Category Archives: Sweets

S’Mores Cupcakes

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I admit. I’d never had a s’mores in my life. Partly because marshmallows (i.e, gelatin) was never included in my diet and vegetarian marshmallows are hard to come by (you can read more about my marshmallow woes here and here). And partly because we were never much of a ‘camping’ type family, thus rendering no opportunities to cook up some s’mores. But when I was getting ready to go on a girl weekend getaway, I decided this might be the time to attempt a new recipe – s’mores cupcakes!

So, here is my take on a s’mores – in a cup. It was delicious to say the least. And the girls ate them up. Quickly. Some even stated they were the best they’ve ever had of my cupcakes. They all agreed it tasted like a s’mores. I’ll be keeping this recipe around for a while. I can’t wait to try it again.

Since then, I’ve been mooning over the utopian flavors of s’mores and wishing I could have a ‘real’ one. So, I treated myself to some veg marshmallows, toasted them on some grahams on broil and devoured them with some rich dark chocolate (72%, cuz that’s how I roll). Goooooood stuff.  I now feel redeemed. I’ve righted the wrong of never having a s’mores.

So, if you’re looking for that tasty treat in a cup form… Look no further. You’ve arrived.

And because I’m having entirely too much fun with Adobe Lightroom’s presets and because my sister happened to be there to capture me in action, here is a random montage of me making the s’mores cupcakes. Enjoy. Or ignore. Whatever you please. I thought they were fun enough to make a new blog design and title photo with them. Kind of fun. :)

A Cupcake CoThese Cupcakes are available at A Cupcake Co.

“THE” Lemon-Raspberry Cake with Lemon Buttercream Frosting

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My mom has had the King Arthur Whole Grain Baking Cookbook for a year. This entire last year, she, my sister and I have been absolutely drooling over the cake picture on the cover.  Mom gave me my own copy of the cookbook (after she got sick of me always calling her for recipes out of it, I think).

A year of drool finally caught up to us and I decided to pull out the book and make it for her as a surprise for her birthday. It came out so deliciously. It uses about half whole wheat pastry flour and the other half white all-purpose flour. Using the wheat pastry flour makes it a bit denser and not quite as ‘fluffy’ as a traditional cake, but it didn’t take away from the flavor. And with the raspberry filling and creamy frosting, it all blended oh so well together. I promised a few friends I’d share the recipe.

So, here it is in all it’s glory. Please excuse the not so spectacular frosting and decorating job by me. I’m many things but cake decorator is one I’m not. It tasted good though, I promise!

Note, while the cake is pretty simple to make, the frosting is a bit more time-consuming. Well… Actually a LOT more time consuming. I think it took me a total of about 2-3 hours to make and frost the cake. But it was worth it!  And the only thing that bummed me out was that by the time I got to the frosting step, I was so tired, I forgot to put frosting between the layers. Oh well. Still tasted good. heh.

Lemon-Raspberry Cake

Makes three 8″ or two 9″ rounds or one 9×13″ sheet cake. Serves 16

  • 2 1/4 c whole wheat pastry flour
  • 1 c unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 t baking powder
  • 1/4 t baking soda
  • 1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter
  • 1 3/4 c sugar (either superfine or granulated)
  • 3/4 t salt
  • 5 large egg whites
  • 1 t vanilla extract
  • 2 Tbsp lemon zest
  • 1/4 c fresh lemon juice
  • 3/4 c milk
  • 1/4 c seedless raspberry jam
  • Fresh raspberries for garnish (optional)
  1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour the pans or line the bottom with parchment paper
  2. Whisk together flours, baking powder and baking soda in a medium bowl. Cream together butter, sugar and alt in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides occasionally. It should take at least 5 mins and the butter turns from yellow to white.
  3. Add the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla and lemon zest.
  4. Mix half the flour mixture at a slow speed, then add the lemon juice and milk. Add the remaining flour mixture and mix until completely combined. Scrape sides again and mix until completely combined, being careful not to over-beat.
  5. Pour batter evenly into the pans. Level the top of the batter with a spatula or back of a spoon. Bake the cakes the amount appropriate for the size: 8″ rounds = 20-22 mins; 9″ rounds = 27-30 mins; 9×13″ sheet cake = 35-38 mins. The cake is one when it begins to pull back from the edges of the pan and is an even golden brown color on the top. The center won’t spring back when done, but neither will it leave a dent.
  6. Remove from oven and let cool on a rack 20 mins before removing the layers from the pans. Chill the cakes before assembling to make them easier to handle.
  7. To assemble, once the cakes are chilled, spread the tops of the cake layers with raspberry jam. Return the layers to the freezer for about 15-20 mins before filling with frosting and stacking layers. This allows the jam to set and the layers won’t slide apart while you’re frosting the cake.
  8. Use the lemon buttercream frosting recipe below to spread a thin layer of frosting over the raspberry jam, stack the layers and frost the outside of the cake. Keep refrigerated until you’re ready to use the cake, then take it out of the refrigerator a couple of hours in advance and serve at room temperature, if possible.

