It just may take a puppy cuppie ...

... and a boatload of tweets to get Ellen's attention. Thanks to my blogging buddy Bitt, I learned how another Ellen fan got her book noticed. Since I don't have much time to travel the rest of the Blogosphere myself, it's nice to get an idea of what's out there from my friends.

Anyway, Bitt pointed out this other campaign to get vegan naturally sweet treats on Ellen's show. Ricki of Diet, Dessert and Dogs (I might have to add this one to my blog list, especially since it looks as though she is eating raw now, too) asked her readers to tweet to Ellen about her Sweet Freedom book and her goal to get her "amazing baked goods from (her) cookbook" to Ellen and the in-studio audience.

So far, she has not received a formal invitation, but her book got a cozy spot on Ellen's website. Congrats Ricki!

Now we know this is possible, and we have Ricki and her cute canines to thank for the added motivation. Looks like you need some furry friends and tons of tweets to get Ellen, so to speak.

I may not have real puppies, but I do have this familiar puppy cuppie (those puppy dog eyes work every time). I also have a bunny, which I should've dedicated to this Bunny (love her, too; I'm hoping she gets in on the raw cupcake action soon), and a cow cupcake that I'll tell you more about later in the week (it's inspired by a book review I was asked to do).


In the meantime, it looks as though Sarah is on a raw cupcake-making streak (you may remember me posting another one of her cuppies the other day), in support of the cause. It's really addicting, but in a good way. Check out the Bunny Spice Cupcakes she made from my e-book on Friday:


So, don't be shy; you can get in on the action, too. Just check out the recipes from my raw cupcake e-book, whip them up yourself, take a picture of the Ellen cutout with your creation and let me know where I can link to it (I gotta know about it, if you want me to highlight it on my site). Also, if you'd like, upload your pic to the Ellen website, mentioning the quest to get her to eat a raw cupcake.

And, what have we learned today?

You can also help out the cause by sending multiple tweets to Ellen, as well as posting on her Facebook page. Of course, the main goal is to get her to try a raw cupcake, but a mention on her site would be pretty sweet, too :-)

BTW, thanks for participating. I really appreciate it :-)

Happy birthday to me :-)

Okay, so the big day has arrived, and I have yet to hear from Ellen. Oh well, it is still early.

Speaking of early, I woke up way too soon this morning, due to a nightmare of all things ... make that "A Nightmare on Elm Street." The remake comes out today, so no wonder I had it on the brain. It would give me bad dreams when I was little (although I continued to watch the original and its sequels multiple times), and it still does (even without seeing it; maybe I saw a commercial for it before bed).

Anyway, you can't go back to sleep after having a nightmare about a gruesome character that's trying to get you in your dreams (I'd much rather dream about raw cupcakes, right Ellen? She's probably having nightmares about me). That explains why the franchise has been so successful.

I haven't been too successful with this Ellen thing, so I tried to get it off my mind (as well as Freddy Krueger) by way of distraction. Since I couldn't sleep, I flopped down on the couch in front of the television, flipping channels and searching for something somewhat uplifting.

Can you believe that I ended watching "Teen Wolf?" Ridiculous, I know, but I liked it when it first came out.

The funniest part about it was the timing; Matthew and I were tempted to put it on the other day to see if the comment in the Star Wars-themed Family Guy was true. As this is a family friendly blog, I won't link to it (which doesn't explain my nightmare link; sorry about that), although I'll tell you a bit more.

Supposedly, there is a man in the back of the stands with something hanging out at the final basketball game. I can't believe that we actually Googled this to find out exactly where to look (what else are you going to do at 3:30 a.m.?).

To our surprise, the man was actually a woman with her fly down (only exposing more clothing; otherwise, I wouldn't mention it on my site), who was trying to discretely pull it back up again. Now that's a crazy way to start my birthday.

At least when I checked my e-mail, this is what I found in my inbox. It's a raw cupcake pic (no Ellen here; this raw cupcake is for me) from my blogging friend Nelly (she'd probably get a kick out of the "Teen Wolf" thing after her last post), who also sent me these "good things in small packages" (I just adored her little note) that I won in her first giveaway (her second giveaway ends tomorrow). She's got some good timing, doesn't she?


She's also been a big help in my quest to get Ellen to eat a raw cupcake, by unbaking her own treats, tweeting and retweeting my tweets (did you get all of that?). Thanks to all of you who embarked on the quest with me, too. Let's review:

My good buddy Bitt was the first to hop aboard, highlighting two raw cupcakes on her site. Check them out. She didn't get Ellen's face in the shots, so I took it upon myself to add the cutout for her.


