Blueberry Muffins

Blueberries were on sale for $1.99 a pint... so of course... I buy a ton of them. But looking at the pile of blueberries, there was no way I was going to munch my way through all of them. Time to make blueberry muffins. (Cooks Illustrated Blueberry Muffins with Streusel Topping).

Spring Birthdays

As happens, a lot of the birthdays of friends and family fall into the months between April and June. Lots of frisky between July and September. I present three different cupcakes: Cherry Cola Cupcakes (the remake),  Jasmine Cupcakes with Raspberry and Honey, and Limoncello Float Cupcakes.

A couple of notes:
-The cherry cola cupcakes I had made sometime last year, I couldn't stand because of how oily they came out. This time around, I replaced the oil with butter. I was much happier with the consistency.
-The Jasmine cupcakes gave me a chance to use this delicious raspberry vinegar I had bought at a local food and wine festival last August. There were no raspberries at the store, so I replace the berry on top with blackberries.
-I did not have enough time to make the ice cream for the limoncello float cupcakes.

Jasmine Cupcake with Raspberry and Honey

Cherry Coke Cupcake

Limoncello Float Cupcake (Ben &  Jerry's Lemon Cookie Ice Cream)

Limoncello Float Cupcake (Vanilla Ice Cream)

Limoncello Float Cupcake with a Happy Mother

Valentine's Day

This Valentine's Day, I decided to try a classic red velvet from a cookbook I got for my dad a couple years ago (The Complete Southern Cookbook)... I'm always so nervous about cupcakes tasting like food dye that I never put enough in to give it that vibrant red color... I rely on the chemical reaction between acid and buttermilk to bring out a red color from the anthocyanins in the chocolate. Does anyone have any tips for not over coloring your baked goods? Especially red velvet cakes?

Holiday Cooking 2012

Alright... it was the holidays.. Twas hectic, wonderful, and unfortunately a little sad.

Thanksgiving brought cupcakes for my coworkers and the usual spread for my family. The cupcakes (apple cobbler cupcakes with literal pumpkin pie frosting) turned out alright. The literal pumpkin pie frosting left some to be desired, but I did enjoy the apple cobbler bit.

While the Thanksgiving spread was normal (same turkey, stuffing, potatoes, rolls...), I had still yet to find a good sweet potato dish. I found one! It's a sweet potato casserole that is still sweet, but not too sweet. My family agreed that this was the sweet potato dish that was going to stay. 

Christmas season started out with cake balls being shipped out to my wonderful raid team. We were recently able to finish 6/6 bosses in Mogu'shan Vaults! (Guess they deserved the cake balls!) Granted... the cake ball part was too little cake and too much frosting for my taste. I will probably try a different recipe next time around.

With  my raid team taken care of... it was time to tackle the cupcakes for the coworkers. Recently I have been going out for a rum & coke with a couple of buddies at work. Not coincidentally, hot buttered rum is my favorite holiday beverage. I decided to make rum and coke cupcakes. Unfortunately, I had no cola extract. I tried to make a frosting with using straight up cola. This made the frosting too watery and didn't have that cola punch I was looking for. The rum cake part was still delicious though.

After presents had been shipped and cupcakes dispersed, it was time for Mike and I to start packing. We headed to Florida for Christmas. First time I've been able to see my cousins in over 10 years. Was a happy reunion full of good ole Southern cooking... not that I wasn't happy to make my way back to California cooking. 

We arrived back Christmas Eve and I still cooked for my parents the next day. Did the same meal as last year: prime rib, greens, and roasted potatoes  Simple, delicious, and perfect to come back to after travelling.

It was time to start planning for New Years Eve. This year, my usual group of friends decided to do a formal pot luck complete with board games. Somehow, the potluck turned into me supplying the meal.

I made slow-cooker barbecued sticky ribs, salad, roasted potatoes, and cherry-coke cupcakes. Mike made fried rice.

Alright, so you would think that the holiday baking would be over... My brother had a few weeks off after New Year's Eve. Him and his friends would come over for beers and board games. Eventually one of his friends turned me onto food porn daily and somehow the topic of cupcakes had come up. Long story short, I decided to make a batch of cupcakes that my brother would enjoy as well as a "belated birthday present" for his friend. My brother's requirement for cupcakes was "cream flavored". A short story short, I made Boston Cream cupcakes (you need to be logged in to America's Test Kitchen to see the recipe). This is probably one of the best cupcakes I have made.