Back From Short Hiatus With Cinnamon Brown Sugar Cupcakes

Wow, it has been over a week since the last time I baked a cupcake!
My excuse for the cupcake hiatus: I was tired! The 3-Day really wore me out (like it does every year) and I just couldn't sum up the energy to bake.

So, after a week of excessive laziness, I am attending an intensive dance workshop this weekend - a perfect opportunity to distribute some cupcakes.
I didn't, however, do any grocery shopping in preparation for my return to baking. So, I had to find a recipe where I had all of the ingredients already. The recipe I chose was this Cinnamon Brown Sugar Cupcake with Vanilla Frosting recipe from mydiversekitchen.com.

These cupcakes are light and subtly flavored. The frosting is a little too buttery for my taste, but overall, not bad. :)

Here are the pictures:

These kept the shape of the batter - rather amusing. 

Usually, the cupcakes even out as they bake.

A lovely side view.

I should have doubled the frosting recipe. 

There was barely enough to go around.

One delicious little cupcake.

The cake was nice and airy.

Here is the recipe (with my modifications):

Makes 11 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted and then measured

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp powdered cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

100 gm butter, softened (about 1 stick)

3/4 cup demerara (or light brown) sugar, packed

1 egg, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cups milk, at room temperature

Frosting

2 egg whites

1/4 cup fine granulated sugar

pinch of salt

75 gm butter, cut into cubes, softened (about 3/4 stick)

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

Cupcakes

- Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. 

- In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter, cinnamon and sugar till light and fluffy. 

- Add the egg and vanilla and mix well.

- Add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions of milk. 

- Beat after each addition, just enough to combine the ingredients and do not overmix. 

- After all the additions, beat for just one minute.

- Divide the batter equally between paper lined cupcake tins so that each one is 2/3rds full.

- Bake the cupcakes at 180C for 20 to 25 minutes till done or a skewer inserted in them comes out clean.

- Cool for 10 minutes and then turn out and cool completely.

Frosting

- Put the egg whites, sugar and salt in a heat-proof bowl. 

- Place this bowl over a pan of simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water.

- Constantly, whisk the mixture by hand till the sugar has dissolved and the temperature on an instant thermometer reads 70C (160F). *I don't have a thermometer so I just whisked until all of the sugar had dissolved.

- Remove the bowl from the heat, and using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed till they’re glossy and fluffy and the bottom of the bowl feels cool to touch.

- Turn down the speed to medium and add the butter, 2 tbsps at a time, beating well after each addition

- Add vanilla and beat on high speed till smooth.

*This is a 7 point cupcake.

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake Cupcakes!

I know what you are thinking.
You took one look at the title of this post and thought to yourself, 'those sound awful!'.
No worries... I won't take offense. Honestly, I thought exactly the same thing.

So, why did I choose to make a gluten-free, dairy-free cupcake? Because I needed a breakfast cupcake to eat before the 3-Day that all of the members of my team could enjoy (one of which has a gluten-free, dairy-free diet).

Here is my AWESOME 3-Day team, Buses for Busts.

Sam, Me, Bryan, and Naomi after closing ceremony on Sunday.

Shameless plug: we're still collecting donations at www.the3day.org/goto/2010shelleywestover

So, report time for Crew members on Friday morning of the 3-Day is 4AM which means that we had to wake up at 2AM and leave the apartment by about 3AM. Also, once we get to the event, there is no breakfast available; we are responsible for feeding ourselves before we arrive.

I decided that this would be a fantastic opportunity to make another breakfast cupcake to not only feed the Buses For Busts members, but also bring for the entire Gear & Tent crew team.

I found this Gluten Free Lemon Blueberry Coffee Cake recipe at grouprecipes.com and substituted out all of the dairy products.

I have to admit how surprised I was at how well these came out. They tasted absolutely amazing! I wouldn't have known that they were gluten-free or dairy-free if I hadn't personally made them. I will definitely be trying this recipe again... maybe next time with dairy products, maybe not... I don't think that their absence made a difference (except in price of ingredients).

Here are my photos:

You would not believe how good these smelled fresh from the oven!

They rose perfectly and didn't burn to the pans at all.

Also, notice that I used pink wrappers once again. 

3-Day cupcakes MUST have pink wrappers!

