IronCupcake_012: Marbled Lavender & Honey Cupcakes

Iron Cupcake:Earth_012
Theme: Herbs
My entry: Marbled Lavender & Honey Cupcakes
Voting begins: Tuesday, July 28 @ http://www.ironcupcakemilwaukee.com/ and will be open through Wednesday, August 5 at 12 noon Central.

Another last minute Iron Cupcake entry! Man, I gotta work on completing the Iron Cupcake challenge before the end of the month! Anyway, I made these Tuesday night for wing night. I knew I wanted to use lavender as my herb of choice, but I was worried the flavor would be overpowering. No way! I added some crushed lavender leaves to a basic vanilla cupcake recipe, and I ended up with a delicate, lavender-scented cupcake! To make them even fancier, I divided the batter and colored some of it purple. I swirled it into the white batter to give it a marbled look. Then for the frosting, I made a very simple buttercream with some honey added to it. It was just enough to accent the lavender flavor without overpowering it. These are probably the prissiest, most delicate cupcakes I've ever made. But don't let the dainty appearance fool you because they are DELICIOUS! ;D

Pretty marbled cupcakes... Oh btw, all of you searching for the perfect domed cupcake recipe... I FOUND IT! Marbled Lavender Cupcakes... Want a bite????? ;P

Marbled Lavender Cupcakes (adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes)
Makes 16

1 3/4 cups cake flour (not self-rising), sifted
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup milk, room temperature
1/3 cup heavy cream, room temperature
2 tablespoons lavender leaves, finely chopped
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Honey Frosting (my own recipe)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon heavy cream
Food coloring, optional

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Combine milk and cream.
2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream chopped lavender, butter and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two addi­tions of milk mixture, and beating until combined.
3. Measure out 1 cup batter, and transfer to another bowl. Stir purple food coloring into reserved 1 cup batter.
4. Fill prepared cups with alternating spoonfuls of white and purple batter, filling each three-quarters full. Run the tip of a paring knife or wooden skewer through batter in a figure-eight motion to make swirls. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until tops are golden and a cake tes­ter inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes (Mine were done at about 18 minutes). Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.
5. To make frosting, combine all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on low until combined. Increase speed to high and whip for 1 minute.

Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 5
Tenderness: 5
Frosting: 5 (mmm... honey!)



Prizes provided by Etsy artists:
A sweet cupcake ID bracelet by INSANEJELLYFISH
A delicious treat from CIRCLEMONKEY
Also, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice!
SWEET CUPPIN CAKES CUPCAKERY will be tossing in sweet surprise.
Corporate prize providers:
HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS
HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
JESSIE STEELE APRONS
CUPCAKE COURIER
TASTE OF HOME books
UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers

GUESS WHO TOTALLY WON IRON CUPCAKE THIS MONTH!!

ME! Yes, me, Cassie Jean Baker! See.... http://www.ironcupcakemilwaukee.com/2009/07/ice011summer-berries-we-have-winner.html

Wooooo hooooo!!!! Go Cassie! Go Cassie! I never would've had a chance if Sandy (the mastermind behind the whole Iron Cupcake challenge) hadn't changed the voting rules recently. For every vote you get, your name goes into a drawing. That way everyone has a chance to win, not just the popular blogs that get all the votes. Thanks to everyone who voted for my "Not-So-Blue-Berry" Cupcakes! And thanks to Sandy for hosting the best baking contest on the internet AND all over the world! I can't wait to get started on this month's challenge, herbs! My basil plant is gonna hate me by the end of this month! Muahahaha! :D

PS: I must be having some incredible luck this month! Just last week I found out I won the contest at warmolives.blogspot.com for the cookbook "Cooking with All Things Trader Joe's!" There's a brand new Trader Joe's right across the street from Just Cupcakes (the new cupcakery I work at). So I'm excited to do some grocery shopping and cook up something great from the cookbook as soon as it arrives!

IronCupcake_011: Not-So-Blue-Berry Cupcakes

Iron Cupcake:Earth_011
Theme: Summer Berries
My entry: Not-So-Blue-Berry Cupcakes
Voting begins: Sunday, June 28 @ http://www.ironcupcakemilwaukee.com/ and will be open through Monday, July 6 at 12 noon Central.

