A Simple Classic

Today is one of the first days in this spring to actually feel like spring. The sun is finally shining here in Germany and it was missed dearly. This weekend has been terribly busy, we went to a BBQ Saturday that turned into a retirement party for my wonderful husband. He has faithfully served 21 years in the military and I couldn't be more proud of him. Since we were planning on attending the BBQ already, I naturally made 2 dozen cupcakes. Today is also Easter and my fathers birthday, we have so much to celebrate this weekend. I originally wanted to make Strawberry Rhubarb Cupcakes (a take on my father's favorite pie) but I couldn't find any rhubarb around these parts yet so those will just have to wait for warmer weather. Instead, I thought I'd make an old classic, Yellow Cake with Vanilla Butter Cream. I got a new large round tip and thought I'd give it a try. 

Yellow Cake 
Makes 24 cupcakes 

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup butter or stick margarine, softened

1 1/4 cups whole milk (I used 1 % milk since that's all we have in the house)

3 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt 

1 tsp vanilla (I used 2 tsp because I love vanilla flavor)

3 large eggs

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Mix all ingredients together and fill each cup 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until tops spring back when pressed. 

**For a peanut butter cake, substitute peanut butter for butter in the recipe. 

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

3 cups powder sugar 

1/3 cup butter or stick margarine, softened

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

1 to 2 Tbsp milk 

Mix powder sugar and butter in medium bowl with electric mixer on low speed. Mix in vanilla and 1 tablespoon of milk. Gradually beat in just enough remaining milk to make frosting smooth and spreadable. 

Review

These cupcakes turned out to be a hit at the BBQ! I really enjoyed the richness and flavor of the cake and the frosting. The frosting was smooth, silky, and fluffy all at the same time. I will definitely be making these again, they would be great for an engagement party or even a cupcake tower at a wedding. 

Peanut Butter Belgian Waffle Cupcakes

One of my favorite breakfast meals is waffles. Specifically I love spreading peanut butter over my waffles and then topping it all with maple syrup. I know, it sounds super rich and it is but this particular meal got me through many mornings during basic training. Whenever I eat this meal it brings me back to the cold mornings of Missouri; rushing to get as much food as possible before the drill sergeants tell us we're finished. It doesn't sound like it would be a fond memory but strangely it is, meal time was one of the only times during basic, for me, that I felt like a normal person. Even though I was eating faster than normal, just sitting down and having a quiet breakfast was almost refreshing and mentally prepared me for my day ahead. 

The other day while enjoying a plateful of waffles, I decided that this breakfast needed a makeover. I used a recipe from Youngmarriedchic.com for the cake portion that I found on Pinterest but I made a few changes. I also made a Peanut Butter frosting and it turned out to be one of the best things I've ever made. I even used one of my decorating tips that I have never used before and I think overall they turned out great! 

Belgian Waffle Cake Recipe

(Makes about 17 regular sized cupcakes)

2 cups flour

3 tablespoons sugar (I think next time I will add 2 more tablespoons) 

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon Salt 

3 tablespoons melted butter 

1 large egg

1 teaspoons vanilla*

*I used 2 teaspoons of vanilla plus a dash of cinnamon and nutmeg. 

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Line a cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Ladle batter into cupcake liners 1/2 - 3/4 full. Bake at 350 for 15 - 20 minutes or until tops spring back. 

Peanut Butter Frosting 

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup confectioners sugar, sifted

5 tablespoons butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup heavy cream 

Combine first five ingredients with a mixer on low. Once combined thoroughly, add heavy cream and mix on high until frost is light and fluffy. 

I used a #199 Wilton open star tip for piping the frosting on. 

Review

I was looking for a nostalgic feeling with these cupcakes but for me, they never lived up to the standard I had set for them. While they are delicious, especially the frosting, the Belgian waffle cake didn't turn out how I had hoped. Half of the cake stuck to the cupcake liner and it tasted more like crepes than waffles. I absolutely love crepes but I was wanting more of a waffle taste. I think with two more scoops of sugar the cake mix would have been a lot better. 

I wouldn't change a thing about the frosting, it couldn't have turned out better. After I finished piping all of the cupcakes, we all took turns squeezing the extra frosting into our mouths. It was that good!

The Tip of the Icing

Before we left in June 2010 to come live in Germany I made a few essential purchases. One that only a person in love with baking would. One of the items I purchased was a "starter kit" of decorating tips. The kit includes 26 Wilton decorating tips plus a coupler and one flower nail. This really is a great set if you're starting out into the world of cake decorating. It gives you a variety so you can really experiment.

I love it so much, but I also have a lot of anxiety towards this set. I have probably only used about five or six of the tips because frankly, I did not know what the other tips could do or would look like. I haven't used any of the other ones because I really don't have the time to take each set, hook it up with a pastry bag and make pretty doodles all day. Instead I used my old friend technology! I went to the handy Google machine and what popped up? A perfect guide that had pictures of all the tips and what they look like after being piped. Lifesaver! Now I am no longer plagued with anxiety when trying to decide which tip would work best for my vision and I can also be a little more adventurous with my ideas! 

I hope you all find this guide as helpful as I have, I have broken each kind down into categories:

Drop Flower Tips

Closed Star Tips

Basket Weave Tips

Leaf Tips

Multi-Opening Tips

Open star Tips

Petal Tips

Round Tips

Ruffle Tips 

Specialty Tips

After looking through all of these different tips, I went and purchased a few extra, for you know, experiments! 

Jumping

Welcome to my first blog post! As the title suggests, I am jumping right in, and starting with one of my favorite cupcake recipes. Saturday morning was beautiful, still brisk from our latest cold snap here in Germany. Snow lightly covered the ground but the morning sun had me wishing for tulips, daffodils, and all types of spring flowers. With everything feeling like spring and all the festivals happening in the area, I decided that my Lemon Raspberry cupcakes were the way to go. I  was invited to a dear friends house for a dinner party and decided they would be perfect for dessert. Result? A-MAZING! 

I used a simple lemon cake recipe with a few adjustments and the frosting is cream cheese frosting mixed w/ raspberry preserves. 

The cake recipe I followed was:

3 cups self rising flour (I used All-purpose, because that was all I had)

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups white sugar

4 eggs at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons lemon zest

1 cup whole milk (I used 1% milk since we don't buy whole milk)

2 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 

I also added 1 teaspoon of lemon extract because I love the extra lemony flavor and this time of year lemons don't have the best flavor. 

Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting: 

2 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese, softened 

1/2 cup butter, softened 

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

3/4 cups raspberry preserves 

This frosting was a lot looser than usual because I used homemade raspberry preserves which had a little more liquid than store bought. I was unable to do anything fancy with the frosting. Nonetheless, I think the frosting turned out great! 

 I hope you enjoyed my first post and check back often to see what I'm baking up.