Doesn't this look delicious!

Here is the recipe (with my modifications):

Makes 18 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

Cupcakes

1 cup softened butter or margarine *I used a Vegan baking 'butter' that I found at Whole Foods Market

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 cup sour cream *I used a Soy Sour Cream substitute that I found at Whole Foods Market

1 teaspoon gluten-Free vanilla Powder

Zest of two medium lemons

juice of one lemon

2-1/2 cups gluten free flour mix

1/2 heaping teaspoon xanthan gum

2 1/2 teaspoon gluten-Free baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 cups fresh blueberries

Topping

1 cup chopped pecans *I used walnuts

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Fill muffin tins with paper liners.

- In a large bowl cream together butter and sugar.

- Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.

- In a small bowl, mix sour cream, Gluten-Free Vanilla Powder, lemon zest and lemon juice. 

- In another bowl combine gluten free flour mix, Xanthan Gum, Gluten-Free Baking Powder, soda, and salt. 

- Alternately add flour mixture and sourcream mixture to creamed mixture, about a third of each at a time. 

- Stir in blueberries. Dough will be fairly stiff.

- Fill paper liners half way with batter. 

- Combine topping ingredients, sprinkle half of topping mixture over dough. 

- Carefully spread remaining dough on top of topping. 

- Sprinkle with remainder of topping.

- Bake at 350 degrees for 22-25 minutes.

Coconut Raspberry Cupcakes 4 A Cure!!!

This weekend will be my 4th time participating in the Boston Susan G Komen 3-Day For The Cure event (my 3rd time serving on the Crew as a member of the Gear & Tent team!) and I'm getting all excited for Crew Day to begin!

*Shameless plug: if you'd like to make a donation, please visit my website (www.the3day.org/goto/2010shelleywestover). Any amount would be GREATLY appreciated... and, if you live close enough, I will bring you a cupcake as a token of thanks! :)


Of course, I had to bake cupcakes for my fellow teammates and once Sam found out that I was going to be giving G&T cupcakes, he wanted me to make some for Route Safety as well. So, this evening I baked Coconut Raspberry Cupcakes that I found at ericksonblog.com.

Now, this recipe was weird in that there were ingredients on the list that weren't in the instructions, there were instructions missing (at least, I'm assuming since if you followed the instructions the cupcakes wouldn't turn out like the picture), and some of the instructions just seemed wrong (for example, the recipe said to bake these cupcakes for 30 minutes... um, no. That would be bad!).

So, I tweaked the recipe a little bit. While they came out great, I will probably make more changes when I make these again (the coconut flavor got lost, I think a buttercream frosting would be better, and more raspberries are needed!).

Here are my pictures:

The directions said to bake these for 30 minutes.

I baked them for 25 and they were still a little bit overdone.

Only the edges were a little crispy; the cake itself still came out really well.

You can see here how the edges burned to the pan slightly.

These look adorable all decorated. I love the powdered sugar-coated raspberries on top.

Also, I made the frosting pink! :)

I learned that the method of dipping the frosted cupcake into a bowl of coconut shavings doesn't work (at least it didn't for me). All of the frosting just fell off of the cupcake and into the bowl of coconut. So I sprinkled the coconut on top. I think they came out well.

Notice the pink wrapper too!

If I had known the dipping wouldn't work, I would have used a decorating tip to apply the frosting.

Now I know...

These really are tasty! There is a raspberry in the cake, I just hadn't found it by this bite.

By the time I did get to the raspberry, the cupcake couldn't 'stand' up and the photo op was ruined.

So, you'll have to trust me that there is a raspberry in the cake itself. :)

Here is the recipe (with my modifications):

Makes 24 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

Coconut Raspberry Cupcakes

- 5 large egg whites

- 1/2 cup 1% milk

- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

- 1 tsp coconut extract

- 3 1/2 cups cake flour

- 2 1/3 cup sugar

- 4 1/2 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 sticks unsalted butter (8oz.) at warm room temperature

- 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk

- 2 cups fresh, washed, and dried raspberries

Frosting

- 1 lb cream cheese at room temperature

- 3/4 lb (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

- 1/2 tsp coconut extract

- 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

- Red food coloring

Decoration

- 2 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

- 24 fresh washed raspberries

- 1/4 cup sugar

DIRECTIONS

Coconut Raspberry Cupcakes

- Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Line a 24- or two 12-hole muffin tins with paper cupcake cups.

