On a Personal Note

Posted by Bake & Destroy on January 27th, 2012

Photo by Courtney Ivo

I have some news & updates to share and I figured I’d stick them all in once place so you can ignore them all at the same time rather than having to ignore several tweets and Facebook updates.

First of all, I’ll be in New York City and Miami next month and hoping to see some of you guys while I’m in both places. the New York trip is kind of whirlwind (I really can’t wait until I’m allowed to say what it’s all about – follow me on Twitter to find out!) but the Miami trip is 6 days so that should leave me with some hang out time. Check out the Facebook events – I’ll be posting updates to where I am in each city on those pages: New York & Miami

Also, tomorrow (Jan, 28th) is my mom’s birthday! I’m taking her to get her first tattoo (Morrissey lyrics – jealous?) and we’re having dinner at Mana Food Bar because in addition to being a Morrissey fan, she also recently went vegetarian! Yay mom!  If you’re on Twitter you can wish her a happy birthday tomorrow – she’s @bossylynne

Did you happen to see my business partner Katya and I in Crain’s Chicago Business earlier this week? Well, you can check it out on the Greyslater blog. Also, there is apparently a picture of me in Inked Magazine this month – who knew? Check out my Press Page for more unattractive bragging.

Finally, I would like to cordially invite you all to Mat Arluck’s Birthday/Arluck Time DVD Release Show! Back in 2010 we all got together to celebrate the life of our friend Mat, which was cut short by his battle with cancer. We raised a bunch of money that night for Grind for Life, and the whole thing was documented in this DVD! If you’ll be in the Chicago area on February 4th get your tickets and come on by. Just like in 2010 I’ll be heading up a 100% non-profit bake sale featuring vegan and conventional treats, not to mention exclusive Bake and Destroy accessories made by Lucky Cupcake Hairclips. And of course, like last time, ticket sales, raffles and other stuff will all benefit Grind for Life.

Thanks for reading my update! (Oh and a special thank you to everyone who has written me such sweet, supportive emails over the past year since my dad’s passing. I write back to each one of you, but I just wanted to say again how much it means to me that you take the time to do that.)

Redrum Velvet Cupcakes

Posted by Bake & Destroy on January 20th, 2012

It’s January 20th, do you know where your New Year’s resolutions are?

In honor of the Overlook Hotel’s perpetual haunted New Year’s party in The Shining, I’ve put together an alcohol-fused sugar bomb that’s sure to cure even the most murderous case of cabin fever.

A little butter, a little sugar and a whole lot of over-acting and you’ve got yourself one devilish dessert.

To make just over a dozen cupcakes you’ll need:

  • 1 & 3/4 cups cake flour
  • 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1 & 1/4 cups sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3 Tbs dark rum
  • 1 Tbs + 1 1/2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 3/4 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 3/4 tsp cider vinegar
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • Red food coloring*

* I recommend Americolor Super Red for the goriest possible color.

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners. (You’ll probably get 18 cupcakes from this recipe, so line two pans while you’re at it.)

Then you:

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until very light and fluffy, About 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
In a small bowl, whisk together the dark rum, cocoa and vanilla. Add to the batter and beat well. Add red food coloring until it’s a nice, bloody red.

In a measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. Add to the batter in three parts alternating with the cake flour. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not over beat. (You might break someone’s arm.)

In a small bowl, stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. Add to the batter and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well-blended and the batter is smooth.

Fill cups 2/3 full (these are high-risers) and bake 20-25 minutes, or until the tops spring back when you gently touch them, Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool completely.

All cake and no frosting makes Natalie a dull girl – so lucky for you I happen to have the perfect cream cheese frosting for these beasts!

You’ll need:

  • 4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • A pinch of salt
  • 2 & 1/4 cups confectioner’s sugar

In a bowl, with your electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat together cream cheese, butter and salt until creamy. Beat it like Jack beats his family. Ouch! With mixer on low speed, make 1/2 cup additions of sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Increase the speed of your mixer between each addition.

I should note that this recipe can just as easily be made sans-alcohol. Honestly, the rum doesn’t add much more than a laugh to the finished product. Just don’t tell Jack.

