Red Velvet Cupcakes

Nick and I watched the last session of General Conference at Nick's sister Allison's home.  After conference we had a thanksgiving feast (Allison's tradition for conference).  I volunteered to bring rolls and dessert.  I didn't decide what dessert to make until Saturday night and I didn't want to go back to the store so red velvet cupcakes it was (and it was a great choice)!

All the recipes I looked up for red velvet cake had tons of red food coloring!  First off I only had half a bottle of it and second I didn't really see that turning my tongue and teeth red was really necessary so I cut down on the food coloring and they were still pretty red and very delicious.  Oh, and the cream cheese frosting on top is to die for!

Tip:
If your cupcakes usually burn on the bottom place muffin pan on top of jelly roll pan/ cookie sheet and then place in the oven.

INGREDIENTS
Cupcakes:
2 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 Tbsp cocoa powder
1 1/2 c canola oil
1 c buttermilk
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tsp red food coloring
1 tsp white distilled vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Frosting:
1/2 c butter, room temperature
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 c powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS
Cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350 F.  Line 2 muffiin pans with cupcake liners.

In a large bowl mix together dry ingredients.  Make a well in the mixture and add the wet ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined.

Pour batter evenly into muffin tins (about 2/3 full).  Bake for 20-22 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.  Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:
In a medium bowl beat butter, cream cheese, and vanilla with a hand mixer until smooth.  Slowly add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.  Place frosting in a pipping bag with a tip (1M) and top cupcakes with it.

–Melanie

Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter and Chocolate Frosting

Happy... day?!  Usually cakes of this size are made for holidays, special occasions, or for large gathering but I don't have any of those as an excuse.  Nick was in the mood for cake with peanut butter frosting and we decided to make a full recipe for the sake of pictures and for lots of leftovers and sharing with others!

At the beginning of my pregnancy I couldn't even stand the thought of sweets!  Nick had to make himself dessert and he actually did a pretty good job.  I was actually kind of excited that this pregnancy was going to help me change my eating habits but that only lasted the first trimester.  I have definitely been indulging in desserts a little too much but I'm still a few pounds below what I should be so I should eat more cake right?! Well, I should probably choose healthier options.  Don't worry I'm still eating pretty healthy and staying active.

This cake tastes a lot like my cupcakes because it has the same frosting so yeah, it's really good and you should try it.  The cake part of the recipe is from one of Hershey's recipes but I think I like my cake recipe still a little better.

INGREDIENTS
Cake:
1/2 c cocoa
1/2 c butter
1/2 c shortening
1 c water
1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
2 c sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 c buttermilk
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Peanut Butter Frosting:
5 T butter, softened
1 c creamy peanut butter
3/4 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
1 c powdered sugar
1/3 c heavy cream

Chocolate Frosting:
1/4 c butter, softened
1/3 c cocoa
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 c powdered sugar
2 Tbsp milk

Chocolate Drizzle:
1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 F.  Grease two 9-inch round cake pans with shortening and then flour.

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, and baking soda and set aside.  In a medium saucepan bring the first 4 ingredients to a boil over medium heat being sure to stir often.  Once it comes to a boil  remove from heat and blend into the flour mixture.  Mix in buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla.  Pour batter into pans.

Bake for 30-35 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes and then remove from pans onto wire racks and allow to cool completely.

Place one cake on a plate or platter and top with chocolate frosting.  Place the other cake on top.  Frost the top and sides of the cake with the peanut butter frosting.


Peanut Butter Frosting:

With an electric mixer beat butter, peanut butter, vanilla, and salt together in a medium bowl.  Slowly mix in powdered sugar and heavy cream and mix until smooth.

Chocolate Frosting:

With an electric mixer beat butter, cocoa, and vanilla together in a small bowl.  Slowly mix in powdered sugar and milk and mix until smooth.

Chocolate Drizzle:

Melt chocolate chips in microwave for 1 minute in 30 second increments and stir until smooth.  Put chocolate into a plastic bag and cut off the corner.  Squeeze chocolate out over cake with a side to side motion letting it drizzle off on the sides.

