#atozchallenge | Itty Bitty City Kitchen

It’s a Dreary and Drizzly day here in New York. It’s Downright chilly out and a Darn shame that it can’t just be spring already…. Daffodils in bloom, kids picking Dandelions…

Okay. I think you get it. It’s D day here at the A to Z challenge.

And this gray day could really use a punch of color and brightness.

So, I painted my nails hot pink (I’m obsessed with my new Julep subscription)

And decided to mix up a delicious salad.

Now salads can be boring.

If everything is all one note, same texture, then you’re just going to feel like a bunny munching on greens. No offense to bunnies. Easter Bunny, if you’re reading, I’ll leave you some carrots in exchange for some robin’s eggs.

But if you’re having a salad for lunch, you want it to be interesting enough that you won’t be at the vending machine getting a Snickers bar, and satisfying enough that you’re not rummaging around for a bag of pretzels at 3 o’clock.

Lately I’ve been really into adding dried fruit to my greens. It adds a nice chew, a hint of sweetness and a new texture.

Here’s my spinach

I added some marinated artichokes for some fat and some zing

next some dried cranberries and dried plums (yes, prunes. sounds so much better to say dried plums though, no?)

Some sunflower seeds for crunch and protein to keep me full

A simple dressing of sunflower oil (to pick up on the sunflower seeds) and champagne vinegar and voila!

An interesting, delicious and filling salad

Yesterday we made some buttercream.

And much as we’ve all had days where we’d love nothing more than to sit down with a big ‘ol bowl of butter cream and a spoon, we’re all adults here.

Well, actually, that doesn’t mean anything. We’re adults. So we CAN eat the butter cream with a spoon if we want to. Yea, I guess we know better. But we also knew better when we were kids and mom told us not to do something and we did it anyway…

But I digress.

We made butter cream. And because we know better, and well, because today is all about the letter C, we’re going to put the butter cream on some amazingly delicious and simple cupcakes.

I don’t have a go-to cupcake recipe so I set out to find one. This one is from Natasha’s Kitchen. She got it from Glorious Treats. If these two ladies both love it, then it sounded good to me. So thank you for posting this one.

1 1/4 cups flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup buttermilk (or use 1/2 cup milk with a 1/2 tsp of lemon juice. I did. It works! Swear! Great baking trick!)

Preheat the oven to 350 and line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.

In a bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In another bowl beat two eggs

then add the sugar and stir

then add the oil and the vanilla and stir

Now here is where you’re supposed to patiently mix the wet ingredients into the egg mixture, alternating with the buttermilk and the flour until everything is gently combined.

I don’t have the room for a stand mixer in this bitty kitchen

Nor do I have the patience for this.

So I very gently folded the dry into the wet (all at once, but carefully)