Girl Scout Cookie Cupcakes

It’s my favorite cookie time of the year. And yes, there are cookie times of year. Don’t fight it. Acceptance is the key that unlocks the door to happiness.

At least that’s what my Chinese horoscope says. Right now Samoas are here. As are Thin Mints. And Tagalongs. And some weird new flavors that nobody wants. But I’ll forgive them their dried-cranberries-in-a-cookie misstep just this once.

I just can’t resist those cute little gals in uniform in front of the grocery store. I’m their best customer, and especially so this year because I decided to take on a baking project involving my all time fave—the aforementioned Samoas. Crunchy cookie covered in chocolate, caramel and toasted coconut? What could be better?

Making it into a cupcake, of course. You could do this with any of your favorite cookies, Girl Scout or non—see my suggestions at the end of this post. To match the flavors of the Samoa, I chose a basic vanilla cupcake and a frosting lightly flavored with coconut.

I now accept that I am ready to begin. So I will.

First we need to get some coconut milk reducing to make it more concentrated.

Pour a can into a saucepan, bring to a boil, and simmer over medium heat for about a half hour. Give it a stir once in a while. It will froth and get really big, but the liquid is really reducing in there.

Meanwhile, grab the basics: flour, cake flour, sugar, baking powder, salt.

4 eggs. Hippie eggs. I wrote a song about them earlier but I felt it would be inappropriate to share with you.

Unsalted butter. 2 sticks. Cubed.

One cup of whole milk. And I’m definitely not going to share my song about hippie milk with y’all.

Pure vanilla extract. Don’t ever buy imitation vanilla flavoring, pretty please. I will come over and throw it out your window.

And, most importantly? The cookies.

I used two boxes for 24 cupcakes. I accept that there are far too many calories in Samoas alone, let alone in a Samoa cupcake.

Somewhere Jillian Michaels is doing push-ups in her magical trainer castle and plotting what she’ll have in store for me tomorrow.

Stick ‘em in your food processor and pulse away.

Not even close.

Getting closer….

…perfect.

Toss ‘em in a shallow bowl and let’s get ready to make our cupcake batter.

Toss your dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Give it a quick spin on low to combine the powdery stuff.

Throw in your butter…

…and mix just until those little buttery chunks are coated with flour.

Crack your 4 hippie eggs into the milk and add one tablespoon of vanilla.

Mix well.

Add the milk/egg/vanilla mixture to the dry ingredients a third at a time, stopping before each addition to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

One…

two….

…three. It’s alright if it’s a little lumpy. Those little chunks of butter will serve to keep the cupcakes moist.

Now here’s my trick for filling cupcake liners. Grab a big freezer bag and anchor 3 inches of one of the bottom corners under something heavy. Your stand mixer works perfectly for this.

Pour in the batter (I usually hook one edge of the bag onto the little metal thingie that the mixer attachments hook onto. Yes, that is it’s proper name.).

Seal the bag, hold at the corner and cut off the tip. This is for those of us ghetto-fabulous chefs who don’t own pastry bags.

Fill your liners about 1/3 full…

…and then sprinkle on a light layer of the crumbled cookies.

Then squeeze more batter over the top so that the entire thing is about 3/4 full.

Throw into a preheated 325F oven for 17-20 minutes.

By now your coconut milk should be about a quarter of what it once was. It’s also creamy and thick—perfect! Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Ready to make frosting? Combine cream cheese, butter, vanilla, powdered sugar and reduced coconut milk in your mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.

Mix until light and creamy.

Once the cakes are done, set them on a rack to cool completely before frosting.

I’m fairly certain my cupcake army is plotting to take over my home.

Once they’re cool enough, frost with about 1 tablespoon of frosting each. We’re really using frosting in this case to serve as “glue” for the cookie crumbs—we don’t want to overdo it.

After frosting, give ‘em a light dunk in the cookie crumbles.

Perfect!

I found one stray cookie in the box, so he gets the seat of honor.

Uh oh. Maybe he’s commander of the army. I think I’ve just done myself in.

And, just because I feel like being sued for copyright infringement*, I stuck a purdy little Girl Scout logo on one of these beauties.

*Rainy Day Gal has no affiliation with the Girl Scouts. She admires and respects the organization and hopes that they will not sue her, but instead send her boxes and boxes of cookies.

Alright, let’s get down to it: how did they taste?

Pretty darn good. The cake was moist and a tad on the dense side, with a crunchy little layer of cookie halfway down.

The frosting added to the flavor of the cake, but didn’t overpower the taste of the cookies on top.

I simply loved the texture: crunch is always good.

These cakes are not for the faint of heart, however—they are incredibly rich. I would make two Girl Scouts share one.

A chaser of milk is definitely in order.

I now accept that this post has come to an end. But before you go here are some ideas I have for making cupcakes using other flavors of GS Cooks (that’s my new nickname for them. Go with it.):

• For Tagalongs: Ina Garten’s recipe for chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting
• For Thin Mints: Simply Recipe’s chocolate mint cupcakes
• For Dulce de Leche: Sugarlaw’s caramel cupcakes

I hope you’re enjoying Girl Scout cookie season as much as I am! Well, who am I kidding—I don’t think anyone enjoys Girl Scout cookie season as much as I do.

Have a totes fab wed, y’all.

-RDG

Samoa Cupcakes

• One batch Vanilla Vanilla Cupcake batter
• 2 boxes Samoas cookies, pulsed in a food processor until crumbly
• One batch Slightly Coconut Frosting (see below)

Preheat oven to 325F. Fill cupcake liners 1/3 full of batter. Sprinkle a light layer of cookie crumbs on top of batter. Pour the remaining batter on top until liners are about 3/4 full. Bake for 17-20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. Once cool, spread one tablespoon of frosting on top and then lightly press frosted side of cupcake into cookie crumbs. Makes 24 cupcakes.

