Sweet Life Cupcakes (Eugene, OR)

My brother had friends over for dinner tonight and someone brought cupcakes from Sweet Life Patisserie in Eugene.  Red Velvet cupcakes sure would be nice with a glass of Prosecco!

Red Velvet cupcakes from Sweet Life Patisserie

thanks for the photo bro!

Later that day, my brother emailed a review of the cupcakes:

"We were especially impressed with the icings. The strawberry tasted like fresh strawberries, but I don't know what it was (their infused buttercream?). The cream cheese on the red velvet cakes had a definite sour flavor like cream cheese (maybe there was some sour cream in there) but it was really light and fluffy, so they must have whipped it up with something else. Very effective IMHO. "

Recipe of the Week - Coconut Macaroon Cupcakes with Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache

This has been a coconut macaroon week. A few days ago I made macaroons, and then I found this recipe for Coconut Macaroon Cupcakes.  The combination of cocount and chocolate is simply Scrum-trulescent!

Coconut Macaroon Cupcakes with Bittersweet
Chocolate Ganache   from Always Order Dessert (blog)

QuintanaRoo  via  Flickr

Academy Awards Tonight!

The 83rd annual Academy Awards are tonight....and I am rooting for The King's Speech and The Social Network for Best Picture.  These movies did not feature cupcakes, but we can all eat a cupcake while we watch the show!

freakgirl

Cupcake on a Cupcake

Cupcake on a Cupcake...

creative cupcakes

lePhotography

Cupcake & Macaroon

I made a batch of coconut macaroons last night. Bo said they were the best he had ever tasted and the only way to improve it would be to put a macaroon on top of a cupcake.  Hmmmmm.....good idea! 

The Caked Crusader

Cupcake Votives

These would be soooo cute for a party! 

Real Simple

Cupcake Ruffles

For the past few years I have been using the 1M tip for most of my cupcake decorating. I really like the look of the "ruffled" cupcake icing and have been practicing but I need to practice more!  Hopefully I will master the look. 

Star Bakery (Liana)

fondant ruffles

The Cake Tailor

moonlight1966

And if all else fails...buy these ruffled cupcake liners from Wilton!

Icing Designs

Cupcake Advice

Advice from cupcakes?  Sometimes.....

Serif of Nottingham

purplesparkle

Lisa Anne Paul

voraciousbrain

Mississippi Cupcakes

When I went home to Jackson, MS for Christmas I noticed that there were several cupcake bakeries popping up in the area.  The local newspaper, The Clarion Ledger, featured them in an article yeserday. 

P.S.  The roses on the cupcakes in the article are big & beautiful.

Sweet on Cupcakes
The Clarion Ledger (February 19, 2011)

anija  via  Flickr

Recipe of the Week: One-Bowl Vanilla Cupcakes

As you know, I am still searching for the perfect vanilla cupcake recipe.  I found a one-bowl type recipe to share today.  It turned out pretty good, but is a little dense and pound-cakey for me.  I prefer a delicate texture and crumb for a vanilla cupcake, but this one has excellent vanilla flavor. 

The Non-Blonde

One-Bowl Vanilla Cupcakes

1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare yourcupcake pan with liners. Combine all ingredients in a food processor with the blade attachment. Fill cupcake liners halfway full.

 Bake for 12-15 minutes, checking frequently after 10 minutes.


Vanilla Frosting

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 stick butter, at room temperature
1-2 tablespoons heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cupcake Geocache

"Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online." (Geocaching)

I am in the process of creating a cupcake geocache.  I have named it Cup-Cache and I will be hiding it as soon as we get a break in the snow. Once it is hidden, I will post the coordinates.  I am including a Travel Bug in my cache.  A Travel Bug is a trackable item that moves from place to place, picking up stories along the way. When you log in to the Geocaching site, you enter the number on my travel bug and tell your story about how you found Cup-Cache.  When you find your next cache, you put my travel bug in...and someone else takes it and moves it to the next location. 

Together we can spread cupcake love around the world!  

GeoMate Jr.

(my GPS device)

Cup-Cache Travel Bug

Cupcake Vase from Fleur Daily

I was browsing in our hospital gift shop this week and bought this cupcake vase from Fleur Daily.  I got the chocolate one, mostly because the vase was filled with red roses and the combination of the brown vase and red roses was too beautiful to pass up...excellent marketing!  Visit the Cupcake Vase web site for ordering information and cute decorating ideas (centerpieces, floral arrangements, etc.). 

In Memory of "Uncle Leo" (Len Lasser)

Len Lesser, the actor who played Uncle Leo on Seinfeld, died yesterday. He will live on in reruns so we won't say goodbye....we will honor him with a "Hellooooo" instead.

Uncle Leo...this cupcake is for you!

Vintage & Cake

(UK)

Cupcake Dish Towel & Pot Holder

I bought this dish towel/pot holder combo at Kohl's this week.  They also had cupcake placemats and cupcakes to hang on your kitchen wall.  Sweet (literally)! 

Cupcake Pan Cleaning Brush

There is nothing I dislike more than washing a cupcake or muffin pan after baking without liners.  How did I not know this gadget existed?  I am ordering one of these today! 

Ateco Muffin Pan Cleaning Brush

available for $15.49 from Amazon

Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day means different things to different people.  Whatever it means to you....celebrate it with a cupcake!

The Confessions of a Bakeaholic

 (blog)

Jeanne Benedict

Recipe of the Week: The Classic Red Velvet Cupcake!

Valentine's Day is tomorrow and the red velvet cupcake is THE classic for the holiday in red!

McCormick

(yes...the makers of red food coloring)

Classic Red Velvet Cupcakes

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1 bottle (1 ounce) red food color
2 teaspoons vanilla
Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare muffin tins with liners. 

Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.

Cream butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed 5 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each one 2/3 full. Bake 16-20 minutes, checkingfrequently after 16 minutes. Cool completely.


Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese - room temp
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter - room temp
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla

Beat cream cheese, butter, sour cream & vanilla in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in 4 cups confectioners' sugar until smooth.

Class at Ramekins & Cupcakes

I drove to Sonoma yesterday so I could attend a class today at Ramekins Cooking School. The class featured recipes containing chocolate for Valentine's Day...and red velvet cupcakes with coconut cream cheese icing of course!

Bonus:  The Food Network was at Ramekins today filming an episode with Guy Fieri. Our class didn't get to be a part of that, but our kitchen classroom had floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the courtyard where they were filming so we got to watch...and his convertible parked outside was one sweet cupcake!

Verizon & the iPhone

Today is the day almost every Verizon customer has been waiting for...almost every one.  The iPhone became available from Verizon today.  I am a loyal Verizon customer and believe that their CDMA network is far superior to the GSM network so I wish Verizon good luck...but I am not going to join those lining up for the iPhone.  As the iPhones fly off the shelves, I will be munching a cupcake and sending a text on my Droid!

.imelda

Aaron Landry

To sprinkle or not to sprinkle...that is the question

Do you like sprinkles on your cupcakes?  I do not...if I am going to eat the cupcake.  I do like a nice cupcake presentation and use sprinkles if I am going to photograph a cupcake, but never if someone is going to eat it. Sprinkles have almost no flavor and I absolutely cannot eat a cupcake with a "crunch" factor. Cupcakes should never crunch!

So let me know your preference...to sprinkle or not to sprinkle? 

Zen Cupcake

JessicaStacey

SlashFood (blog)

Happy Birthday Jules Verne

Jules Verne was born on February 8, 1828....author of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Around the World in Eighty Days, and A Journey to the Center of the Earth.  Science Fiction is one of my favorite genres and it is incredible that he wrote about space and underwater travel even before the means to accomplish this had been created.  Happy Birthday Jules!  I wonder what kind of cupcake he would have liked?

Twenty Thousand Cupcakes Under the Sea?



sweetangeldelights

Around the World in Eighty Cupcakes

abbietabbie

Journey to the Center of the Cupcake

clevercupcakes

Cupcake Cookie Jar at Pier 1

I went to Pier 1 yesterday to get some glasses, but I found these really cute cupcake cookie jars instead! 

Super Bowl Cupcakes

It's Super Bowl Sunday!

The playoffs are over...the big screen TVs have been delivered...the pizza has been ordered...the adult beverages are ready to be consumed...and friends all over the world have gathered.  All you need to add are cupcakes in the colors of your favorite team!

The Frosted Cupcake

Giggy's Cakes and Sweets

Recipe of the Week - Lemon and White Chocolate Cupcakes

This week's recipe comes from Godiva Chocolatier.  As you start to think about your special dessert on Valentine's Day, think about these decadent lemon cupcakes and white chocolate cream cheese icing!

Godiva Chocolatier
Lemon and White Chocolate Cupcakes

Godiva Chocolatier

Icing on the Cupcake - Folsom, CA

You Had Me at Cupcake!  (don't you just love that slogan?)

I took a little road trip today and visited Icing on the Cupcake in Folsom, CA (near Sacramento). There are three locations in the Sacramento area so I chose the one closest down the mountain from Lake Tahoe.

The location was convenient and the storefront very appealing. There were quite a few customers inside but I got to order first because the others had not made up their minds yet. The staff was very friendly and helpful. The packaging is beautiful and the cupcakes survived the two-hour trip home without dropping a single crumb. 

I bought four cupcakes:  chocolate with chocolate buttercream, vanilla with vanilla buttercream, red velvet with cream cheese icing and lemon with lemon curd and lemon buttercream.  The cakes were moist but very dense (a little too dense for me).  The chocolate cake had a lot of chocolate flavor but the vanilla and red velvet cakes fell short on flavor.  The lemon cake was nicely lemony and the lemon curd was very good.  The chocolate buttercream was excellent and very rich in chocolate. The vanilla buttercream was quite tasty too. The lemon buttercream was smooth and creamy and added to the lemon cake without overpowering the cake flavor.  The cream cheese icing on the red velvet cupcake was....you already know I am going to say it needs more cream cheese.

Overall I had a nice cupcake experience! 

Icing on the Cupcake

2779 Bidwell Street

Folsom, CA 

(ph) 916-303-4333

Square Cupcakes

I was thinking today that every photo on this blog has been of round cupcakes. Where have the square cupcakes been hiding??  Here they are!

Pink Tartan Cupcakes

Cupcakes...by Datin Mary Zain

Pink Tartan Cupcakes

nicmcc