–Melanie

Pumpkin Spice & White Chocolate Cheesecake

Yay!  I am finally making progress on actually making some of the food I have pinned on Pinterest!  I love fall! It kind of makes me miss St. Louis where there are billions of trees with so many beautiful colors. Utah is pretty too with the colorful leaves up in the mountains, but nothing like driving through my childhood neighborhood in good ole STL! So fall has gotten me in the mood for fall foods like squash and PUMPKIN! I haven't made too many cheesecakes but the ones I have made have made have been a little dry because I cook it too long but this time I cooked it exactly as the recipe said and OMG I might just beat my mom in a cheesecake competition (she makes the best!).  K so here is the recipe!

(before sour cream topping. See the swirl!?)

INGREDIENTS

Crust
14 chocolate sandwich cookies

White Chocolate Cheesecake
2 8oz pkg cream cheese (room temp)
6 Tbsp sugar
2 large eggs
6 ounces white chocolate

Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake
2 8oz pkg cream cheese (room temp)
6 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 c pumpkin puree
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
2 large eggs

Topping
2 c sour cream
1/2 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Garnish
2 ounces white chocolate


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Base
In a food processor or blender, blend cookies into crumbs.  Empty into the bottom of a 10-in spring-form pan.  Spread and firmly press crumbs down.

3. White Chocolate Cheesecake
Melt white chocolate in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted. Mix cream cheese and sugar in a medium sized bowl with an electric hand mixer until smooth.  Add eggs and melted white chocolate and mix until thoroughly incorporated.

4. Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake
Mix cream cheese and sugar in a medium sized bowl with an electric hand mixer until smooth. Add pumpkin puree, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and eggs and mix until thoroughly incorporated.

5. Pour large dollops of alternating batters side-by-side, in one layer and again for a second layer. Used a knife to swirl layers together.

6. Bake in the upper third of the oven for 35 minutes.

7. Topping
While the cake is baking, mix sour cream, sugar, and vanilla. When timer goes off remove cake from oven and let it set for at least 5 minutes. Pour sour cream mixture on top of cake and cook cake for another 10 minutes.

8. Let cake cool to room temperature on a wire rack. When completely cooled, cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours (best if over night).

9. Before serving, add white chocolate shavings to the top of the cake by shaving off chocolate curls from white chocolate bar using a peeler. (Chocolate peels better if slightly warmed by hand or in the microwave for 5 seconds.)

10. Cut each slice using a sharp long knife.  Be sure to wipe the blade clean with a paper towel between each cut.

Yield: 12 slices
–Melanie

Strawberry Lime Cake

I found this on one of my favorite blogs: melskitchencafe.com.  It is a perfect summer dessert!  I wanted to change it to Raspberry Lime but I didn't have enough raspberries. :( Next time.  When I made this I had loads of left over lime cream and frosting so I adjusted the recipe so you now only make what you actually need. I also just used my homemade strawberry jam instead of the strawberry puree. To make this recipe a little easier you could just make the cake from a box mix and add a small box of instant vanilla pudding to make it more moist.

INGREDIENTS

Cake:
2 1/2 c all purpose flour
2 c white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/3 c buttermilk
1/2 c butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
4 egg whites

Strawberry Puree:
1 pint strawberries, cleaned and hulled
4 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp lemon juice

Lime Cream:
2 limes (1/4 c lime juice)
1/2 can sweetened condensed milk
1 c heavy whipping cream

Whipped Cream Frosting:
2 Tbsp water
1/2 envelope (1 tsp) unflavored gelatin
1 c heavy whipping cream
1/4 c powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

DIRECTIONS

Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour 2 cake pans. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Add buttermilk, butter, and vanilla. Beat for 30 seconds with and electric mixer.  Increase to medium for 2 minutes. Add egg whites and beat 2 more minutes. Scrap down sides of bowl while mixing as needed. Pour batter equally into cake pans and bake for 28-30 minutes. Cool cakes on wire rack for 10 minutes and then loosen sides with knife and remove from pans.