Slightly Coconut Frosting

• 1 can coconut milk
• 4 oz cream cheese, softened
• 4 tbsp butter, softened
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Pour coconut milk into a saucepan, bring to a boil, and simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until reduced by 75%. Let cool. Combine 4 tablespoons of the reduced coconut milk and remaining ingredients and beat until light and creamy. Refrigerate any unused frosting.

Shelly is a Weight Loss Surgery guru and is full of great recipes, cooking ideas and tips to be successful post WLS!

Be sure to check out her blog and follow her on Twitter!

Shelly’s Mint Chocolate Chip Protein Ice Cream Cakelettes

1 cup Vanilla Soy Milk (or Regular Milk)
2 scoops Vanilla Protein Powder
2 Tablespoons Sugar Free Torani Peppermint Syrup
1/8 teaspoon Green Food Coloring
2 – 3 Sugar Free Andes or Peppermint Patties, chopped (30 cals a piece) or SF Chocolate, chunked.

Mix together milk, protein, syrup (or you could use 1/8 tsp Peppermint Extract but be careful a little goes a long way) and food coloring. I used this gadget to mix it up. It makes it airy and lump free. If you don’t have one just toss it in a blender on super high. You want it fluffy almost double in size. Pour into ice cream maker. Follow your machine’s instructions for freezing. 5 minutes before done add the chopped chocolate. You can eat it right away it is soft serve-ish (use it at this stage for Protein Ice Cream Cakelette making) if you want scoops put it in the freezer to set for an hour. After that hour it will be hard (like rock hard – this is do to the lack of fat content) just nuke it 25 seconds to bring it back to scoops.

To assemble the ice cream cakelettes:

Crush 2-3 Sugar Free Cookies (for each cakelette) with a teaspoon of SF Peppermint Torani Syrup. Press into silicone muffin pan.

Spoon protein ice cream onto cookie base.

Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for a few hours.

Pop ice cream cakelettes out and serve. I topped mine with a squirt of SF Land o Lakes whipped cream.

I used these cookies and SF Vanilla Torani Syrup for the base. You can of course use any SF Cookies and Protein Ice Cream combo.

Here are some other Eggface Protein Ice Cream flavors.

Have your cupcakes ever separated from their liners? If so, do you know why that happened? (via Twitter)

Hi [wishes to remain anonymous]!

I get this question ALOT from my cupcake minions… ahem… readers. Here are a few things that I’ve noticed when I bake that may play a role in cupcake separation from liners.

(1) Humidity and excessive rain (weather) is a big factor. If there is more moisture in the air than usual or you live in a high humidity environment combined with the heat from the pan, steam will occur between the liners and the pan if you leave the cupcakes in the pan to cool. Regardless of increased moisture, I usually take my cupcakes out of the pan after they come out of the oven and let them cool on a rack or baking sheet to avoid the build up of steam. Also make sure that before you start baking that your cupcake pan is dry too!

(2) I have found that there is variation in cupcake liners too. I usually like the party nut cups for their simple structure and it allows me to get away with not using a cupcake pan but when I’m baking for clients many request the normal cupcake liners since they are easier to unpleat and eat. I suppose the customer is always right. HA! In my experience the plain white liners seem to work better than the more decorated ones. To be honest I’m not sure if there’s something different about some of the decorated ones vs the plain white ones. That’s just an observation I’ve noticed. Decorated liners have a little wax maybe? *shrugs

(3) Make sure to fill your cupcake liner to the correct height so that the cupcake rises enough towards the top of the liner. I’ve noticed that the cupcakes that aren’t filled enough seem to separate more if they don’t rise above the top of the liner. Maybe there’s less moisture build up at the top of the liner so they are able to stick better? Unfortunately all recipes are different so you’ll have to experiment with each recipe for the amount to fill the liner before the breaking point of overfilling. I aint gonna lie. It’s a fine line. I usually fill mine about 1/2-2/3 full depending on the baking soda/baking powder measurement in the recipe.

(4) There’s also a fine line for overbaking. I try really hard to pay attention to my kitchen timer when I bake but life gets in the way sometimes and when the timer goes off at 17-20 minutes (although most of the time I rely on the toothpick test more than time) but the dog is running up and down the stairs b/c the UPS man is at the door, it’s really hard to remember you’ve got cupcakes baking. (I think I need a clone.) Overbaking cupcakes could result in dry cupcakes that tend to pull away from the liners. And who wants a dry cupcake? Let the UPS man wait.

(5) In contrast, underbaking could be an issue too. If the cupcake is too moist especially from excessive butter, buttermilk, sour cream, oil, water etc that could result in the cupcakes not adhering to the liner.

(6) I don’t use cooking spray on my liners. It seems to defeat the purpose of wanting them to stick to the cupcake liners IMO.

Hope that helps!

-CB

PS- You all have no idea how much it irks me that I could not come up with 4 more reasons to make it an even 10. I’m a list and numbers girl. It’s either 5 or 10. Anything in between is just weird on the eyes. Is it just me??

PPS- Please remember that I have no scientific proof. (It pains the scientist in me to say that.) I’m just going off what I’ve seen in my own kitchen. If any readers have something to add to my list, feel free in comments! Preferably 4 more things… Please and thanks.

The cupcakes are a moist chocolate cupcake topped with a perfectly smooth mint buttercream all topped with green sugar crystals.  A perfect combination of chocolate and mint.  Yummm-o!

Here’s the recipe, click on the image to make it bigger!  The cupcake is my basic chocolate recipe and  the frosting a very easy to make mint buttercream.  I also recorded a video tutorial while I made the mint buttercream, it’s a bit wobbly, but it shows you how to make the perfect minty goodness!

]]> http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/chocolate-mint-cupcakes/feed/ 0 http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/its-raining-cupcakes/ http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/its-raining-cupcakes/#comments Sun, 28 Feb 2010 17:22:38 +0000 JavaCupcake http://javacupcake.com/?p=1408 At the book fair at Emily’s school last week, Emily was sooooo excited that she found a book that was PERFECT for me!!!  “It’s Raining Cupcakes” by Lisa Schroeder is about a 12 year old girl who is dreading her boring summer until her mother opens up a cupcake bakery!

