Food

Lemon Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

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Sometimes a cupcake flavor pops into my head and I can’t do anything else until I bake and enjoy said cupcakes.  This is true with these beauties.  I had a bounty of lemons and an entire pound of strawberries on the verge of rottenness.  I needed to do something with them and do it fast. Thus, I embarked on one of the most delicious cupcakes journeys ever. (For me, at least.)

Fluffy, lemon cake paired with a strawberry-cream cheese frosting.  I mean…there really isn’t much else to say.  I loved every bite of these.  🙂

The only real note I have about these cupcakes is that the frosting was just a little runny.  I popped it in the fridge after I mixed it up and it worked perfectly well.  I added more powdered sugar to help stabilize it but it was getting to be pretty sweet and I didn’t want to overdo it.


Lemon Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

For the cupcakes:

  • 2¼ cups cake flour
  • 1 tbsp. baking powder
  • ½ tsp. baking soda
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 1¼ cups whole milk or buttermilk
  • 4 large egg whites
  • 1½ cups granulated sugar
  • 2 tsp. grated lemon zest
  • 1 stick (8 tbsp.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • ½ tsp. pure lemon extract
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside.
  2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. Whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl. Set aside.
  3. Place the sugar and lemon zest in the bowl of an electric mixer and rub them together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Add in the butter and working with the paddle or whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat at medium speed for 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light. Beat in the extract.
  4. Add one third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed. Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated. Add the rest of the milk and eggs beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients. Finally, beat the batter on medium speed for 2 minutes.
  5. Divide the batter between prepared cupcake pans and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the cupcakes are well risen and spring back to the touch. A thin knife or other tester should come out clean.
  6. Transfer the cake pans to cooling racks and cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting:

  • ~½ lb. strawberries, hulled and sliced
  • ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
  • Pinch of salt
  • 3 to 4 cups powdered sugar
  1. Puree the strawberries in a food processor until smooth. Strain over a fine mesh strainer into a medium bowl, removing as many seeds as possible. Set strawberry syrup aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Add in vanilla and salt and mix. Stir in the strawberry syrup and beat until combined. Begin adding powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until mixture reaches desired consistency. If necessary, chill buttercream before frosting cupcakes.

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with {surprise!} Red Velvet Heart Centers

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Who doesn’t love a surprise inside of an already amazing cupcake? I used Annie’s vanilla bean cupcakes and her red velvet recipe, as well. I wanted more than 12 cupcakes, which is what the original recipe says that it will yield, so I went this route so that I ended up with 24 cupcakes.

Given that this was the first time I’ve done anything like this, with the cake in the center and all, I think it went pretty well. Not every cupcake had a perfect heart in the center – some feel to the side – but it was still a very fun and tasty surprise.

I halved the original recipe for the red velvet cake and baked it in an 8×8 pan. The cake was too thick to cut through with a cookie cutter so I sliced the cake in half horizontally so that I had two large squares and I cut out the hearts from that. You could probably bake the cake in a larger pan and it would work fine, just adjust how long the cake is baked for.

While the cake cooled (I put it in the fridge after a little while to cool a little faster) I mixed up the vanilla bean batter. Once the hearts were cut out and the batter was ready, I lined my muffin tins with paper liners. I tried a couple of methods but because the vanilla bean batter is pretty thick, the best method I found was to sit the heart in the empty muffin tin and pour the batter around the heart.

Make sure that all the hearts are sitting the same direction and you know which way they are facing so that when you cut into them you get a heart and not just a blob. I actually drew little arrows on my muffin tin with a Sharpie before baking. After removing them from a pan, make sure they all face forward as you frost them.

As far as the vanilla bean cupcakes, these are amazing. Flavorful, super moist, and so pretty with the vanilla bean flecks. And best of all, not dry at all – even after several days. Like I said, amazing.

