It's Cupcake Season!

It was my mom's birthday yesterday and what better excuse do you need to make cupcakes? I saw these cupcakes on foodgawker a while back and I've been looking for an occasion to make them, so thank you mother for having a birthday. They were just absolutely delightful! The use of pink lemonade concentrate made them tart and not too sweet. 

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

courtesy of Simply Sweet Bake Shop

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

Pinch of salt

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup vegetable oil

2 egg whites

1/3 cup thawed frozen Pink Lemonade Concentrate

1/4 buttermilk

Pink food coloring

- Preheat of to 350F. Line muffin tin with paper liners.

- In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt, set aside.

- In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites and lemonade concentrate. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and buttermilk, making three additions of flour mixture and two of buttermilk, beating until just smooth.

- Add just enough food coloring to turn the batter a light shade of pink ( I didn't have any pink or red food coloring...so I just left this part out).

- Fill cupcake liners about 3/4 full with batter and bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely before icing.

Lemonade Buttercream

3 cups + 3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar

1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons Pink Lemonade Concentrate

Pink food coloring

-Add all ingredients to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on low using paddle attachment until combined.

- Turn the speed to med-high and blend until the buttercream is fluffy and uniformly pink. Spread or pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

This was a great recipe, I got 9 cupcakes out of the recipe, which is the perfect number for me! The icing was a great consistency for piping but my only criticism was that the butter flavor was a little strong for my taste, in the future I think I'll substitute 4 tablespoons of shortening to cut back on the butter. Overall I look forward to making these again. Enjoy!!

Yummm

I know I've been absent these past few weeks...or months, but senior year will do that to ya. I always have my staple cookies that I make, but I've been bored with those lately and I thought biscotti would be a good alternative. These turned out fantastically crumbly and not too sweet, just how I like them.

White Chocolate Cranberry Biscotti

adapted from The Cookie Bible

2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 

1/2 cup (1 stick) softened butter

1/2 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips

1/2 cup sweetened dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly grease a large, nonstick cookie sheet (just to be safe).

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

Cream the butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes.

Add eggs and extract, mix well to combine.

Gradually add in the flour mixture until well blended, and stir in the white chocolate chips and dried cranberries.

Divide the dough in half and on a floured surface, shape each half into 14x1 1/2 inch log. Place, 2 inches apart, on prepared cookie sheet.

Bake for 25-28 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on cookie sheet for 15 minutes.

Place on cutting board and using a serrated knife, cut into 3/4 inch thick diagonal slices. Place back on cookie sheet.

Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, turning over half way through. Cool completely before storing. 

The addition of cinnamon was a great decision; just enough to have a subtle spice that helps cut the sweetness of the white chocolate. Enjoy!!