cupcakes

Champagne Cupcakes

~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

The 3rd (and final) installment of my champagne week is definitely a dessert. There isn’t really any getting around it. These cupcakes do not qualify for breakfast. 

“But you could try…” as my son says when he asks me to sing a song I don’t know any of the words to. Sorry, kid, it’s just not gonna happen!

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I’ve always found that the flavor of champagne doesn’t always come through in baking. That is not the case with these cupcakes! These cupcakes, literally, taste like a glass of champagne. There’s even reduced champagne in the frosting to really boost the flavor.

These cupcakes are perfect for celebrating an anniversary, birthday, or holiday.

This recipe makes 12-15 cupcakes.

Champagne Cupcakes

Ingredients for cupcakes:

  • 1 stick butter, at room temperature
  • 1 C sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 3/4 C flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 C sour cream
  • 1/2 C champagne

Ingredients for frosting:

  • 1 C + 1 tbsp champagne
  • 2 sticks butter, at room temperature
  • 2 1/2 C powdered sugar
  • pinch of salt

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake tray with liners.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the eggs one at a time along with the vanilla.
  3. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a measuring cup, combine the sour cream and champagne. Alternating, add the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients to the stand mixer, beginning and ending with dry ingredients.
  4. Divide batter among prepared cupcake tray. Bake 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Transfer cupcakes to a cooling rack.
  5. In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, simmer the 1 C of champagne until it reduces down to 2 tbsp. Cool completely.
  6. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream together the butter and powdered sugar. Add the reduced champagne and the 1 tbsp champagne.
  7. Frost cooled cupcakes.

*This recipe is adapted from Haley at http://www.ifyougiveablondeakitchen.com/2014/12/29/cocktail-cupcakes-champagne-cupcakes/*

Champagne Cupcakes | Sew You Think You Can Cook | http://sewyouthinkyoucancook.com

Tuesday Tattles: 2nd Birthday

~ lk529 ~ 18 Comments

Tuesday Tattles

It’s finally time to share my Firecracker’s second birthday party, with you!

When we moved to California and became regulars at the playground I quickly realized it’d be a great place to have the kids’ birthday parties. I scoped out the venue for months to determine when would be the best time of day to throw a party at a public park, to figure out if it’d be allowed, and to decide which picnic table to claim. I then had to start asking around about how big the 4th of July got around here. The answer was a resounding “crazy!” So I knew that we simply wouldn’t be able to celebrate on THE day. (Good thing it wasn’t his 1st birthday!)

We celebrated on a Sunday at 10:30 am. Firecracker is only two weeks older than our friends’ son and so we did a dual birthday bash for the 2 year olds. Our guest lists would have been identical anyway. The party was attended by other families who moved out to California from Ohio the same time we did. And by happy coincidence, my dad had meetings in Los Angeles the following week so my parents came out for the party and my mom stayed out here to play and help with the kids while my dad was in his meetings!

IMG_9583I had originally planned (aka – when he was born I picked out his first four birthday themes) on having an Auburn themed birthday party. It was hard for me to change my mind, but I knew that my train obsessed toddler would much prefer a train themed party. So, I let go of my planning and switched gears.

This party was much smaller than his 1st birthday, so instead of ordering a cake, I decided to simply make cupcakes. I made 4 dozen cupcakes – way more than I needed. About half of them ended up in my freezer unfrosted. I displayed the cupcakes on Twizzler train tracks on our dining table. I made Busy Day Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting and Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes, my friend made the frosting for the vanilla cupcakes.

Cupcakes for a Train Themed 2nd Birthday Party

 

Down at the playground we set up a table with snacks. I cut out black circles and taped them to disposable aluminum loaf pans to create train cars. My friend had popsicle sticks which we used to create a track for the food.

A fruit train of pineapple, cherries, and red and green grapes was led by Orange Cream Dip and Chocolate Hummus. A veggie train of cherry tomatoes, broccoli and cauliflower, and carrots was led by Sour Cream and Onion Dip and Ranch. We also had a container of hummus. Salty snacks of pretzel sticks, potato chips, and “pigs” in a blanket joined the party, too. I traced a train cookie cutter to cut out the labels for the respective dips.