Together, they enter a cupcake contest and the little girl has a much better summer than she though! It’s a perfect read for my 4th grader and would be a super cute addition to anyone’s library!

“It’s Raining Cupcakes” was just released in March 2010 and you can buy it on Amazon.

Mint Buttercream

• 2 sticks of butter (1 cup)
• 2lb or 8 cups sifted/whisked powdered sugar
• 1/2 heavy cream or milk
• 1/8-1/4 tsp peppermint extract

1. Cream butter.
2. Slowly add sugar, 1 cup or so at a time.
3. Scrape sides.
4. When mixture becomes too hard on the mixer, slowly add milk.
5. Continue adding sugar and milk until completely creamy and combined.
6. Scrape sides.
7. Add peppermint.
8. Mix on high 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy.

The last time I made mini’s was Spring 2009… almost a year… and I totally forgot the golden rule of mini’s DO NOT OVERFILL!  What did I do?  I filled them up as much as I’d fill up a regular cupcake cup 2/3 full.  WRONG WRONG WRONG! 1/3-1/2 and NO MORE!! I should have known.

They mini’s stuck to the pan and NONE of them were salvageable.   I got so mad, I took my spatula and stabbed a few.  GRRRRRRRRRRRR!!

Luckily, I didn’t use all the batter and will have enough for a second pan.  Guess I’ll only be bringing 24 mini’s instead of 48 to the event tomorrow.  (Thank goodness I volunteered to bring them and they weren’t for a client!)

Here we all are, waiting for Rachel to arrive!

The party room at Trophy was all set up and waiting for us when we got there!

Finally Rachel and Jessie arrive and we can get the party started!

Thanks to Jennifer Shea of Trophy Cupcakes for all the delicious cupcakes! They were outstanding!

Emily enjoying the Chocolate Graham Cracker cupcake with a Swiss Meringue frosting! YUMMMM!

Jessie from CakeSpy and Devon from Once Upon a Pedestal.

Devon makes gorgeous stands from found plates for cupcakes and cakes!

The ladies of the hour!

Rachel from CTTC (pink), Jessie from CakeSpy (blue) and Jennifer from Trophy Cupcakes (black)

Rachel, Jennifer, Jessie, (?) and Me!

Unfortunately, I didn’t get the name of the girl behind Jessie… if you’re reading this, leave me a comment and I’ll add you!

Inside, the bar stools invite you to sit down as you decide what you’d like.  Cupcakes and coffee are their specialties.

Since it was the end of the night, their cupcake stands were a little sparse, but they still had a great selection.

Vanilla with Vanilla Buttercream
Vanilla with Chocolate Buttercream
Granny’s Chocolate with Chocolate Buttercream
Granny’s Chocolate with Vanilla Buttercream
Chocolate Chip Mint
Southern Red Velvet with Vanilla Buttercream
Lemon with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Cinnamon Swirl
Caramel Macchiato
Orange Dreamsicle
Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Coconut with Coconut Buttercream
Cookies-N-Creme – NEW!

My favorite part of Indulge was the side room that was set up like a living room.  It was a big leather couch, coffee table, book shelves and a TV.  It was a cozy little room where you could sit, enjoy your cupcakes and hang out with your friends.  A perfect spot for local teens,  Moms with kids or a couple of girlfriends catching up.  If I lived closer, I could totally see myself visiting Indulge often!

Now on to the good stuff!! The cupcakes!  I ordered a half dozen cupcakes to sample and share with my daughter Emily and my cousin Andrea (former Indulge employee).

Vanilla with Vanilla Buttercream
Chocolate Chip Mint
Lemon with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Cinnamon Swirl
Orange Dreamsicle
Cookies-N-Creme

First, I need to comment on the actual size of the cupcakes.  They were HUGE and the frosting piled at least 3 inches high on each cupcake!! By far, these are some of the most generously sized cupcakes I’ve seen in a cupcake bakery in the area.

My personal favorite was the Cinnamon Swirl.  It was moist and crumbly at the same time and the frosting was TO. DIE. FOR.  And honestly, it was very similar in flavor to my favorite Cinnabon cupcake, the Cinnacake Classic.

The mint chocoalte cupcake was also just as heavenly! The chocolate cupcake was full of flavor and the mint icing was a perfect compliment.

My daughter tried the Oreo cupcake, her favorite!  And of course, it was also delicious.  The frosting is killer… made this cupcake a hit!

The vanilla cupcake was also a great classic.  Super flavor and a perfect cupcake.

The orange cupcake tasted just like a creamsicle popsicle.  But, it was a lot of orange.  Almost too much for me.  But, my cousin Andrea LOVES this one and said it’s her favorite.  I think this one is just about preference.

Finally, the lemon, my least favorite.  From the get go this cupcake was at a disadvantage, it’s frosting was 2 inches shorter than the rest… probably due to the cream cheese frosting.  I saved this one for the last and unfortunately, I can’t say I loved it.  I like lemon, but something about this cupcake just didn’t do it for me.  Probably the cream cheese frosting, which I’ve never been a fan of to begin with.

Overall, I was VERY impressed with Indulge Cupcakes.  They were moist and the buttercream was incredible!!! I highly recommend this cupcake shop to anyone in the area and only wish they’d expand and open one up in Tacoma!

Indulge website:  http://www.indulgecupcakes.com/

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/indulgesumner

]]> http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/indulge-cupcakes/feed/ 0 http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/cupcake-dance/ http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/cupcake-dance/#comments Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:42:50 +0000 JavaCupcake http://javacupcake.com/?p=1312 Ran across this today. I bet this took a ton of time to make! So cute though!

