There's Always One

You know the old saying "there's an a**hole in every group"? Hobbies are no different and in the realm of baking, candy is the unique individual that makes the most dedicated sweet-addict curse.

And I mean profusely. If you attempt this recipe, make the children leave the house, close the windows so the neighbors don't hear, and keep a small throw pillow nearby. What do you mean that's not why their called "throw pillows"?

Anyways, I have recently stumbled upon a few candy related pins that are just too darned tempting. I've had a candy cookbook for some years and once in a while I pick it up and fantasize. Then it always returns to its spot on the shelf.

However, when I found this caramel curl garnish recipe, I could be deterred no longer. The recipe was so simple to put together and the whole process just sounded like something I could do.

I strongly recommend if you intend to play with sugar, get the following tools: wooden spoon, candy thermometer, ceramic pot. When I say ceramic pot, I mean it very seriously. Candy can be very difficult and it is just so much easier to use a ceramic pot because there is no concern about how non-stick it is such as with other types of non-stick cookware. I also recommend to get a large pot. Even though this recipe is very small, sugar boils up before it cooks down. You will want the space.

Sugar fascinates me. I've seen television shows that follow the process of candy making but until you see it before your very eyes, there are just no words that will convince you of just how magical sugar is. That's not going to stop me trying, though.

Sugar has multiple stages: soft ball, hard ball, soft crack, hard crack. As you move through the stages, the transition of the sugar's state is more than just liquid and solid.

In the beginning, there was sugar, butter and syrup.


Before too very long, the sugar was boiling up. I know it still doesn't look like much in the pot, but having extra room helps when stirring.

Soon, the sugar moved past the soft ball and hard ball states. It thickened to a porridge like state then began to clump up. Stirring almost didn't happen.


Thankfully, this stage does not last long as the crack stages move in. The sugar finally begins to look like caramel as it reaches 300 degrees F.




This was the point when I took the pot off the heat source. The caramel was to cool to 200 degrees F before attempting to curl it around the greased up handle of my whisk.

This was also the point where the cussing began.

Using a fork, as per the recipe, I lifted a scoop of caramel and let it run down in a strand then stuck the whisk handle through the strand and twisted the handle. There is a timing to this technique that is just utter failure. The strands dripped at such a high pace that I couldn't get the whisk twirled in time. At a point, the handle had warmed up enough that the caramel just slid right off, no twirl whatsoever. 

@&$*&#!

 

Time out. Think. What about this can I change. 

I mess with the caramel while I think. Maybe the handle is too warm? Or too much additional grease from the caramel transferring to the handle? Did I miss anything in the recipe post...?

The caramel cools more and stiffens; thermometer reads about 120. I put it back on the burner on the lowest heat possible and wait for it to be pliable again. 

And that was all it took: let the caramel cool to below 200 then bring it back up. It is now denser and the strand drips slower, cools faster. Plus, I can wrap the strand of caramel around the whisk -  no twirl! Now we were in business! 

This was a fun recipe and I ended up with some really beautiful caramel garnishes. 

Tips:

 Hard crack is not literal; this caramel snaps easily! 

If you decide to stop half way through the caramel, wipe a piece of aluminum foil with grease and poor the remaining caramel on it to cool. You can either crack it up for pieces to eat or save it to reheat later. 

For clean-up: put all your tools in the pot with some water and let it boil about 10 minutes. All clean! 

These curls are very thin! If you plan to garnish cupcakes with them, do it just before serving or the moisture of the frosting may melt the curl. (I found this out the hard way and ended up with frosting that looked like it had been slashed by Wolverine.)

For storing: dust the curls lightly with powdered sugar, let set a couple minutes, then put in a tupperware. The powdered sugar will create a layer against the sticky of the caramel. 

Clouds Taste Like Marshmallows... Who Knew?

One of the early pins I found on Pinterest was for something called Cloud Frosting. I had read the recipe multiple times and I was just itching for the right cake to top it with. When I decided on the cake recipe, I then needed a reason.

Last weekend was my spouse's billiards team's annual "pool" party. Everyone gets together and the one teammate's house for brisket, ribs, beer, and, of course, some pool. Throughout the season, the guys on the team each pitch in an extra buck each week. This money sponsors the end of year party by paying for the 30 pounds of meat, assorted beer, and money left over to divvy up. Of course, the money is not divvied for long as everyone heads to the pool table to begin mini-tournaments. This year's mini-tournament was scotch-doubles 9-ball with teams drawn blind. I was surprised when the duo I was in went further than my spouse's! He is a much better player.

Anyways, I was excited to attack my Cherry-Almond cupcake recipe and top it with this mysterious Cloud Frosting.

Basic start, as with most, is my lovely vanilla cake. A good dose of finely chopped maraschino cherries and almond extract instead of vanilla will quickly convert them.

 I love these candied fruits despite everything becoming sticky and the risk of stain at a moment's notice. When dealing with maraschino cherries, I recommend starting there and then clean up your surfaces and tools immediately. Only then, move on to the cake.

Unfortunately, somewhere along the lines I did not account for the additional moisture. I either needed to counterbalance within the batter or bake them slightly longer. I ended up with cakes a little sunken in on top as a result but luckily there was no sticking to the paper cups. I hate that!

The addition of the almond extract and maraschino cherries was a subtle change to the cake. The almond flavor was very gentle within the cake and the little cherry chunks were a snappy little burst of flavor.

These little dolls were all set to the side to cool. I stretched my hands and turned to the mixer. It was time to venture to the clouds and see what I'd find.

