Cupcake Wednesday - Sweetening up your midweek

Cake Series: Pretty Princess Cake for Winsome!

2011-03-09T10:07:00.000-05:00

My second cake attempt was a pretty princess cake for Winsome's (12th?) Birthday. The princess was given glasses in order to resemble the birthday girl herself. The cake itself was lemon with lemon buttercream.

Wednesday, March 2nd: Dr. Pepper Cupcakes with Dr. Pepper Glaze and Cherry Frosting

2011-03-02T16:22:00.000-05:00

This week I made Dr. Pepper cupcakes. There were definitely mixed thoughts about whether or not the cupcakes tasted like Dr. Pepper, but not whether or not they were fresh and delicious. The cupcakes were fairly simple to make. Next time I would probably put a little more frosting on the cupcakes, but I wanted to try something new (and I ran out of butter). The glaze probably created the most amount of Dr.Pepper flavour (and the biggest sugar rush). They definitely looked complete with a cherry on top.

New Poll! Coca Cola Vs Dr. Pepper

2011-02-24T14:08:00.000-05:00

What do you want to see as a cupcake next week!?? Coca Cola or Dr.Pepper? Battle it out!

Voting closes Monday @ 5pm.

Wednesday, February 22, 2011: Spiced Pear Cupcakes With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting!

2011-02-23T09:05:00.001-05:00

This week I made spiced pear cupcakes with maple cream cheese frosting topped with toasted almonds. They turned out very moist and delicious. I was quickly told that this is a recipe to keep in the short pile. I had absolutely no problems making these cupcakes; they were extremely easy and quick to make. The perfect way to make use of those pears sitting in your kitchen!

Recipe to come

Wednesday, February 16th: Sweetheart Cupcakes!

2011-02-16T20:57:00.000-05:00

Happy belated Valentines day! Here are some cupcakes I made this week. The cupcakes were vanilla and chocolate, and the hearts were pound cake covered in candy coating! Yum!

Wednesday, February 9th: Salted Caramel and Chocolate Cupcakes

2011-02-09T09:54:00.005-05:00

I FINALLY made caramel! After having major difficulties with my caramel frosting in December, I was extremely weary when going forward with this recipe. However this time I was armed with a candy thermometer, and what a difference it made! Who knew that having the right tools would allow you to be successful? These cupcakes turned out great! Super decadent, but I made them a little smaller than normal. I wasn't sure how the frosting would turn out because of the amount of chocolate vs icing sugar, but the super richness worked with the rest of the cupcake. These would be extremely dangerous to have in the house.

Martha Stewart's Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakesvia Martha Stewart's Cupcakes
makes roughly 2 dozen

The Cupcakes
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup warm water

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line mini muffin tin with paper liners. Whisk together flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. With mixer on low speed, add eggs, buttermilk, oil, extract, and the water; beat until smooth and combined.

Spoon the batter into liners about two-thirds full. Bake approximately 15 minutes, or until tester comes out clean. Transfer tins to wire racks and allow to cool for 10 minutes; turn cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 1 month in air tight containers.

To finish, use a paring knife to cut a cone-shaped piece (about 1/2 inch deep) from the center of each cupcake and throw away the pieces. Spoon 1 to 2 teaspoons warm Salted Caramel Filling into each hollowed-out cupcake. You will notice the caramel will sink into the cupcake a little, just fill it up a bit more. Sprinkle a pinch of sea salt over filling.

Use a pastry bag with a medium open-star tip and pipe Dark Chocolate Frosting onto each cupcake, swirling tip and releasing as you pull up to form a peak. Garnish each cupcake with a pinch of sea salt. Cupcakes are best eaten the day they are filled and frosted. Store at room temperature in airtight containers - do NOT refrigerate.

Salted Caramel Filling
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup water
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, preferably fleur de sel

Directions
Heat sugar with the water and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan over high, stirring occasionally, until syrup is clear; clip a candy thermometer to side of pan and stop stirring.

Cook until syrup comes to a boil, washing down sides of pan with a wet pastry brush as needed. Boil, gently swirling pan occasionally, until mixture is caramelized and just reaches 360°F. Remove rom heat and slowly pour in cream; stir with a wooden spoon until smooth. Stir in sea salt.

Use immediately; if caramel begins to harden reheat gently until pourable.

