Post #30: Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

Sometimes I feel like the only things worth blogging are totally homemade.  100% from scratch, or I'm not impressed.  But!  I always have a box of cake mix or brownies in the ol' pantry, just in case I get a craving and don't have time to from scratch it.  Today is one of these stories. 

I had just put in my morning workout, had a yummy lunch, but something was missing.  Something...sweet.  But, I didn't feel like messing up the kitchen for the 543498573495th time in 2 days, so I went for my boxed cake mix.  Milk chocolate.  I had no frosting.  Crap.  Well, I'll make the frosting from scratch then.  No fuss, no muss!  Then my eyes saw this little box of strawberry creme pudding mix that I had to buy because I'd never seen it before.  Then the wheels started turning.  I could do something with this.  And so I did.  :o)

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

For the Cupcakes:

1 box of your favourite chocolate cake mix.  Prepare according to the cupcake directions.  (A really dark one would work nicely!)

For the Filling:

1 box of Jell-o strawberry creme pudding mix.  Prepare according to directions.  I did half heavy whipping cream, half milk.  Creamy, rich, and wow!

For the Frosting: 

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream (the love of my life!)

1 - 1.5 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whip these ingredients until nice and fluffy in your mixer.  Easy as that.  This makes a crap ton of frosting, fyi!  Also, this is the best buttercream I have ever made, hands down! 

To Assemble:

 Make the pudding filling while the cupcakes cool.  When it has set up, it is time to fill!  I have a handy dandy Wilton cake decorator with a filling tip.  It injects right down into the center of your cupcake, fills it up, and leaves nary a trace that the cupcake was ever disturbed.  If you do not happen to have one of these (they are $12 at WalMart, so why the hell not?)  you can do this the slow poke way: take a knife and cut a circle out of the top of each cupcake.  Keep the "lid" you have just created, and remove a small amount of cake from the middle.  Proceed to spoon the filling into your little crater until it is full, then replace the "lid" and you're good to go! 

Top with the frosting, and serve these bad boys.  They are SO yummy!  I was impressed fo sho.  Easy too.  Start to finish, less than 1 hour.  How sweet it is!

Post #27: Carmelicious Cake

I first saw this lovely cake on Sing For Your Supper's Blog and decided that I had to make it for my mom's birthday that was a few days away. 

Usually my relationship with cake is simple: you bake it, I eat it.  I'm more of a cupcake maker.  That being said, I'm trying to increase my kitchen repertoire, so I'm gradually adding double - and eventually - multi-tiered cakes to the mix.  Word to the novice cake bakers out there: this is not what I would call an easy cake.  It's not terribly difficult, but certainly not easy.  I should have eased myself in with a nice double layer white cake with white icing.  Simple.  :)  But, I jumped into this one head first!  Also, I gave myself 2.5 hour to get it done start to finish before we had to hurry out the door.  I felt rushed.  Take your time with this badboy. 

I got good reviews on the flavour, but my frosting skills definitely need work.  lol!

My pictures seems to be getting worse and worse...I need a new camera!

Southern Caramel Cake

Caramel Cake

1 3/4 cups sugar

1/3 cup hot water

3 cups cake flour

3 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the caramel syrup: place 1/2 cup of the sugar in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring constantly until the sugar melts. When it becomes a dark amber color (about 5 minutes- watch it closely!), remove from heat and whisk in the hot water VERY slowly until dissolved. You’ll be left with a syrup about the consistency of simple syrup. Cool completely. *The first time I tried this I added my hot water too fast and ended up with a rock-hard lump of caramel, so be sure to add the water VERY slowly while whisking!

Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and the remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and the cooled caramel syrup; blend. Add dry ingredients and milk alternately, beating until smooth. Pour into 2 greased 9-inch cake pans lined with wax paper and bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Caramel Filling

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

1 tablespoon butter

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 cup half-and-half

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Cook the sugar, butter, cornstarch and milk together in a double boiler until thick (mine never got too thick and I cooked it for at least 15 minutes). Remove from the heat and add vanilla. Let cool for about 5 minutes then pour over the warm cakes still in their pans (I poked holes all over my cakes with a toothpick so it would soak up the liquid better). Let the cakes sit out at room temperature in their pans until completely cooled.

Caramel Buttercream

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons water

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) salted butter, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

Briefly stir together granulated sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Continue cooking, without stirring, until mixture turns dark amber in color, about 6 to 7 minutes.

Remove from heat and very slowly add in cream and vanilla, stirring with a wooden spoon until completely smooth (be careful, as the mixture will definitely bubble up and possibly splatter a bit as you add in the cream). Set aside until cool to the touch, about 25 minutes.

Beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light in color and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low, gradually add powdered sugar, and mix until completely incorporated. Turn off the mixer, and then add caramel. Beat frosting on low to combine, and then increase to medium-high and beat until airy and thoroughly mixed, about 2 minutes. Refrigerate if not using immediately (or to harden the frosting a bit).

To assemble the cake:

Slide a dull knife all the way around the edges of the cakes to loosen the sides from the pan and (using a spatula or possibly your hands- however you deem fit, really), lift the cake from the pan, peel the wax paper off the bottom and place, caramel side up on a cake platter.

The second layer is easier- just line the cake up evenly with the bottom layer and gently overturn the pan, setting it upside down (caramel side down; so you’ll have caramel-to-caramel), then peel off the wax paper.

Using a cake spatula, gently and evenly spread the caramel buttercream over the top and sides of the cake. Refrigerate until about 1 hour before serving. Makes one 2 layer, 9-inch cake

Post #26: Pop Cake

This is my first try at making a pop cake - a boxed cake mix with a can of pop.  :o) 

I wanted to make something that tasted like a creamsicle, so I used a vanilla cake with orange pop, topped with a vanilla frosting. 

The results were not what I wanted, but still delicious (it tasted like a vanilla cake that was dyed orange...).  Since it was my very first time doing this (and I've read reviews saying that sometimes the cake stays gooey in the center...gross) I didn't want to add anything.  I just wanted to see if it would work.  And it did.  Yay! 

Next time, I will either add orange extract or zest an orange into the batter, just to give it that dreamy creamsicle taste!  Also, the cake, though moist, was really crumby - I think adding 1 egg might help this.  I'll let you know.  ;) 

Another way I'm gonna try it is making the pop cake with a vanilla cake and Sprite, and then making a decadent orange buttercream! 

As a side note: I think the reason some people's didn't set up is that they used too much pop.  I bought a 20oz. bottle, but you only need 12oz! 

Post #25: Peach Cobbler (with Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream!)

Sometimes ice cream is good enough to hit the spot.  Other times, it needs a little somthin' somthin'.  You know what I mean. 

If you have ever been fortunate enough to live in/visit the Austin area of Texas, I'm sure you have been to The Salt Lick - an amazing barbecue restaurant in the middle of nowhere, but somewhere around Austin.  Everything there is perfect, and the peach cobbler is no different!  I'm willing to bet that the only place that peach cobbler tastes better is Grandma's house deep in the heart of Georgia.  But seeing as how my grandma can't cook and lives in Canada, I have to settle with the Salt Lick.  Lucky for us non-Georgia grandma having types, this is hardly settling. 

 

 

Peach Cobbler - Salt Lick Style

Batter:

1/2 cup melted butter

1 cup flour

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup room temperature milk

1 room temperature egg

Filling:

1 (28 ounce) can sliced peaches, drained (I used fresh peaches, 2 large peaches will do!)

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions:

Melt butter in a 9 x 13 inch pan.

Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder & salt.

Stir in milk & egg.

Pour evenly over melted butter.

Combine peaches, sugar & spices and spread over batter-DO NOT STIR!

Bake 35-45 minutes at 350°F until batter comes to the top and is golden brown.

Serve warm with homemade vanilla ice cream (recipe right below this one!)

Post #24: Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream...without the machine!

You know how sometimes you just really want some ice cream?  Like really want some ice cream?  Usually when this happens to me, I wander over to the freezer, pull out a pint of Ben&Jerry's, stand with the freezer door wide open, eating right out of the carton.  But this time, to my shock and dismay, we had nothing.  Not even the lazy man's 'one bite left in the bottom of the container'.  This gave me a sad face.  Did I mention I was still in my jammies and couldn't justify getting dressed and ready just to run out for a pint of ice cream?  My conscience would have needed an extra trip to the gym in order to sort that out.

So then I entered that phase of a craving where you start looking for something else.  Something that isn't really what you wanted, but it'll do.  So I started digging in the fridge to see if anything stood out.  Nada.  But I did notice we had eggs, heavy cream, milk, etc...  Could I make my own ice cream with these items?  Surely not.  I don't have an ice cream maker.  Another sad face.  Aw. 

But the craving was too strong.  I needed ice cream.  So I met with my sous-chef, Google, and asked him if I could make ice cream without a machine.  The answer was yes.  But all of the websites warned that it takes forever.  I was willing to give it a shot. 

I used a simple recipe so I could get the best results possible.  Next time, I will try a different flavour, or use add-ins, because I really don't feel like it will make much of a difference in prep.  I found the recipe on food.com, and the original poster says they got it from a Ben&Jerry's cookbook.  While, I wouldn't say that Ben and Jerry will be knocking my door down for me to make this for them, it is a very creamy, rich, and yummy recipe. 

French Vanilla Ice Cream:

2 large eggs

3/4 cup sugar

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup milk

2 tsp. vanilla extract (I used a double strength vanilla extract from Penzey's - it packs an extra vanilla punch!  YUM!)

Directions:

Beat the eggs until light and fluffy

Gradually whisk in the sugar

Pour in the rest of the ingredients and mix until smooth

At this point, you can put your misture in your ice cream maker, put it to the correct setting, and in an hour or so, you'll have rich, creamy ice cream.  But for those of us who live in apartments and don't have the space to rent to an ice cream maker, follow these instructions:

Before you start mixing the ingredients, put a baking dish, pyrex bowl, or anything freezer safe in the feezer to chill.  Mix all of the ingredients as stated, then put in the chilled dish.  Every 30 minutes, open the dish and stir like cazy!  You want to break up any large ice crystals.  The smaller the crystals, the creamier the ice cream.  After you do this every 30 minutes for about 3 hours, leave the ice cream to freeze solid. 

See, how hard was that!? 

Post #18: White Chocolate-Vanilla Raspberry Filled Cupcakes w/ a Milk Chocolate Glaze

Oh, filled cupcakes!  They are precise, complicated, and finicky, and yet, I am drawn to them like a pirate to treasure.  

I adapted the recipe from Cupcake 29 at Ming Makes Cupcakes.  This blog is a wealth of delicious looking, albeit complicated cupcake recipes.  Ming's look way better than mine, but mine are also quite delicious!  

One thing I would change in making these in the future is the glaze.  Yes, the glaze is good, don't get me wrong, but these cupcakes deserve something more!  I'm thinking a white chocolate raspberry buttercream, or a thick and rich ganache. What do you think?

I also apologize for the crappy picture.  Natural light is at a premium in my apartment, and I baked these later in the afternoon, so this is the best I could do! 

Post #16: Raspberry Oatmeal Scones

After my most recent raspberry fumble, I felt I had to redeem myself! (I love raspberries!)

These scones taste like scones! (said in a Willie Wonka voice).  You know that taste that all scones have.  Slightly salty, not too sweet?  Exactly.  With that being said, even Mr. I don't like sweets said these could have been sweeter, and I'm inclined to agree.  I think next time I make these, I'll macerate the raspberries a little to sweeten them up. 

Charming banter aside, you need to work fast with this dough.  I used frozen raspberries and they still bled into the mixture and made my dough a weird purply-grey colour.  No matter, they baked up fine, and go great with a nice cup of coffee.   

Directions say 20-25 minutes, but I definitely only had them in the oven for 17.  I would have had another walk of shame had I left them in for the entire time.  Like our baker's motto at work: we bake to colour, not to time. Words to live by.

Raspberry Oatmeal Scone

From A Cozy Kitchen

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 cups all-purpose flour  (I just used 4 cups all purpose - does whole wheat really make that much of a difference?  I've never used it, so I'd like to know!)

1 cup rolled oats

2 tablespoons baking powder

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

2 teaspoons salt

1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, diced (yes, I bought unsalted this time, be proud!)

½ cup cold buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 extra large eggs, lightly beaten

1 egg beaten with a splash of milk or water (for egg wash)

2 cups frozen raspberries

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl sift together together the flours, oats, baking powder, sugar and salt. Cut in the cold butter and knead in with your hands until the mix begins to resemble coarse crumbs (there should still be lumps of butter throughout the mix). In a separate bowl combine the buttermilk, vanilla and eggs. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture along with the raspberries and mix until just combined. The dough will probably definitely be sticky.

Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and make sure it is completely combined. Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough until it is about ¾ to and 1 inch thick. I ended up having to use my hands to pat the dough down since the raspberries got to be a bit messy. Cut the dough into segments and place onto a lined baking sheet. You can either go ahead and flash freeze these to save for later or place them directly in the heated oven.

Brush the tops with egg wash right before baking and then bake for 20 to 25 minutes. If you’re using frozen dough at this point it might take an extra 10 minutes or so, but that’s why I will typically place frozen dough in the oven as it’s heating up instead of waiting for it to preheat.

This recipe is huge, by the way.  This made 16 giant scones for me - giant.  Like 5 inch diameter.  Yeah, me and the man of the house can't eat that much - frozen future scones, here we come!

Post #14: Brown Butter Jam Bars (aka Failblog)

So, as I'm trolling around other food blogs, I keep seeing brown butter everywhere!  Brown butter cookies, brown butter cupcakes, etc..., and all of the comments are rave reviews - how you've truly never tasted anything in your life until it's made with brown butter.

So here I am, hopping on the bandwagon.  To tell you the truth, I have never really put a lot of thought into the butter I use.  So much so, that when a recipe calls for unsalted, I still use the salted butter that I always buy.  I like salted, what can I say!?  I also always forget to let my butter get to room temp before I start a project, so you will most definitely see me in a mad rush, throwing it in the microwave for 30sec. before I can do anything.  Sometimes I don't get all of my mices en place.  Haha.

Well, my verdict in the battle of brown vs. regular butter is that I honestly didn't notice much of a difference aside from the extra work (which probably stems from never thinking about the butter I use...).

Some tips that probably would have prevented this culinary flop:

Make sure you put the crust in an even layer.  I thought it was, but parts of it baked perfectly, while others turned into this unappetizing brown/crumbly stuff.  I also think I left the butter in the freezer for too long.  In the future, I'd take it out when it was on the softer side of semi-frozen.  My "dough" was hardly a dough.  I wasn't going to let this little bungle stop me, (though I almost did).  I just decided I would move on, finish the project, an trim away the bad parts later. 

Even though I seemed to screw this up a little, I will definitely try it again.  I will buy regular, unsalted butter.  I will follow all directions to the letter (which I sometimes get scatterbrained and forget to do), and I will resist all urges to cut into them before they are cold.  I promise!

Yeah, and out of about 50 pictures, this was the best one.  Fail.

Brown Butter Jam Bars
from One for the Oven, which they got from Crepes of Wrath

The Crust:
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

For The Filling:
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup jam or jelly

(yes, I used salted butter both times - I am a culinary rebel like that.  Also, I used light butter, it makes me feel better about stuffing my face later.)

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. To make the crust, melt 1 cup of butter in a pan at medium-high heat till the butter starts to brown. When the butter is amber in color and smells slightly nutty, strain through a sieve into a heat-proof container, such as a small glass mixing bowl. Place in the freezer for 30-40 minutes until thickened and semi-frozen. Combine the powdered sugar and flour in a large bowl, then use a pastry cutter or your hands and add in the butter until a dough is formed. Press into a lined and/or greased 9×13-inch pan and chill in the freezer for 15 minutes. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until lightly golden and set, then remove from the oven and set aside.

2. To make the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and flour in a large bowl. Brown the remaining butter, then pour the butter into the egg mixture very slowly, whisking as you do it so the eggs don’t scramble. Whisk in the vanilla.

3. Pour half of the filling over the baked crust, then spoon large dollops of the jam over the filling, reserving about quarter to top the bars with. Pour the rest of the filling over the jam, then spoon small dollop over the top with the remaining jam (you can add a bit extra jam if you feel like it needs it). Don’t worry if it looks a little messy or weird, it’ll look pretty when it’s baked! Bake until the filling is golden brown in color, about 25 to 30 minutes, also at 375 degrees.

Allow to cool completely, or you'll be in a jam! (I'm so funny!)  No really, the jam will scald you!  Also, I cut mine when it was cooled, but not completely cold.  It fell apart.  I salvaged what I could for photos...and pretty much ate the rest like an animal.  Liz Lemon style.

Post #13: Peanut Butter Cup Crunch Brownie Bars (feat. Brutus and Lucky!)

These are Heaven.

There, I said it.  

It's seriously like eating a brownie, a rice crispie square, and a nutter butter all at the same time...is that drool?

The brownie recipe I used (which was suggested from the Brown Eyed Baker herself!) was a little time consuming, but they are sooo good!  A perfect match for the peanut butter/chocolate chip/rice crispie topping!  But, aside from the brownies, this is so quick!  I mean hell, use a boxed mix, and this will take no time or effort at all, and it is so good, it will impress anyone!

Not the best picture, but I thought it was high time y'all met my dear friend Brutus!

And then Lucky slunk into a few shots!  I love my cats!

Peanut Butter Cup Crunch Brownie Bars

Adapted from the Brown Eyed Baker :o)

1 batch of your favorite brownie recipe for a 9×13-inch pan (I used this recipe, which I tweaked slightly, or you could use a box mix, I won't tell anyone!  Just make sure it's for a 9x13!)
½ cup salted peanuts (Funny side story: I actually forgot these and ended up tearing into a bag of trail mix and picking out the peanuts.)
8 Reese’s peanut butter cups, chopped
1½ cups milk chocolate chips
1½ cups creamy peanut butter (or crunchy, whatever)
½ tablespoon unsalted butter
1½ cups cripsy rice cereal (yeah, I buy knock offs for baking, what of it?  :P)

1. Prepare the brownies according to the directions and bake for about 5 minutes less than the recipe states. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the top with the peanuts and chopped peanut butter cups. Return to the oven and bake for 5 additional minutes.

2. While they are finishing baking, melt the chocolate chips, peanut butter and butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in the cereal to evenly coat. Remove the brownies from the oven and evenly pour the chocolate and peanut butter mixture over top. Spread to cover evenly. Refrigerate for 2 hours before cutting and serving. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  These last a long time (if you don't eat them all right away!)  I was still chowing down about a week later, and they still tasted awesome!

Post #12: The Best Apple Pie I Have Ever Tasted

I've never been a huge pie fan (unless it's a cream pie, more in the form of a custard or pudding, I can't get enough of those!)  But this pie has turned me around!  I think it's the streusel on top that does it for me - see, instead of a sweet tooth, I have been blessed with that I lovingly call a "fat tooth".  Anything creamy, custardy, buttery...whether it's sweet or salty, I'm going to like it...and that sucks.  I spend a lot of time in the gym to find the balance between a fat tooth and a fat butt.

Anyway, I was searching dessert recipes for a small dinner party I was having, and for some reason, a pie recipe stood out.  I felt that it must be fate if a non-pie lover fell for a pie recipe, so I headed to the store, bought some apples (and a pre-made pie crust...shh!) and the rest is history.

This was quoted as "what an apple pie should be!" 

(I'd love to add a photo, but since this was before my blog, I only have one really crappy cell phone picture!  I'll add one eventually, but for now, just try the recipe, y'all will not be disappointed!)

For Pie

• pastry for single-crust pie (home made, or store bought - whatever floats your boat!)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 6 cups thinly sliced peeled apples (I have used Fuji and MacIntosh, and both were awesome!)

Crumb Topping

• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup quick-cooking rolled oats
• 1/2 cup butter

Final Topping

•   Vanilla ice cream
• caramel ice cream topping
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Directions

1. Prepare pastry for single-crust pie, being careful not to stretch dough too much.
2. Place in pie plate and trim and crimp the edge.
3. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt.
4. Add apple slices and gently toss until they are coated well.
5. Transfer mixture to pie.
6. FOR CRUMB TOPPING: Stir together brown sugar, flour, and oats

7. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until topping resembles coarse crumbs.
8. Sprinkle over apple mixture in pie.
9. To prevent over-browning while baking, cover edge of pie with foil.
10. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 minutes.
11. Remove foil and bake 25 to 30 minutes more, or until top is golden.
12. Remove from oven and serve warm (not hot!).
13. Put a scoop (or two, or three...) of ice cream on there!
14. Drizzle top with caramel topping; sprinkle with pecans.

Post #11: Salted Caramel Cupcakes

When I saw this recipe on SprinkleBakes, I just knew I had to try it!  It has everything I love - they're sweet, they're salty, and they are loaded with butter and heavy cream!  Yum!  The recipe is a little time consuming, but it is well worth all the effort.  This buttercream is to die for...you may want to double it, because you'll eat half of it before the cupcakes are frosted...trust me on this one!

Pay special attention when you make the caramel - you don't want to burn the sugar!  Also, resist all childlike urges to lick the wisk/spoon/stirring apparatus...it will burn you.  (Again, trust me!  lol!) 

Warning: you will need to spend a lot of time at the gym after you discover these beauties!

Salted Caramel Cupcakes

Makes 15 cupcakes Cupcakes: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 1 stick of unsalted butter, at room temperature 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar 2 large eggs, at room temperature 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line muffin tins with papers. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. Cream butter and brown sugar on medium-high speed until pale fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated.  Add vanilla.  Mix and scrape down sides of bowl as needed. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and beating until combined after each. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each about halfway full.  Bake for about 25 minutes. When done, transfer tins to wire racks to cool 10 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Salted Caramel Filling: 1/2 cup sugar 3 tablespoons salted butter cubed 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoons heavy cream, at room temperature Melt the sugar over medium  high heat in a large pot.  Whisk the sugar as it melts and cook until it becomes a deep amber color. Add the butter and stir it in until melted. Pour in the heavy cream (mixture will foam) and whisk until you get a smooth sauce. You may have some lumps but keep stirring until they have melted.  Remove from heat and let cool slightly.  Cut a small round piece out of the tops of each cooled cupcake and pour in 1 teaspoon of caramel.  Replace the cake piece and set cupcakes aside. Salted Caramel Buttercream Frosting: 1/4 cup granulated sugar 2 tablespoons water 1/4 cup heavy cream 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 stick salted butter 1 stick unsalted butter 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar In a saucepan, stir together granulated sugar and water.  Bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Cook without stirring until mixture turns a deep amber color.  Remove from heat and slowly add in cream and vanilla, stirring until very smooth.  Let caramel cool for about 20 minutes, until it is just barely warm and still pourable. In a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter and salt together until lightened and fluffy.  Reduce speed to low and add powdered sugar.  Mix until thoroughly combined. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the caramel.  Beat on medium high speed until light and airy, and completely mixed (about 2 minutes).  Mixture should be ready to use without refrigeration.  If your caramel was too hot when added, it will cause your icing to be runny.  If this happens refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.   Top caramel-filled cupcakes with frosting.

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Post #9: S'mores Cupcakes

I ran across the recipe on another foodie blog (Macaroni&Cheesecake) a few weeks ago, and they have been on my mind ever since!  I never need a special occasion to bake, but I wanted to make these for what I think is a special day - my hubby's birthday - though he disagrees!  But this is my blog, so I win.  :o) 

Back to the cupcakes!  My sweetie doesn't eat sweets very often, but s'mores, believe it or not, hold a special place in our relationship.  When we were just kiddos back in the day, he used to take me to a park by the lake, where we would walk around the water, talk and laugh, and then go to the fire pits and make about a million s'mores!  In fact, he proposed to me at that very lake.  (Aww!)  

These were delightfully quick to make, the chocolate cupcake is moist (I used applesauce instead of oil, and it is perfect!), and the taste is surprisingly light.  This will be my go-to chocolate cupcake recipe!  With them being so quick to whip together, and with the presentation being so fun, they would be awesome at a party (think tailgate!) and kids would just be tickled to have s'mores inside!  The directions recommend piping the frosting on top, but I globbed it for a more authentic feel - plus, the marshmallowie gooeyness of the frosting is sticky enough in the bowl, I didn't feel like transporting it to a piping bag!  Me = sometimes lazy.  ;)

Oh, and don't worry - these are just as messy as a real s'more!

S'mores Cupcakes

One Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes
Source: Martha Stewart
Makes 24 Cupcakes

Ingredients:
3/4 cup dutch processed cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup low fat buttermilk
3 tablespoons canola oil or applesauce
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with foil liners or squares of foil for the rustic look; set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, sift together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla, and beat until smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed. Spoon batter out evenly among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Marshmallow FrostingSource: Things Alauna Makes via Sew Darn Cute
Ingredients:2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
16 oz. tub of marshmallow cream

For Assembly:Crushed Graham Crackers
24 individual hershey chocolates

Directions:In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter on high until light and fluffy. Add the confectioner's sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, and beat until fluffy each time
Beat in the vanilla until incorporated. Add the marshmallow fluff and beat until creamy

To Assemble the Cupcakes:Pipe the frosting on the cooled cupcakes. I used a large ziploc bac and snipped off the end...worked perfectly. Top the piped frosting with crushed graham crackers (you can put them in the food processor until they are fine crumbs) and an individual piece of hershey's chocolate.

Post #7: Crumbly Ricotta Cheesecake

I had the inspiration to make this cake the other day when I opened my fridge and saw a tub of ricotta cheese in there from the last time I made lasagna.

I can't remember the last time I made lasagna.

Don't worry, the expiration wasn't until March, but I figured there was no time like the present.  Like my orange chicken, this recipe was adapted from the original that I did a keyword search for on food.com.

This cheesecake it not like a traditional cheesecake.  It has crust on the bottom and top, and instead of being thick and rich, it is more light and fluffy in the middle. The recipe for the crust was a little much - I still have about 1/3 of it in my fridge waiting to be made into tarts or squares or something!  It could easily to halved - making it more ass-friendly.  ;)  Also, I used lowfat ricotta cheese, sparing at least some calories.  I also don't own a springform pan (sad day, I know!), but a well greased round cake pan worked like a charm!

Crumbly Ricotta Cheesecake

Ingredients:

CRUST

• 2 1/3 cups flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 cup cold butter, thinly sliced

FILLING

• 14 ounces fresh ricotta
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup chocolate chips (I used peanut butter milk chocolate ones!)

Directions:

Prep Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 1 1/2 hrs

1.  Preheat oven to 320°.
2. Grease and flour a 9" springform pan.
3.  For the crust, in a large bowl mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, egg, and milk.
4.  Add the slices of cold butter to the mixture working it in gently, but not so much that everything blends together.
5. Take half the crust mixture and press it gently into the bottom of the pan.
6. In a medium size bowl, mix the ricotta and sugar well.
7. Add the chocolate chips mix again.
8. Spread the filling evenly over the top of the crust.
9. Crumble the remaining crust mix over the top of the filling.
10.  During the baking process the butter melts to form a nice crust.
11. Bake 50 to 60 minutes.