Have Another Round!

Well I finally got around to making one of the poll winners: Margarita Cupcakes. Although not many people cast their vote, I would still like to make the cupcakes flavors that won. Since my parents were going to a cookout today in which the people giving the party always have a margarita machine flowing, I thought it would be the perfect occasion to send some margarita cupcakes. They turned out soooo cute. I have seen this recipe on several occasions, on another cupcake blog, Bakingsheet, so I finally had a reason to make them. It is a vegan recipe, so I was a little hesitant about the recipe, but they turned out great. The tequila flavor really adds to these lime flavored treats.

There are green sprinkles around the edges to look like a salted rim, and lime jelly candies for an added special tounch. Salud!!!

This week I also had a Birthday cake to keep me busy. It was for a co-worker who is in love with Hello Kitty. Although it was one of the easiest cakes I've made, it was also one of the cutest!

Mint For Each Other

Have you ever been strolling through the grocery store and suddenly been inspired by an ingredient you spot? That is exactly what happened to me the other day. I was on the isle that I refer to as "the baking isle." You know, the one with all the sugar, flour, spices, nuts, and chocolate. It's probably the isle I frequent the most. Anyway, I spotted an item I had never seen before and it sparked a cupcake idea in my head. It was a bag of Andes mint bits. Then and there I decided I needed to make a chocolate mint cupcake. I have also been reading a lot about the ever popular Hi-Hat Cupcakes, so I decided to make mint chocolate hi-hats. Or my version of them. I started by making a basic chocolate cupcake recipe from my absolute favorite cake book Williams Sonoma Cake.

Chocolate Cupcakes

ingredients:

1 3/4 cups unbleached AP flour

teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder

1/2 cup hot water

1/2 cup buttermilk, at room temp

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temp

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

3 large eggs, at room temp, lightly beaten

about 4 or 5 ounces of Andes chocolate mint bits

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together onto a sheet of waxed paper and set aside. In a bowl, whisk the cocoa powder into the hot water. Let cool to lukewarm, then whisk in the buttermilk and vanilla. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer, beat the butter with the paddle on medium speed until creamy. Add the granulated and brown sugars and beat until the mixture is pale and fluffy. Slowly drizzle in the eggs, beating each addition until incorporated before continuing. Reduce the speed to

medium-low and add the dry ingredients in 3 additions, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Beat until just combined. Remove mixing bowl from mixer and fold in the Andes chocolate mint bits.

Scoop into 24 cupcake liners and bake at 350 until a toothpick comes out clean.

I wanted to make these cupcakes extra special with two kinds of icing so I began with a classic buttercream icing with a few added touches.

Mint Buttercream Icing:

1 cup solid white vegetable shortening

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon mint extract

2 tablespoons milk

3 or 4 drops of green food coloring

1 lb confectioners' sugar

1 tablespoon meringue powder

pinch of salt

Cream together shortening, flavorings, coloring, and water. Add dry ingredients and mix on medium speed until all ingredients have been thoroughly mixed together and creamy.

Pipe onto cupcakes with a Large star tip or whatever design you like to form a cone or

"bee-hive" shape.

Then, make the mint chocolate ganache to dip the buttercream in. I used a mixture of andes mint bits and dark chocolate chips to make the ganache, but you could use all dark chocolate and add a bit of mint extract if you would prefer. This might take away from the "Andes" flavor though.

Mint Chocolate Ganache:

4 ounces Andes mint bits

4 ounces dark chocolate chips (bittersweet)

1 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients in metal bowl and place over a sauce pan of simmering water making sure that the bowl is not directly touching the water. When cool dip the cupcakes topped with buttercream upside down into the chocolate. Let chocolate run off until dripping stops and turn right side over; set aside to dry. If the icing is thin repeat this process a second time.

When all is said and done, you will be left with delightful treats. Although they are in the form of a light and fluffy cupcake, they taste just like and Andes mint. I wish I was not on a crazy diet so I could devour them all!!!

The Lone Cupcake...Hi Ho Cheerio Away!

