Raspberry Cupcakes with Pink Champagne Frosting

For my then future Sister-in-law's bridal shower I was planning on doing some type of mini apple pie "cupcake" to go with their country wedding theme. She surprised me by wanting something similar to the Pink Champagne cupcake we had tried while visiting my Grandparents at Sift Cupcakery. I found it ironic actually because Sift is part of the reason I got interested in baking cupcakes, their delicious cupcakes come at a price higher than my wallet would prefer and I thought I had to be able to make cupcakes that tasted that good for less. So far I've been successful in making them taste good, but not looking as good as theirs do, more on that later.

Surprisingly enough, raspberry cake recipes aren't that easy to come by, even with my old friend Google. I found the recipe I used on The Kitchn. It looked simple enough on the web site and sounded tasty.
Cupcake Recipe here. For the pink champagne frosting I used the same buttercream recipe used in the Mimosa Cupcakes and added a few raspberries to make the frosting pink.

 Frosting

 Cupcake Batter

 Bakers, a small tip: when going to bake at a non-bakers house, bring your own muffin tins or any other required tools. Even if it's your Mother's house and you can swear she had normal 12 cup muffin tins (and 2 of them) when you were growing up.

These cupcakes came out much brighter than I thought they would. Not particularly close to Sift's Pink Champagne cupcake but a tasty raspberry and pink champagne cupcake nonetheless.

Bretta was less than thrilled about not receiving a sample

Jasper just wanted to be left in peace (notice the peace signs on his collar)

At least the bride to be was happy!

Small hiatus

You may have noticed that I haven't posted in here since September. Other than 2 weddings, a bridal shower, and Holidays galore I actually had a major road block in baking. 'Morning' sickness. That's right folks, this baker is carrying around a little cupcake full time these days. Oddly enough, this little cupcake made entering the kitchen for a solid month and a half gag worthy, every single time. I do apologize for my absence and never fear, I will finish 52 weeks of deliciousness. I just have some catching up to do!

Pineapple Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Buttercream

Do make these at home.

Way back when I had my Cupcake Challenge one of the reader's (The Mrs. to be exact) suggested a delightful combination: Pineapple (cupcake) with Brown Sugar Buttercream. I couldn't stop thinking about it! Just the sound of Brown Sugar Buttercream makes me feel all melty and warm.

Say it again: Brown Sugar Buttercream. Yum. It sounds like Heaven. Then again, it kinda looks like it too:

Sadly, The Mrs. did not win the contest so I had to go out and make them anyways. And send her some since they were her idea. And try not to eat 37. Good thing the recipe I found only made 24. Most of the cupcakes I made this year will probably not be on the top of my list when I need to make a dessert. These my friends, definitely will.

I hadn't ever made any sort of pineapple cake before so I just hunted around via Google search for a basic pineapple cake recipe. I found this one over on All Recipes and was a little worried that it would be too simple to really bring on the flavor, and might be too sweet. I didn't find the sugar to be over the top at all. Even paired with the buttercream.

For the buttercream I did another Google search and stumbled upon this beauty over at Epicurious. It certainly was a labor of love but NOT a wasted one. This is one Buttercream that delivered! My co-workers used the word wicked. Made me feel very hip.

I will warn you that you should read the directions for the meringue twice, so that you don't screw up your first batch and have to start a new one. Just a tip.

 But once you do get it right, you can't go wrong!

I also sent some of these via 2 day USPS mail over to The Mrs, look below in the comments section for her review.

Now that's she's gotten some left over peanut butter from the counter (see the Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cupcake post) Bretta feels it's necessary to "over see," nevermind that she's only about a foot off the tile floor, my baking.

And just because I lost all sense of pride in a previous post and showed you my atrocious kitchen, here's what it looks like when it's set up to bake and not a complete disaster. And yes, my kitchen lighting really does leave something to be desired! Thank God for Mr. T's Dad installing those under the cabinet lights for us!

Yes, you're seeing it right, there are 4 cubes of butter out to get them to room temperature on my counter. And  a glass of water so that my arteries don't clog just from looking at the butter. I wonder if Paula Deen keeps a glass of water handy?

And because one Bretta picture is never enough, here she is pretending that she didn't just get dirty dog prints all over Mr. T's freshly mopped floor.

Things like this don't happen when you have 2-legged kids do they?

Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes!

Okay, these probably classify as muffins but you can ice them. If you really like tooth aches.

We had some bananas that were browning on the counter nicely and  I thought about making banana bread but then I got the ingenious idea of adding chocolate chips and counting them towards my little project. I'm smart like that.

So after some frustrating web searching I went over to tasty kitchen, closed my eyes and pointed at the screen. Okay, not really, but that's basically what this was since I had never made banana bread before now. I think. The recipe was nice and simple, plus very tasty! I will warn you though, one minute too long in the oven will give them that slightly charred taste on the outside, but if you're into that like my pal Sarah, go for the extra minute! Link to the recipe here

Mmmm Mashed Bananas!

Banana-y batter!

Pre-oven

The first batch (slightly burnt) I saved this one for the office!