What I found was what a baker's dreams are made of. Well, this baker's dreams anyway.

The ingredients went through a staged process with some hand whisking over simmering water on the stove until warm and frothy. Then transferred to the mixer to run until, as usual, stiff peaks form.

And boy did they! At first, I would glance in the bowl as I passed by, cleaning the kitchen while my clouds formed. The frothy soup seemed to not be doing much initially. It took a good 10 minutes before I started to notice a whipped cream sort of style being created in the bowl. By 15 minutes, I could tell there was density to the cream. These clouds were about ready to float.

At about 18, maybe 20, minutes I stopped the mixer and lifted the arm. The bowl did not want to relinquish what the whisk still cradled. Wow. I have never seen whipped cream like this before!

After a taste, I realized why. I hadn't made whipped cream. Oh no. I had just made my childhood love: marshmallow fluff. And I had made a LOT OF IT. 2 cups of sugar and 6 egg whites go a long way to filling up a Kitchenaid bowl!

My tastebuds were a whirl as I could not stop snatching little tastes of the fluff. I felt like a kid in the kitchen while mom is baking; waiting until her back is turned to grab a pastry bag or adjust the line up of cupcakes then, quick as lightning, dip a finger across the beater for a sweet taste of fluff! This was amazing and I could not wait to combine one of these little beauties and dive in.

As it so happened, I did wait but mainly because I saw how beautiful they were and I just had to have some time to enjoy the view before I enjoyed the flavors.

I looked at my pastry tips and was tempted to us the 12, a simple round tip, but decided that was just too plain. Besides, I intended to go a step beyond frosting them with fluff and drizzle them with cherry juice, sprinkle with chopped almonds. The 21 tip caught my eye next and after a couple of tested techniques, and spousal input, I had my plan in place.

Cherry-Almond with Marshmallow Fluff: A++ Cupcake. After the fluff sits in the fridge a couple hours it gets a slight film layer to it as if it truly were made from marshmallows. I suspect this recipe actually is a basis for making marshmallows. Perhaps something I will need to look into...

Also, the fluff recipe makes a lot; way more than needed for two dozen cupcakes. I have found that it freezes well and it makes a wonderful dip for Granny Smith apple slices!

Beer Me, You Sweet Thing!

There are just far too many amazing recipes that involve alcohol in some way: beer can chicken, Jack Daniel's BBQ, rum cake. It's a beautiful thing. Cupcakes just makes since to be a part of this genre.

I was intrigued by the concept of a beer cupcake with the frosting serving as the slice of fruit. Our 12-year-old was torn between being intrigued and pure shock. "Real beer? Like what you and dad drink. In the cupcake??"

Well yes, but the alcohol bakes off. No need to card him before he has one.

The recipe suggested either Corona and lime (not in this house) or Blue Moon and orange (wheat beer; now that's a winner.) The Blue Moon ended up being substituted for my new favorite beer: Longboard by Kona Brewing. This is about the smoothest wheat beer I have yet to encounter and I could not wait to combine it with my favorite form of food: cupcakes.

To be honest, while I was measuring out ingredients and lining them up on the counter I was glad I chose to measure out the beer first. There was more than one or two pauses to contemplate the recipe and "taste check" the beer.

The only concerning part of the recipe was the combining of the milk and beer prior to addition to the batter. I held off on the combining part as I suspected curdling. This was a good technique because half way through adding the beer-milk, which was done in alternating amounts with the flour, curdling did begin. I'm just glad I use soy milk.

Let's take a moment and hop back to the start of this shindig: creaming the butter and sugar.

Maybe it is a little gross or maybe it is a baker thing, but I am in love with creamed butter and sugar. The slightly savory taste of butter in a silken fluffed form, sweetened by the sugar - that's what heaven is made of. Seriously, I believe that.

My spouse recently made this bit of heaven better, which I did not think could happen. While at our local bulk supply store, he happened upon a 10 pound bag of sugar that was labeled as containing no-GMOs. Yes, we are one of those families. Better yet, the non-GMO sugar happened to be raw cane sugar.

I have never tasted something so pure and clean as butter creamed with raw cane sugar. This was delightful and I can honestly tell the difference in the taste of the cakes as I did use the raw sugar in a batch of vanilla cakes. Amazing.

 So together went my ingredients and the batter was scooped into a pastry bag then squished into the little cups, ready to bake.

The kid wandered back and forth between me in the kitchen and his father in the living room. When you are twelve it can be difficult to decide between baking and spray painting the wheels for the family RC truck. Good thing the living room, kitchen and back porch are all contained within 10 feet as this makes keeping up with both activities much easier.

One of the moments contributed to the cupcakes coincided with the mostly cooled cupcakes getting a second dose of beer via soaking. He stopped to watch me poke the last couple of cupcakes with a toothpick and then, when I picked up the measuring cup and brush, asked "What's that? Is that more beer? You're not brushing them with beer. Are you? No, I don't believe you. You're messing with me."

I'd never. Except if it were entertaining.

Yes, I truly was brushing the cakes with a beer soak. Then they cooled and settled while I whipped up some lovely lime buttercream. I felt inspired to be colorful so the buttercream got a couple dollops of color gel and then a sprinkling of green sugar.

I will say, these were really good. The beer flavor was not there, only the wheat-ness as a smooth hang-about flavor. The lime was a bright contrast. This recipe is a keeper!

