I Heart Bakerella's Cupcake Lollipops

It was a typical February afternoon in Seattle. Cold, windy and rainy. Blah. The day was progressing like any other and it was lunch time. I had just arrived back to my desk, waiting patiently for my piping hot (yet still frozen in the center) Cedarlane vegetable enchiladas to cool off. As I do just about every work day, I fired up the first of several of my favorite blogs while I started to dig into my lunch:NotMartha.org. The daily post consisted of a collection of a bunch of links to interesting stuff of or related to my favorite subject: food. Yay!

I scroll through the links: something about beef (gross), crust less quiche (promising)...and then I see it: "cake lollipops at Bakerella". Bakerella? Cake lollipops? I'm so there!

Oh. My. Goodness. These cake lollipops were the cutest things ever! That was until I clicked on the picture and was directed to Flickr. I immediately started looking at Bakerella's photostream and that's when I saw them....Cupcake Lollipops!!! Only the coolest most adorable thing EVER! I knew right then and there I had to make these -- so I did, two months later :-)

These were challenging (and fun...and messy!) to make but worth the effort. If you'd like to make them you can either go to Bakerella's blog where she *just* posted really wonderful step by step instructions (I would have loved these yesterday!) or to theMarthaStewart.com website(there's a step by step video there). Bakerella, was invited to be on the show to make these! How cool is she?

I have a few tips after making these:

1. I didn't use cheesecake frosting from a can but instead make it from scratch. I just don't care for canned icing. The recipe still worked out fine, although the "dough" (cake + frosting mixed together) was on the soft side. My recipe is really simple: 3 8oz blocks of cream cheese, at room temperature. 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature. 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix the cheese and butter together until really well blended, add the vanilla and mix again. Add powdered sugar and mix on low until the sugar is combined. Then mix on high for about 2 minutes. Done. (Makes about 2 1/2 cups)

2. Don't skimp on the Almond Bark for the bottoms of the little cakes or try to use candy melts or even real chocolate. What's Almond Bark? This is the stuff you usually find on the bottom shelf of the chocolate chip isle that comes in a solid block. It typically comes in two flavors: chocolate and vanilla. Don't worry, it doesn't taste like almond or contain almonds. What I loved about this product was that it stayed viscous for a long time which meant I didn't have to keep tempering it. I also loved the way it looked when it set. It was very smooth and even. Eventually I ran out and had to use candy melts instead and the texture was just different and it didn't look as pretty to me as the bark did. I think the almond bark also adds a nice chocolaty flavor. The candy melts don't really taste like anything so bark is a nice contrast.

3. The directions to use the 1 1/4-by-3/4-inch flower-shaped cookie cutter. I had a hard time finding this at first but eventually found it at Williams & Sonoma as part of a six piece pack for $10. I also found the exact same six piece pack, although packaged differently, at Michael's for $3. Yeah... I'm bringing back the set from Williams & Sonoma (rip off!).


4. While you're at Micheal's, pick yourself up a big hunk of WHITE Styrofoam. Avoid the green kind. Why? Well, the green kind is designed to work more with silk flowers and breaks apart as you touch it. Before you know it you have have this green, sand-like material all over the place, which will attach itself to the pops. Ick.

5. Give yourself lots of time. It took me many hours to make this from start to finish. Be patient and think through each step before you start.

6. Always use the lollipop stick when handling the cupcakes, especially when you're sticking them into the Styrofoam. I made the mistake of pushing on down onto the top of the cupcake to stick it into the Styrofoam and the stick went right through the top of the cupcake, breaking it.

I really enjoyed making these little guys. I already have some other ideas on what I can use the "dough" to make next. It's a great way to show your creativity. I think I got a little carried away but I loved the results.
Bakerella, thank you for this recipe. You're a genius!

Yield: I made two cakes, using two boxes of cake mix and made about 75 total cupcakes.
Would I Make This Again? Um, YES! Just a little aside: One of the gals at the party today asked me if I made food like this for a living after she ate one of these little guys. I laughed out loud and told her I was a business analyst by day. If there was ever a reason to rate a recipe 5 out of 5, that was it.
(I made this one for my hubby. Happy Anniversary honey!)

Brenna's Mini Pineapple Upside Cakes

Ahh... Pineapple Upside Cake! This simple recipe is been one of my favorites since I was little. I think the first time I had it was when it was served as part of school lunch in elementary school.
I love the simplicity of it. Brenna is a big fan too. She specifically requested it and I was excited to make it.