This week's cupcake reviewer will be Bella from Bella's Bistro, I hope she liked them!

I loved that this recipe was so quick and easy, made for more playtime with a certain someone:

Peek-a-boo! Now play with me and this half mangled wool frog!

Post #100 and Cupcake #26!

For my 100th post I thought I'd make it a big one.

I'm also halfway through the cupcake challenge (somewhere Mr. T is cheering because that means only 6 more months of cupcake dishes to wash for me.)

I asked you to guess and Schmoozie nailed it: peanut butter is involved.

Thanks to the lovely Bella from Bella's Bistro (check her out, she's an amazing cook!) I got my 26th cupcake recipe.

The recipe can be found over on Annie's Eats

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

My family has an annual camping trip that it is filled with delicious food. I never have had any responsibility other than to count some money or bring some junk food, so I figured that I would bring my A game with these cupcakes. Boy did I! They were a huge hit, lots of rave reviews were received. Even my Dad said they were on par with the German Chocolate Cupcakes!

These were really simple to make but the flavor is un-beatable. If you've ever had a buck eye (and if you haven't, please do!) The center tastes like one, add in the chocolate cake and peanut butter frosting and you'll pretty much be in cupcake heaven. I will definitely be making these again. And again, and again!

Thanks for sharing the recipe Bella!

The filling before mixing

The filling after mixing

What the (uncooked) cupcake looks like before you add the top layer of cupcake batter

The first cupcake recipe that Bretta got to try some of. She was a very happy camper!

Unfrosted cupcakes on the seat of my Mom's camper, they kinda match huh?

The first 6 months

For those of you that have joined me a little later on my 52 weeks of deliciousness I thought I'd give you a direct list. Starting with my first week.

Week/cupcake

1. Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes bomb is a very good description
2. Lemon Raspberry Cupcakes
3. Lemon Poppyseed Muffins
4. Ginger Cupcakes with Lemon Frosting
5. Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting (attempt 1, wasn't impressed)
6. Apple Streusel Cinnamon Swirl Cupcakes
7. Kid Friendly Cupcakes
8. Individual Coffee Cakes
9. Champagne Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream Icing
10. Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
11. Mocha Chip Cupcakes
12. White Mountain Chocolate Cupcakes
13. Orange Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting
14. Chocolate Cupcakes with Coconut Buttercream Frosting
15. Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes
16. Mini-Cheesecake Cupcakes (nothing mini about them!)
17. Red, White and Blueberry Cupcakes
18. Mimosa Cupcakes
19. Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting
20. Muffins that taste like donuts
21. Carrot Cake Cupcakes (attempt 2, the winner!)
22. Chocolate Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting (fail!)
23. Individual Raspberry Cobblers
24. Slider Cupcakes also the winner of my Cupcake Challenge
25. German Chocolate Cupcakes

Any guesses what week 26 will bring?
Thanks for reading!

German Chocolate Cupcakes

I mentioned in my other post that I made German Chocolate cupcakes for my Dad. Originally, I had told him that he should enter into the cupcake challenge but when he tried to enter it told him that he had to be a member, he didn't want to be a member, and didn't really think that he should have to enter a contest for me to make him cupcakes. He had a point.

As you may have guessed, I'm a huge fan of sweets. Growing up, there were two days of the year that I didn't want an extra big slice of cake. Those two days would be February 25 and July 27, my Dad and older brother S's birthdays. Everyone knows that you get your favorite cake on your birthday and guess what both of them love? You got it, German Chocolate. Now, don't get me wrong, I still ate the cake, but it's definitely not my favorite.

Not my favorite, but still something I wanted to add to my cupcake repetoire so I spent some time searching out German Chocolate recipes via Google. And I ended up stumbling onto The Cupcake Project. How have I not found that before?! I swear, the longer I go on with my weekly cupcake-ing the less original I feel. Oh well! Anyway, there was a great recipe for German Chocolate cupcakes (not that I really know because I didn't actually eat any of them....) and a little education on the history of the German Chocolate Cake. Guess I'll have to stop telling my Dad "This isn't real German chocolate cake."

The condensed milk had me a little wary, just because I haven't used it before and generally I'm against dairy of any kind that doesn't require refrigeration, but it turned out fine.

We had a little bit of a cupcake disaster with this batch. The yield is supposed to be 30 but I lost 12 due to my mini oven. I was making these on Thursday night, we were going to leave Friday afternoon, for my family's annual camping trip. That Thursday it also happened to hit 107 degrees here, a rarity. It was still 80+ after 7pm when I finally dragged myself into the kitchen. Since I normally only make one tray of cupcakes at a time and this time I was making two different types I decided to put two of the trays in at a time. Big mistake. The tray on the top cooked fine, the bottom tray burnt on the outside and barely cooked in the center. I hate wasting food but was forced to toss out that whole tray.

This definitely was the messiest I have ever seen all 4.5 feet of my counter space:

Kinda entertaining though isn't it?

I had no space for an extra cooking rack! The cupcakes with the sunken centers were later dumped in the trash. Much to my Dad's dismay.

That's one gooey mess.