Next, Bitt contributed this naked Zippy Zucchini Cupcake.


Then there was the Reduced-Fat & Fabulous Cupcake modeled on Sarah's blog. Nice strawberry accent. That cupcake is working it.


I had to get a closeup on that pretty little thing.


Along with Aura's own take on Carrot Cake Cupcakes. S-weet! They're all decked out in n'icing, this season's creamiest trend.


I had to show a sneak peek at what's hidden underneath :-)


My blogging friend Debbie of Raw-Riffic Food not only made two types of raw cupcakes (the Creme-filled Lemony Cupcakes with her own topping/garnish and the Cocoa Avocado Cupcakes), but she did a review, too. She's so sweet. She was the first to buy my e-book.


Then, there was my newest "Buddy" on the block, with her blog, Vegan Showdown. She documented her first experience making raw cupcakes with her cell phone, demonstrating the ramekin technique, which is how I started out, too. Not bad for some phone pics.


She later contributed this little chick. So cute!


Since Heathy was busy with Moonie Pie-making, she opted to use her pic of the Rawtess cupcakes she made at the time I first revealed the recipe on my blog. She didn't have an Ellen cutout nearby then, so I added it for her.


Then, I made a moonie pie cupcake, too. Yum!


Anna of Picture It Raw has some impressive artist skills. She illustrated her blueberry topped raw cupcake for Ellen.


And both Michelle and Lori of Pure2Raw joined the quest, too. Lori arrived home from her European trip to these raw cupcakes, made by Michelle. Ellen even stopped by for some pics (something tells me they should upload this to the Ellen site in the "what's wrong with this photo" category, ha ha).


Then, my blogging buddy Bitt was at it again. She printed out her copy of my raw cupcake e-book and had it made into an actual book.


I later posted a craft that involved printing out the pages, too (Oops, I forgot Ellen. Oh well, she didn't need to be in all of the shots).


TyrahD from Domestic Dharma got a little creative in her raw kitchen, improvising with the ingredients she had on hand, as well as a biscuit cutter in place of the silicone liners.


I had to show a view of the sweet surprise center.


Nelly at From Nelly ... With Love ... (the same Nelly I talked about above; hey, that rhymes) went on a hunt for reusable silicone cupcake liners and look what she found; her liners are a different shape. Doesn't it resemble a chocolate covered strawberry cupcake?


She made more than one. Yum!


And Bitt continued her raw cupcake kick. What's under this chocolate n'icing?


She attempted making a checkerboard cupcake, but ended up making a swirly version. Now that's a tasty mistake. Ellen agreed :-)


And I had to mention Hayden's contribution to the cause, if you can call it that. She didn't want to share.


Maybe she'll share with me today :-)

Again, thanks to everyone who's shared with me so far. Keep sending your raw cupcake creations my way, and I'll continue to post them/link to you. Here's what you need to do:

Just check out the recipes from my raw cupcake e-book, whip them up yourself, take a picture and let me know where I can link to them (I gotta know about it, if you want me to highlight it on my site). Happy unbaking!

BTW, this is an e-book, which saves some trees (unless you decided to do my cut-and-paste project). Please make sure to provide a confirmed e-mail address at the time of purchase, so I can send it to you. Thanks :-)

*****

Also, don't forget about my birthday deal that ends today: The good people at Natural Zing have a birthday special in my honor. All of my readers who purchase $50 or more of raw cupcake-making ingredients (or whatever other products you like; I just thought you'd be on a raw cupcake kick) through Friday, April 30, 2010, will receive a pound of almonds free. Just enter the code: $50ALMONDS_RAWDORABLE in the comment box at check out. Happy birthday or unbirthday to all of you, too!

*****

GIVEAWAY ALERT! And, if you took the time to read this far, you can participate in my e-book giveaway. Just leave a comment mentioning why you'd like to win it or who'd you like me to send one to on your behalf (that is if you have one already). I'll enter you again, if you blog or tweet about it. The contest ends at the end of today, as it's special for my b-day. Good luck :-)

Does Ellen dream of raw cupcakes?

Well, her cutout does. If you missed my last post, let me explain. I've been photographing my raw cupcakes with Ellen DeGeneres's World Domination face cutout, as part of my own quest for raw cupcake domination, specifically to get Ellen, herself, to try a raw cupcake.

