Buttery Vanilla Cupcakes with Creamy Chocolate Buttercream and Awards!

I've been trying to come up with more and more of my own recipes.  I realized that it's probably not the best idea to post all of the recipes out of the cookbooks that I haven't actually written myself.  So I've been trying to get my brain thinking and I've been experimenting and trying to become a more creative artist in the kitchen.  Hopefully that all works out...it's coming slowly though.  So, I just found these cute muffin cups that I wanted to use, and I was trying to create a half pound cake half cupcake recipe.  I had the recipe all on paper hoping it would all work out. My daughter helped me get the batter made and as I'm scooping it into the muffin cups I realize that I only added half the butter as I intended.  They turned out beautifully despite the mistake. Extremely buttery and moist.  The perfect cupcake.  I must not have had my baking "mojo" properly connected because another mistake of filling the muffin cups too full ended up as huge mess in my oven.  But they were salvaged.  These cupcakes were perfect.  I topped them off with a creamy chocolate buttercream frosting.  Delicious!  

Buttery Vanilla Cupcakes with Creamy Chocolate Buttercream

recipe by Stephanie

makes 12 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla (or you could use almond or lemon)

For the frosting:

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/3 cup cocoa powder

2 2/3 cups confectioners' sugar

1/3 cup heavy whipping cream (or half and half or milk)

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  In a mixer, beat butter until creamy.  Add milk.  Add eggs, one at a time until fully incorporated.  Slowly add the dry ingredients until well mixed.  Beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  Batter should be fluffy and creamy.

2. Line muffin tin with muffin cups.  Fill the cups only 1/2 full with batter.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool completely in muffin tin.  Transfer to wire rack to frost.

3. For the frosting, in a mixer cream the butter.  Add the cocoa and mix thoroughly.  Add vanilla. Slowly add powdered sugar, 1/2 cup cup at a time, alternating with the cream until consistency is fluffy and creamy.  Frost on cooled cupcakes.

I felt so honored when I received not 1 but 2 Yummy Blog Awards! One from my good friend Jenny at Picky Palate and the second one from the lovely Leslie at The Hungry Housewife. Thanks girls! It made my day and made me feel very special! I've met some of the nicest people here in Foodie Land. I love seeing the creativity that comes from the blogs I love and it inspires me to do better! So now I want to pass this great award on to 5 other great Food Blogs. I could choose so many, but here are the glorious blogs I chose:

Holly at Phemomenom: Holly bakes so many wonderful treats, I really wish I lived next door. I could easily make everything on her blog and die a happy girl.  She is not afraid of a little flour and sugar, and I love that about her blog!

Lindsey at Cafe Johnsonia: I would hope that someday she does open her own cafe, because I would be a loyal customer!  Everything that Lindsey makes seems so fresh, healthy and delicious!  I love pulling up her blog nearly everyday and finding a new and delicious post and my mouth waters every time!

Lori at Recipe Girl: Lori's blog is outstanding.  I love seeing her new posts and the bounty of recipes she has on hand!  She always has something new and delicious waiting for me when I turn on my computer!

Kalyn at Kalyn's Kitchen: Kalyn is all about healthy, and so when I look at her blog, it inspires me to be more healthy in my cooking.  It is easy to get so many wonderful ideas to lighten up your diet!  Something I need for sure...

Emiline at Sugarplum:  Emiline is truly original.  She creates all of her own recipes and it is truly an inspiration!  Her recipes are all mouthwatering.  I've made a few and they were all completely delicious!  

Make sure you check out these great blogs and be inspired!

