A Red Cake Stand and Mint Chocolate Muffins

I s there life outside of studio projects? I was beginning to wonder! So this morning, I decided to take a break from all things studio and do a little baking instead. My first plan was to make a loaf of banana bread since my pile of over ripe bananas was slowly taking over the freezer, but only two of the five of us actually like banana bread. To please the majority, I knew I needed to also provide a scrumptious alternative...and nothing says scrumptious like Mint Chocolate Muffins!


They were very easy to make and best of all - my batch made 14 muffins!


What do you think about this wooden cake stand I found at Goodwill the other day? It was originally just stained brown, but I transformed it the day I brought it home {so quickly that I didn't take the time to take a before shot!} I sprayed it using a spray paint I had on hand called Colonial Red from Lowe's. I haven't been able to find this shade as of late, but Lowe's does carry a Rustoleum shade called Heritage Red that is nearly- if not the exact - same color. {I'm using it a lot in the studio now! It has a nice satin finish which I love!}


It's funny, because I was just thinking recently about making something similar using the round, wooden trays left over from various sized cheese domes I've been collecting. I thought they could easily be attached to candle sticks with wider bases {or a small, round wooden disk attached to the bottom of the candlestick}, painted, and then used for a display.


I sanded my painted cake stand a little on the edges and applied some antiquing glaze.


By the way, Hubs thinks I've gone crazy collecting cake stands...but I simply cannot help it! I'm telling you, it's a weakness!

Oh, enough about cake stands. I saved a muffin for you!



If you'd like to try these, use this fantastic recipe I found at Allrecipes.com. I'm posting the recipe the way I made it {I added just a little more milk per reviewers' suggestions...they came out perfectly!}

Chocolate Chip Muffins

* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 tablespoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 egg
* 1 cup milk
* 1/3 cup vegetable oil
* 3/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips {I used Ande's mint chocolate - and probably more than 3/4 cup!}

In a large bowl, combine the first four ingredients. In a small bowl, beat egg, milk and oil. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 400 degrees F for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack.

Have a great week, everyone!

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I'm including this post in this weeks DIY Day!