Pink Lemonade Cupcakes I found this recipe at Daisycake's blog, and just had to try them. I baked up the cupcakes Thursday night, which I am very glad I did (more on that in another post). Such a pretty pale pink cake, only a pretty-princess-pink lemonade buttercream would do for frosting them. They taste wonderful too: the cake is moist, with a lovely bright lemonade flavor. Pink Lemonade Cupcakes Ingredients: 1 c. all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. baking soda Pinch salt 1/2 c. granulated sugar 1/4 c. vegetable oil 2 egg whites 1/3 c. thawed frozen Pink Lemonade Concentrate 1/4 c. buttermilk 2 or more drops red food coloring Preheat oven to 350 F. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites and lemonade concentrate. Scoop batter into liners (fill about three-fourths full). Lemonade Buttercream: 3 c. + 3 Tbsp. confectioner’s sugar 1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature 1/8 tsp. salt 2 Tbsp. pink lemonade concentrate
Homemade Funfetti Cupcakes So… this whole sprinkles thing. It’s kind of getting annoying, right? Look at me! I’m obsessed with sprinkles! So sprinkles it is. They are sort of like trashy gossip tabloids. And making homemade funfetti cupcakes. Don’t mind my crumbs. Homemade Funfetti Cupcakes makes 12 cupcakes 1/2 cup butter 1 cup sugar 2 whole eggs 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/3 cup milk 1/3 cup assorted brightly colored sprinkles + more for top of frosting Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Vanilla Buttercream 2 sticks of butter, softened 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar 1 tablespoon of milk, if needed Cream butter in the bowl of an electric mixture until completely smooth and creamy. If you come vacuum the trillions of sprinkles off my floors, I’ll love you forever.
Apple Rings With the hot summer months upon us, I have found myself buying container after container of fruit. Whether it be strawberries, blueberries or even apples, when it comes to summer I love to sit down with a big bowl of fruit and satisfy my sweet tooth. The best future sister-in-law ever went berry picking the other day while I was out of town. She came home with an over abundance of raspberries and cherries. Thoughts of syrups, tarts, scones, and muffins danced in my head...and the more ideas I came up with, the more I failed to realize that as I was brainstorming, I was also popping one raspberry after another into my mouth. At that point, I was back to square one...until I looked at the kitchen table and saw apples that were begging to be enjoyed. Next on my to do list? Apple Rings For the rings: Ingredients: What is your favorite way to bake with apples? * Recipe slightly adapted from Wikia.
Warm Toasted Marshmallow S'more Bars German Style Soft Pretzels Maybe it is my German background… or maybe my love of all things salty, but I think nothing is better than a hot pretzel. Soft pretzels are great, but they are only good fresh. Luckily they are not too tough to make at home. The following recipe may look long, but it is easier than making bread. We made a batch for a Octoberfest party we threw and they were a huge hit. In order to give the pretzels a dunk in boiling water gives them their chewy skin. Ingredients:1 teaspoon instant yeast1 tablespoon malt powder or brown sugar2 to 3 cups all-purpose unbleached or bread flour1 teaspoon salt1 cup warm milk (approximately 110 degrees, which is 1 minute in my microwave)Directions:Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix together until it forms a ball.
A brownie by any other name… Love brownies. Love their shiny, flaky top that shatters into micro-thin shards that shower onto your fingers as you eat. Love their dark, gooey center. Their “chocolate nirvana” flavor. Sometimes can’t deal with the bake, wait to cool, cutting into squares messiness and fuss of brownies. Every time I make these cookies (which, truth be told, is quite often), I think of a former colleague, Ana, who left King Arthur last year in order to be a full-time mom to her 2-year-old twins. The test kitchen bakers loved Ana. Ana still visits occasionally, 2-year-olds in tow. And when she does, she’ll invariably nose out any chocolate, and treat us to her classic reaction: “Perfect! These cookies are basically brownies: flat, round, 2 ½” brownies. First task: Combine the chocolate and butter. Melt in the microwave till softened… …then stir till smooth. Stir the chocolate into eggs and sugar, which you’ve beaten together. Refrigerate the batter for an hour; it’ll stiffen up nicely. Buy vs.
Banana Split Bites Banana Split Bites ~ A classic ice cream dessert gets mini for some bite size fun. And yes, there is actually a tiny scoop of ice cream tucked inside and underneath the whip cream of those little darlings. Banana Split Mini Bites For once I made something mini for portion control and not just for the cute factor. Keeping all things in mind what I served is what you see here. Here’s what wasn’t a hit and what I learned. Impromptu play dates with four kid’s ages 3-5 year olds after a full work day –not a good idea.Know in advance what other kids will and won’t eat. Luckily, dessert made all things right. No recipe just a few notes: Use firm bananas and cut into 1 inch sections. Leave a Comment
Hasselback Garlic Cheesy Bread Hasselback Garlic Cheesy Bread First thing: this Calphalon Giveaway ends on Friday! Enter enter enter! Second thing: this bread is the bomb. Last week, I got some evil Kerrygold Samples in the mail. Aw, shucks. What is a girl to do? To prevent myself from inhaling it all in a 24 hour period, I put some in the freezer, but then immediately thought of this bread I’ve been wanting to make. They hang out in my booty. {TMI? This bread is the very reason why I run. And believe it or not, this is super simple to make! So, that’s all the info you need to know, m’kay? First thing you’re going to want to do is grab all your ingredients. Into a mixer bowl, add in your water, yeast and honey. Once your yeast has gotten foamy, stir in the salt and the flour in 1/4 cup increments. Once the dough starts pulling away from the sides and the bowl is looking pretty clean, then it’s time to set the timer and walk away. 5 minutes later your dough should be tacky and smooth. And melt it down. Hello, lover. See?
Nutella-Mallow Pillow Pockets When I tell you this, take me very seriously…..run, don’t walk to your nearest grocery store and make these today! I knew I wanted to make a Nutella treat the other day and when this simple idea came to mind I had no idea how crazy good it would be! The pastry with the gooey disappearing marshmallow and nutella make for a treat that you just must try for yourself! Enjoy! Can you handle this line up?! Um….this stuff should be illegal. Ok, easy easy. Take a little fork and crimp those edges, nice and firm. Next, you’ll brush with an egg white wash and sprinkle with sugar, mmmmm! Get a load of this! I sprinkled mine with a little powdered sugar Oooey, gooey and delish! Nutella-Mallow Pillow Pockets 1 package puff pastry, 2 pastry sheets thawed 1 Cup Nutella spread 1 Cup mini marshmallows Egg white wash: 1 egg white whisked with 1 Tablespoon water Powdered sugar for dusting 1. 8 pockets Have a great new week! Other recipes you may enjoy...