Here she is pictured with a raw cupcake, similar to the ones served at my baby shower last summer. This particular cupcake was the inspiration for my "dreaming of raw cupcakes" design I hand-painted on Hayden's onesie and eventually uploaded to Cafe Press to be printed on shirts. Ellen is modeling the junior raglan in this pic.

It's amazing how it hangs on her like she's hanger or something. I wonder why that is? (obviously, it really is on a hanger, but maybe the real Ellen would wear one with pride someday; I know I have).

Anyway, don't forget that you can participate in the quest, too. Just check out the recipes from my raw cupcake e-book, whip them up yourself, take a picture of the Ellen cutout with your creation and let me know where I can link to it. Also, if you'd like, upload your pic to the Ellen website, mentioning the quest to get her to eat a raw cupcake.

So far, Bitt has highlighted two raw cupcakes on her site. Check them out. She didn't get Ellen's face in the shots, as she was unable to print one out before these were devoured (understandable).

Lucky for her, I had Ellen at the computer with me this morning, so I took this quick pic. What do you think, Bitt? :-)

How to make a checkerboard cupcake

I apologize for the lackluster title, but that's exactly what today's post is about. Inside yesterday's cuppie is a checkered pattern of basic spice and chocolate "cake."

So, how did I come up with that trick?

Well, since my mom used to make the baked version for me growing up (I think I even requested this kind for my birthday one year; what should I ask for this time? I'm celebrating with my family on Sunday), I thought I'd rawify the process in cupcake form.

The baked version requires a special pan divider to pull of this illusion, but you don't need it replicate the effect in raw form. That's one of the advantages when dealing with raw "cake;" it can be molded into just about any form you want to make.

Now, before you start shaping little cubes to stack together, let me show you how the illusion takes place. This is way easier than than it looks.

Just like with the original baking method, you need to make alternating circular patterns. To make a checkerboard cupcake, start with a small circle of one shade of "cake," surrounded by the contrasting shade (see how I have the chocolate in the center and the basic spice in a ring around it). Do the same thing with the next layer, except reverse the two shade's of "cake" (that would mean having the spice in the center of the chocolate this time). The last layer should look exactly like the first (chocolate surrounded by spice).

When you slice the cupcake directly down the center, the interior looks like a checkerboard. What do you think Ellen? She looks like she approves :-)

*****

Giveaway winners

And before I forget, I need to announce the winners of the "Etre the Cow" book giveaway. Drawn at random (sorry I didn't have time to post a Hayden photo shoot/play-by-play; we've got big plans today), the winners are Kat and Molly. Congrats to you both!

*****

More magic mirror friends


Who does Ellen see in her magic mirror today? Did all my friends have fun at play? I see that I had a special day, making a Pineapple Under (and over) the Sea Cupcake (there's pineapple in the cupcake, frosted with some spirulina speckled n'icing and a dried pineapple garnish).

It looks like Anna of Picture It Raw had a special day, too. I just adore her artist skills. She illustrated her blueberry topped raw cupcake for Ellen. Impressive, huh? I thought you'd think so.

And both Michelle and Lori of Pure2Raw had a special day, as well. Lori arrived home from her European trip to these raw cupcakes, made by Michelle. Ellen even stopped by for some pics.

Lastly, my blogging buddy Bitt is at it again (please support her campaign to be added to Masala). To make her day extra special (and mine, too), she printed out her copy of my raw cupcake e-book and had it made into an actual book. That's even better than the project I did with mine, but I'll still reveal it next week.

Don't forget how you can have a special day and a mention on my site. Just check out the recipes from my raw cupcake e-book, whip them up yourself, take a picture of the Ellen cutout with your creation and let me know where I can link to it (I gotta know about it, if you want me to highlight it on my site). Also, if you'd like, upload your pic to the Ellen website, mentioning the quest to get her to eat a raw cupcake.

You can also help out the cause by sending multiple tweets to Ellen, as well as posting on her Facebook page. Of course, the main goal is to get her to try a raw cupcake, but a mention on her site would be pretty sweet, too :-)

Thanks to all who are participating. My birthday is only a week away. I wish I could show off a ton of your raw cupcakes that day (and maybe I can get a little Ellen recognition, as well). Pretty please, with raw whipped n'icing on top :-)

*****

BTW, since I mentioned spirulina in my raw cuppie, I wanted to let you know that Hayden likes spirulina, too. I decided to give her some after hearing about HiHoRosie's son and his adventures eating it. Don't forget to check out her giveaway!