Week 3: June 26, 2012

Wow... Tuesday's come up way too fast! So here we are with another week of cupcake. But first, I wanted to mention Tristan's friend, Alex's birthday party. On Saturday, Tristan, Jason, and myself, went to see the movie Brave (very cute movie) and ran into Alex and his family afterwards. Alex's dad, George, had mentioned that Coach Nikos had asked if I was making cupcakes again! That was a compliment in itself, so I felt that I needed to do some more! I baked some really good ones (those are next weeks) and I got so many compliments on them! I just wanted to say thank you to all of the kids and parents at the party! I would absolutely love to have my own business one day, and this group of people are all for that! :) Again, thank you! Ok, so now back to this week... My plan was to do a bomb pop flavor (yes, like the red, white, and blue popsicle). After really thinking about it, I realized, there are 3 different flavors to that cupcake. Lemon-lime, blue raspberry, and cherry. So instead, I took two of those flavors and made a really yummy cupcake! So here it is.... Lemon Lime Surprise! (That's what I've decided to name this one)

Lemon Lime Suprise!

Makes 12 cupcakes (Yes, 12 cupcakes! First time I've ever gotten the right amount)

 

Ingredients:

6 T. vegetable oil

3/4 c. sugar

2 T. lemon zest (2 lemons. I only had 1 lemon, so I did 1 T. lemon zest and 1 T. lemon juice)

1/2 t. salt

1 T. lime zest (1 lime)

1 T. lime juice (half of the lime)

2 eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 c. all purpose flour

1 t. baking powder

1/2 c. milk, at room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 375F.  Line pan with liners. 

2. Beat together oil, sugar, lemon zest, lime zest, and salt for about 2 minutes. 

3. Beat in the lime juice (and lemon juice); then the eggs, one at a time, for about 2 minutes. 

4. In a separate bowl, mix together flour and baking powder. 

5. At a low speed, add the flour mixture 1/3 at a time, alternating with 2 additions of the milk; mix until blended (about 30 seconds). 

6. Fill the liners 2/3 full with the cake batter. 

7. Bake between 16-20 minutes (20 for me). 

8. Let cool in the pan for five minutes, then transfer to wire rack. 

"Surprise" Step

Mix 1 c. boiling water with 1 package of raspberry flavored gelatin. (I just put the water in a coffee mug and microwaved it for 3 minutes) After the cupcakes have cooled completely, poke holes in them. Then take a spoon and very slowly pour the gelatin mix onto the cupcakes (that would be why there is some red in the cupcake). 

Whipped Cream "Frosting"

(This is basically whipped cream)

Ingredients: 

3 c. heavy or whipping cream (I did heavy whipping cream)

5 T. sugar

1 1/2 t. vanilla extract

1. Chill the bowl and hand mixer attachments in the freezer for about 15 minutes (perfect to do while you're doing the surprise step). 

2. Pour heavy cream into the bowl and mix on medium high speed until it starts to thicken, about 2 minutes.

3. Slow the speed down and gradually pour in the sugar (I just put each T. in one at a time). 

4. Add the vanilla extract and continue to whisk by hand until the cream is smooth and stiff peaks form. 

(5. Chill the cream for at least 15 minutes before you top your cupcakes - yes this is my suggestion). 

               (I'm very excited to say that I made whipped cream by hand! And with the recipe I 

        gave you, there's plenty for the cupcakes and extra for maybe dipping some fruits. Yummy!)

                         (I love the look of the gelatin dripping down! It looks like blood! 

                               You could almost do something like this for Halloween!)

Kristin's Review:  Wow, this cupcake is good! I actually really loved it! It's so refreshing and light! I could have eaten 5 of them! I think the next time I make these, I might do a different whipped cream frosting. The frosting I made was literally homemade whipped cream. It's really good, don't get me wrong, but something a little heavier would be good too. Of course, this is the first week that I only did one dozen instead of two :( That's probably a good thing though :) I would definitely give this cupcake 4.5 sprinkles out of 5 (yes, there are that good)! 

So, for the next 2 weeks, it's going to be a little hectic for me! Next week, I'm going back up to WI for a night to drop off my pooch with my parents, so I won't be baking. ::: Passes tissue ::: Don't get too worried though, I have a couple of recipes on stand by for the days I can't bake.   :) 

Until next week...

