Double Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes

My friend Krystal is about to welcome her second child in this world, and with a virtual, cupcake-themed baby shower being thrown in her honor, I couldn't resist joining in the fun. You may remember Krystal's first baby shower... not all that long ago! For that shower, I made tostones. As much fun as that was, dessert of any kind is my true calling. Though I'm still too busy to come back to blogging regularly, I stole a few minutes here and there to make this one happen.
I've been working on renewing my commitment to clean eating lately, and wanted to try coming up with a clean but still delicious cupcake. I've loved this cream cheese frosting recipe for years, and have been waiting for just the right time to share it here. I paired it with an easy chocolate cupcake filled with chocolate ganache and strawberries. Sinful and decadent, in a clean eating sort of way. Congratulations, Krystal, I hope you enjoy these cupcakes, and I can't wait to "meet" your new little one! See the rest of the baby shower at Eva Bakes

Double Chocolate Strawberry Cupcakes

Source: Adapted from The Way to His Heart, Veronica's Cornucopia, and Clean Eating Magazine, Sept/Oct 2009
Yield: 12 Cupcakes

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup cocoa powder (dutch-processed is preferred)
2/3 cup sucanat
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon white vinegar
6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
2 egg whites
2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup water

For the filling:
1 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate
1/2 cup almond milk (or whatever milk/cream you use)
12 strawberries, chopped (you will need fewer if they are large)

For the frosting:
1 cup low-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
6 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1-2 tablespoons water (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Prepare a cupcake pan with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and cocoa powder. 
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sucanat, vanilla, vinegar, coconut oil, egg whites, applesauce, and water.
4. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. 
5. Divide the batter evenly between the 12 cupcake liners.
6. Bake cupcakes for 13-15 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Cool in the pan 10 minutes, then remove and place on a wire rack to finish cooling.
7. When cupcakes have cooled, prepare the ganache.  Place the chopped chocolate in a small bowl.  Add the milk to a saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.  Pour milk over chocolate and let sit 5 minutes.  Slowly begin stirring the chocolate-milk mixture until it is completely smooth. 
8. To prepare the frosting, add the cream cheese, honey, cocoa powder, and cinnamon to a medium bowl.  Whisk or stir until smooth.  Add water as necessary to attain desired consistency.
9. To assemble cupcakes, remove center portion of cupcake.  Fill with strawberries and a dollop of ganache.  Top with cream cheese frosting. 

Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

The turn to autumn is one of my favorite things about living in New England. The air turns crisp, the leaves turn beautiful orange, yellow, and red hues, football starts up (go Pats!), and I can finally use the oven again without complaints that it's too hot. My husband's sweet tooth has suddenly come alive, as he has recently requested both caramel brownies and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

Life has been a little crazy (evident by the tumbleweeds rolling through this blog), but I jumped at the chance to make cookies. They are usually pretty quick to throw together and would curb my yearning to get back to baking. I went straight to my blog to pull up the cookie recipe, only to discover it wasn't there. When I thought about it, I could barely remember ever having made pumpkin cookies before.


I pulled up my trust excel spreadsheet of recipes, and right there was a recipe for soft pumpkin cookies, rated five stars - my highest rating. I'm not sure why I never blogged about them, but I'm so happy to have 'found' them again. I threw in a few tweaks and my usual substitutions, and the result was a soft, but sturdy, cookie that is perfect for fall!

Soft Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

Source: Adapted from Joy the Baker and Big Fat Cookies
Yield: about 2 dozen cookies

 

 

Ingredients

• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 1/4 cups evaporated cane juice
• 1/2 cup (one stick) butter, at room temperature**
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries

**I actually make this with Earth Balance butter sticks and it worked well.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Stir the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until lightened in color, about 2 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix in the eggs, one at a time. Add the pumpkin and vanilla, mixing just until blended. Slowly add the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chocolate chips and cranberries.
4. Scoop mounds of dough, roughly 2 tablespoons each, onto lined sheets.  Space cookies at least 2 1/2 inches apart.
5. Bake cookies about 14 minutes, until the edges are just lightly brown. Cool cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transfering to a wire rack to cool completely.  The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

No-Bake Mint Brownies

Clean eating has changed my life in many ways, but one particular change was definitely unexpected. Growing up, I was never a huge fan of chocolate, and most certainly wanted nothing to do with dark chocolate. I viewed chocolate simply as a vehicle for delivery of other delicious things such as mint (my favorite) or peanut butter filling, almonds, raisins... you get the picture.

As clean eating adjusted my taste buds, I came to have an appreciation for a nice high quality piece of dark chocolate. While it still wouldn't be the first thing I reach for, I do enjoy the smooth, velvety texture and deep, complex flavors. (Just don't ask me to eat cacao nibs. I'm not THAT appreciative yet!)

