Cheers With Gin and Tonic Cupcakes

YumSugar — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 15:30:14 -0800

Recently a great friend celebrated his birthday. To surprise him, I decided to turn his favorite cocktail into a cupcake! A must for any party, these gin and tonic cupcakes are stunning and surprisingly easy to make. Be careful when baking; the cake should be light and airy rather than hard and overcooked. The creamy frosting has a mild gin flavor, but feel free to add more or less booze to suit your tastebuds. My local market did not have citrus jellies, so I used sugar-coated lime slices as garnish. Homemade candied lime peel is another excellent option for garnish. To celebrate with your own gin and tonic cupcakes, read more.

Gin & Tonic Cupcakes
From Gorgeous Cakes by Annie Bell

Ingredients

Cake
2 medium egg whites
Pinch of sea salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tablespoons tonic water
Frosting
1/2 cup mascarpone
1 tablespoon gin
2 tablespoons corn syrup
Green food coloring
Lime slices covered in sugar or jellied lime or lemon slices, for garnish

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325° Fahrenheit. With an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites in a large bowl with salt and cream of tartar until they are risen. Now beat in the sugar, a couple of tablespoons at a time, sprinkling it over the egg whites and beating about 20 seconds with each addition. Fold the sifted flour into the meringue in three stages, and then stir in the tonic water.
Arrange muffin paper baking cups inside a muffin tin and fill two thirds full. Bake for 15-20 minutes until lightly golden on the surface and still springy to the touch. Remove and let cool.
Spoon mascarpone into a bowl and beat in the gin and then the syrup and tint it the palest green with a little food coloring. Fill a icing bag or ziploc with the tip cut off to frost the cupcakes.
Use a decorative toothpick to spear lime slices in sugar or jellied candies and insert one into each cupcake.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

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Have Your Cake and Beet It Too

YumSugar — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 15:00:06 -0700

While looking through Gorgeous Cakes over the weekend, I found the perfect Fall cake recipe that included one of my favorite root vegetables, beets. I love roasted beets in a salads, so why not experiment with them in baking?The uncooked batter has a stunning magenta color that's unfortunately lost once baked. However, it turns to a lovely, golden-colored cake with delicious red speckles throughout.

The combination of beets and roasted hazelnuts results in a hearty cake with a delightfully light and airy texture. For extra zip, I added ruby red grapefruit zest to the luscious cream cheese frosting. To see the spectacular color of the batter and start baking your own cupcakes with this vegetable, read more.

Beet Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting
Adapted from Gorgeous Cakes by Annie Bell

Ingredients

For the Cake
5 ounces raw beet, peeled and shredded (wear gloves and apron while shredding)
1 cup vegetable oil
1 1/4 cup sugar
3 medium eggs, separated
3 tablespoons 1 percent milk
1 cup roasted hazelnuts, chopped
1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
For the Frosting
2 teaspoon beets, shredded
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/3 cup powdered sugar, sifted
2 cups lowfat cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ruby red grapefruit zest

Directions

Preheat the oven 350°F. Place the hazelnuts on a cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes. Be sure to check the hazelnuts frequently to ensure they do not burn. Once roasted place nuts on a kitchen towel. Cover the nuts with half of the kitchen towel and gently roll back and forth to remove the skins. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
Beat oil and sugar in large bowl, then beat in egg yolks and milk.
Fold in beets and hazelnuts. Sift flour and baking powder together and stir into the batter. Add spices.
Using a clean bowl and beater beat the egg whites until they are stiff and fold them into the batter in three stages.
Fill cupcake liners and bake for 18-22 minutes or until an inserted knife or skewer comes out clean.
For the frosting, cream butter, and powdered sugar using a hand mixer. Blend in the cream cheese, vanilla, and grapefruit zest until smooth.
Place the 2 teaspoons of shredded beets in a cup with 2 teaspoons of boiling water. Let sit for a couple of minutes. The red liquid can be added to the frosting to make pink frosting without the aid of food coloring.
Frost the cupcakes once cooled completely and enjoy.

Makes 18 cupcakes.

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