A train themed 2nd Birthday Party

After a couple of hours at the playground we moved the party to our place for grilling and cupcakes.

Decorations were fairly minimal too. I used the major Thomas and Friends character colors as my inspiration, blue, red, and green for Thomas, James, and Percy, respectively. I wrapped streamers around the banister for the stairs and tied some balloons on each end of the staircase. Balloons were attached to chairs at either end of the table were the cupcakes were displayed. Two sets (1 balloon of each color) of balloons were placed on Thomas the Tank Engine balloon weights and taken down to the playground to bookend our picnic table.

The biggest decorating endeavor was the Happy Birthday Banner. The banner was placed above our awesome 80’s style mirrored fireplace. I didn’t have a single hole puncher (I do now!) and couldn’t fit the train shapes in our stand 3 hole puncher, so my mom strung the banners together with a needle and thin yarn.

I found templates for a train engine, train car, and caboose through Google searching. I printed those out on colored card stock. I had two blue trains for the birthday boys’ names, a red train, and a green train. 4 red cabooses, and 19 grey train cars!  For the letters, I used the font Ariel. Three letters at a time were typed in WordArt at font size 96, then I sized the WordArt graphic to be 3.48″ x 8.81″, making sure the letters would fit inside the train cars, and then selected Rotate Flip Horizontal so that the text would be backwards. The words “2nd” and “and” followed the same method except that the WordArt graphic was sized at 1.52″ x 3″. The letters were arranged to look like railroad crossing signs and put on two 5″ yellow circles. Everything was cut out using a craft knife and adhered to the train cars using small glue dots.

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My attempt at getting a photo of the birthday boys with their cupcakes was a slight fail.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

Blog-iversary 3

~ lk529 ~ 20 Comments

3 yrsSew You Think You Can Cook is 3 years old!

This past year has been a whirlwind in my personal life between welcoming a second baby boy to our family and moving across the country.

Blogging-wise I have continued to grow. I have 43 more followers by e-mail and 270 more Facebook fans. I’ve become more active on Twitter and Instagram with a total following of 423 and 530, respectively.

In this fourth year I hope to find the time to delve into monetizing the blog and gaining some sponsored posts. That’s if my two busy boys allow me to do so! I did however, finally pay to own my domain name! As my “birthday gift,” take a look up at the top of your browser and you’ll notice something a little different. The “dot wordpress” is no longer there! I hope your finger memory (and mine!) adjusts quickly when you type in sewyouthinkyoucancook.com.

For Mother’s Day 2016 my husband got me a macro lens for my camera and I have enjoyed taking photos even more! I’m even breaking out the tripod these days. Now when I recreate a recipe from my blog for dinner, I try and reshoot the photos. Updated photographs can be found on Balsamic Glazed Beef Roast, Baby Baked Beef Burritos, and Sweet Potato Waffles.

I hope you’ll continue to follow along with my journey here on the internet.

It has become my tradition to share something new to me on this milestone. For my 1st year, I baked with olive oil. For my second, I made marshmallow for a cheesecake. Keeping with the sweet side of experimentation, this year I’m sharing a vegan cupcake!

Why vegan?

We have friends here in California that we knew in Ohio as well who follow a vegan lifestyle. They have a daughter who is 4, a son who is only 2 weeks younger than Firecracker, and are expecting a third child in a month-ish. We did a play date with them and Firecracker was insistent about wanting to bake cupcakes with “Emmer.” I found a recipe that didn’t require any strange ingredients (borrowing almond milk from them) or coconut. The kids did a fabulous job making these cupcakes and the dozen didn’t last long. Icing didn’t come to fruition though and instead I ended up with a glaze. But it’s a glaze that was fantastic! No one felt bummed or cheated by not having a beautiful frosting peaked top.

We will be having a joint birthday celebration for the 2 year olds next week and I’ll be remaking the cupcake base. Now to find an actual frosting – if you have a recipe for coconut free vegan frosting please share it with me in the comments!

This recipe makes 1 dozen cupcakes.

Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 1 3/4 C flour
  • 1 C sugar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 C almond milk
  • 1/3 C olive oil
  • 1 tbsp white vinegar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake tin with liners.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add the almond milk, olive oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Mix until just combined.
  3. Divide batter in cupcake tin. Bake 18-20 minutes. Allow cupcakes too cool in the pan for 1 minute before removing to a cooling rack.

*This recipe is adapted from Alison at http://lovingitvegan.com/vegan-vanilla-cake/*

Vegan Maple Glaze

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 C powdered sugar
  • 1/2 C almond milk
  • 1/2 C canola oil
  • 1 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Steps:

  1. Using a hand mixer, whisk together all ingredients until smooth. Poor over cooled cupcakes.

Vegan Vanilla Cupcakes with Vegan Maple Glaze Sew You Think You Can Cook

#SundaySupper: Pool Party

~ lk529 ~ 29 Comments

It’s August! Can you believe that?! Now’s the time to polish off those summer bucket lists before school is back in session. (If that affects your household anyway.) That’s why this weekend’s Sunday Supper theme of Pool Party is a perfect fit! I connect even more with the theme because my birthday is at the end of this month and I would always have a pool party!

If you’re throwing a poolside bash this month be sure to scroll past my recipe for a wonderful list of menu possibilities. A big thank you to the Sunday Supper Movement for hosting this event.

Fellow food bloggers, do you lie awake at night thinking about your food styling and photo props? I don’t often because I know I’m not quite at that level, but with this fun summer theme I had visions dancing in my head of how I would plate my pool party offering. I used my Kroger gift card and strolled down their seasonal aisle, where school supplies pushed barbecue dishes and water toys to half off prices. I picked up a yellow plate and a beach ball. Pink Lemonade Cupcakes | Sew You Think You Can CookI knew I’d use some of my son’s water table toys for extra water fun props. But how do I put all of these fun things in the background? I’d have to put out a quilt on the grass. Luckily the sun stayed behind clouds and the threat of rain held off for the day so I didn’t have any funky shadows. I absolutely loved the way my photos turned out – from the screen on my camera, that is. Once I sat down to edit I was slightly disappointed. The bright yellow ducks and orange pail were too hard to tone down without drowning out my food. Luckily I took a close up!

Salty snacks tempted me as whenever I’m at the beach or pool I want salt! Not sure if I’m the only one there. A Chex Mix with Goldfish would be cute to serve at a pool party. But, when I think pool party I think watermelon. Unfortunately, that is a fruit that is off limits to me now. Next up, berries. I hit Pinterest looking for a fun idea and was very close to making a fruit beach ball cookie cake. But that giant sugar cookie got me thinking dessert. Cupcakes would be easy to eat by the pool. The answer: Pink Lemonade Cupcakes!

These cupcakes are everything lemonade should be and thanks to the frosting they’re tartingly sweet.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

Ingredients for cake:

  • 2 1/4 C flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/3 C room temperature butter (5 tbsp + 1 tsp)
  • 1 1/3 C sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/4 C thawed frozen pink lemonade concentrate
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (I used Nielsen-Massey)
  • 3/4 C sour cream
  • 1/4 C strawberry preserves/jam/spreadable fruit

Ingredients for frosting:

  • 1/3 C softened butter (5 tbsp + 1 tsp)
  • 4 C powdered sugar
  • 1/3 C thawed frozen lemonade concentrate (or more as needed)
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • red food coloring (optional)

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 21 cupcakes with liners.
  2. In a bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add in eggs one at a time. Add in the lemonade concentrate, vanilla, sour cream, and strawberry preserves. Mix until combined. Add in the dry ingredients in 2-3 batches until fully incorporated.
  4. Spoon batter into prepared cupcake tin. Bake 18-21 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out cleanly. (Note: If one cupcake tin is on the bottom rack, I suggest rotating the cupcake tins halfway to prevent the bottoms of the bottom batch from burning.)
  5. Allow cupcakes to cool 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack. Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
  6. Make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment cream the butter with 1 cup of the powdered sugar. Add in the lemonade concentrate and vanilla and whisk until combined. Add the remaining powdered sugar. Add additional lemonade concentrate as needed. If using, add a couple drops of food coloring to achieve a pink frosting. Frost cooled cupcakes.

