White Velvet Coconut Cupcakes

I really enjoy perusing display cases in bakeries and coffee shops, because it often leads to being a source of inspiration for some of the things I bake.

The last time I was in a coffee shop, I noticed that they had a white velvet coconut cupcake in the display case. The flavor combination sounded really yummy, but instead of purchasing one from the shop, I decided to try making my own at home.

The cake portion of this white velvet cupcake is really light, thanks in part to the beaten egg whites that are folded into the batter. I did contemplate adding some shredded coconut into the cupcake batter, but then I thought that might take away from the smooth, velvety texture that I thought the cake should have – so I opted to add coconut flavoring to the batter instead.

And what’s there to say about the frosting… In my opinion, nothing tops a cupcake better than a rich, thick buttercream frosting, and this one turned out especially rich & thick. I also chose to garnish the cupcakes with some toasted coconut, and I think that really helped add that little bit of texture I was looking for.

~Enjoy~




White Velvet Coconut Cupcakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt, plus a pinch for the egg whites
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon coconut flavoring
3 egg whites

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour cupcake tins or line with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Alternately add flour mixture and milk, ending with milk, and beat until batter is smooth. Stir in coconut flavoring.

Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Gently fold into batter.

Spoon batter into cupcake tins, filling cups about 2/3 full. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool.

Frost cooled cupcakes with Coconut Buttercream Frosting (recipe below) and garnish with toasted coconut; if desired.

Makes approximately 12 cupcakes.



Coconut Buttercream Frosting

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon coconut flavoring

Directions:
In a large bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar and beat well. Add milk and mix until well combined. Stir in coconut flavoring. Frost cooled cupcakes.

Homemade Chili Cheese Snack Crackers

I had a craving for some cheesy crackers to snack on today, but instead of heading down to the grocery store, I made my own. You wouldn’t believe how easy it is to make your own snack crackers. For the sake of convenience, we usually just grab a box off the grocery store shelf- but I think it’s more fun, and economical, to make them at home.

There are very few ingredients in this recipe, and you can dress it up, or down, in any way you choose. I use a medium cheddar cheese when I make these crackers, but if you like a sharper tasting cracker, you can use sharp cheddar cheese. If you are not a fan of chili, you can omit the flakes altogether and make plain cheese snack crackers. You can pretty much use your imagination and make these crackers any way you desire.

The one thing about homemade crackers though, is that they don’t have any preservatives in them, like the crackers you find in the grocery store. Therefore, they have to be eaten within a day or two. This has never been a problem in my household.

~Enjoy~




Homemade Chili Cheese Snack Crackers

3 cups grated cheddar cheese
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, softened and cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon chili flakes
2 tablespoons milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Place cheddar cheese, butter, flour and chili flakes in a food processor. Pulse the processor 5 or 6 times, 5 seconds at a time, until the dough resembles coarse crumbs. Add the milk and process until the dough gathers together in a ball.

Remove dough from food processor and flatten into round on a floured surface. Roll dough to a thickness of 1/8 – 1/4 inch. Cut into 1-inch squares with a sharp knife. Use the end of a toothpick to poke a hole in the center of each cracker.

Homemade Chili Cheese Snack Crackers

Place the crackers at least 1-inch apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes, or until the edges just start to brown.

Remove from oven and place baking sheets on wire racks to cool. Store crackers in a covered container or Ziploc bag, and eat within a day or two.

Makes approximately 160 little crackers.

Boston Cream Poke Cake

I have three thermometers placed around the outside of my home. Right now, one is reading 4 degrees below zero, another is reading zero degrees, and the third is reading 4 degrees above zero. So, I guess I’ll just average it out and say that it is zero degrees here right now.

We’ve spent much of the week enduring temperatures that stayed pretty much below zero. When it’s cold like this outside, instead of cranking up the thermostat inside, I like to heat up my home by using my favorite method – Baking!!

My latest creation is a Boston Cream Poke Cake. This is a great cake to make if you are feeling frustrated or stressed. There’s just something about taking a beautifully baked cake out of the oven and then poking holes all over it, that helps release my tension and makes me feel better.

I’ve seen some poke cakes made with gelatin and some with pudding. I think the gelatin seeps through the cake better and can make a very colorful looking cake. I like using pudding in a poke cake, because it makes a very moist cake and, depending on how many holes you poke in the cake, you can have a taste of pudding in just about every bite.