Naturally, brownies were never something I would go nuts for, but when I stumbled on this recipe for no-bake mint brownies, I just had to try them. Clean dessert + mint + quick to prepare = a happy balanced baker who doesn't actually have to bake! I was so in love with these after making them, that I went out the next day for a jumbo bag of dates so I could make more. These brownies are super dense and fudgy, and I love the little crunch from the bits of walnut.

 I found that the amounts in the original recipe didn't fill an 8x8 pan without being paper thin, so I scaled up the whole recipe to yield a decent sized brownie.

No-Bake Mint Brownies

Source: Adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie via Eva Bakes
Yield: 16 brownies

Ingredients

• 2 cups walnuts 
• 2 and 1/2 cups pitted dates (make sure to use whole, not chopped dates) 
• 2 tsps vanilla extract 
• ½ cup cocoa powder 
• 10 drops of pure peppermint extract (you can add more or less if you like, I felt like this was a good middle-of-the-road amount) 
• Chocolate chips or cacao nibs (optional) 
• Dash of salt (optional but recommended)

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients, using a food processor or blender. Press evenly into an 8x8 inch pan. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 min to help firm up the brownies for slicing. Slice into 16 squares and serve. I stored these in the refrigerator because I liked them chilled!

Whole Wheat Frosted Zucchini Brownies

We didn't plant a garden this year because I knew I simply wouldn't have time to tend to it. I really love fresh veggies from the garden, but even without my own, I wouldn't be out of luck this summer. My dad is a habitual over-planter. There are always plenty of extra zucchini, tomatoes, green beans, etc to go around when he starts harvesting. This year is no exception, and his zucchini are beautiful and ready for picking. On a visit last weekend, my parents brought me four zucchini, and as soon as I saw this recipe, I knew exactly what I'd be doing with two of them!

Nicole already made one adjustment that I normally do in baking, which is to replace all-purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour. I took it a step further and used my favorite sugar adjustment - evaporated cane juice. I loved her suggestion of using applesauce instead of oil, but decided to go for the glory on the first try, and use that one later if I make them again. I reduced the sugar to 1 cup, as she suggested, but after a quick sampling of the final batter, decided that was too little and added 1/4 cup more. It was definitely an interesting batter to work with, and they turned out to sort of be a cross between cake and brownie. No matter what you call them, though, they certainly are delicious!

These brownies are well on their way to being a great dessert for clean eaters, and it almost pained me to pour the full-of-powdered-sugar frosting on top. The frosting is quite sweet and is a fabulous complement to the brownies, but I was hoping for something a little more healthy. The good news is that I might have just the right frosting recipe! It's been waiting on the sidelines, for just the right companion to come along. I will definitely be making these brownies again to test out this (hopefully) great match!

Whole Wheat Frosted Zucchini Brownies

Source: Slightly adapted from Prevention RD
Yield: 30 brownies





Ingredients
For the brownies:

• 1/2 cup safflower or canola oil
• 1 1/4 cups evaporated cane juice
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup (dutch processed, if available) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups zucchini, shredded (about 2 zucchini)

For the frosting:

• 6 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup nonfat milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour a 9×13 inch baking dish, or line with parchment.
2. In a large bowl mix together oil, sugar and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract until well blended. In another bowl combine the flour, 1/2 cup cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. A little at a time stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in zucchini. Note: the batter will be dry and crumbly. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish.
3. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the brownies spring back when gently touched. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool.
4. To make the frosting, melt together the cocoa powder and butter in a small sauce pan over low heat. Set aside to cool. In a medium bowl blend confectioner’s sugar, milk, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Stir in the butter/cocoa mixture. Spread over cooled brownies and cut into squares. Refrigerate 1-2 hours to set.

Reese's Cheesecake Brownie Bites

The dessert gods where smiling down on my husband the day this recipe graced my computer screen. He's not much of a sweets guy, but he does love peanut butter cups, cheesecake, and brownies. What would be more perfect for him, than one dessert that combines all three? I couldn't wait to make it, and neither could he!

There's a lot to love here - chewy, fudgy brownie topped with rich, peanut buttery cheesecake, decorated with drizzled chocolate and Reese's Pieces. It's a decadent dessert that we just can't resist!

Reese’s Cheesecake Brownie Bites

Source: Slightly adapted from Bru Crew Life via So Tasty, So Yummy, brownie recipe from Baking Illustrated, from the Editors of Cook's Illustrated
Yield: about 20 cheesecake brownie bites



Ingredients:
For the brownie layer

• 5 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick) cut into quarters
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour

For the cheesecake layer

• 16 Reese’s peanut butter cups
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

For decorating

• 2 ounces chocolate chips, melted
• 2 bags of Reese’s Pieces

Directions

1. Place the peanut butter cups in the freezer for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two muffin tins with paper liners.


2. In medium heatproof bowl set over a pan of almost-simmering water, melt chocolates and butter, stirring occasionally until mixture is smooth. Whisk in cocoa until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.