*This recipe is adapted from Alice at http://hipfoodiemom.com/2014/07/11/strawberry-lemonade-cake-for-a-guest-post/*

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes for #SundaySupper from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Refreshing Beverages and Cocktails:

Appealing Appetizers and Snacks:

Super Sides and Salads:

Tempting Desserts and Sweets:

8387592742_f6164fd5a8_oJoin the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the#SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

#SundaySupper: April Fool’s

~ lk529 ~ 18 Comments

Last weekend we were celebrating spring with the Sunday Supper Movement. In spring moods lighten with the weather and the first of April brings hopefully well-humored pranks pulled on friends and loved ones.

As a kid I don’t remember ever “celebrating” April Fool’s Day. Honestly, I’m not that clever and can’t keep a straight face very well. I also really hate awkward situations and most pranks yield in someone’s embarrassment. Jokes weren’t ever really pulled in my family, but I know some families and roommates who have never ending prank wars!

I do remember one prank I pulled. I took violin lessons from 4th-11th grade and one April 1st I thought it’d be funny to pretend I forgot my violin. I left my violin outside the door of my teacher’s classroom and told her I didn’t have it. She got a little irritated but there wouldn’t have been any harm done as she always had an extra. See, I’m not very good at the prank pulling.

I’d never thought of foods as being prank-friendly, but I was introduced to fun recipes through Food Network magazines and Pinterest. These are pranks I can get behind. Savory foods that look like desserts or cupcakes made of paper. One thing that’s always amused me are meatloaf cupcakes with mashed potato frosting. So, that’s what I did!

Thanks to T.R. of Gluten Free Crumbley for challenging our imaginations with this April Fool’s #SundaySupper! Scroll past my recipe for more ideas on how to put a smile on your family’s faces.

An Original Recipe

Meatloaf Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 C finely diced onion
  • 1/4 C finely diced celery
  • 1/4 C finely diced carrot
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1/4 C Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp ketchup, plus more for topping
  • 2 C of your favorite creamy mashed potatoes

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease 9 cups of a muffin tin.
  2. In a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, saute onion, celery, and carrot in the olive oil. Cook until veggies are tender. Add the garlic and cook until just fragrant. Remove from heat.
  3. In a large bowl combine ground beef, breadcrumbs, egg, and 1 tbsp ketchup. Add in the veggies.
  4. Spoon meatloaf into prepared muffin tin, pack it down. Brush tops of meatloaf with additional ketchup if desired.
  5. Bake 15 minutes.
  6. Place creamy mashed potatoes in a plastic bag, cut a corner, and pipe onto the meatloaf cupcakes.

Meatloaf Cupcakes | Sew You Think You Can Cook

Beverages

Appetizers

Sides & Snacks

Entreés

Desserts

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Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the#SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

~ lk529 ~ 13 Comments

Happy Cupcake Day everyone!

Okay, so it’s not REALLY cupcake day.

That’s NEXT Monday.

But 25 other bloggers and I are celebrating a week early.

Coleen of The Redhead Baker set this party up and I’m happy to have found this group. If only for the excuse to make some cupcakes. (Cupcakes I sent to Stuart’s Crossfit gym for their monthly potluck. Eh, they’ve burned enough calories to not feel guilty about eating a cupcake or three, right?)  I put one of these cupcakes in Stuart’s lunch and the first words out of his mouth when he got home were “That cupcake might be the best thing you’ve ever baked!”

I decided to stay with the season we’re still technically in – Fall – and make Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting. This sweet dessert is a play on the beloved sweet potato casserole that honestly might as well be placed at the dessert table during Thanksgiving. As a bonus, if you’re still in that pumpkin craze feel free to swap the sweet potato for pumpkin, I’m sure it’d be equally delicious.