Strawberry Puree:
Blend strawberries, sugar and lemon juice in blender until smooth.  You can also just use 1 1/2 c strawberry jam.

Lime Cream:
In a medium bowl zest and then juice limes. Mix in sweetened condensed milk. Beat in whipping cream using an electric hand mixer until it forms medium-stiff peaks.  Cover and refrigerate.

Whipped Cream Frosting:
In a small bowl add the water and sprinkle gelatin on top letting it stand for 3-4 minutes.  Microwave for 20 seconds to dissolve gelatin and then allow to cool to room temperature but not set up.  While it is cooling mix cream, sugar, and vanilla with electric hand mixter until slightly thickened.  With the mixer on low, slowly add cooled gelatin to cream mixture. Increase to high and whip until stiff peaks form.

Assembling the Cake:
Slice each cooled cake evenly in half.  Place one half on a cake platter and add a layer of strawberry puree (or jam) and then a layer of lime cream leaving a 1/2 boarder around the edge.  Repeat two more times. Top with final cake half and frost the top and sides of cake with the whipped cream frosting. Garnish with limes and strawberries and chill for 1-2 hours before serving.

–Melanie

Molten Lava Cakes

Last summer Nick discovered the show Master Chef.  Nick and I love this show (Surprisingly Nick likes it even more than me!).  Anyway, the other week for one of their challenges they had to make a chocolate lava cake cooked to perfection.  They have to make everything from memory but luckily I had a recipe from ourbestbites.com to follow but of course I altered it just a bit and made it smaller since this type of dessert is to be eaten right away.  It is pretty much the best dessert because you have the chocolate, brownie batter (I LOVE batter... always leave extra in the bowl), ice cream, and fruit!  These are individual molten lava cakes for two! If you are not up for a big dessert I suggest splitting because Warning or (to those like me) Good News: very rich!

INGREDIENTS

2 Tbsp butter
1/6 c sugar
2 medium eggs
1/6 c flour
1/8 tsp salt
2/3 c semisweet chocolate chips


DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease 2 ramekins with butter using wax paper. Sprinkle with granulated sugar to coat the entire surface of the ramekin and discard extra sugar.

In a medium sized bowl beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well. Slowly add flour and salt and mix until just combined.

Melt chocolate chips in microwave in 30 second increments until melted.  Add melted chocolate to mixture. Divide batter evenly among prepared ramekins and then place on a baking sheet.  Fill about 3/4 full.

Place baking sheet with ramekins in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Run a sharp knife along the edge of the ramekin and then invert cake onto a plate.  Dust with powdered  sugar and top with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream and fresh fruit. (You can also just eat it right out of the ramekin.)

Topped with bananas and a side of French Vanilla Tillamook ice cream (best ice cream but only sold in Utah at WinCo).

Check out that chocolate lava!  Although my cake didn't collapse by itself on the plate the lava should be a smidgen thicker.  Next time I'll cook it another minute longer.

–Melanie

4th of July Cake

Every year for as long as I can remember, my mom has made a flag cake for the 4th of July and my grandma did it every year before that! Being in Texas and away from family was sad because the 4th in Caribou County, Idaho is the best experience ever! But, I wanted to keep the tradition alive! My mom always uses just frosting to make the flag, but I thought I'd switch it up a bit!

I made a strawberry cake (from the box). I was going to use red velvet, but the strawberry sounded better last minute and still gave the red cake effect.

Cream cheese frosting:
1 8oz. fat free cream cheese
1 cup white sugar (you can use powdered for a firmer frosting)
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

In a small bowl:
Beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form and set aside

In a large bowl:
Combine cream cheese, sugar, salt and vanilla. Beat until smooth then fold in whipping cream.