I do recommend keeping the beer and milk separated as long as possible. I made this recipe twice, once with Blue Moon and once with Longboard. The Blue Moon round I did combine early but did not look for curdling. I did notice the cake was a bit more dense though.

When soaking cupcakes, be sure to provide as many holes as possible to allow for maximum impact. Soak heavily! You will be surprised by how little this process affects the moisture of the cake but how much it will assist the flavor. Be sure to let the cakes cook thoroughly to aid the soaking.

With a Lime Twist

I have not so patiently waited for a certain fruit to be in season. For the past couple of months a recipe for Key Lime Cupcakes has lain in wait. Finally, I discovered the box set out at the grocery store for the lovely little green devils and only one bag remained.

Pie runs a close second on my favorite desserts list. Mainly, meringue or pudding style pies are what I love. Apple pie is great, but give me Lemon Meringue or Key Lime and I'm in sweet tooth bliss.

This being the first cake tribute to pie that I have ever done, I felt compelled to truly understand what I was representing. I found a well-written article here. I believe I was just as surprised as the author to learn the pie's recipe originates with condensed milk arriving in the Keys.

Here's what I took from the origin story: Key Lime Pie is a celebration of change as well as a unique platform for self expression. What a fabulous tale to attempt to translate via cupcakes.

First, I needed to deal with the little limes.  In case you're unfamiliar, key limes are smaller than your ordinary limes used to chase tequila and not as tart. My obstacle for this recipe? Juice and zest. You ever try to zest something about the size of a cherry tomato?

And to those that have read previous postings: yes, I got some of my pinky knuckle but I don't think it made it all the way into the zest.

Juicing was a bit easier although still tough. It takes quite a few of these little buggers to get 2 tablespoons of juice. Thank goodness for the awesome countertop juicer I found online!

Next was the matter of a chocolate crumble base for the cake. The recipe called for chocolate cookies crumbled up. Unfortunately, the grocery store had every type of cookie but the one I needed. I did, however, find chocolate graham crackers! Good old fashioned sandwich bag and rolling pin never fails to produce marvelous crumbles.

Finally, with chocolate crumbles in the cups, I am ready to mix my batter and pipe it into the cups. I recently got the mixer bowl cover that provides for an easy way to add ingredients without spilling on the counter. The shield around the remaining areas of the bowl help keep any overly exuberant flour from poofing out and away. What a wonderful add-on; I'm sad I waited so long to get it! 

I love substitutions. Where applicable, I prefer to find healthy substitutions such as applesauce instead of oil. In this recipe, buttermilk was called for. Normally I would add some lemon juice to soy milk and be on my merry way. This time, however, I used plain yogurt as my substitute. I thought this would bring an added depth to the cake.  

Let me just say real quick: I was incorrect about the yogurt. Far too thick a substitute! The cake was super dense - although still tasted great. Also, yes, those are pepperoni slices on the counter; no, they are not for this recipe. I got hungry after all the zesting and juicing!

The recipe calls for a buttercream frosting flavored with more key lime juice. I decided I wanted cream cheese frosting. I love how smooth and silky it is. For some unspoken reason, I felt a lavender-pink a nice contrast to the flavor. This was a fun little treat.

Scramblers - Cupcake Style

It's been stated by more people than just me that savory flavors come to my kitchen to die. This is a slight exaggeration although not by much. If I had to claim savory specialties, the focus would be between soups and Mexican food such as tacos and enchiladas.

A close third place would be breakfast.

A few nights back I had made tacos and we still had leftovers. This included tortillas and I was inspired to create a new breakfast in our house based on ideas I had viewed on Pinterest (check out my repins).

Our 12-year-old wandered into the kitchen while I was pulling out tortillas, egg, and cheese. I had bacon in the microwave and was spreading hash browns out on a cookie sheet. One look at the cupcake pan sitting on the counter and I hear a "What are you making?" 

I didn't really have an answer so instead I just explained my game plan. Before I knew it I had a cheerleader and an assistant. He was very excited for this idea of what I eventually have decided to refer to as scrambler cups.

So my sidekick managed the bacon while I spread a couple tortillas out on the counter. I grabbed a plastic cup from the cupboard and, turning it upside down, I used it to cut circles out of the tortillas. I wasn't sure how filling this was going to be so I didn't try too hard to maximize the tortillas and ended up with 6 circles. Spread some Crisco into the cupcake pan and press the tortillas in: cups ready to go! 

I set my assistant to crumbling up our bacon. The only drawback to a young assistant is he keeps wandering off. I'm not super offended; after all, his dad was working on prepping the tires for their RC truck to be spray painted after breakfast. There's bound to be wandering when food competes with hobby.

My hash browns were going wonderfully! I hate doing hash browns in a skillet because they seem to take forever unless you do it just right. I'm not even sure what made me decide doing them in the oven was the way to go, but thank goodness for that! I had tossed the frozen little pieces of potatoes in some vegetable oil, pepper, and salt prior to spreading them on the cookie sheet. This was fabulous and, spoiler alert, we ended up with the best hash browns any of us had ever had: crispy but not overly oily. Perfect!

The only drawback was the tinfoil. I used a spatula to try and "toss" the hash browns to ensure even crisping. The tinfoil tended to tear and move around a little much. Next time, I'm just going to put them right onto the cookie sheet.

Back to the tortilla cups, I filled each with egg whisked with milk before my kitchen partner added bacon crumbles and cheese. We exchanged the cupcake pan with the cookie sheet. I had the oven at 450 for the hash browns and now turned it down to 350. 

