Vanilla Cupcakes (Small Batch)

Cake. A lot of people say that it’s a vehicle for icing. Sometimes that’s true, I think. However, if you’re going to take the time to bake a cake yourself, the result should be able to stand on it’s own.

My mission was simple: make a really good cake. I decided to start out with a basic vanilla cake. Well, a small batch of vanilla cupcakes. An entire cake is too much for my family.

I started with the often praised recipe for Vanilla Cupcakes in The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook. I scaled it back to make just six cupcakes, and tinkered with the ingredients quite a bit. My final recipe doesn’t look much like Magnolia’s, but I did glean an excellent piece of information from the book: cream your butter and sugar A LOT. I know it’s obvious, but it’s something that I’ve skimped on before.

The cupcakes are very moist. They aren’t too sweet, but they are surprisingly rich. I compare the richness to that of a yellow cake, just without all the egg yolks. They’re the perfect canvas for any icing, so use your favorite.

Vanilla Cupcakes

Oven Temp.: 350°
Approx. Bake Time: 15-20 minutes
Yields: 6 cupcakes

Ingredients
2/3 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. cream
2 tbsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
5 tbsp. butter, softened
1/3 c. sugar
1 egg

Instructions
– Prepare your ingredients: In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a liquid measuring cup, mix together the cream, milk, and vanilla.
– Make the batter: Using a hand-mixer, whip the butter for about 30 seconds. Add the sugar, and cream until very light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, just until incorporated. Now, switch to a whisk to add the dry ingredients in three installments, alternating with the wet ingredients. (Add in this order: dry-wet-dry-wet-dry.) After each installment, stir just until combined. Batter will be thick.
– Bake: Line a muffin tin with six liners. Distribute batter evenly between the liners; it should fill them about 3/4 of the way. Bake in a preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out mostly clean. Cool on wire rack before frosting.

Notes
– When creaming the butter and sugar, you do not need to worry about over-mixing. In fact, you should probably mix more than you think you need to! The creamed butter and sugar should be almost white in color.
– Now, when adding the wet and dry ingredients, you DO need to worry about over-mixing. That’s why you switch from an electrical mixer to hand-power.
– These puff up in the oven, but the tops flatten after a couple minutes. So if you get flat tops, you didn’t do anything wrong.

Crustless Amaretto Babycakes (Small Batch)

I like things that come in an individual portion — that’s one reason I like cookies. It’s also why I prefer to bake muffins over quick bread, cupcakes over cake, and now these “babycakes” (as a friend dubbed them) over cheesecake. It also allows me to bake a smaller batch, because I don’t own mini cake pans.

They aren’t the most photogenic treats — partly due to my amateur photography — but they sure are tasty.

It took me a few tries to perfect this cheesecake recipe, but I’m thrilled with the results. These have a wonderful creamy texture. I started out with this recipe at all recipes, scaled it down, and then started messing with the ingredients a bit. I’ve found that cornstarch makes the best thickener, and heavy cream is the best dairy product to use. (Of course the richest product would be the best!) If you wish, you can sub flour for the cornstarch and some other dairy product for the heavy cream. It may not be as good, IMHO, but it’ll still turn out.

These are crustless because I made them for a friend who always leaves the crust of her cheesecake behind. I have nothing against cheesecake crust, but I have to say that I didn’t miss it to much. Plus, it’s convenient because I seldom have packaged cookies or other crust-making ingredients in the house. You can certainly use a crust in here if you wish.

Crustless Amaretto Babycakes

Oven Temp.: 325°
Approx. Bake Time: 25-30 min.
Yields: 6 mini cheesecakes

Ingredients
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. sugar
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. cornstarch
1 egg
1/4 c. heavy cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract (or almond extract)
2 tbsp. amaretto liquor

Instructions
– Beat the cream cheese, sugar, brown sugar, and cornstarch until smooth. Beat in the egg, just until incorporated. Stir in the cream, amaretto, and vanilla extract.
– These bake with a water bath, so place a muffin tin inside a larger (and deep) pan. Line the tin with paper or silicone cups. Spoon in the batter, filling the cups to the top. Fill the larger pan with very hot water so that it reaches halfway up the muffin tin. (Use a kettle.)
– Bake in a preheated oven until the cheesecakes are set, but still moist. (The batter shouldn’t slosh, but it should be slightly jiggly.)
– Let the cheesecakes cool in the muffin tin for an hour. Next, remove them from the tin and let them cool on a rack until they reach room temperature. Refrigerate for 6 hours before eating.

Notes
– If you fill to the top you should get 6 tall babycakes. You can also fill the cups less to get shorter babycakes.
– You can also sub your favorite liquor for the amaretto, though I haven’t tried anything else.

Master Baker, me?

I woke up this morning feeling a bit tired and cranky, but I perked up when I checked my email. It turns out that the Cinnamon Toast Blondies that I made for the Master Baker event took the cake! (I’ve never been good with puns.)

