cupcakes — Giving Up on Perfect

Monday Morning Mmmm: Lemon Drop Cupcakes

February 27, 2012 By Mary @ Giving Up on Perfect 3 Comments

Today’s Monday Morning Mmmm is from my good friend Jessie. I just spent the past few days rooming with her at Blissdom and while yes, it was essentially a grown-up slumber party and lots of fun, I must say: I wish she’d brought me one of these cupcakes! Please welcome Jessie – and her easy, yummy recipe!

I’m sure by now we all know Pinterest is both a blessing and a curse. I really have done more crafts and tried more new recipes due to having a visual bookmarking system. But I also get those images stuck in my brain and I just can’t seem to get them out. A cute decorating idea can fly out of my head quicker than a wasp, but a picture of a dazzling cupcake has me hooked.

Source: mysweetandsaucy.com via Vanderbilt Wife on Pinterest

Ever since I saw these babies on someone’s Pinterest board, my mind’s been swimming with lemon. Well, I finally clicked through the link and found out … there was no recipe. I had to do some searching, even, to find out these were mini-cupcakes from Tori and Dean’s wedding vow renewals. (They haven’t been married THAT long … right?)

So I had to settle for an easy recipe I found on another site. I made two dozen of these for the high-school boys we “dorm parent,” and they disappeared extremely quickly. (Of course, they are high-school boys. So you might take that with a grain of salt.) The simple recipe takes almost no time to prepare, so I think these will be a go-to recipe of mine for feeding the boys or taking to a party. And they can be made very low-cal as well!

Lemon Cupcakes with Light Lemony Frosting

Adapted from Dashing Dish

Cake:
1 box lemon cake mix
12 ounces lemon-lime soda

Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tins with cupcake papers. Mix cake mix and soda together until all is incorporated and there are no lumps. Fill papers about halfway full. Bake 18-20 minutes. Let cool completely.

Frosting:
8 oz. Cool Whip
one 8-oz. package instant lemon pudding mix
juice of half a lemon
1/2 cup milk

Fold pudding mix and lemon juice into Cool Whip and beat until creamy. Add milk and stir until uniform. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Pipe frosting onto cupcakes. Add sprinkles and fresh lemon zest if desired.

For “diet” cupcakes, use a sugar-free vanilla cake mix, diet soda, light or “free” Cool Whip, sugar-free pudding mix, and skim milk. With all of those modifications, the cupcakes come in at just 85 calories apiece!

Do tell: do you actually make any of the recipes you Pin?

Jessie is a stay-at-home mom of two little ones in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She writes about food, faith, and trying not to go insane at Vanderbilt Wife.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: cooking, cupcakes, food, guest post, monday morning mmmm, recipes

Monday Morning Mmmm: Brownie Cupcakes

February 13, 2012 By Mary @ Giving Up on Perfect 3 Comments

Are you the kind of person who says things like, “Oh, this is just too rich!” or “You know, chocolate’s not my thing. I can take it or leave it”? Then you should probably just keep moving on.

I mean, come back tomorrow for a new post, but today? Just keep on clickin’.

Because these cupcakes? They. Are. Full. Of. The. Chocolate. I’m talking a chocolate fudge cupcake with a brownie inside and then topped with rich chocolate frosting.

Mmm-hm. That’s right. And, that’s why I made these puppies with my friend Brittany and then left them all at her house. (All except for the one – and a half – that I ate.) When we finally got to the taste-testing portion of this activity, I tried to get Annalyn to smile a big chocolatey smile for the camera.

Me: “Do you like the cupcake, baby?”
Her: “Yes.”
Me: “Does it make you want to smile?”
Her: “It makes me want to take them all home.”

So, I didn’t get a picture (Clearly,the girl just does not understand the requirements of a blogger’s daughter!), but I couldn’t have asked for a better testimonial than that!