After about 10 minutes, the egg mix has seemed to setup but was not cooked all the way through. I removed the pan to top with a little more cheese and the hash browns. Back in the oven for about 5 minutes or until they looked puffed, similar to cupcakes.

This was fantastic, pretty quick and easy. My boys both decided this is the new breakfast in our house.

Five Star Recipe!

Tip: make sure there is plenty of Crisco in the base of the cupcake pan and the cups will pop right out using a butter knife along the side. 

Serving: 2 was enough for me but I usually eat light. The boys both said they wanted one more scrambler cup and maybe a side of sausage with a slice of toast.

Suggestion: Think of this as an omelette and add veggies such as green peppers and onions. 

Dough Knots or Do Nuts?

I think my family had gone a bit loopy this weekend from too much rain. My weekend escapade was to be cake donuts. Somehow this launched both my spouse and our 12 year old into a verbal competition for exaggerated pronunciations of the word "donut."

Amidst the giggles and drawn out syllables, I somehow managed to conquer my task. At least, to some extent.

The challenge was sour cream donuts. As I worked my way through the recipe, I slightly regretted actually purchasing sour cream. Usually, I choose plain yogurt as a healthier option. Also, it smells a lot better. Luckily, the recipe called for nutmeg which covered the sour fragrance easily. Especially since I added cinnamon as well.

I never do just nutmeg. I always pair it with cinnamon, cloves, or both depending upon the recipe. The pairing seems to enhance the nutmeg and I have yet to encounter a recipe that is thrown off by an extra teaspoon of spice.

Again, this was a recipe that skipped the mixer in exchange for the whisk. I took a moment to consider but given the ingredients, I felt secure in my ability to conquer yet another recipe with my mighty whisk.

The original recipe reportedly yielded 6 donuts. I know my family and this would not be an acceptable quantity. Double up it was to be! This worked well since sour cream comes in an 8 ounce tub and the recipe called for half a cup. Perfect!

As I put my ingredients together and whisked away, I was happy to find that this batter actually was easy to whisk. Good deal.

My donut pans were hand-me-downs from my mother. I vaguely remember when she got them about a decade ago. They were used once and then promptly put away. At the time, the only recipe my mother had was a bake then fry. Far too much work and fat. Due to prolonged storage, the pans were in excellent shape if a bit dusty.

After a quick wash and dry, I greased up each slot as best I could.

Filling the donut slots was made far easier with the use of one of my featherweight pastry bags. Without the use of a pastry tip, the soft batter was more then happy to run straight through the pastry bag. Simple fold over and clip with a clothespin allowed me to fill my bag completely, avoiding the mess.

After a couple of fills, I found the method and pace to fill each donut slot efficiently. Into the oven the pans went.

While waiting through bake time, another round of the debate for Dough Knots versus Do Nuts began and swiftly ended as I shooed my boys out the door. Off to the park with you; go play with your RC boat. I was grateful for the silence as I contemplated my baking rings of cake.

The recipe had instructed to grease the pans. Only grease. I hate seeing this in cake related recipes as grease alone, in my experience, is never enough. I always ignore this line of a recipe and I will completely prepare my bakeware: grease and flour. However, I have never done a sour cream cake recipe nor have I baked something as thin and petite as these donuts appeared to be. I figured this should be a safe recipe to follow the guideline of grease only.

When I pulled the donuts from the oven, they looked lovely and smelled fantastically inviting.

And they outright refused to leave their cozy slots in the pans. Fantastic. Another lesson in following your baking instinct.

After much discussion between me and the donuts, each was removed and settled onto the cooling rack. However, the process had taken enough time that the donuts were no longer warm enough for a quick toss in granulated sugar, powdered sugar, and brown sugar (not all together!). A sample donut or two proved the cinnamon a good addition and none of the three sugar toppings was missed.

 

Tips: always grease and flour your pans. This allows for the greatest assurance that cake products will fall from their pans. Don't worry, not enough flour will stick to interfere with the recipe.

The pronunciation war finally subsided with the apparent winner being Do Nuts. Congrats to our 12 year old.

Naked Will Set You Free

Yes, I am here to admit that I am a baking exhibitionist. There's just something about a cake flouncing about in the buff that I just cannot resist. To have a view of fluffy, moist cake between layers of fluffy frosting decorations is just all the more appetizing.

There are far too many times when a cake is overloaded with frosting and fondant, leaving the cake itself to be lost under the bevy of frosted flavor. To me, it is just as important that the cake be flavorful, fluffy and moist. I think that is why I like the naked or semi-dressed trend in cakes: it brings our focus back to the cake!

If you follow my Pinterest feed, you will have recently seen a pinned recipe for no-bake raspberry-lemon cheesecake. Now, I'll say right here that cheesecake is probably the only cake I really could do without. Bake or no-bake, there is just something about cheesecake that just seems to muddle the flavors. Either it is too rich and about four bites is all that can be tolerated or it a cloying kind of texture that hangs up in the back of your throat. Either way, I'll pass on the cheesecake.

However, this no-bake recipe blends cream cheese with whipped cream. To me, that sounds like a lovely, light, creamy frosting. Plus, how can I resist raspberries with the onset of summer? Simple: I cannot.

So out came the cake recipes, pans, mixer, and bowls. I thumbed through my recipes with a specific flavor in mind: chocolate, of course.

Ah, here we go. Warm milk and semi-sweet cocoa powder... sugar, flour... fold until just combined. So away goes my mixer and out comes my sturdiest spatula. I wish I'd had a laziness-inspired moment and stuck with the mixer.