Originally posted on Slash & Dine, 2009

Friday the 13th Slasher Smores Cupcakes

Posted by Bake & Destroy on January 13th, 2012

It’s Friday the 13th, y’all! Tonight I plan on cuddling up in front of the TV with a cup of cocoa and a cupcake and relaxing to the sweet crackle-crackle sound of campers being cremated alive in their own sleeping bags. Ah yes, the horrors of summer camp, how many times have we been warned over the years? Don’t leave the kiddies alone while you sneak off to make out with your boyfriend and his sweet 80s headband, don’t wander through the forest in your underpants and whatever you do, for the love of God, don’t re-open Camp Crystal Lake!

In honor of the original Friday the 13th, I’ve created these smores cupcakes (a variation on Julie Hasson’s Best Chocolate Cupcake recipe.) I’m even including a PDF so you can make your own Jason cupcake toppers. Just click here to download them, print them on cardstock, cut them out and glue them to toothpicks.

For the cupcakes you will need:

  • 1 & 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 1/2 cup chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup coursely chopped graham crackers (or graham cookies)

Then you:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake pan with paper liners. Mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a small bowl. Stir in chocolate chips. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg and vanilla until smooth. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and buttermilk until smooth. Stir in graham cracker pieces. Scoop batter into pan and bake 22-27 minutes until tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove and cool completely on wire rack.

Marshmallow frosting:

  • 1 c. marshmallow fluff
  • 2 egg whites, at room temperature
  • 1 c. superfine sugar
  • 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
  • 1/8 tsp. salt
  • 1/4 c. water
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract

In double-boiler top over hot, not boiling water, combine all ingredients except vanilla. With hand mixer, beat until soft peaks form. Remove from heat and continue beating until stiff. Beat in vanilla.

Top each cupcake with a sticky pile of frosting, then crumble more graham crackers and sprinkle more chocolate chips on top. Stick in a Jason topper and prepare for the slaughter!

This recipe was originally posted on Slash and Dine, 2009.

Spiced Chocolate Root Beer Cupcakes

Posted by Bake & Destroy on January 12th, 2012

When I found out my friend Whitney was moving to Madison I knew I had to make her something stupid delicious to say good bye. Whitney and I met when Ian’s Pizza decided to get involved in SugarSlam last year and we’ve been sending each other politically incorrect text messages ever since. I really struggled with this one – what do you make the girl who works somewhere that serves such creative gems as Green Bean Casserole Pizza and the G.T.S. Pizza named after CM Punk?

Suddenly I remembered two things – one, I just went on a major Bake It Pretty shopping and acquired, among other things, a bottle of root beer extract. And two, Ian’s serves the world’s greatest root beer, Gale’s Root Beer by famed pastry chef Gale Gand. So I got out my favorite chocolate cupcake recipe (Julie Hasson’s The Best Chocolate Cupcake from 125 Best Cupcake Recipes) and got to tweaking. What I ended up with was a root beer, ginger, and cinnamon-inflused chocolate cake with a root beer and vanilla buttercream. If you want to find out what Whitney thought, follow her on Twitter – I’m bringing them to her tonight!

For the cupcakes you’ll need:

  • Whitney & CM Punk

    1 & 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tsp root beer flavoring
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk (I actually used kefir)

Then you:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a cupcake pan with paper liners. Mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt in a small bowl. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg and root beer flavoring until smooth. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and buttermilk until smooth. Scoop batter into pan and bake 22-27 minutes until tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove and cool completely on wire rack.

I frosted these with a basic vanilla buttercream, and added a splash of root beer to the portion that I colored red and blue. I frosted little Chicago flags on there to remind Whitney what city she was in when she met the coolest and most modest girl in the entire world – me. Good bye, Whitney! I’ll miss you!

Dirty Chai Spiced Whoopie Pies

Posted by Bake & Destroy on January 5th, 2012

Teno's Christmas face

We don’t hold too many holiday traditions sacred in the Slater household. As an adventurous baker, I love that about us. I don’t get stuck making the same old pumpkin pie or Christmas cookies year after year. I literally do whatever I feel like every single December. This year we spent Christmas day at my mom’s eating pizza and watching Star Wars, so Christmas Eve was as close as we got to a traditional holiday dinner. I made lasagna with farmers cheese, and for dessert, Tony requested by Bike Messenger Brownies in whoopie pie form.

I didn’t exactly fulfill his request as what I ended up making was more of a spice cake with coffee filing, but he knew better than to complain about it. I basically tweaked the vanilla whoopie recipe from Whoopie Pies with the spices from the chai cupcake in Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World and threw in some birthday cake kefir for good measure. Then I made a pretty basic coffee buttercream and filled them with that.

