Cupcakes Catch-Up

It's been a good while since I've done any sort of blogging about cupcakes...I've bake 'em but I haven't wrote about them. So instead of writing each recipe about the different kinds that I've done since April, I'm going to show them to you in photos.

Gluten-free chocolate cake mix with homemade marshmallow frosting.

Made these for my sister's bachelorette party in April!
They were YUMMY!

Tangy Tangerine Cupcakes
Made these for Mother's Day!

Jungle Cupcakes
My first pay baking gig for a baby shower.

Chocolate Sour Cream Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
(there the one's with bananas and coconuts on top)

White Cupcake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting*
(Monkey faces)

*I don't mean to brag but chocolate buttercream that I made was the most luscious, velvety, chocolate-y goodness I have ever made. If wanted let me know!

Birthday Art

This is a cupcake that even Strawberry Shortcake herself could be proud of...if she were reading this post.

What she's not reading it? And she's not really real? Gasp.

Another birthday. Another confectionery conception to be making and baking. This time it was my roommate Kimberly's big birthday bash of celebrating her 25th year.

So I asked her, "What kind of cupcake do you want?" This is something I usually do as my gift to friends and family, as you might have already read, but unfortunately I forgot my other roommate, Melissa's birthday, this past January. Oops! So it's not a full proof plan, but in my defense it was about the same as my sister's birthday, so I focused too much on that. Excuses, excuses! Back to the cupcakes...

Kimberly mentioned that she would like strawberry cupcakes. This lead to angel food cupcakes. Continued on to cupcake ice cream cones. More strawberries were mentioned and then whipped cream. And this lead to me trying to find a blend of all this things...so naturally it became Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes.

A hybrid cupcake, if you will. And oh yeah, no vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free options...hmm...that will be my first on this blog. I do love a challenge.

Golden Cupcakes Recipe taken from...Crazy About Cupcakes...but of course!

Ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, separated
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup milk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven 350 degrees.
2. In mixer, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until fluffy. Add the egg yolks. Beat well. Add the vanilla. Mix.
3. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt
4. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, alternating with the milk.
5. With clean beaters, beat the egg whites on high until stiff peaks form. Then gently fold the egg whites into the batter.
6. Fill the cupcake liners. And bake 20-25 minutes.

And then I add the ice cream cones into the cupcake liners full of batter and prayed that it would resemble something like an ice cream cone or a cupcake, or both. I'm not picky.

BEFORE

AFTER

Alas abstract cupcakes!

So for this conception I didn't need to make buttercream anything, it just involved a dollop of Cool Whip and fresh strawberries. It took a little creativity and conversation to figure out how to use that dollop and the berries to make them into a confectionery conception, and this is what we came up with...TA DAH!

Happy Birthday Kim!

A little Cullen confection...

And no I'm not talking about the Edward (aka Robert Pattinson) variety...even though he is delectable.

I'm not sure if you've heard of a little book called Twilight and then there was this sort of popular movie that was based on the book...maybe you've heard of it mentioned through the grapevine through talking to your child with soup cans and string.

Well we've definitely heard of it in our household and so we decided to celebrate the movie coming out on DVD with a movie premiere of our own. And of course it was very exclusive.

Movie bought. Check.
Invitations sent. Check.
RSVP's received. Check.
Decor set. Check.
Embarrassing amount of Twilight articles posted to the walls. Check.
Projector set up. Check.
Amazing cupcakes baked and decorated. Double check.

Um...yeah we love the movie.

I wanted to try something a little different and use a different book, I seem to favor one over all the ones I own. I used an Orange Chiffon Cupcakes with Orange Butter Icing recipe in the book appropriately titled "Cupcakes" by: Elinor Klivans.

Orange "Cullen" Chiffon Cupcakes

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups flour (I used rice flour, of course)
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup canola oil
4 large eggs, separated
1/3 cup water
1 1/2 tsp grated orange zest
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp cream of tartar

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. You will not need cupcake liners because they tend to stick, so I just spray cooking spray on the cupcake pan itself.
2. Mix the rice flour (which I sifted, finer quality), 3/4 cups of the sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl.
3. With a spoon, put a well into the center of the dry ingredients and the put in the oil, egg yolks, water, orange zest, orange juice, vanilla and almond extract.
4. With a handheld mixer, I mixed these ingredients together, beat until smooth and thick. Set aside.
5. In another bowl, with clean beaters, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar on medium speed until whites are foamy and the cream of tartar dissolves. If the creamed mixture clings to the beaters, you should be good.
6. Beat in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, then beat for about a minute.
7. Slowly add the egg white batter into the egg yolk batter, a little at a time with a rubber spatula until there are no white streaks in the batter.
8. Put into greased cupcake pan (s) and bake for about 35 minutes.

Orange Butter Icing:

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tbsp unsalted butter (vegan butter). Melted.
1 tsp grated orange zest
3 tbsp fresh orange juice

Directions:

1. Stir the powdered sugar, melted butter, orange zest, and orange juice together until smooth and thick.

The Results:

Hope you "sink" your teeth into them...or Edward, whichever you prefer! (:

Catching up on Cupcakes

Oh my gosh...I know it's been forever since I've updated, so I thought I'd fill you in on a few of the cupcakes I have done in the last months since Christmas.

So one of the things I do now for friend's and family's birthdays is bake them their own batch of birthday cupcakes. I ask them what they want and I dig up some recipes to make their birthday cupcakes come true.

In January, my sister celebrated her birthday and she requested Mint Chocolate Cupcakes, like a thin mint or peppermint patty. No problem. And what good is a birthday present without a little bow to add a little something extra.