Well looks like I've been neglecting my blog for a while, and I have...But I'm back. I have been making lots of cupcakes, as usual, but I have not been able to eat any of them because of the wack diet I am on right now. Darn it! Last night I had the fun assignment of making my dad some delicious cupcakes for a business meeting he had this morning. I made these very light and fluffy lemon cupcakes with a lemon cream cheese frosting. They looked great, and my dad said they were (he tested one for me.) Unfortunately I did not get a tatste.

I was joking with my dad about that phrase "Never trust a skinny cook!", but these days I am looking just a little too trustworthy...if you catch my drift. Oh well, I'm working on it.

Anyways, my last "weird" flavor of cupcakes were these wonderful strawberry daquiri cupcakes. My friends Thomas and Krissy were having a cookout in thier backyard and it seemed like the perfect accompaniment to the occasion. Although they were a little more dense than I would have liked, everyone really enjoyed them. The rum flavor really made them taste just like the drink.

This is one of the little treats hangin' out on the picnic table at the cookout. My friend Sara's shirt is the backdrop...yep we're creative! Sorry it's not a very good picture... like most of mine, it was taken on a camera phone.

Later that evening, we all decided to venture out to a local bar to see what kind of trouble we could get into. As with most occasions when I make cupcakes to take somewhere, there were several left over. I decided that I would just take them out with us and give them away at the bar. I always make lots of friends when I do that! So I was successful in giving all of them away except one little cupcake that we later named "The Lone Cupcake." It was so sad. No one wanted her. Well, after tossing back a few cocktails, my friend decided that she would make little sign for it and just leave it on the bar to see if anyone would like her. Here is the cupcake sitting and waiting for someone to snatch her up...

Yes, a little inapproriate, but hilarious just the same. And it worked. Not long after we abandoned her she was gone.

If anyone would like the recipe to either flavors (Lemon or Strawberry Daquiri), let me know.

Strawberries, Pineapple, and Bananas...Oh My!

Ava Faye Cakes

I had a hankering, as usual, to make a fun batch of cupcakes. I decided to make a cupcake for my friend, Ava. She did not get her Valentine's cupcakes and was coming over for dinner so I wanted to make her something special. Well, I sent a text message to my girl to find what her favorite flavors are. She sent me a message back that said: Vanilla, dark chocolate, strawberry, banana, pineapple...and cheesecake, if that is a flavor. So, I decided to combine all these flavors to make one harmonious cupcake. I don't think she knew I was going to use everything she said, but they all did go pretty good together. I figured I could get the vanilla taken care of easily by making that the flavor of the batter. Then, I decided to combine all the fruit mash it up together, and make that the filling. Well, I still had two left so I just decided to make two icings. One was dark chocolate ganache and the other was literally an easy cheesecake I baked then scraped out of the pan added a little milk, powdered sugar, and left over whipped cream I had in the fridge. I also added a little purple food coloring to the cheesecake icing because that is her favorite color. It was a crazy explosion of awesome flavors! Anyway, as Ava and I shared one of these concotions, we decided that it would be better with a simple cream cheese icing instead of the cheesecake. I used an extra large cupcake pan with liners to make six cupcakes, but you could make more smaller ones if you prefer. I put one scoop of batter in each liner, added a scoop of fruit filling on that and topped each with another scoop of batter. It turned out surprisingly good. I wasn't sure about baking them with the fruit already added, but it was delish!

Ava Faye Cakes:

(I changed a few things to make it easier and better )

For the Cupcakes:
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
¾ cups milk
½ cup butter (room temperature)
1 egg (room temperature)
1 vanilla bean cut lengthwise
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
*Fruit Mixture
*Dark Chocolate Ganache
*Cream Cheese Icing

*Recipes Below

Directions:
In a small saucepan heat the milk and vanilla bean just to a boil. Remove from heat and let cool for about an hour. Then remove vanilla bean, scrape out the seeds from inside it, and add them to the milk. Discard the bean pod. Preheat the oven to 350. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl (I use a sanding mixer) cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat well. Add the dry ingredients in 3 additions alternately with the milk in 2 additions, starting and ending with the dry ingredients. Beat until just combined. Using a large cupcake tin, lined with cupcake liners, add a scoop (about 2 tablespoons) of batter to each cup and smooth out across liner. Then, top those portions with a scoop of the fruit mixture and smooth out. Finish by topping each with another scoop of cupcake mixture to cover fruit filling. Cook in oven for about 35-40 minutes.

