I’m obsessed with cupcakes. But you knew this! And if you didn’t for some strange reason, you can read about the origin of that obsession HERE! [which you should if you haven’t!] That being said, I just had to share the CUTEST earrings I found on Forever21. Considering they were only $3.80 I was tempted to buy multiple pairs, but I settled for one. I can’t wait to wear them… maybe with the deliciously sweet cupcake necklace I got for Christmas!
You should probably get yourself a pair before they run out!
On Saturday, my fiancé had his birthday party, which was dessert themed. Being that it was a party and some type of confectionery treat needed to be made, I went the route of a booze-infused cupcake. After my New Year’s Eve hit with my Guinness & Bailey’s buttercream cupcakes, I figured I could give a new recipe a shot (no pun intended!).
It’s amazing how many different recipes incorporate alcohol. There’s even an entire bakery, Butch Bakery, that makes “manly” alcohol infused cupcakes! I found my recipe at ilovecuppycakes.com [What a cute blog name!]
Because we were hosting the party at our place and spent all of Saturday morning & afternoon cleaning and running errands, this recipe was perfect because it called for cake mix. I know that’s cheating, but we were seriously crunched on time! So after making the cupcakes from the box, I moved on to the Jello, by making it half with water, and half with coconut rum. Once the cupcakes cooled, I simply spooned the mixture over them. Be smart about this though because it makes a mess! I thought ahead and put down some paper towels on a serving tray first, and I’m really glad I did. I left the rest of the Jello to congeal in the fridge if anyone wanted it later.
The hardest part of the recipe, you may ask? Finding the cups to put them in! They’re the paper medicine-like cups; a smaller version of what you’d get from the Penguin Ice man. After searching the grocery store, a drug store, AND the liquor store, I gave up and just made them in full-sized cupcake liners. So they weren’t exactly shots, but more like tumblers perhaps? At least it meant more jello-shotty goodness in each cupcake!
I actually decided to buy whipped cream instead of making it myself due to time. So I left the whipped cream can out next to the cupcakes, so everyone could use it as they pleased. I mean, who doesn’t like to add their own whipped cream?!
Here’s the recipe [from iheartcuppycakes], and happy (and safe) boozey nomzing!
Jello Shot Cupcakes
Ingredients: For jello shot cupcakes
1 pkg. white cake mix
1 cup boiling water
1 pkg. (3 oz.) Jello Gelatin, any red flavor (I used cherry)
1 cup Malibu coconut rum
Directions:
1. Make cupcakes according to package directions
2. Fill cupcake liners about 1/2-2/3 full and bake for about 18-20 minutes. Remove from oven and poke holes in the cupcakes with a fork or toothpick.
3. In a separate bowl, stir boiling water into jello powder until completely dissolved, about 2 minutes. Add rum. Spoon over cupcakes. (Don’t be shy with the jello. Be generous! 2-3-4 spoonfuls!)
4. For the whipped cream, place the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk together on low until stiff peaks are formed. Change to medium speed and whisk until thick.
4. Let cool before frosting with whipped cream.
This particular post is two-fold. Both topics, however, surround the celebration of the birth of my wonderful fiancé who’s birthday was this past Thursday. 🙂
On Wednesday, I headed over to my parents house to make a GIANT cupcake as his birthday cake. I had seen commercials and magazine ads for the cupcake tin, but was afraid to ever get one. I finally caved and bought one, along with a real pastry bag and some food dye. Since it was a Wilton pan, I had high hopes. Baking the cake itself was easy – I used double chocolate fudge on the bottom, and French vanilla on the top. I don’t think I waited long enough for the bottom to cool, though, before slathering it with coconut-pecan frosting. From there, I added the top, and with the help of my wonderful sister, frosted it with vanilla frosting that we had dyed a light blue. We finished it off with some green/teal dots, and white sprinkles.
Luckily, I thought to take some pictures before packing up the cupcake to bring it home. Now, I only live about 20 minutes away from my parents. But in that time, despite the amazing packing job my mom did, the cake wound up like the leaning tower of Pisa. Of course my fiancé was extremely supportive and said he loved the cake as it was. I was able to save some face because it tasted delicious! I definitely think next time will be more successful, and I’ll make sure to bake it where I plan on keeping it!