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

Ingredients for Cupcakes:

  • 1/2 C mashed cooked sweet potato
  • 1/2 stick butter, softened
  • 1 1/3 C brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 C buttermilk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 C canola oil
  • 1 1/4 C flour
  • 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Ingredients for Frosting:

  • 1 stick butter, softened
  • 1 container (7.5 oz) marshmallow cream
  • 1 1/2 C powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp milk

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 15 cupcake molds with cupcake liners.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat sweet potato, butter, and brown sugar. Add eggs one at a time until incorporated. Mix in buttermilk, vanilla extract, and canola oil.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Add to wet ingredients in two batches, mixing until combined.
  4. Fill cupcake molds with batter. Bake 18 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out cleanly. Allow cupcakes to rest in mold for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.
  5. Make frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter with marshmallow cream until combined. Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk.
  6. When cupcakes have cooled, frost with the marshmallow frosting.

*This recipe is modified from Erin at http://www.imperialsugar.com/recipes/desserts/cupcakes/Sweet-Potato-Cupcakes-with-Marshmallow-Frosting*

SP cupcake FG1

Check out all of these other awesome cupcakes:

Hot Cocoa Cupcakes by The Redhead Baker

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes by The Cooking Actress

Vanilla Candy Cane Cupcakes by Noshing With The Nolands

Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Nerds Cupcakes by Amy’s Confectionery Adventures

Vegan Midori Melon Cupcakes by NinjaBaker

Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie Cupcakes with Candied Butter Pecan Frosting by From Gate to Plate

Dark Chocolate Rum Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Buttercream by Lemony Thyme

Gingerbread cupcakes with cinnamon cream cheese frosting by Eva Bakes

Cranberry Apple Cupcakes by The Pajama Chef

Almond Joy Cupcakes by Our Eating Habits

Buttered Rum Cupcakes by Adventures in All Things Food

Maple Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting by Karen’s Kitchen Stories

Cone Head Cupcakes with Ice Cream Frosting by The Spiffy Cookie

Candied Buddha’s Hand-Eggnog Cupcakes by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Almond Joy Cupcakes by Food Lust People Love

Chocolate Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting for 2 by Kate’s Recipe Box

Cranberry Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream by Cheese Curd In Paradise

Peppermint Patty Cupcakes by Comfortably Domestic

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with Biscoff Marshmallow Buttercream by Making Miracles

Chocolate Cupcakes with Red Velvet Frosting by {i love} my disorganized life

Lemon Cupcakes by Miss Information

Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcakes by Kosher Kitchen

Peppermint Cream Cookie Cupcakes by Take a Bite out of Boca

Cupcake Christmas Wreath by Lick the Spoon

Graveyard Cupcakes

~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

The ghost theme continues with this super fun and adorable dessert.

I was originally planning on making another spin on S’more Brownies using ghost marshmallow peeps but during my trip to Joann’s for the ghost cookie cutterI used in Monday’s post my eyes fell upon these adorable ghost icing decorationsand I couldn’t resist! A change in plans was made and a discussion with Kate was in order. With her creative genius she suggested I do chocolate cupcakes with green icing and having these ghosts be coming back from the grave. I continued to follow her instruction and dipped Milano cookies in chocolate to create headstones.

I decided on a chocolate coffee cupcake for the base. My husband forgot his coffee on the counter one morning and I had the ambitious idea to save it, thinking I’d do something with cold coffee. These ideas are usually met with a lack of time or imagination, or even completely abandoned and everything I save with the intentions to do something awesome make their way to a dark corner of the refrigerator to die. But not this time! This time I found a use for that coffee! And because I did a coffee cupcake, I decided to use coffee creamer in the icing instead of milk. And my idea worked! Vanilla buttercream is my least favorite of the buttercreams and I didn’t think I’d be able to dye chocolate buttercream green very effectively. Using the Italian Sweet Cream flavor coffee creamer I had on stock for my mother-in-law made this frosting perfectly sweet and it complimented the cupcakes beautifully – making for an addicting chocolate cupcake. And I don’t say that about cake very often!

