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The Cupcake Thread!

Mara

Mara

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Messages
31,003
Okay since we were booted out of WWT with our non-healthy cupcake talk....and cupcakes seem to be taking over the world, and I am on board entirely with that as a fabulous idea.....here's a thread to discuss CUPCAKES (and maybe cakes and the like too)...making, baking, decorating, pictures, buying, eating, drooling...whatever.

We love cupcakes.
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To start...here are the ones I made 2 weeks ago...Billy's Vanilla Vanilla Cupcakes made MiniStyle with Lemon Buttercream Frosting. Recipe from Billy's Bakery in NYC, competitor to Magnolia Bakery!! Supposedly Billy used to work there and then went off and did his own thing and whala, success.

Recipe on cupcakes from MarthaStewart.Com and Buttercream was adapted on my own. Yummy!!!
I am laughing at the slightly flattened deformed frosted one right behind the main one..lol. I'm still learning about piping.

vanilla cuppies mara c sm PS.JPG
 
I was thinking the same thing Mara, thanks for doing the thread!

As you know, I am planning a batch of Easter cuppies, and recently I have been making a Madeira cake weekly that we have with a cup of tea of an evening. Very plain and simple cake, but not too heavy on the calories and no frosting, so it fits the bill quite nicely!

Bless your little flat frostie cakie in the background!
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I''m planning on making a Red Velvet cake on sunday
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i love me a good cupcake though and will look forward to all the additions to this thread
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Bring ''em on!

Love these little bites of pure joy.
Has anyone seen the lace cupcake "papers" ?

I saw them on a blog recently and now can''t find them.
They were so cute. (off to hunt....)
 

Oh Mrs Salvo, can you post your Red Velvet recipe?? That is like all the rage out here now....but I have had good and bad red velvet cupcakes. Not sure how to adapt a cake into a cupcake recipe but I will do some research, would like to see your RV cake recipe though!!!


YUM Lorelei, Madeira cake sounds fab.

Fun thing about the flat frostied cupcakes that don't look pretty enough for consumption by others...they go straight into my waiting mouth. No cupcake left behind!!

Oooh lace papers!!! That sounds so pretty. I have gotten some fun ones at a few stores but haven't seen lace.
 
I live 20 blocks from Billy''s in NYC, so I''m lazy and just go buy them!

It smells so good from down the block!

I''m picking up the red velvet ones to bring home for Easter :)

I admire you girls for cooking them from scratch..yum!
 
Aren''t these pretty!!!

cupcake-wrapper-white-filigree.jpg
 
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Mara
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I can''t believe you started this evil thread. Honestly ladies, this is mean, I love to bake, and this is gonna kill me. Even more than that, I chose the pave all around that darn leon ring, now I''m scared that it might not fit by the time it gets here if I partake in this thread!!! GRRR....
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Here is a picture of a red velvet I had from a bakery a week ago, it was verra good!!! Cream cheese frosting.

sbf cuppie c sm.JPG
 
Living 20 blocks from heaven! Easy just buy, eat and then walk off the extra calories.
 
mmmmmm.....cupcakes.....
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I saw really cute cupcake paper holders (or whatever they are called) at Target.
 
and here is another one from the same bakery, i loved the simple decor on this but it was so fun!! the cake was just okay (mine''s better!!!)...

bebe those are SO super cute.

i have become obsessed with cupcake blogs...reading them, marking recipes down, saving pictures with design ideas.

i''m also taking a cake decorating class with some friends at the end of the month....to hone my skills!!!

sbf cuppie b sm.JPG
 
Yum yum yum. I LOOOOVE cupcakes. We had cupcakes from Kara's Cupcakes in SF for our wedding. LOVED THEM. They may have been expensive, but they were worth every penny.

I have a really fab red velvet recipe here somewhere. They are my long term favorites, I'll post the recipe when I find it. I love to bake!
 
Here is a picture of the tier of yumminess from our wedding.

IMG_4321.jpg
 
Here''s the Red Velvet Cake Recipe:
pre-heat oven to 350

Ingredients:
1/2 butter (room temp butter)
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 oz. Red food coloring
2 oz. water
1 tbsp cocoa
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vinegar
1 tsp. baking soda
2 1/2 cups of flour

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs and blend well. Make a paste of the cocoa and food and add to the butter mixture. add flour & salt. then addd buttermild, vanilla, water, soda and blend well. stir in vinegar. Bake 350 20-30 min, let cool. (i use 3 of the small cake pans)

Frosting:

6 tbsps. flour
1/2 cups of butter (room temp. butter)
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. vanilla

Mix flour and milk over low heat until thickened. stir constantly till cool.
Cream sugar, butter and vanilla until fluffy. add to above mixture and beat well for 10 minutes. No cheating on the 10 minute thing, i promise it will mess up the frosting.