This post is about blueberry cupcakes, but I need to get this rant off my chest first. It's directed to supermarket butter brands. Most people who use butter often have noticed that brands distinguish their salted butter from their unsalted butter by making the writing on the wrappers either red or blue. But why is it that some brands use red on unsalted butter and other brands use blue on unsalted butter?? It gets extremely confusing when I have more than one brand of butter in the fridge. Here's an example: While I was making these blueberry cupcakes I reached in the fridge and grabbed a stick of unsalted butter (not in it's box). The writing was red, and I clearly saw UNSALTED BUTTER on the label. So when I went to make the frosting I grabbed the other two sticks with red writing on them. I assume they're also unsalted because they're red. How shocked was I when I tasted the frosting and it was SALTY!?!?! I looked in the trash can, and sure enough, it was a different brand of butter and it was salted. So, supermarket butter brands, I urge you to please do your part to prevent future baking disasters. Create a general rule that all unsalted butter will be in a blue wrapper, and all salted butter will be in a red wrapper. THANKS!

Now on to the Not-So-Blue-Berry Cupcakes. I gave them that name because blueberries aren't really blue. They're purple. It's cool if you don't believe me. You probably missed that episode of Food Detectives. Anyway, these purple-berry cupcakes are absolutely delicious. I was afraid they would taste like a blueberry muffin with frosting on top, but they don't. They totally make a name for themselves as a cupcake. The frosting is Swiss meringue buttercream (of course) with Braswell's Select blueberry preserves mixed in. Btw, Braswell's Select is my favorite brand of all jams, jellies, preserves, marmalades, you name it! You can usually find it at Marshall's and TJ Maxx for a great price. My all time favorite is the seedless black raspberry. Mmm it's the best!

Anyway, I digress. This is my almost-late entry for IronCupcake:Earth_Summer Berries challenge! I realized it's not the most creative cupcake ever. I planned on using blackberries from the bush in our yard. I waited as long as I could, but the blackberries weren't quite ripe enough to make the deadline!
Blueberry Cupcakes (from Crazy About Cupcakes by Krystina Castella)
Makes 14-16 cupcakes
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Insert liners into a regular muffin pan.
With an electric mixer on medium speed, cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs (one at a time) to the creamed mixture and beat well.
In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Beat portions of the dry ingredients into the cream mixture alternating with the milk. Mix for 3 minutes (I don’t know why the recipe says this. It’s not a good idea. I only mixed until the flour was almost fully incorporated.). With a spatula, fold in the vanilla and blueberries.
Fill cupcake liners 1/2 to 3/4 full with batter. Bake for 20-25 minutes (mine were done at 18) or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in the pan.

Blueberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream (my own recipe)
Makes enough to generously frost about 16 cupcakes
4 egg whites
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but cool
1 cup blueberry preserves
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Put egg whites and sugar into the top of a double boiler over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is hot (about 160 degrees).
Pour heated egg whites into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg white mixture on high speed until it forms stiff peaks. Continue beating until fluffy and cooled, about 7 minutes. While mixture is beating, bring the blueberry preserves to a simmer in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the pulp. Set aside the blueberry liquid to cool to room temperature.
Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on medium, add cool butter two tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. Increase speed to medium-high; continue beating until frosting appears thick, about 3 minutes. It may go through a soupy, curdled-looking phase, but it will come together. Reduce speed to low; add cooled blueberry liquid and vanilla extract and continue beating about 2 minutes to combine.

Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 5
Tenderness: 5
Frosting: 5 (even with salted butter!)



Prizes provided by Etsy artists:
A sweet cupcake ID bracelet by INSANEJELLYFISH
A groovy linocut piece from BLOCKHEAD PRESS
Also, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice!
SWEET CUPPIN CAKES CUPCAKERY will be tossing in sweet surprise.
Corporate prize providers:
HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS
HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
JESSIE STEELE APRONS
CUPCAKE COURIER
TASTE OF HOME books
UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers

IronCupcake_010: Sam Adams Beer Bread "Cupcakes" w/ Beer Cheese "Frosting"

Iron Cupcake:Earth_010
Theme: Savory
My entry: Sam Adams Beer Bread "Cupcakes" w/ Beer Cheese "Frosting"
Voting begins: Saturday, May 30 @ http://www.ironcupcakemilwaukee.com/ and will be open through Friday, June 5 at 12 noon Central.

