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15 Sweet Treats For Your Memorial Day Bash!

Lisa Horten — Wed, 23 May 2012 06:47:15 PDT

Memorial Day is right around the corner, and whatever your weekend plans entail, we can't think of a better way to celebrate than with a special sweet treat. Whether you prefer a classic patriotic theme or want to get inventive with cupcakes that look like they just came off the grill, stock up on some sugar, heat up the oven, and get baking!

What's It Going to Be: Gender Reveal Parties Announce Baby's Sex

Rebecca M Gruber — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:56:44 PDT

It's not all about the 20-week ultrasound anymore! More and more parents are planning gender reveal parties to find out their baby's sex and share the excitement with family and friends. While some mamas-to-be wait until the child debuts to find out if they should buy pink or blue, others embrace the excuse to party before delivery!

Some moms and dads have the ultrasound technician write the child's sex on a slip of paper that is placed in an envelope. It's then dropped off at a bakery where a cake is baked in the appropriate color and iced to hide the news. When the parents-to-be cut into the sweet treat, they learn about their future offspring. The idea gained national attention when Josh and Anna Duggar cut into a pink cake on the Today show to learn that they were having a girl a few years ago. The concept is gaining momentum as more couples opt to hold soirees to celebrate their impending offspring. Check out these cakes that families have used to announce the sugary-sweet news.

Source: Grey Grey Designs

Shower Her With Sweetness: Baby Shower Cupcake Inspiration

LilSugar — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 06:42:55 PDT

Since baby showers are often afternoon affairs, sweet treats aren't just a nice touch, they're a necessity! If cupcakes are your sugar fix of choice, you're in luck. We've uncovered some of the prettiest, most creative, and covetable cupcake ideas out there. From the simple to the super-involved, you're sure to find inspiration for your baby shower bash right here.

Easter Cupcakes So Easy Your Kids Can Make Them!

Rebecca M Gruber — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 03:16:56 PDT

Candy and cupcakes and treats, oh, my! In the hierarchy of holidays designed to give tots a sugar high, Easter must claim one of the top three spots. A holiday where candy is strewn about the yard? Sign me up! So when Jelly Belly teamed up with Karen Tack and Alan Richardson, the authors of the new Cupcakes, Cookies, & Pie, Oh, My! and the inspiring What's New, Cupcake?, for an evening of Easter cupcake tutorials, I was quick to sign up. The duo shared their favorite decorating tips, taught us how to incorporate traditional holiday candy into our designs, and proved that their sophisticated-looking creations are actually easy enough for a 6-year-old to complete (my son was in sugar heaven). Keep reading to see how you and your tots can re-create these sweets just in time for Sunday's festivities.

The Cutest Easter Cupcakes For Your Little Bunnies

LilSugar — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 10:11:03 PDT

Hip hop your way into Easter with a sensationally sweet cupcake treat. From adorable little bunnies to birds nests and Easter eggs, there's cupcake inspiration for every bunny!

These Sweet St. Patrick's Day Treats Will Bring Your Tots the Luck of the Irish

LilSugar — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 06:47:34 PDT

Treat your kids to a sweet something special this St. Patrick's Day. We've rounded up some great ideas, from the supereasy to the extra-ambitious. Erin Go Bragh!

Drink Your Dessert: Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

Sara Yoo — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 11:55:28 PDT

If you went to college or lived near a campus bar, you're undoubtedly familiar with a drink called the Irish car bomb. It's similar to a sake bomb or cement mixer in that it requires choreography: one shot each of Baileys Irish cream liqueur and Irish whiskey are dropped into a pint glass of Guinness stout, and some poor soul downs the entire concoction before the drink can curdle, often while standing on top of the bar. Yowza.

Now, a coed liver might be able to handle that potent combo, but mine certainly cannot, and this weekend I fear being cornered by an overzealous St. Patrick's Day reveler. So when in peril, fight fire with cupcakes!

The brilliance of this recipe is that it both layers and melds the flavors of each liquor, just like the drink that it's based on. The whiskey in the ganache is sharp and bracing, the Baileys soothes as buttercream frosting, and the Guinness gives a moist, malty texture to the chocolate cake.

Of course, if you're not in a boozy mood (or if kids are present), you can leave out the whiskey and Baileys and just ensure that the alcohol cooks off sufficiently in the first step. But for a sweet drink substitute, these cupcakes sure are a shot of wonderful. Keep reading for the recipe

Double Chocolate Cupcakes With Gooey Peanut Butter Center

Lauren Hendrickson — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 11:44:52 PST

Pretty much any chocolate and peanut butter concoction means heaven to me and my sweetheart, so a double chocolate cupcake stuffed with a peanut butter center is a must make. These decadent cupcakes are light and moist with a perfect creamy peanut butter center. The sweet can actually be served with no frosting - they're already that delicious - but to take it to the next level, invest a little more time to top these cupcakes with a traditional chocolate frosting or chocolate ganache, then pipe each one of them with a precious peanut butter heart.

Show your sweetheart you care with cute peanut butter hearts on each cupcake, and keep reading for the recipe.