No matter the consistency of cake, it is never easy to stir or fold that many contrasting ingredients together. The amount of liquid did make for a pretty fluid start, but about halfway through adding the dry ingredients, whisked together in one bowl, the batter was beginning to thicken and fight back.

Given my less than formidable shoulder, I almost lost the joust. In the end, it was the batter and not me that was split between two 6" cake pans, greased and floured, before settling into the oven. Bake, remove, settle in the pans, then flip out to a wire rack to cool completely!

As stated: I chose a no-bake cheesecake recipe for my frosting. It wasn't really frosting, so I'll call it "topping" from here on out.

Fresh raspberries are a fabulous sight. Unfortunately, my raspberry bush just isn't into the season enough so I had to get these sumptuous little beauties from the grocery store. Luckily, I seemed to stop by the grocery just as new arrivals were being set out. Yay, no digging through pack after pack in search of a one without mold!

After washing my raspberries I quickly measured out what I needed for the topping so my sampling wouldn't short my recipe. The measured amount got a lovely bit of squashing with a fork and then folded in with the cream cheese and whipped cream.

As I set up my space and placed my first cake layer, my mind was racing through the pastry tips I had available. A wonderful aspect of naked cakes is you can focus more on what you put on them: rosettes, shells, pearls, strands, ribbons. As I am still getting use to my basic tips and techniques, I chose to use the rosette/shell tip.

First, I had to set my two layers. Another great aspect to naked cakes is they are usually not cut to level. If you are making a multi-tiered cake, obviously you still want to level your cake layers. However, with just two layers it is perfectly acceptable to skip the leveling. Having the natural top of the cake is part of keeping it au natural.

I filled, layered, and topped in uneventful bliss. As I started in on rosettes, I noticed my top layer seeming to settle to one side. I resettled it and continued my rosettes. Turning the table as I worked my way around, I returned to the beginning to see my first rosette seeming lower than it was previously. I stepped back to look at the cake and the top layer was off again.

It was then I realized: I had worked with softened cream cheese to make my topping and then had gone straight to building my cake. I had not chilled my topping and it was now too soft.

Play would have to wait for another cake; this one needed to be finished.

  

Note: Raspberries, as most berries, stain everything! This includes plastic colanders, counter tops and featherweight pastry bags. Be sure to rinse utensils immediately and thoroughly.

Obvious note: chill topping/frosting prior to use as needed.

And How Does That Make You Feel?

There is something I find so therapeutic about baking.

Some people run or hike to deal with stress. Others eat as a coping mechanism. Then there are the ones that go to an actual therapist.

I choose baking as my escape.

The stresses and realities of our every day lives are so harsh. They can consume us slowly from the inside until we are just an empty eggshell with no yolk. Those eggs always creep me out. There are so many ways to combat this effect but the best method is whatever way makes you feel more in control.

Baking gives me control: the ingredients do as I say, the methodology is familiar, the result is as I make it and consistent each time. Plus, it doesn't take long to see completion and get satisfaction (and a little reward in the form of a slice of cake).

"I am too busy to find time to bake. Besides, I don't need to eat all that."

No, you don't need to eat it all. Good thing you have friends, family, and coworkers to help you.

You can't find time to bake. I get that. There are only so many hours in the day and most of it is spent at work which is exhausting. Yet you have time to sit and watch an hour long reality drama that, let's face it, adds no value to your life. If anything, it's depressing and scary.. or angering... and just way too real!

Instead, you could have spent less time than that baking brownies or a simple cake. You can even do it with your family and build memories, teach each other things. Maybe even talk to those who love you about the stresses you hope to relieve via fluffy, moist chocolate still warm from the oven. Additionally, you make yourself stronger through the process. You have control over those brownies and that can translate into confidence to have control over your life. It's psychological; look it up.

Yes, it's a short-term feeling but if practiced it can become more uplifting and empowering as you move from the boxed brownies to cake to cupcakes from scratch! If you can do those things, certainly you can stand up to those things that stress you.

Is there better therapy?

Well, maybe those runners but who wants to run when you could have brownies?!

To each his own; best of luck finding your therapeutic activity. I'm rooting for you.

Times When Simple is More

My favorite part about the baking contests on television is the creative mix of flavors. From delectable to unbelievable, these amazing people create mind-boggling, inspiring flavor combinations.

I mean, seriously, who in their right mind would put banana peppers and brandy into a cupcake mix??? It's incredible!

It leads me to always contemplate the proffered ingredients from the contests compared to what's in my own kitchen. I don't have brandy. Perhaps I could use the Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat in the fridge?

However, there is something powerful to be said for the simple flavors. This week a friend of ours had a housewarming party. Of course I decided to make cupcakes but I wasn't familiar with the crowd that would be at the little backyard BBQ so I chose a simple concept.

Vanilla cupcakes, apricot jam filling, and.... brown sugar dusting instead of frosting! Sounds perfect.

While the cupcakes rested in the pan prior to removing them to cool, I sifted the lumps out of the brown sugar. The little rock solid bits just had no place here. As I snapped the picture for the blog, I was inspired to allow the natural heat of the cupcake to meld the cake and brown sugar. My concern with a dusting technique was that the brown sugar wouldn't stick. But if the cake were still warm....

A couple cakes in and I realized the true power behind this technique: the scent of caramel caressed me as I swirled a warm cupcake in the brown sugar. That scent and flavor should be infusing the vanilla cake. This was going to be fabulous with the apricot jam! 

