DIY Rainbow Cupcakes

I recently was asked to make Rainbow Cupcakes for someone, and I had never made them before.  Well they ended up being super easy and came out really neat.  Try them out for yourself, and play around with the colors to make them match whatever the theme/holiday is.

First mix up a box of white cake mix according to the package directions.  Then divide evenly into as many bowls as colors you have planned.  I did the typical 6 colors in the rainbow (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Violet).  Wilton Icing colors will give you a nice true deep color as opposed to the liquid food coloring you can get in the regular grocery store.  Make the colors slightly darker than you want as they will lighten a bit when baked.

Divide colors into cupcake liners.  I used a 1/2 ounce scoop but a teaspoon would work.  No matter how many colors you use, do not fill the liners more than 2/3 full to prevent over flow when baking.

Bake according to package directions.  Check for doneness by poking a toothpick into the cupcakes.  If it comes out clean or with very minimal crumbs than they are done.  Cool in the pan on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes and then remove from pan for further cooling.  Do not frost your cupcakes until they are fully cooled.

I couldn't resist and had to break one open to see how the rainbow effect turned out.  And they were so cool looking!

I ended up making 100 of these so divided them up and frosted them into all of the colors of the rainbow that I had used in the batter.  I made regular American Buttercreme (Shortening, Powdered Sugar, Water, Meringue Powder, and Vanilla)  You can of course use whatever suits your personal taste.  The Wilton Buttercream Recipe is a good basic icing to make.  Add a pinch of salt if you feel it is too sweet, but just a pinch.

Hope these brightened up your day and inspired you to try them out.  Homemade is always better than store bought!

DIY Garbage Disposal Pellets

We all throw scraps of food in our garbage disposal, some more than others.  Well after a while it can get an interesting aroma that is not pleasant.  There are many store brand of pellets, packets, and powders that are used for refreshing your disposal.  However they can range from $3-$4 or more and you get about 5 to use.  So roughly a dollar for each use.  These DIY pellets are around $1.50 or less to make for the whole batch and you get 24+  I didn't even bother pricing this out as I had all but the lemon in my house and I honestly think it cost less than the $1.50 I estimated.

DIY Garbage Disposal Pellets

3/4 Cup      Baking Soda
1/2 Cup      Salt (Regular Iodized Salt, Kosher Salt will not work as the crystals are too large)
1/2 Tsp.      Liquid Dish Soap
1 Each        Lemon

Sheet Pan
Parchment Paper
Small Scoop or Spoon

1. Mix the Baking Soda and Salt together in a small bowl.  Just mix until combined.

2. Zest the lemon peel and then cut in half.  Squeeze the juice out of the lemons, watching not to get any seeds in the bowl.  I used a citrus press to help with this.  Add the dish soap.

3. Mix all ingredients together.  It should resemble semi-wet sand.  You can add a little more dish soap if it is too dry.

4.  Using a rounded teaspoon or some type of scoop, portion out the mixture onto a parchment paper lined sheet pan.  If the pellets do not form into the spoon then the mixture is not wet enough.

5. Let dry overnight or until hard.  Place into a sealed air-tight jar.  As needed place 1-2 pellets in your disposal, turn it on and run hot water.  Fresh, Easy, Natural and Cheap!