Slice strawberries in half or thirds, depending on size so they'll lay flat and lay out like stripes. Use blueberries for stars (yes, I know the stars are white with a blue background, but you get the idea).

We always laid out a real flag to get the spacing right and make sure we had the stripes and stars in the right places! Enjoy and Happy Fourth of July!

Heather

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Words cannot express how divine these cupcakes are.  It is hard to keep myself from eating them all in once sitting!  The pictured cupcakes just have the peanut butter frosting but they are also good with chocolate or both!

Cupcake

2 c. flour (unsifted)

2 c. sugar

2 tsp. soda

1 c. buttermilk

1 c. oil

2 eggs

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. cocoa

1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350.  Put cupcake liners in muffin tin.  Put all ingredients into a bowl and mix. Last, pour 1 cup boiling water over batter and beat. Will be runny. Fill liners 2/3 full with batter. Bake at 350 for 14-16 minutes (until toothpick comes out clean). For a cake, bake at 375 in 9x13 pan for 30 minutes. 

Peanut Butter Frosting

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 cup creamy peanut butter

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

1/3 cup heavy cream


Mix butter, peanut butter, vanilla, and salt with hand mixer.  Slowly add sugar while mixing.  Add cream and mix until smooth.

Chocolate Frosting

1/2 c. butter (softened)

2/3 c. cocoa

1 tsp vanilla

3 c. powdered sugar

1/3 c. milk


Mix butter, vanilla, and cocoa with hand mixer.  Slowly add sugar while mixing.  Add milk and mix until smooth.

–Melanie

Red Velvet Cake Balls

INGREDIENTS

1 box Red Velvet Cake mix

1 bag white chocolate melting chocolate

1/3 c chocolate chips (semi sweet or milk chocolate)

1/2 8oz pkg cream cheese

2 1/2 Tbsp butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla

DIRECTIONS

Bake cake as directed on the box. When cool crumble with a fork or hand in a bowl.

For the frosting mix cream cheese, butter, and vanilla with a hand mixer. Gradually add in the powdered sugar.

Add frosting to cake crumbles a little at a time and mix. You may not need all of it. Stop adding frosting when the crumbles stick to each other enough to roll it into a ball. Roll mixture into uniform balls and set on a baking sheet that is lined with wax paper. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 15 minutes or the fridge for an hour or overnight.

If you buy the melting chocolate in a brick from cut it into smaller pieces so that it will melt evenly. Place white chocolate in bowl in the microwave and stir every 30 seconds until chocolate is melted. Remove balls from freezer or fridge. There are a few ways to dip the balls in chocolate:

DIPPING METHODS

A. Stick a tooth pick into the ball and dip into the chocolate at an angle so the ball don't slip off. You may need to spoon some chocolate over the top. Hold it over the bowl for a few seconds to allow the drips to fall into the bowl. Place back onto the wax paper and remove the toothpick. You may need to touch up the hole left from the toothpick with some chocolate.

B. Hold ball between thumb and index finger and dip it a little more than halfway into the chocolate. Place ball on the cooking sheet with the side with melted chocolate up. After to you all the ball on one half the chocolate will be hardened enough to pick up and dip the other half. Place the ball (melted side up) on the pan with wax paper.

C. Drop the ball into the the melted chocolate. Roll it around with a spoon. Remove by scooping the ball up with 2 forks and hold over the bowl for a few seconds to let the excess chocolate drip off. This is not my favorite method because a lot of specks of cake fall into the chocolate.

After the chocolate has hardened, melt chocolate chips in a small bowl in the microwave stirring every 30 seconds until melted. Spoon chocolate into a ziplock bag. Make a tiny cut in the corner of the bag. Gently push chocolate out while moving the bag back and forth over the chocolate covered cake balls. Let the chocolate harden. Enjoy! Because this contains cream cheese these should be stored in the refrigerator.

–Melanie

Raspberry-Lemon Cheesecake

My mom makes the best cheesecakes! Here is just one refreshing delight of hers. Not only does it taste good but it looks amazing!


INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 c graham cracker crumbs
3 T butter, melted
4 8oz pkgs cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 c sugar
4 large eggs
1 T finely grated lemon peel
1/2 c fresh lemon juice


Garnish: fresh raspberries and 1/3 c seedless red raspberry jam


DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat an 8 or 9 inch spring form with nonstick cooking spray. Add butter to graham cracker crumbs and press over bottom of pan.

Beat softened cream cheese and sugar in a large bowl with mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add eggs and beat in one at a time; add lemon peel and juice and continue to beat 3 minutes until well blended. Pout into pan. Bake 50 minutes or until puffed and middle of top looks dull, not shiny. Turn off heat; leave in oven 30 minutes. (I have a dark pan and convection oven and I cook it 50min at 225 degrees convection and leave it in the oven for 30 minutes.) Carefully run a thin knife around the edge of the pan to release cake (don't remove pan sides). Cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and refrigerate in pan at least 3 hours or up to 3 days.

Up to 2 hours before serving: remove pan sides, loosen cake from pan bottom with a wide spatula and slide cake onto a serving plate. Arrange raspberries on top of cake to cover. Stir jam over low heat until melted and smooth. Spoon or brush on berries. (I use my homemade raspberry freezer jam and strain out the seeds.)

–Melanie

Cake Bites

So I have heard of these cake bites before and wondered how they make cake shaped into a little ball but it is quite simple and delicious.

The cake bites with chocolate drizzle are the ones with peanut butter frosting.

Ingredients:

1 cake

icing

melting chocolate or chocolate chips

Bake a cake in a 9x13 pan (I just used a box cake). When cooled crumble it up. Add frosting a little at a time and mix. Add frosting until the crumbs stick together and you can roll it into balls. (I used different frostings: peanut butter, chocolate, and vanilla with raspberry jam, so I separated my cake crumble) After you roll all of the mix into balls melt the chocolate and then dip the cake balls in the chocolate and cover completely. I used a spoon to roll them around in the chocolate and lift them out so it wasn't such a mess. Cover a pan with wax paper or foil and place the dipped cake bites on it. Then place the pan in the freezer. When chocolate is hard they are done!

–Melanie

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

This is my favorite cheesecake! I don't know where my mom found this one but it is awesome!

Crust:
1¼ cup crushed vanilla wafers
¼ cup butter, melted
Mix together and press in the bottom of a 9” springform pan.


1-12oz. package frozen raspberries
3 Tbsp. white sugar
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
½ cup water


In a saucepan, combine above ingredients and bring to a boil. Continue boiling for 5 minutes or until sauce is thick. Strain sauce through a mesh strainer to remove seeds.
Cake:
2 cups white chocolate chips
½ cup half-and-half cream


Pour cream over chips and melt in microwave in 30 sec. increments until melted. Do not over heat or chocolate texture will change.


3-8oz. packages cream cheese, softened
½ cup white sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract


In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese and ½ cup sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in vanilla and melted white chocolate. Pour batter over crust. Bake for 50-55 minutes at 225-250 convection/300 conventional or till set. Cool to room temperature, remove from pan, cover and refrigerate. You can garnish with fresh raspberries and raspberry sauce. You can also substitute strawberries or blueberries.

–Melanie

Double Chocolate Cheesecake

This is a very rich chocolate cheesecake. Meri made it last month and it was amazing. Serve strawberries or raspberries with it to add a nice touch.

Cake:
18 chocolate crème filled cookies
2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
24 oz. cream cheese
4 eggs
2t. vanilla extract
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Crush cookies and pat into bottom of 9in. spring form pan. Melt chocolate and add to cream cheese mixture with other ingredients. Pout into pan and bake for 50-55 minutes convection 225. When cool remove from pan and pour Ganach over top of cake.
Ganache:
¾ c whipping cream
Heat to boiling over low heat

Add:
1c. milk chocolate chips
1c. bittersweet chocolate chips.
Stir until melted and smooth consistency

–Melanie