Still baking.....

Just in case you come across this blog and think, "oh she must have given up" - I say, nothing could be further from the truth.  The problem is the size of my plate and the amount that is on it!  I have been baking, a lot in fact, but I have another quite large project on the verge of being complete and it really needs my full, well, most of my attention. I will be back on the blogways again soon my friends, until then, have a cupcake and check back soon.

Thoughts on flavor

I know, I know, I still need to finish part 2 of "When I think of summer...." and I will get to it but I've been thinking about taste/flavor a lot lately and so that is the journey I plan to take you on today, if you want to go.

Last week my husband and I were off celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary in Washington's wine country and happened across a little cupcake shop (very much like the one I hope to own someday).  For research purposes we bought 4 cupcakes. 

The 4 flavors were - Maple Bacon, Cosmopolitan, Strawberry Lemonade, & Chocolate Raspberry.  (I make all of these except the maple bacon - my bacon cupcake is a smokey chocolate cupcake with caramel and bacon) Here were our thoughts:

Looks - they say you eat with your eyes first - true, I wouldn't eat something that looked like poop or something equally as gross.  Well, over all the cupcakes were OK in appearance - the decorations were cop-outs in my opinion: a gummy strawberry, bacon bits from a bag but whatever - I'm not big on decorations but anything that I do put on my cupcakes I want to have a great flavor that enhances the cupcake.  The looks of the frostings - not bad except one looked very waxy which was unappealing but the others were fine.

The frostings - the waxy one did not offer the bold flavors they were selling, the flavors were there, just very subtle and it tasted of shortening.  The chocolate raspberry used an artificial raspberry which I don't care for, the maple frosting was fine, tasted like a Swiss buttercream meringue and the strawberry lemonade tasted like strawberry lemonade but was soooooo sweet I could not enjoy it.  I realize these are my preferences and may not be shared by all.

The cakes - The Maple cupcake was a bit dry and airy with big chunks of pecans - not sure why the pecans, I think it distracted from the overall cupcake.  Cosmo - blah flavor and dense.  Strawberry lemonade - probably the best texture and flavor - not too bad.  And lastly the chocolate raspberry - not sure how they did this but it looked like a dark chocolate (almost black) but it had very little chocolate flavor - the texture was good and it was moist but where did the chocolate go?  The tops of the cakes were all over cooked as well.

The chocolate raspberry did have a filling, but again, it was like a cheap store bought raspberry filling - jelly maybe - not impressive.

I don't mean to be rude but when I first started this whole crazy cupcake baking thing, I promised myself that I would make really great tasting cupcakes and frostings and so as I tried these cupcakes, I thought to myself, "if they can make it, then I most certainly can make it!".

As a kid, my dad was a professional photographer, my mom was his assistant and on the weekends, they were wedding photographers.  I was an only child and well behaved so I went with them almost every weekend.  Going to hundreds of weddings, meant that I ate a lot of cake.  Back in the 70's, wedding receptions were pretty basic: bowls of mixed nuts, bowls of mints, punch (spiked and non spiked) and white wedding cake with stiff white frosting and inedible sugar flowers.  If I was lucky, there would be chocolate cake but most of the time not.  I would get my slice, eat the cake and leave the nasty frosting (which could stand on it's own). I grew up on store bought birthday cakes and cupcakes and would always pick the frosting off and just eat the cake. But later in life when I realized that frosting can be good, I started to enjoy the entire dessert and that is what I want with my cupcakes! 

I want people to walk away having had some of my cupcakes and having enjoyed the entire thing, the frosting, the cake, the toppings, etc.  If I use some kind of filling I want it to have great flavor but to compliment the cake, not just an afterthought or a way of trying to hide something. My challenge in making cupcakes that are inspired by drinks or other fun things to eat, is to re-invent but capture the flavor - when you have my Lime Margarita cuptail I want you to feel like you just had a Lime Margarita not a lime cupcake with a jelly filling.  When you enjoy a S'mores cupcake - I want you to feel like someone just handed you a freshly made s'more - different but the flavor is all there!

As far as decorations go, I am not into decorations that are edible but don't taste good.  I would rather  have frosting swirled on then try to make some fancy fondant bug or use stiff pure sugar frostings to make pretty flowers - I realize this is the craze right now and that is fine for cakes, but cupcakes are so small I think it really should be mostly about the flavor.