I found this recipe on Kevin & Amanda (she has The Best recipes there!). I altered it a bit by using frosting from a can, because while I’m sure her five-stick-of-butter frosting is ah-maze-ing, I was one part too lazy and two parts two scared to make it myself. (Come. On! Five sticks of butter!? I might have dived straight into that bowl and never come out again!)

This recipe involves several steps, but it’s worth it. Here’s the full recipe:

Brownie Batter Cupcakes

Brownie Batter

1/4 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup fat-free sweetened condensed milk
1/3 cup milk
1 box devil’s food cake mix

Mix all ingredients together. Use a small scoop (or heaping tablespoon) to put batter on a baking sheet lined with wax paper and freeze overnight.

Cupcakes

1 box devil’s food cake mix
1 large package instant chocolate fudge pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 cups mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Combine all ingredients, stirring in chocolate chips last. Use a large scoop (about 3 tbsp) to drop batter into cupcake liners, filling about two-thirds full. Take the brownie batter balls from the freezer and press one into each cup of cupcake batter. Bake for 22-28 minutes.

I had a little trouble pulling the cupcakes out of the pan, mainly because I didn’t push the brownie batter ball far enough into the cupcake batter. It ended up sitting on top of the cupcake a bit and popped off a few cupcakes when I tried to remove them from the pan. They also ended up shaped pretty funny, and I’m glad Brittany was willing to frost them all.

And speaking of frosting, like I mentioned, I used canned frosting, but you can find the recipe for Amanda’s crazy buttery chocolate frosting here.

By the way, writing this post has made me REALLY regret leaving all the cupcakes at my friends’ house. Not that I’d have any left by now. But I wish I did.

How much do you love chocolate? Do you ever think a food is too rich?

This post will be linked to Mouthwatering Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, 33 Shades of Green, Works for Me Wednesday, I’m Lovin’ It, Sweet Tooth Friday and Foodie Friday.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: chocolate, cooking, cupcakes, food, monday morning mmmm, recipes

Monday Morning Mmmm: Caramel Apple Cupcakes

November 21, 2011 By Mary @ Giving Up on Perfect 2 Comments

For nearly 33 years I’ve avoided making cinnamon rolls. I’ve made them from a can a million times. But the kind you make with dough? And yeast? And I don’t even know what else? I have never been brave enough or what’s-the-opposite-of-lazy enough to attempt them.

My darling husband, however, has kindly asked that – out of all the dishes that I could take to his family’s Thanksgiving dinner – I make cinnamon rolls.

So, check back with me next week. Fingers crossed that I’m here to share The Cinnamon Roll Recipe That Worked – and not the Thanksgiving Dinner That Went Awry.

In the meantime, I can definitely share an apple recipe (from A Cook’s Quest) that worked! This is one of the fall recipes I couldn’t wait to try. Really, any baked good with apple or pumpkin is sure to make my must-bake list, and I’m glad these did.

Caramel Apple Cupcakes

2 1/2 cups flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 tsp vanilla
2 cups applesauce
3 cups caramel candies (about 50)
4 tbsp heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. In separate bowl, mix together eggs, sugars, oil, vanilla and applesauce. Combine wet and dry mixtures. Pour into 24 muffin cups and bake for 25 minutes.

While the cupcakes are baking, melt together the caramels and cream. I did it on the stove over medium heat and it took several minutes. You might try the microwave. Or you might be more patient than me. Either one.

Because the caramel is runny when it’s hot, it’s practically impossible to use it to “ice” the cupcakes. Instead, I picked up each cupcake and dipped it in the caramel sauce. It’s still messy but not as bad as if I’d been spooning or pouring it on.

Messy, however, is just part of the equation when it comes to these mini apple cakes. So if you’re averse to mess – or if you are wearing braces – these might not be for you. If, however, you love apple and caramel and don’t mind sticky fingers or chins, try these now!

