Oreo cream cheese frosting & red velvet cupcakes

Goodness gracious, why didn't I do this sooner?

These cupcakes.  With this frosting!  It tastes like Oreo cheesecake.  How would you like a mini Oreo cheesecake atop a cupcake?

Ruminate on that for a moment while I digress.

(I tend to do that from time to time.  One of these days I'll cut to the chase, I swear.  Unfortunately for you, today is not that day.)

Halloween is just a few days away, which means Baking Season has begun... and I couldn't be happier.  Swimsuits have been stashed until next summer, and cozy wardrobe staples have taken center stage in my closet.

Tropical carrot cupcakes with cream cheese frosting

"Just call them good!" instructed my coworker.

I wasn't sure what to call these cupcakes when I delivered them to coworkers and friends.  Naming has never been a strong suit of mine, especially when it comes to short titles that roll off the tongue.  Coughbakingdomesticityandallthingsminicough.

I'm also just a wee bit indecisive, which leads to many feast or famine situations.

For example, I once owned three white cardigans, all of which were purchased in one weekend.  I just happened to like all of them for sightly different reasons (and obviously different occasions) and couldn't make up my mind.

Chocolate cupcakes with raspberry buttercream

I'd like to talk about equality.

What's that?  Men and women, equal opportunity, yadda yadda?  Not exactly.

I want to talk about savory and sweet snacks getting equal playing time at football parties, y'all.  These are the real issues that keep me up at night, Mr. President.

Whenever it comes time to plan a menu for an event revolving around a sporting event, it's easy to come up with a list of must-have food: chips and dip, pretzels, pizza, the obligatory veggie tray, and anything else that's meaty and cheesy (like these yummy stuffed meatballs!). 

But, as I'm sure you noticed, everything on that list -- while deeeeeelicious -- is savory.  What about dessert?

Banana whoopie pies with Nutella buttercream

Smack in the middle of my holiday cookie baking, I got a craving and a wild idea.  My husband can vouch from past experience that this means two things: First, a phone call from me begging him to stop at the grocery store.  Second, dessert.

Spontaneity always means sugar in my world.  For some, this might be a sign of a bigger problem.  For me, it's as welcome and reliable as the sunrise :)

The craving was for something sweet and soft.  I love snappy and chewy cookies, but even I needed a break from 'em.  And as much as eating more of the cookie dough would've satisfied me, there was no reason I couldn't take a break from baking... to do a little more baking.

M&M frosted cupcakes

Raise your hand if you've got Halloween candy lying around the house.  And by "lying around the house" I mean "desperately stashed in cabinets to get it out of sight."

We don't get trick-or-treaters in our apartment building, but you wouldn't know it from looking at our stash of candy.  Office celebrations and his and hers treat bags from my sweet mother (thanks, Mom!) have kept us sugar-coated for the better part of a week.

A week that also saw the return of the magical migrating candy bowl.  You know how it goes, don't you?

The candy bowl initially occupied the entry way table.  Nothing says "Welcome home!" quite like a piece of chocolate.  Coincidentally, chocolate also says, "So much for that workout!"

Zucchini cupcakes with lemon cream cheese icing

I can't believe we're nearly midway through August already.   Thankfully, there is still over a month left of summer.  Yes, summer goes until September 21st, don't you forget it!

This time of year is also known as the thick of vacation season.  I've all but given up keeping tabs on friends and family because they seem to be all over the place this year.  Weekend getaways, mid-week business trips extended for pleasure, and epic European adventures.  But I'm so happy to welcome 'em home and ooh and ahh over the hundreds and hundreds of pictures they've taken ;)

A traditional vacation wasn't in the works (so far, anyway) for me yet, but I've found other ways to enjoy a little R&R this summer.

Chocolate gobs... or whoopie pies

I've got a serious question for you, and you best sit down for it.  Ready?  (That's not the question, smart aleck.)  Here goes:

Are you Team Gob or Team Whoopie Pie?  Or are you Team I-didn't-know-they-were-the-same-thing-until-now?  If the latter is the case, I've got a story for you.

