The Moustache Cake

For G-Man's birthday, I decided to bake a cake! And not just any cake, this was my first foray into fondant creations! I have to say, all in all, this was much easier than I'd anticipated... kind of like working with clay. Which means... GET READY! Fondant creations on their way :-).

Next Up on the Bacon Train: Bacon Smores

Toasted Marshmallows, Buttery Graham Crackers, Melted Chocolate.... and Grilled Bacon? This sounds like a match made in heaven. My main problem with smores has always been the same... they're just TOO sweet. Too much sugar condensed into a lumpy concoction that sends my brain into coma after every bite. But I think the addition of a crispy, salty strip is just the key to break up the monotony of the sugary sweet.

And then the key will be figuring out how to turn these into cupcake form. (Although a little on the cupcake front, I think I'm retired for a bit & switching to cake making, as they're much easier to bake in my screwy little toaster oven.)

Bacon Smores. Camping soon anyone?

Cupcake Experiments: Strawberry & Basil Cupcakes w/ Balsamic Buttercream

After the success of the Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes, I was back in my baking mode... Eager to create, but already burnt out on the super sweet and the bacon-y savory, I was ready to try something that very much so skirted the boarder of the two lands. Noming on some strawberries with the bf, I started thinking about some other good strawberry combinations, since I've already done the very decadent Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Cupcake. Curious, I thought about my other love with strawberries... Balsamic! A risky move, but one with potential, a Balsamic buttercream perhaps?

And thus the Strawberry & Basil Cupcake with Balsamic Buttercream was born!

Starting with the same base as the Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes... (but doubled for double the fun)

3.5 cups flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3 sticks of butter, softened
2 cups of sugar
3 eggs
3 tsp. vanilla extract
1.5 cups milk

mix together well.

in a blender, blend half a package of strawberries with a half cup of basil. the mixture will look kind of gross, but will smell amazing, and taste even better. pour the mixture into the batter & hand mix together. fill cupcake tins 2/3 of the way full.

pre-heat oven to 375 & bake 15-20 minutes.

balsamic buttercream frosting

1 stick softened butter
.25 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tsp milk
1 box powdered sugar

like any basic buttercream, beat the butter until it's light and fluffy. slowly add the powdered sugar, balsamic and milk until you've reached the consistency and flavor you like.

frost & decorate with leftover strawberries & basil bits!

Cupcake Experiments: The Cinnamon Roll Cupcake

Perhaps my best cupcake yet (although some would beg to differ) this base recipe for a vanilla cake is absolutely delicious, so anything added would simply make it amazing.



For a dozen cupcakes:

Batter/Cake:

• 1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• Scant 1/2 tsp.salt
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 whole large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
• 1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 c. whole milk

Sugar Mix/Filling:

• 3/4 c. (packed) golden brown sugar
• 2 tbsp. ground cinnamon

Frosting/Topping:

• 8 oz. cold cream cheese
• 1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 5 tbsp softened butter
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 cups powdered sugar

Mix the Sugar Mix/Filling ingredients together and set aside. Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Line a cupcake pan with baking cups. Whisk together flour (1 3/4 cups), baking powder, and salt. Beat together butter and sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add whole egg, yolk, and vanilla and beat 1 minute. At low speed, mix in flour mixture and milk alternately in batches. Pour the batter into the pan so that it fills about a third of the case. Then sprinkle on a layer of the sugary filling. Pour more batter so that the cupcake case is about 2/3 full. Bake until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 15 to 20 minutes. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes before frosting it with the Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting. Enjoy!

For the Frosting/Topping, beat the cream cheese with the softened butter, cinnamon & vanilla extract until combined. Gradually add in the powdered sugar until you reach the consistency and sweetness desired. Be sure to sift the powdered sugar for a smoother frosting.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes

I'd actually totally forgotten about these! I made them a while ago, but surprisingly they never ended up on the blog. So for your eye feasting pleasure...