How do you feel about messy treats and foods? Also – because I’m taking a poll – how do you pronounce the word, “caramel”? Care-uh-mell? Or car-uh-mell?

This post will be linked to Mouthwatering Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, 33 Shades of Green, Sweet Tooth Friday and Foodie Friday.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: apple, cooking, cupcakes, food, monday morning mmmm, recipe

Monday Morning Mmmm: S’mores Cupcakes

July 11, 2011 By Mary @ Giving Up on Perfect 9 Comments

On Friday we had a playdate scheduled. My friend e-mailed with specifics and said, “If you want to try a new recipe on us – you know, for your blog – you sure can!”

Well, what was I supposed to do after she said THAT?!

I’d been planning to make s’mores cupcakes that I saw on Hoosier Homemade anyway, and this was the perfect excuse. I mean, reason. Little did I know how many (MANY!) steps were involved in this brilliant idea – and little did I realize how many (Ohhhh, so many!) dishes I would have to hand wash afterward.

The things I do for my friends. And s’mores cupcakes.

Before I forget, I have to tell you the funniest thing about making these cupcakes. As usual, Annalyn was my little helper, and at one point, we were having some trouble. Even more melodramatic than usual these days, Annalyn started shouting, “Oh no! Help! Who will help us?” (We’re kind of on a superhero kick, if you weren’t picking up on that.)

Since I’d noticed that Hoosier Homemade had adapted the recipe from Bakerella, I said, “Maybe Bakerella will help us!” So, of course, Annalyn proceeded to shout, “Help, Bakerella! Help us fix our cupcakes!”

As my friend Ruthanne says, ::snort::

Anyway, back to the cupcakes . . .

S’mores Cupcakes

Cupcake Ingredients
1 ½ cups flour
1 ½ cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup cocoa
¾ cup graham cracker crumbs
1 cup milk, divided
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla, divided
½ cup oil, divided
12 large marshmallows, cut in half

Crust Ingredients
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup graham cracker crumbs
¼ cup butter, melted

Frosting Ingredients
1 jar marshmallow fluff
1-8 oz. block of cream cheese, softened
1 ½ sticks butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
splash of vanilla

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large measuring cup (or bowl, if you must), combine flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Divide the mixture evenly into two separate bowls.

Now, here’s where it gets tricky.

Add graham cracker crumbs to one bowl and cocoa to the other one. Then add to each bowl ½ cup milk, ¼ cup oil, 1 egg and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix each bowl of batter well.

Next, mix up the graham cracker crust. Put paper liners in two muffin tins (you’ll make 24 cupcakes). And get ready for a multi-step process of making deliciousness.

Put a tablespoon of the graham cracker batter into each cupcake liner. Sprinkle with graham cracker crust, and top with a marshmallow half. Spoon chocolate batter to cover up the marshmallow (but pace yourself or you might run out of batter on Cupcake #22, causing your three-year-old daughter to shout for help from Bakerella). Sprinkle with graham cracker crust again.

Bake for 15 minutes.

While the cupcakes are baking, mix together the frosting ingredients. The original recipe didn’t include the powdered sugar, but when I tasted the frosting it had an overpowering cream cheese flavor that I didn’t like. I wonder if I should have used the large jar of marshmallow fluff instead of the small one. (If you try it, let me know how it works!)

We all agreed: These cupcakes were delicious! Now, if I use my friend Josh’s five-point critiquing system (see: s’mores bar showdown), I have to admit that they don’t really taste like s’mores. But ooooh, they’re still good!

Oh, one more thing. Don’t be alarmed when you pull them out of the oven. The large marshmallow will melt during baking and the center of the cupcake will sink. Don’t panic! Just fill it up with frosting!

Have you made anything delicious or complicated (or both) lately?

This post will be linked to Mouthwatering Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, 33 Shades of Green, Sweet Tooth Friday and Foodie Friday. It will also be linked to Ingredient Spotlight at Eat at Home.