Dark Chocolate Frosting
Ingredients:
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon boiling water
2 1/4 cups (4 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 pounds best-quality semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Directions:
Combine cocoa and boiling water, stirring until cocoa has dissolved.

With electric mixer on medium-high, beat butter, confectioners' sugar, and salt until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Add melted and cooled chocolate, beating until combined and scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in the cocoa mixture.

Frosting can be refrigerated up to 5 days, or frozen up to 1 month in an air tight container. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat on low speed until smooth again

Wednesday, February 2nd: Red Velvet Cupcakes With Red Hot Cinnamon Heart Frosting

2011-02-02T09:42:00.005-05:00

It's February, that means candy and chocolate everywhere you look for Valentine's day, and the CCW cupcakes will be reflecting that. This week I made red velvet cupcakes with a red hot cinnamon heart frosting. The best part of these cupcakes was the frosting for sure, it had the taste of cinnamon hearts without being overpowering. I did add about twice the amount of blended cinnamon hearts that the recipe called for because I wanted that flavour to really come through.

Red Hot Cinnamon Cupcakes
adapted from The Busty Baker

makes about 3 dozen

Red Velvet Cupcakes
¼ cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons red gel food coloring (or half a bottle of the liquid food coloring)
¼ cup boiling water
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening, at room temperature
1 2/3 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 ½ cups cake flour
1 teaspoon fine salt
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Preheat the oven to 325F. Prepare three standard muffin pans with liners. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, food coloring, and boiling water. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and shortening until smooth. Scrape down the bowl as needed, and gradually add the sugar. Beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Stir the buttermilk and vanilla into the cooled cocoa mixture.
4. Sift the flour and salt together into another medium bowl. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture, alternating with the cocoa mixture, to the egg mixture in three separate additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat until incorporated.
5. In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and baking soda and stir until the baking soda dissolves. The mixture will fizz. Add to the batter and stir until just combined.
6. Divide the batter among the prepared pans, using a little more than 2 tablespoons of batter in each cup. Bake, rotating pans halfway, until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, about 18 minutes. Transfer pans to a wire rack to let cool for 20 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pans and let cool on wire racks completely before frosting.

Red Hot Buttercream
Makes enough to frost 3 dozen cupcakes

3 sticks (1 ½ cups) unsalted butter, softened
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup finely crushed Red Hot cinnamon candies (Some chunks of candy are okay, but make sure they’re not too big)
Pinch of salt
1 ½ teaspoons to 1 tablespoon milk
36 whole Red Hot cinnamon candies, for decoration (optional)

1. In a large bowl, sift together confectioner’s sugar and crushed cinnamon candies. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla extract and salt, and beat until combined. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar mixture, and beat until smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add food coloring to tint. Add milk as necessary to thin out to desired consistency. Pipe or frost onto cupcakes. Top with whole cinnamon candies.

Cake Series: Happy 23rd Birthday Jess!

2011-01-31T09:31:00.012-05:00

Here's a teeth cake I made for my dental hygienist friend, Jessica! My first fondant cake, and it way more difficult to place the fondant down smoothly than I anticipated. Luckily the teeth on the cake were very forgiving of the wrinkly fondant. I'm hooked! I can't wait to make another cake!

The cake itself was a rainbow cake with fudge filling and vanilla bean icing.

Special Order: Peanut Butter Cup Cupcakes in a Chocolate Cake With PB and Chocolate Swirled Frosting

2011-01-29T15:54:00.004-05:00

Here is another special order I did; a variation on my peanut butter cup cupcakes from October. These were a chocolate cupcake and chocolate and peanut butter frosting swirled on top. Huge mound of frosting... mmm.

Special Order: Boxing Cupcakes (Fondant Boxing Gloves)

2011-01-29T15:25:00.000-05:00

So this past week due to illness, I did not make cupcakes. Here are some pictures of the boxing glove cupcakes I made a few weeks ago for an order.

Special Order: Make-Up Cupcakes (Fondant Lipstick & Compact)

2011-01-22T12:38:00.004-05:00

Here are some pictures of a cupcake order I did a couple weeks ago. The cupcake was a chocolate cupcake with chocolate buttercream frosting. The lipstick and compact were made out of fondant. It was my first time working with fondant, and I think they came out pretty good for a first attempt. I also made some fondant boxing gloves for cupcakes that I will post in the coming weeks.

