My Crush

A peanut butter cake that scented the house and managed to even waft out to the drive way (driving my neighbor crazy!). Fill with fresh peanut butter cream cheese and top with sweet butter cream. Don't stop there! You're going want to add a crunch to the top by rolling the top in crushed butterfinger bars! Forget the calories, you'll do anything for your crush!

Basic cake rules for S'mee:

Use whatever cake recipe you want. If you use store bought (don't come crying to me) no worries, just know they ain't what they used to be. Grab a good cook book and try out a recipe for homemade cake. It's easy as pie. Wait no, pie is hard, cake is EASY!

So you'll need one recipe for Vanilla. You're gonna change the recipe a bit.

Dry ingredients in one bowl, wet in the other.

With the vanilla I want you to add 1 cup of sour cream, 1 box of vanilla pudding mix - (say it with me) the kind you cook, and 1 cup of really good creamy peanut butter.

Blend all of your add ins before you blend the dry with the wet.

Fill your cup cake liners or cups to 2/3 and check them at about 20 minutes or whatever time your recipes calls for, using the first time. (like if your recipe say 20-23 min. go with 20) The idea here is that you want to catch them when they are "just" done, not over baked. It may take longer than the 20 minutes, but bring them out when they spring back or pick test clean.
Let them rest for about ten minutes and then your are going to seal them with a simple syrup. For 1 recipe 1/8 to 1/8 water and white sugar should give you plenty of syrup. Put the sugar and water in a small sauce pan and bring it to a boil until the sugar dissolves, set it aside and grab a pastry brush. When the 10 minutes is up, brush the tops of the cakes with the simple syrup, turn them out onto a rack and let them cool.

The middle:
For the Peanut Butter: We're doing 3s. 1/3 peanut butter to 1/3 cream cheese to 1/3 butter cream frosting. Nuke to soften - about 20 seconds, blend with a spoon. Fabulous! Fill a pastry bag fit with an 802 round tip and pipe by pushing the tip into the center and middle of the cup cake. Press to fill until the top begins to puff, pull out and place the cakes in the fridge to cool and firm up the filling before you frost.

The butter cream: Again, use ANY butter cream recipe you want. I prefer my sister Robyn's over anyone else's I've tried - even Pioneer Woman's- and it spanks. Her recipe is:here. My exception to her recipe is as follows: I s-l-o-w-l-y add the water, and most of the time I don't use the full cup. Also I almost always use 50/50 butter and shortening. It may have something to do with where I live (Mojave Desert) and the amazingly dry climate coupled with the altitude.

Peanut Butter: Easiest of all. Butter cream piped on -some what thinly, like 1/4 t0 1/2 inch thick and flatish- on top of the cakes. The butter fingers can be crushed either via food processor or smacked to death via a ziploc bag and a hammer - weapon of choice is up to you. Roll the tops in crushed butter fingers. There you go, I can't help you any more than that!

All cup cakes are best covered and put in the fridge until about a half hour before serving... but again it won't kill you to do otherwise. I like those disposable baking tins that have the clear plastic lids. They are tall enough not to smash the frosting and large enough to carry a dozen, plus the lid keeps them nice and moist. Trust me, these are moist.

Triple Lemon Heaven!

Start with Lemon cake infused with real fresh squeezed lemon juice, add fresh grated zest. Top the cup cake with a puddle of lemon curd cream cheese, then top with a huge swirl of lemon juice infused butter cream and sprinkle with more zest. Heaven indeed!

Basic cake rules for S'mee:

Use whatever cake recipe you want. If you use store bought (don't come crying to me) no worries, just know they ain't what they used to be. Grab a good cook book and try out a recipe for homemade cake. It's easy as pie. Wait no, pie is hard, cake is EASY!

So you'll need one recipe for Lemon. You're gonna change the recipe a bit.

Dry ingredients in one bowl, wet in the other.

With the Lemon I want you to add 1 cup of lemon yogurt, 1 large box of lemon pudding mix - the kind you cook, and the juice and zest of 1 lemon.

Blend all of your add ins before you blend the dry with the wet.