So I was watching an episode of Cupcake Wars yesterday and was impressed with the decorations of this one guy (he was pretty impressed with himself too).  He was so sure that the judges would love his decorations that he was surprised that he didn't make it  to the next round, but the judges were all very honest that his cakes didn't cut it in the flavor category.  So while you may eat first with your eyes, it's ultimately the flavor that will keep you coming back.  I have had some great looking meals in my day but the flavor wasn't there so I don't go back.  It reminds me of the episode in "I Love Lucy" where she tried to eat a wax apple, pretty and appealing but not good to eat.

When I think of summer, I think of _________. Part 1

Fill in the blank.  When I think of summer, I think of beautiful sunsets, crisp mornings and hot afternoons, the smell of freshly cut grass and camp outs.  NOW for the food portion: When I think of summer I think of s'mores, firecracker Popsicles, strawberry shortcake, strawberry milk, strawberry lemonade, banana splits and banana pudding.....can you tell where this is going?

Some things are just synonymous with summer - S'mores for example.  Does anyone eat s'mores in the winter?  Our local grocery store creates a whole display with s'more items every summer but I have never seen that same display during the winter, so last summer I created the S'more cupcake (previously blogged about).

Last summer I also created my Firecracker cupcake.  As a kid I can remember the ice cream truck coming down my street playing a horrible version of The Entertainer, but that was the cue to drop what I was doing, beg mom for a dollar and run into the street.  Ever since I can remember, the Firecracker Popsicle has been my favorite - I mean 3 flavors for the price of 1; blue raspberry, white lemon and red cherry.  Cherry being my least favorite was perfectly placed on top so of course was the first to be eaten, followed by my 2nd favorite, and then the finale, - artificial raspberry!  When I was done my poor tongue was a grotesque hue of purply blue.  But it was worth it, so of course in my obsession for new cupcakes, I had to create this one.
(on a side note, I had to have a real Firecracker Popsicle for "picture" purposes and just about sprained my ankle running to the icecream truck - must have been quite the picture since I'm not quite a child anymore).

Also, a creation from last summer - the Strawberry Shortcake Cupcake.  Honestly, as a kid, this was not one of my favorite desserts - the cake part always became so soggy that it wasn't appealing, but I loved strawberries and whipped cream so there must be another way to enjoy this.  Well, I have since discovered, as an adult, that I LOVE this dessert with angel food cake and if the strawberries are fresh and haven't been soaking in sugared strawberry juice for a day, then you can have your cake, strawberries and whipped cream all together and it creates a delightful, light summer treat.  So, I made  an angel food cupcake, filled with strawberry puree, topped with strawberry whip cream and a strawberry, delightful!

All 3 summer delights - Strawberry shortcake, Firecracker, & S'mores

Warning - not a picture of a cupcake, this is my ankle after running for the icecream truck! Ouch!



THAT CUPCAKE IS THE S***!

The things people will say when describing my cupcakes.  "Mmmmm", "WOW", "This is sooooo goooood", "Yum", "This tastes just like the drink", "This is a home run", etc.. Usually it's very positive and makes me happy that I have brought joy through my cupcakes but I think one of the best ones so far was someone who was telling her friend how great one of my cupcakes was and the way she described it was, "This cupcake is the s***!!!!". 

The cupake she was describing is my Butterbeer cupcake. I originally made this one about a year ago and thought I had perfected my recipe but when I made it this year, I made some changes to it and based on her response, I think they were good changes.

I have not had a butterbeer though I understand that they do serve them at the Harry Potter theme park in Orlando - which is about as far from Seattle as you can get and stay in the country - so my chances of trying one soon are not good.  Anyway, I always imagined it tasting like a thick creamy, butterscotchy treat when when Harry Potter and his friends would have one at the Leaky Caldron.  So my original cupcake had a whipped topping and some butterscotch drizzle and the cake was a subtle butterscotch flavor - good but not quite what I thought the drink would be like.

The original version

Then a wonderful thing happened!  A Root Beer store opened up in my neighborhood, so my hubby and I went to check it out.  They have 100's of types of root beers, but that's not all, they also have sasparilla, cream sodas, fruity flavors and a butterscotch soda that has a caldron on it and a light bulb went on - ooooh, this would be good in my butterbeer cupcake, and it was.  I also changed up the frosting and drizzle and well, if you believe what you hear, this cupcake really is the s***.