- Put egg whites in a small bowl and whisk slightly. 

- Add the 1/2 cup of milk and the vanilla, and whisk to mix thoroughly. 

- In a large mixer bowl, combine the 3 cups flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low, beat dry ingredients to break up any lumps. 

- Add the butter and coconut milk on low speed and beat just to combine. Raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. 

- Add the egg white mixture in 2 or 3 additions, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition.

- Spoon batter into each muffin tin, almost to the top but leaving about a 1/8 inch so the batter does not overflow.

- In a separate bowl, toss the raspberries with the 1/2 cup of cake flour. Place 1 coated raspberry on top of batter for each cupcake (raspberry will sink to the bottom during baking).

- Bake for 30 minutes or until a cake taster inserted in the middle comes out clean. 

- Allow the cupcakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes. Then place them on a wire rack to cool completely.

Frosting and Decorating

- Combine cream cheese, butter, and confectioners’ sugar using a mixer.

- Add vanilla and coconut extract. 

- Cream until smooth (add red food coloring to make pink frosting).

- Spread a generous amount on each cupcake.

- Sprinkle shredded coconut on top of cupcakes.

- Toss the 24 remaining raspberries in granulated sugar to coat (*oops... I used confectioners' sugar).

- Top each cupcake with one sugar-coated raspberry.

- Serve to group of fabulous volunteers gathering together to put an end to breast cancer!!! :)

Don't you wish you were on the Crew as well? ;) 

*BTW, I'll be doing this again next year (WOOHOO 5th year!) so if you are feeling bummed for missing out, you can join us next summer. :) Just let me know and I'll send you all of the info.




*These cupcakes are 10 points each.

My First 'Eh' Cupcake.

It was bound to happen sooner or later, with all the cupcakes I've been baking, that I would bake one that I'm not really thrilled with. Today's cupcake is just that. I don't think it is bad, per se, just not good... if that makes sense.

*Update: These cupcakes went over so well at dance (I was shocked!) that I *had* to update this post.

So, today's cupcake is a Pistachio Cupcake with Raspberries and a Cream Cheese Frosting. The cupcake recipe is one of Martha's and the frosting came from simplyrecipes.com.

Here are the reasons I'm not wild about these cupcakes:

1) They are too dry and overcooked.
I actually questioned the recipe a little. Practically every recipe I've made so far called for the cupcakes to be baked at 325 degrees for about 22-25 minutes. This recipe was 375 degrees for 28 minutes. When I read that, I thought, 'hmmmm, maybe it has something to do with the consistency of the batter'. Turns out they overcooked. :/ If anyone reading this blog decides to try this recipe... go with 325 degrees for 22-25 minutes.

2) They are too salty.
Now, this is entirely my fault. I bought lightly salted pistachios because I couldn't find any unsalted ones. :(

3) They didn't rise.
The recipe said to fill the papers only 1/2 full and top with raspberries and pistachios. These didn't rise all the way to the tops of the papers.

4) The paper is difficult to peel off.
This may have something to do with the overcooking.


Here are some of the things I love about these cupcakes:

1) Each cupcake has one raspberry in it and that berry tastes amazing!
The berry mixes really well with the saltiness. If anything, this recipe could have been salvaged with more raspberries. It has inspired me. Tomorrow, I may try a raspberry cupcake recipe. :)

2) The frosting.
I chose the frosting recipe... the cupcake recipe wasn't paired with a frosting (not even a suggested type). So, I give myself props for making a good frosting. :)


I don't think I'll ever make this recipe again, which is too bad because it certainly sounded delicious from the recipe. Because of this, I'll include the links to the recipes I've used, but I'm not going to spell out the recipe like I normally do.


*Update: As mentioned above, when I brought these cupcakes to dance, everyone loved them. I was so surprised! I figured, that since they did go over so well, I should include the recipes (with my suggested edits) in this post.



Here is the Pistachio Cupcakes with Raspberries recipe:
Makes 15 *I made 18, but probably could have fill all of the paper cups a little more.


INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup whole unsalted pistachios, plus 1/4 cup slivered or chopped *I used lightly salted pistachios
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 4 large eggs
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups fresh raspberries

DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners.  *I would recommend 325 degrees!

- Process whole pistachios, sugar, and salt in a food processor until finely ground.

- Add butter, vanilla, and eggs, and process until smooth.

- Add flour, and pulse until just combined.

- Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each halfway.

- Sprinkle with raspberries and slivered or chopped pistachios.

- Bake until firm and pulling away from liners, about 28 minutes. Let cool in tins on wire racks. *I would recommend 22-25 minutes.


Cream Cheese Frosting

INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 cup of butter (1 stick), room temperature
- 8 oz of Philly cream cheese (1 package), room temperature
- 2 - 3 cups of powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract


DIRECTIONS
- With an electric mixer, mix the butter and cream cheese together, about 3 minutes on medium speed until very smooth. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure even mixing.

- Add the vanilla extract and mix. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Keep adding until you get to desired sweetness and thickness.


Here are the pictures:

You can see how they didn't rise to the top of the papers.

Otherwise, they do look rather tasty.

I bought some decorating tips and played a little.

Next time I'll try to decorate with some kind of fun design.

For my first time with tips, I think these came out looking really nice.

This little guy is quite deceiving. It looks so tasty... and then you taste it. :( Oh well.

You can see where it was overcooked and really stuck to the paper.

Also, the cake was so dry. 

The frosting, however, was great!

I'm nervous about bringing these to dance tonight. Normally, I wouldn't want to share them because they aren't perfect. But, I also think that everyone will understand since I'm hardly a professional baker.

Also, who knows, these may not be my cup of tea, but someone else might really love them.

*I shouldn't have been nervous!

I do feel bad, however, that I made these specifically for a friend's birthday. Sorry Amy - I wish they had come out better! I will try another pistachio cupcake recipe sometime and bring them for you.

*Amy didn't show up for her birthday cupcakes. :(

*Note: this is an 8 point cupcake.

Homemade Marshmallows Are Neat!

I'm taking requests now... well, I guess you could say that I've been taking requests for a while because it seems like all of the cupcakes I've been baking lately are flavors that other people have asked for. I definitely don't mind! The more new flavors and methods that I can try out the better. :)

Today's batch of cupcakes was specifically made for my friend Jen (hopefully she'll share!). It is her birthday (well, not quite yet but we are celebrating it today) and she is a chocoholic. :) She is especially in love with dark chocolate.

When I asked Jen what kind of cupcake she wanted for her birthday, her answer was, "Chocolate, with chocolate, chocolate, and chocolate". :) Later, she also mentioned that she loved the mint/chocolate flavor combination.

When I found this Dark Chocolate Cupcake with Mint Marshmallow Frosting recipe I was pretty excited about the marshmallow frosting. I didn't read the recipe really carefully (I usually browse the ingredients for my shopping list and then read the directions all the way through right before starting to bake) so I didn't realized that I'd be making the marshmallows from scratch. Granted, I'm not exactly sure of how I thought the frosting would be made... nonetheless, I was excited. :)

So, marshmallow is really easy to make, especially when you just toss all of the ingredients into a KitchenAide. The end result isn't exactly capable of being roasted on a campfire, but it makes a great ice cream/cupcake topping. :)

My only disappointment came when frosting the cupcakes. The instructions say to dip the cake into the frosting, pull up while twisting, and you are done. This didn't work for me - I'm not sure why. I'll experiment another time. So, I just ended up using a spatula to spread the marshmallow on top.


Here are the pictures:

The batter was very dense and cake was dry but really tasty.

Check out my homemade marshmallow topping. :)

The mint flavoring is really strong. 

I, personally, like it... but it may overpower the flavor of the chocolate cake a little.

So fluffy!

A nice, thick layer of marshmallow on top.

Here is the recipe:
Makes 12 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS
Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

- 8 T unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 2 oz bittersweet chocolate
- 1/2 c Dutch-processed cocoa
- 3/4 c all-purpose flour
- 1/2 t baking soda
- 3/4 t baking powder
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 c sugar
- 1 t vanilla
- 1/2 t salt
- 1/2 c yogurt

Mint Marshmallow Frosting

- 1/2 c white sugar

- 2 T & 2 t water

- 1/8 t cream of tartar

- 1 egg white

- 1/2 t mint extract

- green food coloring

DIRECTIONS
Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

- Preheat oven to 350 and prepare 12 muffin cups.