In college, my group of friends seemed to be interwoven like whoa.  Some people met living together in dorms, others had classes together and struck up friendships that way, and a few even went to high school together.  The way I met them was through a former high school classmate of mine, who also happened to be my roommate freshman year.  She befriended a guy in her intro to economics class and introduced us.  Got all that?

Fast Friday: Whipped peanut butter frosting

Remember that time I raved about spreadable culinary gold and delish salmon tostadas?  Not to take anything away from it because, well, it totally is spreadable culinary gold.  Specifically of the savory variety.  Love that stuff!

Ooooooh.  Speaking of that stuff, how about this for a delicious brainstorm -- the black bean and salsa spread as "sauce" for a Mexican-inspired pizza.  Right?!

Anyway, when I gushed about the recipe, gold was the first luxury item that came to mind.  But, I should've realized that there are more precious things.  Shinier things.  Brighter things.  Like diamonds!  Diamonds are a girl's best friend, y'all.

Turns out there's a reason diamonds weren't on my brain when I wrote about salmon tostadas.  It's because the universe knew that, days later, I'd whip up something so rich, so easy, and so lick-your-fingers-delicious that I'd need to use a new phrase to describe it.  "Spreadable culinary diamonds."

Carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

"Oh, shoot!  We ate the entire cake, didn't we?"  Except I didn't say shoot.  Ahem.  I said something that would've required me to put a quarter in the office swear jar.

It wasn't merely the fact that we did, indeed, eat the entire cake that caused me to turn into a run-of-the-mill potty mouth.  Instead, it was the sudden realization that I forgot to take a picture of a slice of said cake.

Oh, Katy, you are the worst.

Yep, I most certainly am.  It's just... well, here's the thing.  There was so much going on and I... I just... got distracted.  For many reasons.

Homemade funfetti cupcakes

Birthdays have always been a very big deal in our family.  Some years there were parties with friends, but most years were spent just the four of us having a ball at home.

From a young age, I remember days beginning with breakfast in bed and cards on the tray, flowers from Mom and Dad, favorite foods for lunch and dinner, and being spoiled rotten with presents.  And there was cake. Of course, there was cake!  With ice cream or, as my dad still calls it "commode" (in reference to the phrase a la mode, if you will).  My mom always made our birthday cakes.  I can picture the 9-by-11-inch glass dish now.

The days leading up to our birthdays were filled with anticipation and almost as much fun as the day itself.  She'd ask whether the birthday celebrant wanted yellow or chocolate a few days before the occasion.  On the day of, we'd hear the familiar buzz of the electric mixer and knew that meant we were mere hours away from sugary bliss.

Ho Ho cake

Let me clear up something right now -- this is not a Christmas cake.  Get those visions of a rotund man in a red and white suit out of your head.  If I wanted you to think of Santa, I would've named it a Ho ho ho cake.  Everyone knows that Santa's hos come in threes.

...um.  You know what I mean.  No disrespect, Mrs. Claus.

Anyway.  While this isn't specifically a Christmas cake, it could be one.  It could also just as easily be an Easter cake.  Or an Earth Day cake.  Or a "hey it's Tuesday!" cake.  Maybe that's what I should've titled this post because, by Tuesday, aren't we all totally over that Monday morning resolution to eat really healthfully and purge our systems of all junk and sugar?  Mm hmm.

Mini pumpkin whoopie pies (gobs) with cream cheese frosting

I'm a fan of many things: tennis, cashmere, Reese's pumpkins, and Inglourious Basterds, just to name a few. 

Two things I like not?  Brevity and cursing.  (Interesting combination...)

Well, it's time for a change of pace.  These pumpkin spice whoopie pies are damn good!!!

Or, gobs, as some of you may know them.

Chocolate sandwich cookies (aka homemade Oreos)

Because you can, darn it!  That's why.  Also, reason 1B: Because they are little bites of Heaven.

That's the question asked by many of my friends when I told them what I'd be serving at the apartment-warming party this past weekend.

 "Homemade Oreos?  Why don't you just buy Oreos?"
 "Pfffffff.  Because these are waaaaaay better.  You'll see."
 "But you have to make them when you can just buy them."
 "I like making things!  And you like when I make things."
 "Yeah, but you could also buy them.  I like store-bought Oreos, too."
 "But you'll like these more.  Trust me."