To make these whoopie pies you’ll need:

  • 2 & 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 4 Tbs unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 4 Tbs non-hydrogenated shortening
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup kefir (plain or vanilla, or use buttermilk)
  • 2 Tbs milk
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp white vinegar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

 Then you:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and prepare your whoopie pie pan (this can be an actual whoopie pie pan, or a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.) In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, spices and salt.

In your stand mixer (or with an electric hand-held mixer) beat together the butter, shortening and sugars until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and kefir (or buttermilk) and beat until combined.

In a small measuring cup, mix together the milk, baking soda and vinegar. Add the milk mixture, along with the flour mixture, to the butter mixture and beat on low until just combined. Add the vanilla and beat on medium for about 2 minutes.

Drop onto prepared baking sheets (I use a 2 Tbs scoop with my whoopie pie pans, or you can use 1 Tbs to make about 48 2″ cakes.) Bake for 10 minutes, then cook on the pan for 5 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely. Sandwich together with the filling of your choice.

If I was making these for a less picky crowd I might use a splash of anise in place of the vanilla and call these Turkish Coffee Whoopie Pies.

Favorite Holiday Recipes + A Pretty Giveaway

Posted by Bake & Destroy on December 22nd, 2011

It seems I’ve developed somewhat of a reputation for being a Grinch. Just because I hate everything about the holidays doesn’t mean I don’t want you guys to have a good time! So, not only have I rounded up all of my favorite holiday recipes, but I’m also going to give one of you a really cute party dress from Shabby Apple*.

Check out the end of this post for details.

But first, let’s eat! Here are my favorite holiday recipes from over the years:

Mulholland dress Shabby Apple

Win this dress!

As promised, I’m giving away a way cute Mulholland dress from Shabby Apple to one of my readers! Can’t wait to win? Well, you can also save 10% on your order when you enter bakeanddestory10off at check out. (Exp Jan 15, 2012)

To enter, “like” Shabby Apple on Facebook and leave a comment on this post letting me know you did. (You’ll also have access to special offers when you like them – bonus!) You’ll receive additional entries when you leave additional comments letting me know you:

Good luck, it’s going to look adorable on you!

*Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Shabby Apple. This means I receive a commission if you click one of my links and make a purchase. My credibility is extremely important to me, therefore I only endorse products I have personally purchased and used. This site is independently owned and the opinions expressed here are my own.

Immortal black metal Christmas

Congrats Denise! 

Introducing Greyslater – Fugly-free Since 2011

Posted by Bake & Destroy on December 15th, 2011

Gear Head No-Bottle Shampoo and Conditioner

Hello again. Were you wondering what I’ve been up to since making those Vegan Pistachio Whoopie Pies? Oh, lots of stuff… including raising over $1000 for Grind for Life. Aside from that I dunno, I got a new car, celebrated a birthday and oh yeah, started an online business.

A while ago my friend Katya and I decided that most eco-friendly stuff readily available is fugly . And beyond looking bad, a whole slew of it is manufactured overseas under questionable conditions. Finding this conclusion unacceptable, we started finding all kinds of obscure, awesome, Made in the USA stuff and emailing it back and forth to each other.

Hm… seems like it might be a good idea to make radical items like Made in the USA metal water bottles, faux cardboard dishes and vegan, organic personal care items available in one place, right? I mean, I’d shop there.

So we started Greyslater.com and stocked it with a bunch of eco-friendly items we truly loved. And when we couldn’t find exactly what we were looking for, we sought out US-based fabric mills and started making things our damn selves!

Mass Transit Made in USA Water Bottles

Wait, so is this post an ad for my new store? Umm… yes, kind of. But it’s also an introduction to a female-owned, dude-friendly business dedicated to sustainability and local manufacturing. Aaaaand it’s an opportunity for one of you to win something pretty cool that Katya and I hand picked just for you.

Complete the steps below to enter, and one of you will be randomly selected to win your choice of either:

The  “Greyslater Curse of the Billy Goat” Set – includes our best-selling Chicago transit map aluminum water bottle, vegan Chicago flag soap, vegan Chicago peppermint lip balm and a reusable mesh cotton bag for stashing your soap.

- or -

The “Greyslater America, F*** Yeah!” Set – includes a solid-color Made in the USA water bottle (you can pick from the in-stock colors), vegan 2-in-1 solid shampoo/conditioner bar and reusable cotton mesh bag for shower storage.

There are three ways to enter- for each one you complete, leave a separate comment below and let me know about it. The more you enter, the better your chance of winning! We’ll randomly choose a winner one week from today – December 22!