The New Improved Butterbeer

Suggestions, suggestions, suggestions

Quite often I will have someone say, "You should make a cupcake that tastes like________?"  or "Can you make a cupcake with________" or "You should make a ________________ cupcake".   I love a challenge, I often put myself in my imaginary "Cupcake Wars" situation and quickly think, "ok, how would I incorporate that ingredient and make it the star?"

Well, my friend Andrea has given me some great ideas - The PB & J cupcake, the Brown Cow and most recently, Caramel Popcorn. 

The PB & J - This one was pretty easy but the part that surprised me was just how good it was.  I was never much for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches growing up, but then when I was pregnant with my son I ate one almost everyday.  The day she came over, I was in a rush to clean up and get the cupcakes frosted, I didn't even take the time to try the cupcake in it's entirety.  She ate one, said exclaimed how great it was and then asked me what I thought.  When I said I hadn't tried it yet, she shoved one at me and demanded that I try it and yes, I will toot my own horn - it was GREAT! 


Peanut Butter & Jelly!

Brown Cow - What is this, you make be asking yourself.  Well, she described it as white chocolate mixed with milk chocolate.  Easy enough right?  Well, my first batch was not good, it was heavy and dense and fell in on itself.  I had used melted white chocolate in the batter and it just didn't work very well.  But listen carefully because I'm about to share one of my secrets - Ghirardelli makes a white chocolate powder - it's intended for making hot white chocolates, frappacinos and other delicious drinks but I use it for baking and yum, it's good.  So a litte milk chocolate, a little white chocolate, a white chocolate frosting with chocolate sprinkles and there you have it, the Brown Cow!  I tend to think of this as a "kid" cupcake but most of the time, it's adults who order it.


Brow Cow



And last but not least, the Caramel Popcorn cupcake!
If you are thinking what I was thinking, then you are thinking, "ok, this is a weird idea".  But like I stated earlier, I love a challenge.  I thought about this one for a little bit, contemplated ingredients, and finally just went for it.  I knew I wanted more than just a caramel cupcake that I would call a "caramel popcorn" cupcake, I wanted it to taste like you were eating caramel popcorn.....and cake. 

I am one of the taste testers here at Happy Hour Cuptails, as I should be, and when I tried this cupcake the first time, I giggled!  It is not only a great tasting cupcake but it's really fun to eat!  I love this cupcake and can't wait for my friend, who suggested it, to try it. 

Caramel Popcorn



Barenaked Ladies Loved My Cupcakes!

Do not adjust your screen.  Yes I'm talking about barenaked ladies but sorry to disappoint, they are all fully clothed dudes that I am actually referring to.

Back in the 90's my best friend Erica was dating a hockey player.  We lived very close to the Canadian border, so most of his games took place in Canada.  It was through this that he was introduced to a Canadian band called the Barenaked Ladies.  Well Erica heard them and liked them so much that she made me a mixed tape with 3 of their songs from their Gordon CD.  I fell for them right away and became a devoted fan, introducing them to friends and even doing a presentation on them for my 6th grade music students. 

I have now seen them in concert 7 times.  About (a boat) 6 years ago, one of the lead guys did a solo tour and I went to see him and meet him.  I told him at the time, I just needed to meet the other 4 guys!  It became part of my bucket list and when the opportunity arose to meet them before a concert, my husband made it happen.  Then my next thought, what kind of cupcakes do I make them?

I thought long and hard about what to make them.  They have a song called "Alcohol" and they mention "Malibu and Coke" and "G & T" and so I tried to make the Malibu and Coke cupcake but my bad dog ate about half of the trial batch so I didn't bother making a frosting to complete them - but the cupcakes were good. I decided that because they seem to have a thing for monkeys (Another Postcard and 1,000,000 Dollars) that my Banana Cream Cupcake would have to be one, then I thought about how they like to take songs that are not theirs but sing them anyway for fun, that Pina Colada would lend itself to that.  Lastly, my husband is crazy about the Strawberry Habanero cupcake and said that would have to be the 3rd cupcake.  Done, I made them, boxed them and then proceeded to give them to Ed, Jim, Kevin, and Tyler at the meet and greet!

Before the concert began, I was told by a few of the other people that were also at the meet and greet that the band had looked for me to tell me that they liked my cupcakes but I had left too quickly.

One gal even said, "I bet he's going to mention them during the concert" and sure enough they did - I guess the Strawberry Habanero made quite an impression on them!

(having issues uploading the video - hope to get it up and running soon - of course, if you must see it now, you can go to Happy Hour Cuptails on Facebook to view it.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Happy-Hour-Cuptails/190488407664266#!/pages/Happy-Hour-Cuptails/190488407664266

How awesome is that! 