I decided the jam would add to my styling of the cakes so I made three entry points for the filling and left dollops visible. Perfect and lovely!

Imagine my surprise to make it through an entire session in the kitchen without incident. My boys (yes, the cats) were a bit disappointed and had wandered off to find a window and do some bird watching. I had no idea the catastrophe was yet to come...

Twenty minutes into the housewarming BBQ, I wandered into the kitchen to enjoy another peek at the granite counter tops while I got a glass of wine. I turned to notice that my cupcake tupperware had become a display; not for my cupcakes but for chips and dip. Hmm, quinoa and corn dip with flax crackers. 

I shrugged it off until, just before bratwursts were done, I overheard a conversation near the table of cupcake-displayed quinoa dip now accompanied by homemade spicy hummus. The topic was the guests discussing how long each of them had been gluten-free. I glanced out towards the yard and then back to the kitchen. Most of the BBQ guests were in this conversation.

I had brought cupcakes to a party of gluten-free, new-age hippies.

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu---dge.

The cupcakes were fantastic, by the way... Trust me, my family has eaten the whole batch in the last two days. The brown sugar had caramelized the tops of the cakes wonderfully and helped keep the cake very moist.

TIP: Be careful when handling hot cupcakes as the cake is still pliable. You can end up with compressions and indentations in the cake where you may have held too firmly.

Butter, Grape Juice, Powdered Sug-- What the...?

Buttercream fascinates me. You can do all types of decorating with one easy frosting. From simple filling to elaborate flowers, even embroidery effects on fondant, buttercream's versatility outshines its simple recipe.

I had decided to attempt a buttercream feat that has always been, to me, the most beautiful: roses.

My decorating instruction book for beginners in hand and YouTube up on the laptop, I started the mixer and began to cream the butter. Our 12-year-old had mixed white grape juice to make freezer pops the weekend before. I decided that would be a nice smooth flavoring for my buttercream. One tablespoon of juice and one cup of powdered sugar added to the butter while I watch another video clip.

I added the second tablespoon of juice and began to fill the second cup of powdered sugar. I was feeling confident that I could do these flowers easily and was already thinking about splitting up the frosting to make some color options.

The measuring cup scraped the bottom of the container. Hmm, forgot to refill the container... ...and apparently the cupboard. Great, I had enough butter in the mixer for 3 cups of sugar but only 2 1/3 cups of sugar. I looked out the kitchen window at the branches whipping in the wind and rain puddling on the sidewalk then I looked in the mixer. It looks stiff enough... Should be fine enough for practicing.

Now, any parent knows when baking that you have to let the kids lick the beater or spoon, as applicable. My kids are no different, despite being four-legged, and they didn't seem concerned that I had run short on sugar. My eldest at 14, Serek, was right on my heels and waiting when the mixer stopped. His younger brother was napping with dad which was far more important... then again, buttercream is loved by all, even 3 year old Chess.

Chess, 3, caught up after the beater was rinsed so he got to lick a spoon.

         

Serek, 14, with buttercream covered whiskers.

Taste-test aside and having apparently passed, I proceeded to divide up my buttercream. I settled for two colors and the basic white. This worked well as I have 2 re-useable featherweight pastry bags and only had to make one disposable parchment bag.

I settled on our kitchen table with a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper. I also had cut a few parchment squares to use on top of my flower pins. This would allow me to easily remove the flower from the pin and use the pin again... at least that was my theory from videos I'd seen do this. 

The white and orange buttercream got flower tips in two different sizes.
The purple buttercream was equipped with a basket weave tip.

Finally settled, I watched one more YouTube clip and gave it a shot. Not to my surprise, this was just as fun as I had thought it would be.There is something just relaxing about swirling petals of buttercream. I made a couple in the white with the larger petal tip (104) and then a couple smaller (101) in the orange. They were beautiful, fun, and... really soft. Too much butter. In fact, as I started in on a fifth rose, I noticed the whole foundation seem to slip and slide as I twisted my flower pin.

Off to the fridge with these guys and quick! The butter in my frosting was continuing to soften to the point of practically melting. I noticed the outer petals on my starting roses were drooping significantly.

So, with my flowers chilling, I picked up the purple to test out the basket weaving technique. I reviewed the steps in my book and drew out a few sections of basket weave. This is another style that has always been a favorite of mine. A simple technique but can be such an elegant addition to decor.

         

I have to say, I am truly in love with the techniques I tried. An the little orange roses were just so cute and delicate, I bet two could fit on a cupcake easily!

While playing with the purple buttercream, I had set the white to sit in the fridge to chill up a little. There was one more tip I wanted to try out: # 32, leaves.

There is a certain patience, I think, that will make leaves an easy practice. However, I thought about this after the fact. That is to say: once I sat back and looked at the "leaves" on my parchment paper, I discover they were a little more phallic shaped than they were leaf shaped.

That's right: I had a slew of buttercream penises. I attempted to sprinkle green sugar on them but the improvement I hoped for really wasn't there.

I think I need to watch a couple of videos on leaves...

TIPS

Always check your ingredient supply before beginning to mix. 

Fold a piece of scotch tape over itself and use to hold the parchment square onto the flower pin - or risk slippage.

If flowers seem soft while on the pin, have styrofoam at hand to set the pin in and put in the freezer. Petal damage can occur if you move the flower too soon.

Stick to Yourself, Not My Finger!

Since I had a disposable pastry bag still filled with chocolate, I set out on another chocolaty adventure: flowers.