Yesterday morning, I got a comment (read that comment here)on the original review post from Jamea from the Corporate Guest Services department at Claim Jumper.   She apologized for my poor experience and asked if we could speak about the situation.

Here was our email exchange:

Jamesa,
I received your comment on my blog post about the cupcakes at Claim Jumper restaurant and wanted to thank you for taking the time to write me.

Please know, that my experience with the cupcakes does not affect my impression of Claim Jumper as a whole, I still quite enjoy the restaurant.  This post was only a review of the cupcakes and my reaction to them.

I am wondering, how did you come across my review and blog?

Betsy

–

Hi Betsy,

Thank you so much for getting back to so quickly.  I came across you blog through a Google Alert for Claim Jumper, anytime anything is posted about Claim Jumper on the internet I am alerted.  I was reading your blog and was horrified at the quality of Cupcakes we served you.  Although I was embarrassed by the cupcakes I am happy you included the pictures so we could actually see the poor quality. I am hoping you will share with me the Claim Jumper location the cupcakes were purchased from as we want to make sure our kitchen staff is preparing them properly.  I am also hoping you will share with me your address as I would like to send you a gift card to enjoy the next time you dine with us.

I hope to hear form you soon!

Warm Regards,

Jamesa

PS.  I have to say I was excited to come across your blog, I love baking cupcakes!  I saved you in my favorites.

—–

Jamesa,

I was at the 5901 South 180th Street, Tukwila, WA (Southcenter) Claim Jumper. I’ve been going to this CJ for several years now and it’s always been a treat when we go!

My address is:
XXXXXXXXXXX

Thank you for taking the time to follow up with my blog post. I never dreamed that someone from Claim Jumper would read it and respond. I review cupcakes for fun and because I love eating them! Just to let you know, I’ll be posting a follow up blog and will write about how pleasantly surprised I was that you contacted me and wanted to make sure my experience with Claim Jumper remained a positive one.

And on a personal note, I’m glad you enjoyed my blog. I love cupcakes too!!!

Thanks again,
Betsy

–

Hi Betsy,

I am so happy to hear you have been a loyal guest to CJ for several years, that really means a lot to us.  Our goal is to make sure we never disappoint our guest.  I am so glad you have given us the opportunity to make this right for you.  Please feel free to contact me anytime if I can ever assist you.

Have a wonderful week!

Jamesa

My coworker and I were drooling over your cupcakes!  They look so amazing!!!!  You are very talented.

–

Ok so seriously!!! Did this just happen? WOW. My review got read by someone who matters and by someone who has the influence to make a change. I couldn’t believe it that Claim Jumper reached out to me to ensure that my experience at CJ wasn’t forever ruined. I was… and am, impressed. This is the first time anyone has ever reached out to me after I reviewed their product. Granted, I don’t think I’ll ever really like CJ cupcakes, I won’t stop eating there in general. I always have and will continue to enjoy their food.

So thank you Claim Jumper… thank you for taking responsibility for your cupcake disaster and thank you for reaching out to me to make things right. That was a classy and stand up move on your part and puts Claim Jumper on the top of my list! A+ for customer service!

These are a yolk-less white cupcake with chocolate chips topped with a chocolate buttercream.  I had not made either of these recipes before and was honestly hoping for a great cupcake.  My daughter likes them…. but I’m not a huge fan.  They’re just “ok”.

I think I prefer a moister cupcake, this one was a little dry.  I might have to cook it a bit less also to help with the dryness.  I adjusted the recipe below to reflect a shorter cook time.

The buttercream recipe is also a departure from my standard all butter buttercream.  I wanted to see what the difference would be if I added shortening to a buttercream.  It definitely has a smoother consistency, but I’m not sure if I like the idea of eating Crisco. I think I’ll stick to my tried and true all butter buttercream.

Overall, these cupcakes weren’t a complete failure…. just not my best work.  I am glad I made them though… I learned more of what doesn’t work for me and what I DON’T like!

If you try these, let me know how they turned out for you!

Click on the image above for recipe.

(Rose cupcake photo: A Baked Creation)

Get the recipe: http://www.ciaculinaryintelligence.com

The Culinary Institute of America is the world’s premier culinary college. Culinary school chef instructor Kate Cavotti demonstrates how to make fondant cupcake decorations and fondant ornaments. For more information about our cooking school, please visit www.ciachef.edu.

An event for cupcake lovers: Bake or buy cupcakes to bring -or- just come to eat and help a good cause.

Activities include cupcake eating contests, cupcake wrapper decorating, bakers competitions, Hope Heart Institute fundraiser and more.

Best of all … it’s FREE.

AND… I will be donating about 200 mini cupcakes to the event, so you’ll be able to sample my “Tree Hugger Apple” cupcakes!

When: Saturday April 10, 2010 11am-2pm
Where: 415 Westlake, Seattle WA
Why: Because who doesn’t love cupcakes?

For more details visit the Cupcake Camp Seattle website!

Check out this awesome poster!! All artwork for Cupcake Camp Seattle is done by Jessie from Cakespy!



When: Thursday, February 25, 2010 6-8pm
Where: Trophy Cupcakes
1815 N. 45th St., Suite 209
Seattle, WA 98103
http://www.trophycupcakes.com

Come and enjoy cupcakes and coffee and chat with Rachel from Cupcakes Take the Cake!!  I plan to attend this event and am super excited to meet Rachel and all the other local cupcake enthusiasts!!!

All attendees will buy their own cupcakes.

After reading through the list of blogs that Cupcakes Take the Cake had posted on their blog, I came across the Cupcake Bakeshop.  I have no idea why I had never read this blog before, but it’s simply amazing.  Their most recent post discusses the importance of taking your time and really paying attention to the care you take when baking butter based cupcakes.  Over the course of the last year I figured out all of these steps, but after many many many trials and errors and not so great cupcakes.  I wish I would have seen this post sooner!  These tips are really worth reading and following… they really do make the best cupcakes!

