Cupcake Catastrophe

O.K. so maybe catastrophe is a strong word.  I'm sure I'm not the first baker to have a bad day and I won't be the last.  I was making blue velvet cupcakes to bring to a farewell potluck at work for a retiring coworker.  I found the recipe over on Sprinkle Bakes.  It's an older post that can be found here.  I could do a whole post on how other baking bloggers are so nice and share fun tips and recipes all the time.  I'm constantly one click away from major cupcake inspiration or advise.  Heather at Sprinkle Bakes is a perfect example!  She adapted her recipe from a Paula Deen recipe so you know it is going to be good.  I love Paula but did follow Heather's changes.  The recipe was easy enough to follow.  The blue color was awesome, just as bright as I expected.  It required enough royal blue coloring, so much so that I depleted my supply.  So I had 24 beautiful blue beauties (and 1 sampler on stand by) in the oven.  I couldn't wait to see how they turned out.  I just washed the bowl from my mixer and was returning it to the stand when I saw the strangest thing on the counter.  There sat 2 eggs.  I had not take out extra eggs nor did I need eggs for the frosting.  I forgot to add the eggs.  I repeat, I FORGOT TO ADD THE EGGS!  How could this happen?  How could I forget eggs that were resting there right next to my mixer?

There wasn't time to wait, wonder or blame.  I needed to remake the whole batch.  I've never had cupcakes without eggs.  I have no idea what they would have tasted like but wasn't in the mood to risk it.  Luckily for me, there is a baking supply store just minutes from my house where I was able to quickly pick up some more royal blue food coloring.  I could have done any color but my heart was already set on the blue and after seeing the vibrant color of the previous defunct batch, I knew I wanted to stick with the blue. 

The second batch went smoothly and came out a superb shade of blue.  The bottoms were slightly more done that I would have liked but the moistness was still there and they tasted great.

The cream cheese frosting was like batches I had made before and made elegant swirls atop these cupcakes.  I've found I like piping the frosting once the cupcakes are in the box.  The symmetrical look of each swirl starting and ending the same just looks even more exquisite.  I'm sure no one else thinks of that when they are digging in to sample but it's something I enjoy when possible.

I decided to top these beauties with simple candy stars made in a candy mold.  The taste and look of them nearly made me forget my earlier mishap.  Definitely a recipe I'll hang on to and make again.

On a positive note, I got a nice surprise in the mail today.  Last month while perusing my friend's blog, Mrs Mommy Booknerd, I stumbled upon Chick Lit Plus.  They were having a give-away.  Easy enough, I simply had to comment for a chance to win a copy of Stop and Blog the Roses.  I won!  It's one part entries from blogger Fern Ronay and one part gratitude journal.  Something great to start out the new year with.  This week I am grateful for the endless supply of baking inspiration available to me online.  I am also grateful for baking supply stores close to my home during cupcake catastrophes.

Happy New Year

2012 is off to a great start here at Tasty Sweet.  I've made 3 different varieties of cupcakes in the last couple of days.  I revisited a boozy favorite, Irish Car Bomb.  I also tried 2 new varieties, Neapolitan and Blue Velvet.  I'll blog more about them and their recipes in the future.  The pictures of the Neapolitan treats already caught the eye of one of my favorite cupcake sites, Cupcakes Take The Cake.  They featured them today, you can see their post here.  That may not seem like a big deal to some but it is a huge honor for me.  All I want to do with this blog is share my love of cupcakes and seeing my work featured on other sites helps to spread the cupcake love!  You can check out all my cupcake photos over on flickr.

Have a cupcake idea you'd like to see come to life in 2012?  Drop me an email, I'm always looking for inspiration.  I'm finding all sorts of inspiring ideas for cupcakes and just about anything you dream of over on Pinterest.  If you haven't checked it out yet, go.....go now!  I'm excited to see where this adventure takes me in 2012.  Thanks to my family and friends for the continued support.  I couldn't do any of this without any of them!