Wednesday, January 19th: Cherry Pie Cupcakes

2011-01-19T09:22:00.003-05:00

This week's selection from the book, "What's New Cupcake?", was the pie cupcakes. The flavour voted was cherry, thus I made cherry cupcakes that look like cherry pies. The piping of the pie crust (which is just vanilla icing with cocoa and yellow food colouring added to make the desired colour) was semi-frustrating. The tip I used seemed too big, yet anything smaller would not have looked even over the red candy. It was amazing to me that the book even suggested just using a ziplock bag with a hole in it, I can't imagine how difficult that would have been. I used red Smarties candy as the "cherries" and then piped the frosting over to resemble a pie. I've seen some other variations of this cupcake on the internet where cherry filling is actually used and fondant makes the pie crust/dough. I think I would try the style again but with those different materials. The actual cupcake is a cherry cupcake with real cherries in it. After I ran out of Smarties, I decided to decorate the cupcakes more simply; you can see the pics of those cupcakes after the jump.

Also, check back later this week for some 'special order' cupcakes I've made recently!

Click the link below to see recipe and another way you can decorate these cupcakes.

Recipe to come...

WW: Cherry Cupcakes!

2011-01-18T10:24:00.002-05:00

Cherry won the vote this week. I will be baking Cherry flavoured cupcakes that resemble cherry pies. The idea comes from the book I've been using all January as inspiration, "What's New Cupcake". I've had a ton of fun making the cupcakes from the book so far, and have had a ton of great feedback. Can't wait to see how tomorrows cupcakes turn out! Come back and take a look!

Cherry: 13
Blueberry: 10

New Poll: Cherry Vs Blueberry

2011-01-13T21:29:00.001-05:00

This week's cupcake from the "What's New Cupcake" book is going to resemble a pie. So what better flavours to have this week than Cherry and Blueberry. Voting will end on Monday now rather than Tuesday because I really need that time to find my ingredients. So get your votes in on time! :)

Voting will end Monday at 5PM

Wednesday, January 11th: Honeycomb Cupcakes (Green Tea Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting topped with Honey)

2011-01-12T09:17:00.006-05:00

This week I continued to recreate cupcakes from the book, "What's New Cupcake", with these honeycomb cupcakes. The cupcake itself was a Green Tea flavour cupcake with vanilla icing. I then topped the cupcake with hexagonal sugar cookies topped with yellow sprinkles. I would advice baking the sugar cookies in advance to save time. Also, try to find a hexagonal cookie cutter; I was without one and it was extremely difficult to shape the cookies with just a knife. The bees on the cupcakes were made out of black jelly beans striped with yellow frosting and sliced almonds for wings. The first few bees I made I attempted to make separate and then transfer them onto the cupcakes. However too much of the yellow stripes smudged from this so eventually I learned to make the bees right on the cupcakes. Finally the cupcakes are topped with honey inside of the sugar cookie. After, you just place the hexagons together to form a honeycomb shape.

I love the cupcake colour!

Recipe to come...

WW: Green Tea Cupcakes Win!

2011-01-11T21:36:00.007-05:00

Wow! Thanks for all the votes this week! 48! New Record, Woohoo! Green tea has won despite Peanut Butter's lead most of the week. I am excited to try the green tea cupcakes, however, it has been quite the adventure to even get to the baking stage.

After my car overheating while driving home from work (for the second time in two weeks!), and then having to brave the cold to refill my coolant (a simple task that takes me, a non-car person, a ridiculous amount of time to do), I was not in the best mood. And that's not even including the extra trip across the city in the snow storm to get the Matcha green tea powder required for these cupcakes. By the time I am starting my baking, I know its going to be a late night. However, I like baking in the night when every else in the house is sleeping. It's sort of therapeutic. Plus I can make a big mess while baking and have time to clean, and no one will know. And everyone can wake up to some fresh goodies!

Come back tomorrow to see how they turn out!

Results:
Green Tea: 25
Peanut Butter: 23

New Poll! Honey and...?

2011-01-06T09:21:00.006-05:00

There is a new poll this week! My apologies for not having one last week, I had several requests to put up a new poll this week, so here it is. The difficulty with polls this month is the cupcakes in the book, "What's New Cupcake" require a lot of supplies and time to search for those supplies, that it makes it tough not knowing which cupcakes I need to make until the night before. But alas, I have found a way around it this week. This week I will be making cupcakes that look like a honey comb. The cupcakes will be topped with honey, but you can decide what the actual cupcake flavour is going going to be. The choices will be: Peanut Butter and Honey, or Green Tea and Honey.