3. Whisk together eggs, sugar, vanilla, and salt in medium bowl until combined, about 15 seconds. Whisk warm chocolate mixture into egg mixture; then stir in flour with wooden spoon until just combined. Divide brownie batter evenly between lined muffin tin cups.


4. Beat cream cheese, butter and cornstarch in a medium bowl until fluffy. Beat in milk, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Chop up the peanut butter cups and stir into the cream cheese mixture. Spoon the cream cheese mixture over top of the brownie batter. Bake 25-30 minutes. Cool completely.


5. Drizzle with melted chocolate and sprinkle Reese’s Pieces on top. Keep refrigerated until ready to eat.

Cranberry Orange Pecan Cookies

Every fall I stock up on fresh cranberries. It's the only time of year you can get them, and I love to bake with them. Last fall I got 6 or 7 bags and tossed them in the freezer.

Guess what? They are all still there.

I never got around to doing anything with them over the winter (for shame), so I figured there's no time like the present!

These cookies are soft, which I love. They are sweet enough to balance the tart cranberries, and have a little hint of citrus from the orange zest. Pecans add the perfect crunch. Still have some cranberries kicking around in your freezer? Make these today!

Cranberry Orange Pecan Cookies

Source: Adapted from Short and Sweets
Yield: 30 cookies

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup vegan butter
• 3/4 cup evaporated cane juice
• 1/2 cup sucanat
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• zest from one medium orange
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 2 cups cranberries, chopped or whole

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Grease or line cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars. Add the orange juice and zest. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla extract.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Slowly mix flour into the batter. Add the pecans and cranberries, mix until just combined.
4. Using a spoon and your fingers or a cookie scoop, form rough balls of dough (approximately 2 tablespoons) and place them on your prepared cookie sheet.
5. Bake for 12-17 minutes, until the edges are slightly brown. Let cookies cool on the sheet for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely

Root Beer Float Brownies

It’s no secret around here that I love ice cream.  Since cracking open my ice cream maker several years ago, I’ve purchased ice cream from the store only a handful of times.  Lately, I’ve been finding that the store bought stuff just doesn’t live up to what I make at home.  It just tastes… off.  But, I digress…

Since ice cream is and always has been my favorite dessert, I’m no stranger to the various applications of ice cream in the dessert world.  Root beer floats are an excellent use of ice cream, and a great way to jazz up the plain vanilla variety.  Although, I have to admit – growing up, my favorite combination was actually ginger ale and vanilla ice cream.  They are great together!

I saw these brownies and knew I had to make them for the nostalgia factor.  I didn’t see how I could just leave it as a brownie and frosting, though – what’s a root beer float without ice cream??  The result is a delicious frozen treat, perfect for the summer.  In full disclosure, I actually found these to taste very little like root beer.  A disappointment, for sure, and in the future I will have to seek out the root beer extract to give the frosting a kick.  

Root Beer Float Brownies

Source: Slightly adapted from Coffee and Cannolis
Yield: 30 ice cream brownies

 

 

Ingredients

For the brownies:

• 2/3 cup flour
• 2 cups cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 oz. chopped semi sweet chocolate
• 3 oz. chopped white chocolate
• 4 tbsp. butter
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 8 oz. root beer

For the filling and frosting:

• 1 quart vanilla ice cream
• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup root beer,simmered until reduced to 1/4 cup
• 5 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp root beer extract (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line muffin tins with paper liners.   
2. Sift flour, cocoa powder and salt in a bowl and set aside. 
3. Over a double boiler (or in microwave) melt the butter, semi-sweet and white chocolates together.  Remove from heat when just melted and allow to cool for 5 minutes.
4. Using your mixer mix the eggs, sugars and vanilla together.  Slowly add in the cooled chocolate mixture.  Add half the flour and half the root beer. Mix on low, scraping the sides. Repeat with the remaining flour and root beer until just combined. Batter will be very thin.
5. Pour batter into your muffin tins, filling each about halfway.  Bake about 15 minutes, until the center is just set.  Let cool completely.
6. Let ice cream sit out to soften while brownies cool.  Once cooled, fill liners with ice cream.  Place in the freezer for at least 30 minutes. 
7. Meanwhile, prepare frosting.  Beat butter on medium speed until smooth. Slowly add in your powdered sugar and mix in.  Add concentrated root beer and extract, if desired. Beat on medium until smooth and all ingredients are incorporated.
8. Frost cupcakes, then store in the freezer until serving. 

Cheesecake-Style Lime Squares

My husband is not a sweets guy. Once in a while he'll eat cheesecake, caramel brownies, and he loves peanut butter ice cream, but other than that, you are hard pressed to get him to eat dessert. When the latest Clean Eating magazine arrived in the mail, I saw this recipe for cheesecake style lime squares and knew they would be right up his alley. Since they were from CE, I knew they wouldn't be too sweet. And lime + cheesecake is a match made in his heaven.