Chocolate Coffee Cupcakes with Coffee Creamer Frosting

Ingredients for cupcakes:

  • 1 stick butter, softened
  • 1 C sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 3/4 C flour
  • 1/4 C cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 C cold coffee

Ingredients for decorating:

  • 2/3 C chocolate chips
  • 12 Milano cookies
  • 12 ghost icing decorations
  • 2 sticks butter, softened
  • 3 C powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tbsp liquid coffee creamer
  • green food coloring

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake tins with 16 cupcake liners. Note: there are only decorations for 12 cupcakes, the other 4 are bonus for the cook!
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time. Mix in vanilla.
  3. In a large bowl whisk together flour, cocoa powder, and baking powder. If you’re using unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt.
  4. Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the butter and mix until combined. Add 1/2 of the coffee and mix until combined. Repeat with another 1/3 of the dry ingredients, the last of the coffee, and ending with the remaining 1/3 of the flour mixture.
  5. Fill cupcake tins and bake 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out cleanly. Allow to cool.
  6. Over a double boiler, melt the chocolate chips. Dip the Milano cookies in the chocolate and let set on a piece of parchment paper.
  7. Make frosting: in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar. Add the vanilla and creamer. Add up to another tablespoon of creamer if needed. Mix in food coloring until desired color is achieved. Note: Depending on how you ice your cupcakes, there will be leftover frosting.
  8. Cut a cat’s eye slit into the cupcakes and place the chocolate covered cookies into the cupcakes.
  9. Ice the cupcakes. Decorate with the ghosts.

*This recipe is adapted from Roxana at http://roxanashomebaking.com/chocolate-coffee-cupcakes-with-coffee-buttercream-frosting-recipe/ *

Chocoalte Coffee Cupcakes with Coffee Creamer Frosting

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

#10DaysofTailgate: Boston Lager Cupcakes

~ lk529 ~ 4 Comments

Tailgate LogoToday is the last day of #10DaysofTailgate hosted by Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla. I wanted to end this event with a dessert, and what tailgating event is complete without beer?!

I chose my husband’s favorite beer to use in a chocolate cupcake.

While I am not a beer drinker, even I enjoyed these cupcakes. The texture of the cake is lighter than your average cupcake. The flavor of the beer comes though, but not in an over powering way. The beer mellows the sugary flavor of a traditional chocolate cupcake and lends an earthiness to the cake.

The suggested frosting for these cupcakes was for a beer buttercream but I wanted to make these a little more family friendly so chose to omit the beer. I also wasn’t convinced that a traditional buttercream was the way to go with these cupcakes. I decided instead to make both vanilla and chocolate buttercream frostings to swirl together and create the look of a glass of foamy beer. At least, that was my intention. Whether or not that image came through to you or not, I’m proud of how these look. (If you’re new to Sew You Think You Can Cook, decorating cakes is one of my weakest skills in the kitchen and would always rely on my creative friend Kate to come rescue me. Now that I am living 750 miles away I’m going to have to learn how to do these things myself!)

 Boston Lager Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 1 stick butter
  • 1 1/4 C sugar
  • 1/4 C cocoa powder
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 C Boston Lager beer
  • 1/2 C water
  • 1 3/4 C flour
  • 3/4 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter and sugar. Add eggs one at a time until combined. Mix in the beer and water until smooth.
  3. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and mix until combined.
  4. Fill lined cupcake trays 3/4 of the way full. Bake 15 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Makes about 1 1/2 dozen cupcakes.
  5. Allow cupcakes to cool before frosting. In a piping bag, place both vanilla buttercream on one side and chocolate buttercream on the other. Pipe over cooled cupcakes, creating a two-toned swirl. (Frosting recipes can be found here.)

*This recipe is modified from David at http://blogs.westword.com/cafesociety/2010/04/beer_cupcakes_and_beer_milksha.php *

Sam Adams Cupcakes

Don’t forget to enter our giveaway and be sure to check out the other bloggers who posted more tailgating recipes today:

Starters
Sweet Cornbread Mini-Muffins with a Chile Pepper Kick by OnTheMove-In the Galley
Pretzel Bites with Hot & Spicy El Diablo Mango Mustard by Making Miracles

Mains
Homemade Honey Mustard Chipotle Chicken Bites by Love and Confections
Beer Cheese Brat Chowder by Cheese Curd In Paradise
Ducky Joes by A Day in the Life on the Farm
Ducky 13 Bean Soup by The Not So Cheesy Kitchen
13 Bean Chili by Miss Laura’s Kitchen
Za’atar Spiced Cashews by The Girl In The Little Red Kitchen

Chicken & Potato Stir Fry on the Grill by Debbi Does Dinner Healthy

El Diablo Spicy Wood Smoked Pork Butt by CafeTerraBlog
Grilled Lemongrass Lamb by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Sides
Grilled Clash of the Seasons Panzanella by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Shirley Temple Cupcakes

~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

In the world of sweets, cupcakes have been the dominating dessert for quite some time now. And one of the popular trends is to turn a favorite beverage into a cupcake flavor. There are countless margarita cupcakes, Guinness cupcakes, and cupcakes using soda.