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Then on Thursday, the fiancé’s family came up from South Jersey, and we went out to dinner. One of our co-workers has been raving about Korean BBQ for quite some time. So, we decided we’d give it a shot – we’re always up to try something new! Once his family arrived, though, his mom was less than excited to try it, so we figured we’d just get Hibachi instead. The first restaurant we went to cooked it in the back, so we decided against that. The second restaurant we went to said they had just seated a large party, so hibachi was out, but we could have sushi with a 45 minute wait. After wasting about an hour, we settled on our original pick, Korean BBQ.
At that point we were all ravenous and it was getting late. So we headed over to Woo-Jeon on Route 1 in Edison since it was literally 5 blocks away from our apartment. We walked in, and were immediately seated which was awesome. Each table had a little circle in the middle with a grate on top. Once we were seated, the grate was removed and replaced with a cook-top, and the flame was turned on.
From there, we were like little lost dogs. The menu was extensive, but didn’t give much description. We had all decided we’d get the BBQ, so we just needed to decide what type of meat we wanted. Despite having watched the Earthlings trailer earlier, I went with Bulgogi, which is marinated tender beef. We actually all wound up getting that. We felt silly ordering the same thing, but we figured we’d know for next time to get a little more experimental.
Once we ordered, they almost immediately started bringing out side dishes. Honestly, I knew about four of them. There was kimchi, lettuce, seafood cakes, bean sprouts, a delicious potato salad w. apples, and rice. That’s really where my knowledge ends. I’d love to know everything that I ate, because it was so incredibly delicious. There wasn’t one thing I tried that I didn’t like. They even brought out an egg soufflé on the house!
I really loved the whole cook yourself concept. That way, you’re able to control the pace, portion, etc. The only room for error is not cooking your food enough. But it would be no different from cooking in your very own kitchen. Plus, all of the side dishes can be eaten as they are, so you really just need to focus on whatever type of meat you choose (beef, chicken, pork, shrimp, cows tongue (!!), etc.)
When the meal ended, we were all stuffed, and collectively decided it was a great experience, and something we’d all want to do again soon. I’ll definitely be a bit more adventurous in my main course selection next time. It’d be great to go with someone that really knows their stuff, too. That way, we can try new and different things – everything everyone had around us looked equally fantastic.
Unfortunately I failed you all once again, and didn’t think to take any pictures. I had contemplated saving this post until after I visited a Korean BBQ again, but I just couldn’t wait to tell you all how great it was. So I suppose the only way for you to see the deliciousness is to experience it for yourselves!
I’d recommend taking a look at Yelp.com to find some local Korean BBQ’s and read the reviews. If it’s good, believe me there will be A TON.
This past Friday was the second annual Cupcake Camp NYC. You may find yourself asking, “What is this camping cupcake nonsense?” Well, yes, there are cupcakes, but no, there isn’t any camping. It’s basically an ad-hoc gathering for cupcake lovers alike. From bakers to writers and bloggers, and everyone in between, it’s an event to get together and mingle with other cupcake nerds. And Cupcake Camp happens all over the WORLD!
Having heard about the event awhile ago, I was pumped and ready to go. When the tickets were finally made available in March, I made sure to get myself and my fiancé a pair. Since they were free, I was more than ecstatic at the mere thought getting to see (let alone eat) some awesome cupcakes, and potentially brush shoulders with some seriously important cupcake people. You know, like my favorite blog Cupcakes Take the Cake. Or the owner of Buttercup Bake Shop! So once the day rolled around, my fiancé and I made sure to leave work 45 minutes early to get into the city as soon as possible.
Cupcake Camp was held at Happy Ending on Broome Street on the lower east side. When we were approaching our destination, my heart sunk. The event started at 7pm, and it was only about 7:10. The line was not only out the door, but down the street, and around the corner. I mean, I knew it was going to be crowded – everyone loves cupcakes. I couldn’t help but think to myself; “I got my tickets a month early! I love cupcakes way more than these people! I’m even wearing my cupcake necklace! My fiancé and I have mushy gushy cupcake love! THIS ISN’T FAIR!”
The dreaded line
After whining in my head till the end of the line, we got in line, and waited. We waited and waited, and we didn’t actually get in until just a bit after 8pm. On the way in, we heard a few people echoing “There aren’t any cupcakes left!” while they walked out with boxes of leftover goodies. I sincerely hoped they were lying, but my hopes were dashed once I finally got inside. Any cupcakes that were left were already spoken for by others. There were a few authors selling their cupcake books, and everyone was just mingling and enjoying one another’s company. The bar was so packed, it was nearly impossible to move. After making our rounds, my fiancé and I left, a little disappointed, and very hungry.
