Devil's Food Cupcakes (Baby Shower Test Run)

Can you tell I got a new 1M tip? haha, I had fun piping these!  The more classic swirls, where you start piping on the outside and move in, are in the back.  The rose like swirls are in the front.  First time doing these and I'm really pleased with how they looked.  It's pretty much the reverse, you pipe in the middle for a moment, and then start swirling out.  When you get towards the end release pressure but continue moving the piping bag around.  This prevents you from getting a hard ending point.

Because these are going to be for a baby shower, I went with a buttercream I could tint as opposed to the chocolate glaze that came with the original recipe.  I'll post the buttercream recipe at the end.  I liked this one a lot better than the one I made previously.  Still rich, but not sickeningly so.  Also easier to make in my opinion.

I got the blue color from blue food coloring with a dab of violet icing dye.  The blue food color always seems to have a slight teal tint to it, and the violet cancels this out nicely.  I got this tip from a blue velvet cupcake recipe I will hopefully be baking/posting soon.  Any specialty cooking store, such as Sur La Table, should have a nice selection of icing dyes.

My brother and his girlfriend had asked me to do their baby shower cupcakes, and of course a flavor I had never done was chosen, haha, so I felt required to do a test run to prevent a disaster filled evening the day of.  That and the cupcakes were chosen based on a picture I found, not an actual recipe, so I needed to make sure I could replicate that look as well.  The dark cake I assumed to be Devil's Food Cake, with a light blue buttercream frosting for a nice contrast.

I actually baked two types of Devil's Food Cake Recipes.  I do this whenever I don't have a favorite recipe to fall back on.  However there was a clear winner, so that is the recipe I will be posting.

These turned out very tasty.  Moist and chocolaty like a Devil's Food Cake should be, without being too messy.  I'm hoping they go over well at the baby shower!  I'll be making around 80, so wish me luck.  In the meantime my mom's work will be reaping the benefit of my test run.

Here's to not needing my own baby shower cupcakes for a looooong time. ;]



Devil's Food Cupcakes 
Adapted from Cupcakes by Shelly Kaldunski
Makes 12 cupcakes

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temp.
• 1 large egg, room temp.
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup buttermilk

~Preheat oven to 350°F.  Prepare muffin tins with cupcake liners.

~Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.  I don't normally sift, but cocoa powder always clumps up for me.

~In a large bowl beat together the sugar, brown sugar, and butter until light and fluffy.  Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined.  

~At this point add about 1/3 of your flour mixture, alternating with the water and buttermilk.  You should start and end this process with the flour mixture.  Beat just until combined.  Spoon your batter into your prepared muffin tins, no less than two-thirds full.

~Pop these in the oven and bake for 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  (Mine needed the full 18 minutes this time around, but I did still check after 16.)

~Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack and cool completely.

~Once cooled, top with frosting of your choice.  Enjoy and indulge in these chocolate goodies!

Basic Buttercream Frosting

C&H Recipe

Frosts 10-12 cupcakes

• 1 lb. box powdered sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup butter (2/3 stick), room temp.

~Combine all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.  I'd recommend an electric mixer to start on this one, scraping the bowl often.  If it seems too stiff to spread or pipe easily, beat in milk a few drops at a time.

~To get the color of mine it took roughly 3-6 drops of blue food coloring, and a small dab of violet icing dye.  Less is more with this, you can always add more later!

Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes

Don't make cupcakes when you're sick and out of it, I used baking powder instead of soda, haha, but they still turned out ok!  For once baking was forgiving.

*This recipe does not use eggs, so expect a slightly different, more crumbly, consistency!

I did a homemade buttercream for these, so I'll include that recipe as well.  I had a lot of frosting left over, so next time I'll probably take advantage of that and do some piping, but it was my first go with buttercream, so this time around I just did a quick/rustic icing job.  Only downside was the icing was super SUPER rich, so I might go with a different buttercream next time.

Refrigerate for sure, and these can last up to 4 days.



Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes
Adapted from Cupcakes by Shelly Kaldunski
Makes 12 cupcakes
(I Prefer the Basic Buttercream posted with the Devil's Food Cupcakes)

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup lukewarm water
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1/2 Mexican Chocolate, finely grated (I used Abuelita brand) 
• Buttercream (recipe to follow)

~Preheat oven to 350°F.  Prepare muffin tins with cupcake liners.

~Mix together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon of the cinnamon, and the salt.  Sifting recommended as my cocoa powder always clumps.

~Add the water, oil, and vinegar, and mix until combined. Add the grated Mexican Chocolate and mix just until blended. Spoon the batter into your lined muffin tin, aiming for roughly 12 cupcakes 3/4ths full.

~Bake for 24 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. (I took mine out at 22 minutes and they were fine, but I use darker pans.  As I've mentioned before, checking in 2 minute intervals should keep you safe!)

~Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack and cool completely.

~Once cooled, mix remaining cinnamon with buttercream frosting.  Frost cupcakes and top with grated Mexican chocolate.



 Rich Buttercream Frosting

• 3 large egg whites at room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter at room temp., cut into 16 pieces (2 sticks)

~Combine egge whites and sugar in a heatproof bowl.  Mix constantly over a double boiler that's simmering for roughly 2 minutes, or until the sugar has dissolved.  It will be very warm to the touch, roughly 160°F.

~Remove from the heat, and beat at a high speed until fluffy and solid peaks are formed. This takes roughly 6 minutes.  (Use an electric mixer or you'll go crazy!)

~Add the salt, and mix in the butter gradually.  If it begins to separate at all, mix for several minutes until smooth.

~If not for immediate use, refrigerate for up to 5 days.  Simply mix and bring to room temperature before using.