Big things on the horizon

Talk about being in the right place at the right time.  I met someone tonight who could drastically change my life and my cupcake business, but I don't want to count my chickens before they hatch!  Stay tuned!

Cupcakes inspired by favorite candy!

I LOVE York Peppermint Patty's and Junior Mints!  In my opinion, they are one of the best sweet treats out there (except for my cupcakes).  So of course, let's just take a moment and ponder, "what if I could make a cupcake that tasted like a peppermint patty......." Are you with me on this?  Well, I bet you can guess that I did more than ponder this, I created this. 
Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce Mr. Peppermint Patty O'Cuptail.

He's a rich dark chocolate cupcake with a hint of peppermint  topped with a peppermint buttercream and wearing a slice of peppermint patty.  I would recommend him for every social gathering - yes, he's that guy!

Next in our line up of cupcake candy is the oh so popular "chocolate and peanut butter" combination.  A co-worker suggested this one and it has quickly become a fan favorite!  Remember that commercial from years ago (yes, I'm dating myself), where the guy and the girl turn the corner and one's chocolate bar end's up in the other's peanut butter jar and voila - the Reeses Peanut Butter cup is born. Well something similar happened in my kitchen, my chocolate batter ran into some hunky chunky peanut butter - they got baked, smothered themselves in chocolate then polished themselves off with a peanut butter buttercream!



Looks like my photographer got hungry :)



Lastly in my candy inspired cupcakes (for today that is), would be a candy bar combination, yes, that's right, not just one candy but a trifecta of goodness that when all brought together is a little slice of camp fire heaven, THE S'MORE cupcake.

Perhaps you'll recall this little vignette from "The Sandlot".

Ham Porter: Hey, Smalls, you wanna s'more?
Smalls: Some more of what?
Ham Porter: No, do you wanna s'more?
Smalls: I haven't had anything yet, so how can I have some more of nothing?
Ham Porter: You're killing me Smalls! These are s'more's stuff! Ok, pay attention. First you take the graham, you stick the chocolate on the graham. Then you roast the 'mallow. When the 'mallows flaming... you stick it on the chocolate. Then cover with the other end. Then you scarf. Kind of messy, but good! Try some!
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  This is not your ordinary cupcake much like the s'more is not your ordinary dessert - this cupcake, in my opinion, takes the cake!  A graham cracker cupcake, with chocolate chips baked in, a boiled icing topped with graham cracker crumbles and grated chocolate - I mean  can  you think of anything better?  Seriously, can you?

Some Like it HOT!!!

When I started this whole thing, I really thought that all my cupcakes would be fashioned after drinks; Pina Colada, Lime Margarita, Kahlua and coffee, Bailey's, etc.  But then my step son stopped by and suggested something different.  He was telling me about this vanilla ice cream he had that had a spice to it, like a jalapeno......hmmm - I don't know about that.  First of all, there isn't a drink that I know of that is vanilla and spicy, secondly what would I call it? 

I spent a little time thinking about it and discovered that there is this Whipped Cream Vodka that is wonderful! So, I thought a little more and came up with my "Spicy Whipped Cream Vanilla Cuptail".  I use the whipped cream vodka and vanilla beans and cayenne for the kick and they come out of the oven smelling like Heaven!  I use a vanilla bean butter cream and well, you'll have to try them for yourself, they are Heavenly!

So to continue on in my "Spicy" line of cupcakes comes my next creation but first a back story.

My husband loves spicy......I mean LOVES spicy.  He loves the Spicy Vanilla but would love it more if it were spicier.  I cannot use him as a gauge for what is spicy and what isn't because if it were up to him he would put habaneros, jalapenos and Serrano's on everything - yes, even his cupcakes!  So if you've read my blogs before, you would know that I have already blogged about my Strawberry Habanero Cupcake but I figured that I wouldn't stop there, my next attempt at the spicy side of baking would be a Lemon Serrano Cupcake.

I know, who would think to combine such things but I would because I love my hubby and I want him to enjoy my cupcakes!  So a lemon Serrano cupcake topped with lemon butter cream, lemon curd, and a candied Serrano pinwheel and voila - a cupcake with a kick, and I mean KICK! 



I let my hubby take my creation to his work and according to him - a few people have a new favorite!  Who would have thought?

