Pumpkin Cupcakes

An hour has passed and Aaron is still cleaning up the kitchen. We had a friend over for dinner tonight and it looks like a tornado has hit. So that the boys could enjoy an afternoon of football, I offered to handle dinner on my own. For most people, that wouldn't have been that big of a deal, but I just can't do things halfway. Homemade pappardelle, veal ragu and a batch of cupcakes had taken their toll on the kitchen. I even managed to splatter pomegranate juice on the fridge - don't ask.

I thought about posting photos of the mayhem here (friends might enjoy imagining the horrified expression on Aaron's face when he saw the destruction). I also considered writing step by step instructions for homemade pasta. Nope - that will be saved for another day. For once, I'm going to stick to the original theme of this blog. The cupcakes were outstanding.

I have had pumpkin on the brain ever since my company offsite a few weeks ago. Our Q3 "day of fun" was at one of those "pick your own" produce farms in central New Jersey. After a few hours of presentations, we were released into the fields to pick apples and pumpkins. Let me just say, I take these things VERY seriously, as I planned for my pumpkin to be more than a jack-o-lantern. Ever since I learned about the plans for the offsite, I had been dreaming of making my own pumpkin puree for pancakes, cupcakes, bread, pie... you get the idea. I scoured the patch and managed to pluck an enormous, yet very perfect pumpkin to take home. 

I hauled the pumpkin home and left it in the corner of my dining room. Then I got busy. The pumpkin sat there for a few weeks... and then it molded and I was devastated. Into the garbage it went and I was pumpkin-less. Unfortunately, all of my day-dreaming about pumpkin dessert meant that I wasn't giving up until I had a chance to test a few of them. On our next trip to the grocery store, I picked up two cans of pumpkin and waited semi-patiently for an excuse to use them. 

One can of pumpkin was finished off with pumpkin pancakes for breakfast. This evening's company meant I would have an excuse to try a recipe for pumpkin cupcakes that I had been eying. Aaron begged me to skip dessert and respect the fatwa. Seriously? How could I skip dessert? I think that at this point it is all but expected from our guests. Moreover, I needed to get the pumpkin obsession out of my system. As a compromise, I halved the recipe and made just 8 cupcakes. 

The melted butter (as opposed to room temperature, creamed butter) and pumpkin yield a very moist but very dense cake. 

Recipe after the jump!

Mocha Buttercream and my first sale!

Subject: Cake Order

Message: Randy's sister's birthday is coming up... Are you up for a birthday cake order?

Seriously??? Am I up for a birthday cake order??? My instant reaction was, OF COURSE!!! Recipes started flooding in to my mind, only to suddenly to be replaced by panic. Someone was going to pay me for cake? Were they sure? What if the result was a baking disaster and I couldn't deliver the goods? I only put my pretty stuff on this blog for the most part - many disasters have preceded the sweets featured on this site.

Putting a dollar value on my hobby almost seemed like too much pressure. Sure, my ambition is to eventually get paid so that I can finance my sweet tooth, but not until I am sure I am ready. Honestly, I am such a perfectionist that I am not sure if I ever would be really ready. That only meant that I had to accept the offer - you have to start somewhere, right? First, I decided that a layer cake was out of the question. I have a history of fallen cakes, making it too risky. Cupcakes it is. I also figured that bargain pricing ($1 a cupcake vs the $2+ charged at most NYC bakeries would make D more forgiving of deformed pastries.  No skimping though - I still planned to use high quality, gourmet ingredients!

D had a few flavor requests. The sister-in-law liked tiramisu-like coffee flavors, vanilla cake with chocolate frosting, and apple cake. I thought that vanilla cake would be least error prone. Though I spent hours researching recipes for tiramisu flavored cupcakes, I lacked enough time for testing to ensure good results. That being said, vanilla + chocolate seemed a little dull, and my standard chocolate frosting is a bittersweet chocolate ganache. No good, birthday cake should be sweet!