- Place the butter & chocolate into a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 1 minute. 

- Add cocoa & stir until everything is melted. (You may need to microwave a few seconds more.) Set aside to cool until just warm to touch.

- Whisk flour, baking soda & baking powder together. Set aside.

- In another bowl, whisk the eggs to combine then add sugar, vanilla and salt. Whisk until everything is blended. 

- Add the chocolate mixture and whisk again. 

- Add in 1/3 of the flour mixture and combine. 

- Whisk in the yogurt and then the remaining flour mixture. The batter should be thick.

- Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Bake for 18 -20 minutes.

Mint Marshmallow Frosting

- In a saucepan over medium-high heat stir the sugar, water & cream of tartar until the sugar is melted & the mixture is bubbly.

- In a mixing bowl, whip the egg whites and mint extract to form soft peaks. 

- Gradually add the sugar mixture while continuing to whip. 

- Add green food coloring until you reach the desired color. 

- Whip until stiff peaks form, 7 to 10 minutes.

*Note: This is a 5 point recipe... not to shabby. :)

Celebratory Coconut Rum Cupcakes!

I got a job! Woo!

In celebration of my new job, per suggestion from my fabulous Facebook friends, I baked celebratory cupcakes... with alcohol. :)

These Coconut Rum cupcakes from howsweeteats.com are amazing... truly amazing! Not only do they look great, but they smell great and taste even better. Plus, they have some of my favorite ingredients; coconut and rum!

Here are the pictures:

Perfect round-topped cupcakes. These are probably my prettiest batch yet!

Can you tell which ones I decorated and which ones Ellie decorated?

She is going to give me some lessons on cake decorating.

The buttercream frosting was starting to melt again.

Not only did I put the mixer bowl in the freezer before making the frosting...

Ellie held a bag of frozen peas to the bowl as we were mixing...

and we put the whole bowl (frosting and all) in the freezer before frosting the cupcakes.

Still, they started to melt almost right away! Got to love this Boston weather!

A close-up of one of the ones I frosted. I think I did a pretty decent job!

These are so amazingly good.

Another thing that is amazing... this bite is literally the only one I took!

I've started a diet - which doesn't mesh well with my almost-daily cupcake habit.

But, I have willpower! I took one bite, took this picture, and then gave the rest to Ellie to finish.

I have to admit though, these are soooo tasty, that having only one bite was incredibly tortuous!

Here is the recipe:

Makes 12 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS

Coconut Rum Cupcakes

- 1 cup sugar

- 1/2 cup butter

- 2 eggs

- 1 teaspoon vanilla

- 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract

- contents of 1/2 vanilla bean  *I didn't have this to add.

- 1 1/2 cups flour

- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- 1/4 cup coconut milk

- 1/4 cup shredded coconut

- 1/4 cup coconut rum  *I used Parrot Bay

Coconut Frosting

- 1 cup butter, softened

- 1 1/2 – 2 lbs powdered sugar

- 1/4 cup coconut rum

- 1 tablespoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS

Coconut Rum Cupcakes

- Preheat oven to 350.

- Cream butter, sugar, and eggs together until fluffy. Add vanilla and coconut extracts and mix until combined.

- Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add half of the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Add the milk. Once mixed, add remaining dry ingredients.

- Add coconut rum and fold in shredded coconut.

- Pour into cupcake tins and bake for 20-25 mins at 350. Let cool, then frost.

Coconut Frosting

- Cream butter until smooth. 

- Gradually add powdered sugar, alternating with rum and vanilla, until desired consistency is reached.

- Feel free to add more or less sugar or liquid based on how thick you want your frosting.

*Note: Since I am trying to be a good little dieter. I should probably note that these are 12 point cupcakes (yes, I'm doing WeightWatchers again)... so, my single bite cost me about 3 points. I can live with that. :)

Humidity + Strawberry Buttercream Frosting = Big Mess!