——————————–

There is nothing terribly exciting or novel about this recipe. It’s my standard chocolate cupcake recipe with strawberry frosting. Boring, no? Well, what I intend to do with this post is to articulate all those little tips & tricks that I know from experience/reading, but never include in a condensed recipe. Some of this is covered in my “basics & troubleshooting” section, but I thought it would be of use to describe these tips & tricks in the narrative of a recipe.

It all started a couple of weeks ago when I wrote out the recipe for my chocolate cupcakes. This is what I want to do if I plan to be very careful and not miss anything. I find its easier to follow and I can check off things as I add them.

Then I had the idea to write down the little things I was doing that normally don’t end up in a recipe and explanations for certain aspects of the recipe. Hence the idea was born. So, no formal looking recipe in this post. Just a story…
Beat 2 sticks of butter until soft.

First off – the butter. Every recipe says it, but do we always pay attention? ROOM TEMPERATURE. I really can’t stress enough just how important this step is. I have been disappointed before… About to start baking only to remember that I forgot to take out the butter hours earlier. But really – the best thing to do? Wait it out. An alternative? Beat the hell out of the butter all by itself, scraping down a few times in between beatings. Why? If the butter isn’t soft it won’t get all nicely cut up by the sugar and distributed evenly in the batter. You might just end up with little pools of it melting in your end result. I have had it happen. But whatever you do, don’t microwave the butter. It will just melt and melted butter is useless to you.
Add 2-1/2 cups of sugar and beat until light and fluffy.

Most butter-based recipes say this as well. Beat until light and fluffy. Beat for 3 minutes. Etc. But do you always? Why 3 minutes? Why not 2 or 4? What is light and fluffy? Bottom line? You want to beat that butter well. You want it cut up into tiny, tiny pieces by the grainy sugar so it doesn’t end up into little pools compromising the structure of your wonderful cupcakes. So, beat away! Turn on your mixer and have a glass of wine! Scrape down the bowl and beat some more. (Sometimes mixers leave a thin layer of butter untouched… once that gets folder into your batter you could be in trouble!)
Add 4 large eggs, one at a time, beating well between each.

Similarly, you want the eggs incorporated very well. Basically when you are baking things like cupcakes, you DON’T want to beat the batter once the flour is in (it will toughen them up) but you DO want to beat the ingredients so they are well incorporated. So, beat the butter, sugar, and eggs as much as you can (without going overboard). Now is the time for beating.
Whisk together 1-3/4 cup flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder.

This part is easy! Many recipes mention sifting, but sifting is a pain. I have never noticed a difference with whisking and whisking is easier to do. So, I whisk. The goal is to just get everything mixed together and any lumps removed. As an aside, I use these restaurant style containers to store dry goods and its very convenient for scooping stuff out without making a mess. And I know I should weigh the dry ingredients, but there is something inherent in me that requires I go only SO far when it comes to baking.

Measure out 1 cup of whole milk and 2 teaspoons vanilla.

Alternate adding the dry ingredients and wet ingredients mixing to incorporate between batches.

So what is with this step? It’s always a little complicated to write down. Some recipes are very specific about adding 1/3 dry ingredients, mixing, adding 1/2 wet ingredients, mixing, 1/3 dry ingredients, and so on. Is there something magical about these proportions? Doubtful. What you want to avoid is dumping everything in and having to beat and beat to get it mixed up, because word on the street (ok, I never tried this…) is that doing so will make your cupcakes tough. The idea being the glutens get over beaten. Whether this is exaggerated, I do not know, but with many of the other steps described above, I have screwed up and have seen the unfortunate results. So I am leaning towards this being a good thing to follow. One day I should over-beat some and see what happens.
Scoop batter into cupcake papers 1/2 full.

This step gets me thinking about a few things. First, every recipe is different. So if something goes wrong with a recipe or a cupcake comes out with a dome or without a dome, it all really depends. The more flour there is proportionally, the more structure the cupcake will have, the less likely it will be to sink, the more likely it will have a dome, and the more batter you can put in the cupcake paper (like 2/3s to 3/4s full). But these cupcakes, while more fool proof, are also denser and not as soft. The less flour, the less structure, the more likely it will overflow or sink, the less likely it will have a dome, and the less batter you can put in the cupcake paper (1/2 full at most). BUT these cupcakes will be soft, fluffy, and in my opinion superior… By the way, ice cream scoops are really absolutely necessary. They make filling the papers a breeze…

This chocolate cupcake recipe is a result of my experimentation in trying to get the cupcake to be as delicate as possible and as chocolately as possible without being a complete disaster. That said, you need to be careful. Don’t, I repeat, DON’T overfill the papers. And DO make sure your oven is at the temperature it says it is. If you are super concerned, add another 1/4 cup of flour to the recipe. That will help reduce some of the risk. That said, I love the way the cupcakes come out and while I do sometimes overfill and get some overflow, it doesn’t stop me from eating them and sharing them.
Bake for approximately 22-25 minutes at 350F or until a cake tester comes out clean.

This step sounds easy. It isn’t. It’s where I tend to screw up when I do. For example, I have a working theory that cool spots in the oven cause some of my cupcakes to overflow. This is because the overflowing cupcakes tend to be in one area. I especially see that if I am baking a lot of cupcakes. The ones on the lower rack tend to overflow. So often I will do one of two things, preheat the oven to 375F and drop it to down to 350 once I get them in there. Or I will preheat to 350F but run the convection fan during preheat and for the first 10 minutes of baking. The problem with this (I did it a couple of weeks ago) is if you leave the convection fan on the whole time, the cupcakes will over bake and be crumbly and dry. Normally when you use convection you should drop the temperature down 25 degrees. I also think convection is better for things like cookies or chicken where you want it to get crispy, but doesn’t work so well with cupcakes. It seems like a good way to get rid of unevenness in the oven…. Jury is still out.

