Tie Cupcakes inspired by Men's Wearhouse

This evening, I made some cupcakes for my husband to take to his new job.  Since he started his job, I have had lots of quality alone time - he has been working 12 hours days all week!  I miss him and, I guess, baking is what I do to make myself feel better.  I had these cupcakes frozen, so I sat them out to thaw this morning.  They are a mixture of White Velvet cake, White Almond Sour Cream cake, and White Almond Sour Cream cake with berries.  They are each iced in white chocolate buttercream and the decorated with homemade buttercream fondant. Recipes will follow in a later post; here are some pictures:

Happy Baking!

Lemon Walnut Cupcakes!

 I have done it! I have found the one 'sweet treat' my husband adores!  He is not much on sweets, but he has raved about these cupcakes (especially the lemon buttercream), and I must admit, that is a good feeling for his wife, the 'baker' =)  This recipe is adapted from  1001 Cupcakes, Cookies and Tempting Treats - a book my Daddy gave me for my birthday this year (thanks, Dad!). It is a grown-up cupcake, and tastes like an absolute dream.  The lemon mixed with the walnut just does it somehow.  This is the first time I have made buttercream with actual butter instead of Crisco in a long time, and I had forgotten how much of a difference it makes.  I am excited to get to do this more now that it has cooled down and the humidity won't melt the butter! The only complaint I have about this recipe from the book is that it only made enough batter for 6 cupcakes, where the recipe said it would make 12.  Now, I like a "full" cupcake, but even if I had only half filled the papers, I don't think I would have gotten 12 cupcakes.  SO, next time I will for sure double the recipe. 

Lemony Walnut Cupcakes Recipe (adapted from the 1001 Cupcakes, Cookies and Tempting Treats 'Moist Walnut Cupcakes' recipe):
heaping 1/4 cup chopped walnuts*
4 tbsp butter, softened and cut into pieces
1/2 cup sugar*
grated rind of 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup self rising flour (1/2 cup all purpose flour + 1/4 tsp. salt + 3/4 tsp baking powder*)
2 eggs
6 walnuts for decoration*

Lemon Buttercream Recipe:
4 tbsp. butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioner's sugar + a little to adjust thickness*
grated rind of 1/2 lemon
2 tsp. lemon juice*
1 tsp. milk*

*Changes I made to the recipe - I chopped my walnuts instead of putting them in the food processor, used regular sugar instead of superfine, used a self rising flour substitute because I did not have self-rising on hand, and only had to use 6 walnuts because the recipe only made 6 cupcakes, not 12.  In the frosting, I had to add a little more sugar, extra lemon juice and some milk to get it to the consistency I like.

Method:
 Chop your walnuts into small pieces.  Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy, then add the eggs one at a time until completely combined.  Add in the remaining ingredients and blend until just combined.  Line 6 places in a cupcake pan with papers and fill about 2/3 full with batter.  Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool completely.
For frosting, beat butter, juice, and milk together until smooth.  Add sugar and beat until an icing forms. I frosted using a 1M star tip to make a swirl on top.

The recipe in the book said to chop the walnuts in the food processor and then add the rest of the ingredients to the processor and pulse until a batter formed.  While this would be faster, I prefer my method. Plus, my food processor is a big mess to use and clean, and it was late =)

You MUST try these! I promise you won't be disappointed!

Happy Baking!

Red Velvet - Cupcakes and Kisses!

A few weeks ago, my mother had the most amazing red velvet donut from the Donut Hole in Santa Rosa Beach, FL.  This donut made such a buzz around our office, that Mom and I have been wanting to try to make them ever since!  Mom bought a mini-donut pan and all the  necessary ingredients for the batter, and I was to try and duplicate the magical donut.  We found a recipe at Devil-Donuts.com, and decided to go for it after dinner last night.  The final results did not render a perfect red velvet donut, but, rather, a mini-donut pan adventure and some delicious red velvet cupcakes, who knew?!