I made a BIG mess today; a humongous/sticky/I'm-not-looking-forward-to-cleaning-my-kitchen mess!
But, it makes for an amusing story... so I'll tell it. :)

When I made my Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache Frosting last month, I had brought them to Sam's office. They were a huge success!
So, yesterday I went back to his office sans cupcakes and was informed (in a joking manner, of course) that I was not to return without more cupcakes. :) I asked the dispatcher, TD (who ate 3 of my chocolate cupcakes even though she isn't supposed to eat chocolate!), if she liked Strawberry and she quickly replied, "I love strawberry!". I promised her I'd bake her a batch of strawberry cupcakes.

Fast forward to this morning. I already had plans to meet my friend, Becky (Hi Becky!), for lunch which meant that I had to wake up early to go grocery shopping and bake the cupcakes.
My alarm went off at 8AM (hey, give me a break, that is early for someone who is unemployed!), I jumped in the shower, went to Shaws to buy strawberries and other supplies, and started baking the cupcakes by 9:30AM.

They came out beautifully! Take a look:

So light and fluffy! The pink papers are incredibly cute too. :)

The recipe calls for a strawberry buttercream frosting that "should be dense and creamy, like ice cream."

Adorable, right? This was, by far, the best looking in the batch.

Another shot of the good cupcake... wait, what is that behind it???

... and this is what all of the other cupcakes looked like.

I guess I did too good of a job getting the consistency of the frosting to be like ice cream!

In my defense, I had too major things going against me here:

1) I was in a huge hurry to finish these, drop them off at Sam's work, and then meet up with Becky. While rushing, I didn't let the cupcakes cool entirely before frosting them. I claim complete responsibility for this mistake.

2) The weather in Boston has been ridiculously crazy this summer. It has been much hotter and much more humid that I remember it being in a LONG time. So, Boston's weather plus the added temperature from running my oven has turned my kitchen into a sauna-like environment. The frosting didn't stand a chance. This, I blame on mother nature... or global warming. :)

Either way, the cupcakes tasted awesome.

Mmmmm.

Also, they lasted all of 5 minutes in Sam's office; I'd say they were enjoyed. :)

Now I should start to think about cleaning my kitchen...

Here is the cupcake recipe (from marthastewart.com):

Makes 1 Dozen

INGREDIENTS

- 2/3 cup whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed

- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

- 1 teaspoon baking powder

- 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

- 1/4 cup whole milk, room temperature

- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

- 1 cup sugar

- 1 large egg, room temperature

- 2 large egg whites, room temperature

DIRECTIONS

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.

- Place strawberries in a small food processor; process until pureed. You should have about 1/3 cup of puree, add a few more strawberries if necessary or save any extra puree for frosting; set aside.

- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. 

- In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla, and strawberry puree; set aside.

- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. 

- Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until well combined and fluffy. 

- Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add egg and egg whites until just blended.

- With the mixer on low, slowly add half the flour mixture; mix until just blended. 

- Add the milk mixture; mix until just blended. 

- Slowly add remaining flour mixture, scraping down sides of the bowl with a spatula, as necessary, until just blended.

- Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Transfer muffin tin to oven and bake until tops are just dry to the touch, 22 to 25 minutes. Transfer muffin tin to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool completely in tin before icing.  *Martha wasn't kidding about the 'let... cool completely' instruction!

Here is the frosting recipe:

INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 cup whole frozen strawberries, thawed
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold
- Pinch of coarse salt
- 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

- Place strawberries in the bowl of a small food processor; process until pureed. 

- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy. 

- Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined. 

- Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons strawberry puree (save any remaining strawberry puree for another use); mix until just blended. Do not overmix or frosting will incorporate too much air. Frosting consistency should be dense and creamy, like ice cream.

*Note: I made extra strawberry puree and put some in my oatmeal with a little Splenda for breakfast this morning... I HIGHLY recommend it. ;)

Frosting?... who needs frosting!

In my Celebrating National Blueberry Month post I had hinted that frosting is the differentiating characteristic between cupcakes and muffins. Well, this Chocolate Chip Cupcakes recipe from myrecipe.com sure proves me wrong!

Oh my Godiva these cupcakes are amazing(!) and they don't have any frosting on them. They do, however, have this chocolate chip/walnut/brown sugar gooey concoction that you add to the top of the cupcake when it has only half-finished baking. This way the toping sinks into the body of the cupcake while also serving as a nice topper.

