Daily Cupcake Recipe

Recipe for Friday, June 28th, 2012:
Chocolate Chip Cookie Cupcakes

Requested by legitimatizeyourmind.

Recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart.
(via Martha Stewart Living)

Prep time: 80 minutes
Cook/bake time: 18-20 minutes

Serves: 36

Ingredients [Chocolate Chip Cookie Cupcakes]:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• Salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups whole milk
• 2 1/4 cups Chocolate Chip Cookie Base (see below)
• 36 small cookies for garnish *
• Vanilla frosting (see below)

Ingredients [Chocolate Chip Cookie Base]:

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups packed light-brown sugar
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips or chunks (2 cups)

Ingredients [Vanilla Frosting]:

• 4 1/2 sticks room-temperature unsalted butter
• 6 3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons whole milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

(A conversion table can be found here.)

Directions [Cookie Base]:

Sift flour, baking soda, and 1 1/4 teaspoons salt into a bowl.

In another bowl, beat butter and sugars with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. On low speed, beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Add flour mixture in 3 additions. Beat in vanilla. Mix in chocolate chips.

Directions [Cupcakes]:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line three 12-cup muffin tins with baking cups.

In one bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

In another bowl, beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add eggs, 1 at a time, then vanilla. Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with milk, beginning and ending with flour.

Press 1 tablespoon cookie dough into bottom of each baking cup. Top each with 2 tablespoons batter. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.

Transfer tins to wire racks; let stand for 5 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to racks. Let cool completely.

Directions [Frosting]:

Beat butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to medium-low; gradually add an additional 5 1/4 cups sugar. Raise speed to medium-high. Add milk and vanilla. Continue to beat until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Store at room temperature until ready to use (up to 2 days).

Transfer frosting to a pastry bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe frosting onto cupcakes, and top each with a cookie.

Recipe for Monday, July 4th, 2011:
Red, White, and Blue Tie-Dyed Cupcakes

Recipe via Betty Crocker

Prep time: 20 minutes
Bake time: 17-19 minutes
Total time: 2 hours

Serves: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 1 box Betty Crocker SuperMoist white cake mix
• Water, vegetable oil and egg whites as called for on cake mix box
• 1 container Betty Crocker® Rich & Creamy vanilla frosting
• Several drops each of red and blue food color

(A conversion table can be found here.)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. Place festive paper baking cups in each of 24 muffin cups.

Make cake batter as directed on box, using water, oil and egg whites. Place 1 cup batter in each of 3 separate bowls. Tint 1 bowl of batter with several drops of red food color. Tint second bowl with blue food color; leave remaining batter in third bowl white.

Spoon scant tablespoon each color batter into each muffin cup. Bake 17 to 19 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from muffin cups; cool completely, about 30 minutes.

To achieve tie-dyed effect with frosting, spoon frosting into 3 small bowls. Tint 1 bowl of frosting with red food color. Tint second bowl with blue food color; leave remaining frosting in third bowl white.

Place large star tip in disposable decorating bag. Spoon red frosting along long edge of bag, taking up only one side of bag. Repeat with blue and white frosting. (Bag will not be filled perfectly, but should have 3 distinct lines of colored frosting running up side of bag.) Pipe frosting onto top of each cupcake.

Recipe for Thursday, May 19th, 2011:
Lemon Cherry Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting

Recipe via Evil Shenanigans

Prep time: unknown
Bake time: 20-25 minutes

Serves: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients [Lemon Cherry Cupcakes]:

• 1 cup stemmed, pitted, and quartered cherries
• 8 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 9 ounces sugar
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 eggs
• 10 ounces buttermilk
• 8 ounces all-purpose flour
• 1/4 ounce baking powder
• 1/8 ounce salt

Ingredients [Vanilla Frosting]:

• 1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

(A conversion table can be found here.)

Directions:

Heat the oven to 350 F and line a cupcake pan with paper liners.

In a large bowl cream the butter, sugar, lemon zest, and vanilla until well mixed and lighter in color. Add the eggs, one at a time, and blend well.

In a large measuring cup, or in a bowl, combine the buttermilk and lemon juice. Mix well. Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl, making sure they are well mixed. Alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk into the creamed butter in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Fold in the cherries.

Scoop the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them no more than 2/3 full, or divide into the prepared cake pans. Bake the cupcakes for 20 to 25 minutes, the cakes for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the cake springs back in the center when pressed lightly. Cool for ten minutes in the pan before turning out on to a wire rack to cool completely. The cupcakes will have a slight dip in the top.

Make frosting: Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, and blend well.

Frost cupcakes when cool.