These definitely lived up to our expectations, and he loved them! The lime adds a bright flavor to the tangy cheesecake base, and I was right - they aren't too sweet. Just perfect for us.

Cheesecake-Style Lime Squares

Source: Slightly adapted from Clean Eating Magazine, June 2012, page 39
Yield: 16 squares
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes, plus 8 hours to chill

 

Ingredients

• 14 all natural whole-wheat graham cracker squares (or 7 rectangular sheets)
• 3 tablespoons organic unsalted butter, melted
• 8 ounces light cream cheese
• 1 cup low-fat sour cream (or plain greek yogurt)
• 1/2 cup organic evaporated cane juice
• 1 tablespoon lime zest (from about 2 limes), plus additional for garnish
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (about 2 limes)
• 1 large egg

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8 inch square baking dish with parchment paper, leaving 2 to 3 inches hanging over 2 opposing sides.
2. In a food processor, process graham crackers into fine crumbs.  With machine running, pour butter through feed tube and process until just combined, 2 to 3 seconds.  Transfer mixture to baking dish and press into bottom with your hands to form an even layer.  Bake until edges are very light brown, about 9 minutes.  Transfer to wire rack. 
3. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.  Wipe out food processor  and add cream cheese and sour cream or yogurt; process until smooth, about 1 minute.  Add cane juice and lime zest and juice.  Pulse, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, until combined.  Add egg and pulse until just combined.  Spread mixtures evenly over top of graham cracker crust and bake until edges are just set and center is still moist and slightly jiggly, 38 to 40 minutes. 
4. Transfer to wire rack and let rest for 10 minutes.  Run a thin knife along the edges of dish to loosen.  Let cool to room temperature.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.  Transfer cheesecake to cutting board by lifting edges of parchment.  Garnish with additional lime zest and slice into 16 squares.  Serve chilled.  After slicing, squares will keep refrigerated for 1 day. 

Cooking Challenge: French Macarons

French Macarons! The temperamental, yet adored, cookie is a cooking challenge that many home bakers one day aspire to make. A group of fellow food bloggers decided to conquer this cookie together, so we could share our questions, successes, and tales of woe. See the round-up here!

In my search for macaron recipes, I came across some adorable Easter bunny macarons, and instantly knew that was what I wanted to make. I kept the flavoring simple - vanilla bean, and let the caramel buttercream from my Glee cupcake pull double duty for the filling.



This was definitely a learning experience for me. I was so happy that, by all appearances, everything went well with the macarons: they have feet and for the most part they did not stick to the parchment. Going through the process of making them, I had a few concerns that I will pay more attention to if I make them again.

First, I think I would have benefited from sifting the almond meal/powdered sugar mix. When I added it to the egg whites, the batter was very lumpy. I had to do a lot of folding/mixing to get it smooth, and I think by then I had deflated it too much and the batter was more runny than it should have been (though it wasn't flowing like ribbons, either, so all around it was a little confusing). It probably would have been fine for just piping rounds, but the ears require a thicker batter to stay separate, and clearly my poor bunnies ended up with uni-ears.

I also think that I under baked the bunny faces by maybe a minute. In hindsight, I should have put all the faces on one sheet and the rounds on another. The rounds didn't need as long as the faces and a little extra time in the oven would have helped the faces that were reluctant to release from the parchment.

Sadly, after all that, I was a bit underwhelmed with them. I've never had macarons before, so perhaps I need to taste some made by someone who actually knows what they are doing, but I felt very take-it-or-leave-it. However, my aunt ate three of them at Easter, so I must have done something right.

Vanilla bean bunny macarons with caramel swiss meringue buttercream were a fun addition to our Easter dinner!

Vanilla Bean French Macarons with Caramel Swiss Meringue Buttercream

Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats and inspired by Raspberri Cupcakes
Yield: About 12 bunnies
Preparation time: 20 minutes, plus one hour resting time
Cook time: 12-18 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 110 grams almonds (blanched or slivered), or almond meal
• 200 grams powdered sugar
• 100 grams egg whites (about 3 large eggs), aged at room temperature for 12-24 hours or in the fridge for 3-5 days
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 50 grams granulated sugar
• 50 grams granulated sugar
• chocolate sprinkles, sugar pearls, and foodwriter pen for decorating
• caramel swiss meringue buttercream
  

Instructions

1. Pulse the almonds and powdered sugar in the bowl of a food processor until finely ground and well blended. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites on medium-high speed until foamy. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean pod into the mixing bowl. Gradually add the granulated sugar and continue beating until a smooth, shiny meringue with stiff peaks forms. Blend in the vanilla extract, if using.


2. Add the ground almond mixture to the bowl with the meringue and quickly but gently fold together using a wide rubber spatula until no streaks remain. You want to achieve a thick batter that ribbons or flows from the spatula when lifted.