Sincere Strawberry Cupcakes

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 3/4 cups sifted cake flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup whole milk, at room temperature
1 pkg (10-12 ounces) frozen strawberries, defrosted or fresh strawberries (please see specific instructions for below)
2 tablespoons of granulated sugar

If you're using fresh strawberries: First, rinse the berries really well and remove the stems. Quarter or rough chop them them into a bowl and add a few tablespoons of water and mix to coat. Then add a tablespoon or two of sugar (enough to coat the surface) and mix to coat again. Cover and refrigerate the berries for several hours or better yet, overnight.

If you're using frozen strawberries: Put the defrosted strawberries into a bowl and cover them with the sugar, mixing well to coat them. Let the strawberries sit on the counter for at least an hour to macerate (best to do this the night before or early in the day).

Once they are soft and mushy, use a fork to mash the strawberries. Be careful not to mash them too much (you want there to be some chucks). Place the berries in a mesh strainer and drain as much of the juice that you can. Reserve the juice.

Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tin with baking cups.

In medium bowl, beat butter and sugar with electric mixer for 3 minutes. It should be very pale yellow and and fluffy. Add one egg at a time and mix for 1 full minute on medium-low speed (no cheating! :) ) - be sure to scrape down the bowl a few times to ensure that everything is mixing together properly. Add vanilla and almond extract and mix again for 30 seconds.

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder. Alternately add flour mixture and milk, in 3 batches, starting with the flour. Be sure to mix well after each addition and scrape the bowl down every so often.

Mix in the strawberries on low speed plus 1/4 cup of the strawberry juice. Scoop batter into prepared pan and bake for 21-23 minutes. The surface of the cupcakes should spring back when touched and just a little brown. You can also test doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cupcake comes out with just a few pieces of cake clinging to it. Cool in the pan for about 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack.


Frosting: Basic Butter Cream. Use a stick of softened butter, and slowly beat in a box of powdered sugar, and 1/4 cup of strawberry blend until it forms stiff peaks.

Topping: I just added mini chocolate chips. I thought I was going to get brave & melt the chocolate and actually DIP the cupcakes in, but my frosting ended up being a little too wet for the situation & I'd run out of powdered sugar.

I fear the bacon may be retired for a bit...

After trying the Bacon Chocolate Cupcakes, Bacon Cinnamon Rolls, & Bacon Vodka, it's time to move on to another one of my favorite meats. Pulled Pork!

Yes you heard me right... next thing on my list? The Pulled Pork, Cornbread Cupcake!


Get ready :-)

And now for something really exciting...

500 Cupcakes! Get ready for some more yummy treats floating through the intra-web, and if you want to get in on the goodies... Um. Yeah, actually it's more of a right time, right place kind of thing. If you want to get in on the goodies... be a Spyglass Intern :-p

Thank you B, I <3 the gifts! ΚΤΓ All the way! I'm a Cappie girl :)

Dark Chocolate Bacon Coffee Cupcakes

This one has been a long time coming. Again, please refer to my slacking as my excuse. And so finally, I present to you the great...

Dark Chocolate Bacon Coffee Cupcakes!!

Yes these suckers were every bit as amazing as I thought they'd be. The strong coffee and chocolate flavors toned down the meaty smokey bacon taste, but adding just a few crumbles on top did the trick. Salty and sweet, it's making my mouth water just thinking about them. That said, they were only a hit with the select few who were adventurous enough to hide their gag reflexes enough to find out that yes, they really did enjoy these treats.

CUPCAKE INGREDIENTS

12 slices bacon

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cups white sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 eggs

1 cup cold, strong, brewed coffee

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup reserved bacon oil

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder, for dusting

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 3/4 cup cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center and pour in the eggs, coffee, buttermilk and reserved bacon fat. Stir just until blended. Mix in 3/4 of the bacon, reserving the rest for garnish. Spoon the batter into the prepared cups, dividing evenly.

3. Bake in the preheated oven until the tops spring back when lightly pressed, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in the pan set over a wire rack. When cool, arrange the cupcakes on a serving platter. Frost with the Chocolate Bacon Buttercream frosting and sprinkle reserved bacon crumbles on top. Dust with additional cocoa powder.

CHOCOLATE BACON BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

1 box powdered sugar

1 stick of butter softened

1 tsp reserved bacon fat

1 pinch of salt

2 tbsp cocoa powder

Whipping cream

1. Whip on high speed the butter, slowly incorporating the powdered sugar, bacon fat, salt & cocoa powder. Use just enough whipping cream to soften the frosting into a spreadable consistency.