Red Velvet Kisses and Cupcakes Recipe
(from Devil Donuts)
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) of butter, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
2 1/3 cups of cake flour (2 tbsp. cornstarch to just under 1 cup of all purpose flour)
2 tablespoons of Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 cup of buttermilk or 1 tbsp. white vinegar added to 1 cup of milk
1 1/2 tablespoons of red food coloring
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of distilled white vinegar

This recipe made such a gorgeous batter! I creamed together the butter and sugar, then added the eggs in one at a time.  I mixed together the flour, cocoa, soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Then, I whisked together the buttermilk, red coloring, vanilla and white vinegar.  I added the dry ingredients into the butter mixture alternately with the wet ingredients - beginning and ending with the dry. 

Now comes the fun part!  For a mini-donut pan, you MUST fill the pan only 2/3 full or you get mushrooms, like this:

They may look funny, but they still taste amazing!

The hubby thought it was pretty hilarious!

I figured out that the best way to fill the pan is with a piping bag, not a spoon - it was much easier to control the amount I added. Once we filled the pan correctly, we got better results:

For the cream cheese frosting, I used my basic recipe:

1 cup Crisco Vegetable Shortening

8oz. softened cream cheese

1 tsp. pure vanilla flavoring

8-10 tsp. milk

3-4 cups powdered sugar

pink of salt.

Simply cream all the ingredients together and add sugar and milk to get the consistency you desire.

I must admit that this is the best red velvet cake I have ever made.  The texture is perfect and the taste is spot-on.  The only thing I may do differently next time is add a little more cocoa to the batter.  The red velvet kisses are going to be perfect for Christmas parties!

Next up - Daring Bakers and Birthday Cake! Happy Baking!

Florida State University Cupcakes!

This weekend marks a very bittersweet occasion for my family - my youngest sister is leaving for college ... talk about feeling old! She is going to FSU, which, thankfully, is only 2 hours from me; not too far for lots of visits =)  I'm super duper proud of her though, and I know she will do just great!  Anyway, I am going to Alabama this weekend to visit family, so I wanted to send her to school with something from me, since I won't be able to help her move in.  Meeting new roomies can be stressful, so what better way to break the ice than delicious cupcakes with a little school spirit, and they just had to be chocolate because chocolate makes everything more fun!

To create these cupcakes, I used gold foil cupcake papers and an adaption of the classic Martha Stewart One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook.  I topped the cupcakes with maroon-colored buttercream icing, sparkly gold sprinkles, and a cute little FSU logo.  I think I achieved the 'garnet and gold' look I was going for.

One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcake Recipe (adapted from Martha Stewart):
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 + 1/8 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 + 1/8 tsp. baking powder
1/2 + 1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. instant espresso powder
1 tsp. meringue powder
1 large egg + 1 egg yolk
1/2 + 1/8 cup milk
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp. unsweetened applesauce
1/2 + 1/8 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 + 1/8 cup warm water

The best part about this recipe is that it is 'one-bowl'!  Simply sift together the flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, coffee, and meringue powder.  Add the eggs, milk, applesauce, vanilla, and warm water to the bowl, and beat on low with an electric mixer until the ingredients are just blended (about 2 minutes).  The batter will be very runny and you should see little fizzy bubbles on top.  Fill your prepared baking cups about 2/3 full and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20 minutes.  TIP: When baking in foil cupcake papers, make sure you spray everything very well with nonstick spray or the liners will stick and the cupcake tops will be ruined!

The cakes baked up perfctly - firm enough to hold the icing, yet they had a light and fluffy texture

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting (from Wilton, medium consistency):
1 cup Crisco vegetable shortening
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla flavoring
1/2 tsp. butter flavoring
1 tsp. vanilla latte coffee creamer
9 tsp. milk or water
1 tbsp. meringue powder
1 lb. powdered sugar

This buttercream recipe uses Crisco because this summer heat tends to melt butter.  The Crisco holds up  much better, and the butter flavoring gives the yummy taste we are all looking for! To make the frosting,  cream together the shortening, flavorings, coffee creamer, and milk with an electric mixer.  Add the meringue powder and powdered sugar and beat until creamy.  I used one small container of  Wilton Christmas Red and 1/2 container of Wilton Burgundy icing colors to create the garnet color. To make the swirl, fill a disposable bag with icing and fit it with the 1M star tip.  Start at the edge of the cupcake and work around in a circle, applying firm pressure.  For these cupcakes, I left a little room around the edge so I could press in the sprinkles.

For the toppers, I cut out little FSU logos and taped them to toothpicks - super easy!