Lemon Buttercream Frosting

  • 1/2 c egg whites (whites from 3-4 large eggs) or 1/4 c meringue powder dissolved in 1/2 c cool water
  • 1/4 c light corn syrup
  • 1 c sugar
  • 1/4 c water
  • 1/2 t cream of tartar (if using egg whites)
  • 1/2 t salt
  • 1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1/2 c vegetable shortening
  • 2 t vanilla extract
  • 4 Tbsp lemon juice (divided into 2 Tbsp each)
  • 2 Tbsp lemon zest
  1. Place corn syrup, sugar, water and 2 Tbsp lemon juice in a medium saucepan. Stir until combined and the sugar is dissolved. Cover the pan and bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes with the pan covered to wash off any sugar crystals on the sides. Uncover and cook to the soft ball stage (240 F)
  2. Place egg whites (or reconstituted meringue powder) in the bowl of an upright mixer (such as a kitchen aid). Beat on a low speed until foamy. Add the cream of tartar (if using egg whites) and salt. Gradually increase the speed and continue beating until soft peaks form.
  3. As soon as the sugar reaches soft ball stage, remove from heat. Turn off the mixture. Very carefully, pour about 1/4 of the hot syrup down the inside of the mixing bowl. Turn the mixer on high speed and beat well. Add the syrup in two more additions, stopping the mixer every time so the hot syrup doesn’t splash and burn you, working as quickly as possible. If the sugar is slightly overcooked and hardens a bit, return it to the heat for a moment to remelt it.
  4. Continue to beat the meringue until it cools to room temperature. This takes about 20 mins of continuous beating. If you need to hurry it along, place the bowl in an ice bath for a few moments while mixing by hand then return it to the machine. If you add the butter before the meringue is cool, the butter will melt and the frosting will collapse.
  5. When meringue is cool, if you have two mixers, mix the butter and shortening together before adding it. Otherwise, beat in the soft butter a bit at a time. If the frosting starts to separate, continue beating without adding any more butter until it looks fluffy again. Beat in the shortening. Beat in the vanilla, remaining 2 Tbsp lemon juice and 1 Tbsp lemon zest.  If the frosting is too soft, refrigerate before using.

(PS – Happy Birthday, mom!)

The 12 Days of Christmas Sugar Cookies

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Over the holidays, my sis had this brilliant (and slightly insane) idea of making the 12 days of Christmas into sugar cookies to give as family gifts to our cousins, aunts and uncles. She labored over each and every design and came up with a creative representation of each day.

She made patterns for each shape out of parchment paper and hand cut with a paring knife each and every cookie. She, my mom and I made 12 batches of 12 days. If I remember my basic multiplication tables correct, that is a total of 144 cookies, folks! We dipped, sprinkled, piped, dabbed, until we though our arms and backs would fall off. I think we enjoyed making them more than the people enjoyed receiving and eating them.

We had quite an assembly line going. It looked somewhere between Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory and an explosion at C&H Sugar company.  And I was afraid my puppy was going to go into a sugar coma from all the ‘licks’ at the floor. ha!

I can’t even tell you how many times we sang the song through as we were hand cutting. You just kind of can’t help it. When you see the pics you’ll want to sing it too – just to make sure we got them all and in the right order. :)

Here is the fruit – um… sugar of our labor!

We used the Martha Stewart’s Ideal Sugar Cookie Recipe (the best sugar cookie recipe EVER! It’s the only one I’ll use) and her royal icing recipe for the dipping/piping.

And as a random photo for your enjoyment. Here are some mini vanilla/vanilla cupcakes I made for the holidays. My sis gave me some nonpareils for Christmas and I wanted to see how they’d look if I dipped the cupcakes into them and made little rounded tops. They were cute. And tasted good. A little different texture than the standard buttercream swirls my cupcakes usually get. Fun stuff.

Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

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These are amazing and addictive! I made them for my family’s Christmas Party as a last minute idea since I didn’t have enough time to make the casserole I was originally planning to make. I didn’t have any white chocolate chips on hand, so I just made them with a mix of milk, semi-sweet, and bittersweet chocolate and no one could tell the difference. They turned out just as well! I also didn’t do the drizzle over the top (lazy!). They were such a hit that I decided to make a second batch for Christmas Eve.

Triple-Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

Makes approx 30 cookies.
Recipe from Bon Appetit, December 2004 courtesy of Epicurious.

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh or frozen cranberries
  • 2 ounces milk chocolate or white chocolate, chopped (for drizzling)

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat butter and both sugars in large bowl until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add flour mixture and oats and stir until blended. Stir in all chocolate chips and cranberries.