* make sure butter is room temperature. do not melt it in the microwave etc. it will make for a very runny frosting.
 
Mmmmmmm, Mara, those are my kind of cupcakes. They look delish!
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I bought some cupcakes for my son last week that were awful, but he really enjoyed them! There is nothing more fun than seeing a 4 yr. old stuff heaping globs of super sweet frosting in their mouth! Such simple enjoyment!!
 

Now.. this is my kinda thread...


Considering I just switched careers... this is exactly the type of thread I love to see...


I was just hired (about 4 weeks ago) as a Pastry Chef for a resort where I live (I moved back to the states in January, and decided to switch careers)...


So, cupcakes are my fave and current obsession.. and here is my fave creation: S''mores cupcakes: Graham Cracker Cake, with chocolate ganache and Marshmallow cream frosting... YUM... I''m trying to work on pictures.. but having some issues... I''ll work on it.. and report back..

Also, I must add... that Sprinkles from So. Cal are my FAVE!!! So here is a picture of those...

And another thing.. thanks for adding this thread, as I was just asked to do a wedding cake.. but have convinced them to do cupcakes instead of a traditional tiered cake.. so this will give me some great inpiration..
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Sprinkles.JPG
 
OH Neatfreak!!

I forgot you had Kara''s for your wedding.. can I just say the Meyer lemon is To Die For!!

I bought a dozen various cupcakes when I was visiting SF... and carted them around with me in my bag.. as my hubby and I were enjoying the Major League Baseball All Star festivities this past year... we went to the Fan Fest.. it was our last day in SF.. and I had just bought the little cuppies... ate ONE of them... went and had dim sum.. and went to Fan Fest.. the security guard made me throw them out!!! NO food allowed inside.. OMG.. I was way too full to eat them.. and had to surrender my little cupcake loves... I was devastated... such a shame..
 
cupcakes ROCK!

my latest obsession is trolling yelp to learn about the next hot cupcakery here in L.A. Jaders- Sprinkes has some SERIOUS competition!

I love how this place posts daily specials on it's blog: http://bigsugarbakeshop.blogspot.com/ I bought an assortment to a friend's baby shower last weekend, and it was a tie between the red velvet and belgian chocolate cupcakes.


YUMYUMYUMYUMYUM
 
oooh great thread! I had a red velvet cupcake for the first time when I was in NY in January and it was amazing!! I''ve been thinking about it ever since I returned and cannot wait to get another one. Seriously delicious!!
 
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SOO not cool to post this in front of a pregnant woman! Now I NEED cupcakes.

My friend bought me those sprinkles cupcakes for my baby shower. The strawberry ones are DELISH....
 
oh boy this is a dangerous thread! I love cupcakes and of course now I want one...
I like to make dark chocolate cupcakes with white frosting. I usually add almond extract to the homemade frosting and then put marachino cherries on top. Sounds simple (it is) but I love the flavors together. Plus they are plain but pretty!
 
charger i LOVE yelp!!! i am a crazy avid yelper for the sf bayarea.

in fact i have found so many awesome bakeries and stuff off there...mmmmm. sibby''s is our big deal over here in san mateo, ca. and i tried miette in SF and also that takes the cake in SF. kara''s is on my list for when aljdewey visits me in april.

we also have icing on the cake here but they don''t specialize. and the pictures i posted were from sugar, butter, flour, but they only offer 3-4 types. that takes the cake in SF has CRAZY amounts of flavors and options. i can''t wait to go there, i have only had their stuff at parties.

jaders, those cuppies look fabulouso!! any icing tips? how do you get the frosting so prettily rounded? do you fill higher than 2/3 in the cups to get more of a dome?

i have been saving crazy pictures for icing ideas. i was thinking for easter this wkd i might do hummingbird cupcakes with either a big dollop of cream cheese frosting or get creative and do grass with a little chick (bought these last week) and some cadbury mini eggs for fun. not sure though, elegant or fun????

funny we don''t have sprinkles yet, but one is opening at stanford mall in PA this summer...so we''ll try it then, but i have heard mixed reviews on them. some people say they are dry and not that good and others love them. considering we have so many places out here .... i think they will really have to raise their bar to keep up with the small independents!!!
 