Black and white cookies

Happy Monday after the Oscars!  Did you watch?  I certainly did, planted on one very comfortable couch at a friend's apartment for her third annual Academy Awards party... and we had a blast!   I went 14/21 with my award predictions, tying for first place in our poll.  I thought hosts Anne Hathaway and James Franco did a pretty good job for their first time.  Both were clearly nervous but charming enough to entertain.  I think this is the most I've laughed during an Oscars broadcast, at least in recent memory.  But I think that Kirk Douglas stole the show when he presented.  And I'm so happy that Inception won a few awards, albeit minor ones (sound, effects, etc.).  Do you agree with who/what took home the Academy Awards?

So, the real question the morning after the big red carpet is this: who was your best and worst dressed actor/actress?  My favorite was Mila Kunis.  She looked absolutely breathtaking in pale purple lace!

And the worst-dressed?  That distinction goes to not one, but two unfortunate recipients: Jennifer Hudson and Scar-Jo.  Just...so...bad.  The colors.  The hair.  I honestly can't find one thing about either ensemble that I liked.  Sorry, ladies!  Better luck next year.

While we watched, talked, and judged Hollywood's finest from head to toe, we did the exact opposite of what they've done for the past two months -- feasted! 

Applesauce cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting

(Forgive me.  Technical difficulties prevented me from posting what I had typed up earlier.  An abbreviated version follows.)  

When the sign-up sheet first appeared for the office holiday party, I requested first crack at it.  Every year I wait much too long to pick something and by the time I've settled on an idea ("chocolate bundt cake!  shrimp salad cups!  the best macaroni and cheese in the world!"), would you believe that someone else has already signed up for a similar dish?  The nerve of some people!  Can't they read my mind?

Red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting

Happy Friday and happy almost Halloween!  A few months ago, a good friend requested a red velvet cake for his mid-October birthday.  I happily agreed and began the typical research, seeking out the best  recipe for this classic cake that I could find.

But, October turned out to be a pretty busy month with Pitt games, out of town visitors, family weekends, and weddings of the fall variety.  So, Nick's birthday came and went, much too quietly for anyone's taste.  He didn't seem to mind, but I knew he really wanted that cake, and I was determined to let him have said cake before October was behind us.  And then he went and got engaged to his longtime lady love.  Two reasons to celebrate and just one cake.  That's a lot of pressure, folks :)

Find a recipe is exactly what I did.  Not just any recipe, but one that ran in The New York Times.  That's right, the big guns.  But, while the search was successful, a tragedy reminiscent of childhood took place.  Every single flippin' recipe for red velvet cake involved heaping amounts of red food coloring.  That couldn't be right... could it?  Red food dye would mean that the color isn't natural, and the masses fawn over this cake's magical red properties (and frosting, but we'll get to that).  Apparently, the color of red velvet cake isn't simply the natural consequence of the acidic vinegar and buttermilk with the cocoa.  It's helped along with a literal ton of red food dye added to the batter!   It was a serious blow to my soul discovering this culinary lie.  Pretty similar to "The Easter bunny isn't real!" and "Santa Claus doesn't exist!"  Oh, how I remember it like it was yesterday...

The world's best chocolate frosting

[my very own little almond cake]

Isn't that the most adorable little cake you've ever seen?  A mini cake, if you will, all for me.  And while I'm going to keep the cake recipe and finished product until tomorrow's post, this chocolate frosting recipe was meant to be shared with the world -- shouted from the rooftops.  Some icings and frostings can be a bit tedious to make, with all of the whisking of egg whites and room temperature butter.  (Mind you, they are all totally delicious and utterly worth every second of labor.)  But until I made this frosting, I had been under the impression that a great frosting takes great work.  Nope, no way, not this time, not this frosting.

This chocolate frosting recipe comes from, who else, the experts at Hershey's.  And, though they left out a few details (such as the oh-so-crucial sifting), the recipe is quick and easy.  How quick?  Melt the butter in a microwave quick.  How easy?  Whisk everything together by hand, no electric mixer needed easy (though if you wanted, you could certainly use it).  Just use cocoa powder rather than chopping and melting down chocolate easy.  The first two times I made this I used a whisk, but the last time I caved and used my beloved KitchenAid... hey, I doubled the recipe and my arms were a teensy bit sore from a new workout at the gym the previous day.  Cut me some slack... please?