3. Line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Transfer the batter to a piping bag fitted with a plain wide round tip. Pipe into small rounds on the prepared baking sheets (each round should be about 1-1½ inches in diameter, with 12 rounds on one sheet and 12 rounds with bunny ears on another), spaced about 1 inch apart. Add sugar pearls for nose and tails (I used a cluster of about 7 to make a tail), and sprinkles for whiskers. Let sit at room temperature for about an hour to develop a hard shell.


4. Preheat the oven to 300˚F. Bake for 12-18 minutes, depending on size. (Baking time can vary widely due to humidity and other factors of your kitchen environment. To test whether or not the cookies are done, let cool for a minute until cool enough to touch. Carefully attempt to remove one shell from the silpat. If it cracks at all or does not remain intact, continue to bake until one is removed intact.) Transfer the pans to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely before moving the cookies. Draw eyes on bunnies with foodwriter pen.


5. Pipe a small dollop of buttercream onto the flat side of one cookie of each pair. Sandwich together with the remaining cookie, pushing the filling to the edges. Store in the fridge overnight in an airtight container. Serve at room temperature

Glee! Banana Nut Cheerio Cupcakes

I am so excited that Glee is returning tonight after the late winter break. Last episode left us hanging on the fate of Quinn after her car accident, so I wanted to make Quinn's cupcake for this week.

It would be an understatement to say Quinn has had a few ups and downs in her time at McKinley High. Her fall from high atop the Cheerios (and school popularity) pyramid due to her teen pregnancy sent her into a bizarre downward spiral in season 3. An attempt to sabotage the custody rights of her daughter's adoptive mother was definitely b-a-n-a-n-a-s. Inspired by A) Quinn's nutty behavior and B) the many flavors of Cheerios cereal, I created Quinn's cupcake.



I am definitely glad to see that she was able to come full circle in the last episode and regain the status she has longed for: to once again be a Cheerio.

Quinn's Banana Nut Cheerio cupcake combines cinnamon banana cake with a Cheerio covered peanut butter center, and is topped with caramel swiss meringue buttercream.

Banana Nut Cheerio Cupcakes

Source: Adapted from Apple a Day
Yield: Serves 24
Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Total time: 2 hours, 45 minutes (with cooling time)

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 mashed overripe banana (1 large)
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 scant cup sugar

For the filling:

• 2/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups crushed peanut butter Cheerios cereal

For the buttercream:

• 8 ounces egg whites (from a carton is fine)
• 12 ounces sugar
• 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons caramel sauce

Instructions

For the filling:

1. In bowl, with mixer on medium speed, mix powdered sugar, peanut butter, butter, and vanilla until blended.
2. Shape mixture into 24 balls using heaping measuring teaspoons. (Balls will be sticky and don't need to be perfectly shaped.)
3. Roll in crushed Cheerios cereal. Place balls on waxed paper-lined cookie sheet; set aside.

For the cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a muffin tin with 24 paper liners.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter on medium speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, 1/4 c. at a time, beating on medium speed until light and fluffy and scraping down sides of bowl. Add eggs, one at a time, scraping down sides of bowl after each addition.
3. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon.
4. In a small bowl, combine banana, buttermilk, and vanilla.
5. Add in flour and banana mixtures, beginning and ending with the flour, and mix on low speed until just combined.
6. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. Insert a Cheerio covered peanut butter ball into the center of the cupcake and push down to cover with batter. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
7. Allow to cool completely, then frost with buttercream.

For the buttercream:

1. Add egg whites and sugar to a heat-safe bowl. Place bowl over a pot of simmering water and whisk lightly until the mixture reaches 140 degrees F and the sugar is dissolved.
2. Pour hot whites into a room-temperature bowl and whip with a wire whip until double in volume on medium-high speed. When the mixer stops, the meringue should not move around in the bowl. Meanwhile cut up butter into 2-inch pieces. (The butter should be slightly moist on the outside but cold inside.)
3. On your mixer, remove the whip and attach the paddle. Add half the butter into the bowl immediately and pulsate the mixer several times until the meringue has covered the butter completely. To pulsate the mixer, turn it on and off in a jerky motion. This forces the butter on the top to the bottom of the bowl. Add the balance of the butter and pulsate mixer several times. Slowly increase the mixer's speed, starting with the lowest speed and increase the speed every 10 seconds until you reach a medium-high speed.
4. Continue beating until the mixture begins to look light and fluffy. Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl. Reduce speed to low. Add vanilla and caramel and continue to beat on low speed for 45 seconds. Then beat on medium-high speed for an additional 45 to 60 seconds.
5. Leftover buttercream can be placed in plastic containers with lids and kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost completely (several hours) and rewhip before using.