I recommend not disturbing the cupcakes for the first 10-12 minutes. Then I will often rotate the pans also because of the unevenness mentioned above. I start testing at around 22 minutes for this recipe. I think post people use toothpicks as opposed to official “cake testers” but I use an ice pick as that’s what I have on hand. Anything pointy you can stick in there. If you under-bake these cupcakes they will be gummy. If you over-bake them they will be dry and crumbly. So start testing around 22, test every couple of minutes, and try your best to get it right.

Whew, with any luck you have some gorgeous cupcakes cooling on a wire rack. Now let’s get cracking on the frosting.
Beat 2 sticks of butter until soft.

Pretty much the same thing goes with frosting. It’s way better if your butter comes naturally to room temperature before making frosting. I have tried many shortcuts and they work ok enough, but in my opinion you won’t get as smooth as a frosting otherwise.
Sift in 3-4 cups of powdered sugar and beat until smooth.

Again, I don’t like sifting, but if I must (and with frosting, you must or it will be lumpy) I will use one of these metal sieves and a spoon. By far the easiest method I have come across. I always start with a good amount of powdered sugar with room for adding more later.
Add 1/4 cup of strawberry puree and beat until combined.

Not much to this except your yellowish frosting turns a pretty pink. Feel free to add a teaspoon of vanilla at this step if you want.

Add more powdered sugar until you get the consistency you like.

When you add a liquid to buttercream it’s hard to get it to a nice thick consistency that is good for photo shoots. You can keep adding powdered sugar, but it won’t help. So minimize the amount of liquid. I went beyond 1/4 cup in one try of this recipe and it was way too much. I never recovered the frosting. It was usable, but runny. If you are anxious about this, omit the puree and just add chopped strawberries. It won’t be as strong a strawberry flavor, but less risk is involved.

I also made a cream cheese version of the strawberry frosting. If you want to try that substitute 1 8-ounce package of philly cream cheese with 1 of the sticks of butter and don’t add much puree. Stick more to using chopped strawberries as the cream cheese will already make the frosting softer than buttercream.

Decorate as usual by either piping the frosting on, scooping it on, whatever works for you. If you pipe, use a tip with a big opening, like 1/2 inch or so.

I used my Moist Chocolate cupcake recipe for the base… mmm it’s soooo good.

The creme filling was so smooth and yummmmmy!

Here’s a finished dozen, ready for delivery!

Click on recipe to enlarge and save to your computer!

]]> http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/love-cupcakes/feed/ 3 http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/cupcake-royale-capitol-hill/ http://javacupcake.com/2010/02/cupcake-royale-capitol-hill/#comments Thu, 11 Feb 2010 08:48:43 +0000 JavaCupcake http://javacupcake.com/?p=1012 I made it to the third of four Cupcake Royale shops today.  My good friend Jen lives just down the street from the Capitol Hill Cupcake Royale, so when I brought her home today after going to the Hard Rock Cafe for my birthday lunch there was no way I could pass up swinging by for some deliciousness.

You can read about my trip to the original Cupcake Royale and West Seattle Cupcake Royale also!

I picked up a 4-pack to include Mint Chocolate, Triple Threat, Lemon, and Salted Caramel.  The mint chocolate I believe has now become my all time favorite Cupcake Royale cupcake.  It’s so perfectly moist and the frosting is minty and fresh.  SOOO GOOD.

They were very decorated for Valentine’s Day too!

Here’s a look at the rest of their cupcakes and their special Deathcake Royale (which I sampled and is so incredibly rich and delicious! a chocolate lovers dream!)

His & Hers Valentine’s Day cupcakes.  Hale’s Chocolate Stout with Stout caramel buttercream for him and Pink Champagne for her.  Too perfectly cute to pass up!

(Photo: Trophy Cupcakes)

Cupcake Truck

Some people are serious about food, others about wine. My obsession is cupcakes! I love them! They are small pieces of heaven on earth. You have the satisfaction of a cake without the guilt of eating a whole one. There are some key factors in a good cupcake one is the icing it should always be fresh and creamy. It can be sweet but not overpowering. The cake should be moist and have flavor. If you are like me I like to have a little icing with each bite of cake so if both of them are too sweet it becomes too much. There have been several places I have been very loyal to including Magnolia,Cupcake Factory and Crumbs.

Today I was reading the NY Times and came across an article about a mobile cupcake truck! Genius! I love the MUD truck because I love their coffee and the concept of it being mobile adds to the allure. So as I am reading the article I learn the truck will be debuting today in 2 locations. I quickly friend them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter this is serious business.

The truck is going to be in Chelsea until 10pm so I make sure to get all my errands and motherly duties done so I can reward myself. Its 8pm and I’m done I get on the 5 train head to union square and take a nice walk up to 23rd street. As I approach 7th avenue I see the truck in all its sweet glory with lights around it and adorned in painted cupcakes.. Beautiful! I cross the street and avoid getting ran over by cars whizzing down 7th avenue.. The closer I get my hearts starts beating faster..Cupcakes,Cupcakes,Cupcakes!

I walk up to the truck and order the Oreo. I ask if they did wholesale. The guy working the truck points to the genius who came up with the idea his boss Lev Ekster who I shake hands with and inform him that I have been waiting for this moment all day. I let him know I am serious about my cupcakes. He asks me where I usually go and I tell him Crumbs he tells the guy in the Truck to give me another cupcake and tell him what I think. I let him know I can’t lie about these things. It was a damn good cupcake!

So I got to meet the owner, enjoy 2 complimentary cupcakes and make a business connection. I also suggested a new flavor white chocolate hazelnut.

So make sure to check them out http://cupcakestop.com you won’t regret it. If you are lucky and early enough try the Red Velvet. The prices are great $2.25 for a regular and a buck for a mini!

Sweet Peace,
DivaMomNYC

Delicious looking, right?  WRONG.  By the time I got home, this is what they looked like…

I tried to put the frosting back on but they weren’t quite as pretty as they were in the store.