Twisted Peanut Butter Cups

My addiction to Costco has hit an all time high.  Maybe it's the 2 million pints of strawberries for only $5.99.  Or maybe it's the totally awesome rotisserie chicken for $4.99.  Or maybe it's there freakin' cookbook section that gets me everytime.  They may not even be the best or even most well known cookbooks, but the fact that they are like $10 makes me become the victim of an overly obsessive cookbook disorder.  I know that I don't need them.  But they sit there, staring at me screaming "pick me, pick me!" So, I cave.  Yesterday, I caved.  I usually have second thoughts once I've hit my driveway.  Why did I buy that freakin' cookbook? But, this time I found one recipe that really jumped out at me.  Yes, one recipe.  Maybe down the road I can get some new ideas from it, but for now, one recipe.  It is Pillsbury's Best of the Bake-Off Winners.  I found a recipe for Choco-Peanut Butter Cups that I knew I couldn't die without trying.  Just my kind of treat.  So I went home and made it.  All I can say about this recipe can be summed up in just one word.  Yummy.  Yes, it may be lame, but it is one of my favorite descriptive words when it comes to food.  I can't help it.  It must be the little kid in me.  But it's true.  These peanut butter cups are yummy.  It is basically a peanut butter cookie stuffed with peanut butter mixed with half white chocolate and half semi-sweet chocolate.  Try them out and I bet that you will agree. Very rich, but very yummy.  Yum, yum, yum.  Okay, enough of that.  Obviously, the recipe being from the Pillsbury cookbook, calls for store bought peanut butter cookie dough.  But I made my favorite Sweet Melissa recipe, and it was perfect.  So do as you wish! I decided to rename this recipe Twisted Peanut Butter Cups, it just sounded more interesting to me.  But call them what you want! Enjoy this one!  Splurge!!!!

Twisted Peanut Butter Cups

adaped from Pillsbury Best of the Bake-Off Winner Cookbook

24 cookie cups

1 roll (16.5 oz) refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough

(or homemade recipe)

1 cup white chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups creamy peanut butter

1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

2 oats n honey crunchy granola bars (I used Nature Valley), crushed (3/4 cup)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease 24 mini muffin cups with cooking spray or shortening.  Cut cookie dough into 24 slices.  Press 1 slice in bottom and up side of each mini muffin cup, forming 1/4 inch rim above top of cup (dust fingers with flour if necessary).  Bake 10-15 minutes or until edges are deep golden brown.  Cool in pans on wire racks 5 minutes.  With tip of handle of wooden spoon, press dough down in center of each cup to make room for 2 tablespoons of filling.

2. Meanwhile, in 2 quart saucepan, melt white chips and 3/4 cup of the peanut butter over low heat, stirring constantly.  Divide mixture evenly into cookie cups (about 1 tablespoon each). Refrigerate for 10 minutes.

3. In same saucepan, melt chocolate chips and remaining 3/4 cup peanut butter over low heat, stirring constantly.  Divide chocolate mixture evenly on top of the white chocolate mixture in each cup (about 1 tablespoon each).  Sprinkle crushed granola bars over top of each. Refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.  Remove from muffin cups before serving.

After baking, poke the cookie down so that you have room for the yummy filling.

Fill with the white chocolate peanut butter mixture, and chill.

Fill with the chocolate peanut butter mixture.

Top with crushed granola bars and you now have one twisted peanut butter cup.  

A Birthday, Red Velvet Cupcakes and A Love Hate Relationship

First of all, a very Happy Birthday to my dear sweet Mother!  Happy Birthday Mom.  Thanks for teaching me all that I know in the kitchen and in life.  Thanks for being my best friend.  