I even got these cute little boxes to present the cupcakes in!

Enough with the Cupcakes you say?! How about Pumpkin Pudding Toothpaste?

And now for something completely different. Those crazy Japanese people and their weird inventions... here's one for the books!


My relatives in Japan sent me a delightful care package, full of goodies like Cola, and Chocolate, and Pumpkin Pudding, in tubes? While my imagination runs wild with thoughts of Willy Wonka and a complete thanksgiving dinner in a gumball, I'm brought back to reality when I read that these are all indeed toothpastes.

As I constantly do with weird Japanese inventions, I ask myself why? Why would you want to brush your teeth with Curry flavored toothpaste? Then again, being the forever experimentalist that I am, the why part of the question is simple, why not? This is how greatness is born...


So far, I've only tried the Pumpkin Pie. This perhaps might not be the next craze to hit the States, but interesting at the very least. 1 down 5 to go.

Cola, Bitter Chocolate, Kishu Ume, Indo Curry and Eggplant on the cue.

Something to try: The Dudecake. Meatloaf Cupcakes

Savory, not sweet, these certainly are a trick to the eye. Before you barf at the idea of a meat cupcake, I'll save you the grief. As opposed to the Bacon Cupcake which combines sweet and savory, these little devils are pure man.


Bite sized meatloaf covered in colorfully whipped mashed potatoes sounds like a Sunday night dinner to me!

The Meatloaf Cupcake

Margarita Cupcakes

Very similar to my Lemon Drop Cupcakes, these little delights turned out a little st. patty's day. At least I won't get pinched while eating these!


The Margarita Cupcake
1 Box Duncan Hines White Cake Mix (Yep, still lazy)
2 shots of Tequila
3 tablespoons of Lime Juice
Dash of Salt

Follow the directions for the Cake Mix, substituting 1/3 of a cup of water for the tequila and lime juice. Add in a dash of salt for flavor, and a few green sprinkles for a mini burst of color.

Bake as directed. I found it's about 20 minutes for my mini-cupcakes.

Frosting
1 stick of butter (softened)
1 box of powdered sugar
1 shot of Tequila
2 tablespoons Lime Juice

To make a simple buttercream, whip the butter until fluffy. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, half a cup at a time. Add the tequila and lime juice and water as needed until the frosting forms stiff peaks.

Garnish
I rimmed the outside of the cupcakes with sugar :-)

The Lemon Drop Cupcake

As a present to myself and my new baking creative outlet, I invested in an adorable mini cupcake pan from Target! Because really, as great as cupcakes are, who can resist a mini? Especially when they come with a shot of vodka.


But seriously these were my first mini cupcake experiments, and there will be more to follow. If you are finding yourself asking WHY? Why Niki do you keep putting weird things in baked goods, the answer is simple. Why create something that's already been done before? I know I can make great chocolate cupcakes with a buttercream frosting, but where's the fun in that?

As I said. These are experiments. Some may turn out well, some might fail. I'll let you decide.

The Lemon Drop Cupcake
1 Box Duncan Hines White Cake Mix (Yes I got lazy)
1 mini bottle of Lemoncello
1 shot of Vodka
1 Lemon

Follow the directions for the Cake Mix, substituting 1/3 of a cup of water for half the bottle of Lemoncello and a shot of vodka. Cut the Lemon in half. Save half for the garnish. Squeeze out the juice of the other half into the mix, and zest the peel into the mix.

Bake as directed. I found it's about 20 minutes for my mini-cupcakes.

Frosting
1 stick of butter (softened)
1 box of powdered sugar
1 shot of Vodka
Rest of the Lemoncello

To make a simple buttercream, whip the butter until fluffy. Slowly add in the powdered sugar, half a cup at a time. Add the shot of vodka, the rest of the lemoncello and water as needed until the frosting forms stiff peaks. (if you're wondering why mine look so watery, I added too much water and ran out of powdered sugar)

Garnish
Cut the other half of the Lemon into wedges. You can also garnish with dusting sugar.

Enjoy!

