Red Velvet Cupcakes for Valentine's

I made Red Velvet cupcakes for Valentine's Day. I hadn't made red velvet in a long time and it sounded really good especially for Valentine's Day. So I made them and topped them with cream cheese frosting and a red hot.


Red Velvet Cupcakes


3 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 ½ cups sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
6 tablespoons red food coloring
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a small bowl, whisk together the red food coloring, cocoa, and vanilla. Add to the batter and mix well.

In a measuring cup, stir the salt into the buttermilk. Add to the batter in three parts alternating with the flour. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not overbeat. In a small bowl, stir together the cider vinegar and baking soda. Add to the batter and mix well. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended and the batter is smooth.

This recipe makes 2 dozen cupcakes. Use 2 muffin pans with 12 (1/2-cup) muffin cups each and line each cup with a paper liner. Bake about 20 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool the cupcakes in the pan 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool completely on a rack before icing.

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

Sprinkles!

Cupcakes have really be trendy the last few years. I like them becuase they are easy to eat and fun to make. So we were craving chocolate and so I made these cupcakes again because they are SO easy! But this time I topped them with cream cheese frosting and sprinkles!



Cream Cheese Frosting
1 pkg. (8 oz.) Cream Cheese, softened
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 pkg. (16 oz.) powdered sugar (about 4 cups), sifted


BEAT cream cheese, butter and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended.

ADD sugar gradually, beating until well blended after each addition.

I found it on Kraft because that one of the first ones that came up when I did a search for cream cheese frosting.

Happy Halloween!

Made Emergency Cupcakes...Halloween Style...

Michael's parents, Frank and JoAnne where here and so I wanted to make the cupcakes festive. The buttercream didn't set up like it should have because I was a little too impatient with it.

Michael, Frank and JoAnne said they were cute and tasty!

Adventures in Emergency Cupcakes

So a while back I started reading The Adventures of Superwife and she posted this recipe for Emergency Cupcakes. They looked so good that I bookmarked it to come back to and make someday. Well it had been the first time I read her and it was during one of my insomnia cycles - so what I am saying it was LATE and I forgot about them and her blog. I know shame on me!

One day probably a month or even 2 later on the Food Network (can't even remember which show it was at the moment) the host was making yes....cupcakes. And all of a sudden I had the vague memory of reading a blog with amazing cupcakes that sounded so easy too. So I went to my favorites and looked for the link. Nope not there. So, not remembering the name of the blog or the name of the cupcakes...I started the endless google searches which lead me to another link I have listed....Cupcake Bakeshop (which of course made me bookmark a BUNCH of recipes I wanted to try there too.) But I still couldn't find one I really wanted because you know at this point it was a MISSION! I NEEDED to find the blog again! Really it took a couple weeks of googling on and off and I have no idea what words I put in but one precious evening...The Adventures of Superwife appeared. I rejoiced as any other baker would do...I made the cupcakes RIGHT AWAY!

So Emergency Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting....
















The recipes:
Chocolate Cupcakes
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup Dutch processed cocoa
2 tsp baking soda
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup water
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat Oven to 350

Whisk all your dry ingredients in one and all your wet ingredients in another. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Line cupcake tins with paper liners - spray lightly with cooking spray. And then fill liners 3/4 full and bake for 14 to 18 minutes.

Quick Buttercream Frosting
I used Williams-Sonoma's recipe but cut in half and omitting the salt.

3 cups powdered sugar
1 stick butter
2 tblsp milk
2 tsp vanilla extract

Melt butter and then mix together all ingredients until fluffy and creamy but with so it keeps its peaks. If too stiff add a little more milk.