~Enjoy~




Boston Cream Poke Cake

Cake
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup milk

Pudding Mix
1 (3.4 ounce) box vanilla instant pudding
2 cups milk

Glaze
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons baking cocoa
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-3 tablespoons milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 13×9-inch baking pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time; beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes. With the handle of a wooden spoon, poke holes halfway through cake in half-inch intervals.

In a medium bowl, combine pudding mix and milk. Whisk until smooth and slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Pour over top of cake. Loosely cover cake and refrigerate for 1 hour.

For glaze: In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, cocoa, vanilla and milk. Spread glaze over top of cake.

Refrigerate for 1-2 hours. Cut into squares to serve. Store in refrigerator.

Cinnamon Chip Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping

I woke up this morning to discover that it was 10 degrees below zero outside. Yesterday our high temperature never got above zero degrees, and it appears today is going to be a very similar day.

On days like this, one of my favorite ways to heat up my kitchen is by baking. Since today is a holiday and I have the day off from work, I decided to bake a breakfast treat for my family – a Cinnamon Chip Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping.

I just love a nice, warm piece of coffee cake alongside a piping hot cup of coffee – especially when the coffee cake has a crisp, streusel topping, like this one does. I also added a cup of applesauce to the batter, which makes the coffee cake really moist and helps lower the fat content. That means I can have more than one piece, right??

~Enjoy~




Cinnamon Chip Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup cinnamon chips

Topping
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup cold butter

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9-inch square baking pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until combined. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture. Beat at low speed until blended. Stir in applesauce and vanilla. Fold in cinnamon chips. Spread batter in prepared baking pan.

For topping, stir together sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over batter.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into squares.

Tangy Lime Bars

The snow has finally stopped falling, but now the temperatures have dropped back down to below zero. I know we’re not that far into Winter, but after receiving almost 100 inches of snow so far this season, I’m already looking forward to Spring.

Even though I still have to wait several months for Spring to arrive, I’m glad I don’t have to wait to enjoy one of these Tangy Lime Bars. Munching on one of these delightful little citrus treats really puts me in the mood for Spring. I can just picture myself enjoying one of these bars while lying in green grass and basking in the warm sun, as the aroma of fresh Spring flowers hangs in the air…

Okay, time to snap out of my daydream, bundle up, and go shovel some more snow.

~Enjoy~




Tangy Lime Bars

Crust
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, cold

Filling
4 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
15 packets True Lime
6 tablespoons water

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 13-inch pan.

For the Crust: Combine flour, powdered sugar and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until mixture is crumbly. Press mixture into the prepared pan. Bake for 20 minutes.

For the Filling: Mix eggs, granulated sugar, flour, True Lime and water in a large bowl. Pour over baked crust and bake for 25 minutes longer. Remove from oven and place on wire rack to cool.

Sprinkle cooled bars with powdered sugar, if desired.

Makes approximately 24 bars

Snow coming down

It started snowing at midnight, and it hasn’t let up yet. The wind has started blowing too, making it very unpleasant if you have to venture outside. I, for one, plan on staying inside for the rest of the day.

The mountains have disappeared

We’ve already received about 8 inches of snow here today, and we could receive another 8 inches before the snow finally ends. As of Tuesday, we’ve received approximately 81 inches of snow so far this Winter. After this storm passes, we may have close to 100 inches of snow accumulation.

Trees in snowstorm

After all this snow, I sure hope there is an early Spring in the forecast.

~Enjoy~

Calm before the storm

After a very snowy weekend, it turned out to be a beautiful day here today. The clear blue sky and abundant sunshine is most welcome after the snowy and near whiteout conditions from the past couple of days. However, our beautiful weather is not meant to last because the weather forecast is calling for high winds and more snow for our area beginning tonight.

Over this past weekend, we received almost 9 inches of snow in our area. Other places nearby received much more than that. Many people are spending today digging out from the weekend snow storm and preparing for the approaching storm.

Snow accumulation on balcony railing

Almost 9 inches of snow

The trees are so laden with snow that even birds, like the Bohemian Waxwings pictured below, seem to have a hard time finding a place to perch.

