Posts for December 28th 2011

Sugar Shout Out December 29, 2011
Sugar Shout Out

Sugar Shout Out: A History of Musician-Model Couples

In honor of John and Chrissy, a history of model-musician duos The best sparkling wines to drink on New Year's Robert Pattinson hits his local pub on Christmas Eve!
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Champagne Cupcakes Recipe
champagne cupcakes

Sparkling Champagne Cupcakes

From Sprinkle Bakes Sparkling Champagne Cupcakes IngredientsFor the cake: 1/2 cup butter softened 1 cup granulated sugar 2 eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1-3/4 cups flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup sour cream 1/2 cup Champagne, prosecco, or your choice of sparkling wine For the pastry cream: 1/2 cup heavy cream, divided 1/2 cup Champagne or prosecco 2 tablespoons cornstarch 5 tablespoons granulated sugar 1 whole egg 2 egg yolks 2 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 teaspoon vanilla For the frosting: 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon champagne or prosecco 2 sticks of butter softened 2-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar Pastel dragées Directions Make the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
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Sparkling Champagne Cupcakes

Sparkling Champagne Cupcakes

Champagne Cupcakes Recipe

Ingredients

For the cake:
1/2 cup butter softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1-3/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup Champagne, prosecco, or your choice of sparkling wine

For the pastry cream:
1/2 cup heavy cream, divided
1/2 cup Champagne or prosecco
2 tablespoons cornstarch
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

For the frosting:
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon champagne or prosecco
2 sticks of butter softened
2-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
Pastel dragées

Directions

  1. Make the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and mix. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, set aside. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together 1/2 cup champagne and 1/2 cup sour cream (mixture will fizz and bubble a little). Add flour and Champagne mixture alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Batter will be thick.
  3. Fill cupcake papers with 1/4 cup level measures of batter. Bake for 17-22 minutes. Set aside.
  4. Make the pastry cream filling: In a medium bowl, whisk cornstarch in 1/4 cup of heavy cream. Combine the remaining heavy cream, sugar and 1/2 cup Champagne in a saucepan; bring to a boil then remove from heat.
  5. Beat the whole egg and egg yolks into the cornstarch/heavy cream mixture. Pour 1/3 of boiling champagne mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so the eggs do not cook. Return the remaining Champagne/heavy cream mixture to a boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and beat in the butter and vanilla.
  6. Cut a divot into the top of each cupcake and fill with pastry cream. Trim the cut-out cake pieces flat to make a "lid" and place on top of the filled divot.
  7. Make the frosting: Place 1 cup of champagne in a small saucepan. Simmer over medium-high heat until reduced to 2 tablespoons. Transfer to a small bowl or condiment cup and allow to cool.
  8. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream softened butter and powdered sugar together. Once the frosting is thick and fluffy, pour in the reduced 2 tablespoon Champagne plus 1 tablespoon Champagne from the bottle and mix well.
  9. Frost the cream-filled cupcakes and decorate with pastel dragées.

Makes about 17 cupcakes.

Information

Category
Desserts, Cupcakes
Croquembouche Information
Dessert

We're Talking Croquembouches!

Lately, I've been seeing towers of cream puffs, or croquembouches, appearing all over the place, particularly in bridal magazines or on wedding blogs.
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Lately, I've been seeing towers of cream puffs, or croquembouches, appearing all over the place, particularly in bridal magazines or on wedding blogs. The croquembouche is most certainly a delicious trend – we had one at our wedding and it was quite a hit! — but these magnificent sweet sculptures are more complicated than they may appear. To get an inside look at how these profiterole towers are made, I reached out to Gerhard and Mary Michler, the driving force behind Gerhard Michler Fine European Pastries and Creative International Pastries, in San Francisco.

Gerhard first started baking at age 17 in his native Austria, so it's safe to say he knows a bit about French pastry. Michler chalks the growing cream puff tower trend up to the fact that people seem to want to see new things these days, and that a croquembouche (also known as a pièce montée) is an exciting conversational piece. For more on this amazing French dessert sculpture, keep reading.

Whiskey Bundt Cake
recipes

Sweet Southern Treat: Pecan and Honey Whiskey Bundt Cake

My relatives live in Mississippi, so it's tradition for my immediate family to gather there every Christmas.
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My relatives live in Mississippi, so it's tradition for my immediate family to gather there every Christmas. Mississippi is famous for its Southern hospitality, and it's common for family friends to drop by unexpectedly and leave incredible, homemade confections. This particular bundt cake was left by the next-door neighbor, and despite our small family's size, we have managed to gobble it up in only two days. Super moist yellow cake with butterscotch flavor, crunchy toasted pecans, and lip-smacking honey whiskey come together for a warming Southern bundt cake that you can enjoy morning, noon, and night. Lucky for you, I snagged the recipe so you can enjoy this divine delight in your own kitchen.

See recipe.

Bobby Flay Wants to Reopen Bolo in 2012
Food News

Link Time: Bobby Flay's 2012 New Year's Resolution

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Favorite Ethnic Cuisine
Best of 2011

What Was Your Favorite Ethnic Cuisine in 2011?

One of my favorite things about food is that we're able to dive into different cultures just by tasting new spices and flavor combinations.
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One of my favorite things about food is that we're able to dive into different cultures just by tasting new spices and flavor combinations. Food is such an integral element of society and culture and it's actually quite accessible for us, if we're willing to be somewhat adventurous. Even though the luxury of travel isn't always available, we are still able to experience the world with our taste buds! Now we want to know what your very favorite ethnic cuisine was this past year. Did you embrace the new food trends, like Scandinavian or Korean cuisine? Or did you stick with your tried and true favorites, like Mexican or Japanese food? Vote in our poll below!

Source: Flickr User stu_spivack

Holiday Toffee Desserts
Holiday

What to Do With Extra Gifted Toffee

Neighbors, friends, and families exchange numerous sweets over the holidays, and it's not uncommon to end up with multiples of the same dessert — especially toffee.
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Neighbors, friends, and families exchange numerous sweets over the holidays, and it's not uncommon to end up with multiples of the same dessert — especially toffee. Because toffee contains butter, which eventually spoils, and nuts, which go rancid after a few months, you will want to eat your toffee up by Valentine's Day. Here are five things you can do with toffee, so you don't grow bored of eating it!

  • Crumble the toffee pieces on top of buttercream frosted cakes or cupcakes.
  • Liven up a classic brownie recipe by mixing in toffee bits instead of chocolate chips in the batter
  • Make oatmeal, coconut, and toffee cookies.
  • Top your coffee or hot chocolate with whipped cream and sprinkle with toffee.
  • Freeze the toffee for up to four months in an air-tight zip-lock bag. The toffee might soften up over time, but the nuts and butter will maintain their freshness if kept frozen.

Ever had the problem of too much toffee bark? Tell us what you did with it.

Source: Flickr User Noema Pérez

Unique Chili Recipe
community

Savory Sight: Best Chili Ever

When it gets cold out — like it is now in San Francisco — we can't help but crave a piping hot bowl of flavorful chili.
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When it gets cold out — like it is now in San Francisco — we can't help but crave a piping hot bowl of flavorful chili. My Fare Foodie makes a bold claim in describing this dish as the best chili ever, but with the ingredients she describes below, we're thinking she may be right!


When the temperature drops outside, sometimes there is nothing more satisfying than a hearty bowl of chili. With stout beer, dark chocolate, and coffee, this recipe is without a doubt the tastiest and most interesting one you will come across.

For the recipe, head on over to her blog, and share your cold-weather concoctions with us in our Kitchen Goddess community group!