Red Velvet Cupcakes

I am a huge fan of red velvet cake. I absolutely love the cream cheese frosting and the taste of biting into a piece of red velvet cake. I don't know how to explain it, but there is just something about the texture and flavors that really gets to me. With this in mind, I decided to combine my love of the cupcakes and red velvet cake to create red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.

This recipe turned out great. My family and friends loved them. The sour cream in the frosting really added a nice kick to the flavor. The only downside to the cupcakes was that I did not put enough batter in the cupcake tins. They turned out a little smaller than I hoped. The recipe and frosting also took a little longer to make than I thought, but the results were definitely worth the extra time.

Prep Time: ~20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 to 25 minutes

Servings: 30

Batter

2 ½ cups flour

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1-teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1-cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1-cup sour cream

½ cup milk

1 (1 ounce) bottle of red food coloring

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Red velvet batter

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

¼ cup butter, softened

2 tablespoons sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 (16 ounce) box of confectioners’ sugar

Cream cheese frosting

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.

Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time.

Mix in sour cream, milk, food coloring and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not overbeat.

Spoon batter into 30 paper lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely. Frost with cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat cream cheese, softened, butter, sour cream and vanilla extract in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar until smooth.

Prepared and ready to be baked

The final product

This recipe came from www.allrecipes.com

Gluten Free Oatmeal Pancakes

Over the weekend I was helping prepare brunch for several people. We decided to serve pancakes and fruit, but had to accommodate a few of the guests who have gluten allergies. Since people with gluten allergies cannot have any wheat ingredients, we had to come up with an alternative pancake recipe that everyone would love. 

After talking to a few of the guests, one of them lent us a gluten-free oatmeal pancake recipe that she promised would taste great. She was right.  The pancakes tasted amazing. The oatmeal really adds that extra something. Everyone loved the pancakes with a request that they be made on a regular basis.

Ingredients

3/4 cup gluten free quick rolled oats

 1 cup nonfat mils

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon sea alt

2 eggs beaten

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions
In a small saucepan heat milk till hot; stir in oats; let stand for 5 minutes.

In a mixing bowl combine oat flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add oat-milk mixture.

In a small bowl combine egg yolks and cooking oil; add all at once to flour-oat mixture, stirring just till combined.

In another bowl beat egg white till stiff peaks form; fold into the batter. 





For each pancake, pour about 1/4 cup of the batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or heavy skillet. Cook till golden brown, turning to cook other side when pancake has a bubbly surface and slightly dry edges.

Use a 1/4 cup measure as a handy scoop for transferring pancake batter from the bowl to the griddle. If you want smaller pancakes, switch to a 1 tablespoon measure. That will put just the right amount of batter on the griddle for dollar-size pancakes. Makes 12 pancakes.







This recipe came from http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes_details.php?rid-236

As a side note, oatmeal pancakes take a little longer to cook then regular pancakes. Be sure to check the middle before serving.

If you are looking for gluten-free pancakes or just pancakes in general, oatmeal pancakes are the way to go. Everyone will surely enjoy this pancake twist.

Black and White Cupcakes

Continuing on my quest to bake the perfect cupcake, I wanted to bake a black and white cupcake. I also knew I didn’t want a recipe that used white chocolate as the white part of the cupcake. I was looking for something creamier, something like cream cheese. Knowing what I was looking for in a recipe, I set out to find the perfect black and white cupcake recipe. After much research, I came across the following black and white cupcake recipe.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

1 ½ cups flour

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup water

5 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Chocolate Cupcake Batter

Chocolate Chip Filling

8 ounces cream cheese 

1 egg

1/3 cup sugar

8 ounces milk chocolate chips

Chocolate Chip Filling

Directions

In a large bowl, stir together the first five ingredients. In another bowl, beat together water, oil and vanilla. Gradually add to the dry ingredients, stirring until well blended. Fill 18 cupcake liners half full of batter. Beat the filling ingredients and put a tablespoon of the filling on each cupcake, on top of the chocolate batter.