  1. Tweet about us! Be sure to include @greyslatergoods in the tweet so we see it. (Suggested tweet: Check out @greyslatergoods for un-fugly eco-friendly products!)
  2. Visit our site and “like” or comment on some products- each like or comment is a separate entry, but you only need to comment about it here once to let me know you completed this step.
  3. Like and share our Facebook page with your friends (make sure your “share” is public so we can see it!)

This is not a cardboard tray.

The whole point of this contest is that we don’t just want people to go to the site and buy stuff (although that’d be great, don’t get me wrong,) but we also really want your feedback. If you know of or use something that’s sustainably produced, made in the USA, reusable and rad, tell us about it. Have questions about stuff on the site? Ask! Love a non-profit or company that fits our mission? Send us the info.

PS: We just started carrying these super-cool Boston  and DC Mass Transit water bottles, so if there’s something you love/hate about the cities or transportation, let us know and we might give it a shout-out in the product descriptions.

 

Congrats, Emily – and thanks, everyone!

Vegan Chocolate Pistachio Whoopie Pies

Posted by Bake & Destroy on December 6th, 2011

A few weeks ago I (randomly) chose Kelly Garbato as my whoopie pie giveaway winner. Kelly is a vegan blogger, so the pressure was on to make something deliciously animal-free. Rather than use a vegan whoopie pie recipe I’ve seen online (many of which call for egg replacer, which I hate,) I adapted & veganized Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell’s Classic Chocolate Whoopie and Classic Buttercream recipes found in Whoopie Pies. The result was a chocolate pistachio whoopie I was pretty happy with. I might play around with adding some cardamom to the cakes and a bit more salt to the filling, but I think this is a good recipe to start with if you’re into whoopie pies.

vegan chocolate pistachio whoopie pieFor the whoopie:

  • 1 & 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 & 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 4 Tbs vegan butter substitute (I like Earth Balance)
  • 4 Tbs non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening (again, I like Earth Balance)
  • 1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup blended tofu (or soy yogurt)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 & 1/4 cup non-dairy milk
  • 1/4 cup finely-ground pistachio nuts*

*I bought mine raw and whole in the bulk bin at Whole Foods, and then roasted, salted and ground them as needed at home.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and prepare your whoopie pie pan (this can be an actual whoopie pie pan, or a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.) In a small bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together the margarine, shortening and brown sugar on low speed until mixed, and then for 3 more minutes on medium. (You could also do this with a hand-held electric mixer.) Add the tofu (I use silken tofu, firm texture, blended until there are no lumps) and vanilla and beat for 2 more minutes.

Add half the flour mixture and half of the non-dairy milk and beat on low until just incorporated. Add the remaining flour mixture and non-dairy milk and beat until completely combined. Add the ground pistachios and stir to incorporate.

To make about two dozen 2” whoopie pies, drop the batter one tablespoon at a time onto a lined baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. I use a whoopie pie pan, which makes about 16 larger whoopie pies.

Bake for 10 minutes or until the whoopies spring back when lightly touched. Cool on the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then remove from pans to cool completely.

Threadless shirt

Just one of my amazing gift picks from Threadless

For the filling:

  • 3 cups confectioner’s sugar
  • 4 Tbs vegan butter substitute (Earth Balance)
  • 4 Tbs non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening (Earth Balance)
  • 3-4 Tbs non-dairy milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • pinch salt
  • 1/2 cup finely ground pistachio nuts
  • Optional: green food coloring

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the margarine and shortening just until mixed. Add the confectioner’s sugar, beat on medium for about 1 minute until the mixture is crumbly. Add the non-dairy milk, vanilla and salt and beat on high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add the food coloring now, if using. Stir in the pistachios.

 To assemble:

When the whoopies are cool match them up as best you can. Plop a dollop of buttercream on the underside of one (I use a pastry bag to do this, but you don’t have to) and sandwich it together with another whoopie.

Check out my gift picks for Threadless!

Yep, the fine folks at Threadless asked me to choose my favorite tees for hes and shes. Go check out my list and buy some shirts while the sweet $9.99 sale is going on!

The 5th Annual Bake and Destroy Gift Guide & Giveaway

Posted by Bake & Destroy on November 27th, 2011

Immortal black metal ChristmasGood Godzilla, it’s that time of the year again. You’ve digested your Thanksgiving dinner, throat-punched a bunch of old ladies at Best Buy to get the best deal on a hideously large plasma screen TV and now you’re settling down at your desktop trying to find the perfect gift for all the weirdos in your life. As always, I’m here to help. For five years now I’ve been bringing you the awesomest, stupidest, and most wonderful things the Internet has to offer. Just check out my gift guide legacy if you don’t believe me!

