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The Cupcake Thread!
- Thread starter Mara
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Mara
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let me know if you do dandi, i am curious to see how it comes out for you. vanilla is one of the most ''finicky'' recipes IMO because it can dry out in a few seconds in the oven it seems. much more so than carrot or banana or any of the other more oil heavy flavors. but just putting oil in vanilla makes it much too thick and oily.
i am horrible with measuring too... i know baking is a precise science but i get lazy hahah.
i am horrible with measuring too... i know baking is a precise science but i get lazy hahah.
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I get really nervous waiting for them to bake... my vanillas always seem to pop and explode and come out lopsided, or dry, or oily... I have a bit of a phobia of them
That's another reason I LOVE that mudcake recipe... the shape always comes out spot on!
I have a stack of RVs to bake this weekend for a christening, but I might give your vanillas a go next weekend. Thanks again! x
I have a stack of RVs to bake this weekend for a christening, but I might give your vanillas a go next weekend. Thanks again! x
Jas12
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i am horrible with measuring too--i eye-ball it and it always seems to work just fine. I use a vanilla recipe similar to the one Dandi posted which is a combo of what mara and i were using. I use mostly butter, but add the touch of oil in for moisture.
Mara--couldn''t agree more about the vanilla. I think we discussed it before, but i make my own vanilla and this makes all the difference (as would any good vanilla). When i try my buttercream before adding the vanilla it tastes like nothing special, after a tbls or 2 of vanilla it is heavenly. lurve me some good vanilla! I''ll have to try the paste!
Dandi--i really need to try that mudcake. I found an okay chocolate recipe recently, but like mara--not one i really love. I know exactly how i want it to taste. Fairly light, rich, moist with a larger crumb, but i can''t create it in a cupcake.
I do however love mudcake, so i am going to try it!!
.....
also, for those of you having trouble with the tops of your cakes. If you are using reg. sized cupcake liners (not minis) don''t overfill the cups. I fill mine less than half-way so that they bake up to just below the edge of the liners. IMO, this makes the prettiest cuppie b/c the frosting sits n..icely on top and you don''t have to use as much frosting.
.....
i made my fondant toppers for my girlfriend''s wedding shower. I decided on pink onesies and brown monograms (both with a bit of pink and white detailing). I will do chocolate cuppies with pink liners and vanilla cuppies with brown liners -to fit the theme--should be cute
Mara--couldn''t agree more about the vanilla. I think we discussed it before, but i make my own vanilla and this makes all the difference (as would any good vanilla). When i try my buttercream before adding the vanilla it tastes like nothing special, after a tbls or 2 of vanilla it is heavenly. lurve me some good vanilla! I''ll have to try the paste!
Dandi--i really need to try that mudcake. I found an okay chocolate recipe recently, but like mara--not one i really love. I know exactly how i want it to taste. Fairly light, rich, moist with a larger crumb, but i can''t create it in a cupcake.
I do however love mudcake, so i am going to try it!!
.....
also, for those of you having trouble with the tops of your cakes. If you are using reg. sized cupcake liners (not minis) don''t overfill the cups. I fill mine less than half-way so that they bake up to just below the edge of the liners. IMO, this makes the prettiest cuppie b/c the frosting sits n..icely on top and you don''t have to use as much frosting.
.....
i made my fondant toppers for my girlfriend''s wedding shower. I decided on pink onesies and brown monograms (both with a bit of pink and white detailing). I will do chocolate cuppies with pink liners and vanilla cuppies with brown liners -to fit the theme--should be cute
Mara
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i agree, for me vanilla is my most finicky recipe... and even it seems when i make them the same every time every batch almost turns out diff! i find that waiting a few minutes for the batter to 'settle' helps with them not exploding (i have that issue too sometimes, they explode up then flatten out, ugh!) and i get rounder domes when i settle the batter first. plus the drying out so quickly, crazy with vanilla vs other recipes. greg gets to eat a lot more vanilla disasters than any other flavor.
jas...the flavoring can make a huge difference! i actually find that my favorite 'taste' combo is using the TJ's vanilla flavor (it's not extract) along with actual vanilla bean paste. in the frosting i put even more. people love seeing the bean flecks in the paste too.
when i use vanilla extract and paste in the same recipe, it's a little too overpowering for me so the TJ's flavor combined with the paste to me gives the right combo of flavor. i also tried mexican vanilla recently since i saw some bakeries love it but it has a bit too much of a tang flavor to me... i am not a fan of tahitian vanilla in the cupcakes for a similar reason. too flowery somehow?
jas...i almost only make minis now which i think is part of the PITA for the vanilla recipe. somehow the rise is better in regular liners than minis for vanilla in particular. chocolate makes the best looking minis!
jas...the flavoring can make a huge difference! i actually find that my favorite 'taste' combo is using the TJ's vanilla flavor (it's not extract) along with actual vanilla bean paste. in the frosting i put even more. people love seeing the bean flecks in the paste too.
when i use vanilla extract and paste in the same recipe, it's a little too overpowering for me so the TJ's flavor combined with the paste to me gives the right combo of flavor. i also tried mexican vanilla recently since i saw some bakeries love it but it has a bit too much of a tang flavor to me... i am not a fan of tahitian vanilla in the cupcakes for a similar reason. too flowery somehow?
jas...i almost only make minis now which i think is part of the PITA for the vanilla recipe. somehow the rise is better in regular liners than minis for vanilla in particular. chocolate makes the best looking minis!