Prepared and ready to go into the oven

Bake at 350°F for 25 minutes

Baked and ready to eat

This recipe came from http://www.food.com/recipe/black-and-white-cupcakes-149076

I made these cupcakes the day before a family get together, giving me the perfect opportunity to have several people taste the cupcakes. Everyone enjoyed the cupcakes saying the cream cheese gave the cupcakes an interesting texture. The cupcakes also came out very moist. The only change I would make to this recipe is mixing the chocolate chip filling into the batter instead of putting a tablespoon on top. I think this would give the black and white cupcakes a more even taste. 

Ice Cream Cake - What's Your Flavor?

With Father’s Day this past weekend, many of us were celebrating with a variety of desserts. In my house, we choose to go with a simple ice cream cake that said Happy Father’s Day. It was a small, round chocolate and vanilla ice cream cake with cookie crumbs in the middle. Vanilla frosting covered the outer part of the cake with a little blue design decorating one side on top of the cake.

Many people think ice cream cake can be difficult to make, but that is not the case. All you need is a few basic ingredients and a springform pan. Below is a simple ice cream cake recipe that can be made in the comfort of your own kitchen.

Ingredients

1 (18 ounce) package small chocolate chip cookies

1/4 cup margarine, melted

1 cup hot fudge topping

2 quarts vanilla ice cream

1 cup whipped cream

12 cherries (or other fruit or topping of your choice)

Directions

1.      Crush half the cookies (about 20) to make crumbs. Combine crumbs with melted margarine and press into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan or pie plate. Stand remaining cookies around edge of pan. Spread 3/4 cup fudge topping over crust. Freeze 15 minutes.

2.      Meanwhile, soften 1 quart of ice cream in microwave or on countertop. After crust has chilled, spread softened ice cream over fudge layer. Freeze 30 minutes.

3.      Scoop remaining quart of ice cream into balls and arrange over spread ice cream layer. Freeze until firm, 4 hours or overnight. To serve, garnish with remainder of fudge topping, whipped cream and cherries.

This recipe can be found at http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/chocolate-chip-cookie-ice-cream-cake/detail.aspx

What I like about this recipe is you can change up the ice cream flavor, as well as the fruit or other toppings you choose to decorate the cake with. You can also easily add two or three layers to this cake if you would like to use a variety of ice cream flavors.

Dark Chocolate Mint Three Musketeers Cookies

My office was having a potluck recently and I wanted to bring in something that was not only unique, but something that people may not have had before. For the potluck, I decided to bake Three Musketeer cookies, using the dark chocolate mint Three Musketeers mini bars.

I have been baking chocolate chips cookies for many years now. It gets repetitive when you make the same desserts over and over again. Dark Chocolate Mint Three Musketeers cookies allowed me to combine my love of dark chocolate and mint with my love of cookies. It also gave me an opportunity to expand my knowledge about baking with candy.

Making Dark Chocolate Mint Three Musketeers cookies isn’t that complicated. You just need a basic cookie recipe, as well as chopping up three-quarters of a bag of Dark Chocolate Mint Three Musketeers minis. Once you unwrap the mini bars, cut them into fours and place them in a separate bowl. You add them in at the end of the recipe just as you would with chocolate chips. 

Preparing to make the batter

Waiting to go into the oven

When you take them off the cookie sheet, just be aware that the mint from the candy bar may stick to the bottom of the tray. Use caution when taking the cookies off the cookie sheet or they may break. 

The final product

The team that I work with ate the cookies before the potluck even started. Although a few people at the potluck were disappointed that they didn’t get to try the cookies, I’m just glad that the people on my team enjoyed them.  

The Wonders of Homemade Pizza

Every now and then I like to write about cooking ideas outside my normal realm of baking. Today, I am going to focus on homemade pizza, a classic dinner item that we all love. The key to a successful homemade pizza lies within the dough and the quality of ingredients you use.  The dough recipe I use has been successful every time I’ve made it.  Just make sure the oven is up to temperature. Otherwise the pizza may not come out as crunchy as you would like it.

Pizza Dough Recipe

4-½ cups unbleached flour (I use 50 percent all-purpose flour and 50 percent bread flour.)

1 ¾ teaspoons salt

1-teaspoon instant yeast

¼ cup olive oil

1-¾ cups ice cold water

You need a mixer to assist you in preparing the pizza dough. Stir flour, salt and yeast in a bowl. Stir in olive oil and cold water on low speed until smooth. Mix on medium for five to seven minutes. You do not have to let the dough rise. Stick it in the fridge to enjoy it that night or in the freezer to enjoy at a later date. The dough freezes well. 