Not exactly how I expected them to fair on the car ride home.  I’ve NEVER had cupcakes fall apart like this when bringing them home before.  Needless to say, from this point the level of impressiveness was going downhill.

The cupcakes themselves were very large, tall actually and felt very moist to the touch, so I started with that.  Both of the cupcakes bases were very good, flavorful and moist.  And actually…. sooooo yummy.  The frosting however was quite disgusting.  It tasted like sweet lard with a hint of cream cheese.  It was greasy and gooey and completely ruined the cupcake.  After the first taste of the frosting, I scraped it all off so it wouldn’t ruin the cake part.

Final analysis… if you’re in the mood for really good CAKE with no frosting, order the cupcakes at Claim Jumper and scrape the frosting off.  If that’s not what you’re in the mood for… DO NOT order these cupcakes.  Over priced and very disappointing.

But really, cupcakes?  At Cinnabon?  I was certain that these would not taste as good as they looked on the stand behind the counter.

The Vanilla Bliss was my least favorite.  The cake part was slightly dry in comparison to the other three cupcakes which was it’s downfall for me.  The buttercream however was quite good.  My daughter thought they stole my recipe because she liked it so much.

The Cinnacake Classic was a perfect signature cupcake for Cinnabon.  The cake had swirls of their cinnamon goodness in it and was incredibly moist.  The icing was the same icing they top their rolls with and the drizzle… well that was just heavenly.  This tasted so much like a traditional Cinnabon, I almost forgot that this was a cupcake and not a Cinnabon! This was by far my favorite out of all four cupcakes!!!

If you love chocolate then this is the cupcake for you! Chocolate Passion is the perfect name for this decadent cupcake.  It’s rich and creamy frosting was smooth and delicious and oh my goodness… it was like a chocolate orgasm in my mouth.  Yes, I said it…. a chocolate orgasm!! When I need a fix of chocolate… this is my new guilty pleasure!

I’m not a fan of carrot cake to begin with, but the 24-Carrot Cake cupcake won me over with the first bite.  It was the first cupcake I took a bite out of and was definitely the biggest surprise in my mouth.  It was moist and full of flavor and the cream cheese frosting was a perfect pairing with it.  I was so surprised actually at how moist this cupcake was that it single handily changed my skeptical mind about Cinnabon cupcakes.  I was now a believer.

Final analysis, Cinnabon Cupcakes are CINNALICIOUS and I would definitely recommend them and eat them again.  They were moist and full of flavor and their buttercream icing was smooth and delicious.  A pleasant surprise in the world of cupcakes.

These brownies are more like a blondie since they aren’t chocolate all the way through… although they are very chocolaty with the ganache on top.   They are very very very rich so you’ll definitely need a glass of milk for these!!! Below is the recipe from Smitten Kitchen.

Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Brownies
Adapted from Butterwood Desserts, West Falls, New York via Gourmet, October 2007

Makes 32 brownies, more or less, depending on how you cut them

These “brownies” are more blondie than cakey, with an excellent peanut butter-chocolate contrasts and fantastic edges, for those of you into that sort of thing. Have a glass of milk handy.

For brownies
2 sticks (1/2 pound) unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
2 large eggs plus 1 large yolk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (9 ounces)**
1/2 teaspoon salt, see note**

For ganache
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips (9 ounces)**
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

Make brownies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F with rack in middle. Butter a 13- by 9- by 2-inch baking pan, then line bottom of pan with parchment paper and butter parchment.

Beat together butter and sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until mixture is light and fluffy, then add peanut butter and beat until incorporated. Beat in whole eggs, egg yolk, and vanilla. Reduce mixer sped to low, then mix in flour until just combined.

Mix in chocolate chips (1 1/2 cups) then spread batter in baking pan, smoothing top. (It will be thick, almost like cookie batter.)

Bake until brownies are deep golden, puffed on top and a wooden pick inserted in center come out with some crumbs adhering, 40 to 45 minutes.

Cool completely in pan on a rack, about 1 1/2 hours.

Make ganache: Put chocolate chips (1 1/2 cups) in a heatproof bowl.

Bring cream to a boil in a small saucepan, then pour over chocolate chips and let mixture stand for one minute.

Gently whisk in butter until it is incorporated, chocolate is melted, and a smooth mixture forms.

Spread ganache on cooled brownies and let stand until set, about 15 minutes.

Brownies keep in one layer in an airtight container three days, and we hope much longer if hidden waaay in the back of the freezer.

And now… the moment you have ALL been waiting for!!!

The WINNER of the 1st Annual JavaCupcake Blogerversary Giveaway is…

Courtney Lopez
Twitter: @courtneyssweets
Blog: http://www.courtneyssweets.com/

Congratulations Courtney!!  Make sure to follow her on Twitter and check out her blog!!

Stay tuned…. I’ve got several copies of the upcoming book “A Cupcake Affair” by the @CupcakeChef on Twitter to giveaway next!!

Would you ask…

…for their secret buttercream recipe?

…how they get their cake so moist?

…what is their inspiration for new cupcake flavors?

…how they decided to start their own business?

…what is their favorite flavor?

What questions would you ask?

Click on the image below with the recipe to view and enlarge! Enjoy

4 Easy Steps to Filling a Pastry Bag

1. Place your pastry bag, tip down, in a tall cup. Fold edges of the bag over the side of the cup. Using a spatula, scoop frosting into bag.
2. Using the spatula, push the frosting down into the bag, holding the cup for support.  Use the spatula to wipe off extra frosting, creating a smooth top.
3. Fold up the sides of the pastry bag.
4. Take the bag out of the cup and with your hands push the frosting down to the tip of the bag, trying to not let any air in the bag.  Twist the bag at the top of the frosting.

On Tuesday, January 26, 2010 Cupcakes Take the Cake featured MY CUPCAKES!! My Tree Hugger apple cupcakes were featured in their own blog post which included an introduction, three photos, and a snippet from my blog post!