I decided there is no way to make these look pretty. So I went for butterfly papers.

I couldn't catch him taking a bite, here he is meticulously removing the paper.

Dad said they were great, so did my brother S and his family!

And by now, we all know how Bretta feels.

Cupcake Challenge Winner: Mini-slider Cupcakes

Cupcake Challenge Winner!

I have to admit, after all these months of baking from scratch this felt an awful lot like cheating! Jess submitted the recipe from Bella's Bistro and I feeling a little nervous. Bella is a pastry-chef in training (literally) and makes delicious meals almost every night of the week (I'm not kidding, I see her weekly menus.) Her cupcakes looked great and already had great reviews.

The Materials

These cupcakes were simple to make and looked adorable (even if my lettuce doesn't look as good as Bella's!)

I had Sarah do a taste test before sending them out to Jess. Sarah thought they looked cute and tasted good.

Unfortunately these didn't make it to Jessica in good order, the food containers I sent them in opened up mid ship and they were ruined by the time they got to her :( I'm so sorry Jessica, I'll have to make it up to you!

As for Bretta, she's pretty tired of everyone else getting treats and isn't talking to me.

Individual Raspberry Cobblers from The Pioneer Woman

It's summer time in the valley and the berries know it. We've been making a habit of making a weekly stop at our local berry patch. It has been delicious. I think that I purposely block out how good berries taste during the winter time, like the memory of their taste hurts to much to think about. Then, once summer hits, I take full advantage of the ripe berries available to me. For my 23rd week I chose to make Pioneer Woman's individual Raspberry Cobblers, with some fresh whipped cream. The result was dangerous. So dangerous that I got into the car and got them to Mr. T's job before I could eat all of them. And I would have.

What's that? You think I'm cheating again? I will have you know that in the first line of her post PW says "Technically I could call these cobbler cupcakes." See, I win!

But no need to get technical. Just a need to make them yourself at home. And give some away. You have my permission to eat more than one, but not the whole batch. I'm sorry. Your hips will thank me.

You'd be bitter too if you didn't get any cupcakes and your person put silky belts around you on "Fancy" dinner night.

whew!

Mr. T, B and I just got back from a fabulous weekend of camping with friends and family. Wwe've got 2 weddings in the next 6 weeks and prepping for a third next spring so this week will be my blog-a-thon week. Upcoming cupcakes are:
Pioneer Woman's individual raspberry cobblers
Mini Sliders (also the cupcake challenge winner) from Bella's Bistro
German chocolate cupcakes for my Dad, who didn't think he should have to enter a contest for me to make him cupcakes
And last but certainly not least, our surprise celebratory 26th week cupcake which means that I am halfway done with 52 weeks of deliciousness!

Hope everyone has a fabulous week after our lovely long weekend!

Cupcake Fail: Popcorn and Milk Dud attempt

Have you ever gone to the movies and gotten popcorn and milk duds? Maybe your friend got the popcorn and you got the milk duds and shared them? My friends and I used to do that very thing and if you've never had a bite of popcorn (extra butter) and milk dud at the same time you are missing out! Enter Ben, Mr. T and I's friend, and movie night at our house. After narrowing down what movie we wanted to watch he says "you know, we both have seen this movie, let's make cupcakes!"
That's when I got the idea to make a cupcake with the same sensations as my favorite movie treat.
My ideas aren't always the best.

So our basic idea came down to making a chocolate cupcake with caramel frosting and we would sprinkle popcorn over the top for fun. And we had the length of a Disney movie to make them in.

Ben was the only one that had made caramel before, so I put him on that duty.

The end product tasted fine without the popcorn but the caramel was hard, not frosting like and didn't spread well. I don't think the popcorn had enough butter.

30 Day Challenge, Day 30

What I have gained from this blogging exercise.....

I wouldn't say that I really gained much from this if we are looking for enlightenment and soul searching moments. I did, however learn that there are some topics that I would rather not discuss on the blog (for example, my parents separation) and that in a few minutes a day I can slap a post up and hopefully entertain others! I enjoyed the questions, and the opportunity to share a bit of myself with all of you readers. Thanks to Cole and Mrs. A for getting me into it and to everyone that read through.

Now let's see if we can peer pressure the crazy bunny lady into it, c'mon we'd love to hear more about you!

So I will no longer be posting a response to a question every day but I will be adding more cupcakes, cupcake challenges and projects to the blog. And of course the occasional random tidbit.

Happy seventh Birthday to my handsome nephew D! Love you buddy!

30 Day Challenge, Day 29

What is my best feature?

Growing up I got a lot of attention for my blue eyes. Out of 8 kids I'm the only one with Blue ones. All my other siblings either have brown or dark hazel eyes. Both of my Grandfathers had blue eyes, I always felt extra special to share that with them.

But I've always really liked my neck.

30 Day Challenge, DAy

My Most Luxurious Purchase?

My 2006 Manual Ford Escape

That I love. That I would buy all over again. That faithfully takes me from point A to point B, C and sometimes D without so much as a squeak.

That I just smashed the front end on today.

How's that for irony?