I'll admit when I first saw that the IC:E theme for the month was "savory" I was dissapointed. I'm not really a cook. I can cook, but I don't enjoy it as much as I enjoy baking desserts and sweet things. So the thought of making salty food shaped like a cupcake seemed bleh to me. But then it came to me... something I've always wanted to make... actually TWO things I've always wanted to make... and they would be very easy to make into a cupcake shape... BEER BREAD AND BEER CHEESE! Yes! It's a match made in heaven. I made the beer bread "cupcakes" using a quickbread recipe. Then I googled the basics of beer cheese and came up with my own recipe for the "frosting." While most people prefered to just dip pretzels into the beer cheese, the overall consensus was that these savory cupcakes are awesome!

PS: Check out the product placement in EVERY photo! *Ahem* Sam Adams, I'm expecting a paycheck soon! You're welcome!

I used Summer Ale in both the "cupcakes" and the "frosting." It was perfect! Boozed up cupcakes ready to be baked!
Cooling and smelling like yeast bread!
Like my makeshift breadbasket? A pyrex bowl and a lint-free dish towel!
Yum!!

Beer Bread "Cupcakes" (adapted from Beer Bread I recipe @ allrecipes.com)
3 cups self-rising flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 12-ounce beer, bottled or canned

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray.
In a large bowl, mix together flour and sugar. Add beer and stir with a wooden spoon until blended. Divide the batter evenly among the 12 muffin cups.
Bake for 13-15 minutes, or until tops are crunchy and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove "cupcakes" from pan. Serve warm or let them cool on a wire rack.

Beer Cheese "Frosting" (my own recipe)
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
2 cups (8 ounces) sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 garlic clove, minced
Pinch of cracked black pepper
1/2 cup beer, at room temperature

Using a hand mixer, blend the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, garlic, and black pepper. Slowly add the beer. Mix on low speed to incorporate. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.



Prizes provided by Etsy artists:
A sweet cupcake ID bracelet by INSANEJELLYFISH
Something sweet and dangly from CHERRYCREEKCHARMS
Also, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice!
SWEET CUPPIN CAKES CUPCAKERY will be tossing in sweet surprise.
Corporate prize providers:
HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS
HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
JESSIE STEELE APRONS
CUPCAKE COURIER
TASTE OF HOME books
UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers

IronCupcake_008: Spumoni Cupcakes

Iron Cupcake:Earth_008
Theme: Nuts & Seeds
My 1st entry: Spumoni Cupcakes
Voting begins: Sunday, March 29 at 8 pm Central @ http://www.ironcupcakemilwaukee.com/ and will be open through Friday, April 3 at 12 noon Central.


I've been wanting to make cupcakes with pistachios for a long time, and when I saw that this month's Iron Cupcake theme is "Nuts & Seeds" I knew it was the perfect excuse! It only took a few minutes to come up with a delicious flavor combination. My inspiration comes from a popular Italian ice cream flavor called spumoni. The main flavors are chocolate, pistachio, and a fruit flavor which is usually cherry. For the cupcake version I made a two-tone chocolate and cherry cupcake with pistachio Swiss meringue buttercream. Formulating a recipe for the pistachio buttercream was harder than I thought. I googled for a recipe, but I couldn't find one. Surely, I'm not the first person to think of pistachio buttercream! I found a few articles that talked about using store-bought pistachio paste to flavor cakes, but I have never seen pistachio paste anywhere. I decided to make my own and blend it into a batch of my SMBC. It worked perfectly! You could definitely taste the pistachio flavor in the buttercream, and it went very nicely with the chocolate and cherry cupcake. Josh loves pistachios but isn't a huge fan of chocolate, and he LOVED these cupcakes! He texted me from work this morning just to make sure there would be another one here waiting for him when he comes over tonight. :D

Two-tone cupcakes cooling... The pistachio paste looks... unappetizing... =/ May I introduce Mr. Spumoni Cupcake! And his insides...He might have a drinking problem...Meet the family too!

Spumoni Cupcakes
MY NOTES: Measure out the ingredients for both batters first. This way you don't have the first batter sitting out for a long time while you make the second one. My cupcakes were done at 16 minutes.

Two-Tone Chocolate and Cherry Cupcakes
Prepare both cherry and chocolate batters (directions below); fill muffin cups with 3 tablespoons of each, side by side. Makes 24.

