ifyoulikeitthenyoushouldaputaPEEPonit...

so yay for making TWO new things!
introducing crancarrot cupcakes with creamycreamcheese frosting AND handmade marshmallows on top:

i realized yesterday that i've never made carrot cake before! and gee-whiz its a lot of work... do you know how many carrots it takes to make 2 1/2 cups shredded carrots? let me tell you... about 8! i was like, man, i'm getting a workout in here!
but i think they turned out pretty fabulously, and i don't even like carrot cake! (which i also realized yesterday) since i'm not a big fan of nuts, i omitted those... and then i added cranberries to make it a little more springy. so it turned out to be more of a fruit-spice-type-cake rather than truuuuuue carrot cake, but potato, potat-to.
i found the recipe here but changed a few things... like no nuts, added cranberries, and then greatly reduced the oil and added applesauce instead. it was a pretty moist cake, but really dense, which apparently is what i've heard carrot cake is supposed to be like. and, since i don't ever eat carrot cake, i didn't know!
here are some pics of the process::

for the marshmallows, i found a recipe for making homemade marshmallows here and then cut them out with a flower cookie cutter and added sprinkles to make them look like peeps. it was so totally easy to do, and i think i'm going to make them much more often. here are pics of the oh-so-fun marshmallow process:

so here is the finished product!!! :)

i realized a few things during this little cupcake experiment...

a.) i do not own a regular cake pan (9x13)

b.) it takes way too long to "shred" carrots, but its so much better to buy fresh and do it yourself

c.) my "peeps" really aren't that bad

d.) i really should be more careful with my spatulas... i'm now down to one, half-melted lil guy

e.) everything looks prettier in a box with a bow

f.) why should i invest in a kitchenaid when my makeshift one (see pic above) works so well??