Wednesday, January 30, 2013

A Little Piece of Heaven

I tried making an angel food cake once.  Yeah...let's just say it was NOT a success.  I have been intimidated ever since.  But with Valentine's Day just around the corner, I have been trying to come up with some delicious recipes to share.  I know I am going to make something with chocolate, because nothing says Valentine's Day like chocolate.  However, I kept coming back to Angel food cupcakes.  So, I went for the plunge and tried a new recipe-Angel Food Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream.  These little babies are literally a piece of Heaven-so light and sweet.  I think they will be a great alternative for those folks who don't like chocolate.

I opted for strawberry buttercream because it just seemed like the indulgent thing to do! However, I have a feeling some strawberry whipped cream would be just as yummy (and maybe a little easier on the waistline!)



 
This was literally the lightest and fluffiest batter!  It became a cloud of goodness as the egg whites were whipped
Just look at them baking to perfection!
 
*Sigh* So good. The only thing that could make this better is this...


 



For the month of February, orders of these delicious angel food cupcakes will include a chocolate-covered strawberry garnish. If you weren't sold before, you should be now!

I am still working on that gluten-free cupcake for all of you that have been waiting.  The big reveal will be coming!  Also, as I said before, I have a special chocolate treat for Valentine's Day in the works. Check back in the next day or so for a post about it!  So, share with your special someone something a little different than chocolates and flowers (or maybe use this as a hint for your own treat!).

Tip of the Blog:
The recipe I use for these cupcakes called for super fine sugar.  A simple way to make your own super fine sugar is to put granulated sugar into a food processor and grind it for about 2 minutes. 

 
 

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Catching up!

It has been awhile since I have written a post-sorry about that!  The holiday season was CRAZY!  I am sure many of you understand and had equally busy holiday seasons.  Below are some of the fruits of my holiday season labor, proof that I wasn't too busy to do some baking...
These are shark fin cupcakes that I made for my son's 6th birthday. 
The fins are made of fondant which I free-hand cut out and shaped. 
They were a big hit with his classmates!


For Christmas dinner with the family, I made a vanilla cake with a raspberry filling.  I then finished it with a yummy buttercream frosting.  I experimented with gum paste for the first time and made a simple winter scene, complete with a bow and label!

I found a You Tube video that showed me how to make a tree from rolling out some gum paste and shaping.  The bow was sort of a free form that I tried.  I ran out of red food dye, so I used a burgundy, which made for a pretty alternative.
I saw this cute little idea somewhere online and thought it would be a cute way to wish the family "Merry Christmas!"
I also found a nifty little tool that allowed me to add texture to the buttercream, and then for some added decoration, I added a gum paste dot :) 
The finished product!
My husband and I hosted a holiday potluck dinner for some friends, and these little treats were their gifts for the dinner.

These are a chocolate cake, cut out and covered in melted chocolate (both dark and white chocolate), finished with some piped buttercream and a sugar rose on top.  Now, I confess, I did not make the rose, but the rest is home made.  I think sugar roses are my next challenge :)

 So, I haven't been sitting around not baking, I just didn't have the time to blog about it!  Also, there was a strawberry-cheesecake filled cupcake thrown in there as a new flavor (pics to come, so check back soon).  My next baking challenge is a gluten-free cupcakes. 
 
Tip of the Blog:
While covering cake in melted chocolate tastes fantastic, it can be a bit tricky.  For best results, keep the cake cold and it shouldn't fall apart.  Oh, and be super careful-melted chocolate is HOT (seems obvious, but I thought I should emphasize that).