After more internet research, I settled on a mocha buttercream recipe that I found at Zoe Bakes. The recipe made me a little nervous. (Ok, so selling baked goods might not be a good idea in the future. It makes me incredibly neurotic!). First, it was an egg-based buttercream (not American style), which can be quite controversial, as many adults find true buttercream to be too sweet. Also, raw eggs scare me. Reading a few too many articles about food safety has left me petrified that I am going to give my friends salmonella. Second, the recipe called for eggs and egg yolks, not egg whites, something I have never made before. My love of experimenting got the best of me, even though I knew that maybe this was not the time to test something new.

Surprisingly everything worked out. Aside from the pile of reject cupcakes on the counter (did I mention that I am a perfectionist!), the frosting came together nicely and I had enough winners to pull together two dozen for the party. Both the flavor and texture were exquisite. The frosting was soft and silky smooth, while the rich, chocolatey flavored seemed almost mousse-like. Garnished with chocolate pearls, boxed up and ready to go: my first sale. Let me know if you want to be number two!

Another weekend, another batch of cupcakes...

After a hectic past few weeks, it looks like it is time for life to return to normal just as summer draws to a close. It is only mid-September, but after an unusually cool summer, you can already feel the crisp chill of fall creeping in. If I did not find the cold weather in the north east so intolerable fall would be my favorite season. Fall means beautiful oranges, golds and reds under a cloudless sky, best enjoyed in a snuggly sweater with a cup of warm soup. It also means warm, hearty comfort food, as root vegetables, apples and pears come into season. Naturally food is my top of mind association when I think of fall. I think it is my first thought when you mention almost anything. Not the case for A… fall means football.

This past weekend we were invited to watch NFL opening day with friends. I could have cared less about the game, but A. is a die-hard fan. Somehow I managed to grow up in Texas without developing an appreciation for the sport. The host requested cupcakes and I was more than happy to oblige. I ended up cancelling due to a last minute work conflict, but A. headed to Tribeca on his own toting the promised dessert under protest (he dislikes carrying the 'emasculating' cupcake carrier).

I had a can of opened almond paste nearing expiration in the refrigerator, which the cupcakes would be almond cupcakes. I also had several pounds of frozen raspberries that I picked a few weeks ago with my mother which I thought would make a nice raspberry frosting – a last taste of summer berries to bid the season farewell. I modified the Vanilla Cardamom cupcake recipe that I posted a few weeks ago, incorporating the almond paste and omitting the cardamom. For the icing, I pureed and strained some raspberries and mixed them into a pretty standard recipe for cream cheese frosting.

The almond flavor blended deliciously with the vanilla bean, producing a sweet, yet still subtle flavor in the cake. The cupcakes will still a little bit dense, but improving since the first time I played with this recipe. I had mixed feelings about the raspberry frosting. The flavor was nice, but the texture was not ideal. Not surprisingly, the added berry puree made the icing a bit fragile due to the added liquid. I like the idea of mixing fresh fruit into the frosting, but think that a dried powder might produce a richer flavor with a better texture in the future.



Almond Cupcakes

yield - about 14 cupcakes


9 oz flour 1 tsp cornstarch

1 & 1/8 tsp baking powder

pinch salt

4 oz almond paste

5 oz butter

10 oz sugar

1 egg

1 egg white

2/3 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

vanilla bean seeds from one vanilla bean


Mix together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.In another bowl, mix the milk, vanilla extract and vanilla bean seeds. Set aside.


Cream butter, almond paste and sugar together until light and fluffy in a large bowl. Mix in egg and egg white, one at a time.Mix 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter/egg/sugar mixture. Stir in completely, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add half of the milk mixture, incorporating completely. Add the rest of the flour and milk mixtures in 3 additions, alternating between wet and dry ingredients. Take care not to over-mix.


Divide batter into cupcake tins and bake at 350 degrees for about 22 minutes.

Carrot cupcakes!

This past weekend I enjoyed a few beautiful days in Massachusetts with the inlaws. After several sticky and humid days in New York, it was a pleasure to escape to the city for a few days of cool coastal weather. As usual, a trip to see the inlaws means a batch of carrot cake must be made. I originally baked the famous triple layer carrot cake recipe for my mother inlaw several years ago, and she has since declared it one of her favorite cakes. As such, I make an effort to prepare some for her each time I see her.