I love flowers on cakes. The diversity added to the design by something as simple as flowers, each with their own unique petals, draws the eye so fluidly across a cake display. Also, I had just watched an episode of Sweet Genius with a chocolate artist as one of the contestants. Needless to say, I felt inspired.

I was unprepared for the obstacles that would present themselves. I blame the chocolate artist for not expressing in any of his candid moments that chocolate has adverse characteristics.

After viewing a couple of instruction videos online, I felt I had a plan in mind. The counter was covered with strips of parchment paper, a rolling pin, and my freshly melted chocolate.

Attempt #1: Dollops of chocolate spread out in a row on the parchment strip. About the size of a quarter, I tried to shape the dollops to mimic petals. As seen on YouTube, I pressed a second strip of parchment to the top of the dollop-petals and gently ran my fingers over the tops to thin out the petals. I picked up the parchment-chocolate sandwich and laid it along the rolling pin, tucking the lengths under the rolling pin to hold the curl. On a second strip of parchment, I made smaller dollops for the central petals. After creating another parchment-chocolate sandwich and wrapping it around the rolling pin, I set the rolling pin with both sets of petals into the freezer.

Twenty minutes later I retrieved the rolling pin and its crew from the freezer. I had a small square of parchment on the counter that I intended to build my flower on. I peeled the top sheet from the smaller petals slowly, happy as each petal seemed to jump off the bottom sheet with excitement. Freedom!!! 

Sadly, I discovered the large petals had been made from too large of dollops. Each petal had reached for at least one neighbor and joined hands against the cold of the freezer. Bloody useless sheet of chocolate, now. To top it off, they resisted the procedure to remove them from the parchment. I think they knew what they were in for: broken down, back in the pastry bag, and into the microwave.

Attempt #2: I decided that my batch of small petals from Attempt #1 would proceed to be the large petals for Attempt #2. I realized that I just didn't have enough space on the parchment strip to make that large of petals. So, more smallish dollops of chocolate and pop into the freezer. This time, however, I rolled the strip around itself starting from one short end. This should give me some nice dynamic petals! 

Indeed it did! Twenty minutes later I had lovely, curled up little petals bounding off the parchment strip.

Attempt #3: Before constructing my little chocolate flower, I decided to play with one more petal idea: petal outlines. I was concerned about the lines being thin and brittle so I did not make a sandwich, just drew each chocolate petal outline on the parchment and stuck the sheet in the freezer.

Attempt #2, cont: As I said, I had a small square of parchment just for building my flower on. Too lazy to reheat the chocolate, I decided it was warm enough for this quick build. Projects would go faster if I didn't do things like that.

I started with a small dollop on my parchment, set the pastry bag to the side and grabbed two sweet little petals. The two nestled so cozily together that I quickly added a third and then counted to ten as with super glue before I released the petals. A lovely trio. 

Sorting through the remaining petals, I decided which would be next. Add fresh chocolate to the base, settle petal where it needs to be, count to ten. Queue famous last words: Oh, this is easy.

Next petal chosen, I added chocolate to the base of my flower and settled my petal onto... mostly solid chocolate. The surface of the added chocolate was just slightly gooey. I held the petal and attempted a quick mend by adding more chocolate to support the petal. It seemed to work.

I flopped my hand to the side with a sigh and then a grunt of frustration: while I had fumbled with the base of the flower, the petal had melted to my finger. The flower, attached to its parchment, flopped across the counter along with the finger it was attached to. The offending petal snapped free of the flower although it hung on for dear life to my finger.

Did I mention this was really tasty chocolate? Damn petal.

Reheat the chocolate, take a lighter to the metal pastry tip to melt the chocolate caught there, rub the heated tip against the chocolate base where the now departed petal had once clung, start again. 

Eventually, I made a lovely flower. The outline petal flower - less lovely but looks nice if you squint.

Time Spent: Approx 1 hour, mostly due to set backs

Tip: Do not remove petals from freezer until you are ready to handle. Wash hands in ice water to cool skin down before handling thin chocolate. Make sure your melted chocolate is at the right consistency before you start to build.

Technique Source: Ann Reardon - How to Cook That 

NOTE: I did not have the support cookie cutter ring Ann used; I did not peel my two layers of parchment apart as I wanted thicker petals.

The Perfect Accessory for Every Occasion

Nothing competes with the versatility of chocolate in the world of sweets.

Chocolate comes in so many forms: milk, dark, white, flavor infused, filled, candy coated, bittersweet, decadent. It is definitely my favorite part of sweets because not only does it come in so many forms, it goes with everything!!

As far as I'm concerned, anyone who says they do not like chocolate is a person to be wary of. Most likely a spy or an alien.

Last week, standing in awe in the baking supply aisle of my local Michael's Arts & Crafts, a section of wire frame, basket style shelving caught my eye from the end of row. Just past the crazy packets of cupcake papers and the wildly designed cake pans.

Dozens of bags of melting chocolate. Sigh, I'm home.

Not only was there milk, dark, white and flavor infused, there were so many colors! Green chocolate, yellow, red, purple; I couldn't believe the sight of it all. There was no question in my mind, I had to find something I could do with this chocolate. Not only were there a bunch of options but the bags were affordably priced and respectable ounces.

Plus, I had a coupon!

I gazed around the aisle, seeking, praying for inspiration that would justify purchasing a bag of baking bliss. My eyes rolled across the section of Cake Boss brand items and came to rest on the packaging for one of the uniquely shaped cake pans: Buddy had paused while piping string frosting on a cake to look at the camera. Piping string frosting on the cake...