I decided that for my families Birthdays, I will be making there favorite cupcakes for them, as a special treat just for them!  My mom's favorite is Red Velvet Cake.  So, I searched my cookbooks for the perfect recipe.  I had to go with my Sweet Melissa Baking Book again.  I knew I just couldn't go wrong. So far, I have made:

Sweet Muffins

Blueberry Almond Granola

Cinnamon Buns

Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies (post to come)

And now, I've tried her Red Velvet Cake, which I made into cupcakes.  (If you notice in the picture that my cake is not so red, it's because I ran out of red food coloring!)  Anyways, I was a little hesitant making cupcakes out of a cake recipe, I haven't had much luck in the past.  They always seem a little too dense and they seem to cave in the middle.  But today, while going through my cookbooks, I read in my Cake Doctor Cookbook how to accomplish this task successfully! I'll quote from the cookbook: 

"How to turn your favorite cake recipe into muffins or cupcakes? It's possible with almost any recipe, but you'll have the best results if the cake is sturdy in structure, containing 3 to 4 eggs, possibly a package of pudding mix, not too much liquid, and just a few add-ins like chocolate chips and nuts.  Yet, the only way to know for sure is to just give the recipe a go.  I prefer to line muffin pans with paper liners, but you can spray them with a misting of vegetable oil spray. Fill the cups from two-thirds to three-quarters full, bake at 350 degrees."  

Well this recipe, my friends, worked perfectly.  I have to say this is one of the tastiest cupcakes that I've ever made.  Not only were the flavors out of this world, but the texture was absolutely perfect.  Not too dense, not to heavy.  I haven't experienced many red velvet cakes in the past, so it was hard to compare, but the mixture of a small addition of cocoa powder and cinnamon made this sweet and satisfying!  I've decided that I now have a love/hate relationship with my dear friend Sweet Melissa.  Her cookbook alone has made me gain 5 pounds!  Everything I've made has been so decedent and there is no possible way to eat just one bite, or just one serving.  If you can do it, I'd like to know your trick!  I might have to hide this book away, because I might be in trouble.  But it is nice to know that if I ever need a recipe I can count on, this is the one to go to!  I did use a different recipe of frosting for these cupcakes. I decided try a White Chocolate Cream Cheese frosting to top them off.  It was a perfect combination!  I hope you like them Mommy!

Red Velvet Cake or Cupcakes

makes 1- 9 inch cake or 24 cupcakes

For the cake:

3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons best-quality unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups vegetable or canola oil

3 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

2 teaspoons natural red food coloring

For the frosting:

6 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 pkg (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature

4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 cups confectioners' sugar

Before you start:

Position a rack in the center of your oven.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and flour two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans, or line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners.

To Make The Cake:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt until combined.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and vanilla.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whip attachment, cream the sugar and oil. 

Add the eggs and beat well.  Add the vinegar and food coloring and mix to combine.

4. Add the flour mixture to the batter in three batches, alternating with the buttermilk mixture. Mix well after each addition.  Scape down the sides of the bowl.  Beat well for 10 more seconds.

5. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans, or cupcake pans.  Bake for 35 to 40 minutes for cakes, or 20-22 minutes for cupcakes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.  Remove to a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes before turning the layers or cupcakes out onto the rack.  Cool completely before filling or frosting.

To make the frosting:

1. Place the white chocolate in a small glass bowl in the microwave oven on high power for 1 minute.  Remove the bowl and stir until smooth.  Set the chocolate aside to cool.

2. Place the cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl.  Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until well combined, 30 seconds.  Stop the machine.  Add the melted white chocolate and blend on low speed until just combined.  Add the vanilla and 2 1/2 cups of the confectioners' sugar, and blend on low speed until the sugar is incorporated, 30 seconds more.  Add more sugar as needed to make the frosting spreadable.  Increase the mixer speed medium and beat until the frosting is fluffy, 1 minute more.

3. Frost the layers, top and sides of your cakes, or top your cupcakes. 

A Day In The Kitchen!

It started off innocent enough. I had bought some poppy seeds the other day and I just felt like making some muffins. It was snowing today. Cold, dreary, snowy, rainy, sunny for a minute, then snowy again. Days like these I just feel like baking something warm and cozy and delicious. My 3 year old daughter gets really excited to bake with me in the kitchen, so I do it often. My husband says I have an addiction. So what, he reaps the benefits so what does it matter anyway? Anyways, I finally got my own copy of Dorie Greenspan's Baking from my home to yours in the mail the other day, and I've been dying to break it in. I found the recipe for her Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins and decided to give them a try. Mmmmm...so good. They are moist, delicate, light and tasty. Yes, I do make many lemon recipes here on this blog, only because it is one of my favorite flavors. It just makes everything so fresh and vibrant.



I decided to use my mini muffin pan, just because little muffins are so much cuter. Drizzled with a bit of lemon icing and these were the perfect little treat.



Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

For the muffins:
2/3 cup sugar
grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 stick melted butter, cooled
2 tablespoons poppy seeds

For the icing:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter or spray 12 regular-size muffin tins or 24 mini-muffin tins. In a large bowl, rub the sugar and lemon zest together with you fingertips until the sugar is moist and the fragrance of lemon strong. Whisk in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large glass measuring cup or another bowl, whisk the sour cream, eggs, vanilla, lemon juice and melted butter together until well blended. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients, and with the whisk or a rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend. Don't worry about being thorough-a few lumps are better than overmixing the batter. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the tops are golden and a thin knife inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin from its mold. Cool the muffins completely on the rack before icing them. Mix the icing and lemon juice and drizzle over muffins. Enjoy!

Still Cooking...

So, I thought that since it was a stormy blizzard outside that I definitely needed to make soup for dinner. I don't care what they say, I make soup all year round. Not necessarily on a hot day, but days like this require soup. I've been craving soup, salad and breadsticks from Olive Garden lately, but actually making it to the restaurant after a long day with 2 kids is impossible. So I made my favorite soup, Zuppa Tascana. It is basically thinly sliced potatoes, onions, italian sausage and chicken broth with a little cream and some kale added in just before serving. This soup is delicious! I made some breadsticks and added a yummy salad on the side, and that was dinner.



Zuppa Tascana Soup

1 lb Italian Sausage
2 large russet potatoes, sliced in half and than sliced into 1/4 inch thick slices
1 large onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2- 32 ounce cartons chicken broth
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 bunches kale, chopped
freshly grated parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, if desired

Brown sausage in large soup pot. Remove sausage and set aside. To the pot add chicken broth, potatoes, onion, and garlic and bring to a boil. Simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add cream and sausage to the pot and warm through. Add kale right before serving. Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Nope, still in the kitchen...



Nope, not done yet...I still had more baking to do. I had a birthday in the family and had decided to bake cupcakes for the special day. I knew I wanted to make Carrot Cake Cupcakes, but couldn't decided whether to make Dorie Greenspan's recipe or The Sweet Melissa Baking Book recipe. Everything I have made so far out of Sweet Melissa's has been gourmet. I decided to give her cake a try. Of course this recipe was made for a layer cake, but I thought it would work fine as cupcakes. They were delicious, but definitely would have been better as a cake. They just lacked the firmer texture of a cupcake. They were a little too soft and delicate to. But since they tasted so delicious, I decided to make the frosting and hoped that they would be enjoyed. I found these adorable cupcake holders (picture below) at Target and I loved the finishing touch. Now, I am exhausted so I'm going to curl up on the couch and watch "The Office".



Carrot Cake with Fresh Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

For the Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 pound carrots, grated medium fine
3/4 cup walnut pieces, coarsely chopped

For the Frosting:
12 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
Zest of 1 orange
2 sticks butter, softened
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Position a rack in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour 2 8x2 inch round cake pans. Line each pan with an 8 inch round of parchment paper.
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the eggs at high speed until light and frothy, about 1 minute. Decrease the speed to medium and add the oil, sugar, and salt, and mix until just combined. Decrease the speed to low and add the flour mixture, mixing until just combined.
3. Remove the bowl from themixer. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the carrots and walnuts.
4. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. Spin the pans to level the batter. bake for 45 mintues, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove to a rack to cool for 20 minutes before turning the layers out onto the rack. Cool completely before filling or frosting.

Frosting:
1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese, sugar, and zest. Start on low speed and then increase to medium-high speed and beat until smooth, 1-2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
2. Add the butter and mix on medium speed until just fluffy and smooth. Add the vanilla and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.

Frost between the layers and around the cake until smooth. The cake keeps in a cake aver in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. It tastes great eaten at room temperature or chilled!

Low Fat Double Chocolate Cupcakes With Strawberries and Cream

If I had to choose two foods to live on for the rest of my life, I would definitely choose strawberries and chocolate. I love the two seperately and I love them together. When I stumbled upon this recipe for Low Fat Double chocolate cupcakes, I had to give them a try and see if they were any good. I was very doubtful, but when they came out of the oven and I tasted a warm, chocolate cupcake with little bits of melted chocolate inside, I was sold. Low fat can still be very delicious! Obviously I don't experiment a whole lot with the low fat foods, but it is my goal to inch my way in. I want to be healthier, but I just can't sacrifice cutting myself off from the delicious desserts that I so adore. So, in moderation I will enjoy them and be happy! I have seen many blogs lately with chocolate muffins or cupcakes, so I decided to put my own personal spin on this particular cupcake. I love strawberry shortcake, love it, love it, love it! This time, I decided to try it with chocolate. It turned out perfectly! Absolutely delicious! Each cupcake has only 139 calories and 2 grams of fat. So you can eat this dessert without guilt! Try it, you will love it!

Low Fat Double Chocolate Cupcakes
adapted from Taste of Home Comfort Food Diet Cookbook

2 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg white
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk
1/3 cup water
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and egg white, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy. Stir in the buttermilk, water, vinegar and vanilla. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add to batter just until moistened. Stir in chocolate chips.
2. Fill muffin cups coated with cooking spray three-fourths full. Bake at 375 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.
I dusted powdered sugar over the cupcakes for a finishing touch.

Yield: 14 cupcakes

Nutrition Facts:
1 cupcake equals 139 calories, 2 g fat (1 g saturated fat), 1 mg cholesterol, 221 mg sodium, 29 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 

3 g protein.

Cupcakes!!!!

Okay, so if you look at my past posts, it totally looks like I eat more sweets than real food...but trust me, it's true.  Just kidding, this was a special occasion!  My sweet baby girl is turning 3 years old tomorrow, and so I made her cupcakes for her special day.   Me and my husband of course sampled them when she was snug and sound asleep in her cozy little bed, and let me tell you they were absolutely the BEST chocolate cupcakes I have EVER had!!!! Until some time ago when I realized how much I love to bake, I would make cupcakes from the boxed cake mix.  I was always disappointed in how dense they were and a little too light and fluffy for my taste.  I searched and searched for a perfect cupcake recipe and I finally found it!  These are soooo delicious.  Nice and rich and the perfect texture for a lovely cupcake.  I topped them with buttercream icing, (of course..) and they were perfect! My little girl will love them too...hopefully there will still be some left for her birthday tomorrow.......  :)

Chocolate Cupcakes

1/2 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1/2 cup boiling water

Cream shortening and sugar.  Add egg and vanilla and mix well.  Dissolve baking soda in buttermilk and add to creamed mixture.  Blend in flour.  Blend cocoa and boiling water, to make a thick paste.

Combine chocolate mixture with creamed ingredients.  Pour into cupcake papers that have been placed in muffin pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 12-14 minutes.  Makes approximately 18 cupcakes.

Adapted from Cooks.com

Buttercream Frosting

1 cup butter, softened

6-8 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup milk

2 tsp vanilla extract

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl.  Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy,about 3-5 minutes. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition, until the icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency.  You may not need to add all of the sugar.  If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly.  (Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.) Icing can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Makes enough frosting to frost 24 cupcakes or 2- 8 or 9 inch round cakes.

Adapted from cooks.com