The Fame... It's Going to My Head...

Um, so I know I'm no celebrity, but there's something about being asked for advice that makes me feel super important.  

Like I'm some sort of ZENITH of knowledge.

A wealth of information.

A source of all there is to know.

The end-all be-all of ---

OK, do you get the point yet?   

Can I let my big head deflate now?

Last week, Amber of Amber's Life sent me an email asking me if I had a good recipe for red velvet cupcakes.

Do I have a good recipe for red velvet cupcakes?

Uh...

Does Gertie Rock?  Does doing taxes stink?  Are Reality TV shows overrated?

 [answers: yes, yes, and double yes]

You get my point.

 So yes, I had a recipe to share with her as well as my own recipe for cream cheese frosting.

Here's what she came up with:

Look at these little beauties!  

Look how RICH and RED they are!!

Ohhhhh... that's what a red velvet should look like...

Here they are iced:

Mmmm... word on the streets is that these suckers didn't last long...

Check out the sweet little sprinkles she found to put on top:

Awwww...

♥

Thanks for petting my ego making my day, Amber!! 

(And hey, if any of you get a chance, go check out her blog Designs by Amber, too.  She's so talented!)

Brown Sugar Pecan Cupcakes and Dollface Delights!

Picture from Bon Appétit Magazine

It's been waaaaaay too long since I got a chance to play around with a new cupcake recipe but thankfully my dearest, sweetest mother came to my rescue this past weekend by showing me that she had received the latest issue of Bon Appétit. I believe the conversation went like this:

Mom: Did you see I got the newest issue of Bon Appétit?

Me: No! [grabs magazine] Sweet! Thanksgiving recipes! AND A CUPCAKE RECIPE!! Can I have this?

Mom: No.

Me: [Takes it anyway]

THANKS MOM!! Don't worry -- in return, I'll bring the first batch by your office for testing and analysis purposes. QUALITY CONTROL IS KEY! Though I didn't get a chance to take pictures of these tasty treats, they were QUITE delectable. Darling hubby thought they were a bit too nutty but he doesn't like pecans anyway. I, on the other hand, thought they were scrumptious. Pecan pie is my favorite pie, though, tied with cherry pie, so perhaps I'm slightly biased. Mmmm... pie. Back to this recipe, the caramel frosting was the **perfect** topping BUT I felt like it was less a frosting and more a glaze. It was so runny!! Definitely had a great caramel flavor and by far my favorite caramel frosting glaze recipe :)

♥Brown Sugar Pecan Cupcakes♥
Makes 12 cupcakes (I got 13)

Ingredients:

• 1 c. all-purpose flour*
• 1/2 c. cake flour*
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 1/4 c. coarsely chopped toasted pecans (I didn't toast mine)
• 1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 c. (packed) brown sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/3 c. sour cream
• 1 t. vanilla extract

*I didn't have any cake flour so I used the following substitution: 1 c. cake flour = 1 c. all-purpose flour MINUS 2 tablespoons + 2 tablespoons corn starch (so in this situation since I needed 1/2 c. cake flour I used 1/2 c. all-purpose flour, took out 1 tablespoon flour, and added 1 tablespoon cornstarch).

Directions:

1. PREHEAT oven to 350°F
2. WHISK flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. ADD pecans.
3. In another bowl, BEAT butter until smooth (about 30 seconds).
   
4. ADD brown sugar, BEAT until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes).
5. ADD eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend between additions.
6. BEAT in sour cream and vanilla.
7. ADD dry ingredients to wet; beat on low speed just to blend.
8. DIVIDE batter among muffin cups.

♥Caramel Frosting Glaze♥
(Don't try to make this at 12:30 AM. It takes foreeeeeeever. At least, that's what it seems like when you really just want a cupcake.)

Ingredients:

• 1 c. sugar
• 1/4 c. water
• 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/8 t. salt
• 1 c. powdered sugar, sifted (I didn't sift mine. Laaaaaaazy!!)
  
• 1 c. coarsely chopped toasted pecans (again, I didn't toast mine. *sigh*)

Directions:

1. STIR sugar and water in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium-high.
2. BOIL until syrup turns deep amber*, brushing down sides with wet pastry brush (about 6-7 minutes)
   *NOTE: I haven't really made a lot of stovetop frostings so maybe this is expected by some people but I DID NOT KNOW that the sugar-water went from liquid to powder and then back to liquid again. I thought I did something wrong but apparently that's exactly what's supposed to happen! Also, I didn't do the pastry brush bit. Oops :)
3. REMOVE FROM HEAT.
   
4. ADD cream (mixture will bubble up -- this is OK!)
5. STIR over low heat until caramel bits dissolve.
6. WHISK egg yolks in medium bowl. Very gradually whisk hot caramel into yolks.
   
7. COOL to room temperature.
8. Using electric mixer, beat butter and salt in large bowl until smooth. Beat in caramel.
9. ADD powdered sugar and beat until smooth.
10. Let stand at room temperature until thick enough to spread (about 1 hour). <-- WHAT?? I got this far and was SO READY to eat one of these dang things when I read this part. WHAT GIVES!?!
11. Spread frosting over cupcakes. Place pecans on plate. Roll edges in nuts.
12. OMC EAT THEM RIGHT NOW!
    