Kate and I decided to take our favorite mocktail and turn it into a cupcake. It’s such a fun cupcake and would be adorable to use in February for Valentine’s Day, for a summer party, or any little girl’s birthday.

Shirley Temple Cupcakes

Ingredients for the cupcakes:

  • 1 1/2 C plus 1 tbsp flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2 eggs, at room temperature
  • 1/2 C cherry 7-up, at room temperature
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp almond extract
  • 1 tbsp maraschino cherry juice
  • red food coloring (optional)

Ingredients for the frosting:

  • 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2 1/2 C powdered sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp almond extract
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp maraschino cherry juice

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake tray with paper liners.
  2. In a bowl, 1 1/2 C flour, baking powder, and salt.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time until incorporated.
  4. Add one third of the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Add half of the cherry 7-up. Repeat until dry ingredients and soda are used (ending with the dry).
  5. Add the vanilla and almond extracts.
  6. In a small bowl, mix 3/4 C of the cake batter with the remaining 1 tbsp flour, maraschino cherry juice, and food coloring.
  7. Distribute the red cake batter between 12 cupcakes. Top with remaining batter – do not mix.
  8. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool.
  9. Meanwhile, make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and pinch of salt. Add the vanilla and almond extracts, the lemon juice, and maraschino cherry juice. Frost cupcakes.
  10. Garnish with maraschino cherries and a a straw!

*This recipe is adapted from Shanon at http://www.thecurvycarrot.com/2011/06/26/shirley-temple-cupcakes/*

Shirley Temple Cupcakes

Blog-iversary

~ lk529 ~ 9 Comments

1yrToday is my blog’s anniversary! I can’t believe it’s been a year.  In my first year I have gained 132 followers and 113 Facebook friends. I’ve really enjoyed blogging. I will admit that I hit a spell in my first trimester of pregnancy when I was questioning my desire to continue with Sew You Think You Can Cook. Blame the hormones and exhaustion.

But I’m glad I stuck it out. I’ve met some great bloggers through The Crazy Ingredient Challenge, #BundtBakers, and Secret Recipe Club. I think joining in these link parties has brought me the most joy. It’s been nice to expand my horizons and get creative in the kitchen. In fact, I just joined another group – Foodie Extravaganza!

For my blog-iversary I decided to try something that’s always intrigued me. Using olive oil in baking. These cupcakes are beautiful – The olive oil gave them a nice golden color and the edges had a little bit of crisp to them which I adored. They’re not overly sweet so the cream cheese frosting accompanied them perfectly. I typically find icing to push cake over the top on sweetness level. I brought them to work and they were gone before lunch!

Olive Oil Cupcakes

Ingredients for cupcakes:

  • 1 1/4 C cake flour
  • 1 C sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 6 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 C sour cream
  • 1/4 C milk

Ingredients for frosting:

  • 1 stick butter, softened
  • 4 oz cream cheese, softened
  • 2 C powdered sugar

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a cupcake tin, or line with cupcake liners.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer mix the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Add the olive oil and vanilla and beat until combined. Add the eggs one at a time, until fully incorporated. Add the sour cream until combined. Add the milk. Mix until batter is smooth.
  3. Place cupcake batter into prepared cupcake tin. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow cupcakes to cool.
  4. Make the frosting: Cream together butter and cream cheese. Add the powdered sugar in two installments. Beat until smooth. Add milk 1/4 tsp at a time if needed (I didn’t need it).

*This recipe is adapted from Brita at http://www.bakingisascience.com/lemon-lime-olive-oil-cupcakes/*

Olive Oil Cupcakes