Happy Valentine's Day

My favorite thing about Valentine's Day................the sweets.

http://www.woodhousechocolate.com/

Miette Cookie Class (I will blog later about this "class")

Candyland Cupcakes, A Back To School Surprise

This is what my kids came home to after their first day of school. I am not sure who was more excited me or my kids. I love how everything turned out, I only wish my table would look like this everyday.

Candy Button Cupcakes were super easy to make and turned out pretty cute, I especially like them displayed in front of my apothecary jar full of Candy Buttons. I think I originally got the idea from a photo on flickr. The frosting was vanilla and was piped using the 1M tip. I cut the Candy Buttons into squares using scrapbook scissors. The only problem I had with these was the oil in the frosting seeped into the paper after a while.

The Candy Store Cupcakes were the most fun to make. For the last few days I was on a candy shopping spree. I love the mini jawbreakers and the Fruit Stripe Gum, awesome candies from my childhood. The baking cups I used were my newly purchased pink zebra print cups. The frosting was the same vanilla as before only using a 199 tip...I think. I "randomly" placed candy on the cupcakes, customizing one cupcake for each kid using their favorite candies.

The Cupcake Cupcakes came from a blog I love, Confessions of a Cookbook Queen. The idea of using Reese's Mini Peanut Butter Cups as cupcakes is genius. For the cherry on top I used Cherry Tic Tacs. I used the same vanilla frosting and I think the 199 tip again. I love these and might use the mini cupcakes on all of the cupcakes I make from now on, so cute and easy.

On of my all time favorite cupcakes I make are the Bubble Gum Ice Cream Cupcakes. I absolutely love bubble gum ice cream, and these taste exactly like it. The cake did take forever to cook in the cones. The first batch didn't turn out because I cook them with the other cupcakes, and were still raw by the time the regular cupcake were done. These I cooked at 350 for around 35 mins, I was afraid they would be dry but they turned out fabulous. The frosting was the same vanilla with a little blue coloring and a tiny drop of Lorann's Bubble Gum Oil.

The Cotton Candy Cupcakes I think are the prettiest of the cupcakes. I have made Cotton Candy Cupcakes before and they really don't taste much different than regular vanilla cupcakes, just a little sweeter, hence the cotton candy flavor. I added a few drops of Lorann's Cotton Candy Oil to the vanilla frosting, then separated it into two bowls, one pink and one blue. While filling the pipping bag I tried to keep the frosting colors separated as much as I could, the pink on one side and the blue on the other. I used the 1M tip again to decorate.


So who is going to eat all of this? Even I can't eat this much sugar.

These cupcake have to be the best tasting I have made so far. The cake recipe is the one I have been using with a minor but crucial change to the directions, and the frosting recipe I found on Confessions of a Cookbook Queen.


Vanilla Cupcake Recipe
Billy's Bakery Cupcakes

Makes about 30 cupcakes

• 1 3/4 cups cake flour, not self-rising
• 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt; mix on low speed until combined. Add butter, mixing until just coated with flour.
2. In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla. With mixer on medium speed, add wet ingredients in 3 parts, scraping down sides of bowl before each addition; beat until ingredients are incorporated about 1 minute each, but do not overbeat.
3. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling about 2/3 full. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 17 to 20 minutes.

By the way, I am so mad that my picture quality sucks. I don't know what my issue was, I tried adjusting the lighting and the camera settings but just could get it to turn out. Errr!