Preparing to roll out and start decorating the pizza

Homemade pizza allows you to dress your pizza anyway you like it without the extra cost. A favorite in my house is vegetable pizza containing mushrooms, black olives, pimento olives, roasted red peppers and red onions. I try and buy the vegetables pre-sliced like the mushrooms and black olives, making it easier to prepare and place on the pizza. I don’t mind cutting up a few of the ingredients, but it can be time consuming to prepare and chop so many vegetables.

Another benefit to homemade pizza is using whatever kind of cheese you like. We’ve used the basic mozzarella and Parmesan cheese, as well as Swiss cheese, three cheddar cheese blends and six cheese blends. Cheese blends usually contain a mix of cheddar, mozzarella, Parmesan, Swiss cheese and a variety of other cheeses depending on the brand you buy.

Spices are an essential part of any pizza. I love pizzas that have a variety of spices on them. Whenever I ordered pizza, I am always adding garlic powder, onion powder and oregano or Mrs. Dash, which has a combination of spices in one bottle.  However, when I am making homemade pizza I can take all these spices and bake them right into the pizza that makes the pizza taste even better. 

The final product, yummy cheese pizza.  

Everyone has a favorite pizza topping, what’s yours?

Ooey Gooey Cinnabons

Cinnabons are one of those treats that you can eat for breakfast or have as a mid-afternoon snack. Sticky and messy, cinnabuns ooze warm cinnamon and frosting when served hot out of the oven. In my opinion, this is the only way eat them.  Most people are familiar with the Cinnabon stands in food courts and rest stops throughout the country, as well as the numerous companies who make and ship them to most of our supermarkets. 


Cinnabons can now be made in the comfort of our own kitchens at half the price. All you need is a few basic ingredients and you are good to go. Below is one recipe that I found to be simple and straightforward with great results. 


Batter

• 1/2 cup warm water

• 2 packages active dry yeast
• 
2 tablespoons sugar

• 1 package Instant Vanilla Pudding Mix (3.5 Oz)

• 1/2 cup butter, melted

• 2 eggs, beaten

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 8 cups flour

• 1/2 cup butter, melted

• 5 each 8 or 9 Inch Square Baking Pans

Frosting

• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened

• 1/2 cup butter, softened

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 3 cups powdered sugar

• 1 tablespoon milk
• 2 to 3 tablespoons of maple syrup

Toppings 

• 2 cups brown sugar, packed
• 2 tablespoons cinnamon

Preparations

1. In small bowl, combine water, yeast and sugar. Stir until dissolved. Set aside. Yeast should bubble. In large bowl, make pudding mix according to package directions. Mix until slightly thickened. Add butter, eggs, salt; mix well. Add yeast. Blend. Gradually add flour and knead until smooth. 
2. Place in large greased bowl. Cover and let rise in warm draft free place until double in size, about 1 hour. Punch down and let rise again, about 45 minutes. On lightly floured surface, roll out to 34" x 21" rectangle. Spread 1/2 c melted butter over surface. 
3. In small bowl, mix topping (brown sugar and cinnamon). Sprinkle over top of dough. Starting at the long edge of the dough, roll up very tightly. With a knife, put a notch every 2 inches. With string or thread place under roll by notch and cross cross over to cut roll. 
4. Place 4 rolls into each baking pan, 2" apart. Cover and let rise in warm draft free place until double. Bake @ 350 for 15-20 minutes, remove when golden brown. 
5. Combine all frosting ingredients and mix until smooth. Spread on warm rolls. Serve warm.

This recipe came from: http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/354/Cinnabon_Rolls1576.shtml

If you do not have the time to make cinnabons, there are several store bought options to choose from. Although nothing is as good as home baked treats, I recommend baking Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls. When I was in college I used to love making cinnabuns for breakfast or for a snack while I was studying. I’ve tried a few brands and Pillsbury tasted the best. They also kept well for a few days after orginally baking them. What I liked about the Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls is that the rolls tasted almost like they were fresh out of a bakery, all warm and gooey. As a college student you want home made food or as close to home made as you are going to get. When reheated the next day, the rolls still have a somewhat fresh taste to them and were not dried out or stale.