This year I wanted to give you something really different, so I’ve enlisted a bunch of my friends to come up with top 5 lists for their respective fields of expertise. And as always, I have some great stuff to give away – those are sprinkled throughout the guide and listed again at the bottom. Everything I’m giving away would make an amazing gift – or, of course you can keep it for yourself, you selfish bastard.

Let’s kick things off with my longtime friend Thaddeus Mountain. Not only does Thad have the coolest real name in the world, but he also sat behind me in almost every class in high school, which resulted in us getting sent out into the hallway quite a bit. We bonded in high school over our love of pro-wrestling, so I couldn’t think of anyone better to bring you the…

For the Rasslin’ Fan:

“Wrestling fans are a notoriously fickle lot, especially in the age of the Interwebz. These rad gifts will satisfy both the smarmiest of smart marks, and the rubiest rube that ever rubed, who wouldn’t know kayfabe if it locked them in a Figure-Four, knife-edge chopping them all the livelong day.” – Thad

  1. Bret Hart necklaceLuchador necklace by Finest Imaginary - Moustaches, necklaces, and Lucha Libre. The best triple team since the Fabulous Freebirds.
  2. The Many Faces of Muto DVD Set - A gift for the die-hard fan. You’ll be hitting your foes with green mist and power drive elbows in no time thanks to Muta.
  3. Luchador Stainless Steel Flask - El Santo says that you’re thirsty. Listen to him.
  4. CM Punk Lawn Gnome - This isn’t your ordinary gnome. This gnome is a multiple-time World Champion. He’s also straight edge, which means he’s BETTER THAN YOU.
  5. Andre the Giant Art Print - Perfect for any fan, this is probably the greatest piece of art you can hang in your house. (You could win this! See the end of this post for details.)
Natalie’s Two Cents: As a wrestling fan and a fashionable mother trucker, I have several pendants by Dotty the Demon on my wishlist this year. I’m already the proud owner of a Honkey Tonk Man necklace and hope to get the Roddy Piper or Bret Hart next! Like what you see? Well, Dotty the Demon is going to give one of you a Bret Hart necklace of your very own! Check out the end of this post to find out how to enter.

For the Chicagoan (or the Wanna-be Chicagoan):

I’m writing this list myself because I have an ear of corn tattooed on my knuckle and a Chicago hot dog tattooed on my back. I also coined the phrase “cornfed as fuck,” therefore, this top 5 is mine.

  1. Made in the USA Chicago EL water bottleGenuine Chicago Hot Dog Print by Betty Turbo – The first thing you need to know about real-deal Chicagoans is how we like our hot dogs. Mustard, relish, diced onions, celery salt, sport peppers, pickle spears and fresh tomato on a poppy seed bun. No ketchup or we will for real kill you. This print will help you remember, and possibly save your life. (Betty Turbo is giving a print away to one of my readers, so check out the end of this post for details!)
  2. Chicago Flag Ceramics by Circa Ceramics – Know something else we Chicagoans are mega proud of? Our flag. We fly it from our fire escapes, tattoo it all over ourselves and print it on everything we can get our hands on. I took it so far as to eat my dinner off Chicago flag plates from Circa Ceramics and so should you.
  3. Chicago-made Cosmetics by Ethically Engineered – A lot of people are shocked to find out that Chicago is one of the country’s greenest cities, but we have a  long, proud history of bike-friendliness and green engineering in this city. You can support Chicago’s ever-growing green movement by purchasing eco-friendly, vegan soaps, bottleless shampoos, lip blams and more from Ethically Engineered.
  4. Lou Malnati’s Deep Dish Pizza – You’ve probably noticed that we of the Big Shoulders are fierce about our local foods. I’ve seen fist fights break out over New York style vs Chicago deep dish pizza. Say what you want about either one, but nothing says “home” to me so much as a slice of Lou Malnati’s famous, buttery-crust deep dish. Check out all their options online, from DIY kits to frozen pies.
  5. Chicago L Waterbottle – This is actually a teaser suggestions from a little side project I’m working on with my friend Katya. You can follow us on Twitter to find out when this awesome, 100% made in the USA water bottle will be available!
Natalie’s Two Cents: Yep, two more cents on my own list. Want to rep another Chicago original this holiday? Hi, I’m a Chicago original. Check out the Bake and Destroy Shop for aprons, coffee mugs, t-shirts and more! Plus, I’m going to send one of you  set of four stackable Bake and Destroy mugs. So check out the end of this post for details! (Free shipping on orders over $40* on 11/28. Coupon Code SHOPNOV28. Or, starting 11/29 15% off orders over $45. Coupon Code ADEC1145. Click here for details.)

