Monthly Archives: November 2011

Yellow Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

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So I had a request. 

If you know me at all, you would know that I am not the plain yellow cupcakes kind of gal.

I received a request from one of my sister’s friends for yellow cupcakes with chocolate frosting. Quite specific!

Anyways, I sampled one..and you know what? They were actually pretty darn good. They are definitely a change from my regular chocolate cupcakes and slightly refreshing.

The chocolate buttercream is so, so gooood. It’s close to a chocolate mousse! 

So go back to the basic cupcake, and give this recipe a try. It’s very basic and super easy!

Yellow Cupcakes

(adapted from food network)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon  salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup milk

  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners.
  2. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.
  3. For cupcakes: Beat eggs and sugar in a medium bowl using a mixer until light and foamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in butter and vanilla. Gradually pour in butter and then vanilla. Reduce speed to and mix in half of dry ingredients. Beat in milk. Add remaining dry ingredients and beat to combine. Do not over mix.
  4. Pour about 1/3 cup batter into each cup in muffin tin. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool  for 10 minutes, release cupcakes from tins then cool completely. Decorate with desired frosting.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

(adapted from Krissy’s Creations)

3/4 cups (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2/3 cups chocolate chips, melted and cooled

  1. Melt chocolate in the microwave or a double boiler.
  2. Beat butter until nice and fluffy. Then beat in the powdered sugar. Add salt and vanilla extract. Once chocolate is completely cooled, mix it in.
  3. Pipe or spread onto cupcakes as desired.

Random Fact of the Day: Bookkeeper is the only word in the English language with 3 consecutive sets of double letters.

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Round 2 of SRC! Flourless Chocolate Cake

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Woohoo! I got another awesome blog this month from SRC. Then again, is it even possible to get a bad one from there?! Seriously, all these bloggers have amazing blogs!

Actually I haven’t gotten to see every single one of them, but I assure you all the ones I have seen are incredible! It really amazes me what awesome things people are able to make.

Anyways on to what I made! It is all about me, right?? ;)

So here it is. A flourless chocolate cake. Really I could stop talking right now and just let the pictures do the talking. However, I am deeply indebted to Sally over at Bewitching Kitchen. She is really a unique and cool woman. She was actually born and raised in Sao Paulo, Brazil. How cool is that?! But now she lives in Oklahoma, where she is a biochemist and molecular biologist. She sounds like quite the smarty-pants! Now I know who to call for my biology homework help…

Anyhow, you must check out her recipe page. Holy moly! She’s got loads of recipes! I really, really wanted to make one of the Brazilian dishes, but being a high school student, baking is more realistic for me rather than making an actual meal that has to be ready at a reasonable dinner time. She also has a ginormous load of bread recipes that look absolutely incredible! I know I’m gonna make her focaccia recipe next time I make pasta (and have a couple hours to spare!).

Alright, enough babbling. Head on over to Bewitching Kitchen and check out all her other awesome recipes. While you’re at it, check out the other posts by the other SRC bloggers by clicking on the blue button link thing at the end of the post! :)

Flourless Chocolate Cake

(adapted from Bewitching Kitchen)

**I halved this recipe! So, I used a 6-inch spring-form pan and halved all the ingredients. I kept the baking time the same and it turned out perfect! (Ingredient amounts follows below this recipe)

7 oz extra bittersweet chocolate
14 Tbs unsalted butter  (1 + 3/4 sticks)
5 large eggs, separated
1 Tbs vanilla extract
3/4 cup granulated sugar
pinch of salt
2 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder

  1. Heat the oven to 350F. Grease a 10-inch spring-form pan.
  2. Combine the chocolate and butter in a double boiler over simmering water, heating until fully melted and smooth.  Transfer to a bowl, let it cool slightly for a few minutes, and whisk in the egg yolks and vanilla.  Sift in the sugar, salt, and cocoa powder, while constantly stirring.
  3. Whip the egg whites to soft peaks.  Gently mix about one-third of them into the chocolate mixture, fold the remaining whites trying to deflate them as little as possible. Pour the mixture into the prepared spring-form pan.  Place in the lower rack of the oven and bake for 25-28 minutes.
  4. Remove the cake to a rack and immediately loosen the sides of the pan. Allow the cake to cool before serving.

Halved Ingredients

1 1/2 cup chocolate chips

7 Tablespoons butter

3 eggs, separated

1/2 Tablespoon vanilla

1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons white sugar

pinch of salt

1 Tablespoon cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Special Dark)

  1. Follow the same directions as the full recipe, except using a smaller spring-form pan. Keep oven temperature and baking time the same. You can tell cake is done when you try to shake it and it doesn’t jiggle in the middle.

Random Fact of the Day: A ten year old mattress weighs double what it did when it was new, because of the -ahem- debris which is absorbed through the years. That debris includes dust mites (their droppings and their decaying bodies), mold, millions of dead skin cells, dandruff, animal and human hair, secretions, excretions, lint, pollen, dust, soil, sand and a lot of perspiration, of which the average person loses a quart per day. Have fun going to sleep tonight!