Strawberry Habanero Cupcakes

I never want to be the cupcake baker that bakes the usual cupcakes - I started with the idea that all my cupcakes would be fashioned after drinks but I just can't be put into that small of a box and I have continued to try new things and for the most part, have been quite successful. 

My latest attempt at being creative is the Strawberry Habanero cupcake.  When trying out a new recipe, I have to bake a batch - when I did this one I wasn't totally thrilled but my husband LOVED it and so I let him take the batch to work.  To my surprise, he wasn't the only one who LOVED my creation - he said that everyone balked at first but then when they tried it, they loved it. 

It's a fairly simple cupcake - strawberry habanero cupcake, topped with chocolate ganache and a candied habanero slice. 

That's it folks. Don't believe you would like one, perhaps you should order a batch from me and make an informed decision on your own: www.happyhourcuptails.com
Sorry Seattle area only at this point.

Root Beer Floats Anyone

Well, I was wondering through the grocery store last summer and was thinking about my next cupcake recipe and root beer floats came to mind.  It's kind of funny how thoughts of new recipes are constantly rolling through my mind these days and the next thing you know, I have ingredients, a recipe and the oven is pre-heating.

These are one of those recipes that worked on try number 1!  I love it when that happens and not only that, it has been a big hit with young and old.  I even had a friend that told me, she doesn't like root beer but these are her favorite cupcakes now. 

Yes, it does make a difference as to what root beer you use.

The other thing about this recipe is I can modify it to make other similar float cupcakes like

Cream Soda and Orange - all equally delicious!!!!

We go together like a caramel dipped, chocolate covered pretzel

You know that moment when you see something in a display case that looks amazingly delicious and so you buy it and it is delicious! That happened to me one day in Starbucks.  Sitting in a display case was this pretzel rod dipped in caramel, then dipped in chocolate.  Such a simple concept and yet so tasty.  When I started baking I thought to myself, this needs to be a cupcake and so I made one!

Pretzels!

The Batter

Going in the oven

TA-DA

Now what?

Now what?

Ah the dreaded question for the empty nester to be.  Yes, it's true, the youngest is about to fly the coop and begin living life as an adult and with that transition comes the dreaded question for the "stay at home" mom - now what?  Now that your job title no longer carries a job description?  Now that you no longer have booster meetings to attend, or concerts or football games........NOW WHAT?  Your life was so full and now it's so empty, right?  Not really - just because a lot of what I did was directly related to my son's schooling, doesn't mean everything in my life is now going to change.  Yes, it's true that my son will be 100's of miles away at college and I won't be able to hear him call out for me when he needs something (like a towel because he forgot to grab one before showering), his dirty dishes will stay dirty until HE cleans them, and imagine his surprise when he discovers that socks come out of the dryer as individuals.  True, I'm turning in my title as Music Booster President for the unknown but I know that when God closes one door, He opens another.  In this case, I'm hoping the door He opens has a cupcake shop on the other side...........

A Very Special Cupcake for a Very Special Person

I've written about where my inspiration comes from when creating new recipes, usually it's from drinks or cookies and candy, etc. but this one has a very special meaning because even though it is a drink, the real inspiration was my best friend Erica!

Erica was one of those rare finds, the kind of person that people were drawn to; beautiful, funny, caring, loyal, a true friend through and through and I was lucky enough to get to call her my best friend.

Erica's story - Shortly after she was married, she was diagnosed with Melanoma, stage 3 possibly 4 - if you know much about Melanoma you know this is not good.  She fought for 2 years, went through painful treatments and experimental drugs, etc.  She lost her fight in April of 2004.  I miss her very much but more than that, I really don't ever want to see anyone else suffer the way she did, so I decided to create a cuptail in her honor and part of the proceeds will go to Melanoma research.

Why Goldschlager? - well the story behind that is a bit personal but let's just say that we enjoyed the liquor and I really think she loved the idea of the gold flakes being part of the experience. The other thing about it, well, I found some edible gold stars to decorate the cupcake with and she was born in the late 60's to some young kids and therefore her middle name was Star. It all comes together - well at least it does for me.

The Cuptail

For more information about melanoma go to www.melanoma.com
If you want information on how to order Goldschlager cuptails (Seattle area), go to www.happyhourcuptails.com

I miss her very much and I think about how happy she would be for me as I start this adventure in the world of baking and selling cupcakes. I also think she would have been the perfect person to partner with me in this adventure but God had other plans for her, so I'm on my own here but I'm sure she looks down on me from Heaven and is thrilled with my success!