(If you make one cherry batter and one chocolate batter, you'll have enough for 24 cupcakes; If you split this recipe and make 1/2 cherry batter and 1/2 chocolate batter, you'll get 12 cupcakes. It sounds like common sense, but it was confusing at first.)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon cherry (or raspberry) flavoring
1/2 cup whole milk
1/4 cup chopped cherries (canned or frozen/thawed)

For Chocolate Cupcakes
Add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Reduce flour to 1 1/4 cups, and add 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder. Whisk into dry ingredients.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a standard 12-cup muffin pan, or use paper liners. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
With an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; add cherry flavoring and mix until combined. On low speed, beat in half the flour mixture, followed by milk; end with remaining flour mixture and chopped cherries. Mix just until incorporated (do not overmix).
Fill muffin cups with 3 tablespoons of each batter, side by side (I used a #30 disher with a scant scoop of batter for each half). Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, 20 to 22 minutes (Check them at 16 minutes). Cool cupcakes in pan, 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Sweetened Pistachio Paste
Makes about 1 cup

1 cup pistachios, skins removed (if pistachios are salted, rinse them well)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup hot water

In a food processor, grind pistachios and sugar until it becomes a fine meal. With the processor still running, Slowly add hot water, one tablespoon at a time scraping the bowl often, until a thick but spreadable paste forms. Transfer to a bowl and press plastic wrap against the surface. Cool to room temperature.

Pistachio Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Makes about 4 cups

4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, cut into tablespoons
Sweetened pistachio paste, to taste
Green food coloring (optional)

Put egg whites and sugar into the top of a double boiler over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm (about 160 degrees).
Pour heated egg whites into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg white mixture on high speed until it forms stiff (but not dry) peaks. Continue beating until fluffy and cooled, about 7 minutes.
Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on medium-low, add butter two tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. Increase speed to medium-high; continue beating until frosting appears thick, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low; add 1/4 cup pistachio paste and mix until incorporated. Add more if a stronger flavor is desired (I used about 1/2 cup).



Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 5
Tenderness: 5
Frosting: 5

Prizes provided by Etsy artists:
A Bunnycake Easter Plushie by DOGBONEART
A whimsical piece by CAKEASAURUS
A pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES
Also, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice!
SWEET CUPPIN CAKES BAKERY AND CUPCAKERY SUPPLY will be tossing in a collection of all new printed cupcake liners, 200 in all.
Corporate prize providers:
HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS
HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
JESSIE STEELE APRONS
CUPCAKE COURIER
TASTE OF HOME books
UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers

IronCupcake_007: Scharffen Berger Crater Cakes w/ Homemade Ice Cream

Iron Cupcake:Earth
Theme: Coffee
My 2nd entry: Scharffen Berger Crater Cakes w/ Homemade Ice Cream
Voting begins: Sunday, March 1 at 8 pm Central @ http://mkecupcakequeen.blogspot.com/ and will be open through Friday, March 6 at 12 noon Central.

For my second IronCupcake:Earth entry this month, I knew I wanted to use the homemade coffee ice cream I made last week. I had a bag of Scharffen Berger tasting squares laying around, and because I rarely eat chocolate on it's own, I decided to bake with it. I made Martha Stewart's sunken chocolate cupcakes, but I added some coffee to really boost the chocolate flavor. Right before serving these, I topped them with a scoop of coffee ice cream and a drizzle of caramel. They were perfect! The creaminess of the ice cream paired well with the deep, dark chocolate flavor of the cupcakes. I think next time I'll substitute at least half of the bittersweet chocolate for semi-sweet, because the cupcakes were slightly bitter on their own. Sadly, I ran out of coffee ice cream before I could snap a photo. Oops! I guess the "wing nighters" really liked it! The ice cream pictured on the cupcake is chocolate cookies & cream.

I found these at TJ Maxx! Egg whites ready to be folded into the thick, shiny chocolate batter...
I just barely got eleven!
They puff up in the oven and sink drastically as they cool.
Hello IronCupcake #2!

Scharffen Berger Crater Cakes
Makes 10-12
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut in pieces
5 ounces Scharffen Berger (or other good quality brand) bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
1/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs, separated, plus 2 large egg yolks
Coffee Ice Cream
Caramel ice cream topping (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick spray; set aside.
Place butter, chocolate, and instant coffee in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir occasionally, until melted and thoroughly combined. Remove from heat; set aside.
Combine the 4 egg yolks with 2 tablespoons sugar. With a handmixer on high, beat until the mixture is pale yellow and thick. Stir in the melted chocolate mixture.
With a hand mixer on high, beat the 2 egg whites until soft peaks form, add remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, and beat until stiff and shiny but not dry. Fold into chocolate mixture. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, and bake until set and slightly springy to the touch, 14-16 minutes. Remove from oven, and transfer to a wire rack. Allow to cool for 5 minutes in pan; carefully run a knife around edges of cakes, and unmold. Serve each with a scoop of coffee ice cream and a drizzle of caramel sauce.



Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 5
Tenderness: 5
Frosting Ice Cream: 5

Prizes provided by Etsy artists:
DIANAEVANS
A pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES
Also, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice!
SWEET CUPPIN CAKES BAKERY AND CUPCAKERY SUPPLY will be tossing in another treat as well.
Corporate prize providers:
HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS
HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
JESSIE STEELE APRONS
CUPCAKE COURIER
TASTE OF HOME books
UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers

IronCupcake_007: Mocha Cappucino Hi-Hats

Iron Cupcake:Earth
Theme: Coffee
My entry: Mocha Cappucino Hi-Hats
Voting begins: Sunday, March 1 at 8 pm Central @ http://mkecupcakequeen.blogspot.com/ and will be open through Friday, March 6 at 12 noon Central.


These cupcakes are freakin good! I'm not just saying that. It was the consensus Tuesday night from every "wing nighter" that these are the best cupcakes I've ever served. Hurray! That makes them a perfect contender for my first (you hear that right, FIRST) entry for IronCupcake: Earth this month! I started with my favorite chocolate cupcakes, Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" cupcakes. I added about a tablespoon of instant coffee granules to the batter. Then I topped the cupcakes with Swiss meringue (just the meringue... not buttercream), to which I added more instant coffee granules. To finish them off, I dunked them in melted chocolate. This was my first time making hi-hats, and I had heard horror stories about the frosting falling off into the chocolate. Luck was on my side, though, because I didn't lose any frosting to the chocolate pit of death!

My meringue got a little grainy, OOPS! *DUN DUN DUN* Chocolate pit of death!
Hurray for bad lighting!
Meet Mr. Mocha Cappucino Hi-Hat!
Isn't he fancy??

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Cupcakes (I halved this and got exactly 15)
Makes 30 regular cupcakes OR 96 mini cupcakes

2 cups sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water (I dissolved 1 Tbsp of instant coffee into the boiling water for half a recipe)

Line muffin cups with paper baking cups. Heat oven to 350°F.
Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Fill cups 2/3 full with batter.
Bake 18-22 minutes (mine were done at 17) or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely on wire rack before frosting.

Coffee Meringue (adapted from Cupcakes! by Elinor Klivans)
Makes enough for 15-18 cupcakes

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
3 egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1 Tbsp hot water
2 tsp instant coffee granules

Put sugar, water, egg whites, and cream of tartar into the top of a double boiler over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm (about 160 degrees). Pour heated egg whites into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg white mixture on high speed until it forms stiff (but not dry) peaks, about 7 minutes. Meanwhile, stir instant coffee into hot water until dissolved. Reduce mixer speed to low and add coffee mixture.

Chocolate Coating (This makes a LOT, but you need the chocolate to be deep enough to dip all the cupcakes)
2 cups (12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil

Put the chocolate and oil in a heatproof bowl or the top of a double boiler and place it over a pot of barely simmering water. Stir until the chocolate is just melted. Scrape it into a bowl and cool slightly, about 15 minutes.



Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 5
Tenderness: 5
Frosting: 5

Prizes provided by Etsy artists:
DIANAEVANS
A pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES
Also, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice!
SWEET CUPPIN CAKES BAKERY AND CUPCAKERY SUPPLY will be tossing in another treat as well.
Corporate prize providers:
HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS
HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
JESSIE STEELE APRONS
CUPCAKE COURIER
TASTE OF HOME books
UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers

IronCupcake_006: Sangria Chiffon Cupcakes

Iron Cupcake:Earth
Theme: Wine
My entry: Sangria Chiffon Cupcakes
Voting begins: Thursday, January 29 at 8 pm Central @ http://mkecupcakequeen.blogspot.com and will be open through Wednesday, February 4 at 12 noon Central.


I love freeing my mind of the daunting task of having to decide which cupcakes to make for IronCupcake:Earth. You guys always pull through and vote for the yummiest one in the poll! This time you picked Pomegranate Sangria Cupcakes. I had a little problem in the beginning. When I went to the grocery store, there wasn't any Pom juice to be found! They usually have it in the produce department, but I couldn't locate it anywhere! I bought a bottle of pomegranate cherry juice on the regular juice aisle. I didn't have high hopes for using it in a recipe, but at least I'd give it a try. I boiled it down and substituted it for the water in the chiffon cake recipe. But the flavor was totally unnoticeable in the cupcake. I ended up with what I'm calling Sangria Chiffon Cupcakes. I added some lemon and orange zest to the batter. While they were still hot out of the oven, I poked them with a fork and brushed some sweet red wine on the tops. I frosted the with SMBC flavored with more zest and the juice from the fruit. I tinted it kinda wine-colored just to play with the whole "sangria" idea.