One down-side to the recipe: it is meant to be made as mini-cupcakes. I, however, don't have a mini-muffin pan - so I made these full size. Sadly this made only 7 cupcakes.

I'm bringing them to dance tonight - only the early birds will get these delicious treats. Sorry guys. :/

Here are my pictures:

Seven Chocolate Chip cupcakes... this picture doesn't really do them justice.

This, however, is a money shot! :)

Look at that toping... Mmmmm.

A closer shot of the toping.

Behold the gooeyness... :)

Here is the recipe:

Makes 3 dozen mini-cupcakes (or so the recipe claims) OR 7 regular cupcakes

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate morsels
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon vanilla extract, divided
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

- Beat first 3 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until blended; stir in chocolate morsels, walnuts, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Set aside.

- Beat remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, butter, sugar, and 1/3 cup brown sugar until creamy. Add egg, and beat until blended.

- Combine flour, soda, and 1/2 teaspoon salt; stir into butter mixture.

- Place paper baking cups into miniature (1 3/4-inch) muffin pans, and coat with cooking spray; spoon 1 1/2 teaspoons batter into each cup.

- Bake at 350° for 12 minutes (15 minutes for regular sized cupcakes). Spoon morsel mixture over cupcakes, and bake 10 more minutes.

I Got The Blues

In continuing with the National Blueberry Month theme (or really, I just bought a ton a blueberries and now have to use them up), I found this Berry Blue Cupcake recipe at casualbaker.blogspot.com.

There is no question this time, these are not muffins! 

These cupcakes have a lovely blue(ish) color and are subtly flavored. I give them two thumbs up. :)

Here are my pictures:

Sam showed me how to use the 'close-up' feature on my camera, so these came out quite well!

I didn't do the whole 'blueberry puree swirl' thing that the recipe called for.

Partly because I forgot and partly because I didn't have enough of the puree... 

so these don't look quite as cool as the ones from the recipe.

They rose to perfectly round tops and then as they cooled, shrunk back down again. Oh well.

As I mentioned earlier, I didn't have enough of the blueberry puree, so I only used half as much in the frosting as the recipe called for. Still, the blue frosting on the blue cupcake looks so neat.

Yum!

A cupcake fit for BB King! :)

The blueberry flavor is subtle, but these are still incredibly tasty!

Here is the recipe:
Makes 18 (the recipe said makes 12, but I had lots of leftover batter, enough for 6 more)

INGREDIENTS
Blueberry Puree

1 Lb. of blueberries (fresh or frozen) *I would make extra puree, the 1 Lb. wasn't quite enough.

Blueberry Cupcakes

2 cups + 2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup of butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 cup whole milk
1/2 cup blueberry puree
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Blueberry Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

6 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1/2 cup blueberry puree
2 1/4 cups icing sugar
drop or two of almond extract


DIRECTIONS
Blueberry Puree

- Bring 1 pound of blueberries (fresh or frozen) to a boil over low-medium heat.

- Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thick (about 1/2 hour).

- Cool the mixture slightly before blending in a food processor until smooth. For an extra smooth puree, pass the mixture through a fine sieve before using.

*Note - I used too much water to boil my blueberries which caused them to take much longer than a 1/2 hour to reduce. Next time, I'll add just enough water to cover the blueberries in the pot and hopefully that'll work better. Also, I only roughly measured 1 pound of blueberries and didn't get anywhere near enough puree for what the recipe calls for, so I'd suggest making more than a pound.


Blueberry Cupcakes

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line muffin tin with paper cups.

- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add one egg at a time, beating just until incorporated.

- In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, mix the milk, blueberry puree and vanilla.

- Add wet and dry ingredients alternately to the butter mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix just until incorporated after each addition. Do not overbeat!

- Divide the batter evenly among the 12 paper cups. Spoon 1 teaspoon of blueberry puree into the center and mix in slightly with a wooden skewer or small spoon.

- Bake for 18-22 minutes or until cake springs back to the touch. Cool for 10-15 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely before frosting.


Blueberry Cream Cheese Frosting

- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. 

- Mix in the blueberry puree and almond extract just until combined.

- Add the icing sugar gradually and beat until smooth and spreadable.

- Frost the cooled cupcakes as you wish. Store in the fridge, but bring to room temperature before serving.