Fill your cup cake liners or cups to 2/3 and check them at about 20 minutes or whatever time your recipes calls for, using the first time. (like if your recipe say 20-23 min. go with 20) The idea here is that you want to catch them when they are "just" done, not over baked. It may take longer than the 20 minutes, but bring them out when they spring back or pick test clean.

Let them rest for about ten minutes and then your are going to seal them with a simple syrup. For 1 recipe 1/8 to 1/8 water and white sugar should give you plenty of syrup. Put the sugar and water in a small sauce pan and bring it to a boil until the sugar dissolves, set it aside and grab a pastry brush. When the 10 minutes is up, brush the tops of the cakes with the simple syrup, turn them out onto a rack and let them cool.

The middle:

For the Lemon Curd Cream Cheese, again, 50/50 cream cheese with really good lemon curd. Make your own or buy a good brand. Soften in the MicroRhonda for about 20 seconds and beat with a spoon to blend. STOP eating it! This is like Lemon Crack, resist the urge or you won't have enough for your cup cakes! Put the lemon amazement into a pastry bag fit with an 802 round tip. Push that tip into the center, and then into the middle of the cake and begin to fill the cup cake until it begins to bulge. Pull the tip out and there you go. OR you can just pipe a little puddle on top. Place the cakes in the fridge to cool and firm up the filling before you frost.

The butter cream: Again, use ANY butter cream recipe you want. I prefer my sister Robyn's over anyone else's I've tried - even Pioneer Woman's- and it spanks. Her recipe is:here. My exception to her recipe is as follows: I s-l-o-w-l-y add the water, and most of the time I don't use the full cup. Also I almost always use 50/50 butter and shortening. It may have something to do with where I live (Mojave Desert) and the amazingly dry climate coupled with the altitude.

Lemon is pretty easy, but here you go. Butter cream in a bowl, add 1/2 to 1 whole lemon depending on your taste, blend and pipe on top of the cup cakes using a 807 round (channel a Dairy Queen ice cream gal). Sprinkle with lemon zest. Done. : )

All cup cakes are best covered and put in the fridge until about a half hour before serving... but again it won't kill you to do otherwise. I like those disposable baking tins that have the clear plastic lids. They are tall enough not to smash the frosting and large enough to carry a dozen, plus the lid keeps them nice and moist. Trust me, these are moist.

Hazel's My Girl!

I love me some hazelnuts and Nutella, so it was a natural progression that someday they would wind up in a cup cake. Devil's Food cake, Nutella Mallow (first you take the mallow...) filling, then topped off with hazelnut infused butter cream swirled with chocolate, roll the whole shebang in fresh toasted -then crushed- hazelnuts, and "paint" the top with chocolate. Yup if you love those flavour combos then Hazel's your girl too!


Basic cake rules for S'mee:

Use whatever cake recipe you want. If you use store bought (don't come crying to me) no worries, just know they ain't what they used to be. Grab a good cook book and try out a recipe for homemade cake. It's easy as pie. Wait no, pie is hard, cake is EASY!

So you'll need one recipe for Devil's Food. You're gonna change the recipe a bit.

Dry ingredients in one bowl, wet in the other.

With the Devil's Food I want you to add a 1 cup of sour cream and 1 large box of chocolate pudding mix - the kind you need to cook, and 1/2 cup of Hershey's syrup.

Blend all of your add ins before you blend the dry with the wet.

Fill your cup cake liners or cups to 2/3 and check them at about 20 minutes or whatever time your recipes calls for, using the first time. (like if your recipe say 20-23 min. go with 20) The idea here is that you want to catch them when they are "just" done, not over baked. It may take longer than the 20 minutes, but bring them out when they spring back or pick test clean.

Let them rest for about ten minutes and then your are going to seal them with a simple syrup. For 1 recipe 1/8 to 1/8 water and white sugar should give you plenty of syrup. Put the sugar and water in a small sauce pan and bring it to a boil until the sugar dissolves, set it aside and grab a pastry brush. When the 10 minutes is up, brush the tops of the cakes with the simple syrup, turn them out onto a rack and let them cool.

The middle:

For the Nutella Mallow I used 50/50 nutella to marshmallow cream. I nuked it for about 20 seconds to soften them both up, then beat them with a spoon to blend. If it's too stiff, nuke it again, this ain't rocket science. : ) Put the gooey madness into a pastry bag fit with a 802 round tip. After the cup cakes have cooled you're just going to poke that tip into the center of the cup cake so that it's in the middle, go ahead an eyeball it, there are no cup cake police. Give a good squish on the bag and fill that puppy up until it begins to puff the top of the cup cake, remove the tip- a small puff of filling will come out of the whole you created. No biggie, you'll cover that with something else delicious later. Place the cakes in the fridge to cool and firm up the filling before you frost.

The butter cream: Again, use ANY butter cream recipe you want. I prefer my sister Robyn's over anyone else's I've tried - even Pioneer Woman's- and it spanks. Her recipe is:here. My exception to her recipe is as follows: I s-l-o-w-l-y add the water, and most of the time I don't use the full cup. Also I almost always use 50/50 butter and shortening. It may have something to do with where I live (Mojave Desert) and the amazingly dry climate coupled with the altitude(I'm right at 3.500 grrrr).

O.k. Butter cream- for the hazelnut infused butter cream (sit down please this is embarrassing to admit) I use powdered coffee creamer. Yup. Coffee creamer flavoured as "hazelnut". I am sure there is a way better product or flavouring to do this, but I haven't found it yet. The coffee creamer is dry, ground uber fine, and is made to blend with dairy so it works. The trouble is that I just keep dumping by the spoonful until I like the flavour. The flavour will mature so when you think you're almost there stop. You're there. Just blend in the dry powder and you're good to go. I also added Hershey syrup to the butter cream. I just squirted some in to the bowl swiped the butter cream a few strokes, kind of marbled it. You can decide how much chocolate is too much!

To decorate the cakes I just schmeared it thickly on top in a big blob. Take the back of your knife and make a nice flat edge on the sides, leave the top looking like a storm at sea. Roll the edge of the frosted cake in the fresh roasted hazelnuts, coating just the sides. Leave the top alone.
(to roast or toast? your call. Either one will do. Hazelnuts: You place about a cup in a pan and either bake them for a bout ten minutes at 350 or put them on top of the stove and keep 'em moving until you smell that lovely aroma! Pop them into a food processor and crush them up or put them in a Ziploc and smack them with the back of a hammer to crush.)

"Paint" an extra bit of syrup on the top by dripping a dot on top of the frosted cake. Use the tip of your knife to drag the syrup across the butter cream like a brush stroke or two. E-Z.

All cup cakes are best covered and put in the fridge until about a half hour before serving... but again it won't kill you to do otherwise. I like those disposable baking tins that have the clear plastic lids. They are tall enough not to smash the frosting and large enough to carry a dozen, plus the lid keeps them nice and moist. Trust me, these are moist.

Halloween Cuppi-Cakes

This is Halloween!
Originally uploaded by S'mee.

More Halloween goodies from the past. Nothing says fun like cool treats that aren't from the store. You can whip up a bunch of these for the kids you personally know and they will love gobblin' them up! This tutorial is a repeat from 2005, however they are pretty fun so here we go!

O.k. So this is the first run of cupcakes! I wasn't prepared for the decorations with special candies or frostings, but went ahead and came up with these little beauties with what we had on hand:

Dunked in Jelly Bellies, You're Bugging Me!, Spike, & Don't Forget to Floss.

Jack Skelington, Oogie Boogie, Sally, & Stock

High Anxiety, Buck, I only have eyes for you, & Miss Spider.

All cupcakes were chocolate with vanilla or chocolate frostings. I used Mega M&Ms, tiny M&Ms, Jelly Bellies, Life Savers, Sour Patch Strips, Green Apple Gum, Eclipse Gum, Jolly Rancher Rocks, and black Jimmies.

Frosting was applied via a zip lock bag snipped at one corner or with a butter knife. I also used a bamboo skewer to aid in the placement of many Jimmies! I am sure when I actually get out the cake gear and use the pro stuff they will come out even better. In the mean time, we're eatin' cupcakes for dessert tonight!

To view cupcake details more closely, click on the photo above. This will take you to my photo page at Flicker! Find the photo stream st the top right of the page and click the "next" photo, it should be titled: "I'm ready for my close up!" double click. It will come up full screen and with much better detail.