Date: 3/18/2008 5:18:42 PM
Author: mrssalvo
Here's the Red Velvet Cake Recipe:
pre-heat oven to 350

Ingredients:
1/2 butter (room temp butter)
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 oz. Red food coloring
2 oz. water
1 tbsp cocoa
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vinegar
1 tsp. baking soda
2 1/2 cups of flour

Cream butter and sugar, add eggs and blend well. Make a paste of the cocoa and food and add to the butter mixture. add flour & salt. then addd buttermild, vanilla, water, soda and blend well. stir in vinegar. Bake 350 20-30 min, let cool. (i use 3 of the small cake pans)

Frosting:

6 tbsps. flour
1/2 cups of butter (room temp. butter)
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1 1/2 tbsp. vanilla

Mix flour and milk over low heat until thickened. stir constantly till cool.
Cream sugar, butter and vanilla until fluffy. add to above mixture and beat well for 10 minutes. No cheating on the 10 minute thing, i promise it will mess up the frosting.

* make sure butter is room temperature. do not melt it in the microwave etc. it will make for a very runny frosting.
Click to expand...


Thank you for the recipe and the notes about cheating, MrsSalvo. I always wondererd how to make red velvet cake. Even better, red velvet cupcakes! Mmmmm.....
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Good luck with yours on Sunday
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Mara- I think Jader''s picture shows Sprinkles cupcakes, not hers. But one trick I use for getting my frosting so smooth is to use a frosting spatula ( I like the offset ones) and a cup of really hot water. I then frost the cupcakes and to "finish" them you put the metal spatula in hot water for a minute and then wipe it with a rag, then run it over the top of the cupcake and the heat melts the butter in the frosting just a bit and makes it smooth.

Works like a charm!
 
oh fab idea neatfreak.

some of my fave cupcake blogs:

gigicakes.blogspot.com
howtoeatacupcake.blogspot.com
www.cupcakeblog.com

so many fab recipes and pictures on those! and i have emailed a few of the gals asking some Q''s and they are so helpful. the world of baking is filled with sweet people.
 
Mara, I make the red velvet cupcakes from Sprinkles. They sell the mix at Williams-Sonoma and then I make my own cream cheese frosting. They look like your pic minus the pecans. If I make up a batch, I will take a pic! Yum
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I am such a sucker I am totally going out to buy a mini cupcake pan tonight to make some. I love the idea of making minis Mara, the big ones are just too much. I am going RIGHT NOW actually!
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mrs salvo...do you use regular sugar for the frosting because every recipe i have seen uses confectioners sugar. i didn't know you could use regular sugar.

lol neatfreak i love making minis for myself...the big ones are WAY too much committment. actually typically i do about 20 regular cupcakes for giving away or an 'event' and then do like 10 minis with the rest of the batter and the minis are what we keep at home...because it's so much better to have those around than huge cupcakes!'

TIP for baking minis which i learned the hard way the first time. they only take about 1/2 the baking time of large ones. so if the large ones take about 18-20, the minis will take about 9-10 (depending on your oven)...and be sure to use an oven thermometer because my oven was FIFTY degrees off when i finally measured it. i always thought it was like 10-15...but 50! crazy. and now finally stuff is baking right.

i have the hardest time getting my frosting stiff enough to pipe super well because i hate how sweet it gets with all the sugars you have to add. i am not a fan of buttercream frosting for that reason. i made an amazing whipped buttercream last time which had heavy cream and buttercream combined and it was great...much less sickly sweet. but a few of the blog gals swear by something called swiss merengue buttercream which is basically you start with an egg white merengue whipped til stiff and then add in the buttercream elements. supposedly good for piping but not super sweet. i might try it when i feel egg-white brave...mine never get quite to be as fab as i want.

here are some vahlrona dark chocolate cupcakes i made with mint buttercream frosting...yummy.

mini mint cuppies.jpg
 
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my weakness..........God my mouth is filling up and I''m salivating whilst reading this.

The girlier and prettier the more appetizing they look. This is my mothers fault, she makes cupcakes with frosting and coconut on top and they are amazing just warm out of the oven.

think i''m going to make a batch on my day off on Friday.
 
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