Are those the cupcakes you brought to Denver, Brenda? They were really very good.

And so much prettier in their natural state!

Joe has plans to buy a rifle and be cleaning it whenever boys come to the house.

My dad was a big gun collector. He LOVES his guns. He wanted to show Christopher his gun collection when we first started dating. I SWEAR it was because he liked him--my dad would not have shown his precious guns to some jerkwad he didn't like.

But now Christopher tells EVERYONE that Dad showed him his .45 and said, "Yeah, this is the one I shot her last boyfriend with."

Is this the requested CI cupcake recipe?

For Cupcakes
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (7 1/2 ounces)
1 cup granulated sugar (7 ounces)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1 large egg , room temperature
2 large egg yolks , room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For Frosting
1 cup heavy cream
8 ounces semisweet chocolate , chopped
A small flat spatula, sometimes called an icing spatula, is the best tool for spreading the chocolate ganache frosting.

1. For Cupcakes: Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin/cupcake tin with paper or foil liners.

2. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Add butter, sour cream, egg and egg yolks, and vanilla; beat at medium speed until smooth and satiny, about 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula and mix by hand until smooth and no flour pockets remain.

3. Divide batter evenly among cups of prepared tin using 2-ounce ice cream scoop or heaping tablespoon. Bake until cupcake tops are pale gold and toothpick or skewer inserted into center comes out clean, 20 to 24 minutes. Use skewer or paring knife to lift cupcakes from tin and transfer to wire rack; cool cupcakes to room temperature, about 45 minutes.

4.For Frosting: Bring cream to boil in small saucepan or in microwave. Place chocolate in medium bowl and pour boiling cream over. Cover with foil and let stand 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cool and slightly firm, 45 minutes to 1 hour.

5. Transfer cooled chocolate mixture to bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment; whip mixture at medium speed until fluffy and mousse-like and forms medium-stiff peaks, about 2 minutes.

6. Spread 2 to 3 generous tablespoons Chocolate Ganache Frosting on top of each cooled cupcake; serve.

edit: Whoops! Forgot to format.

But now Christopher tells EVERYONE that Dad showed him his .45 and said, "Yeah, this is the one I shot her last boyfriend with."

Heh. That's funny.

My brother carries a gun for work (parole officer), and he jokes about cleaning it when my niece starts to date in a year or two.

She was really cute at Christmastime. Her current big movie star crush is on the guys in Pirates of the Caribbean; she was wearing a shirt with both Depp and Bloom in costume and a big heart surrounding them. She couldn't find her PotC earrings, otherwise she would have been coordinated.

Wow. I am trying...really hard not to picture this.

To be more specific, its monthly reports, which means it's spewing paper as fast as I can haul reams of it, rather than, say, leaking toner down there.

Oh, thank god.

OK, shrift, I'm glad you clarified because that's EXACTLY what I was thinking.

Joe has plans to buy a rifle and be cleaning it whenever boys come to the house.

Aimee, this is for Joe (and Hec, and Gud, and all our Buffista Daddies o'girls): [link]

Cindy-- is that Coach Fredericks from Freaks and Geeks?