"Sprinkles" Coconut Cupcakes

Ryan declared these: "The best cupcakes you have ever made."  And I have made A LOT...

Recipe courtesy of Sprinkles pastry chef Candace Nelson via the LA Times
Photo Credit

Makes 18 to 20

• 2 cups sifted cake flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup whole milk
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3/4 teaspoon coconut extract
• 1-1/2 sticks unsalted butter
• 1-1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 2 large egg whites, plus 1 whole large egg

Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature. Heat the oven to 350 degrees and line two non-stick standard muffin pans with cupcake liners. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a measuring cup, combine the milk and extracts. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add the egg whites and the egg and mix until they are combined. Add half of the flour mixture and mix until it is combined. Gradually drizzle in all the milk mixture. Add the remaining dry mixture and mix carefully until just combined. Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake cups (they should be two-thirds full) and bake about 20 to 25 minutes, or until the cake springs back when pressed lightly and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let cool.

Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting

Makes about 2 1/2 cups

• 8 ounces cold cream cheese
• 8 tablespoons butter (1 stick)
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3-3/4 cups sifted powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
• 1/2 cup sweetened coconut shavings

In the bowl of an electric mixer, slowly mix the cream cheese, butter and salt until fluffy and combined. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Mix in the extracts until incorporated and the frosting is smooth. Frost each cooled cupcake with about 2 tablespoons of frosting and immediately top with 1 teaspoon of sweetened coconut shavings.

White Almond Cake

Recipe Courtesy of Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix

(Betty Crocker)

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup white sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/3 cups water

1 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 egg whites

 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour an 11x13 inch cake pan.
2. Stir together the white cake mix, flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl until well mixed. Pour in the water, sour cream, vegetable oil, almond and vanilla extracts, and egg whites, and beat with an electric mix on low until all the ingredients are mixed and moistened but some lumps still remain, about 4 minutes.
3. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, and bake in the preheated oven until the top is a light golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Allow to cool before frosting.

 

 

Banana Cake

Recipe and Photo Courtesy of allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup butter
2 cups white sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 1/2 cups ripe, mashed bananas

Directions
Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (this is not a typo - bake this cake low and slow). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan. In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas with lemon juice, set aside. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in 2 teaspoons vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Stir in banana mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 - 80 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Do not over bake. Remove from oven and place directly into freezer for 45 minutes. This will make the cake very moist.

Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting and sprinkle with nuts, if desired. This is a dense cake, but oh so good.

Carrot Cake

Recipe Courtesy of Allrecipes.com
Modified
Photo Courtesy of My Talented Hubby



Makes one cake or 24 cupcakes

Ingredients
4 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup applesauce
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
8oz can crushed pineapple, drained (optional)

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour pans, or use paper liners for cupcakes.

2.In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, applesauce, sugar and vanilla. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir in carrots and pineapple (fully drain pineapple, squeezing all the juice out). Fold in nuts. Pour into prepared pan.

3.Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean (20 minutes for cupcakes). Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

4.Top with Cream Cheese Frosting.

Angel Food Cake

Recipe and photo courtesy of allrecipes.com

Serves 20

INGREDIENTS
10 - 12 eggs
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t cream of tartar
1 1/2 t vanilla extract
1/2 t almond extract
1/4 t salt
1 cup sugar

DIRECTIONS
Separate eggs; discard yolks or refrigerate for another use. Measure egg whites, adding or removing whites as needed to equal 1-1/2 cups. Place in a mixing bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, sift confectioners' sugar and flour together three times; set aside. Add cream of tartar, extracts and salt to egg whites; beat on high speed. Gradually add sugar, beating until sugar is dissolved and stiff peaks form. Fold in flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time. Gently spoon into an ungreased 10-in. tube pan. Cut through batter with a knife to remove air pockets. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched.

Immediately invert pan; cool completely before removing cake from pan.

Triple Fudge Cake

Recipe and Photo Courtesy of Carla

The easiest cake you'll ever make!!

INGREDIENTS:
1 package regular chocolate pudding mix (3 oz - cook and serve)
2 cups milk
1 package chocolate cake mix
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
Cook pudding mix with milk as directed on package. Remove from heat. Blend dry cake mix into pudding. Mixture will be quite thick and spongy. Pour into greased and floured 9"x13" pan. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake at 350º for 30 minutes.

Brown Sugar Pound Cake

Recipe and Photo Courtesy of Martha Stewart

Makes 29 cupcakes or 1 standard-size cake

INGREDIENTS
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
3/4 cup buttermilk
Brown-Butter Glaze

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners or grease cake pans. Whisk dry ingredients in a large bowl. Cream butter and sugar with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition.

Reduce speed to low. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk, and ending with dry ingredients. Scrape sides of bowl.

