Chocolate Mocha Caramel and Margarita Cupcakes

For BMW--again:) These were fun to make. As always, I make them in the morning and serve them by early afternoon. I do not like day old cupcakes but had twelve chocolate leftover that I did not take to work. Time to experiment! The next morning I used a straw to remove some of the cupcake middle, stirred chocolate in piping hot coffee, added more caramel and then put the mixture in the holes. I made some milk chocolate frosting but this time I sprinkled the tops with broken pretzels, salt, and crushed toffee bits. I wish I had a pic of one.

Back to the Margarita Cupcakes. A little 1800 tequila in the frosting, which honestly needed more but since I don't like tequila (or drink), I really didn't know how much to add. Folks said they could hardly tell it was in the frosting, if at all, so next time I will add a couple more teaspoons of 1800 but loved the frosting anyway with its lime zest infused. The cake was my go to lemon flavor but I changed it up a bit by using limes (juice and zest), more salt than usual, and and let the baking soda bubble a bit. Bang! Another pleasing taste and with the cream cheese/buttercream frosting, they were pretty yummy:)

The chocolate cupcakes called for buttermilk, which is a great moistening element for a cake. This batter contained both baking powder and baking soda. I'm not a fan of too many leavening agents because it can really effect the taste and turn it into something bitter. King Arthur Flour gives us some wonderful tips when trying to create that airy rise:

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipe/leaveners.html

I am on my way to creating a signature cookie and hope you will stop by for winning ingredients. I think some caramel and pecans are a must! We'll see.....

Raspberry Bars

Bars are basically a base and a topping. Reserved base can be added after the topping or you can omit it. Your call. Shortbread, graham, and chocolate wafers seem to be the most popular bases with a soft or crispy crunch. I like a shortbread crunch, which goes well with various recipes such as, fruit bars, cheese bars, and chocolate bars. A great filling is Polaner All Fruit Raspeberry. There isn't any added sugar and it has a tart bite. 

When you make the base, do not be afraid of the dryness. Too much butter will make the bottom soggy and who wants that? Using non-stick tin foil spread and pressed throughout the bottom and sides will allow for an easy release and I like the way the crust cooks on it. 

Besides crumbs and the butter, nuts can be added, but make sure they are chopped small enough. Even almond flour can be added, which really makes a great base for fruit base.

 Kinda-Healthy Magic Bars

Muesli

Pecans

Chocolate

Coconut. Not my favorite ingredient to add to desserts but I had a request for German Chocolate cupcakes, which is NOT the recipe I am promoting today. I didn't have coconut so I decided to make magic bars and scrapped the coconut for Muesli. Daring, I know. I used a bigger pan than usual and melted the butter in the oven and then added the graham cracker crumbs. Next came semi-sweet chocolate chips (a bag of regular size and 1/4 bag of mini), lots of chopped pecans, and I sprinkled the top with muesli. Then came 1 can plus 1/4 can of sweetened condensed milk. I cooked the mixture until golden brown.

Make sure you let the bars cool completely before cutting. I waited until the next morning and was able to present a tray of perfectly symmetrical bars.

Also, don't let the bars burn. They will be hard to cut and the chocolate will harden to the point where the bar is too crumbly. (Done that a few times in the past. Not good.)

They were a big hit at work. Go ahead, throw in something kinda healthy. They may never know.

June 4, 2017

A Welcome Gift 

Cookie Trios

Our new boss is coming from California tomorrow. Texas is a different world, of sorts, and one may need introduction into that world: One must begin the journey to understand red sauce, hot sauce, salsa, barbecue sauce, and pico. Our sauces and lifestyle still retain a little of the urban cowboy feel and a nostalgic twinge of sweet respect for mamas, trains, and hot grueling work. (Those necessary words for each country song:) 

Our area of Texas is a little paradise if one looks onto it from the outside but still has its troubles just like every other town. The Woodlands has grown and continues to grow and may need some delicate, yet strong, diplomacy to retain its woods and family environment.  They are worth community involvement and worth our children's future. Our new boss will love the wooded trails, bike paths, lakes, spring pops of roadside bluebonnets, and home prices! 

Theme of cookies: Woods, trails, lakes, and of course, BMW!

The cookie itself is a common sugar cookie recipe many cookie decorators are using with tweaks of flavor infused to bring it out of the duldrums...Lemon Infusion. I used powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar for the cookie base. Don't be afraid to add something to your base ingredients. This could be anything from matcha powder to mini chocolate chips. I love lemony lemon cookies, fudge cut outs cookies, and spice cookies. Think about the flavors you love and make it happen! Don't be bound by what you see on Pinterest or other blogs.

Super Moist Strawberry-Lemon Cupcakes

Super Moist

Strawberry-Lemon Cupcakes

   Winter has left the area, which by the way, never really showed up in The Woodlands, TX. We had a very mild winter and folks around here were active outdoors the entire season without having to wear any heavy clothing. That is a big plus (we love our trails), although I did miss the winter “bite” that has one digging through drawers for gloves and knitted sweaters. Alas, Spring came, which was amazing and reminded everyone that spring and winter can become synonymous with each other in southern Texas. And now summer’s heat is here and the temperatures are rising and will continue to rise to 100 degrees with 100% humidity. I have no idea how anyone survived this kind of weather before AIRCONDITIONG was invented!

Anyhoo, a guy at work wants a lemon-strawberry cake/cupcakes for his birthday. He is claiming that June 1 is a national holiday, calling it, _____________(his name) National Holiday. Okie dokie, I’ll go with that. Yea, I’ll do just about anything to smell lemon zest in the kitchen. Fresh, vibrant, and tart smelling. The kind of smell that only comes from something natural. There must have been a Greek god of lemons once. Don’t you think?

I have taken recipes and tweaked them a bit to make sure they were super moist and super tasty. Super di-duper…. So, with this cupcake I followed varying recipes I have found in books and blogs. The key to many cupcake recipes is to cook the butter with the liquids. Seriously. Don't cook the sour cream, though. Add it and the eggs after the mixture has cooled down a bit. Also, don't worry about beating it to death. I used a whisk and ended up with plenty of air bubbles. Notice the omission of baking powder. The lemon, sour cream, and addition of baking soda create that bubbly rise you need for this recipe. Chemistry: simply amazing.

 Ingredients:

1 cup butter

1/2 cup (4 oz)  (118 ml.) fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs beaten

1/2 cup sour cream 

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 1/2 Tbs fresh lemon zest

2 cups flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

For the frosting, I was a bit skeptical of the recipes out there so I just put together butter, sugar (powdered), cooked down mashed strawberries, shortening, and vanilla. Simple and yummy.

They aren’t the usual swirly decorated cupcakes I love to make because this strawberry frosting demands a certain level of softness that marries well with the lemon cupcake.

My co-workers truly said it was the best cupcake they ever had and said I should sell them. Ha! Let’s make it National LaDawn Cupcake Day!!! Move aside birthday boy.