 

Week 2: June 19, 2012

Happy Tuesday Everyone! 

So here's my week two flavor: Strawberry Lemonade! This was an interesting one... I kind of just made up what I did. I've got a few more pictures of what everything looked like as I was making them also. 


Lemonade Cupcakes:
Makes 24 cupcakes (for me, it was more like 30)

Ingredients

4 sticks butter, softened
1 1/2 c. flavored lemonade mix (like Countrytime, but I used the Wal-Mart version)
4 eggs
3 t. vanilla extract
3 t. lemon juice
3 c. all purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 c. milk 


1. Preheat oven to 350F and line your cupcake tin with liners.
2. Cream butter and lemonade mix until smooth. 
3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each one. 
4. Stir in vanilla and lemon juice. 
5. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. 
6. Add dry ingredients 1/3 at a time, alternating with the milk. 
7. Pour into liners and bake for 18-24 minutes (22 minutes for mine).

                                    They looked great out of the oven, but then...

                                               they sunk to about halfway :(


Strawberry Frosting:
Perfect amount for the Lemonade Cupcake recipe


Ingredients


1 c. frozen strawberries, thawed

4 sticks butter, softened
pinch of salt 
6 c. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla extract

1. Puree strawberries in a blender or food processor.    (I do not have either of those... I think I lost my blender in the move to IL. So I used my hand mixer. I smooshed them the mixer a lot. Once they were pretty mushy, I turned the mixer on. It worked really well.)
2. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and salt until fluffy. 
3. Slowly add the powdered sugar (I did 2 cups at a time).
4. Add vanilla and 1/2 c. of pureed strawberries (save the rest for something else if you like). Mix until well blended. 

(I actually mixed in the strawberries and vanilla before I did the powdered sugar. It turned out just fine. The consistency is a little thicker... it looks like strawberry ice cream in the bowl) 

Decorate as you see fit. I think they would look great with a bent straw and the little umbrella sticking out. I don't have anywhere to set them out on display, so I only did the umbrella on the one for pictures.  

Kristin's Review:  The strawberry frosting is fantastic! The lemonade cupcakes are pretty tart. If I make these again, I will do half sugar, half lemonade mix and probably 1 t. lemon juice. I'm wondering if that's whey the consistency is like it is (very soft and moist). Overall though, they are quite good. I'd give them 3 sprinkles out of five :)


If you try them at home, let me know how you like them :) 


Until next week!

Week 1: June 12, 2012

Yay for week 1! 

Today I actually made 2 different cupcakes! Tristan's last day of soccer for the summer is tomorrow and we're having a pizza party afterwards, so I figured what a better dessert than cupcakes! Flavor number 1 is Cookies 'N Cream and number 2 is Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. Yes, I tried them both! And yes, both of them taste pretty awesome! So let's get on with the recipes and my tips, trial and errors... 

  

                                                    Cookie 'N Cream Cupcakes

                                                Found at www.beantownbaker.com

Ingredients

For Cupcakes:

1 stick unsalted butter

1 c. milk

2 t. vanilla extract

2 1/4 c. flour, plus t T. for Oreo chunks

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1 2/3 c. sugar

3 large egg whites

1 package of Oreo cookies 

batch of cream cheese frosting

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Place liners in cupcake pan.

Twist apart 24 Oreos. Place the side with the frosting in the bottom of the paper liner (frosting side up). Save the other halves.

Cut or crush up the extra Oreos in a bowl. Toss with 2 T. flour and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter until fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the milk and vanilla to mixture. 

Make sure that your butter is fluffy! I'm an impatient person and I didn't wait the entire time. Way harder to do when it's not fluffy! 

In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt. 

 

Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Mix until integrated. Stir in sugar. With an electric mixer on low speed, beat for 30 seconds. Turn the mixer up to medium speed and beat for 2 minutes. Add the egg whites. Beat for 2 more minutes. Stir in the cookie pieces. 

Fill the cupcake liners three quarters full. Bake for about 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in the pan. 