I’m blushing five shades of pink and two shades of red, because all of February’s entries look amazing. The Cinnamon Babka is going to force me to get past me yeast-baking aversion!

A ton of thanks to Nikki for putting on and organizing the event. That takes some work! I’m really excited about March’s ingredient, which is Easter candy. I’m sure everyone will provide plenty ideas to use up all the extra I’m bound to have. I’ve got a few ideas of my own bubbling up.

I’ll have a new recipe up tonight, or as soon as I get home to access my photos. It’s cheesecake this time!

The girl bakes! French Toast Blondies

I was browsing blogs this weekend and came across the Master Baker challenge. I’ve yet to participate in a blog event, but this seemed as good a time as ever — especially since I couldn’t decide what I wanted to bake. I needed inspiration.

Inspiration came in the theme ingredient of cinnamon, which is pretty broad. Truth is, I add a dash a cinnamon to just about everything I bake. I wanted to make something that focused on the flavor. I opted for cinnamon blondies. I’d never made blondies before, so I had no base recipe to work from. I chose to work from this recipe at Smitten Kitchen due to it’s high sugar and butter content — can’t go wrong there, right?

The recipe calls for a 8×8 in. pan, but I don’t have one. (I’ll work on that.) I used this weird 9.5 in. square dish instead, so my blondies came out a little flat. Also, I wanted to top these with candied pecans, but I ran out of eggs (candied pecans call for egg whites). Instead, I made a simple powdered sugar glaze and dipped the pecans in it.

The blondies are very rich, sweet, and buttery. The crust is crispy and the middles are chewy — just perfect. They taste like cinnamon (or French) toast, hence the name. I’m quite happy with them — and they disappeared quickly, so I guess my family was too.

French Toast Blondies

Oven Temp.: 350°
Approx. Bake Time: 20-25 minutes
Yields: 8×8 inch dish

Ingredients
1 c. flour
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
7 tbsp. butter, melted
1 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 c. pecans, toasted and chopped

Topping:
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Instructions
– Whisk the flour, salt, and cinnamon together. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar with the melted butter. Stir in the egg and vanilla. Stir in the dry ingredients. Stir in the pecans. Spread batter into an 8×8 baking dish.
– Mix together the cinnamon and sugar for the topping. Sprinkle this mixture over the batter. (You will likely have more than enough.)
– Bake for 20-25 minutes. Don’t over-bake. The blondies may seem underdone, but will set as they cool. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.
– Once cooled, you may opt to top the blondies with cinnamon glazed pecans.

Cinnamon Glazed Pecans

Ingredients
3 tbsp. powdered sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
milk, as needed
pecans

Instructions
– Combine the powdered sugar and cinnamon. Slowly add milk until the mixture reaches a syrupy consistency.
– Dip the pecans into the mixture, then place them on top of the blondies. As the glaze dries it will adhere the pecan to the blondie.

The girl candy-makes! Heavenly Hash

Oh. Is it Valentine’s Day? Wow. This one snuck (I refuse to say sneaked.) up one me. I don’t have any romantic plans however, so no worries.

I’m not completely out of the spirit however. I made candy last night, and I’m about to deliver it to my great-grandmother. It’s her favorite — heavenly hash. Heavenly hash is, as far as I can tell, the same thing as rocky road. That is, chocolate, marshmallow, and nuts.

When I found out that Grandma loved this stuff, I was set on making it for her. However, I couldn’t find a recipe anywhere. At least, not one that I liked. I decided to keep in simple. I would just melt some chocolate and stir in the marshmallows and nuts. So that’s what I did. Grandma loved it, and I’ve been making it for her regularly since.

This recipe, if you even want to call it that, is as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. You can take the time to tempur the chocolate, or you can just melt it down and stir in the stuff in, like I did last night. (Sorry Grandma, next time I’ll temper it for you.) Of course, you want to use good chocolate. Choose something that you like to eat out of hand.

It whips up in just a few minutes, so it might save those of you who forgot to pick up that box of chocolates..

Heavenly Hash

Yields: 20-24 pieces

Ingredients
12 oz. milk chocolate
2-3 c. mini marshmallows
1 c. nuts, toasted and chopped*

Instructions
– Lay a sheet of wax paper out on the counter.- Melt the chocolate. Use your favorite method — double boiler, microwave, bowl over simmering water, heating pad.. whatever. You may also want to consider tempering.
– Stir in two cups of marshmallows and the nuts. Add more marshmallows as you see fit.
– Using two spoons, drop dollops of the mixture onto wax paper. Allow the chocolate to set.
– Enjoy!

*Note: If you chop your nuts finely, be careful not to add the fine dusty bits to the mixture. It’ll make the chocolate grainy. (BTW, I use pecans.)