Irish Trinity Cake

My brother's birthday falls around Saint Patrick's Day, and every year we celebrate with a corned beef dinner. Traditionally, he has always asked for a marble cake with chocolate frosting, but this year I suggested something different.

I thought this cake would be a welcomed departure from tradition, because what's not to like? Guinness chocolate cake, Jameson tinted ganache filling, and Bailey's frosting: an Irish (holy) trinity. Forever, and even, amen.

This is a fantastically rich cake with bold flavor that is perfect for any Saint Patrick's Day celebration!

Irish Trinity Cake

Source: Adjusted from Beantown Baker/Smitten Kitchen
Yield: One 3-layer 8" or 9" cake
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes
Total time: 3 hours

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 2 cups Guinness
• 2 cups unsalted butter (4 sticks)
• 1 1/2 cups cocoa powder (dutch processed preferred)
• 4 cups flour
• 4 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 4 eggs, at room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups sour cream

For the ganache filling:

• 16 ounces bittersweet chocolate
• 1 1/3 cups heavy cream
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon Irish whiskey (optional)

For the frosting:
• 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature (3 sticks)
• 1 1/2 pounds powdered sugar
• 4 tablespoons Bailey's Irish cream (can subsitute milk or cream)

Instructions

For the cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare three 8" or 9" cake pans*. Bring Guinness and butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
2. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend.
3. Add Guinness-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine.
4. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined.
5. Divide batter evenly among cake pans, filling about 2/3 of the way full.
6. Bake cake until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, rotating them once front to back if your oven bakes unevenly, about 30 minutes. Cool cakes on a rack completely.
For the ganache filling:
7. Chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then stir until smooth. Add the butter and whiskey and stir until combined.
For the frosting:
8. Whip the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, for several minutes. You want to get it very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar.
9. When the frosting looks thick enough to spread, drizzle in the Baileys (or milk) and whip it until combined. If this has made the frosting too thin (it shouldn’t, but just in case) beat in another spoonful or two of powdered sugar.
Assembly:
10. Level cake layers with a large serrated knife. Pipe a ring of frosting around the edge of the first layer to build a dam for the ganache. Spread a thick layer of ganache over the top of the layer.
11. Repeat with second layer, then top the with the third cake layer.
12. Frost outside of the cake with remaining frosting and decorate as desired.

*I only have two pans; you can bake 2 cakes, cool slightly and remove one from the pan, cool the pan and then bake the third.

Cakes can be baked one or two weeks in advance, and stored in the freezer, well wrapped. They do not need to be thawed before assembly, but the cake should then sit at room temperature for several hours before serving.

Valentine’s Pound Cake

I'm mildly obsessed with baking a surprise shape into a cake or cupcakes. I can envision something for almost every occasion - shamrocks for St. Patrick's Day, bunnies for Easter, stars for the 4th of July (or Rachel Berry), pumpkins for Halloween, and of course, hearts for Valentine's Day. I am only limited by my horrible 3-dimensional carving skills or my supply of mini cookie cutters. Cupcakes are easy because you can use the cookie cutters to create your cake inserts, but baking into a cake takes more... artistic talent.



A heart shape is relatively easy to carve free-hand, and since I chose pound cake as a medium, all I needed was one long piece of cake for carving. To make this cake, I first baked one pound cake with enough red food coloring to make it pink. I let it cool completely, and froze it to help make it stiffer for carving. Then I carved out the heart shape with a good knife. I prepared the batter for a second pound cake, and inserted the pink heart cake into the batter before putting it in the oven. Pound cake is supposed to rise a bit in the oven, so you might not be able to completely cover the pink heart cake with the batter for the second cake. Mine started out covered, but the batter melted down and evened out before starting to rise. In the end, some of the heart cake was poking out the top, but I almost preferred the look of that part of the cake, once sliced. I was very happy with the way it turned out, and it was a huge hit at the Valentine's Day Tea that I attended!

This is a cute way to celebrate Valentine's Day. A classic pound cake with a heart baked in the middle, served with strawberries and whipped cream is sure to be a hit!

Valentine's Pound Cake

Source: Baking Illustrated
Yield: Serves 12
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 70-80 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), softened but still cool
• 1 1/3 cups sugar (9 1/3 ounces)
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups plain cake flour (6 ounces) (note: Bridget recommends adding 1/2 teaspoon baking powder. I definitely would have done so if I'd see her post before making this.)