For the Book Nerd

This list comes to you from my friend Ben, a real-life librarian! Can you believe a librarian would be friends with me? Me neither! Anyway, here are his top five picks for the literary-minded special someone on your list!
  1. Vonnegut t-shirtA subscription to the McSweeney’s Book Release Club - McSweeney’s books publishes everything from forgotten classics to new work by writers like Nick Hornby, Dave Eggers, and William T. Vollman. A gift subscription to the BRC gets the lucky recipient the next eight books McSweeney’s puts out, roughly one per month. And who doesn’t like getting presents in the mail?
  2. 100 classic Penguin book covers, in postcard form - For any literature buff, the iconic Penguin cover design is unmistakeable. This box collects 100 Penguin covers, mostly from the 30′s and 40′s when the distinctive single-color horizontal stripes stood for quality fiction at a reasonable price. When Alan Lane founded the company in 1935, he famously declared “I have never been able to understand why cheap books should not also be well-designed, for good design is no more expensive than bad.” Nearly eighty years later, this set proves the wisdom of his radical idea.
  3. Sports Jerseys for Book Nerds - If the book nerd in your life can’t tell a touchdown from a hole-in-one, it doesn’t mean they lack team spirit–their heroes might just come from a different field. These team jerseys from Novel-T feature writers and characters from both classic and modern literature, so everyone’s loyalties are covered. Plus, $1 from each purchase goes towards 826nyc or Doctors Without Borders, meaning your gift will be appreciated twice over.
  4. The Word Made Flesh, Literary Tattoos from Bookworms WorldwideGreat writing inspires a different kind of ink in this collection of literary tattoos. Full color photography, plus personal stories from the featured models, make this celebration of the written word both beautiful and inspirational. It’s a perfect coffee table book for a well-read household.
  5. Upcycled vintage book journalsMoleskine is so over, right? Get your nerd one of these journals upcycled from vintage book covers, and they’ll be sure to get attention while scribbling notes for their next story. There are a ton of styles and subjects available–everything from science textbooks to Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys–but if none of them are quite right, the maker is happy to take custom orders.
Natalie’s Two Cents: I want on of those t-shirts. Poe. That is all.

For the Comic Book Gal

…and by “gal” we definitely mean ADULT gal. This list comes from one of my favorite wrestling-and-cake-obsessed artists, Agnes. You might know her as Betty Turbo (check out the end of this post to find out how you can win one of her prints!) Agnes admits that it was difficult not to make this list “a completely filthy list of smut,” and now you know why I love her.

  1. comic book headbandChester 5000 XYV by Jess Fink – For the dame who likes her saucy stories sepia toned and chock full of robot love machines.  You may already know creator Jess Fink from her Threadless t-shirt designs, now her erotic web comic is available in a handsome hardbound book from Top Shelf Productions.  Explicit and graphic but still playful, sweet, clever, and beautifully painted.
  2. Comic Sound FX headbands from Janine Basil – Great for accessorizing a comic con outfit, or just when you’re having a totally rad hair day and want your head to say KAPOW!  Brightly colored and attention getting to make you feel like a superhero!  Janine’s in the UK, so hurry up if you’re in the U.S. shopping for Christmas!
  3. This Journal Belongs To… by Ming Doyle – A GORGEOUS professionally printed art journal featuring the amazing work of illustrator and comic book artist Ming Doyle.  Peeking inside someone’s sketchbook has never been such a beautiful adventure.  Every other art book on your coffee table will be jealous.  Featuring tasty things book nerds love to adore, like a shiny pearlescent cover and a red ribbon bookmark.  Check out the cute promo video Ming made!
  4. Girls With Slingshots by Danielle Corsetto – How generous are you feeling?  The sixth printed volume of this looong running webcomic is now available for preorder, and it’s the first one in full color!  Order all six for that extra special lady on your list and she’ll have hours and hours to spend engrossed in relationship trials & tribulations, sarcasm, a few cute kitties, and a talking cactus!  This is a slice-of-life comic full of people you’d want to know… or at least talk shit about. Order the “artist editions” and get them personalized for you by Danielle herself.
  5. Reading Comics: 24 Postcards Depicting Americas 2nd Favorite Preoccupation by Denis Kitchen – What fan of printed matter doesn’t need a few more charming postcards to hoard, use as bookmarks, or send a handwritten note?  That comic-loving babe you know appreciates special messages written on REAL PAPER with actual pens or pencils.  Fun vintage photos featuring random folks and occasionally celebrities reading comics, with some smartass captions on the back.