Kirsten's Peppermint Patty Cupcakes

Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes (taken from Crazy About Cupcakes)

Ingredients:

6 tbsp applesauce
2 1/4 cups water
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp white vinegar
2 1/2 cups flour (rice flour for the gluten-free)
2/3 cup cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In large bowl mix together the applesauce, water, vanilla, and vinegar (I use a mixer).
3. In another bowl mix together the rest of the ingredients.
4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the liquid mixture.
5. Fill the cupcake liners and bake for 20-25 minutes.

Now for the icing...on the cupcake. So I figured I would use a peppermint buttercream frosting, but I couldn't find a really good recipe. But I thought, what the heck, I've made enough frosting to know what the key is. So I made it up...

Kaari's Peppermint Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

2 sticks vegan butter
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar (guess-estimate here, it all matters how thick you want the frosting)
1-2 tbsp plain soy milk
Peppermint/Mint Extract (put as much as you want in depending on how minty you want it)

Directions:

1. Cream the butter in the mixer.
2. Add the powdered sugar and then proceed to add the wet ingredients. You can play around with the amounts depending it on how thick or runny you want the frosting. And also how flavorful you want the frosting to be.

For the final touch, I added a sprig of mint and half a peppermint patty, so you knew exactly what you were devouring.

The Results:

Happy Baking!

Jolly Holly Gingerbread Cupcakes

Ahh Christmas, definitely one of my favorite times of year. It's the time of year where an adult gets a free pass of acting like a kid again. The decorations of white lights and manager stalls in front yards. The smells of evergreen and baked Christmas cookies. The tastes of hot apple cider and gingerbread. And that's where I decided to take my next confectionery conception....Christmas style.

Gingerbread Cupcakes--Crazy About Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1/4 lb butter (vegan butter) at room temperature
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
2/3 cup molasses
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (rice flour)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 cup sour cream (vegan)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In mixer cream the butter and the sugars together until fluffy. Add the egg, molasses, and lemon zest to the creamed mixture.
3. In separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, alternating with the sour cream, until they are completely combined.
5. Fill the cupcake liners. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
So the last few cupcakes I have made I have used the Maple Buttercream Frosting to my Yammie Cupcakes and the Pumpkin Cupcakes and yes I used it for my Gingerbread Cupcakes as well. The recipe for the Maple Buttercream Frosting is under the recipe for the Pumpkin Cupcake recipe. And then I decided to make my own version of holly decorations with red hots and apple licorice, just to make it more festive.

Merry Christmas!

"Yammy" Cupcakes

I'm on this fall flavors kick, so after the great success of the Maple Pumpkin Cupcakes...it I became curious-er and curious-er about other potential vegetables or starches in this case, that I could use. So I was thinking sweet potato or my personal favorite...YAMS!

It's no secret to my family or who anyone who's sampled, that my thing is cupcakes. So naturally I put these people to work for me, especially if they ever want to have a cupcake again, that's right, I'm a hardcore cupcake fiend. My Mom found this recipe in the Better Homes and Garden magazine, unfortunately you need to register to view it online, so I will give you my variation.

Sweet Potato (YAM) Cupcakes

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour (rice flour for me)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup butter, softened (vegan margarine)
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 yams (I baked them before hand and left them cool after I scraped them out of their skins, so this will definitely add time to the process. )
OR if you are doing Sweet Potatoes they suggest 1 17.2 oz canned sweet potatoes
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat to 350 degrees.
2. In medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
3. In the mixer, cream the butter and then add the sugar about beat for about 2 minutes, or until fluffy. Then add the eggs one a time, mixing in between, until all are added. Add the baked yams and vanilla. Lastly, add the flour mixture.
4. Bake for about 20 minutes.


And for the frosting, I used the left over yummy Maple Buttercream Frosting. It's a perfect compliment. If you liked the Pumpkin, you are definitely going to love the Yammy Cupcakes.

Yummy Yammies!

Pumpkin Cupcake Wrapped In Maple Buttercream

Fall is definitely upon us and that means it's time for baking with fall flavors and spices.

Nutmeg. Cinnamon. Hot chocolate. Cider. Maple. Pumpkin pie. Cranberry. Orange. Vanilla.

The list could go on, well I decided to cap upon the falling leaves, warm colors and raincoats, just in time for concocting confections for my Dad's birthday.

His favorite dessert is pumpkin pie. The story is that his first word was pumpkin. So of course I had to incorporate pumpkin into my love of cupcakes and for a special treat, other that pumpkin pie, for my Dad.

Pumpkin Cupcakes Recipe (taken from Crazy About Cupcakes)

Ingredients:
1 stick (1/4 pound) unsalted butter; at room temperature (vegan margarine)
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 c. granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour (rice flour)
2 teaspooons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk (soy milk)
1-1/4 cups pumpkin puree, canned or fresh
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Insert liners into medium cupcake pan.
2. In large bowl cream together the buttter and sugars with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Add eggs to the creamed mixture one at a time, mixing afer each addition. Beat well.
3. In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and salt.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, alternating with milk. Mix until completely integrated.
5. Add the pumpkin and vanilla and beat until smooth.6. Fill the cupcake liners 1/2 to 3/4 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Maple Buttercream Frosting(taken from website CDKitchen.com)

Ingredients:

1 cup butter (vegan margarine), at room temperature
2 3/4 cups powdered sugar

2 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp maple syrup

1/4 chopped walnut (I didn't use these, but I'm sure it would be great with them)

Directions:

1. Mix the butter in the mixer.

2. Add the powdered sugar, brown sugar, and maple syrup for 2-3 minutes until fluffy.

I was a little skeptical about the maple frosting, but it turned out to be the perfect compliment to the pumpkin perfection. And probably one of my favorite frostings that I have made...not to mention cupcake. It's getting so hard to choose.