Sisters of DC Cupcakes Share Valentine's Day Baking Tips and Chocolate Ganache Recipe

Rebecca M Gruber — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:16:28 PST

What's sugar and spice and everything nice? Cupcakes! And no one knows more about our obsession with the lil confections than Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis, co-owners of Georgetown Cupcake and stars of TLC's DC Cupcakes. The sisters, who learned their kitchen skills from their grandmother ("We followed her around the kitchen and always begged to help"), have been known to bake up to 10,000 lil cakes a day, much to the delight of the patrons who line the block of their Washington DC store. The duo - who just opened their first outpost in New York City - gave me a few minutes of their time to discuss their tasty desserts.

LilSugar: Cupcakes have moved from kiddie birthday party staple to a favorite of adults and kids alike. But kids aren't always willing to try new flavors. Which are most popular with kids?
Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis: Our Vanilla Birthday (vanilla cupcake with vanilla buttercream and rainbow bobbles), Chocolate Birthday (chocolate cupcake with vanilla buttercream and rainbow bobbles), and Milk Chocolate Birthday (vanilla cupcake with milk chocolate buttercream and rainbow bobbles) are the most popular with kids. We think it's the color rainbow bobbles!

LS: Moms are busy; what shortcuts can you recommend to making delicious, beautiful cupcakes without spending the whole day baking and decorating them?
SL and KK: Try to keep a stash of baking staples - butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, milk, all purpose flour, baking soda/powder, salt, and cocoa powder/chocolate on hand in your kitchen at all times and you can make almost any flavor! Our recipes are very simple - we don’t use cake flour or pastry flour - just all purpose - we find that works best. Also, we're big fans of chocolate ganache icing. It's so easy - just two ingredients - chocolate chips and heavy cream. You just melt them down (two cups of chips to one cup of cream), and dip your cupcakes in and you've got a super fast and unbelievably delicious frosting.

LS: Do you ever make "healthy" cupcakes for those who want to skip some of the sugar? If so, what goes into it?
SL and KK: We have a carrot cake cupcake, which has fresh carrots and fresh apples grated in it. We skip the walnuts, to save on calories, and it's a light and delicious cupcake!

The new season of DC Cupcakes begins on Feb. 25, but if you're looking to create their Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes for Valentine's Day,

Georgetown Cupcake's Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes
From Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis, co-owners of Georgetown Cupcake

Ingredients

For the cupcakes
1 1/4 cups flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon baking soda, sifted
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (4 ounces) European-style unsalted butter, such as Plugra brand, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract, preferably Madagascar bourbon
1 cup whole milk, at room temperature
1/2 cup Valrhona cocoa powder, sifted (or another good-quality cocoa powder)

For the ganache frosting
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup Callebaut semisweet chocolate chips (6.4 ounces; or other good-quality semisweet chocolate chips)

Directions
For the cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard cupcake pan with 12 baking cups, and a second pan with 6 baking cups.

Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt on a sheet of wax paper or parchment paper.

Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer. Beat on medium speed until fluffy. Stop to add the sugar; beat on medium speed until well incorporated.

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing slowly after each addition.

Combine the vanilla extract and milk in a large liquid measuring cup.

Reduce the speed to low. Add one-third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, then gradually add one-third of the milk mixture, beating until well incorporated. Add another one-third of the flour mixture, followed by one-third of the milk mixture. Stop to scrape down the bowl as needed. Add the remaining flour mixture, followed by the remaining milk mixture, and beat just until combined.

Add the cocoa powder, beating (on low speed) just until incorporated.

Use a standard-size ice cream scoop to fill each cupcake paper with batter, so that the wells are two-thirds full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes (start checking at 15 minutes) or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the ganache frosting:
Lay a large piece of wax paper on the work surface.

Combine the heavy cream and chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. Fill a medium saucepan with an inch or two of water and place over medium-low heat. Place the bowl over the saucepan and let the mixture melt, stirring until it is shiny and smooth.

Remove the bowl of chocolate ganache from the saucepan; let it cool slightly, for 2 to 3 minutes. Working with 1 cupcake at a time, carefully dip each cupcake top in the warm ganache, twisting your wrist as needed to make sure the cupcake top gets completely coated. To prevent drips, quickly turn the cupcake right side up and place on the wax paper. Allow the ganache to set for 5 minutes before serving.

(If the cupcakes are dipped once, you'll have about 1/2 cup of ganache left over.)

Print recipe with images | without images

Shadow or Not, These Sweet Treats Will Help Tots Celebrate Groundhog Day

LilSugar — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 04:07:46 PST

While it may not be the most widely-celebrated holiday of the calendar year, Groundhog Day (Feb. 2) is a tradition that dates back to 1887, and acknowledges that it is a fun way to add some excitement to your lil one's week. Check out these five sweet treats to celebrate the coming Spring (or extension of Winter).

Fun fact . . . Did you know that Punxsutawney Phil has moved into the 21st century? If you text "Groundhog" to 247365 tomorrow, he'll text you back with his weather prediction!