Natalie’s Two Cents: Agnes and I may have bonded over our love of 80′s wrestling and Andrew W.K., but our love of wacky hair things has kept us together all these years. Some of my favorites come from Lucky Cupcake Hairclips – check out the comic book, wrestling and even Star Wars-inspired bows! You’ll find a coupon code for 10% off to our left over there, and head cupcake Joy has agreed to give away some limited-edition Bake and Destroy bows to one of you! Check out the end of this post for details. (And check out my post about why these bows are so awesome.)

For Mini Cool People

Kids are awesome. They have all the benefits of hanging out with your most mentally unstable, perpetually-drunken friends – with about 1/8th of the chance that they’ll end up getting you arrested. Embarrassingly honest, completely uninhibited and cute enough to get away with wearing some seriously questionable outfits, kids are some of my favorite people to shop for. Here are some ideas for the wee people in your life.

  1. Parry Gripp albums – This gift will be equally welcomed by kids and their parents. Cussing-free, mainly pop-punk songs about food, famous memes and other silly topics. Go listen to them free on Parry Gripp’s website and then download them on iTunes or Amazon.
  2. Threadless t-shirts for kids – While there are scads of adorable clothing options for little girls, I think most parents of boy-type children such as myself will tell you, there isn’t crap. Luckily, Threadless makes really cute shirts and onsies for kids with a sense of humor.
  3. Ants on a Log soap – For me, ants on a log solved a major issue I had as a parent: getting my kid to flipping eat something. The healthy combo of peanut butter, celery sticks and raisins works every time, though. This look-alike vegan soap solves another parental issue: getting your kids into the tub. For under $10 it’s a smart stocking stuffer for the dirty little kid in your family.
  4. Mad Monster Party DVD – Got a niece whose totally obsessed with Monster High? So do I! And while the monster lover in me thinks they’re way cooler than Barbie, the auntie in me is all, “why are they dressed so slutty?” Encourage your little lady’s creepy ways with something a little more innocent. Plus, Mad Monster Party features the vocal talents of Boris Karloff and Phyllis Diller so it has both horror and comedy street cred to spare.
  5. CakeSpy cookbook – A few weeks ago I posted a simple-but-fun recipe from CakeSpy’s new, kid-friendly cookbook. With lots of adorable illustrations and creative recipes like Candy Salad, this book would make a cute gift for any kid who loves to play in the kitchen. The cover is pink as all get-out, but my son will vouch for the recipes’ unisex appeal.
Natalie’s Two Cents: Some of Teno’s favorite toys were a totally cheap thrill – printable cut-and-make paper toys from Fantastic Toys. For just a few dollars each, you’ll receive PDF files allowing you to print and make an endless supply of doll houses, favor boxes and more. The favor boxes double as a sweet way to gift someone homemade cookies and candies. Check out the end of this post to find out how you can win three PDFs from Fantastic Toys!

For the Teacher 

This list comes from my mom, who has been teaching for 20+ years: “The subject of teacher gifts comes up in one forum or another every year, and I always hesitate to give my opinion because I really don’t want to sound ungrateful.  The thing parents need to remember is that we generally have between 22 and 30 students at one time. (Middle school teachers have more than elementary, but from what they tell me, they don’t get as many gifts at that level.)  So the ornament or coffee mug you’ve chosen is probably very cute and unique to you, but chances are good it is one of ten we receive that year. Multiply that by then number of years the teacher has been in the classroom and she could very likely open a Mugs R Us franchise or single-handedly decorate the tree in Daley Plaza.I requested the input of several teacher friends and almost every one mentioned that it would be easier to list things we do NOT want/need more of. That brings us back to the ungrateful comment above.”

  1. She already has one, thanks.

    The number one most popular request is gift certificates of all kinds: Starbucks, local restaurants, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, mani/pedi spa certificates as well as Target and department store cards are always the right size, color and flavor.  For those of us who love to shop, we not only get to shop, but we don’t have to worry about spending holiday shopping money on ourselves. Bonus!