The girl bakes! Peanut Butter Cookies, Small Batch

I haven’t posted many recipes lately, but it’s not for lack of baking. In fact, I’ve been baking more than usual. This is because I’ve started baking almost exclusively in small batches. The goods get consumed faster, and I can move on to the next project.

However, I can’t always just halve or third a recipe. The math doesn’t mesh with my measuring cups. I’ve had to get a little creative, adjusting to my own tastes. The results aren’t always tasty, but sometimes I get it right. This is one of those times.

This is based off a peanut butter cookie recipe that my grandma gave me years ago. I’ve adjusted it many times since, but this is the first time I’ve reduced it. The regular recipe makes 48 delicious chewy cookies; however, my adjustments yield 18 sandy cookie with their own merits. They are reminiscent of store-bought cookies.

They aren’t perfect, but darn close. A couple more trials should get it there.

Chipped Peanut Butter Cookies

Oven Temp.: 350°
Approx. Bake Time: 12 min. per batch
Yields: 18 two-inch cookies

Ingredients
1/2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
2 1/2 tbsp. butter, softened
1/3 c. peanut butter
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 tbsp. beaten egg
1 tsp. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. chocolate chips (optional)
1/4 c. peanut butter chips (optional)

Instructions
– Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. In a separate bowl, cream the butter, peanut butter, sugar, and brown sugar, then add the egg, milk, and vanilla. Stir in the dry ingredients and chips.
– Scoop tablespoons of dough onto an ungreased baking sheet. For crunchier cookies, flatten with a spatula or fork. For softer cookies, leave the dough as balls/lumps.
– After baking, let stand on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then move to wire racks to cool completely.

Note: They are supposed to have both peanut butter and chocolate chips. I didn’t have any peanut butter chips, so I used all chocolate. It was too much. Stick with 1/4 cup, like the recipe says, even if you don’t have peanut butter chips. That’s what I get for making substitutions to my own untested recipe. However, I do think you could use all peanut butter chips.

The girl bakes! Chocolate Chunk Cookies

When it comes to baked goods, the chocolate chip cookie is about as classic as it gets. They’re well loved, though everyone has their favorite style. I love the chewy variety — golden brown, flat, with a slightly crispy edge. Puffy, cakey cookies can keep their distance, thanks.

There are several different recipes I use, though I often find myself defaulting to Toll House. My favorite recipes are high in sugar, low in flour, and loaded with chocolate. This recipe for Blue Chocolate Chip Cookies at Smitten Kitchen fit my criteria, so I decided to give them a try.

I did make some adjustments. I baked the first batch as instructed. 300° for 18 minutes yielded lovely crispy cookies with slightly chewy middles. For the following batches I increased the temperature to 350° and baked for 12 minutes. These had chewier middles, which I preferred.

Also, I used chocolate chunks, because that’s what I had. Then I sprinkled in a bit of cinnamon — a crucial ingredients for my chocolate chip cookies.

While these aren’t quite perfect, they are darned good and could become my new default chocolate chip cookie.

The girl bakes! Ginger Softies

These cookies are great. They taste like gingersnaps but are soft and chewy, so I call them Ginger Softies. The texture is practically melt-in-your-mouth.

This is based on a recipe I found at All Recipes. I added extra flour, changed the white sugar to brown, and tinkered with the spices.

These call for a dusting of sugar. The first time I made them I used white sugar, but the second time I made my own red and green colored sugar after reading this post at Baking Bites. They were nice and festive on the Christmas table!

Ginger Softies

Oven Temp.: 350°
Approx. Bake Time: 14 min. per batch
Yields: 36 cookies

Ingredients
2 1/4 c. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. clove
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
12 tbsp. butter, softened
1 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 c. molasses
extra sugar for dusting

Instructions
– Sift the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg together. Cream the butter and sugar. Stir in the egg and molasses. Stir in the dry ingredients.
– Roll balls of dough in extra sugar to coat. Place on greased baking sheet. Use a spatula to slightly flatten the cookies.
– After baking, let stand on baking sheet for 2 minutes, then move to wire racks to cool completely.

Note: You may want to refrigerate the dough before working with it, as it’s a little sticky. I think these might make a nice slice-and-bake cookie too, but I haven’t tried it. If you do, let me know.

The girl bakes! Caramelized Pear Gingerbread

I watch a lot of Food Network, but it’s not often that I actually make one of the recipes. But when my mom and I saw this Caramelized Pear Gingerbread on Emeril Live, we had to try it! Here’s the link to the recipe.

I actually hadn’t had gingerbread before. Gingerbread cookies, sure, but not actual gingerbread. It was really good! However, if I make this again, I’ll omit the pears. They were good and made for a nice presentation, but I didn’t find the texture terribly appealing the next day. I think it would be better to make plain gingerbread, then if you want, cook up some pears, apples, or even bananas to spoon over it.