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: 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!

Christmas RVCs - revisited

I just got off the plane and am finally home after a great Christmas!  Here are more pictures detailing the making of the red velvet cupcakes on Christmas Eve.  A fun time was had by all....especially eating them.

putting on the white chocolate leaves

we found some boards by the barn

and used them for the display

 

the finished product

sampling the RVCs

Christmas Eve Cupcakes

My niece has been emailing me for weeks with her request to make red velvet cupcakes (we call them RVCs) with cream cheese icing.  This afternoon we made them...and my brother captured the decorating process on video - see "Maidee's first cupcakes 1" on You Tube if you dare.

P.S.  Hope Santa puts some RVCs in your stockings tonight!

National Cupcake Day!

May I suggest that you celebrate today...National Cupcake Day...by eating a red velvet cupcake! 

My niece Maidee Parker and I are going to be making a big batch of RVCs just 7 days from today!

kirstinmckee

Red Velvet Cupcakes

My best friend from high school came to Lake Tahoe yesterday on her way to Yosemite.  I took her and her family to supper at the Lone Eagle Grille at the Hyatt in Incline Village last night and of course I had to make the most southern of all desserts....the red velvet cupcake.  This is the cake that southern bakers make for Easter, Christmas and weddings - those most special occasions.  We had not seen each other in several years and it was her first trip out west, so it was only fitting that the cake be red velvet.   And I don't even have to mention the cream cheese icing (see numerous blog posts on this subject).


BTW...as with any best friend, we picked up exactly where we left off and it seemed like we had never been apart.

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Carpe Cupcakes!

Mam Papaul's Red Velvet Cupcake Mix

While in World Market yesterday I noticed they had Mam Papaul's Red Velvet Cake Mix.  Mam Papaul's has very popular ready-made items in the South and I have made the King Cake and Gumbo many times.  They have very tasty products.  I decided to buy the mix and make red velvet cupcakes. 

The mix comes with frosting mix included, but you need to add milk, butter and Crisco.  The frosting mix included in the box is the kind that you boil with milk and you know from previous posts that this is not my favorite.  I followed the frosting instructions on the box...and then added 8 ounces of cream cheese and 3 cups of confectioner's sugar.  That made all the difference!  I garnished the cupcakes with grated chocolate and a wedge of Chipotle Chocolate for a bit of spicy to go with the sweet.

The red velvet cupcakes were moist and delicious and I have to say that it is probably the best red velvet cake I have had in a long time.  Beautiful deep red color too. I will definitely buy this mix again.

P.S.  Mam Papaul's also offers Black Velvet and Lemon Velvet cake mixes.

Unfortunately...I Am Not Martha

The cover of the February 2010 issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine shows a delicious chocolate tart adorned with colorful meringue hearts.  So for Valentine's Day I was thinking I would make a batch of red velvet cupcakes and put the meringue hearts on top. I decided to make a practice batch today. 

I am not Martha!  My cupcakes and meringue hearts tasted great....but the hearts did not look like hearts.  They looked more like shark's teeth.  I have never claimed to be artistic but you would think that a heart would be easy.  NOT!  The project was fun and I will try again, but next time I will download a heart template instead of freehanding the hearts.

Martha Stewart Living

February 2010

 

meringue hearts

( a.k.a. shark's teeth )

meringue hearts

( a.k.a. the letter Y? )

Mad Hatter Cupcakes (Las Vegas)

The third cupcake bakery I visited in Las Vegas was Mad Hatter Cupcakes.  I almost didn't go there because I didn't think I had time to find it before going to the airport.  But I was driving along and just happened to look up and see the very street the bakery was on.  I am soooo glad I didn't miss this bakery!

Mad Hatter Cupcakes is unique because the cupcakes are not pre-frosted.  You choose your cake flavor and then choose the frosting. They have a gorgeous laminated menu card - which you can take home for later use and they have punch cards so that you can eventually get free cupcakes.  The staff explained how the process works (choosing your cake & frosting flavors) and then quickly filled my order. 

I bought a red velvet cupcake with cream cheese frosting and a vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream.  Both cakes were moist and the flavor of the cake was distinct.  As you already know, I can be a tough critic on cream cheese frosting.  This cream cheese was the best I tried in Las Vegas - but still needs more cream cheese (in my southern opinion).  The vanilla buttercream was excellent - sweet and smooth and full of vanilla flavor.  I was offered fillings and toppings but declined. I just wanted cake and frosting with no distractions.

My cupcake adventure at Mad Hatter Cupcakes was fantastic.  I will go back every time I visit Las Vegas.  I may even plan my next trip around their cupcakes!