Drop batter by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until edges are light brown, about 16 minutes. Cool on sheets 5 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool completely.

Stir chopped milk chocolate in top of double boiler until melted and smooth. Using small spoon, drizzle melted chocolate over cookies in zigzag pattern. Let stand until milk chocolate sets, about 1 hour. (Can be made 2 days ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.)

Mini Pumpkin Muffins with Cream Cheese Filling (lowfat)

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These muffins are darling and deliciously spicy for fall. The best part about them? They’re lowfat and (I like to think) good for you!  I found the muffin recipe online and adapted it to suit my tastes – namely adding the cream cheese and crunchy topping. I love a good streusel topping but with this lowfat muffin, I didn’t want to add the extra butter and sugar a traditional streusel would add. So, I decided to try it with Kashi cereal. It was the perfect “streusel” topping without adding all the extra unwanted calories/fat to hips – er- I mean – muffin!

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4th of July

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It’s late to be talking about the 4th of July, I know, but I had some pics archived that I’ve been meaning to post for a long time. So, sorry for the delay, but here they are nonetheless. Maybe we can just consider this very early planning for 2010 celebrations, right? Hope you enjoy the pics and recipes!

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White Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

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I promised my mom to make some cupcakes for her for Mother’s Day. My sister was hostessing the party for our mom, her Mother In Law, and my Mother In Law.  Thankfully, they all get along fabulously and we were able to all celebrate together. I wanted to make something light and fruity to celebrate spring. I selected this fabulous recipe from Shelly Kaldenski’s Cupcakes book.

I usually make traditional buttercream (butter, milk, powdered sugar) for my cupcakes, but this one used a traditional swiss buttercream (lightly cooked, whipped egg whites, granulated sugar, butter). I wasn’t a huge fan of the swiss buttercream. It had a bit too much of a butter flavor and not enough sweet for my personal tastes, but my sister prefers swiss. So, I guess everyone has their own favorites. I think next time I might try to mix traditional buttercream with swiss buttercream and see if I can satisfy everone.

My sister’s mother and father in law are not sweet eaters and usually they won’t take seconds because the frosting is two sweet. This one hit the spot for them and her mother in law asked to take 4 home to share with the family and one to eat on the road! I was so proud.

And they must have been good because I came with a bunch of cupcakes and left with 0. Every single one was either devoured or wrapped up to take home with them.

(Thanks, sis, for the pictures – I wanted to take some, but every single cupcake was consumed before I was able to, so I’m sure glad you got some pics that I could use!)

A Cupcake CoThese Cupcakes are available at A Cupcake Co.

Lime Meringue Cupcakes

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My mom turned 60 a few days ago and requested lime meringue cupcakes from me. They were scrumptous! The vanilla cake was dense, just sweet enough, and with a nice warm vanilla flavor. The lime curd was delicious. I absolutely love lime curd anyway, so you won’t find me complaining when the curd is in a cupcake. And last, but not least, the meringue frosting was fabulous. It was a dense meringue – not too airy, but just fluffy enough. And it wasn’t overly sweet.

The best part about this recipe is that the curd used egg yolks, the meringue used the whites and I didn’t have any random whites or yolks leftover leaving me wondering what in the world I was going to do with them! Major kudos to whomever thought up this recipe and figured out how to not waste egg parts!

Speaking of kudos… I got the recipes from “Cupcakes” by Shelly Kaldunksi

A Cupcake CoCupcakes are available at A Cupcake Co.

Salted Caramel and Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

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My friend’s favorite cupcakes are chocolate with cream cheese. For her birthday, she requested this flavor. Knowing she loves caramel and how much she enjoyed Starbuck’s holiday salted caramel hot chocolate, I decided to add some caramel in the mix.

I made mini chocolate cupcakes with caramel sauce spread over the top, then frosted it with a caramel flavored cream cheese frosting, more drizzled caramel and a dash of kosher salt over the whole thing. It was a delicious!

As a side note: The caramel sauce is amazing and I’m planning to make more of it to go over homemade ice cream.

The first batch of caramel I made didn’t come out (boo!). The recipe calls for 2 Tbsp for a number of ingredients and I was just going down the “2 Tbsp” train and put 2 Tbsps of lemon juice in instead of 1/2 teaspoon! That’s a big difference. I knew it was wrong as soon as I put it in. So, I started over. But now I have this highly acidic and lemony tasting caramel that has actually separated. Any ideas of what to do with it? ha!


Also, a word to the wise… I started frosting the cupcakes before the caramel was entirely cooled/set and the frosting started sliding off – like this. Oops! I highly recommend letting the caramel fully cool after putting a bit on each cupcake before putting on the frosting. ha!

 

A Cupcake Co
These Cupcakes are available at A Cupcake Co.