Cupcakes and a New Look

Thank you for being patient while I make some changes around here. I definitely noticed a need for an upgrade to my blog, and I finally found that inspiration that pushed me to update my blog and renew my spirit. And it came from these cupcakes. Let me start at the beginning...


I love baking, but most of all I love baking cupcakes. Even better is when I see people try my cupcakes and they enjoy them. Because of this, it only made sense for me to want to bake cupcakes for others. At the same time, I'd like to make a profit from it too since ingredients aren't cheap.


Time passed where I was still trying to work everything out in my head and figure out what this could mean for me. Eventually I realized if I wanted to turn this into a business of any kind, I needed a name and logo. After some thought I choose a name and my sister hooked me up with a friend of hers who designs logos. We worked together and created something pretty cool. I'll share it with you soon!

After seeing this, an idea that had floated in my head finally put to paper or an abstract idea becoming concrete... well it was a great feeling. At this point, I had my name and logo, I knew what I wanted to do, and I was fairly good at it, but I got stuck. Then school took over and my business ideas took a back burner to life.


Here's where these recent cupcakes come in. Up until this point I didn't care what my cupcakes looked like. It was how they tasted that mattered, right? Wrong. So so wrong. People want to buy and eat pretty cupcakes. Otherwise my "homely" cupcakes would be overlooked like my favorite discontinued television show (R.I.P Pushing Daisies). After winning a giveaway on Ingrid's blog, I acquired a Williams-Sonoma gift card. And I had just the thing in mind to buy. I got myself a brand new mechanical pastry bag. Kind of a weird name, but you know what I mean. This was the fresh start I needed to start making cupcakes that not only tasted great, but looked great.




And these my friends were the cupcakes that did it. They inspired me to break out this new toy and make some dang good (and good looking cupcakes). At first, these cupcakes were just for me and family and friends to enjoy, but my sister asked if I would give some to her so she could bring them into her work. Of course I said yes! I gave her two dozen and she came home empty handed. Her first words, "You should have given me business cards to hand out because everyone loved them!"




I still had some cupcakes left and so I gave they out to neighbors and my boyfriends family. After delivering them to each home, I received phone calls from each telling me they were the best cupcakes they have ever had! In fact, two of them asked me to make cupcakes for them next week and they would pay me! With this one cupcake recipe, I was back on the map. I found my love for starting my own small business again, and I don't ever want to forget it. I'm heading into college next year planning on studying entrepreneurship. Although many people change their minds, this is where I feel drawn so I'm going to go with it.




If I wasn't clear earlier, this cupcakes were out of this world. The cookie dough center is like a soft cookie and the cookie dough frosting makes the cupcake what it is. I spent a lot of time making my presentation of them perfect, but I still have a ways to go in perfecting my piping skills.



Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes with Cookie Dough Buttercream

frosting and cookie dough from Kevin and Amanda
cupcakes from Martha Stewart

For the cookie dough:
2 sticks softened butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
4 tbsp milk
1 tbsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup mini chocolate chips

For the cupcakes:
3 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (2 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/4 cups sugar
5 large whole eggs plus 3 egg yolks, room temperature
2 cups buttermilk, room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the frosting:
3 sticks softened butter
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

To make the cookie dough, combine the butter and sugars in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 mins. Beat in milk and vanilla until incorporated and smooth. Beat in the flour and salt until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Using a 1.5 tbsp scoop, shape the dough into balls or tubes. Freeze on a parchment lined baking sheet overnight.

To make the cupcakes:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together both flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

2) With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to medium. Add whole eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add yolks, and beat until thoroughly combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and beating until combined after each. Beat in vanilla.

3) Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each 2/3 full. Place a frozen cookie dough ball on the top center of each cupcake.

Bake at 350 for 16-18 mins.

To make the frosting, combine the butter and brown sugar in a mixing bowl and cream on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the powdered sugar until smooth. Beat in the salt, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth and combined.

Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with mini chocolate chips!

With Martha's Vanilla Cupcake recipe I got 4 dozen cupcakes! It makes a lot but you'll sure want them all!