I looked for a good recipe for it that didn't involve nuts or rum and eventually decided to wing it.
Mini Pineapple Upside Cakes

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup of oil
4 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 cup sour cream (I used full fat but low or non fat is fine)

1/2 cup of pineapple juice
1 stick of unsalted butter, melted
1 can (20 ounces) crushed pineapple, drained, juice set aside
3/4 cup light brown sugar
24 maraschino cherries, halved

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly mist mini muffin tins with Pam for Baking (or prepare similarly).

Place one teaspoon of butter and brown sugar in the bottom of the tin. Mix together well. Add pineapple, and then invert a cherry so the smooth side is face down. Set aside.

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Set aside. Beat sugar and butter in large mixer bowl at medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally, until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Add sour cream. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture alternately with pineapple juice, beating well after each addition just until mixed.

Prepare mini-cakes: Add a tablespoon or so of batter to the tin. It should be about 75% filled. Bake for about 9-11 minutes (depending on your oven), until they are golden and a toothpick comes out clean when pricked into the center.

Remove them from the oven and run a small knife around the edges of the cupcakes to free any edges. Place a baking rack or large platter over the top of the muffin tin and quickly invert the pan. Set the rack and pan on the counter and gently tap on each well to remove the contents. Slowly remove the tin. Let cool for about 15 minutes and then serve.

Yield: 48 mini or 24 regular sized muffins
Would I Make This Again? Yes! This is a great dessert that everyone can't help but love. Plus they are so cute when they are tiny! 4.0 out of 5 stars.

David's Most Amazing German Chocolate Vegan Cupcakes

Last year David said he'd like a carrot cake but because he's vegan, I got very nervous and ended up buying him one from PCC. Everything changed this year when my boss, Nick, let me borrow Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule. The recipes weren't scary and I already owned most of the ingredients. This year I would not wimp out!

One afternoon when David was walking past my desk I handed him the cookbook. "Pick anything. Choose whatever you want," I said proudly. "I'll make it!" David looked a little giddy, "Really? Wow. " A few hours later he surrendered and said everything looked good and gave me his blessing to pick whatever I wanted to make. With Nick's prodding I decided to make the Basic Chocolate Cupcake recipe with the German Chocolate frosting.

The recipe, as basic as it was, was a bit viscous. I was sure that I had done something wrong and they wouldn't look like the pictures in the book. But after exactly 18 minutes at 350F, they were perfect. And the frosting was easy and probably the best Coconut Pecan frosting I have ever had. The only mistake I made was that I didn't make enough! I made two dozen and probably should have made double that. Everyone loved them!

Happy Birthday David! Thank you for helping me face my vegan baking fears. Now I want to make every recipe in this cookbook! Oh and out of respect for the authors and copyright laws, I've decided not to post the recipes that I used. I just don't feel that it's right. You can find this book at Amazon, any bookstore, or at your local library. Be sure to check it out!

Groundhog Day Cupcakes

Groundhog Day has always been a favorite movie of my husband. He was so inspired by it he bought a piano and taught himself how to play! Last year, on February 2nd, he started a ritual with our son where they watch the movie together. It was Jake's first time seeing it and he loved it so much that he asked to watch it again the next day. That day a tradition was born. Tomorrow evening they will watch the movie again and to commemorate the event I created a special Groundhog Day cupcake. I did my usual research on the web and I found a few recipes but none of them really looked much like an actual groundhog, so I created my own. I think Phil would be proud!

In case it doesn't come through in the photograph, it's a groundhog coming up out of it's snow covered burrow to see it's shadow. The cupcake is buttermilk chocolate-almond cake with vanilla cream cheese frosting (which is suppose to be snow). The little guy in the center is made from Tootsie rolls, regular size and mini chocolate chips, white candy melts, and cocoa. The cake crumbs around his head are suppose to be the dirt from his burrow. Yum!

One of my husband's favorite quotes from the movie:
Piano Teacher: Not bad... Mr. Connors, you say this is your first lesson?
Phil: Yes, but my father was a piano *mover*, so...

This just in! Phil Says Spring is Right Around the Corner! Straight from Gobbler's Knob, read Phil's official forecast here. I wonder if my cupcakes helped scare his shadow away? :-)