A bag of milk chocolate dropped in my basket and I whispered a silent promise to return for the others.

The fun part of baking, other than taste testing and eating the fabulous results, is decorating. Cupcakes look a hell of a lot sexier with a little something-something to dress them up. The only problem is, once you've spent the better part of an hour baking and frosting you tend to run out of give-a-sh** about decorating. Slap on the store bought sprinkles and tell the cupcakes to piss off at that point.

This sucks since usually I bake because I want to decorate.

The answer: make the decorations whenever I feel like it and freeze the damned things until I want to bake! What stores in the freezer better than chocolate??? Well, ice cubes, of course. Don't be a smart ass.

So out comes the sketch pad. As you recall: I am a passionate artist. A plethora of art supplies are at my disposal. I was tempted by my drafting markers; they were dusty and really wanted to come out to play. In hindsight, they knew what they were talking about and I should have listened. I chose, instead, a pencil. You'll see soon why this was a poor choice.

Let's start with something simple and easy, I thought. Nothing simpler than a heart!

So I drew out a concept, added some flair, then went so far as to design a slotted look down the center. The theory was 'if a 2-dimensional heart is cool, a 3-dimensional heart is epic.'

On to the chocolate! Build a quaint disposable piping bag out of parchment paper, snap the cap on the tip coupler, handful of chocolate pieces (which tasted freaking awesome, by the way; right up there with Dove) and pop that baby in the microwave. Well, this is easy! Squish the melted chocolate to the base of the piping bag, remove coupler lid and snap a nice little tip on.

I had taped a square of parchment paper over my sketch while microwaving chocolate. Now, I rested the tip of the piping bag against the parchment and began to squeeze the chocolate gently through the piping tip and along the lines of my design.

I was biting my lip the entire time as I discovered that parchment paper is not enough protective insulation to keep the melted chocolate from searing the palm of my hand. I would not be defeated, though; I took the burn and kept going like some psycho workout instructor!

My first attempt was a little squirrelly and uneven. This was to be expected. I had two more squares of parchment ready for attempts two and three. I chose to brush some silver petal dust on one completed heart; no reason, I just wanted to play with the petal dust. About 10 minutes on the counter to set then into the freezer to chill!

                               

I was excited to find that the parchment paper separated quite easily from the chocolate. Just pick an edge and roll it back till the chocolate piece lay in the still aching palm of my hand. When the first chocolate heart snapped in my fingers, I heard the drafting markers laughing from the office: the lines were far too thin. Also, the slot for fitting the two hearts together was far too narrow.

The silver-petal-dust-lining? Chocolate re-melts easily. I tossed the broken pieces into a ziplock bag and they await their next grand adventure!

It's a Vegetable Peeler for a Reason

So, you know how in the blog description I said I would try to keep the blood and tears out of the batter? That line was spawned in part from this story:

Cupcakes. What could possibly be better?

Gourmet cupcakes? With liqueur in the frosting? Oh, yes, I must try this recipe.

Candied Grapefruit Cupcakes landed on my radar courtesy of Food Network magazine. You evil, twisted souls.

The most difficult part, I thought as I read through the recipe, will be finding Elderflower Liqueur. What a surprise I was in for. In fact, I found the liqueur at the first liquor store I stopped at! Smooth sailing from here!

I picked up two large red grapefruits from the grocery store, turning them this way and that in search of the nicest looking zest. For anyone who has been around when I bake with fresh fruit, you know how much I don't like zesting fruit. No matter how careful I am, a fingertip or knuckle always ends up zested. Of course, I have always done lemons and limes which are small and difficult to hold while zesting. Grapefruit should be easier.

Step 1: using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest from one grapefruit and cut into thin slices. These will be the candies on top.

A vegetable peeler is very difficult to control on a fruit. I ended up with many odd little pieces where the peeler lost its grip and sliced off the zest too soon. Also, many squiggly strips as I attempted to scoot the peeler through the zest. The joints on my fingers ached so bad; especially my thumb which still suffers a strained tendon. Almost done, the handful of zest strips lined up across the cutting board wait in terror for the sharp kitchen knife that lays intimidatingly at the edge of the board.

Grapefruit zest strips, via vegetable peeler

SLIP "Sh**!"

A lovely pink line across the pad of my thumb starts to turn red. The vegetable peeler had leapt from its path in the grapefruit zest and bit me. Fabulous. I guess we have enough zest strips.

So while I boil down the tear-stricken, thin slices of zest in the pan to start the syrup that will candy them, I move on to step 2: zest the other grapefruit.

The tip of my middle finger mimics my thumb with little spots of red from being zested.

Not enough alcohol to have a 21 and older rating.

As my dad always said: you're not working till you're bleeding. Now that I think back on it, that is a horrible lesson to teach a child, even in jest. Ah, well.

The rest of the baking is, fortunately, uneventful and standard affair: zest strips get candied and syrup set aside, batter gets put together with some of the zest from the second grapefruit as well as some liqueur, buttercream is blended with elderflower liqueur and grapefruit juice along with a drop of red coloring gel. The buttercream is, of course, taste tested multiple times to ensure satisfaction. I am very careful to make tasty buttercream!


The cupcakes get a raw deal - stabbed multiple times with a toothpick - before the healing of syrup is applied followed by the soothing cool of pink buttercream. Dress them up for the party with a twist of candied zest and voila!

Recipe Rated: 4 out of 5 stars

Time: 2 hours

Contact me for a copy