Reducing the pomegranate cherry juice Ingredients for the citrus chiffon cupcakes
I just love ribboned egg yolks... :)
Chiffon batter ready to be baked...

Shout out to the citrus hangin in the back!And apparently I need practice with mixing chiffon batter...
I was just so afraid of overmixing!
Here are my drunk Sangria Chiffon Cupcakes!

I used Alton Brown's recipe for chiffon cupcakes. I've had that episode of Good Eats saved on my DVR for like a year. However, the recipe really let me down. I encountered two MAJOR problems with it. I've read a few other blogs that have used this recipe and wonder how they missed these problems. Anyway, here is what I noticed. First, there is entirely WAY too much salt in this recipe. When I tasted a cupcake, every bite has a crunch of kosher salt in it. Very unappetizing. Second, the baking time is double what it needs to be. Half an hour for cupcakes is rediculous. Mine were done at 15 minutes. Good thing I'm insane about constantly checking on my baked goods. I practically babysit them at the oven door. Here is the recipe from FoodNetwork.com. My comments are in orange italics, as always.

Chiffon Cupcakes
Makes 24

5 1/4 ounces cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt (Way too much! I'd say reduce to 1/2 teaspoon and use table salt)
5 large eggs, separated
6 ounces sugar, divided
1/4 cup water (I subbed reduced fruit juice... didn't really do much flavor-wise though)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I omitted)
Zest of 1/2 a lemon and 1/2 an orange (My addition)
5/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Place paper liners into 2 (12-cup) muffin tins and set aside. If you prefer, set 12 ovenproof coffee mugs on a half sheet pan and set aside.
In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
Place the egg yolks and 5 ounces of the sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk on high for 2 minutes or until the mixture becomes pale yellow and 'ribbons' when lifted. Add the water, vegetable oil and vanilla and whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients and whisk just to combine (Don't mix the flour all the way in! You'll do more mixing in the next step, and you don't want the flour overmixed!). Transfer the batter to a mixing bowl while you whisk the egg whites.
Place the egg whites and cream of tartar into a clean bowl and whisk on high using the whisk attachment, until it becomes foamy. Decrease the speed to low and gradually add the remaining ounce of sugar. Increase speed to high and continue whisking until stiff peaks form, approximately 2 minutes.
Transfer 1/3 of the egg whites to the batter and whisk until well combined. Add the remaining egg whites and fold in gently. Transfer batter into prepared muffin tins or coffee mugs, evenly dividing the batter between the cups. Place both muffin tins on the middle rack of the oven or, if using mugs, place all of them on a half sheet pan and set on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake for 30 minutes (Mine only needed 15 mins, so check them early!), until a toothpick comes out clean or the cupcakes reach an internal temperature of 205 to 210 degrees F. Remove from the oven to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before frosting.

Citrus-Scented Swiss Meringue Buttercream (My recipe)
Makes enough to generously frost 24-30 cupcakes

5 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, cut into tablespoons
Zest (finely chopped) and juice of half an orange and half a lemon

Put egg whites and sugar in a glass bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture reads 160 degrees on a candy thermometer.
Pour into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg white mixture on high speed until it forms stiff peaks. Continue beating until fluffy and cooled, 7-10 minutes.
Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on medium-low, add butter several tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. (If frosting appears to separate after all butter has been added, beat on high speed until it thickens, 3 to 5 minutes). Beat in zest and juice. Color, if desired. Reduce speed to low; beat 2 minutes to eliminate air bubbles. Stir with a rubber spatula until smooth.

Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 4
Tenderness: 3 (My fault, I haven't mastered chiffon!)
Frosting: 5

Prizes provided by Etsy artists:
DOGBONE ART (I have their sticker on my car!)
A pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES
Also, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice!
As an added bonus for January SWEET CUPPIN CAKES BAKERY AND CUPCAKERY SUPPLY will be tossing in another treat as well.
Corporate prize providers:
HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS
HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
JESSIE STEELE APRONS
CUPCAKE COURIER
TASTE OF HOME books
UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers