Katie's Cupcakes: Gingerbread Cupcake

Today I took a chilly walk down to Katie's Cupcakes.

 I walked into her shop greeted by a warm heater and a lovely display of cupcakes. I was going to do my tips/ review on the very vanilla cupcake, but the gingerbread one looked so good. I couldn't pass up the experience to eat it.

This cupcake had a gingerbread cake, whipped frosting, and a gingerbread cookie one top. The cookie and frosting, by themselves, where delicious. The cake by itself was not as moist as I expected and I wish it had more of a ginger or molasses flavor. However, when you take a bite with the frosting and the cake, the cake becomes moist. The frosting was perfect; not heavy or too sweet. I then tried the cookie with the frosting and cake to see if it had that ginger element that I wanted. It did, but I could have used more. I know some of my friends don't enjoy a heavy taste of molasses/ ginger, so for the general public it was probably a wise choice of not enhancing the flavor too much. The cookie also gave the cupcake and interesting crunchy texture.

 

All in all I was very pleased. Katie, you did your wonderful work again.

Kirsten

Katie's Cupcakes: Very Vanilla Cupcakes

Katie does this really awesome idea. At the end of her children's books she gives a recipe for one of her cupcakes. I love that she is willing to share her passion with the public, especially children. In the first book she wrote she shares her very vanilla cupcake recipe and here it is:

Veronica Vanilla 

One of the characters from the Katie's Cupcake books

Very Vanilla Cupcakes 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of butter
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of milk
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• 3 cups of sifted cake flour
• 1 tablespoon of baking powder 
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt 
• 9 egg whites
• 2 egg yolks

Directions

1. Cream butter and sugar in until light and fluffy; about 10 minutes. 
2. Add egg yolks one at a time. Add vanilla.
3. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. 
4. Alternately add dry mixture and milk starting and ending with the dry mixture. 
5. Whip egg whites until stiff and gently fold into batter until no big clumps remain. 
6. Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full and bake for 15 to 25 minutes at 325 degrees. 

Vanilla Buttercream

Ingredients

• 2 cups of butter
• 2 cups of powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla
• 2 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream

Directions

1. Cream butter until light and fluffy; about 10 minutes.
2. Add powdered sugar, vanilla, and cream. Mix until desired consistency.

The book from which you can find this recipe in the back of, and one of Katie's Cupcake t-shirts.

This recipe is brought to you by Katie Swanson of Katie's Cupcakes located in Bellingham, WA. She is a great inspiration to me and my fellow bakers. Check out her website at http://www.katiescupcake.com. 

Kirsten

Katie's Cupcakes

Katie's Cupcakes is a cupcake shop in Bellingham, WA. I remember the first time I visited Katie's Cupcakes and saying to myself that one day I will work there. Though that hasn't happened, I have always had this interesting relationship with Katie. On the one hand, I look up to her and I find her and her story so inspiring. On the other hand, I want to own my own bakery too, meaning that she is my competition. 

In October 2012, the episode of Cupcake Wars: Big Time Rush aired on television. Katie's Cupcakes was one of the four bakeries competing. No surprise, Katie won! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJtZGrIufKQ) It was such a great victory for her and her business. Instead of expanding her business to other locations with her winnings, Katie and her husband started to do merchandise. She writes and sells children book about her cupcakes, she sells kids t-shirts with the cupcake characters from the books on them, and she sells cupcake kits. Her characters are unique and the books adorable (after all, I have read them to my school-agers), but her products for me sometime vary. One day I could have a cupcake moist and delicious, the next time the cupcake is dry and not what I expected. I know not every single cupcake comes out perfect, and I should not be so harsh. 

So this week I am going to do something different. I am going to review one of Katie's Cupcakes, give tips on what she or her baker did well, and one of her recipes. I think that it is important to learn form the people you look up to. I hope you will be looking forward to seeing my week of Katie's Cupcakes. 

Kirsten

Apple Cider Spiced Maple Cupcakes

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:
• 1 spice cake mix
• 3 eggs
• 1-2/3 cups apple cider
For the Frosting:
• 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 4 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon maple extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions 

For the Cupcakes:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a cupcake tin with 24 cupcake wrappers.
3. In a mixing bowl mix together the cake mix, eggs and apple cider.
4. Mix until smooth.
5. Fill cupcake wells two-thirds full and bake 19 to 24 minutes or when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
6. Cool on a wire cooling rack.


 For the Frosting:
7. Cream together the cream cheese and butter until fluffy.
8. Add the syrup, extract, pumpkin spice and sugar.
9. Mix on low for a minute and then on high until creamy.
10. Pipe or spread onto cupcakes.
11. NOTE: If your frosting is too thick you may add water but only a teaspoon at a time. (I didn't have to but it was thick)
12. DOUBLE FROSTING: THIS FROSTING RECIPE IS ONLY FOR 12 CUPCAKES. (I didn't and it was plenty)

I got this recipe from: http://www.ladybehindthecurtain.com/apple-cider-maple-spice-cupcakes/ 

Kirsten

5 Tips When Working with Kids

Dear Readers,

Though I do not have kids, I work a lot with them and I love to bake with them. Here are my five tips for when working with kids in the kitchen.

1) Don't underestimate how much they can do. You may not think a two year old can do very much to help you in the kitchen, and it is alway easier to work with one kid, but even when working with a group of little kids, they can still stir, pour, smash, etc., and they will have fun doing it. If working with more than one kid, delegate who does what.

2) Use your senses. Even adults love to taste test. So allow kids to do the same. When working with a large group of kids, tasting the dough may not necessarily be sanitary. I allow my kids to taste the sugar, and flour by putting a little bit of the ingretants on a paper towel. Have them smell the vanilla and the spices. I have even had my kids put glove on so the could feel, and knead the dough.

3) Be willing to adjust your game plan. Your expectations on the experience may not line up with reality. Be prepared to adjust the recipe if the kid puts more of one item.

4) Be Prepared. Make sure you have all the ingredients out and ready, as well as measuring cups and spoons. It makes the process easier. I remember my grandma always doing this before we baked together when I was a kid.

5) Have Fun!

I hope these tips help you on your next adventure when cooking, or baking with a kid. I encourage you to allow the kid(s) in your life learn the fun of messing around in the kitchen and eating something they made. I found it to be very rewarding for me as a kid.

Kirsten

Holiday Life as We Know it

I am one who hates unanswered promises, and I know that I am a hypocrite for being the person making such promises. I want to genuinely apologize to all my readers for not making this blog as much of a priority in my life as it should be. I know that is what I need to work on, while I juggle the other aspects of my life. However, I would appreciate grace for when I come up short, like the last couple of weeks.

Okay with that aside let's get to the real reason why you follow me, the food!

Since my disappearance, I made chocolate chip cookies, spiced apple caramel cupcakes, and homemade bread (thanks to my bread machine that makes the process of making the bread a lot easier).

The cookies were something that I just whipped up one night, so they are not blog worthy.

The cupcakes were really good. I might have gone overboard with the frosting, which made the cupcakes really sweet. Even with this factor, my husband and brother-in-law ate them up.

Now I don't know how much credit I can take for the bread. I did make it from "scratch," meaning I put all the ingredients in the bread maker. But it looks so good! I made it last night, so I haven't been able to see if my $4 yard sell find was worth it. I'll keep you posted.

Once the holidays are over, I will try to be more consistent, and though my creations for Christmas presents may not be dessert, or food for that matter, I would still love to share a little tangent post about it!

Kirsten

Women's Conference

For those who don't know, for the last two weeks  I have been busily making some sweet treats for the ladies at my church. In July one of our Women Ministry leaders came up to me to ask if I would be interested in such a project, and of course I took her up on the offer. After meeting up again in September to discuss the logistics of what they were looking for and what I could help with, I started planning out what I was going to make and the cost for the ingredients. I told them that I would charge them for my time as a gift to them and the church. So this is the list of what I made (recipes are sure to pop up on Wednesday Recipes):

Homemade Caramel Popcorn

Caramel Apple Puppy Chow

Turtle Pie

Apple and Pear Crisp

Chocolate Fudge Cupcakes with Almond Whipped Frosting (gluten free)

Spiced Apple Cider Cupcakes with Maple Frosting

English Toffee

Pomegranate Mousse 

Scones

Pumpkin Muffins

Tea Cookies

For time management purposes, I baked something every day, then I either freezed it or locked it an air tight container. This was my first job/ big project! It was so exciting and nerve racking, but all in all a great experience. Everyone kept on telling me how great everything tasted. It was such a blessing but also a humbling experience. 

I hope you enjoy all the pictures and I am egger to share my next big project once it comes my way.

Kirsten

My Husband's Pecan Pie

Hello everyone!

Nothing to worry about. I am still here. I haven't died, or given up on my dream. I just have been really sick lately. I've had a cold for the last three weeks, and I thought that I should give myself a well deserved break to rest and try to regain my health. But did you think a little thing like a cold would keep me from baking? No, sir. It was my husband's birthday and I surely didn't want to disappoint. I made him a pecan pie.

The funny thing about my husband and I is that we have completely different tastes when it comes to desserts. I love the classics such as chocolate chip cookies, apple pie, etc. He on the other hand loves the things I can't stand in baked goods, such as nuts and coconut. His favorite cake: German Chocolate, his favorite cookie: white chocolate macadamia nut, his favorite pie: pecan pie. It has really help me expand baking things that I don't like, but every October I know that whatever he wants, I probably won't eat.

As I was making the pecan pie, it didn't look like the classic ones I have seen. This could be the fact that I used crush pecans instead of whole. Even with this one little hiccup, my husband said it tasted like a pecan pie. He really loved it!

Being a baker, I have to try everything I make. So I tried my pecan pie and I actually liked it. I have been noticing that the things I use to dislike, such as pineapple, and nuts with sweets, I have been growing to like. Still I am not a big fan of coconut. The only thing with coconut I have tried and like are these hay stack cookies my mom makes. The other ingredients in the cookies masks the texture of the coconut.

As I continue on an other tangent, I just want to say that in my near future (starting today) I will be baking something everyday to prepare for my church's women's day event. I am making all the desserts. Please send my your encouraging thoughts, because I know I will be freaking out some days. This is my first big order and I want to make it perfect as possible. This means that I will not have any new blog post for Tuesday Tips or Wednesday Recipes until after the 2nd of November. I know it's a bummer, but not all hope is lost. I will be posting picture and possible small tidbits about the items I will be making, so stay tuned.

Kirsten

Single Serving Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

• 1 small apple
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons of oats
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour
• 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon of butter
  

Directions:

1. Slice the apples and place in a mixing bowl. 
2. Add 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, 1/2 tablespoon of flour, and 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon.
3. Coat the apples with the dry ingredients and place in a baking dish.
4. Mix together the rest of the dry ingredients and the butter. Put on top of the apples.
5. Microwave for 60 to 90 seconds. (I baked mine for 20 minutes at 350 degrees). 

Took this recipe from http://lacreativitedelafille.blogspot.com/2012/05/single-serving-apple-crisp.html

Kirsten

Confidence

I have been told time and time again, if you are selling something, you have to believe in your product and be confident. Confidence, according to Google, is defined as the feeling or belief that one can rely on someone or something; firm trust. So, to be confident in yourself and in your product is essentially trusting in you. Now this is just as important for me to hear as it is for some of you. I am my harshest critic. People always compliment me, but a lot of times those compliments go in one ear and out the other. 

Lately I have been practicing having confidence in myself. Why would someone want to buy my product if I don't even believe in my ability to make it? I developed my ideas on how to build confidence from a fitness video. It was basically saying that you need to love yourself exactly how you are right now and grow confidence that way. If you always think you are too fat or what have you, everything is affected by how you view you. The Bible talks about beauty being deeper and having to deal with the soul. I sometimes have to remind myself that I was made in the image of God; He handcrafted me. God doesn't make mistakes. I am not a mistake, and how I look is not a mistake.

So, I have been practicing this same sort of idea with my baking. I know when something I make tastes good. I know when I taste something bad, I can make it better. God gives us gifts to serve. He has given me the gift of combining ingredients together to make things that are just exceptionally tasty. It's like magic flowing hands, and I just have an instinct about when things are done; even if that means it is before the timer going off. The key here is to tell myself that I am great, but be humbled and grateful when I do receive complements. 

I am a great baker. What about you? What is your passion? What is something you are great at? Don't keep putting yourself down when something goes wrong, or you are your own worst critic. You are great too. Share, if you would like, in the comments on what you are great at. I would love to hear. 

Kirsten

Basic Ingredients and their Healthy Substitutes

The four most common ingredients in baking are:

Butter

Eggs

Flour 

Granulated Sugar

But the fact is that most people have dietary limitations. I think that no matter what you are allergic to, or your dietary preferences, you should be able to enjoy a treat every so often. I saw a table on Pinterest about healthy substitutes (here), but I simplified that table and created one myself. It is clear, easy to read, and the measurements are easily converted. 

I haven't figured out how to make classy tables on my computer, but I thought you might enjoy this hand written one. 

 Kirsten

Ultimate Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes

I made these for my mother-in-law, who is gluten free, and she loved them!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of bittersweet chocolate chips (10 1/2 ounces)
• 1 cup of sweet butter (I used normal butter)
• 4 eggs
• 4 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup of superfine sugar (I used normal sugar)
• 2 tablespoons of Dutch-process cocoa powder, sifted (I didn't sift mine)
• 2 tablespoons of ground almonds (I didn't put almonds in mine. I use it as a garnish. I also added a raspberry on top.)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Place cupcake liners in a cupcake pan. 
2. Put the chocolate and butter in a double boiler, or medium bowl over a pan of simmering water, and stir until completely melted. Set aside to cool.
3. In a large bowl, cream the eggs and sugar until pale and thick. Gently fold in the melted chocolate and the remaining ingredients. 
4. Spoon batter into the cups and bake for 20 minutes. Have them cool for 5 minutes and then remove them from the cupcake pan. Place them onto a cooling rack. 

This recipe yields about a dozen cupcakes. 

For frosting, I used a whipped frosting recipe. 
I got this recipe from 500 Cupcake Recipe book.

Kirsten

Friday: A Day of Baking

This Friday I baked three different items. One was with my two year olds at work and the other two were for my church's women Bunco Night. 

This week's letter to teach at school was the letter "M". For two year olds, we are trying to teach them recognizing real world object compared to a picture. One of my favorite children's book is If You Give a Moose a Muffin. I thought what better than to act like moose and make muffin?

During the process of making the mini-muffins we added too much milk! So in the last minute I added some more flour and sugar to help the batter. Luckily, the muffins came out tasting like muffins, and my two year olds ate about 5 of them. 

The second item I made was a prize two special ladies could win in playing Bunco. I made single apple crisp in a jar. The recipe will be showing up on Wednesday Recipes. I made it with locally grown apples and it came out looking cute!

The last creation of Friday was Strawberry Blueberry cupcakes with a gummy bear on top. One of my friends gave me the challenge to use something "gummy" in my next creation, and I stayed true to that. One of my good friends said that the gummy bear just pulled everything together. I did use a box mix for the strawberry cake, even though I have made a strawberry cake with my mom using my grandma's recipe. The frosting, however, I did make from scratch, and it came out looking a purplish pink. I would have liked it to be more purple, but it turned out that the cupcakes matched the decorations perfectly. 

Kirsten

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made chocolate chip cookies for one of my co-workers birthday this week. I shared the cookies with my kids and they LOVED them. They said it was the best cookie they have every had. This made me feel so honored. 

As I was making these cookies something amazing happened, which was by accident. I whipped the butter and sugar mixture for a long while and it made the batter really smooth. After baking for 10 minutes, the cookies came out with the perfect balance of crunch and softness. 

Kirsten

Microwave Brownie

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons of water
• 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• dash of salt
• 4 tablespoons of granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 4 tablespoons all purpose flour

Directions:

1. In a mug, add water, oil and vanilla. Whisk well.
2. Add cocoa powder, and whisk well. Add sugar, whisk well. Add flour, and whisk well.
3. Microwave for 60 seconds. The center should be slightly molten. Be careful not to overcook.
4. The brownie will be hot, and enjoy. 

I got this recipe from http://www.chow.com/recipes/14253-microwave-chocolate-mug-brownie

Kirsten

Budgeting

Today's tip is on budgeting. budgeting is a good life skill to have. My husband and I have a budget, which consist of set amounts we are willing to pay. Bills come first, the needs, and then wants.

When baking for a large group of people you need to budget out how much it will cost. What I do is I write down all of the ingredients I will need as well as the amounts. I then go online or to the store and find out the price per ounce. I then go to a converter online to see how many ounces are in the amount of cups I need. From there I just do simple division to figure out the price per cup. Add the prices of each ingredients up and there is your budget.

Example:

2 cups of Flour

Flour is $3.38 per 10 pounds

2 cups = 1.04 pounds

$3.38 =10 pounds

$0.31 = 1.04 pounds= 2 cups

Kirsten