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Pecan Pie

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Hello! So I’m gonna just share one more recipe from my Thanksgiving. By the way, I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving full of delicious food and stuffed tummies. 

Pecan pie is something I wasn’t introduced to until last year. My sister’s boyfriend was going to be spending Thanksgiving at our house since his family lives so far away that it is a bit of a hassle and pretty costly to fly all the way there. Anyways, the point is, that one of his few requests was to have a pecan pie.

Pecan pie was something that was quite new to my family. None of us had ever made is before and I had never even tasted it. So the search for a good pecan pie recipe began. My mom ended up making a delicious pecan pie which sparked my love for the stuff. It may be a southern dish, but it has definitely found a spot in our Midwestern home’s heart.

Pecan Pie

(adapted from allrecipes)

1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans

1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust (I used my regular recipe)

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. In a large bowl, beat eggs until foamy, and stir in melted butter. Stir in the brown sugar, white sugar and the flour; mix well. Add the milk, vanilla, and nuts.
  3. Pour into an unbaked 9-in pie shell. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees, then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until done.

Random Fact of the Day: In West Virginia if you run over an animal, you can legally take it home and cook it for dinner!

By the way, happy Black Friday shopping! I hear there are some good deals over at Kohl’s on donut makers, baby cakes machines, and KitchenAid mixers! I’m 16 and excited about cooking utensils…what is wrong with me?!

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Pumpkin Pie- HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

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Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! I hope you all have an awesome day and go to sleep tonight with full tummies. 

In case you haven’t decided yet on what you’re having for dessert, this pie would be a pretty quick, easy and painless recipe to make for after the turkey.

Pumpkin pie is something I have grown to love. It’s one of those things that I just must have every year! 

And now you must have it too! Top this baby off with some whipped cream and you are good to go. Or if you really want to…my dad some people consider pumpkin pie to qualify as breakfast food. Therefore, it is A-OK to have a slice in the AM. Pumpkin is good for you, right?

Classic Pumpkin Pie

(from allrecipes)

1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin
1 (14 ounce) can Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust (I used my regular pie crust recipe)

whipped cream or vanilla ice cream for garnish, if desired

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Whisk pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, eggs, spices and salt in medium bowl until smooth. Pour into crust. Bake 15 minutes.
  2. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F and continue baking 35 to 40 minutes or until knife inserted 1 inch from crust comes out clean. Cool. Garnish as desired. Store leftovers covered in refrigerator.
Random Fact of the Day: Every day more money is printed for Monopoly than the US Treasury.

 

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French Silk Pie

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If you don’t absolutely love french silk pie, I just might have to question our friendship.

French silk pie and I were just love at first sight. Ever since I was a little tater tot, I have LOVED the stuff.

It just can’t be beat. It’s like chocolate mouse in a buttery little bed, that some people might call a pie crust.

I had to make a mini pie due to the ridiculous amounts of food being consumed this week. Please don’t let my mini pie hold you make from making your own regular size pie. However, the mini pie does kind of give you the excuse to eat the whole thing by yourself.

Anyways, French Silk is so, so, sooo easy to make! It sounds and looks all complicated, but trust me it’s as easy as pie. Har, har. Sorry bad joke… 

My attempt (above ^) to cut a piece versus…my moms (below) 

But in all seriousness, anybody can make this pie. Clearly. I mean, look at me, I burn microwave popcorn weekly but I made a french silk pie. MAKE IT! :) Even if you make a mess looking like this

I assure you it will still taste just as heavenly and you may even be capable of eating the whole thing. You may even need someone to hold you back.

French Silk Pie

(for a 9-inch pie)

1 9-inch pie shell, baked (I used my regular pie crust recipe but halved it to make a single pie crust)

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

3 (1 ounce) squares of unsweetened chocolate

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

4 eggs

1/2 cup sweetened whipped cream, for garnish (optional)**

chocolate shavings or sprinkles or crushed Oreos, for garnish (optional)

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Prepare pie crust and bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown or according to your own pie crust recipe’s directions.
  2. Melt chocolate in a double boiler or in a microwave and set aside. Beat butter in a bowl with the mixer until fluffy. Add sugar and beat until combined and fluffy. Once chocolate is cool, add in melted chocolate and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating for 2 minutes in between each egg. This is may seem like a tiring process, but believe me- it is worth it!
  3. Make sure your pie crust is cool, pour prepared mousse pie filling into your crust. If desired garnish with whipped cream and other goodies.

**I made my own whipped cream- you can make your own as well by taking a cup of heavy whipping cream and whipping it up with about 1 or 2 Tablespoons of powdered sugar, depending on how sweet you like it. I prefer to use a hand mixer for this since it gives me more control. To be extra fancy, I used a piping tip and filled up a plastic bag with my whipped cream and piped it on top of the pie. It’s all very easy and very rewarding! :)

Random Fact of the Day: In the movie ‘The Wizard Of Oz‘, Toto the dog’s salary was $125 a week, while Judy Garland was $500 a week.

 

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