I am utterly shocked at how many people were there! It was truly impressive. I mean, I know cupcakes are the “it” trend right now, but man! I suppose the word “free” might have played it’s part as well. I’m definitely going to make an attempt at next year’s gathering. But I think some camping might be involved this time. Forget about leaving work 45 minutes early – I’m going to need to take the whole day!
After that fail, we decided to head over to Dos Toros Taqueria, a place I had read about on SeriousEats. They compared it a lot to Chipotle, so as a burrito fanatic, I was in. When we got there, though, we faced our second fail of the evening. It’s an extremely small place – only one window bench with about 4 seats. And, the line was out the door. Since it was a bit chilly and windy, we decided to save that deliciousness for a day we could really enjoy it. We settled on the Thai restaurant Spice. We passed one of their other locations en route to Dos Toros and had already perused the menu, so we figured that would suffice. I really think Friday was the night of the foodies. We walked past Momofuku‘s Milk Bar and that line was even more outrageous! [I still need to get in on that chicken dinner!]
When we got to Spice, we were told we’d have about a 20 minute wait, which isn’t so bad for 9pm on a Friday in the city. Thankfully, we only wound up waiting about 10 minutes, and we were brought upstairs to our table. We decided to get an order of the spicy calamari to share. It wasn’t spicy so much as it had a nice crisp black pepper taste. The dipping sauce was sweet, tangy, and peanuty with a little kick all at the same time. I really enjoyed it.
Spicy Crispy Calamari with Sriracha honey chili sauce
For our entrees, I went with the Drunken Man Noodles, and my fiancé went for his go-to Pad Thai. The Drunken Man Noodles were broad rice noodles (my favorite!) with chicken, shrimp and squid along with chili, egg, and green beans.
Drunk Man Noodle
Our food came quickly, and it was actually really good. Being the spicy lovers that we are, we asked for extra spice. Surprisingly, despite the restaurant’s name, the food wasn’t spicy. That would be my only gripe about the place. The service was friendly, but they didn’t check-up on us once. It worked out since everything was fine, but if it hadn’t been, I wonder if we would have had trouble flagging someone down. At any rate, for a $30 dinner in the city, I really can’t complain.
To end our night on an even higher note, we headed over to 16 Handles. My fiancé and I actually went here on our fourth date, after dining at the Telephone Bar which is sadly now closed. 16 Handles really is as great as it sounds. There are 16 different flavors of frozen yogurt that you get to choose from yourself, followed by a plethora of toppings. It’s all done buffet style, so you get to pick your cup size, yogurt and topping choices, and then pay by weight. They have everything from sweet to tart flavors, non-dairy and low fat options, and both fruity and candy-like toppings. Being the sweets junkie that I am, I went for red velvet, cookies & cream, New York cheesecake and peanut butter yogurt (just a dollop of each!). I then topped it off with some cookie dough bites, brownie bites, crushed graham crackers, crushed Oreo, and mashed Reese’s peanut butter cups. Oh. Yes. Take a look at the masterpiece!:
16 Handles of deliciousness
So all in all, despite not getting a cupcake, I think I had a successful foodie evening. And I made up for the lack of cupcakes by getting a Crumbs cappuccino and half baked cupcake Saturday. Plus, I’m on Sunday I was able to whip up some peanut butter cupcakes from my 500 Cupcakes recipe book! Maybe next year I’ll be adventurous and bake my OWN cupcakes for the event! We’ll see 🙂
Since our half marathon training is coming to an end, we only had to run once this weekend, and it thankfully fell on Saturday. So, this left me with lots of options for my Sunday. I haven’t made cupcakes in awhile, so I figured I’d give them a whirl.
I got the 500 Cupcakes by Fergal Connolly for Christmas, but hadn’t actually made any recipes from the book until today. The book itself is really cute and displays nicely in my kitchen, but I found myself shying away from it and going to the internet to find recipes instead. Well, last night I buckled down and decided on a recipe from the book; Peanut Butter Cupcakes!
The recipe is pretty straight forward – eggs, peanut butter, sugar, butter and flour. I didn’t have any self rising flour, so I added a teaspoon of baking soda. I also snuck a taste of the batter before putting it in the cups, and it seemed to be missing something. So, I also threw in a teaspoon of vanilla extract. Look at me, getting all inventive with my recipes! I decided to use my hand mixer this time, and it was much easier. I still want a stand mixer, though!