  2. The half aprons from Foodphyte are quite popular with the K-2 teachers at my school.  You can catch several of us in the hall wearing our cute little teacher aprons with our pockets filled with those things we use all day long. (In my case, it’s stickers, pens, my glasses and lipgloss.)
  3. Chocolate was also mentioned as a popular and appreciated gift. A box of candy is nice to have on hand when holiday visitors drop in, and if dietary restrictions prohibit the teacher from enjoying it herself, chances are good her family will appreciate the treat  I cannot, of course, speak for all educators, but I know I’m not alone when I say I will not eat anything that someone baked at home unless I personally know the baker and have seen her kitchen. I can’t help it. I’ve always been squeamish that way. But I will always remember the day a parent showed up at my classroom door with a pie from Baker’s Square. My whole family reaped the benefits that evening!
  4. Most teachers are paper/office supply junkies. It seems to go with the territory. Cute note cards, notepads, cool pens (if you’ve ever seen me nerd out in Target over the Pilot V2 pens, you’d buy me a package). As many friends have mentioned, we do buy a great deal of our classroom supplies out of our own pockets, so cute/unique office supply items will probably be put to good use.
  5. I’ve been teaching for over twenty years and I still remember every sweet, heartfelt note I’ve received from a parent.  I don’t care if the Dunkin Donuts gift certificate in the card is for the minimum amount, if the parent took the time to acknowledge that I knock myself out day after day trying to do the best I can, applauds me for being caring and patient and tells me how much their child loves me and loves school because of me, well, that is one hell of a meaningful gift.
Natalie’s Two Cents:  My mom speaks the truth about eating baked goods made in a stranger’s kitchen. It can be scary! Still, what hard-working teacher wouldn’t appreciate something warm from the oven?  This year, try the next best thing to homemade – give your child’s teacher a couple of mixes from Dassant – scones, beer bread, truffle brownies and more. You’ll save $5 off your order of $20 or more when you enter the code DESTROY online. Plus, two of you will win four mixes of your choice delivered straight to your home! Check out the end of this post for details.

The Giveaway

I hope that covers the bases for at least most of the people on your list this year. If I missed someone (like your vegan friend, or your sister who rivals Martha Stewart’s craftiness check out some of my older gift guides!
And now I have some gifts for you guys! Starting on Tuesday, November 29th I will be choosing someone different every night to receive a prize as outlined below. To enter, leave me a comment about what you’re hoping for this holiday. The contest is only open to those with a US shipping address, and you may only enter once. I’ll be choosing the winning comments at random – so you can enter at any point during the seven days!
  1. Nov. 29th – Four Dassant baking mixes of your choice. Congrats, Jenny! 
  2. Nov. 30th – One Betty Turbo print of your choice. Congrats, Teri! 
  3. Dec. 1st – Bret Hart necklace by Dotty the Demon + an Andre the Giant print from Boxing Bear. Congrats Crystal! 
  4. Dec. 2nd – Three Gingerbread Village printable toy PDFs from Fantastic Toys. Congrats Mike!
  5. Dec. 3rd. - Four Dassant baking mixes of your choice. Congrats Sarah! 
  6. Dec. 4th – Bake and Destroy hairclips prize package from Lucky Cupcake Hairclips Congrats Susan!
  7. Dec. 5th – Bake and Destroy stackable mugs from me Congrats Ashley! 

Good luck, and crappy crolidays! 

Limited Edition Bake and Destroy Hair Clips for Grind for Life

Posted by Bake & Destroy on November 20th, 2011

Bake and Destroy hair clips bowsI’m very excited to tell you guys that I’ve teamed up with Lucky Cupcake Hairclips to create these limited edition Bake and Destroy hair clips benefitting Grind for Life! Lucky Cupcake is the only shop aside from my own where you’ll find official Bake and Destroy items and Joy is donating $2 from every bow sold to my favorite non-profit in honor of my birthday wish to raise $1000 for Grind for Life.

As cute as these are clipped in your hair, I also use Lucky Cupcake Hairclips to cute up my purses and headbands – I even clip them onto the straps of my tank tops. For more inspiration, check out the Lucky Cupcake Facebook fan page.

For more about Grind for Life and my birthday wish, check out my video:

I hope you all have a relaxing Thanksgiving week end! Still looking for recipes? I pulled together some of my favorites here. And don’t forget to enter my whoopie pie giveaway! XOXO