visiting, a friend visiting, and a nagging in the back of my mind that my little brother is getting his tonsils out this weekend and I really should be doing something to help out with the other kids.

In other words: I don't have time to bake. Oh well.

I meant to make car bomb cupcakes for St. Patrick's Day this year, but I spent the holiday in Chicago, with this view.



I don't quite understand why anyone would want to dye their water that color, even if it is for a holiday. But oh well. Their city; not mine. It looks kind of cool, I guess. And since I don't live in Chicago, I got to walk along Michigan Avenue and enjoy the neon water, knowing that the sparkling blue lakes of Texas were waiting for me when I returned. Yes, they're sparkling blue. Really.

Because I couldn't make the cupcakes on St. Patrick's Day, I made them a few weeks later, once Texas had turned cold and rainy again and using the oven sounded pleasant.



Oh yum. Guinness cupcakes, with Bailey's and chocolate ganache filling (I didn't have whiskey), with Bailey's buttercream frosting. Half marathon, you may suffer a bit.