Instructions

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan ( 7.5 cup capacity). Fit a sheet of foil or parchment paper lengthwise in the bottom of the greased pan, pushing it into the corners and up the sides. Fit a second sheet crosswise in the pan in the same manner.
2. Beat the butter in the bowl of a standing mixer at medium-high speed until smooth and shiny, about 15 seconds. With the machine still on, sprinkle the sugar in slowly, taking about 30 seconds. Beat the mixture until light, fluffy, and almost white, 4 to 5 minutes, stopping the mixer once or twice to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
3. Stir together the eggs, yolks, vanilla, and water in a 2-cup liquid measuring cup. With the mixer running at medium-high speed, add the egg mixture to the buter and sugar in a very slow, thin stream. Finally, beat in the salt.
4. Place 1/2 cup flour in a sieve and sift it over the batter. Fold gently with a rubber spatula, scraping up from the bottom of the bowl, until the flour is incorporated. Repeat twice more, adding flour in 1/2-cup increments.
5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top with a spatula or wooden spoon. Bake until a toothpick or thin skewer inserted into the crack running a long the top comes out clean, 70 to 80 minutes. (I found it did not take this long in my oven. 60 minutes was enough for mine, so check early!) Let the cake rest in the pan for 5 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack. Place a second wire rack on the cake bottom, then turn the cake top-side up. Cool to room temperature, remove and discard the foil, and serve. If not served immediately, wrap the cake in plastic, then in foil. Store the cake at room temperature.

Carrot Cake Comparison

Today, I am honored to be recognized by a fellow food blogger, Jen of The Beantown Baker. She's included me in her (fabulous) Friday Favs series!  Hop on over to her blog to see the results of my carrot cake comparison!

Glee! Star-Berry Cupcakes

For tonight's season finale (*tear*), I chose to present Rachel's cupcake. I am always sad when the show goes on break or the season ends, but this time I am also excited, as I will have all summer to dream up awesome Gleecakes (thanks, Kelsey!) for the rest of the gang, including Finn, Quinn, Puck, Santana, Brittany, Artie, Sam, Sue, Mr. Schue... maybe even a (crazy)Gleecake for Terri?

Rachel is an exceedingly driven member of the student body at McKinley High. She wants nothing more in life than to be a star (well, aside from gaining the affections of Finn). She lets nothing stop in her way of getting as much exposure as possible - from always speaking her mind on any Glee club matter, to securing television commercials for the group, to demanding solos in competition.

Rachel is consistently reminding us that stars are her signature icon, so incorporating stars into her cupcake was a given! As Rachel would most surely attest that she is naturally uber talented, I chose a starfruit, with it's natural star shape, to adorn sparkly buttercream topped cupcakes. However, I also couldn't resist hiding a star inside the cupcake because, really, how much fun is this?!

Rachel's Star-Berry Cupcake combines vanilla cake with a surprise strawberry star baked inside, topped with strawberry swiss meringue buttercream, silver pearl dust, and sliced starfruit.

Star-Berry Cupcakes

Source: Vanilla cake reworded from Confections of a Foodie Bride, Strawberry cake slightly adapted from Good Things Catered (inactive blog), Buttercream slightly adapted from The Culinary Life/Garrett McCord and Beantown Baker/epicurious,
Yield: about 12 cupcakes
Total time: 4 hours 10 minutes, including 2 hours inactive time

 

Ingredients

For the strawberry cake:

• 1 1/4 cups cake flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 1/2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped strawberries
• 1/4 cup freeze dried raspberries, ground fine (optional, for coloring; can use red food coloring instead, if desired)

For the vanilla cake:

• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cubed and softened to room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 large eggs (beat the third egg in a small bowl, use half)
• 1/2 cup, plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the buttercream and decoration:

• 4 ounces egg whites (from a carton is fine)
• 6 ounces sugar
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room
  temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2-4tablespoonspureed strawberries
• 1 starfruit, sliced thin
• silver pearl dust

Instructions

For the strawberry cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare one 9" or 8" round cake pan by spraying with baking spray. Sift flour, salt, and baking soda in medium bowl. In bowl of mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and mix until combined. Add buttermilk, oil and vanilla until combined. Add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Stir in chopped strawberries and ground freeze dried raspberries (or food coloring, to desired shade of pink/red).
2. Pour batter into cake pan. Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove cake from pan and continue to cook on wire rack until thoroughly cooled.
3. Wrap well in plastic wrap, and freeze for at least 2 hours to prepare cake for cutting. Once frozen, use a small star cookie or fondant cutter to make star shaped pieces of cake. Use immediately or store, well wrapped, in freezer until you are ready to continue with the cupcakes.

For the cupcakes:

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line one muffin/cupcake baking pan with 12 cupcake liners. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Place butter in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat for 3 minutes on medium-high speed until the butter is light and creamy in color. Stop and scrape the bowl. Cream the butter for an additional 60 seconds.
3. Add the sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, beating 1 minute after each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl before each addition. Add the eggs one at a time. Reduce the mixer speed. Stir vanilla into the buttermilk. Add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk. Mix just until incorporated. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix for 15 seconds longer.
4. Add roughly 2 tablespoonds of batter to each cupcake liner. Place one frozen strawberry cake star in the batter, standing up and all facing the same way. (Remember which way stars are placed, so that decoration added to the top of the cupcakes at the end can signal which way to cut/eat the cake to reveal the star.) Continue to add vanilla batter to each cupcake liner, making sure to cover the stars.