    
    ~♥~

As a total side-note, can I just take a moment to review my new dish soap? We don't have a dishwasher here in the Miss Dot household. Rather, I AM the dish washer. This means that I pay particular attention to the dish soap that we use and its ability to help me clean the dishes (i.e., does it make my life easier?) My newest soap purchase has received my highest rating so far:

Bright Green Concentrated Dish Washing Liquid
(lavender scented)

Pros:

• Seriously cuts grease. No lie there. It even says "Tough on Grease" right on the front but it ain't no namby pamby marketing scheme -- it's the real deal.
• It doesn't smell like natural lavender BUT the smell isn't sickening or cloyingly sweet.
• No animal testing.
• Biodegradable.
• No petroleum solvents.
• Naturally derived ingredients/surfactants.
• Phosphate-free.
• Packing made from 25% post-consumer waste.

Cons:

• Lavender makes me sleepy.

Just kidding.

~♥~

In other news... Check out what I got in the mail from the LOVELY Erica B. of Dollface Delights!!

::DRAMATIZATION::

So there I was, Monday afternoon, bored bored bored and wishing something would appear to cheer me up...

...when lo and behold, A PACKAGE CAME!!

I could tell right away that this was no ORDINARY package. It even SOUNDED special!

I began to open the package.

FINALLY! Got it open :)
Ta-da!! Look what she made for me!!

She even sent me a little note, too :)

Aren't I just the luckiest girl?? Apparently that's what I get for telling her that I LOVED her cute sign that she used at Bite Fest 2009.

BTW -- Can you tell we're totally twins? She's my sista from anotha motha. I love her style!!

If you haven't yet, definitely take a minute to stop by her blog and check out what she's up to. She's got the neatest stuff! For example, check out one of my favorites of hers: The Monroe Brownie. I'll bet Marilyn would be proud!

Me, by Amanda Kirby

Check out this illustration of me (with a cupcake, no less!) created by my one of my very favorite friends in the world, AMANDA KIRBY! Man, I give Amanda a cupcake and look what she does!! I'm just tickled pink that she made this for me :) What a nice surprise! Thank you, Amanda!

Samples! Samples!

Yesterday I took 6 of our favorite flavors over to Rhonda at Mimi & Red, a little boutique down the street from us (check out reviews for them here). I love their merchandise! I've bought a couple of cute belts from them AND my super cute new black and white checkered dress that came complete with its own belt and giant bow (I love bows -- note giant bow on dress below):

Anywho, back to the cupcakes! OK, so we wanted to bring a fun sampling of our flavors and make sure they were all of the filled variety so we chose these:

• Lemonade Dream
• Strawberry Shortcake
• Cherry Bomb
• Strawberry Lemonade
• Chocolate Covered Strawberry
• Peanut Butter Perfection

I made little labels to stick in them, too, so that Rhonda would know which was which after I left since I was pretty sure that she wasn't going to stuff her face with them right then and there:


Here's a close-up of our latest little beauty, the Peanut Butter Perfection:

One bite of this little sucker and your mouth is filled with the most heavenly combination of chocolate cupcake, chocolate cream, and fluffy peanut butter frosting. If you're lucky, you might even get one of the chocolate jimmies on the top (hand-sprinkled for superior flavor enhancement).

Oh how I love filled cupcakes! Just for kicks and giggles, here are some shots of the other guys, too. Wouldn't want them feeling left out!

The Logo is Here!!

In case you haven't already noticed, CHECK OUT MY NEW LOGO!! Lauren just sent it to me today and I couldn't be happier! She did a perfect job of capturing my personality and how I wanted my logo to look. I want to print these out and stick them everywhere!!

I'm getting a logo!

Last night I had an impromptu meeting with my friend and graphic designer, Lauren Burke. I’ve commissioned her to do the logo for my cupcake shop and I’m really excited with the designs she’s coming up with. I love her girly style and whimsical flair – she really has an eye for composition! I can’t wait to see what the final result is! Check out her iStock portfolio here. She even has a line of cards at Storkie.com called the Couture Collection. Makes me want to have a bridal shower all over again! Anyone need me to host one for them??

Also, I’m going to be working on cupcakes for a Mary Kay party coming up soon! I’m excited to use a lot of pink and I’m thinking about flavors that go along with the color: strawberry, raspberry… can I pull cherry in, too? Geez I love me some cherry. I’m thinking that this might be the perfect time to start working on my version of the strawberry shortcake cupcake. I’m still working out the berry fillings (see black forest cupcake fiasco below…) so I’m not sure how to work that in yet. Jelly? Preserves? Hmm…


Will and I came up with a couple flavor combos that we like, too. Thank heavens for a husband with an insatiable appetite for all things yummy! His favorite? The Bella (Bellarina?): white cake with cream cheese filling and topped with chocolate buttercream. Mine? The Lemon Tango: white cake with lemon filling and a dollop of cream cheese on top. For me, the tanginess of the cream cheese and the lemon do the absolute perfect tango in my mouth. They’re welcome to come party anytime!