Saturday, September 12, 2009
Lemon "Funfetti-will-I-get-sued-for-this?" Cupcakes
Hi Megs.
So, I forgot to take pics of these what with all the kiddo-birthday-craziness. But they were really excellent. Usually I don't care too much for Martha's cupcake recipes (sorry, Martha!), because they are super SUPER rich and sort of seem to me to defeat the very purpose of cupcakes...light and moist, springy like cake, *never* heavy...because there's so much butter and so many eggs in each recipe. Her cupcakes are like a heart attack in a paper cup. And you taste that in each bite.
Then I found this useful tip on Our Best Bites blog (Kate is her name?), where she reminds you that if you are going to put this much friggin' butter in a cupcake, you have to beat the everloving crap out of it. That is to say, cream butter and sugar until your arm is numb and the resulting mixture looks like marshmallow fluff. It worked! The cupcakes were decadent but light, super moist - and they STAYED moist for days. Thanks, Kate.
Then, because the kids wanted "Funfetti," I dumped a thing of ice cream sprinkles into the batter before baking. They melt in the oven and the resulting cuteness is just what kids want. I made the buttercream frosting Kate lists - but I put in only one stick of butter. I hate when a frosting is so rich that biting into it makes your spine tingle.
Sorry, no pics. Will bake something marvelous soon and overphotograph it to compensate.
Love,
Linz
So, I forgot to take pics of these what with all the kiddo-birthday-craziness. But they were really excellent. Usually I don't care too much for Martha's cupcake recipes (sorry, Martha!), because they are super SUPER rich and sort of seem to me to defeat the very purpose of cupcakes...light and moist, springy like cake, *never* heavy...because there's so much butter and so many eggs in each recipe. Her cupcakes are like a heart attack in a paper cup. And you taste that in each bite.
Then I found this useful tip on Our Best Bites blog (Kate is her name?), where she reminds you that if you are going to put this much friggin' butter in a cupcake, you have to beat the everloving crap out of it. That is to say, cream butter and sugar until your arm is numb and the resulting mixture looks like marshmallow fluff. It worked! The cupcakes were decadent but light, super moist - and they STAYED moist for days. Thanks, Kate.
Then, because the kids wanted "Funfetti," I dumped a thing of ice cream sprinkles into the batter before baking. They melt in the oven and the resulting cuteness is just what kids want. I made the buttercream frosting Kate lists - but I put in only one stick of butter. I hate when a frosting is so rich that biting into it makes your spine tingle.
Sorry, no pics. Will bake something marvelous soon and overphotograph it to compensate.
Love,
Linz
Friday, September 11, 2009
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Random Update
Dear Linds,
Your ice cream looks like some real blueberry deliciousness, and I bet the lemon and mint enhanced the flavor beautifully. I'm ok with the texture of my custard based ice creams, but I always feel like they taste too much like custard and not enough like the key ingredient (whatever that may be). I found a recipe for key lime ice cream that sounds amazing and doesn't require eggs. Maybe I'll stop by Steve's Authentic Key Lime Pies down in Red Hook and ask if he'll lend me some of his.
What kind of cupcakes did you end up making for the twins?? I'm in need of a good lemon cupcake recipe myself.
Sigh.
I had a recipe "fail" the other night. As you know, there have been a lot of changes in my life this year. I don't do well with change, so I'm trying to be positive and think of these changes as an opportunity for growth. So far I've grown in little ways. I started eating salads with my lunch, and balsamic chicken with quinoa for dinner instead of bowls and bowls of different, yummy, carb-filled pastas (my go-to lunch and dinner for years). I also just finished a top-down hardcore scrubbing of my apartment. I even went so far as to purchase new used furniture for my bedroom so that my living space will foster concentrated study instead of procrastination.
So - er- back to the recipe fail. As a part of my Megan-overhaul, I dreamed of canning copious amounts of foods that I could pull out and quickly whip into a warm comforting meal during the winter months. In my excitement, I forgot to do the simplest of things: measure. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that my dream dinner of marinated baby artichokes with sausage and thyme will not be the subject of a blog post anytime soon.
Loves,
Megs
Your ice cream looks like some real blueberry deliciousness, and I bet the lemon and mint enhanced the flavor beautifully. I'm ok with the texture of my custard based ice creams, but I always feel like they taste too much like custard and not enough like the key ingredient (whatever that may be). I found a recipe for key lime ice cream that sounds amazing and doesn't require eggs. Maybe I'll stop by Steve's Authentic Key Lime Pies down in Red Hook and ask if he'll lend me some of his.
What kind of cupcakes did you end up making for the twins?? I'm in need of a good lemon cupcake recipe myself.
Sigh.
I had a recipe "fail" the other night. As you know, there have been a lot of changes in my life this year. I don't do well with change, so I'm trying to be positive and think of these changes as an opportunity for growth. So far I've grown in little ways. I started eating salads with my lunch, and balsamic chicken with quinoa for dinner instead of bowls and bowls of different, yummy, carb-filled pastas (my go-to lunch and dinner for years). I also just finished a top-down hardcore scrubbing of my apartment. I even went so far as to purchase new used furniture for my bedroom so that my living space will foster concentrated study instead of procrastination.
So - er- back to the recipe fail. As a part of my Megan-overhaul, I dreamed of canning copious amounts of foods that I could pull out and quickly whip into a warm comforting meal during the winter months. In my excitement, I forgot to do the simplest of things: measure. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say that my dream dinner of marinated baby artichokes with sausage and thyme will not be the subject of a blog post anytime soon.
Loves,
Megs
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