The batter itself was really thick. I had trouble getting out of the bowl and into the cupcake wrappers. I wound up using two spoons – one to grab the batter from the bowl, and another to then scrape it off of the first spoon. They looked like messy blobs when they went in the oven, and I was sure they were going to come out looking equally messy. After 20 minutes, I was surprised at how cupcake-like they looked!
The recipe came with a peanut butter inspired icing, but I decided to go chocolate. I mean, what goes better with peanut butter than chocolate? Just ask the people at Reese’s. There was a chocolate buttercream recipe in the book, but I just wasn’t feeling it. I was low on butter, didn’t have any milk, and I didn’t think it was worth a trek to the store, when I have to go later for my weekly grocery shopping anyway. I had some left-over frosting, so I iced one with chocolate, and one with vanilla. Then I remembered I had some semi-sweet chocolate chips. So, I decided to melt them! The cupcakes have a really glossy sheen on them, and they look as delicious as they taste! Though, as you can tell, I need to work on my icing skills.
Here’s the recipe for the Peanut Butter Cupcakes. If you’re in the market for a cupcake cookbook, I definitely suggest this one. There are TONS of variations for each of the recipes, and clearly if you stray a bit, they still work out well!
Peanut Butter Cupcakes
Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) sweet butter, softened
1 cup superfine sugar
2 cups self-rising flour
4 eggs
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place 18 paper baking cups in muffin pans.
2. Combine butter, sugar, flour, and eggs in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth, about 2-3 minutes.
3. Stir in the peanut butter until well combined.
4. Spoon the batter into the cups. Bake 20 minutes. remove pans from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Then remove the cupcakes and cool on a rack. Frost & enjoy!
After searching for a cupcake themed wine, I found Cupcake Vineyards, which had also been written up by one of my favorite cupcake blogs, Cupcakes Take The Cake.
I excitedly went to the website, unsure of if it was something I could find in my local liquor store. Because I had never heard of it before, I figured it was going to be hard to find, and something that I would possibly need shipped to me. When I realized New Jersey has weird alcohol shipping laws and this wine was from California, I began to worry. After some more research, though, I found the wine at a local Wine Chateau.
After telling the fiancé, who is just as much of a cupcake fiend as I, we decided to grab some after work on Friday to enjoy with our dinner. We decided two get two variations; their 2008 Chardonnay, and 2007 Merlot.
We started off the taste test with the Merlot. It was definitely decadent, and something that would go great with desserts. It was very smooth, with a hint of coffee, chocolate, and cherry; three flavors I love! My only qualm, as I have with all red wines, was the teeth staining. I always feel so silly while drinking red wine, because my teeth turn purple. That’s why I really only drink red wine at home, I try to avoid it if I’m out. But it was good. So good we finished the bottle, and I want to buy it in bulk!
We decided to then move on to the Chardonnay, which was equally delicious. More citrus-y and refreshing, it had hints of apple and vanilla with a crisp fresh finish. This was also a favorite of mine, and I would definitely buy it again, and in bulk!
Both of the wines were under $10, at $8.99 each. So really, how could you go wrong?! While you might think they’re dessert wines from the name, they definitely aren’t. They’d be great with almost any dish. But of course they would go excellently with dessert, specifically cupcakes! The Cupcake Vineyards website even offers cupcake recipes that would pair perfectly with each of their wine offerings.
So next time you’re in the liquor store looking for some great wine to have with dinner, dessert, or to bring to a friend’s, get yourself some Cupcake Vineyards – you’ll be glad you did!
This past Saturday was the first day of Spring. So, as they do every year, Rita’s gave out free 10oz servings of their famed ice all day. Being a bunch of gluttonous children, my fiancé (you can read his tour round-up here) and a group of friends and I decided upon the ultimate task – 10 Rita’s in one day, a new flavor at each location.
Last year, the group made it to about five locations in only a few hours (it was a Friday so needed to be done after work). Knowing that this year it fell on a Saturday with a gorgeous forecast, we got cocky. About a week prior to the event, a few different e-mails were exchanged with maps of potential stops. It included a trip to Stuff Yer Face in New Brunswick for ‘bolis, and a detour to look at a potential wedding venue. We also stumbled upon a Cupcake joint, Sugar Mommy’s Cupcakes, that I’ll detail in a separate blog entry.
After starting our trip at about 12:30pm and devouring our ices at about 1, we then spent the next 8 hours driving to various Rita’s Ice locations in New Jersey. We made stops in Bridgewater, Somerville, Flanders, Denville, Berkeley Heights, Westfield, Plainfield, and finally Edison. We searched for a Rita’s in Morristown that no longer exists, and ran out of time before heading to Milltown. But at any rate, I sampled eight different ice flavors, preparing me for the season ahead. They included Alex’s Lemonade, Green Apple, Florida Orange, Sugar Free Cherry, Wild Black Cherry, Coconut, Pistachio, and their newest edition – Peeps. Oh yes, you read correctly – Peeps flavored ice! As in the little bird shaped marshmallows that are covered in sugar, usually found in Easter baskets. It tasted nothing like Peeps, but more like birthday cake, which I was more than okay with. It’s neon yellow color was another selling point.
I really liked all of the flavors. But, I think Alex’s Lemonade and the Coconut were my favorites. I think the only ice I wouldn’t order again would have been the Wild Black Cherry. That was definitely sub-par, and had more of a grape flavor than anything else. The Peeps was also super-sweet, so that would have to be consumed sparingly.
By about stop 5, we were all looking for food. The mere thought of devouring ‘bolis at Stuff Yer Face is what I think kept us going. So, we decided to head there after our 7th stop. When we finally got to the restaurant, we made no qualms about our purpose. We didn’t get drink wristbands, and ordered water and an appetizer almost as soon as we sat. After surviving on water ice for almost 7 hours, we needed solid food, quickly. We all dug in to our hot wings and onion rings as soon as they were brought out, and anxiously awaited the arrival of our stromboli. The restaurant has a lot to offer; there are pre-suggested combinations, and also a “create your own.” My fiancé always orders the same create your own, and after trying it, follow suit. It has mozzarella cheese, chicken, buffalo sauce, onions, and broccoli. It is absolutely amazing.
After realizing the time, we knew we’d only have time for one more Rita’s, since they close at 9pm. We headed to the one nearest to where we live, and waited in one last line. By the time we got our ice it was 9:15, and the line showed no chance of stopping.
I woke up today feeling great. Sure, I might have been a little sugar hungover, but I managed to run 7.5 miles (longest single run logged yet!) and I could absolutely eat another Rita’s Ice right now, preferably a Gelati. I’m so excited that ice and ice cream season is finally here. I’m looking forward to more outdoors frozen treat devouring, and saying goodbye to eating it while hiding under a blanket indoors.
All in all, our group (4 people) went to 8 locations, and sampled 20 flavors. Pretty impressive, if I do say so myself! I hope Rita’s is ready for next year, because we’ll be back – bigger and badder than ever!
I don’t bake too often, but when I do, I always make the full recipe. Since there’s only two of us, I always have leftovers. This poses a problem with baked goods; what are you supposed to do with those left over?! Leave them out in the open? Wrap them in foil? Put it in an air-tight container? Refrigerate? Freeze? So many choices!!
When I last baked, I made the Chipotle Cinnamon Chocolate Cupcakes, and my fiancé and I wound up throwing about half of them out, because I had forgotten to cover them. When we were in Disney World, we picked up Minnie’s Cupcake Mix, and I was thinking about how it’s time to make them. But, worried about having extras and storage, I turned to Google.
I read a ton of different suggestions, that really just left my head spinning. Some sites said just to cover them and leave them at room temp. Others said air-tight at room temp. Or in the fridge air-tight. I also found a little tip section on one of my favorite cupcake blogs, Cupcakes Take The Cake about freezing them.
So, since there were so many different suggestions, I decided to take matters in to my own hands. I’m going to make those Minnie Mouse cupcakes (sans frosting), and store one in each of the aforementioned styles. I’ll freeze one, leave one out uncovered, another out in foil, another out in an air-tight container, and another in the fridge in an air-tight container. I already know that simply putting them in the fridge bare or in foil results in hardening in just a few days. I’ll leave each of the test cupcakes in their designated areas for two days. Then, I’ll sample each of the five cupcakes for freshness, and report back.
If you’re like me and bake and have left overs, stay tuned to find out the best way to store them. Expect an update next week!
Sophisticated, chic and stylish, the red velvet cupcake best suits your personality.
On top of the sweetly seductive, yet traditional taste of the vanilla cupcake, there is a subtle hint of cocoa that’s sure to please the chocolate lover in you, all immersed in a deep shade of red for the visually-inclined gourmands, and balanced by delicious cream cheese frosting.
You enjoy the best things in life, and you are in tune with the hottest trends, most exciting events and entertainment. You embody the outgoing, fun-loving nature of Vanilla types, and share the determined, goal-oriented nature of Chocolate personalities, with an edgier, fashion-forward style.
Foodosaurus Rex 