Bohemian Waxwings relax on snow covered trees

What’s that line from that baseball movie though…”if you build it, he will come.”
Well, I discovered if you clean off the snow from your balcony railing, the Bohemian Waxwings will come.

Bohemian Waxwings

~Enjoy~

Hot Chocolate Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

The temperature has finally warmed up to above zero degrees, but it’s still quite chilly outside – about 8 degrees right now, and it’s only supposed to warm up to 10 degrees. I’m glad I have nowhere to go today, so I think I’ll just stay inside, light a fire in the fireplace, and settle down on the couch with a good book.

Before I settle in on the couch, I might just grab another cup of coffee and one of these Hot Chocolate Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting. I don’t think it’s too early to have a cupcake, do you?

These cupcakes are really good, and although they have a really rich and dark chocolate appearance, they are actually quite light and airy. The marshmallow frosting is something I came up with by trial and error. I had found many recipes online for marshmallow frosting, but most of the recipes called for marshmallow creme, which I didn’t have. I had actual mini-marshmallows that I wanted to use for the frosting.

I tried one recipe that I found online, which called for heating marshmallows and milk on the stove, and then mixing it with butter and vanilla. I thought I had followed the recipe exactly, but maybe I did something wrong, because the end result in no way resembled frosting.

I thought about it for awhile, and finally decided to try heating marshmallows and butter in the microwave for a few seconds, similar to the way you would melt baking chips when making a glaze or frosting, and then combining the mixture with powdered sugar and vanilla. I also added a little water, to help make the frosting of spreading consistency -so it wasn’t too thick for the delicate cupcakes. The result was exactly what I was looking for. The frosting is really delicious, and it set up beautifully on the cupcakes.

~Enjoy~




Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground Saigon cinnamon (or regular ground cinnamon)
2 large eggs
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup milk
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners; set aside.

In a large bowl, sift together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add eggs, water, milk, oil, and vanilla extract. Mix with a hand mixer until smooth. (Note: batter will not be thick, it will have a watery consistency – this is normal)

Fill each muffin tin 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes, or until tops spring back when touched and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove from oven and cool in pan for ten minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Frost with marshmallow frosting, if desired.

Makes approximately 16 cupcakes.

Marshmallow Frosting

1 cup mini-marshmallows
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 tablespoons water

Place marshmallows and butter in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave on high power for 20 seconds. Stir until combined. Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract and water. Beat with an electric mixer until frosting becomes thick and of spreading consistency. Frost cooled cupcakes.

Hot Chocolate Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

Butterscotch Blondies

Around mid-November, I begin stocking my freezer with baking chips – to use in my holiday baking. I must admit, I use a lot of baking chips during the holiday season, and I’m often surprised at how quickly I go through them.

However, today I decided to do my post-holiday cleaning of the freezer, and I noticed that I still had one bag of butterscotch baking chips left. Since all my holiday cookies and desserts have finally been consumed, I decided to do some baking and use the chips I had found. I thought of several things I could make with the chips, but I kept coming back to this recipe for Butterscotch Blondies.

Blondies are one of my favorite “quick” desserts to bake, and butterscotch chips are wonderful in this recipe. The blondies are not only soft, moist and delicious, but you also get a little crunch from the addition of chopped nuts.

~Enjoy~




Butterscotch Blondies

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla butter & nut flavoring
1 (11 ounce) package butterscotch chips
1 cup chopped nuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 13×9-inch baking pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.

Beat butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in large bowl until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla butter & nut flavoring; beat well.

Gradually add dry ingredients to butter mixture, beating until well blended. Fold in butterscotch chips and nuts. Spread in prepared pan.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.

Makes approximately 36 bars.

New Year's Day 2012

Happy New Year!! I hope everyone had a wonderful New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day!!

It was a chilly first day of the year here. Our temperatures never got above zero, but it sure was a beautiful day. As the sun was setting a little while ago, it cast a pink and orange glow on the snow covered mountains. I braved the cold long enough to snap the picture above, but then I had to quickly run back inside to warm myself and my camera up.

My Christmas cookies and desserts are all gone, so I’ll be back to baking and posting recipes soon.

In the meantime, I’d like to wish all my readers and fellow bloggers a very happy and healthy 2012!!

~Enjoy~