"Dear George: Remember no man is a failure who has friends.  Thanks for the wings!  Love, Clarence" ~ from my all time favorite movie, It's a Wonderful Life

A Very Cupcake Christmas

And just as fast as it came, Christmas was gone in a flash.  The baking, wrapping and preparing all worth it.  The smiles on the faces of loved ones, the text or call from those far away and the hugs from family not seen often enough.  I'm thinking this merriment should last into the new year, maybe even carry me through the winter.  If only we could bottle that feeling to last all year long.

My house smelled of cupcakes all week long.  Seven dozen cookies-n-cream were made in celebration of my sister's birthday.  I was happy she asked me to make her treat to bring to work.  I also made tiramisu cupcakes for the first time.  I had found this recipe here and only made a few slight changes.  I did not use a box mix of cake and instead started with a yellow cake recipe I had.  Within that recipe, I replaced some of the milk normally used with brandy.  I used 1/4 cup and it gave the cake a nice flavor without overpowering it or being too boozy.  This of course could be adjusted based on your like or dislike of brandy.  I wanted it added as I knew I was preparing these for a tiramisu connoisseur.  It seemed many of the cupcake recipes I found omitted the brandy or any kind of alcohol that was often called for in regular tiramisu recipes.  I then prepared the liquid coffee just as the recipe suggested.  I'm not one to usually have instant coffee on hand but since Starbucks has come out with handy instant packets of many of their fabulous roasts, I usually have a few laying around.  Three of those packets (I used Italian Roast Extra Bold) were just the right amount.  For future batches of these I will poke more and possibly larger holes for the coffee to soak into.

 




Next I prepared what the recipe intended for the "filling".  I felt that the small amount that would be injected into the cupcake would not be nearly enough fluffy, creamy goodness.  The recipe called for the filled cupcake to be topped with a buttercream, which I was told by a tiramisu loving friend would ruin the tiramisu-esque flavor of the cupcake.  So the filling (which is fabulous and could be a fantastic topping for ANY dessert) became my frosting.  With the light texture, I wasn't sure how well it would pipe on and  it definitely required a steady hand.  I used Wilton tip #2D.  I may experiment with different tips and piping techniques in the future.  A light dusting of cocoa powder was all that was needed atop  these delightful treats.  One dozen was sent off with a coworker for her Mom's birthday but I made extra for friends and family to sample.  A dear friend who has become the Tasty Sweet photographer took some pictures for me.  My sister even gave me an early Christmas present to use as a prop.  These cupcakes made cute passengers in my new ice skate cupcake stand.  The trio of cupcakes looks so inviting sitting next to a warm cup of coffee.

I finished out my week making 12 dozen mini peppermint hot chocolate cupcakes.  I was flattered that friends of mine wanted these cupcakes to share with their family, friends and coworkers during their Christmas celebrations.  I did keep 2 dozen to share with my family on Christmas Eve as promised!  I needed to get a shot of them all before being divided out as it as my biggest one day batch to date.

After all the baking was complete, I managed to finish shopping and wrapping gifts.  All that was left to do was enjoy, and that I did!  Wine, too much food and treats, gifts shared with family and friends and all around merriment.  I must have made Santa's nice list this year as I was spoiled with many wonderful gifts including many to inspire me in my cupcake adventures.  My parents surprised me with the creme de la creme of baking equipment, the KitchenAid Stand Mixer.  I had recently burnt out the motor of my hand mixer and was using my Mom's stand mixer this past week.  Needless to say, I am very excited to try out the mixer and all my other new supplies this week!  I'm posting a picture of the baking related items I received.  Yes, I know I am very lucky.  No, I'm not trying to brag.  When I look at this picture, I see the support of family and friends for this crazy cupcake dream of mine.  And that my friends is the best gift I could ever receive.  I am truly blessed.