Mountain Dew Cupcakes

First off let me tell you something: I don't drink pop. At all. Well, okay, on Christmas Eve every year I order a Shirley Temple with my dinner at the same Japanese restaurant we go to every year, but that doesn't really count. When I was younger, I was a pop addict. I honestly drank pop and ate pretzels like it was my job. 3-4 cans a day. It was baddddd. Then, my mom finally cracked down on me and my sister when I was around age 12, and I've been pretty clean ever since. Besides the Shirley Temple or pop infused cupcake here and there.


My boyfriend (of 9 months Monday) is a pop addict. More specifically, Mountain Dew. I know he loves pop, he knows I won't drink it, and we understand each other. So, I decided I would surprise him with a special recipe that highlighted the (second) love of his life.

He loves that I bake. In fact, I've invaded his kitchen and baked for him there before which is what went down with these cupcakes and another recipe to come. Though he can't stand pumpkin and won't eat anything with nuts in it (we'll work through it), he really supports my baking. So to show my appreciation, I wanted to try a recipe that would be all about him.


To recreate this beloved drink, the essence of lemons and limes is essential. My zester is my favorite tool, so it was great to have another chance to use it! The cupcakes baked up beautifully and the icing was a perfect pairing. The true essence of the iconic mountain dew flavors were apparent. He was so thankful for them and I just just happy he liked them. In the middle of winter, it was nice to have an item reminiscent of Spring.


Mountain Dew Cupcakes
from slush

(some of the lemon and lime ingredients can be confusing, so read carefully!)
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
3/4 cup Mountain Dew
1/4 cup of lemon and lime juice (juice from 1 lemon and 1 lime)
zest from 1 lemon and 2 limes (separate into 2 piles, one for buttercream)
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon extract
2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Beat butter on medium for 30 seconds.
2. Add sugar and lemon, lime zest. Beat on medium-high until light and fluffy.
3. Add eggs one at a time, Scrape sides of bowl in between additions
4. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Add to mixer bowl. Turn on low for 5 seconds.
5. Add the Mountain Dew, lemon/lime juice, and lemon extract . Mix to combine.
5. Scoop into cupcake papers about two-thirds full.
6. Bake for 18-20 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean.

Mountain Dew Buttercream

1 cup butter (2 sticks)
4-5 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons Mountain Dew
Juices from half of 1 lemon and half of 1 lime.
Lemon and lime zest (rest of zest from cupcake recipe. Or zest from half of 1 lemon and 1 whole lime)
1 teaspoon lemon extract
neon green food coloring (yellow and blue if you don't have green)

1. Sift powdered sugar into a bowl or onto parchment
2. Beat butter at medium-high speed until creamy
3. Add half of the sugar, turn mixer on low for 5 seconds.
4. Add the Mountain Dew, zest, and lemon extract . Beat until combined.
5. Add food coloring to the desired color.
6. Gradually add remaining sugar until you get to the consistency and sweetness you like.

Lemon and Vanilla Cupcakes

Yes, pumpkin week is coming up very soon here on my blog. Just hang in there a bit longer! Here's another summer clean out post for you in the mean time.


A while back, I broke my icing piper=( It was a sad, sad day. My cupcakes have never been the same. I've certainly tried to make due as you can see here, here, and here. This time was no different, but I attempted to create a make-shift piping bag. It's pretty rough... I know. But I knew the people I was making these for wouldn't mind my "rustic" piping job.


This was for one of my family's closest neighbors. My parents are friendly with the parents and their daughter is like my BFF. They love my baking, so they asked me to provide cupcakes for a low key 50th birthday they were having for the Mister. Knowing what I do, I decided to make his favorite, lemon. Along with that I made vanilla to appease everyone, and myself hehe.


This was a pretty simple job. I can make the vanilla cupcakes in my sleep, and with my new easy zester, lemon baked goods are easier than ever! (That really sounded like an infomercial there...) But it really was easy. So these are just Martha Stewart's lemon meringue cupcakes, minus the meringue. Instead, I made a lemon cream cheese frosting. I added lemon heads to the top for decoration. I do have some class.


These cupcakes, not so much class. But they never fail in the taste department. All the cupcakes were devoured with joy and we all lived happily ever after. =)

Hit up Martha Stewart for the recipes!

MSC: Cookies and Cream

My schedule is hectic. My homework is out my butt. Volleyball is 24/7. But I had to bake these=)

(This post will be a short one. My apologies!)

I started by making a fourth of the recipe. This wasn't too hard with a recipe calling for four eggs, 16 oz cream cheese, and other numbers easily divisible by 4. The ingredients themselves are few. And since I had Oreo's left over from the ice cream I made, I knew it was fate.


There's a small twist to them though. I did not have cream cheese on hand. GASP. How could I call it fate to make mini cheesecakes whenever I didn't even have cream cheese on hand?! Because I had just-about-to-go-bad mascarpone cheese on hand. Duhhhh. I guess I was feeling crazy in the kitchen! I also went ahead and left off the tops of the Oreos that I placed on the bottom of each cupcake. I used to tops as the crushed up Oreo for the cheesecake part. A wise choice, I might add.


Okay verdict time: The mascarpone cheese was a definite hit! There was a slight difference in taste but not a bad one at all! It was tough waiting for these to cool. So I had to eat one warm. Not too bad actually=)


Photographing cheesecakes is odd. I'm terrible at photographing food as is, so this was a tricky one. Maybe one of these days I'll learn a thing or two about taking pictures of my food. Until then, trust in my mediocre pictures and know that these beauties were extremely delicious. So delicious, in fact, that eating five of the 6 in one day is in no way a bad thing;)

An Update & Zucchini Cupcakes

School's here. I already told you that, but now it's official.

Volleyball is in full swing. Well It's actually been in full swing since July, but now that I have to deal with school AND volleyball. My free time is limited. When I do have this rare free time, baking just doesn't seem to fit. Practice is right after school and I get home at 6. Then it's shower, food, homework, and what little else I can fit in. It seems like baking may need to take a bit of a back seat.

Weekends you say? We have all day tournaments every Saturday. Which leaves Sunday for homework and errands. I'm going to try to do some baking, but when I can. I don't want to overwhelm myself, or buy ingredients I never get around to using.

Another bit of news. I don't want to go into too much here, but I have a bit of a food allergy. I've been dealing with it for quite a while. And when I say this, I mean it. Food and eating are obviously two loves of mine, but unfortunately they don't love me. Without going into too much (and we still don't know completely what it is that affects me or the extent of it) I cannot digest many foods well. I get a mixture of painful heartburn to unpleasant and more than average "burp-like" responses, as well as a burning throat and upset stomach. There isn't too much rhyme or reason to which foods cause it or which symptoms I'll have, but we do know it's been going on for a long while and isn't stopping.

In an effort to finally do something about this, I'm working to isolate the problem. This is not an easy thing to do. My first attempt: going gluten-free. Many people are gluten-free, whether it's due to disease or diet. It's a tough transition, but there is enough out there that I am able to still have food options. When it's difficult is eating with others. At our senior retreat, pizza was bought for the whole class. Uh-oh. Long story short, my BFF's always have may back and turned what could have been a really painful experience (both digestively and socially), into a hilarious lunch where I sneakily ate some gluten-free food I hid in my purse. I love those girls!

But still, I don't believe avoiding gluten is the solution. There are foods with wheat gluten that I can eat, and I feel fine after doing so. Like the bagel I ate this morning. I had no problem whatsoever. And then there is peanut butter. The love of my life, peanut butter. It basically destroys me whenever I eat it. =(((( I tried organic almond butter (almonds are not legumes like peanuts) and I still felt a little upset afterward. Oh! And I had one measly slice of a cucumber onetime, and it was soooo painful! Whyyyyyyy??? And I always eat Clif bars as a safe food, but then onetime I had one (though it was on I'd never had before) and it hurt me. Weirddddd.

This is a pretty personal problem and maybe I shouldn't be sharing it, by why not? It is something I'm dealing with and I don't want to be ashamed or embarrassed. By typing this out it is really helping me to take a good look at what is happening with me. Though it is clear the causes are still unknown, I'll just take it one day at a time.

What does this mean to you? Nothing. But it does mean that the things I bake will be very selective, or what I bake may "hurt" me, in a sense. A lot of baked goods seem not to effect me well. Then again, some have no effect.

The bottom line: I don't have time to do all the baking I wish I could, though I will still try! However, if I do bake, it may not be in the best interest for me or my body. But.... I could never go cold turkey with my love of bake goods. That's like telling the muffin man he may want to consider a new day job. Not happening. So you'll see me posting, but more infrequently.

I'm still checking your blogs, though, and I'll try my best to comment like usual!

The excess of summery zucchini led me to make an item reminiscent of Fall. I made a small batch, but these were so good. Moist to a tee and the cream cheese frosting is beyond good. If you're not in the mood for them right now, keep these in your back pocket. You will not be disappointed.

If you search for this recipe online, you're not likely to find it. Her online zucchini cupcake recipe is different than the one from her book. The one I am posting is the one from her book.

Zucchini Spice Cupcakes
from Martha Stewart

Ingredients:
Cupcakes:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 cups packed light brown sugar
3 cups packed grated zucchini
1 cup walnuts (about 3 ounces), toasted and coarsely chopped

Frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 pound (4 cups) confectioner's sugar, sifted
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. In another bowl, whisk together oil, eggs, vanilla, and zest until well blended; whisk in brown sugar until smooth. Stir in zucchini, then add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Stir in walnuts.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

To finish, use an offset spatula to spread cupcakes with frosting. Refrigerate up to 3 days in airtight containers; bring to room temperature before serving.

Frosting:
With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, and then vanilla, and mix until smooth and combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. If not using immediately, frosting can be refrigerated up to 3 days in an airtight container; before using bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth again.

Tropical Birthday Cupcakes!

I have mentioned my friend Maria numerous times on my blog. If you don't remember hearing about her, then obviously you need to go back and read my earlier posts. Duhhh. But yeah she's an awesome friend who I have really come to trust in, even though we go to different schools. We still manage to see each other which is great. She is also someone I could really confide in when it came to a very risky business venture I'm exploring. It's new, it involves cupcakes, and I blush and get somewhat uncomfortable/embarrassed when I talk about it, but she's been supporting me along the way and helping me get over my fears=) It's still early for me to talk about, but eventually I'll give you guys all the deets.


Story time:
So Maria was turning 18 (woot woot) and her mom came to me with the idea that as my gift to her, I could make her cupcakes! I was speechless! I was honored she'd trust me to make them and I knew it would make Maria very happy. I now had all kinds of planning to do, but it was all fun. As to what kind of cupcakes to make, I decided to keep it very basic. I had to keep in mind that it is a birthday party and many people aren't open to exotic flavors and just prefer classics. So that meant vanilla and chocolate.

I haven't really made a chocolate cupcake before so it was a little nerve-racking, but it all went fine!

I knew the party theme was tropical, and her mom had plenty of those little umbrellas for drinks. So... umbrellas in the cupcakes? I think yes. I did have the option of playing with frosting left. No crazy flavors there, I decided. Plus, I wanted to show these guests what a real buttercream frosting is like. So I did a fluffy vanilla buttercream frosting and then colored it.


This was my first time doing a big food dye job. I'm not gonna lie, it was a ton of work. The weather was of no help either because it was soooo hot and they would start getting melty so fast that I would constantly be taking them in and out of the fridge. The frosting was a huge project, but it was my first time and now I know what to expect.


Though it was a lot of work, it was all worth it. Maria was surprised when she saw them because I snuck them inside and she thought they tasted great! Of course at an 18th birthday party you have a ton of teenage girls who are all worried about indulging in sweets and gaining weight, but still, a lot of cupcakes went!

(Do you see the 18?!)

Through this whole process, I had a great time. I loved every aspect. From baking the cupcakes, playing with frostings, sampling cupcakes (shh..), and seeing the end result and the happy "customer"; it was all great. I enjoy (love) doing this, and hopefully I'll have many more opportunities to make people happy with my baking!

No MSC, but still cupcakes!

So it's true I've skipped the last Martha Stewart's Cupcakes pick and this month's now, too. But, (if you're in the mood to hear me rationalize) I can explain. Last month's pick was chocolate, and I'm not really a fan (but I'm trying to make myself like it, as of late). And this month, I got my first request to make cupcakes for an event! The event was yesterday, and my time was greatly consumed with making those cupcakes.

I have some things to do today, but I'd like to get that post up for you later tonight. Be sure to stop back!

Fourth of July Cupcakes

Happy belated 4th of July!

My day was spent at the wave pool with my cousins, where we happened to find five dollars at the bottom of the pool! The tricky thing was the fact that the waves were going on as we were trying to catch it. So every time a wave came by the dollar would move and we would get washed over. It was really funny, but slightly aggravating...