The Baconcyclopedia

As you all know about my continued love affair with Bacon... Bacon Cinnamon Rolls, Bacon Vodka and soon to be pictured, Bacon Cupcakes, I thought I'd share this lovely site with you.

The Baconcyclopedia

A guide to all things Bacon!

*and yes, it appears that they taped a piece of bacon to a cat.*

Poached: The Turducken of Desserts

These were too amazing to not steal and repost from an awesome website Cupcakes Take The Cake.

I want. Sheep Pops!

Sheep Pops on Bakerella.

Edible Art: Mint Leaf Ice Cubes

While reading one of my favorite mags, Real Simple, I came across this absolutely brilliant idea, which frankly I'm a little ashamed that I hadn't thought of it before...

Freezing flowers and edible leaves into ice cubes for frilly and festive drink decorations! It's so easy and can make any of us look like our hero Martha...

The Great Bacon Cinnamon Roll Experiment

After posting about the Bacon Cinnamon Roll, this was something too good to NOT try.
Results you ask? Here they are!

Breakfast of the champions, mini Pain Au Chocolate and Bacon Cinnamon Rolls. I went with the Pillsbury Cinnamon Rolls because who doesn't love a little poke in the tummy?

The only problem that I didn't take into account, these Rolls are more like little balls of dough, not nicely rolled rolls, and lacking a rolling pin we had to make due with beer steins.
(phew that was a lot of rolling in one sentence)

I went with the fattier of the Bacon choices, figuring that it would make the rolls that much juicier. After rolling out the dough into roughly the same size as the bacon, we laid one on top of the other and re-rolled them back up (keeping the Bacon in the center)

I also sprinkled a mixture of Sugar and Cinnamon on top of the rolls after they were done, hoping that would add a nice caramelized crust effect to the finished product.

After a nice 12 minutes or so of baking time, the salty sweet aroma filled the kitchen and they were ready for glazing.

Perfection.
Simple, Salty & Sweet, the bacon was crispy at the edges and a little softer in the center.
The milky frosting glaze topping sealed the deal.

Yum.

My continued love affair with Bacon...

After the Bacon Vodka Infusion experiments two more Bacon-y goodness ideas have floated through the intra-web to me.

First on tap (as it's slightly easier and quicker to bake in my minuscule toaster oven) are Bacon Today's Bacon Cinnamon Rolls. These things look incredible and very easy to make. It's that perfect combination of salty and sweet much like Vosges's Mo's Bacon Bar. Will post my pictures and results when I get around to it... maybe a Coachella morning snack perhaps?

And also on the list... but procrastination might get the better of me on this one... Maple Bacon Cupcakes. Intern Malcolm brought these to my attention, citing Yummy Cupcake as the source of these incredible creations, yet sadly they're not on the April menu so I'll have to make some myself. It's the same salty/sweet combo, but the thought of infusing maple-y syrup goodness and pancake essence into these make them the perfect balance of breakfast and Satan.

Vodka Infused Gummy Bears?

Apparently this is another thing I'm a day late and a buck short on. Who knew gummy bears were these spongy alcohol absorbing little mounds of joy?

Sales Clerk at Staples: Gummy Bears? Nice.
Me: Yeah! My friend was telling me about how you can soak them in Vodka...
Sales Clerk at Staples: Oh yeah, it's really good. You have to let them sit there for like a week to make sure they're fully absorbed, but be careful, they're pretty dangerous when you eat too many.
Me: Am I the last person to know about this?
Sales Clerk at Staples: You know... you can put vodka in Jello too?

Thanks. I was showed up by the Sales Clerk at Staples. Vodka Jello, I'll have to try that too.

Hole In The Wall...

Burgers? Now I can't say they're better than Shake Shack, but they were certainly yummy and a good find. Pretzel Bun, OK, got a little soggy, but the top was yummy to pull off... and their sweet potato fries left something to be desired...

But their pickles? Perhaps some of the best I've ever had! A sort of mix between the classic crunch with a bit of the infamous Subway Yellow Pepper flavor.

Definitely worth a try.

11058 Santa Monica Blvd at South Bentley Avenue (behind Winchell's Donuts)
(310) 312-7013