Voting, as usual, will close on Tuesday at 5:00 PM.

Wednesday, January 5th: Hero Sub Cupcakes

2011-01-05T22:19:00.003-05:00

This Wednesday is the first week of exploring the book, "What's New Cupcake". The book features all sorts of crazy cupcakes that look like animals, food, etc. This Wednesday I attempted to create the Hero Sub cupcake. These cupcakes were very time consuming, the cheese and ham on the sub are made out of chewy fruit candy and they were at times more difficult to work with. The book called for a long donut such as a cruller for the top of the sub, but I couldn't locate some (and I didn't have a ton of time to look), so I used a the top of a grocery store pound cake. The lettuce was the easiest part and the possible my favourite looking aspect of the sub cupcake. It is merely bran flakes with green frosting. The cupcakes are messy and harder to eat, but the initial reaction you get by people makes it worth it. They looked like subs, and while they weren't as perfect as the book, they got the reaction I was looking for!

January on CCW: Exploring "What's New, Cupcake?"

2011-01-02T14:29:00.004-05:00

This month will focus less on cupcake flavours, and more on the decorating. I got this great book for Christmas, "What's New, Cupcake?", and will try to recreate some of the cupcakes from the book for January. Stayed tuned to see how these clever cupcakes turn out!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T14:03:00.002-05:00

Goodbye 2010, hello 2011! Let's make it the year to dream big, laugh lots and love most. Can't wait to see what baking adventures 2011 will bring!

Wednesday, December 29th: Martha Stewart's Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes

2010-12-29T11:34:00.008-05:00

Well, the second attempt at Oreo cupcakes was much more successful than the first. For the recipe I chose a safe option, Oreo Cheesecake Cupcakes from Martha Stewart. My cupcakes didn't turn out as neat as her pictures but they were tasty so I've deemed them a success.

Martha Stewart's Cookies and Cream Cheesecakes RecipeMakes 30

Ingredients:
42 Oreos, 30 left whole, and 12 coarsely chopped
2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1 cup sour cream
Pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 whole cookie in the bottom of each lined cup.

2. With an electric mixer on medium high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Gradually add sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla.

3. Drizzle in eggs, a bit at a time, beating to combine and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in sour cream and salt. Stir in chopped cookies by hand.

4. Divide batter evenly among cookie-lined cups, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until filling is set, about 22 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (or up to overnight). Remove from tins just before serving

Merry Christmas From CCW

2010-12-25T14:03:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas everyone! Hope your holidays are filled with love, laughter and sweets!

Next Week's Cupcakes: No New Poll

2010-12-23T16:16:00.002-05:00

Hey guys! So, because this weeks cupcakes were such a failure, I am going to attempt them again next Wednesday tweaking and changing things, in hopes that they will be delicious. Because of this, there will not be a new poll for a next week's cupcake flavour this week.

Flop: Wednesday, December 22nd: Tres Leches (Three Milk) Cupcakes in a Oreo Crust

2010-12-22T20:39:00.013-05:00

What a disaster! I tried to get ambitious with this weeks cupcakes and they turned out terrible. I started by making an Oreo crust and lining the muffin tins with it. I then poured the cupcake batter into the Oreo crust and baked the cupcakes. This worked, or so I thought. I continued following the directions for the tres leches cupcakes, which translates to three milk cupcakes. The recipe required a milk glaze poured into the cupcakes, and this is where the cupcake turned into a disaster. The glaze soaked right through the cupcake to the crust making the crust soggy. Eventually it soaked up a bit, but after tasting the cupcake it was clear that the Oreo crust that I thought was somewhat successful was much too thick, and the cupcake really had no hope of succeeding. I should have predicted that the milk glaze would not work well with an Oreo crust, but I guess that's part of the trial and error experience. Lesson learned.

Wednesday's Winner: Milk and Oreo Cupcakes!

2010-12-21T20:35:00.001-05:00

So looks like the big guy is going have some Milk and Oreo Cupcakes sitting out for him on Friday night. Check back tomorrow to see how they turned out! Thanks again for voting guys! New poll will be up on Thursday.

Results:
Oreo: 17
Chocolate Chip: 14