Cookies and Cream Cupcakes

Pour yourself a glass of milk and bake up a batch of these cupcakes! Another recipe I got from annies-eats.net.

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes
Yield: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
24 Oreo halves, with cream filling attached
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 2/3 cup sugar
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup milk
20 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped

For the frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
6 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2 tbsp. heavy cream

For garnish:
Oreo cookie crumbs (I used the other half from above)
24 Oreo cookie halves

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line the wells of two cupcake pans with 24 paper liners.  Place an Oreo halve in the bottom of each liner, cream side up.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir together with a fork to blend and set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Blend in the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Blend in the vanilla extract.  With the mixer on low speed, beat in half of the dry ingredients just until incorporated.  Add the milk and beat just until combined, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients.  Gently fold in the chopped Oreos with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated, being careful not to over-mix.

Evenly divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners.  Bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute.  Blend in the vanilla extract.  Beat in the confectioners’ sugar until incorporated and smooth, 1-2 minutes.  Add the heavy cream to the bowl and beat on medium-low speed just until incorporated, then increase the speed to medium-high and whip for 4 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired.  Sprinkle with Oreo crumbs and garnish with Oreo halves.

Source: adapted from Beantown Baker (I got from annies-eats.net)

Cherry Limeade Cupcakes

I've been reading annies-eats.net. She has so many great looing recipes that I can't wait to try. Friday night Lilly-Ann wanted to bake so we decided on the Cherry Limeade Cupcakes. I liked them a lot, but she thought they were sour. If you're a fan of lime, you'll probably like them.

Cherry Limeade CupcakesYield: 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
3 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. limeade concentrate (I used 3/4 cup)
3 eggs
3/4 cup milk (I used whole)

For the lime syrup: (I halved these amounts)
3/4 cup limeade concentrate
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

For the frosting:
3 3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 tbsp. (or more) maraschino cherry juice
red food coloring (optional)
For decorating (optional):
fresh lime slices
maraschino cherries

Directions:
To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line two muffin pans with paper liners.  In a medium bowl combine the cake flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.  Stir together and set aside.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter until smooth.  Add the sugar and beat on medium-high speed until creamed.  Add in the limeade concentrate and mix to incorporate.  Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between additions.  Add in the flour mixture in thirds, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.  Mix ingredients just long enough to incorporate but no longer.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cupcake liners.  Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pans for 5-10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack over wax paper to cool completely.

Once the cupcakes have cooled, whisk together the limeade concentrate and confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl to make the lime syrup.  Poke several holes in the top of each cupcake with a skewer and pour the syrup over the cupcakes, allowing it to soak in.

To make the frosting, combine the confectioners’ sugar, butter and maraschino cherry juice in the bowl of a stand mixer.  Mix on low speed until sugar is incorporated, then increase to medium-high speed and beat until smooth. 

Add more maraschino cherry juice as needed to achieve desired texture.  Add red food coloring (I used Duff's hot pink food coloring) if desired.

Frost cooled cupcakes.  Garnish with maraschino cherries, if desired.

Source: adapted from Baking Up Chaos (I got from annies-eats.net)

Lance's Pasta

I've been doing a lot of baking lately, and have been asked for a lot of the recipes so I decided to start a blog. I figured this way I'll be able to share the recipes I find, and if I lose the recipe myself then I'll have a place to look. Tonight for dinner I just threw a bunch of stuff that we already had together and popped it in the oven. Lance said it was a keeper so I thought I'd type out how I made it so I can look back in the future. I shall call it "Lance's Pasta."

4 boneless chicken breasts (I only used 2 and it needed more)
1 bag noodles (I used macaroni because that's what I had)
1 jar marinara sauce (The one I used was 3 cheese)
1/2 cup seasoned Italian breadcrumbs (I only used 1/4 and I thought it could use more)
3/4 pound of cheese (I had jack so that's what I used, but mozzarella probably would have been better)
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp Oregano
Olive Oil
1/4-1/2 cup baby bella mushrooms, chopped

1. Cube the chicken into small bite sized pieces and cook in a skillet with olive oil. While that's cooking, cook noodles according to package directions then drain. Saute the mushrooms in olive oil. Add noodles, chicken, and mushrooms to a 9x13 casserole dish.

2. To the mixture add the Italian seasoning, oregano, the marinara sauce, and about 1/2 the cheese. Stir to combine.

3. Top with the remaining cheese and the breadcrumbs.
4. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.