For the last year, I’ve been following CTTC and been admiring the cupcakes they feature on their blog and dreaming of maybe, someday, making a cupcake good enough to make it to thier blog. They have a Flickr group where hundreds of cupcake photos are submitted weekly for a chance to be featured. With all those amazing cupcakes to choose from, I never thought I’d actually make it to their blog.  I’m excited beyond words about this!! I’ve hoped and dreamed about this moment and alas, it’s happened!! I’m on Cupcakes Take the Cake!!! Yaay yay yay!!

I want to say a HUGE thank you to Rachel and Nichelle for featuring my cupcakes and recipe, it is a HUGE honor!

THE CONTEST HAS ENDED.  A WINNER WAS ANNOUNCED, FEB. 1, 2010.

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO PARTICIPATED AND TO EVERYONE WHO DONATED ITEMS!! I COULD NOT HAVE GOTTEN THRU THIS LAST YEAR WITHOUT YOU!!

The Rules

Contest open from Jan. 10, 2010 at 10:00pm to Jan. 31, 2010 at 10:00pm. (PST)

ONE (1) winner will be chosen at random on Feb. 1, 2010.

To enter, completely fill out entry form at the bottom of this page.

*Note* If you do not have Twitter or Facebook, you may still enter.  Email me betsy (at) javacupcake (dot) com for details.

Prizes are subject to change at any time.

Contest open to those who live in the USA or Canada only.

New Prizes Added: 1/27/10

Every person to enter this giveaway will also be provided access into an EXCLUSIVE Pampered Chef “Mystery Host” catalog show!

One participating member from this show will win ALL the Host Benefits & Rewards… including the January bonus reward of 50% additional Free Product Value! http://www.pamperedchef.biz/tressaadams?page=host-rewards

Every person to enter this giveaway will also be provided access into an EXCLUSIVE Pampered Chef “Mystery Host” catalog show!

One participating member from this show will win ALL the Host Benefits & Rewards… including the January bonus reward of 50% additional Free Product Value! http://www.pamperedchef.biz/tressaadams?page=host-rewards

Please visit this site, javacupcake.com, from now on and subscribe to my RSS feed there to continue getting notifications of new posts!

Thank you to everyone who has shown me such loyalty and support!! And thank you in advance for your patience as I continue to work out all the kinks in this move!

I know that apples aren’t native to the Pacific Northwest, but we have a lot of apple orchards on both sides of our state and thought it would be a perfect base for a cupcake! With a suggestion from my sister, I decided to buy locally the apples and eggs because we all know how much the “tree-hugging” people from Seattle and the Northwest love their locally grown, organic foods!  So from this, the “Tree Hugger Apple” cupcake was born!

The base of the cupcake was inspired by this Appledoodle Cupcake I found while browsing the Iron Cupcake Earth website.  I changed a few things and made it my own by adding sliced apple to the top of the batter before baking, then filling the cupcake with more apple and drizzling the buttercream on top with caramel.

I got this awesome new camera, so I was able to document the process of making these cupcakes!

These are the goodies I used to make these cupcakes.  Wilton cupcake liners, pink sugar dust, and a Wilton #6B star tip.

First, preheat oven to 350F and fill two 12-hole cupcake trays with cupcake wrappers. In a 2 cup measuring cup, combine egg whites, vanilla and 1/4 cup milk and mix with a whisk.

In a large mixing bowl, combine cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and mix together to blend. Add the butter and remaining 3/4 cup milk. Mix on low speed until dry ingredients are moistened. Increase to medium speed (high if using a hand mixer) for 1.5 minutes. Add the egg, vanilla and milk mixture in three equal parts, beating for 20 seconds between additions.

So, in true JavaCupcake style… I totally made an oooooppsie.  The batter didn’t look as pretty as the above picture at first.

Fill each cupcake liner 1/2 – 2/3 full with batter.

Bake 15-17 minutes. After 10 minutes of baking, rotate pan 180 degrees to ensure even baking. Remove when air bubbles just being to pop on top and a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean.  Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then place on a cooling rack.

Let cool completely before filling and frosting. I chose to use my favorite raspberry jam to fill the cupcakes with.

To fill the cupcakes, I used this technique I found on BakingBites.com.

Using a Wilton #6B star tip, I frosted the cupcakes in a circular pattern.  I immediately dusted the top with the pink sugar dust.

After the buttercream had a few hours to set and slightly harden, I topped them with an upside down fresh raspberry.

And here they are… all finished and ready to deliver!

I met Tracy and her Grandmother at the restaurant and they were over the moon with these cupcakes! Grandma was a delight and it was such a pleasure to make these goodies for her birthday!

JavaCupcake Note: This is a re-post of a blog from Nicole at Baking Bites! I used this technique to make the White Velvet Raspberry filled cupcakes. Be sure to check out all the other delicious creations Baking Bites is Nicole is making on her blog!

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My favorite way – and, in my opinion, the best way – is the method I used for the Devil’s Food Cupcakes. It gives you the maximum amount of filling and the best overall look for the cupcake. All you need is a paring knife, or other small, sharp knife with a narrow blade, to begin. Insert the knife into a cooled cupcake at an angle, halfway between the center and the outside edge.

The exact angle isn’t crucial, but it should be around 45 deg., and the knife should go into the cake about 1″. The idea here is to cut out a circular cone of cake.

Once you have your cone of cake, remove it and slice off the pointy end of the cone, leaving just the circular base (which was the very top of the cupcake). The filling will be put in the hole once filled by the cake cone, and the circular piece will be used as a plug to seal the filling in.

Filling should be added using a pastry bag or (my favorite) a ziploc bag with the corner cut off. There is no need to use a pastry tip to fill the cupcakes; a medium-sized opening in either type of bag will make filling the cakes a breeze.

Once the filling is in place, just pop the flat circle of cake back into place and continue to frost as you would with any other cupcake. You can see what the finished cake, sliced in half to reveal the cream filling, looks like here.