After baked (the cupcakes, not you!), allow to cool completely before icing. When cooled top each cupcake with a thin layer of ganache and after that is dried a scoop of cream cheese icing.

Fruit Mixture:

1 8 oz can crushed pineapple
½ of a banana diced
½ cup strawberries diced

Combine all fruit together and smash with a potato masher

Dark Chocolate Ganache:
½ cup heavy whipping cream
5 ounces dark chocolate chips (or bar, chopped)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
½ teaspoon almond extract

Combine all ingredients except extract in a double boiler and melt over low heat. When melted, add extract and use immediately to get that glossy effect. If ganache is allowed to cool it will still be good, it will just dry with a more matte appearance.

Cream Cheese Icing:

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese froom temperature

1 stick butter, room temperature
1 lb powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Add a couple of red and blue drops of food coloring to make purple (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a stand mixer and beat until icing consistnecy is reached.

Great Things in Small Packages

Well, the Valentine's Day truffle cupcakes turned out perfect! They were such a hit among friends that one even suggested copyrighting the idea. I don't know if they're the next million dollar idea, but they were darling. Anyways, here are the pictures, as promised. I found these little boxes at a craft store and tied them up with ribbon to make them more like a box of chocolates. When my friends realized they were different flavored little cupcakes they were ecstatic. I have a feeling some of the flavors will be requested more frequently than even my famous vanilla cupcakes with cream cheese icing.My favorite were the toffee and Bailey's Irish Cream cupcakes. I knew cupcakes make people smile, but yesterday was one of the most rewarding experiences in my short baking history. I love cupcakes!!!

Valentine's Truffle Cupcakes:

Come on Baby Light My Fire: Spicy Cayenne Pepper
Jamaican Me Crazy: Coconut Cream and Lime
Mint for Each Other: Mint, Duh
A Whole Latte Love: Kahlua Cream and Toffee
Orange you my Valentine? Orange
Razz my Tazz: Raspberry
Espresso My Love: Strong Espresso
Long Stemmed Rose: Rose Water Cream
Completely Nuts for You: Cashew, Almond, Pecan, Walnuts
Ahhhmaretto: Amaretto/Almond flavored
Caramellow Out: Caramel
Feed me a Strawberry: Strawberry Cream

Flavors are listed in a previous blog, if interested.

Indecision '08

Although people did not rush to the polls to vote, the resuts are in. It's a tie between Margarita and Pineapple Upside-Down Cupcakes. I guess I will have to make them both. I promise to take pictures and let you know how they turn out.



Although this is not a cupcake, it was a hit among my friends. I made this cake for a friend's birthday. She loves tequilla, to say the least. Maybe I can make another one when I make the margarita cupcakes. I think they would be cute with those little jelly lime wedges on the side to look like a shot.

"Choc" it up to Bad Measurements

I never thought I would say anything negative about something chocolate, but Friday I had my first cupcake debacle. I recently had a delicious spicy chocolate truffle from Whole Foods in which I think they used crushed red pepper to flavor and add heat. Well, it was so tasty that I thought it would translate well into a cupcake. Needless to say it did not. I found a recipe for a spicy chocolate cupcake online that called for chili powder and cayenne pepper. It was awful! It tasted so weird with the chili powder and had way too much heat from the cayenne. I think next time, if ever, I will completely cut the chili powder out of the recipe and just add a dash of cayenne to the ganache. I think the chocolate cake part should jst be left the way it is...Chocolatey delicious! Anyways, Just thought I would share this funny story about my chili cupcakes. Bam!=Yuck!