Valentine red velvet

I used the same recipe as the "Skinny Red Velvet" cupcakes- check out the thread or click on 2012, September tab. This is by far my favorite red velvet cupcake recipe! I kid you not...you ought to try it !

White sheet cakes

Ingredients:
Cakes
1 cup butter
1 cup water
2 cups sugar
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream

Frosting:
1 cup butter
6 tbsp evaporated milk
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
Fruits : Strawberries, raspberrys etc (opt)

Preheat oven to 375 deg F.  Line paper liners to a dozen cupcake pan. Melt butter and water in a large saucepan over medium low heat until butter is melted. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar, flour, salt and baking soda. Stir in the sour cream and mix until blended. Pour the batter about 1/2 full into cup cake liners and bake for 22 minutes or until the cake springs back or when inserted a tooth pick in the center it comes out clean.  Remove from the pan and cool completelty.

Frosting: Put the butter and milk into a medium saucepan. Heat until the butter is melted and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in a powdered sugar, vanilla and a dash of salt. You do not need a stiff icing as you don't pipe it anyway. Just spread over the cupcakes and topped with whatever you want on it.

Soft chocolate

Ingredients:

1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp cocoa powder (any unsweetened brand)

1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp hot water

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 sticks plus 1 tbsp butter, softened

1 2/3 cups granulated sugar

3 large eggs

1 tbsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup sour cream

Will yield 2 dozens. 

Preheat oven to 350 def F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners. In a glass liquid measuring cup, combine the cocoa powder and hot water and whisk until smooth.  In a medium bowl whisk together the four, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

In a medium saucepan over medim heat, combine butter and sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally until the mixture is smooth and butter is completely melted. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium low speed until the mixture is cool about 4-5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Blend in the vanilla and then the cocoa mixture until smooth. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture alternately with the sour cream, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Keep mixing until well incorporated.

Fill the liners no more than 2/3 full. If you live at high altitude (which I do), err on the side of filling the liner of one cupcake 1/2 full and baking it alone first to judge how the cupcake will rise in the oven.

Bake cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center and comes out clean. About 15-18 minutes. Remove from the pan and cool to a wire rack completely before icing.

In the photos above, I dipped half of the dozen in a chocolate ganache. The other half I put about 2 cups of powdered sugar into the left over ganache and milk. Make sure to stir while adding the powdered sugar to avoid lumps. Then add about a tbsp or two of milk for consistency until smooth.

Spread over each cupcake and decorate with chocolate sprinkles.

Boston Cream

• Prep: 25 min. Bake: 15 min. + cooling
• Yield: 6 Servings

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Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons shortening
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons 2% milk
• 2/3 cup prepared vanilla pudding
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions

• In a small bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition.
• Filled paper-lined muffin cups half full. Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Cut a small hole in the corner of a pastry or plastic bag; insert a small tip. Fill with pudding. Push the tip through the top to fill each cupcake.
• Place chocolate chips in a small bowl. In a small saucepan, bring cream just to a boil. Pour over chocolate; whisk until smooth. Cool, stirring occasionally, to room temperature or until ganache thickens slightly, about 10 minutes. Spoon over cupcakes. Let stand until set. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Yield: 1/2 dozen.

Nutritional Facts1 cupcake equals 288 calories, 16 g fat (7 g saturated fat), 53 mg cholesterol, 198 mg sodium, 35 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 4 g protein.

InsPiRaTiOn...

Cupcakes these days they are a trend, simple, cute and sassy most of all hard to get wrong...no matter what you mix them with they just turn out to be so gorgeously delicious :)

One of the most liberating and exhilarating things that I’ve come to figure out during the past few months as a cup caker is that InSpIrATiOn is everywhere– people, family, magazines, webs, books, clothes, TV, stationery, wrapping papers, colors etc…
 I'm also captivated in pretty in pink-purple (I made that up :),  on flowers (viz., lavenders, tulips, daisies, orchids etc);  Martha Stewart's stuff, love love her designs. I thought they’re clean, fresh and mild. Baking stores and shops - I could stay all day long just shopping for my cupcake stuff be it liners, boxes, papers, balloons, candies, sprinkles, pear sprinkles etc. 
Anyways, I hope you will enjoy my cup caking. Would love for you to keep dropping by to chat or say hellow or heller :)  Don't forget to click older posts as well.  I have some of my good cupcakes and recipes posted earlier.  For daily consumption, I recommend one cupcake only.

Christmas logs...

I used my perfectly chocolate cupcake recipe for the cakes.

What I'd like to share here is my Christmas toppings. For the white frosting I used a cream cheese frosting and for the chocolate, I melted about a half pound of semi-sweet chocolate and then dipped each cupcakes to frost.  I also made the chocolate logs by melting about a pound of semi sweet chocolate and spread it very thin on a cookie sheet. Refrigerated it for about 15 minutes or until it dries up but not to dry or hard to keep it from breaking when curling. Use a metal spatula to roll the chocolate to form either curl or log. Then of course my fondant poinsettia leaves and cherries.

This is easy...enjoy! Happy holidays...

Perfectly Chocolate...

Perfectly Chocolate Cupcakes

(makes 24-27 standard sized cupcakes)

2 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (best quality available) or hershey will work out just fine.

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup whole milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract (best quality available)

1 cup boiling water

Directions-

Line muffin tin with paper liners. Heat oven to 350*F.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for one minute.

Stir in boiling water (the batter will be thin, don’t worry, this is right).

Strictly fill the liners about 1/2 full or less as they tend to puff and may run over the liners.

Bake cupcakes for about 21 minutes.

Cool completely on wire rack before frosting. You can use butter cream or cream cheese frosting. I also used a star tip of 1M for frosting.