I have made this recipe many times before with varying levels of success. Though the recipe is quite simple, there are a few things that can lead to falling cakes if you are not careful. First off, I recommend buying whole carrots, peeling them, and then running them through a food processor instead of buying pre-grated carrots. In my experience, the pre-grated carrots are too large for the cake and emit too much moisture during baking. I also recommend processing the nuts (I have made this with both walnuts and pecans. Both work well). This way you get the flavor of the nuts in the cake, but those who dislike the texture of nut pieces in their cake won't be bothered.

So, a little over a week into this whole blogging thing and I am already discovering that committing to regular updates can be a challenge. For the past few weeks, my husband was traveling constantly for work leaving me with tons of free time in the evenings after work. For the past two weeks he has been home and it has thrown me off schedule! I am not complaining - I am very happy to have him home... but having him home means less baking and less posting. Over the next few weeks I expect to be baking and posting with less frequency (yes, this is pathetic considering the brief amount time I have been doing this), as I will be out of town for several weekends in a row.

Cupcakes and Cheesecakes

It was an exhausting weekend, and while I usually try to savor every second of every weekend, I must say that I am happy this one has drawn to a close. Social commitments, a death in the family, and my husband's immediate re-departure for Mexico made everything feel a little frantic. When the last morsel of flour was scrubbed off the kitchen counter on Sunday night, I was ready to bid good riddance to August 2nd, with the hope that August 3rd would deliver an opportunity to slow down.

For those that know me, I consider a social engagement or a family gathering as more than just an opportunity to see friends and loved ones. For me, this is a chance to try new recipes and unload trays of sweets on unsuspecting victims. This weekend was no different. 48 cupcakes and a tray of cheesecakes later, here are the results.

I know I said earlier that I would give credit where credit is due for recipes, but in the case of the cheesecakes, I think the recipe writer should remain anonymous. While our friends seemed to enjoy them (as determined by how quickly they were inhaled), I was not pleased with the quality of the product that the recipe produced. The crust was way too buttery and the filling did not hold together as well as the fillings from other recipes I have used. Overall, it tasted pretty good, but I don't think I will make it again.

This was also the first time I used the Chicago Metallic mini-cheesecake pan that my husband got me for Christmas. I found the pan more challenging than the standard springforms used for larger cheesecakes. I had trouble determining how much crust and filling to put in each cup, leading to too much crust and too little filling. I will know better next time. Also important to consider, my husband claims that washing the mini-cheesecake pan is equal to washing 37 dishes. He was very precise.

To cover up blemishes resulting from clumsy removal from the pan, I garnished each cheesecake with fresh strawberry "sticks", which would also complement the strawberry filling inside of the cakes.

For the cupcakes, I decided to try inventing a recipe. I wanted to do something with cardamom. I love preparing dessert with cardamom because I feel like it is a spice that is always delicious, but difficult to identify and somewhat surprising for those who do not often eat it. The cake turned out moist and pleasantly spicy... but spicy enough that the strawberry buttercream frosting actually detracted from the overall flavor. With hindsight, such a light, delicate frosting probably was not the best pairing for such a strong cake. If I make this cake again, I think I would choose citrus (orange or lemon) over strawberry, with a more densely flavored toping - either creamcheese or a glaze.

In order to compensate for the over-powered buttercream, I garnished the cupcakes with diced strawberries. Though it didn't completely solve the problem, it did help strengthen the strawberry flavor in the cupcakes.


Vanilla Cardamom Cupcakes
yield - about 14 cupcakes

9 oz flour
1 tsp cornstarch
1 & 1/8 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1 tsp cardamom
5 oz butter
10 oz sugar
1 egg
1 egg white
2/3 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
vanilla bean seeds from one vanilla bean


Mix together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt and cardamom in a medium bowl; set aside.
In another bowl, mix the milk, vanilla extract and vanilla bean seeds. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy in a large bowl. Mix in egg and egg white, one at a time.
Mix 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter/egg/sugar mixture. Stir in completely, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Add half of the milk mixture, incorporating completely. Add the rest of the flour and milk mixtures in 3 additions, alternating between wet and dry ingredients. Take care not to over-mix.
Divide batter into cupcake tins and bake at 350 degrees for about 22 minutes.