Jas12
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mara--only minis you say? Intereting. I almost never do minis b/c i jsut think they are soooo small (maybe it is just my pan)
i haven''t had any trouble with the shape of my vanilla but that is probably b/c i don''t fill mine very high. The amount of cake i end up with is good for one person. I agree that chocolate rises smoother and gets a bit of a dome. My vanillas are flat but that''s okay for me since i like to pipe on a flat surface.
speaking of that, ella needs a domed vanilla--who has a good recipe out there comes out domed ? (mara, she doesn''t have the paste for yours)
i haven''t had any trouble with the shape of my vanilla but that is probably b/c i don''t fill mine very high. The amount of cake i end up with is good for one person. I agree that chocolate rises smoother and gets a bit of a dome. My vanillas are flat but that''s okay for me since i like to pipe on a flat surface.
speaking of that, ella needs a domed vanilla--who has a good recipe out there comes out domed ? (mara, she doesn''t have the paste for yours)
ellaila
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Yep, my vanillas (recipe courtesy of Jas) were nice and poofy when I took them out of the oven, but they deflated and are pretty flat now - even slightly concave! I like the taste of them though, so I may still use them and will just have flat little animal faces (I'm doing the same cuppies taht Tacori did for T's birthday party). BUT if there's a simple solution that anyone knows - more baking powder? add baking soda (there's none in this recipe)? - please clue me in!
Tacori, did you make from scratch or a box? Yours look nice and rounded!
Thanks!!
ETA: Oh, and thanks for the recipes, Andi and Mara! I'm going to try the Martha one-bowl chocolate recipe in a few days.
Tacori, did you make from scratch or a box? Yours look nice and rounded!
Thanks!!
ETA: Oh, and thanks for the recipes, Andi and Mara! I'm going to try the Martha one-bowl chocolate recipe in a few days.
Jas12
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ella--they deflated a bit--hmmm, weird. Never had that happen. i thought that recipe was fool proof
But it goes to show how finicky baking is...oven, humidity in the brand of flour, how much you mix etc. all influence the outcome...so annoying.
I am sure a boxed cake would go domed --from my experience with them they do. And for your needs (kids party) you are probably more concerned with the appearance than the taste right?
I am sure a boxed cake would go domed --from my experience with them they do. And for your needs (kids party) you are probably more concerned with the appearance than the taste right?
ellaila
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Well, also I halved the recipe, which in theory shouldn''t make a difference but it could''ve, right? I really think that baking should be measured in weights instead of measures b/c I was reading about how much of a difference there can be in a cup of flour depending on how you scooped it - it''s pretty significant! So maybe I had too much or too little flour, too? Who knows!
From Smitten Kitchen: I hope you’re sitting down for this. Depending on how you measure a cup of flour, you might end up with as little as 4 ounces and as much as 7 ounces in it, a terrifying thought when using a recipe that demands accuracy. The generally accepted measuring method–and the one you should use for the funny reason that it is the one that the person who wrote your recipe used–is to lightly fluff a canister of flour with a spoon, then scoop the flour into your cup until it is over the top and level it with something flat, trying your very best not to compress it in any way. The most accurate way to measure flour, however, is to weigh it, so if you have a recipe that includes a weight, consider it a plus.
From Smitten Kitchen: I hope you’re sitting down for this. Depending on how you measure a cup of flour, you might end up with as little as 4 ounces and as much as 7 ounces in it, a terrifying thought when using a recipe that demands accuracy. The generally accepted measuring method–and the one you should use for the funny reason that it is the one that the person who wrote your recipe used–is to lightly fluff a canister of flour with a spoon, then scoop the flour into your cup until it is over the top and level it with something flat, trying your very best not to compress it in any way. The most accurate way to measure flour, however, is to weigh it, so if you have a recipe that includes a weight, consider it a plus.