We all then headed over to our cousins house for some grub and cupcakes. This was the first time I've baked something not in my own kitchen. It's interesting because you are using all new bowls, measuring equipment, mixers, and an oven that you aren't accustomed to. In the end, the cupcakes turned out wonderful! We were going to divide the batter into three and dye them red, white, and blue in true spirit, but that would have called for more dishes to clean up. Instead, we divided the icing into three and dyed them red, white, and blue. Yeah, I realize this is still using dishes, but it was done at my other aunt's house so the mess was more dispersed.

We left some cupcakes at my one aunt's house and these one's to my other
aunt's house. We were one short of an (almost) perfect flag!

We made these cupcakes especially for my cousin Jeffery. He recently had back surgery so he couldn't spend the day with us. We decided to surprise him and show up with cupcakes. We had a great evening and he said, I quote, "Those cupcakes were AWESOME!!!!!" That is very (unusual) high praise coming from him. We ended the evening with illegal fireworks in the backyard. =) Hehehe.

For the cupcakes I used Martha Stewart's vanilla buttermilk cupcakes with her fluffy vanilla frosting. You can find the recipe HERE. I'm actually completely in love with these cupcakes. I am a purist. I will pick vanilla over chocolate any day and everyday. Most people call me crazy for this, but I find it completely sane. So I have to say I just love these to death.

Oreo Cupcakes

So umm... can we not talk about these? Really, I'm not sure I want to. I'll maybe just so you some mediocre pictures and let them do the talking, kay?

Alright so I guess I'll say something. My good ole friend Maria came over to bake, yet again. Cupcakes were chosen. Of the Oreo variety. I mentioned I'd made an incredible Cookies N' Cream cupcake awhile ago, and would love to make them again since I only made four the first time (silly me!). A different recipe was chosen, however, since I had forgotten cake mix was involved in the recipe, and we don't really keep that around when you have a baker like me=) (However I will say those cupcakes I made using the cake mix were pretty bomb. Shh...)

A lovely article about Eclipse in the paper.

I'll cut to the chase here. Oreo Overload. Okay, so we used the whole box for these cupcakes. Not such a good idea. I mean, they were crazayzay oreo-d out. And the even bigger mistake............... I left them in too long. This is a first for me, well actually a second. I have a certain system with my cupcakes, which I cannot reveal because it is super top secret. But this day I screwed the system and got burnt, literally. Well, okay so they weren't burnt, or anywhere close, (well kinda), but they weren't my signature style. I really let myself down and was ashamed to give them to neighbors. But we had SO many leftovers that I was forced to.

Next time, HALF the amount of Oreos I used and pull them out at the correct time. No need to second guess yourself, Sherry... So I won't say I was crazy about these. Oh, but I did find them best eaten when they were chilled.

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

from: Annie's Eats

Yield: 24 cupcakes
Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
24 Oreo halves, with cream filling attached

2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 2/3 cup sugar
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup milk
20 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped

For the frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2 tbsp. heavy cream

For garnish:
Oreo cookie crumbs
24 Oreo cookie halves

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line the wells of two cupcake pans with 24 paper liners. Place an Oreo halve in the bottom of each liner, cream side up. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir together with a fork to blend and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Blend in the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, beat in half of the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Add the milk and beat just until combined, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients. Gently fold in the chopped Oreos with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated, being careful not to over-mix.

Evenly divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners. Bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Blend in the vanilla extract. Beat in the confectioners’ sugar until incorporated and smooth, 1-2 minutes. Add the heavy cream to the bowl and beat on medium-low speed just until incorporated, then increase the speed to medium-high and whip for 4 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired. Sprinkle with Oreo crumbs and garnish with Oreo halves.

Red (Purple) Velvet Cupcakes

As my baking skills become more well known, it is both a gift and a curse. People are beginning to use me for my baked goods! I actually love it though;) My friend Maria loves when I send extra cupcakes her way and has been asking me when we can get together and bake. So real spur of the moment, we got together and made some cupcakes. This isn't the first time we've baked together. Remember the white velvet cake? The one that took three days to complete? If not, check it out.


When me and Maria bake, we like experimenting. We look at the recipe, then try and put at least a small twist on it. We scoured my beloved Martha Stewart's Cupcakes book, and landed on the red velvet cupcakes. The cream cheese frosting sold us! Our twist? Ehh we just tried to play with colors. We also halved the recipe. Nothing too crazy. The color actually turned out grossss. We were going for purple but... not so much hehe. So then we tried to bring them back to red.