I think you will when you taste this.  If you've ever had a problem exhibiting self-control with those store-bought cans of chocolate frosting, well, you haven't got a prayer with this stuff.  It's so creamy and chocolatey and makes you think you've never had real chocolate icing before this moment.  And it may be the reason behind my doubling of the recipe.  I had enough for the layer cake, my mini cake, and oh, a 1/2 cup extra to spoon feed to myself straight out of the bowl save for later.

Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Frosting
(from Hershey's website)
-makes roughly 2 cups

1 stick unsalted butter
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Melt butter in a microwave safe bowl.  Stir in cocoa and whisk until completely dissolved (and no clumps of cocoa remain).  Add half of the powdered sugar, and whisk until no white remains.  Add milk, stir to incorporate, and add remaining sugar, again whisking until no white remains.  Stir in vanilla extract.

**Frosting too stiff?  Add milk one tablespoon at a time and stir until desired consistency for spreading is reached.

**Frosting too thin?  Add more powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.

To level and frost your cake, check out this video.  Great visuals for an otherwise wordy process.  I'm a very visual learner, so I thought this would help.  For this particular cake (recipe coming up tomorrow), I wanted a more rustic homemade look, so I didn't level the cakes.  It's totally up to you.  After all, it will taste just as delicious flat or rounded :)

White birthday cake with strawberry meringue buttercream

[happy birthday, miss natalie!]

While I will certainly cause at least a bit of emotional scarring in my future kids with various themed nights and excessive picture taking, there is one thing I will promise to always do for as long as I'm able -- make their birthday cakes from scratch.  Don't get me wrong, not everyone has the time or even desire to do this, but to me, baking is something I truly enjoy and what better way to celebrate loved ones birthdays than to present them with a cake of their choice!

Anyway, I digress.  When a friend or relative's birthday approaches, I send out feelers in the form of a voicemail or email with a listing of options for cake and icing flavors.  This particular pal said she had been craving white cake and strawberry frosting.  I happily accepted the order since it was something other than the classic yellow cake and vanilla buttercream (though they are delicious, I love me some variety).  Oh and you know, I love her dearly and wanted to present her with a cheerful and scrumptious birthday confection :)

This cake stays white by using bleached cake flour and omitting egg yolks.  The cake flour gives the finished product a super light and fluffy texture but still has the great vanilla flavor that most white cakes seem to lack, so it stands up to many varieties of toppings -- in this case, strawberry meringue buttercream.

Note: I halved this recipe and made only one 9-inch cake and cut it in half to make a two layer cake that would be more appropriate for a gathering of 10 people.  If you're having 15 or more, a full two layer 9-inch cake would be perfectly fine.

White Cake

(from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook)

-makes two 9-inch layer cakes or 24 cupcakes

3 cups cake flour (not self-rising)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature

2 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup milk

8 large egg whites

Strawberry Meringue Icing (recipe to follow)

Preheat oven to 350F.  For cakes, butter two 9-inch round cake pans, line bottoms with parchment paper.  Butter parchment, dust with flour and tap out excess and set aside.  (For cupcakes, line 2 12-cup muffin pans with paper liners and set aside.)  In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt, and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and 2 cups granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down sides of the bowl as needed.  Beat in the vanilla.  With mixer on low speed, add 1/3 of the flour mixture, 1/2 of the milk, second third of the flour mixture, remaining milk, and last third of the flour mixture, beating until combined after each addition.  Scrape down sides of the bowl as needed.  Transfer mixture to a large bowl and set aside.

Clean bowl of the electric mixer now and dry immediately.

In the clean bowl of the electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on low speed until foamy.  With mixer running, gradually added the remaining 1/4 cup of granulated sugar.  Beat on high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 4 minutes.  Do not overbeat!  VERY gently, fold a third of the egg white mixture into the butter flour mixture until just combined.  Gently fold in the remaining egg whites.