Mara
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if they were risen and deflated that might not be enough baking powder. i swear vanilla is sooo finicky!!! i have had that happen as well to my recipe and i think it''s when i don''t put enough flour and baking powder.
ela if you don''t need to go totally from scratch you could adapt a cake mix and make it taste closer to homemade. you can use a white or a butter cake and then use milk in place of the water, butter in place of the oil, and i usually add one more egg than it calls for. and i also like to add sour cream because it gives it a bit of a diff flavor. and add a lot of vanilla extract (1 tblsp). this would definitely get you domed cakes.
jas...i''ll tell you a secret..haha. most ''mini'' pans are not the right size miniatures. aka they are not the minis you see at the bakeries selling for $2.00. i never could figure out why those were so much bigger than every mini pan i ever saw at the store! and i tried a bunch of them, i had about 8 miniature pans, all were the small small version. well...the williams sonoma miniature pans are the same size as the local cupcake places miniatures. they are bigger than everyone else''s minis. you can buy their liners but i get mine online from some company and they are not the regular mini (super small) liners..they fit the WS pans. it took me months to figure this out, people would always ask if i could make minis like the local cupcake places did. finally i figured it out. WS is the only company whose pans i have ever seen that are the larger miniatures. weird right? i am sure the local cupcake places are not baking thousands of these things with WS pans. so there must be other pans elsewhere in commercial sizes.
anyway since i found the right pans people love the bigger miniatures as it''s less of a committment to a cupcake than a full size. most of my orders (and my personal preference) are for minis. but when i make CHOCO cupcakes for myself, i always make them BIGGIE sized!
more to love.
ela if you don''t need to go totally from scratch you could adapt a cake mix and make it taste closer to homemade. you can use a white or a butter cake and then use milk in place of the water, butter in place of the oil, and i usually add one more egg than it calls for. and i also like to add sour cream because it gives it a bit of a diff flavor. and add a lot of vanilla extract (1 tblsp). this would definitely get you domed cakes.
jas...i''ll tell you a secret..haha. most ''mini'' pans are not the right size miniatures. aka they are not the minis you see at the bakeries selling for $2.00. i never could figure out why those were so much bigger than every mini pan i ever saw at the store! and i tried a bunch of them, i had about 8 miniature pans, all were the small small version. well...the williams sonoma miniature pans are the same size as the local cupcake places miniatures. they are bigger than everyone else''s minis. you can buy their liners but i get mine online from some company and they are not the regular mini (super small) liners..they fit the WS pans. it took me months to figure this out, people would always ask if i could make minis like the local cupcake places did. finally i figured it out. WS is the only company whose pans i have ever seen that are the larger miniatures. weird right? i am sure the local cupcake places are not baking thousands of these things with WS pans. so there must be other pans elsewhere in commercial sizes.
anyway since i found the right pans people love the bigger miniatures as it''s less of a committment to a cupcake than a full size. most of my orders (and my personal preference) are for minis. but when i make CHOCO cupcakes for myself, i always make them BIGGIE sized!
Jas12
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Ella--my guess would be that b/c you halved the recipe something was lost in translation and there wasn''t enough baking powder to evenly rise them . That recipe doesn''t have a large yeild so i bet it would do okay doubled but not halved...just my hunch.
Mara''s idea about doctoring the cake mix might be a good one. I find mixes more springy and domed. Even if you just replace the oil for butter it''ll be fine. It''s not like mixes are inedible or anything.
Mara-- Ah-ha, that makes SO much more sense
. In several of your pictures i was trying to figure out why you described them as mini''s but the toppers were not totally overwhelming the surface of the cake. I think i posted a while ago asking if there was any such thing as a *medium* sized cuppie tray and from what you describe the WS pan would be what i was thinking of as a medium. My mini''s are so small that they are basically bite sized & although work well with brownies etc. i never make regular cuppies with them. Thanks for the tip
Mara''s idea about doctoring the cake mix might be a good one. I find mixes more springy and domed. Even if you just replace the oil for butter it''ll be fine. It''s not like mixes are inedible or anything.
Mara-- Ah-ha, that makes SO much more sense
Camille
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Nice cupcakes everyone
Here's an APcuppie straight off the top of my head, once the butter is soft, it shouldn't take longer than3 minutes:
In the bowl of the KA, dice up a stick of unsalted butter, add 1/2C Sour Cream [full fat please, you don't need gelatine in your cake] 1 T vanilla [or: 1 vanilla bean / 3/4t vanilla powder /2t vanilla puree] 2/3 C water and 3 large eggs. Let come to room temp.
Sift over a bowl or a piece of wax paper:
1 C AP flour [4.6oz]
2 C Cake flour [7.8oz]
1 T double acting BPowder
1 1/4 C superfine sugar [8 oz]
1/2 C Dry milk [1.2oz]
1 ts salt
Once the butter feels soft in the KA bowl , sift over all dry ingredients AGAIN [using a large sieve takes 2 seconds] now start mixing with the paddle attachment on LOW for a couple of seconds [milk absorption] then beat on high for ONE minute, it should look like a fluffy mass just like cake mixes. Do NOT overmix or you'll have a tough cupcake w/giant holes. Fill 22 reg size cupcakes with 1/4C of batter and load on the middle rack of preheated 350° F oven.
Bake for 20 minutes, but ovens vary, start checking at 16 minutes a butter knife should come out clean when inserted in the center, they are blond, 1.6oz @:
Prob late to the party, reg cupcakes filled with 1/4 C batter will always be domed. W/o going into detail, in most facilities there's little room for dairy storage and very little time to measure, so everything is weighed in two bowls, one for liquid one for dry=same product all the time w/the magic tare button
In the bowl of the KA, dice up a stick of unsalted butter, add 1/2C Sour Cream [full fat please, you don't need gelatine in your cake] 1 T vanilla [or: 1 vanilla bean / 3/4t vanilla powder /2t vanilla puree] 2/3 C water and 3 large eggs. Let come to room temp.
Sift over a bowl or a piece of wax paper:
1 C AP flour [4.6oz]
2 C Cake flour [7.8oz]
1 T double acting BPowder
1 1/4 C superfine sugar [8 oz]
1/2 C Dry milk [1.2oz]
1 ts salt
Once the butter feels soft in the KA bowl , sift over all dry ingredients AGAIN [using a large sieve takes 2 seconds] now start mixing with the paddle attachment on LOW for a couple of seconds [milk absorption] then beat on high for ONE minute, it should look like a fluffy mass just like cake mixes. Do NOT overmix or you'll have a tough cupcake w/giant holes. Fill 22 reg size cupcakes with 1/4C of batter and load on the middle rack of preheated 350° F oven.
Bake for 20 minutes, but ovens vary, start checking at 16 minutes a butter knife should come out clean when inserted in the center, they are blond, 1.6oz @:
Jas12
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They look perfect Camille!
I made vanilla and choc mud cuppies yesterday for a baby girl''s christening. I used my usual vanilla recipe and settled the batter for a bit like you do Mara, and I was amazed at the difference! Nicely domed and not spilling over the edge. Weird! I had a ball making the roses, good relaxation method!
I made vanilla and choc mud cuppies yesterday for a baby girl''s christening. I used my usual vanilla recipe and settled the batter for a bit like you do Mara, and I was amazed at the difference! Nicely domed and not spilling over the edge. Weird! I had a ball making the roses, good relaxation method!
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steph72276
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Mara
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dandi i love those roses !!! i took a class but i still can''t make roses very well...so sad. mine look like blobs. or as the teacher said ''peonies'' lol. and yeah funny about vanilla batter working better when settling for a few min, but i notice it for oven batch #2 all the time. maybe for cakes the aeration is good but for cupcakes i dont know, a slightly more dense vanilla seems to work better for me.
Jas12
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Mara
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our realtor who i did the massive batches of holiday gift box cupcakes for last year just pinged me asking if i am still doing it and saying it''s that time of year again.
i haven''t been baking much lately, but i am tempted to do it if he wants me to because it is very lucrative in a short period of time. greg said he would help, so we''ll see. i can''t believe i am considering it again...haha. last year after i did these for him (i think i did 700 miniature cupcakes over 2 weeks) i was SO BURNT OUT on anything kitchen or baking related...hahaha.
but i am also off the 21-23 in dec so i figure well what else will i be doing but just getting more pregnant? hahaa.
but i am also off the 21-23 in dec so i figure well what else will i be doing but just getting more pregnant? hahaa.
lili
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Mara
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oh steph, you are right i just calc''d and it was more like 550. WHEW. but it felt like 700. HAHA. i felt like i was making them forever. greg does help with cleanup and he also helped me last year with packaging and all that. man it was a lot of work. but i can''t look a cupcake gift horse in the mouth right??? baby is going to be expensive!
cdt1101
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cdt1101
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Date: 11/26/2009 10:15:56 AM
Author: Jas12
CDT--those look......! YUM
is that toasted coconut on top of cream cheese frosting?
Yes it is! And it's IN the cupcake as well...I'm not normally a coconut person because of the texture (like the flavor though), but toasting it I could deal w/ because it's crunchier...so yummy!
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miraclesrule
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neatfreak
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Lol Lorelei I almost bought some of those the other day.
Mara BTW we went to Spun Sugar yesterday-not amazing. They didn''t have a lot of stuff I was looking for. But my DH wanted to go to Berkeley (we used to live there) for lunch so all was not lost.
Anyway, just thought I would let you know that the drive isn''t worth it just for that store in case you were ever so inclined.
Mara BTW we went to Spun Sugar yesterday-not amazing. They didn''t have a lot of stuff I was looking for. But my DH wanted to go to Berkeley (we used to live there) for lunch so all was not lost.
Anyway, just thought I would let you know that the drive isn''t worth it just for that store in case you were ever so inclined.
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