Peanut Butter Dog Treats

The only thing I changed from the original recipe is using whole wheat flour, as the original recipe called simply for flour.  My dogs loved these, so I wouldn't change a thing.  Please make sure your dog doesn't have any allergies to these ingredients!  Try in small doses if unsure, and make sure there aren't any upset tummies.  

This is a lot like a scone mix, and the treats are softer.  The drops I made were a little on the large side as I always split a treat between dogs, and I rarely give them one serving at a time, lol, but you could definitely make at least 24 if you prefer a more typical dog treat size.   They do rise, so space accordingly.

Peanut Butter Dog Treats

Adapted from "Another Yummy Peanut Butter Dog Treat," 
www.dogtreatrecipes.org
Makes 24 servings

• 1 cup flour (whole wheat)
• 1/2 cup milk (I use skim)
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter (smooth)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 egg white
• 1 tablespoon chicken broth or stock
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

~Preheat your oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.


~Add the first 6 ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until well mixed.  Add the baking powder and mix again until incorporated.


~Drop spoonfuls of your mix onto your baking sheet.

~Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool them off completely, and let your puppies enjoy! These should be stored in an air tight container or zip lock bag.

If you wanted to know who I baked these for, here she is!  You'll be seeing lots more of Daisy.

Chocolate Hazelnut (Nutella) Cupcakes

The only thing I changed about this recipe was axing the chopped hazelnuts, and I don't think the cupcakes missed them.  The cake itself has a very subtle Nutella flavor, so feel free to be heavy handed with the frosting!  I had snacked on some of mine, so my cupcakes were a little short, lol.  If you feel like making Nutella buttercream frosting as opposed to pure Nutella, I would highly recommend upping the chocolate factor of the cake.

These came about because I'm a Nutella addict and didn't feel like crepes that night.  Sliced bananas and/or sliced strawberries as cupcake toppers would take this over the edge, but as my cupcakes had a while to go before being eaten, that wasn't practical this time around.

These are definitely cupcakes that can be enjoyed still warm.  Mine kept in a covered container for several days.


Nutella Cupcakes
Adapted from The Cupcake Bible, Publications International, Ltd.
Makes 16-18 cupcakes

• 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups Nutella (this includes amount used as frosting)
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, room temp.
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 1 1/4 cups milk
• chopped hazelnuts (I don't like nuts, so I skipped this)

~Preheat oven to 350°F.  Prepare muffin tins with cupcake liners.

~Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl.

~Beat a 1/3 cup of your Nutella with your (hopefully) softened butter in a large mixing bowl.  I'm crazy and whisk everything by hand, but an electric mixture will make your life easier here. Beat in the sugar until well blended, then mix in your eggs and vanilla.

~At this point add about a third of the flour mixture, alternating with about half of the milk.  Done correctly you will start and end this process with the flour mixture.  Beat just until blended.  Spoon your batter into the prepared muffin tins, no less than two-thirds full.

~Pop these little guys in the oven for 19 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  (I personally check at 17 minutes as I cannot stand over-baked cakes.  Checking in 2 minute intervals should keep you safe.)

~Cool in pans for 5-10 minutes, then remove and cool completely on wire racks.

~Hopefully by this point you haven't snacked on the remaining Nutella, so you can use it to frost your cooled cupcakes.  Sprinkle with chopped hazelnuts, and enjoy!


Update

Tried the sliced banana addition, soooo tasty!  Reminds me of Crepes-a-go-go in Berkeley, yum.

In the beginning...

After being coerced into starting this blog by the lovely and talented Caroline Evans, I feel a quick explanation/warning is needed. All of my future posts will be directly tied to a particular recipe, but I feel I need to start off by explaining my baking experience, or more correctly lack thereof.

 I've always liked baking, you just need to dig up a video of me baking a cheesecake in spanish for espanol 3 to verify (I'm surprised it's not on youtube somewhere), but the turning point was around 3 years ago. It was October 2008 when I found out a certain young man I was after enjoyed cupcakes.  That was the excuse I needed to bring back my baking ways.

I found some muffin tins while shopping at a Shattuck Ave. Lucky's, and I knew it was meant to be.  For some reason cupcake liners were a rare commodity, but I eventually found some of the little bastards, and I was on my way.   I know I could have just greased the tins, but who doesn't love unwrapping cupcakes?  It's a taste bud strip tease.  

As a broke college student, box mixes were the way to go, and I honestly can't even remember which I made first at this point. If I was a betting woman I'd go with red velvet.  Followed the instructions, minus a few minutes off the suggested time (always under-bake people), and ended up with a nice batch of cupcakes.  They must have turned out well because I got the guy. Let that be a lesson to you ladies, men love bitches who can bake.

Being a chocolate addict I soon ran out of mix options, so I had to expand.  Plain white cake with vanilla frosting sounded horrible to me, so I added some chopped dried apricots to the batter.  Turned out amazing!  Soon I was tired of the mixes, you can only dress them up so much, so I entered the dark realm of homemade baked goods.  Don't ever make homemade cupcakes unless you plan to ALWAYS make homemade, because they taste better and you won't be able to go back.  You really do get back the time and effort you put in.  Besides, after you are successful, you'll realize it's not as hard as it's made out to be.  It'll expand your options, and not to mention give you the excuse of "I'm trying out a new recipe" for any time you feel like baking for no apparent reason.

Since then I've been baking as much as time and money allowed.  I'll be catching up with past recipes and continuing with new recipes in my future posts, saying what went well with each recipe, what I might try next time, or what went horribly wrong.  If I spot any cool baking products or supplies I'll be sure to mention them as well.  If you're not a cupcake fan, something might be wrong with you, but not to worry, I've done things from cheesecakes to dog biscuits, so there will be something for you as well.

Rambling completed, my next post will be simple and sweet!  Until then lovelies.