Divide batter evenly among cake pans (or muffin cups) and smooth tops with an offset spatula.  Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until the cakes are golden brown and a cake tested inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.  Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes.  Invert cakes onto the rack, peel off the parchment paper, and reinvert cakes to allow to cool completely, tops sides up.

Trim tops of cake layers with a serrated knife to level.  Spread 1 cup buttercream on first layer, place second layer on top, cut side down.  Spread the entire cake with the remaining frosting and garnish finished cake with whole strawberries.

Strawberry Meringue Buttercream

-makes 5 cups

4 large egg whites

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into tablespoons

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) strawberry jam (seedless is important!), pureed in a mini food processor

In a glass bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, combine egg whites and sugar.   Cook, whisking constantly, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is warm to the touch (about 160F).

Pour the contents of the bowl into the bowl of an electric mixer (or keep in same bowl if not using a stand mixer) and attach the bowl to the mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Beat the egg-white mixture on high speed until it holds stiff (but not dry) peaks.  Continue beating until the mixture is fluffy and cooled, about 6 minutes.

Switch to the paddle attachment.  With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the butter several tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition.  (If the frosting seems to separate after all the butter has been added, beat on medium-high until smooth again, 3 to 5 minutes more.)  Beat in vanilla.  Beat on lowest speed to eliminated any air bubbles, about 2 minutes.  Stir in strawberry jam with a rubber spatula until frosting is smooth.  If a more pronounced pink color is desired, add two drops of red food coloring at a time, stirring thoroughly until exact shade is achieved.

Frost cake or cupcakes and enjoy!!  Candles are, as always, recommended, whether there is a birthday or not.  You can find something to celebrate, surely.  Monday, perhaps?

Back to the Buttercream

Buttercream.  Butter.  Cream.  B-u-t-t-e-r-c-r-e-a-m.  Few words in the English language can elicit the kind of response from me that "buttercream" can.  I'm talking jumping up and down excitement (even more when the sugar rush kicks in).  There are many different kinds, each with its own ingredients.  Wikipedia has a great overview of the various types.  If all of that seems confusing to you, let me simplify.

The runner-up in buttercream popularity, at least in the US, is the meringue-based Swiss buttercream.  This is my go-to fancy cake icing, which I'll explain in a later post.  It's not nearly as sweet as the next kind, but has a light and silky texture that lends itself to more delicately flavored cakes.

The kind that most people have surely had is the American buttercream or "simple buttercream" -- butter, confectioner's sugar, a splash of milk or cream, and flavorings if desired -- for which the recipe is listed below.  It's sweet and often forms a very thin hardened crust on the icing, found in most bakery cakes.  And it's easy to make.  Only one small appliance, four ingredients, and no heat or cooking involved.

However, there is one VERY important key to a successful and delicious simple buttercream: super softened butter.  This is not the time to hurry along the butter to come to room temperature.  Stop!  Don't even think about putting it in the microwave... no, not even on a low power setting... no, not even for five seconds.  
 Resist all urges to do anything to unnaturally soften the butter.  If, like me, you bake when you get home from a day at work or school and can't stand the idea of waiting a few more hours for butter to soften, put out a stick of butter (still wrapped) on a plate somewhere in your kitchen.  Yes, it's okay to leave butter out at room temperature.  Our grandparents did it, so did our parents.  No need to freak out over this.  The reason for my rant is that if the butter isn't softened the whole way through, the icing will have tiny lumps of butter in it... not good.  Now, without further ado...

Simple Buttercream
-makes about 1 3/4 cups or enough for 15 regular cupcakes with extra for snacking

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3-4 cups confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup milk

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes.  Really mix here... you're looking for silky butter here.  With mixer on low speed, add 3 cups confectioner's sugar, milk, and vanilla; mix until light and fluffy (2-3 more minutes).  If necessary, gradually add remaining 1 cup sugar to reach desired consistency.  (I usually use about 3 1/2 cups total, but it's up to you if you like a stiffer or softer icing.)  If you'd like to color your icing, now is the time to add food coloring... one drop at a time.

Top your favorite cake or cupcakes with this nectar of the gods.  You won't be disappointed!