Monthly Archives: July 2013

Peach Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Buttercream Frosting + A Birthday

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I turned 35 a few days ago. 35. I was 25 yesterday, I blinked and now I am 35. It is not so much the number that bothers me but more the passage of time. It goes by too fast. I would rather be where I am now at 35 than where I was at 25. I like myself more now than I did 10 years ago. That is saying a lot because I am a pretty harsh critique of myself.

So to celebrate the start of my 35th year we hired a sitter and Bubba and I went to an excellent restaurant in the North End called, Carmen. I had linguine with clams in fra diavolo sauce. The sauce was fresh and spicy and creamy all at the same time. The pasta was cooked to perfection and the clams were off the boat fresh. Bubba ordered scallops on a summer risotto with bacon. Amazing! After dinner, we took a long stroll and ended up at Lulu’s Sweet Shop. Lulu’s is known for their cupcakes. I love cupcakes. After eating a carrot + pineapple cupcake with cream cheese frosting in less than 3 minutes, I started thinking about cupcakes, a lot.

The next morning I obsessively looked at dozens of cupcake recipes until I came across one by Smitten Kitchen called Peach Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Frosting. I’m sold! I love peaches but peaches in a cupcake was something completely new and exciting.

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These cupcakes are very easy to make. The cake itself is very moist and light. The peach pieces add a fresh sweetness. The frosting is not like any frosting I’ve had and I think this it would work well on a number of cakes or cupcakes. I might try it on a carrot cake or spice cake next time.

I didn’t tweak either of the recipes at all. Maybe next time I’ll switch things up a bit, but I think they are pretty perfect just the way they are. Give them a shot! You will not be disappointed. Take them to a friend on her birthday. Who doesn’t love a cupcake?

Peach Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

by Smitten Kitchen

Yields about 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

3 cups cake flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

Pinch of nutmeg

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed  dark or light brown sugar packed

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups buttermilk, sour cream or full-fat yogurt ( I used full fat plain yogurt.)

3 large peaches, peeled, cored, and chopped small

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 and  line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg and set aside. Cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl between each addition. Add the vanilla. Gently mix the yogurt, buttermilk or sour cream.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Do not over mix. Fold in the peach chunks.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared cupcake liners. I use an ice cream scoop for this part.

Bake for 18 to 22 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center of cupcakes comes out clean. Check at 18 minutes and continue baking if necessary. Cool the cupcakes for about five minutes in the muffin tin. After 5 minutes, place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

1 1/4 cups light brown sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch (Brown sugar is more damp than granulated or powdered sugar and is missing the cornstarch thickener. Adding cornstarch helps the frosting to set up.)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

2 8-ounce packages of cream cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup (4 ounces or 8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Whisk together the brown sugar, cornstarch and powdered sugar. Using a stand mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add the sugar-cornstarch mixture and vanilla. Beat until frosting is smooth and light. Refrigerate the frosting until it thickens back up, about 30 minutes and spread on cooled cupcakes. I bought an inexpensive Wilton’s decorating kit at Michael’s. This is a good purchase if even if you only like to occasionally decorate cakes and cupcakes.

Lime Angel Food Cake with Mixed Berries and Whipped Cream

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Happy almost 4th of July! This is by far my favorite holiday. I love summer food, fireworks and warm weather. When I was a kid, my dad had a huge collection of fireworks. Every 4th and even sometimes on our birthdays he would light a bunch in our back yard. I loved sitting on the deck with my brother and sister watching the night sky light up. To this day I need to see fireworks sometime around the 4th or it just doesn’t feel like summer. While thinking about our plans for the 4th, I started to think about the perfect summertime dessert. For me that dessert is angel food cake

I love angel food cake. I especially love it with seasonal berries and a bit of whipped cream. I have attempted to make this cake many times but not all my attempts have been successful. One time it didn’t rise, another time it was tough and sort of flat and most recently I forgot to set the timer and it burned.  Bubba and kids love angel food cake so I was determined to make one that actually tasted good! I found a recipe for it on the blog Joy the Baker. Check out this fantastic food blog if you haven’t already! I adapted the recipe only by adding lime zest and lime juice. I love lime in cakes and cookies. Also, we have a bunch of limes in the house because Bubba likes a gin and tonic especially in the summertime.

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I added the zest of one lime to half of the sugar mixture. (Blend with your fingers any citrus zest with sugar before adding it to a batter and the citrus flavor will be more pronounced. The oils in the zest are released when you blend them with the sugar.)

_KH10010I love how sifted flour looks like freshly fallen snow.

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When you beat the egg whites be sure not to over beat them. You do not want stiff peaks. The egg whites should double in volume and look glossy.

_KH10014Fold the flour mixture into the egg whites in 4 batches. Over mixing will cause the egg whites to deflate. Once incorporated, pour batter into an ungreased tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40-45 minutes.

_KH10020 While your cake cooks, combine 1 pint of mixed berries in a bowl with 2-4 teaspoons of sugar depending on how sweet your berries taste. Set aside at room temperature for about 30 minutes or until the berries release some of their juices. The fruit can be refrigerated in an air tight container for up to a day.

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This how my cake turned out. Not bad, not perfect but it did taste great. The lime zest and juice is a nice addition but the fresh, local berries really stole the show. Have a very happy 4th!

Lime Angel Food Cake with Mixed Berries and Whipped Cream

Slightly adapted from Joy the Baker

makes 1 cake

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup cake flour, sifted

12 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/3 cup warm water

zest of one lime

2 teaspoons of lime juice

1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 pint of mixed berries ( I used a combination of blueberries, strawberries and raspberries)

2 to 4 teaspoons sugar (depending on how sweet your berries are)

Directions

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and place the rack in the middle.

In the bowl of a food processor, fitted with the blade attachment, grind sugar for about 2 minutes.  (This will make  a super fine sugar that will absorb easier into the egg whites.)

Place half of the sugar in a small bowl  and add lime zest. Blend the lime zest and the sugar together with your fingertips for about a minute.

Sift together the remaining sugar, salt, and cake flour.  Set aside.

Using an electric stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment, beat together the egg whites, water, lime juice, and cream of tartar at medium speed. Increase the speed to medium high, gradually adding the sugar from the small bowl, until medium peaks form. You do not want stiff peaks.

Sift in one-quarter of the flour and sugar mixture and gently fold with a spatula. Do not over mix or it will deflate the egg whites!   Add the flour mixture in three more batches.  Fold until completely incorporated. Spoon batter into ungreased tube pan.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes but start checking with a skewer at 37 minutes. Once the skewer comes out clean, the cake is done.  Remove cake from the oven and place it upside down on a cooling rack for at least an hour. Gently remove from pan once cool.

Mix berries with 2-4 teaspoons of sugar and set aside at room temperature for 30 minutes or until the berries release their juices. Lightly whip cream in a cold bowl , adding a bit of vanilla extract and sugar, if you like your whipped cream that way.

Slice cake and serve with berries and whipped cream. Store cake, well wrapped, at room temperature for up to 3 days. Enjoy!