Fill each cup 3/4 full, and bake for 25 minutes. Or, alteratively, fill cake pan(s) and bake cake as usual (using the toothpick method to test for doneness).

Set rack with cupcakes (or cake) over a parchment-lined baking sheet. Spoon glaze over top, and let stand until set. Serve immediately.

Red Velvet Cake

Recipe Courtesy of Martha Stewart
Makes 1 cake or 24 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups cake flour (not self- rising), sifted
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon red gel-paste food color
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons distilled white vinegar

Cream Cheese Frosting

DIRECTIONS
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour cake pans or Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together cake flour, cocoa, and salt.

With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, whisk together sugar and oil until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Mix in food color and vanilla.

Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of buttermilk, and whisking well after each. Stir together the baking soda and vinegar in a small bowl (it will foam); add mixture to the batter, and mix on medium speed 10 seconds.

For cake: Pour batter into prepares pan(s). Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Do not overbake!

For cupcakes: Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.

Cake or Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

To finish, frost with cream cheese frosting. Refrigerate up to 3 days in airtight container; bring to room temperature before serving.

Perfect Lemon Cake

Recipe Courtesy of Melonie at My Kitchen Cafe

Bella loves a Perfect Lemon Cupcake...

CAKE
1 package lemon cake mix
1 cup sour cream
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup oil
4 eggs
1 small package lemon instant pudding

DIRECTIONS
Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients. Mix with electric mixer on medium speed for about two minutes. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan or two round pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. To make into cupcakes, fill cupcake papers 2/3 full and bake them at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. The cupcakes will fall after they come out of the oven, but this is normal. Don't over bake or the cake will be too dry.

3 ways to top the cake:

Lemon Frosting

Cream Cheese Frosting

And... my personal favorite way to make this cake:

topped with a lemon glaze and covered with fresh strawberries!

Boston Creme Cupcakes

My friend and co-worker, Nicole, made these this weekend. I was lucky enough to eat one today. I knew right away they had to be added to my recipe collection!

Recipe Courtesy of Martha Stewart

INGREDIENTS
Makes 18
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for tins
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup whole milk
3 ounces (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for tins
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Vanilla Creme (Recipe Below)
Chocolate Ganache Glaze (Recipe Below)

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour standard muffin tins. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Warm milk and butter in a saucepan over low heat.

Beat eggs and sugar with a mixer on high speed until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. Beat in dry ingredients.

Bring milk and butter to a boil. With mixer on low speed, add milk mixture to batter, and beat until smooth. Add vanilla. Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each halfway. Bake cupcakes until light gold, about 15 minutes. Let cool in tins for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire racks. Let cool.

Using a serrated knife, cut each in half horizontally. Spread 1 tablespoon vanilla cream on each cupcake bottom. Sandwich with top. Spoon glaze over each, and serve immediately.

Vanilla Creme

INGREDIENTS
Makes 1 1/2 cups
2 large egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons plus 1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
Pinch of salt
1 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
Whisk yolks until smooth. Mix sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add milk in a slow, steady stream. Cook, stirring, until mixture begins to bubble and thicken, about 5 minutes.

Pour 1/3 of milk mixture into yolks, whisking constantly. Return mixture to saucepan, and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until thick, 2 to 4 minutes. Stir in vanilla.

Pass vanilla cream through a fine sieve into a bowl. Press plastic wrap directly on surface. Refrigerate until cold, at least 1 hour, or up to 2 days.

Chocolate Ganache Glaze

INGREDIENTS
Makes about 1 1/4 cups
2/3 cup heavy cream
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 tablespoon light corn syrup

DIRECTIONS
Remove from heat, and add chocolate and corn syrup. Let stand for 5 minutes. Whisk until smooth. Transfer to a bowl, and let cool, stirring often. Use immediately.

Sprinkles' Strawberry Cupcakes

Recipe Courtesy of Erin Mercado

Makes 1 dozen

INGREDIENTS

2/3 cup whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 cup whole milk, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
2 large egg whites, room temperature
Sprinkles' Strawberry Frosting



DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.
2. Place strawberries in a small food processor; process until pureed. You should have about 1/3 cup of puree, add a few more strawberries if necessary or save any extra puree for frosting; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla, and strawberry puree; set aside.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until well combined and fluffy. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add egg and egg whites until just blended.
5. With the mixer on low, slowly add half the flour mixture; mix until just blended. Add the milk mixture; mix until just blended. Slowly add remaining flour mixture, scraping down sides of the bowl with a spatula, as necessary, until just blended.
6. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Transfer muffin tin to oven and bake until tops are just dry to the touch, 22 to 25 minutes. Transfer muffin tin to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool completely in tin before icing.