So it made 12 cupcakes, and I got yelled at. After Maria and I let our families try them, they all kept saying, "Why didn't you make more?!?!?" My mom and sister were quite upset with me! I think that's a compliment? But yeah everyone really enjoyed them. So, try these!


Martha Stewart's Red Velvet Cupcakes
from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

2 1/2 cups cake flour (not self- rising), sifted
2 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon red gel-paste food color
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together cake flour, cocoa, and salt.
2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, whisk together sugar and oil until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Mix in food color and vanilla.
3. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and whisking well after each. Stir together the baking soda and vinegar in a small bowl (it will foam); add mixture to the batter, and mix on medium speed 10 seconds.
4. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.
5. To finish, use a small offset spatula to spread cupcakes with frosting. Refrigerate up to 3 days in airtight containers; bring to room temperature before serving.

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 pound (4 cups) confectioners' sugar, sifted
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions
1. Beat butter and cream cheese with a mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add sugar, 1 cup at a time, and then vanilla; mix until smooth. Frosting can be refrigerated for up to 3 days; before using, bring to room temperature, and beat until smooth.

This frosting was the "best I ever had". You wanna know why? I actually let my butter come to room temperature before beginning. Like it was super creamy and smooth. I adored it!

Around the World Cupcakes!

Try and test your flag knowledge!

These cupcakes were a fun project i decided to do for my AP World Literature class for our end of the year party. As I mentioned in a previous post, everyone in my AP class chose a country to spend time on all year blah blah blah.. I already talked about this. But for our party, I decided to showcase a more decorative side of my cupcake making abilities. My class already knew I was a seasoned cupcake baker, but I wanted to show them I could get a little more playful as well.

Our lovely party spread. Flip side crackers, a cookie cake, brownie bites, and my cupcakes! All on a Disney princess table cloth.

Our party theme was "Everybody Wang Lung Tonight". I'll explain. We read this crazy novel titled "The Good Earth". It was extremely long and a tad pointless. I don't wanna bash it too much, as there is now a special spot in my heart for it. So the main character's name is Wang Lung, and the song is Wang Chung. Yepp, I thought of it all by myself=) But for the cupcakes... I racked my brain constantly on what I could possibly do with them. Themes, flavors, and shapes were all put into consideration. And judging by the pictures I'm sure you can guess what I came up with.

Do you know what countries these are?

I like making people feel special. People like being made to feel special. Who doesn't like when someone specifically creates something for them? So I made a cupcake specifically designed for each member of my class. The base was a simple vanilla buttermilk cupcake by the Queen herself. I've made so many of her cupcakes but had yet to make her simple vanilla ones! I paired it with her suggested fluffy vanilla frosting. I halved both the recipes. Then, I got creative.

The lovely cookie cake bought by my friend Roman. She said the cake decorator gave her some pretty strange looks. I can't imagine why.

I went scouring the town for some fondant to work with and ended up finding it at this cute cottage-like house that was a cake supplies store. I then bought icing markers to use on it. So I would take a chunk of fondant, roll it into a rectangle shape, then color on my flag pattern. Were these time consuming? Umm.. if they were, I didn't seem to mind. It was such fun to make!

Best friends=)

Vanilla Buttermilk Cupcakes

3 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (2 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/4 cups sugar
5 large whole eggs plus 3 egg yolks, room temperature
2 cups buttermilk, room temperature2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together both flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

2) With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to medium. Add whole eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add yolks, and beat until thoroughly combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and beating until combined after each. Beat in vanilla.

3) Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until cupcakes spring back when lightly touched and a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool 10 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.


Fluffy Vanilla Frosting

1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 pound (4 cups) confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
1) With an electric mixer, beat butter on medium-high speed until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes.

2)Reduce speed to medium. Add the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl as needed; after every two additions, raise speed to high and beat 10 seconds to aerate frosting, then return to medium-high. This process should take about 5 minutes. Frosting will be very pale and fluffy.
3)Add vanilla, and beat until frosting is smooth. If not using immediately, frosting can be refrigerated up to 10 days in an airtight container. Before using, bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth again, about 5 minutes.