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with {surprise!} Red Velvet Heart Centers

For the red velvet cake (half of the original):

  • 1 1/4 cups cake flour
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 tbsp. cocoa powder
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1 tbsp. liquid red food coloring
  • 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp. distilled white vinegar
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour an 8×8 cake pan. In a medium bowl, combine the cake flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa powder, and salt.
  2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the eggs, vegetable oil, buttermilk, food coloring, vanilla, and vinegar. Beat on a medium speed until mixed together. Slowly add in the dry ingredients and mix until smooth, 2 minutes.
  3. Pour the batter into prepared pan and bake for 22-27 minutes, until tester comes out clean. Let cool completely.
  4. Remove from pan when cool and using a sharp, serrated knife, slice the cake in half horizontally. Use a small heart cookie cutter to cut out hearts. Set aside.

For the vanilla bean cupcakes:

  • 3 cups cake flour
  • 1 tbsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
  • 16 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 5 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups buttermilk, at room temperature
  • 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line 24 muffin tins with paper liners; set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
  3. Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer. Scrape out the seeds of the vanilla pod and add the seeds to the butter. Beat the butter and vanilla bean seeds on medium-high for 3 minutes, until creamy. Scrape down bowl and beat for additional minute.
  4. Add the sugar to the butter mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, beating 1 minute after each addition. Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping the bowl as necessary.
  5. In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk and vanilla. With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients, alternating with the wet ingredients. Begin and end with the dry ingredients. Mix only until incorporated, do not overmix. Scrape down the bowl and mix for 15 seconds longer.
  6. Place a red velvet heart into a paper lined tin and while holding the heart in place, carefully pour the vanilla bean batter around the heart and over the top, covering the heart. Continue with all the hearts and the rest of the batter, until you fill all the muffin tins.
  7. Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in pan for a few minutes before removing to a wire rack.

For the vanilla bean buttercream:
(Good Thymes & Good Food original)

  • 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
  • 2 tbsp. heavy cream
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • liquid red food coloring
  1. In the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment in place, beat the butter until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Slowly add in the powdered sugar and mix well. Add in the salt, seeds from the vanilla bean, heavy cream, vanilla extract, and a few drops of food coloring (based on desired color – start with 2-3 drops).
  2. Turn mixer up to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
  3. Frost cupcakes as desired.

Fresh Fruit Baked Oatmeal

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It’s no secret that I love baked oatmeal.  It’s one of my favorite ways to enjoy breakfast (and I always enjoy breakfast).  With all of the fresh fruit that is available in the summer, our fridge is practically overflowing with berries and other sweet fruits.

In an effort to make sure that it was all used and none went to waste, I searched for a way to incorporate it into breakfast.

I didn’t have to search far because there was a great recipe just waiting for me to try!

I immediately doubled the recipe, having a hunch that we would love it, and I wasn’t wrong.  Not only did we eat this for breakfast but I also ate it for dessert!

This is definitely something that I like to make ahead of time and then reheat when we want it.  It takes only a few minutes to assemble but it needs to bake for about 40 minutes and we really aren’t that patient when it comes to mornings.  😉

You can use any combination of fruit that you have around.  I’ve used blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, pineapple, peaches, and bananas.  Mix it up and use what you  have around or what you love!

Baked Oatmeal

  • 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 ½ tsp. ground cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp. salt
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • ¼ cup honey*
  • 2 cups milk
  • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
  • 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1 ripe banana, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 2-3 cup fresh fruit (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, diced peaches, etc.)

*You can use a combination of honey and maple syrup or ½ cup total syrup. I haven’t tried this with all honey.

  1. Preheat the oven to 375˚ F and lightly grease a 2-quart baking dish; set aside.
  2. In a medium bowl, stir together the oats, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt; set aside.
  3. In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the maple syrup, honey, milk, egg, butter, and vanilla.
  4. Cover the bottom of the baking dish with the sliced banana and then top with half of the berries. Pour the oat mixture over the fruit evenly and then add the liquid ingredients on top of the oats. Sprinkle the remaining berries over the top.
  5. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the top is browned and the oats are mostly set. Let stand for10 minutes before serving.

Chocolate and Salted Caramel Pudding Pops

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When I saw these pudding pops floating around the Interwebs they just looked way too amazing for me to pass up an opportunity to make them.  Frozen pudding on a stick?  Yes please. These were not the easiest and quickest dessert I’ve ever made but there isn’t anything particularly hard about them.  Make the pudding, … Read more