I was kind of a space cadet today and totally missed adding the sugar until the very end (yeah i know, what was i thinking?!?!?).  So the texture of my cupcakes were much more dense and hard then they normally should be. Make sure you're paying attention the the directions! Easier said then done, apparently :)

                                         Paula Deen's Cream Cheese Frosting 

This is by far my favorite cream cheese frosting that I've found so this is the recipe I will give you :) 

Ingredients: 

2 packages cream cheese, room temperature

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

1 t. vanilla extract

4 c. powdered sugar

Beat the cream cheese and butter with a mixer until fluffy. Mix in vanilla. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, with mixer on. Test it after to make sure you have the sweetness you like. I added an extra half cup of sugar.

Frost cupcakes and top with more crushed up Oreo cookies! 

Ok. so those were good, but the next flavor were even better!  

                                           

                                              Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

                                                  Found at www.thecurvycarrot.com 

Ingredients

For cupcakes:

3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 c. light brown sugar

4 large eggs, at room temperature

2 2/3 c. all purpose flour

1 t. baking powder

1 t. baking soda

1/4 t. salt

1 c. milk (any kind is fine)

2 t. vanilla extract

1 c. semi sweet chocolate chips (I used regular sized)

For cookie dough filling:

1/2 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

6 T. light brown sugar

1 c. flour

7 oz. sweetened condensed milk (cans come in 14 oz, so just guess)

1/2 t. vanilla extract

1/4 c. semisweet chocolate chips (I used regular again) 

For brown sugar frosting:

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 c. light brown sugar

3 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 c. flour

3/4 t. salt

3/4 T. milk

2 1/2 t. vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line your cupcake pans with liner of your choice. 

2. In a bowl, cream butter and brown sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minute. 

3. Reduce speed and add the eggs, one at a time, and mixing well after each one. Scrape the sides of your bowl down. 

4. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

5. With the mixer still on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter/brown sugar mixer, alternating with the milk in thirds (beginning and ending with flour mixture).

6. Add vanilla to the batter and mix until combined. 

7. Add the chocolate chips to the mixture and gently stir with a spatula. 

9. Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full. Bake about 18-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Remove form oven and let them cool 

10. For the cookie dough filling: In a bowl, cream together butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. 

11. Reduce mixer speed to low and add flour, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla, mixing thoroughly. 

12. Gently stir in chocolate chips until completely mixed. Cover the filling with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm. (You can make this ahead of time, but make sure to pull the filling out of the refrigerator about an hour beforehand).  

13. For brown sugar frosting: In a bowl, cream butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. 

14. Reduce mixer to low, and slowly add powdered sugar until completely combined. 

15. Add flour and salt. 

16. Add milk and vanilla extract, mixing until well combined and smooth. 

Now it's time to put them all together :) 

1. You're going to want to cut some of the cupcake out to add the filling in. I used a 1/4 t. measuring cup and literally scooped the cupcake out. You can also use a pairing knife if you prefer. 

2. Now you will need to fill the cupcakes with the cookie dough filling. You can use a melon baller or your hands and drop the filling inside. I actually put the filling in a disposable piping bag and cut the tip off and filled them that way. 

3. Next, frost your cupcakes with whatever tip you like. I used the Wilton 1M. Then top with mini Chips Ahoy and some mini chocolate chips! Very cute :) 

   

I really hope that Tristan's teammates (and parents) enjoy! I did :) And I hope you try them at home too! Make sure to leave me some comments if you do make them. If you have any questions, please let me know! 

 Later :)  

 
  


                                  

1st Post!

Hello blogging world! 

I decided to start a blog about baking. This may just occupy my time, or turn into something more... who knows... 

I suppose, I should probably introduce myself. Hi, my name is Kristin! I'm a 28 year old wife, mother, hairstylist, and lover of all things cupcakes! How do you not like cupcakes? They're fun, cute, and the perfect portion (unless there are other flavors, then I always have more then one)! Seeing that I love cupcakes so much (yes, anyone who knows me can attest to that), I thought I would challenge myself with my baking. What better to do so then to bake 52 flavors of cupcakes in one year?!?!? I know, sounds rad right? So starting today, June 9th, 2012, I, Kristin Myhre, will bake one flavor of cupcakes for the next year! Phew... this is going to be good. So I will be on here at least once a week to update you all with pictures, recipes, and who knows what else! I hope you're all as excited as I am! Today is just my intro, so no sweets... you'll have to come back next week! 

Later...   :)