5. Center the pan onto the lower third of the oven and let bake 15-18 minutes. (A skewer test won't work here, since it would go into the pre-baked star cake.)
6. Let cool completely in the pans. While baking and cooling, prepare buttercream. Frost cupcakes with buttercream, sprinkle with pearl dust, and top with sliced starfruit.

For the buttercream:

1. Add egg whites and sugar to a heat-safe bowl. Place bowl over a pot of simmering water and whisk lightly until the muixture reaches 140 degrees F and the sugar is dissolved.
2. Pour hot whites into a room-temperature bowl and whip with a wire whip until double in volume on medium-high speed. When the mixer stops, the meringue should not move around in the bowl. Meanwhile cut up butter into 2-inch pieces. (The butter should be slightly moist on the outside but cold inside.)
3. On your mixer, remove the whip and attach the paddle. Add half the butter into the bowl immediately and pulsate the mixer several times until the meringue has covered the butter completely. To pulsate the mixer, turn it on and off in a jerky motion. This forces the butter on the top to the bottom of the bowl. Add the balance of the butter and pulsate mixer several times. Slowly increase the mixer's speed, starting with the lowest speed and increase the speed every 10 seconds until you reach a medium-high speed.
4. Continue beating until the mixture begins to look light and fluffy. Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl. Reduce speed to low. Add vanilla and 2 tablespoonds of strawberry puree and continue to beat on low speed for 45 seconds. Then beat on medium-high speed for an additional 45 to 60 seconds. Add additional puree, if necessary, to acheive desired color and taste. If frosting gets too soft, powdered sugar can be added to help stiffen it back up.
   Note: Leftover buttercream can be placed in plastic containers with lids and kept in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost completely (several hours) and rewhip before using. Storage: Store the icing in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.

Glee! Gingered Bow Cupcakes

Emma is one of my favorite characters on Glee, so I was very excited to make her cupcake this weekend. On the outside, Emma is a reserved, polished, sweetheart of a guidance counselor with a little spunk to go along with her firery red hair. Inside, she wrestles with more complex issues - a battle with OCD and a longing to be loved by the one man who stole her heart.

I knew from the start that her cake would be carrot cake, but with her recent proclamation of Gingerhood, a little kick from some ground ginger was definitely in order! The ginger also helps add a level of complexity to the flavor of the cake, to play off Emma's internal struggles. In keeping with Emma's polished exterior, I topped the cake with a tribute to her signature bow blouses and throwback hairstyle - a white fondant bow with curled tails.

Emma's cupcake combines gingered carrot cake with a delicate cream cheese frosting, topped with a signature bow!

Gingered Bow Cupcakes

Source: Slightly adapted from Baking Illustrated

Yield: about 24 cupcakes

Total time: 45 minutes

 

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (12 1/2 ounces)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoons table salt
• 1 pound medium carrots (6 to 7), peeled
• 1 1/2 cups evaporated cane juice (10 1/2 ounces)
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (3 1/2 ounces)
• 4 eggs (large)
• 1 1/2 cups safflower oil
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened but still cool
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened but still cool
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar (4 1/2 ounces)
• fondant, for decorations

Instructions

1. Wash all bowls, pans, utensils, and equipment in hot, soapy water. Dry thoroughly.
2. Wash all carrots thoroughly to ensure they are free of pesticides.
3. Day dream about Will Schuester.
4. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 muffin pans with sterilized cupcake wrappers.
5. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, and salt in medium bowl; set aside.
6. In food processor fitted with large shredding disk, shred carrots (you should have about 3 cups); transfer carrots to bowl and set aside. Wash food processor components thoroughly with hot, soapy water, then dry pieces and fit bowl with metal blade. Process granulated and brown sugars and eggs until frothy and thoroughly combined, about 20 seconds. With machine running, add oil through feed tube in steady stream. Process until mixture is light in color and well emulsified, about 20 seconds longer. Scrape mixture into large bowl.
7. Realize you are alone and break down in tears, singing "All By Myself."
   
8. Pull yourself together.
   
9. Stir in carrots and dry ingredients until incorporated and no streaks of flour remain. Full cupcake wrappers 2/3 of the way and until toothpick or skewer inserted into center comes out clean, about 16-20 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time.
   
10. Cool cupcakes to room temperature in pan on wire rack. When ready to frost, prepare icing. Try not to pass out while working with cream cheese and butter. Process cream cheese, butter, orange juice, and vanilla in clean food processor workbowl until combined, about 10 seconds, scraping down bowl with rubber spatula as needed. Add powdered sugar and process until smooth, about 10 seconds. Frost cupcakes and top with fondant bow. Have a cupcake to make yourself feel better.
11. Resume day dreaming about Will Schuester.