I just can't wait for my sister to taste and share these cakes - GO SEMINOLES! And, of course, Happy Baking!

Wilton Class #3 - Flowers!

Last night was my third Wilton decorating class, and we learned a few different kinds of flowers as well as how to properly ice a cupcake.  I used my basic vanilla butter cake recipe; while preparing the batter, a certain little boy distracted me and I put a tablespoon of baking power in the batter instead of teaspoon, SO these cupcakes were extra fluffy =) It's good to know that a little extra baking power doesn't effect the taste! My favorite flowers are the drop flowers, but the shaggy mums are really fun to make.  I think the most useful thing I learned is the proper 'swirl' for the top of the cupcake - so pretty! Here are a few pictures!

Pom Pom Flower and Shaggy Mum

The petal flower my teacher showed me

Drop Flowers

Shaggy Mum and Pom Pom Flower

All the cupcakes sittin' pretty on the cake stand.  They made it home in one piece!

Next week we make our final cake with writing!  We also learn the Ribbon Rose, which is my favorite (in pictures, anyway).  Next up in the baking order is a special surprise for a very special someone - watch for the blog tomorrow or Thursday.  Happy Baking!

Who doesn't love a s'more? Oh, and a strawberry muffin, too!

One of my most favorite flavor combinations, ever, is toasty graham cracker, chocolate, and marshmallow - yep, S'MORES!  This is the first cupcake I really made into my own creation, and I am super proud of how they turned out.

To create a cool, layered effect, I combined a few different recipes.

Here is what the cupcake looks like cut in half:

For the graham cracker crust:

1/4 cup melted butter

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

- Mix together and press, firmly, into the bottom of cupcake paper -

For the chocolate cake, I used a recipe adapted from Martha Stewart's One-Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes:
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup 2% milk
3 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Fill each cupcake paper 2/3 full, on top of graham cracker crust, and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 18 minutes. -

For the homemade marshmallow frosting, I used Martha Stewart's Marshmallow Frosting recipe, cut in half.  It is a rather difficult frosting to make, with the double boiler and all, but totally worth it.  I may never buy marshmallows in a store again! For the tops, I filled a disposable frosting bag with the marshmallow and fit the bag with the 1M star tip, and simply swirled the frosting on top.  I finished them with a sprinkle of crumbled graham crackers.  I will be using this frosting on SO many more baked goodies - it was perfectly sweet, fluffy and delicious.

I sent 8 cupcakes to my parent's house (I couldn't have all that tempting yumminess laying around my house!), and had to get thrifty and creative in my packing.  I made foil rings and stuffed around the edges with wax paper.  My mom reported a perfect trip and arrival! My husband said these were his favorite cupcakes, ever, and I just had to agree!  I am definitely keeping this recipe for future baking!

On Friday morning, I decided to try and redeem the fallen blueberry muffins with a more "healthy" strawberry muffin with the same streusel topping.  The goal was for these muffins not to fall.  I succeeded!

                                

I used a recipe adapted from Here:

1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flower
1/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup unsweeted apple sauce
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh chopped strawberries
-Mix all dry ingredients together.  In a separate bown. mix wet ingredients.  Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just combined.  Fold in strawberries.  Fill muffins papers all the way to the top. -
Streusel topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl.  DO NOT MELT THE BUTTER.  Sprinkle a healthy tablespoon on top of each muffin. -

I baked these muffins at 400 degrees for about 18 minutes.  If you remove them from the pan while they are still warm, the muffin top will pull away easily and not stick.  My Daddy and husband both said they they preferred the taste of the blueberry muffins, but they enjoyed the strawberry a lot.  These have a more hearty feel and pretty brown color from the whole wheat flour and brown sugar - definitely a keeper.

Happy Baking!

Strawberry Deliciousness!

For the first time since starting this blog (or avidly baking), I am proud of the way something I made looks! At the request of my bestest friend, I made fresh strawberry cupcakes.  I used this recipe and added 1/4 cup more strawberry puree to the batter.  They turned out wonderfully!  I loved the bits of strawberry in the frosting and how moist and light the cakes turned out.  I played with some Wilton rolled fondant and cut cute little flowers for the tops =) This baking adventure is definitely my favorite so far.  Here are the results: