Wednesday, March 10, 2010
PEEPS make excellent cupcake toppers
I went to Target today and even though it is a little early, I couldn't resist going down the Easter aisle. Who doesn't love PEEPS? I can't wait to make a batch of Easter cupcakes and decorate them with PEEPS. They come in many colors and shapes...chicks, eggs, bunnies, and even chocolate!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Shoes & Cupcakes
My niece Payton loves shoes...
these cupcakes are for you P
these cupcakes are for you P
Wow-ser! Nice shoes Payton!
(I took this with my phone -sorry about the photo quality.)
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Recipe of the Week - Chocolate-Chocolate Cupcakes (Diabetic Recipe)
Week 34
A friend came by to visit this week and he is always snooping around the kitchen to see if there are any cupcakes...or anything else sweet for that matter. He just happens to be diabetic and likes cupcakes so I am posting a recipe that uses Splenda instead of regular sugar.
This week's recipe comes from Splenda and the dietary exchanges are listed after the recipe.
Chocolate-Chocolate Cupcakes
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 cup SPLENDA® Sugar Blend for Baking
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Combine cocoa and boiling water, whisking until blended. Set aside.
Combine flour, SPLENDA® sugar blend for baking, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture with a fork or a pastry blender until crumbly.
Combine eggs, milk, cocoa mixture and vanilla in a small mixing bowl; add 1/3 of the egg mixture to flour mixture. Beat at low speed of an electric mixer until blended. Beat at medium speed for 30 seconds or until batter is smooth, stopping to scrape down sides of the bowl. Repeat procedure 2 times.
Spoon batter into paper lined muffin tins. Bake 18-22 minutes - check frequently after 18 minutes. Cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar or frost with Rich Chocolate Frosting.
Nutritional Facts Per Serving: Calories: 180; Calories from Fat: 80; Total Fat: 9g; Saturated Fat: 5g; Cholesterol: 45mg; Sodium: 160mg; Total Carbs: 21g; Dietary Fiber: 1g; Sugars: 11g; Protein: 2g;
Exchanges Per Serving: 1 1/2 Starches, 1 Fat
Rich Chocolate Frosting
1 (.25 ounce) envelope unflavored gelatin
3/4cup milk
6 (1 ounce) squares semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chocolate syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Sprinkle gelatin over cold milk in a small saucepan; let stand 1 minute. Cook over low heat, stirring until gelatin dissolves (about 2 minutes). Add chocolate and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until chocolate melts. Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes.
Combine SPLENDA® granulated sweetener, salt, and chocolate syrup; stir into gelatin mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla and let stand 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 5 to 8 minutes or until mixture is spreading consistency. Do not over beat. Serving Size: 2 tablespoons frosting.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Servings Per Recipe: 18 Calories:60; Calories from Fat:30; Total Fat:3.0g; Saturated Fat:2.0g; Cholesterol:0mg; Sodium:40mg; Total Carbs:9g; Dietary Fiber:1g; Sugars:7g; Protein:1g
A friend came by to visit this week and he is always snooping around the kitchen to see if there are any cupcakes...or anything else sweet for that matter. He just happens to be diabetic and likes cupcakes so I am posting a recipe that uses Splenda instead of regular sugar.
This week's recipe comes from Splenda and the dietary exchanges are listed after the recipe.
Chocolate-Chocolate Cupcakes
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 cup SPLENDA® Sugar Blend for Baking
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Combine cocoa and boiling water, whisking until blended. Set aside.
Combine flour, SPLENDA® sugar blend for baking, baking soda, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture with a fork or a pastry blender until crumbly.
Combine eggs, milk, cocoa mixture and vanilla in a small mixing bowl; add 1/3 of the egg mixture to flour mixture. Beat at low speed of an electric mixer until blended. Beat at medium speed for 30 seconds or until batter is smooth, stopping to scrape down sides of the bowl. Repeat procedure 2 times.
Spoon batter into paper lined muffin tins. Bake 18-22 minutes - check frequently after 18 minutes. Cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar or frost with Rich Chocolate Frosting.
Nutritional Facts Per Serving: Calories: 180; Calories from Fat: 80; Total Fat: 9g; Saturated Fat: 5g; Cholesterol: 45mg; Sodium: 160mg; Total Carbs: 21g; Dietary Fiber: 1g; Sugars: 11g; Protein: 2g;
Exchanges Per Serving: 1 1/2 Starches, 1 Fat
Rich Chocolate Frosting
1 (.25 ounce) envelope unflavored gelatin
3/4cup milk
6 (1 ounce) squares semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup SPLENDA® No Calorie Sweetener, Granulated
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons chocolate syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Sprinkle gelatin over cold milk in a small saucepan; let stand 1 minute. Cook over low heat, stirring until gelatin dissolves (about 2 minutes). Add chocolate and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until chocolate melts. Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes.
Combine SPLENDA® granulated sweetener, salt, and chocolate syrup; stir into gelatin mixture. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla and let stand 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Beat at high speed with an electric mixer for 5 to 8 minutes or until mixture is spreading consistency. Do not over beat. Serving Size: 2 tablespoons frosting.
Nutritional Information Per Serving: Servings Per Recipe: 18 Calories:60; Calories from Fat:30; Total Fat:3.0g; Saturated Fat:2.0g; Cholesterol:0mg; Sodium:40mg; Total Carbs:9g; Dietary Fiber:1g; Sugars:7g; Protein:1g
Saturday, March 6, 2010
The Divine Cupcake - Eugene, OR
Yesterday I was reading my favorite cupcake blog (Cupcakes Take the Cake) and I noticed a flyer for a grand opening of The Divine Cupcake in Eugene, OR. My brother Robert lives in Eugene so I quickly emailed him and sent him on an assignment...visit the cupcakery and try the cupcakes.
Here is his review - with photos!
The place was a zoo! People--and lots of kids, of course--were lined up to get in for the free cupcakes. Quite the festive atmosphere. Once I got close to the counter, I got to taste one of the freebies--a small chocolate cupcake with chocolate icing. Great chocolate flavor, but a bit dry, probably due to the small size.
My real order was an 8 oz. house coffee (Wandering Goat Coffee Company, a local Eugene roaster--nice!) and not one, not two, but three cupcakes. I had, in the following order:
(1) Lavender, with lavender icing. Yum! This was a real treat. I go loco for lavender of any sort, so I was especially pleased to see this recipe. The cake was perfect, not too sweet, with a very faint lavender flavor. The icing had a stronger lavender flavor, and perfect for food--sometimes lavender food products come across as too medicinal. If I closed my eyes, I was in a summer field of purple in Provence.
(2) Lemon. The cake was nice and moist, but the lemon flavor was minimal. I was surprised, since lemon cakes are a dime a dozen, and it's an easy flavor to do well in a cake. The icing was stronger, but a bit too sweet for me. Overall, a nice cup, very nice crumb to the cake.
(3) Carrot, with cream cheese icing and walnut morsels on top. It was a nice cake, and nicely presented, but the cake was too oily (I assume they are using a typical oil cake recipe) and so tender that it was impossible to hold together once the paper wrapper was removed. It crumbled at once, and my fingers were covered in sticky cake goo. The cake was not offensively spiced, as some places tend to do; the overall flavor was good, and the cream cheese icing was nice, but again, a little on the sweet side for me.
Overall, the pattern seems to be a relatively plain cake with the punch being in the icing. I'd like to go back and try the full-size chocolate to see if that blast of cocoa is maintained in the big boy.
Presentation was a pleasure: all the cakes were attractive and not overly decorated. The opening-day hullabaloo is probably not indicative of the atmosphere the owners are going for; the large plastic tubs of cakes coming from the kitchen were not so gourmet-looking, but the cakes kept coming, and the staff was doing a good job of keeping up with the mob. The five people behind the counter were cheerful and seemed to be learning on the job how to handle the crowd.
All in all, a very nice experience. These are not your granny's cupcakes--no eggs, no dairy, no gluten in most of them (maybe all of them). But they don't taste like the usual vegan bombs. A mother in front of me in line, whose son has food allergies, has bought cakes from Divine before they opened this shop, and she verified that the bakers maintain a strict kitchen with no mixing of nuts, dairy, and other products that could provoke allergies. So yummie cakes for all!
On a future visit I want to taste the ginger cup, which looked deep and dark and rich, as well as the classic vanilla and the peanut butter. They were already out of the red velvet cupcakes, which definitely deserve a return trip!
Here is his review - with photos!
The place was a zoo! People--and lots of kids, of course--were lined up to get in for the free cupcakes. Quite the festive atmosphere. Once I got close to the counter, I got to taste one of the freebies--a small chocolate cupcake with chocolate icing. Great chocolate flavor, but a bit dry, probably due to the small size.
My real order was an 8 oz. house coffee (Wandering Goat Coffee Company, a local Eugene roaster--nice!) and not one, not two, but three cupcakes. I had, in the following order:
(1) Lavender, with lavender icing. Yum! This was a real treat. I go loco for lavender of any sort, so I was especially pleased to see this recipe. The cake was perfect, not too sweet, with a very faint lavender flavor. The icing had a stronger lavender flavor, and perfect for food--sometimes lavender food products come across as too medicinal. If I closed my eyes, I was in a summer field of purple in Provence.
(2) Lemon. The cake was nice and moist, but the lemon flavor was minimal. I was surprised, since lemon cakes are a dime a dozen, and it's an easy flavor to do well in a cake. The icing was stronger, but a bit too sweet for me. Overall, a nice cup, very nice crumb to the cake.
(3) Carrot, with cream cheese icing and walnut morsels on top. It was a nice cake, and nicely presented, but the cake was too oily (I assume they are using a typical oil cake recipe) and so tender that it was impossible to hold together once the paper wrapper was removed. It crumbled at once, and my fingers were covered in sticky cake goo. The cake was not offensively spiced, as some places tend to do; the overall flavor was good, and the cream cheese icing was nice, but again, a little on the sweet side for me.
Overall, the pattern seems to be a relatively plain cake with the punch being in the icing. I'd like to go back and try the full-size chocolate to see if that blast of cocoa is maintained in the big boy.
Presentation was a pleasure: all the cakes were attractive and not overly decorated. The opening-day hullabaloo is probably not indicative of the atmosphere the owners are going for; the large plastic tubs of cakes coming from the kitchen were not so gourmet-looking, but the cakes kept coming, and the staff was doing a good job of keeping up with the mob. The five people behind the counter were cheerful and seemed to be learning on the job how to handle the crowd.
All in all, a very nice experience. These are not your granny's cupcakes--no eggs, no dairy, no gluten in most of them (maybe all of them). But they don't taste like the usual vegan bombs. A mother in front of me in line, whose son has food allergies, has bought cakes from Divine before they opened this shop, and she verified that the bakers maintain a strict kitchen with no mixing of nuts, dairy, and other products that could provoke allergies. So yummie cakes for all!
On a future visit I want to taste the ginger cup, which looked deep and dark and rich, as well as the classic vanilla and the peanut butter. They were already out of the red velvet cupcakes, which definitely deserve a return trip!
the crowd waiting to get cupcakes...and doing some shopping
glass cupcake magnets from Jamie Burress
(available on Etsy)
Lavender, Lemon & Carrot cupcakes...plus a
good cup of Wandering Goat java
Friday, March 5, 2010
St. Patrick's Day Cupcake Collars
It's time to start getting ready for St. Patrick's Day...and Chica and Jo have the Cupcake Collars you need! There is a shamrock, pot of gold and leprechaun. I am ordering all three!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Girl Scout Cookie Cupcakes
A few years ago when I was a Girl Scout (please don't do any math!) I really enjoyed selling cookies. There have been a few cookie changes over the years, but here are some cupcakes topped with my favorite Girl Scout cookies!
Girl Scout cookies make great
cupcake toppers!
Thin Mints on chocolate cupcakes
Samoas!
Fields of Cake via Flickr
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
My Top 7 Favorite Blogs
Why the top seven blogs? Why not a top five? Top ten? Isn't seven supposed to be a lucky number? Whatever the reason - here they are (in alphabetical order):
Cupcake Project
More than just a project. Recipes. Photos. Baking tips. Links to everything cupcake.
Cupcakes Ate My Soul
The name of this blog alone puts it in any "top" list. An interesting blog from the UK with recipes and creative decorations.
Cupcakes Take the Cake
THE blog of all cupcake blogs. What Carpe Cupcakes! hopes to be one day.
Nobody Puts Cupcake in a Corner
The Milwaukee Cupcake Queen. Home of the Iron Cupcake Challenges. Recipes. Cupcake art. Cupcake clothing and accessories. Contests.
Utah Loves Cupcakes
Creator of the term "cupcakation" vacation - a cupcake road trip. Cupcake news. Bakery reviews. Baking adventures.
Creator of the cupcake pop and cupcake bite. PLUS...Bakerella's recipe for cream cheese frosting is the same as mine except she uses 2 more cups of confectioner's sugar. I am not worthy!
I love this blog for sheer entertainment...you can't make this stuff up!Cupcake Project
More than just a project. Recipes. Photos. Baking tips. Links to everything cupcake.
Cupcakes Ate My Soul
The name of this blog alone puts it in any "top" list. An interesting blog from the UK with recipes and creative decorations.
Cupcakes Take the Cake
THE blog of all cupcake blogs. What Carpe Cupcakes! hopes to be one day.
Nobody Puts Cupcake in a Corner
The Milwaukee Cupcake Queen. Home of the Iron Cupcake Challenges. Recipes. Cupcake art. Cupcake clothing and accessories. Contests.
Utah Loves Cupcakes
Creator of the term "cupcakation" vacation - a cupcake road trip. Cupcake news. Bakery reviews. Baking adventures.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Chef Joey's Cupcake Creation - a book review
Chef Joey’s Cupcake Creation by Brenda Tuttle is an interactive baking adventure that brings children and adults together as they create a delicious batch of chocolate cupcakes. It encourages beginning bakers by guiding them step-by-step through the process of baking chocolate cupcakes…and the book itself is made from a type of laminated material that you can easily wipe clean if there is any spilled batter.
This book will be passed down from generation to generation just like the cookbooks that I received from my mother and grandmother. This mini-cookbook is not just about creating a finished product (chocolate cupcakes) but is a journey of building relationships while learning the basics of baking.
Cooking with children does require some extra patience and clean-up time but they will reap benefits that cannot be measured:
• Children will be encouraged to try new things.
• Cooking together builds self-confidence through accomplishment.
• Spending time in the kitchen is quality time together – passing down family stories about holiday meals and favorite recipes.
• Cooking teaches organizational skills and builds critical thinking skills (explore what happens if you add too much flour, not enough liquid, etc.)
• Children learn to follow directions and use their math skills while measuring ingredients.
• Children learn about nutrition by reading package labels.
Chef Joey’s Cupcake Creation is available from Tate Publishing and is a great gift to give friends with children. There are cupcake facts at the end of the book and an audio download is included with the purchase of the book!
This book will be passed down from generation to generation just like the cookbooks that I received from my mother and grandmother. This mini-cookbook is not just about creating a finished product (chocolate cupcakes) but is a journey of building relationships while learning the basics of baking.
Chef Joey and assistant
Cooking with children does require some extra patience and clean-up time but they will reap benefits that cannot be measured:
• Children will be encouraged to try new things.
• Cooking together builds self-confidence through accomplishment.
• Spending time in the kitchen is quality time together – passing down family stories about holiday meals and favorite recipes.
• Cooking teaches organizational skills and builds critical thinking skills (explore what happens if you add too much flour, not enough liquid, etc.)
• Children learn to follow directions and use their math skills while measuring ingredients.
• Children learn about nutrition by reading package labels.
Chef Joey’s Cupcake Creation is available from Tate Publishing and is a great gift to give friends with children. There are cupcake facts at the end of the book and an audio download is included with the purchase of the book!
(images used with permission from Brenda Tuttle & Tate Publishing)
Monday, March 1, 2010
Cupcake Hair Accessories
I was in a cupcake bakery recently and they had cupcake jewelry and hair accessories for sale...so I had to look into some of what is available to keep our hair in cupcake style.
Cupcake headband
stylishmode via Flickr
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