Peanut Butter Chocolate High Hats

As wedding gifts, I received three different cupcake cookbooks, so you are all in for some new yumminess! This recipe was inspired by one from the cookbook Cupcakes!, but I wanted to adapt it into my chocolate peanut butter cupcakes, so I did a little editing.

Cupcake base: Milk Chocolate Box mix

Filling:
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter, melted slightly
1 container Cool Whip

Mix together and pipe into cupcakes with a long piping tip (#230)

Frosting: Peanut Butter Swiss Meringue Buttercream
4 large egg whites
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 sticks of unsalted butter, at room temperature cut into tablespoons
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

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 total. 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 peanut butter a few tablespoons at a time and continue beating until incorporated.

Frost filled cupcakes with a generous amount of the frosting and refrigerate well.

Topping:
12 oz bag of semisweet chocolate chips
3 Tbsp vegetable oil

Melt chocolate chips and oil in a double boiler until smooth. Transfer into a deep container (2 cup measuring cup), and dip chilled cupcakes in topping just to cover frosting. Chill until topping is solid.

I'm back!!

I'm back and married! Sorry for the delay, Phillip & I lost our camera in the pre-wedding madness (thanks for the loner Stu) and we just found it, so last week's adventures in cupcaking went undocumented. Before we get to this weeks post, I thought that I would post a few pictures from the wedding and a few new cupcake-related new items:

The Cupcakes!:

LuLu in her wedding day finest:

My bite was a little too big:

My new cupckae carrier, it holds 3 dozen cupcakes!:


The cutest little mini cake domes, perfect for cupcakes:



Phillip found this little print in San Fransisco on our honeymoon, it's so perfect!

So far, this blog has been very cupcake focused, but soon I will start using it for its original purpose. I will be posting pictures from my favorite meals that I have made for Phillip & I, so don't be surprised if you see some less sweet recipes soon!

Margarita Cupcakes

Margarita Cupcakes

10 oz. margarita mix
3 oz. tequila
white cake mix
3 egg whites
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 Tbsp lime zest

Combine the magarita mix and the tequila. You will only use 1 1/4 cups of this, enjoy the rest!

Add all other ingredients to margarita and beat on low for 30 seconds, then on medium for 2 minutes. Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake on 350 for 20 minutes or until done.

I filled these cupcakes with lime curd.. yummy!

Lime Buttercream Frosting

1 stick softened unsalted butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1/8 tsp salt
3 Tbsp lime juice
green food color (optional, unless you're me, then it's mandatory!)

Combine all ingredients and beat until fluffy, adding more lime juice if it is too thick (mine was).

Garnish with a "sugar rim."

* If you are an observant blog reader (LH, that's you), you might have noticed a change in my photo quality this week. Phillip has my normal camera with him on his bachelor weekend, so I had to use the still function on my video camera - not bad!*

Turtle Cupcakes

I know... it's a little late, but hey it was a long weekend and I have finals next week. The base for this cupcake was a boxed swiss chocolate mix that I filled with caramel sauce and chopped pecans.

Caramel Buttercream:
1 cup softened butter
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla
1/2 cup caramel topping

Cream butter and add powdered sugar slowly. Add vanilla and caramel. Add more powdered sugar or milk to adjust consistancy.

Top with pecans and melted milk chocolate chips.

Grandma Bonnie's Red Velvet Cupcakes

Growing up, my brothers & I always looked forward to the end of November, not because of Thanksgiving, but because it was my dad's birthday, and my grandma would make him his favorite cake... Red Velvet.. Mmmm.

For now, I'm not going to post the recipie because, well, it's a secret! If my grandma says it's alright, I'll post it later. For now, here are some pictures of my red frenzy:

Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes

Welcome to week two of the wedding cupcake taste test! I thought that on a hot summer day, what dessert sounds more refreshing than strawberry shortcake? But, how to turn it into a cupcake? I made french vanilla box cupcakes and then cut the tops off using the method from http://bakingbites.com/2007/09/how-to-make-filled-cupcakes-step-by-step/

I filled the hole in the middle with a small strawberry (or a bigger one trimmed down), and topped the cupcake with vanilla dream frosting:

Dream Frosting:
1.5 cups cold milk
1 envelope Dream Whip whipped topping mix
1 (3.4 oz) Jello Instant Pudding (any flavor - I used vanilla)

Beat all ingredients together until blended on low speed. Beat on high speed for 4 to 6 minutes or until mixture forms soft peaks.

Mmmm.. I love this frosting. Growing up, my grandma always made a chocolate cake with chocolate dream frosting... so gooood. I thought this frosting would work well because it's more like whipped cream, but it will hold up in the fridge.

Lemon Cupcakes with Black Raspberry Filling and Cream Cheese Frosting

As most of you know, the two things that have kept me sane during my second year of dental school have been baking cupcakes and planning my wedding. Now that I'm getting closer to the big day, I need to start thinking about some of the details. We are actually having a cupcake tower as our wedding cake, so I'm going to be testing flavor combinations for the next few weeks.

I used a lemon cake mix for this recipie to make it a little easier on myself. I baked them according to the directions, and filled them with Smuckers black raspberry jam. Then I topped them with cream cheese frosting (below) and purple sprinkles. These cupcakes would be great for a bridal or baby shower, too.

Cream Cheese Frosting:
Ingredients:
8 ounces cream cheese
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 to 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

Have the cream cheese cold and the butter at room temperature. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla until blended. Add sugar one-third at a time and beat just until smooth and the desired consistency. If frosting is too stiff, beat for few seconds longer. Do not overbeat. If desired, stir in additional flavoring to taste. This keeps, refrigerated, for about 1 week. Or freeze for up to 3 months. Soften and stir until smooth before using.