Pumpkin Bundt Cake

HAPPY BUNDT CAKE DAY!

Pumpkin for the season.

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but I've just been so busy. Recruiting for a job, a new boyfriend, and school in general. I made this pumpkin bundt very late at night, but it's super yummy and in season. With a bit of cream cheese, it's the perfect dessert for a college student. Cake mix and some pumpkin puree and you're basically done. Perfect for a late night snack to munch on.

I hope to be baking soon enough again. Gotta feed the boyfriend somehow. ;)

Coconut Pecan Frosting with Devils Food Cupcakes [sms]

This week's Sweet Melissa Sundays pick, Coconut Pecan Frosting, was chosen by a great friend, Eliana of A Chica Bakes.

I remember when I was travelling to New York, Eliana gave me some great tips and pointers for going there. I'm super sorry that we were not able to meet up anything, but I'll be back in New York in March with my best friend for Spring Break. We'll be partying it up and eating some delicious foods.

I do want to apologize to everyone for not posting for a while. School and recruiting has been taking over my life lately, but I have some extra time this weekend because I don't have midterms until next week. I had a date this weekend, one of many since my ex and I broke up. He decided to cook me dinner while I made him these cupcakes with this topping. He loved it. I made the Devil's Food cupcakes from a mix, but doctored it up. I used this recipe for Chocolate Rum Cake because I had some Malibu lying around...well because my friend Elan is awesome and bought me some when I was super depressed.

Anyways, back to my blog, I've been trying to get myself back into baking, and I'll attempt to make something weekly. Wish me luck!

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes [msc]

YAY! It's my month to host.

It's been super busy month, so I apologize for not getting this up earlier. I've just been working on school and getting everything done before they're due or needed. This semester so far has been about heartbreak, meeting new people, finding a job, doing well in school, and most of school, staying healthy.

This recipe was super easy to make and although there are still a few in the house, I've been controlling myself and not eating as much. My neighbors and roommate however, have been slightly worse at controlling themselves. It's okay though, the more they eat, the less I have to.

I really enjoyed the creaminess of the cheesecake on top, but the nice crunch of the oreo at the bottom and throughout the cake. I do wish that I could make them perfect by somehow making the Oreo cover the entire bottom of the cheesecake, that would have made it even better!

The recipe for this month's Cupcake Club is found on page 104-105 of Martha Stewart's Cupcake book.

Triple Citrus Cupcakes [msc]

I made these cupcakes at the beginning of the month for a friend, Mimi, who had a great birthday party. I decided to make these because she said she like light flavors and something just overall light. I thought these would have been perfect.

First I made 2/3 of the recipe. 9 eggs was just way too many. I just made it with 6 eggs - which I thought was still a lot. I used grapefruit instead of orange...well because that's what I had in the house. In addition, I decided to add a bit of citrus alcohol in it since the batter was not cupcake consistency.

After baking it, it had a muffin-like consistency therefore I just decided to add a center of lemon yogurt to it. This way, it is less muffin like, but more moist as well. I also topped it with a lime buttercream. Since I didn't have time to place it into the fridge to set up more, I just kinda scooped it on and topped it with sprinkles.

Everyone loved them which is great. Happy [way] Belated Birthday, Mimi.

The recipe for this month's Cupcake Club is found on page 64 of Martha Stewart's Cupcake book or here.Thanks to Marthe from Culinairy Delights for choosing this.

ps. I apologize to everyone for commenting on their blogs a bit later. I will be in New York this week. If you have any suggestions on what to do or where to eat, please email me! I would love to have a great supply of places to eat.

Pomegranate Cupcake with Lime Frosting

HAPPY 21ST BIRTHDAY DMITRIY!

I know that I've posted about Dmitriy before; I must have. He's one of my closest guy friends and I just really enjoy being around him. He really makes me sane sometimes when I'm going insane and he's a great friend that I've made at Cal.

Today is his 21st birthday. I was going to make him alcoholic cupcakes, but thought that making a cupcake with alcohol isn't too hard, but making a cupcake for a friend with one of his favorite fruits is harder. Pomegranates are not only not in season, they're kinda too strong for me.

I made a simple white chocolate pomegranate cupcake that I found and then added a little bit of pomegranate juice boiled with a bit of sugar mixture to put into the middle. Also, I topped it with a bit of lime frosting because I've seen so many commercials from Dove that have the two together.

It was simple, delicious and I know he really enjoyed it. Enjoy your 21st and have some fun. I'm super sad that I can't be there, but I know that you'll enjoy it loads!



ps. sorry for the really mess background. I was at my desk, rushing because I had to leave in a couple of minutes to come back home.

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Torte [sms]

This week's Sweet Melissa Sundays pick, Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Torte, was chosen by Jennifer of The Rookie Baker.

I'm sorry for not posting for the past couple of weeks. To be honest, I haven't felt like baking in a while. My boyfriend, Brent, decided to break up with me 2 weeks ago after being together for almost 3.5 years. It was hard, but it was right decision for both of us. I'm both glad and sad that this happened. I mean it's been coming for a while, and we are just both so busy with our own lives that we haven't seen each other for more than 4 months already.

Back to this pick, I absolutely loved it. I ended up making it on a Thursday when I was off from school. I forgot that I didn't own anymore 9x13 pans anymore after losing them earlier in the year. Instead, I placed 4 ramekins of water next to the springform on a cookie sheet, 2 on each side. It didn't seem to affect the cake very much. I finished it with a frosting from this brownie and topped it with even more raspberries. It was super sweet, but raspberries cut out some of the sugar and was a bit better.

What is hilarious is that my roommate thought that the cake was too sweet and I expected the cake to stay a while in the apartment. I went out to dinner for a friend's 21st and I came back and my roommate and her friend finished about half of the cake. I guess I shouldn't leave too many sweets for her.

Make sure to check out the rest of the SMS bakers on the blogroll.

ps. does anyone have any places in NYC that I have to try? I'm going from the 15th til the 20th so I need places to try/avoid/whatever. It has to be good for college kids and a 12 year old. My brother and I are the only ones doing the vacationing! Preferably near Times Square too because that's where we're staying...I think!

pps. I just started yelping! Add me!

Kiwi Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

This was a week-late birthday present for my friend Phuoc. He's turned...30-something, I forgot. He's our Golden Gate Regional Advisor, but he's a great Kiwanian and person. He used to be in Circle K as well so he's got stories for us about when the club started once again and became what it is now - a powerhouse!

Anyways, back to the cupcakes, I made these late Monday night. I got them out of the oven and my roommate, Kimberly, and I each tried one that night and the chunks of kiwi were the only parts that had lots of kiwi flavor, the rest of the cupcake was pretty lemon-y. The next day, although, after the cupcake was allowed to rest, the kiwi flavor was apparent in the cupcake as well. As a suggestion though, I would puree the kiwi and put it into the cupcake instead of chopping it up. It seems like this way, the kiwi flavor will be there more.

I topped these cupcakes off with some cream cheese frosting. I used ones out of the can, but that is only because I still had lots of it left and I was being lazy. In addition, I don't have cream cheese around typically so it was just a lot easier. I topped them off with a bit of sprinkles because everything is better with sprinkles!

Kiwi Cupcakes

[adapted from couture cupcakes]
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup caster sugar
3 eggs
1 ¼ cup SR flour
1 tbs lemon juice
1/2 cup sour cream
2 kiwi fruit finely diced

1. Preheat oven to 180 (350).
2. Line a muffin tray with cupcake liners.
3. Cream butter, lemon zest and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Beat in the flour until just combined, add the sour cream and lemon juice and beat until well incorporated.
6. Fold in the finely diced kiwi fruit.
7. Evenly divide the batter into cupcake liners and bake for 20 - 22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
8. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

Banana Butterscotch Bread

So I know that I normally have quite a few pictures, but sorry, I was not able to take pictures of the bread myself since I brought it to a "banana" breakfast. It was super fun to eat with my friends in the morning after a couple hours of class. I love these guys. The bread was delicious and a great addition to the breakfast. It was great to sit there and talk and hang out. The banana bread had a great banana flavor, but also, the butterscotch added a great flavor to it without overpowering it or anything.

We also made some banana pancakes with some chocolate chips - they were super delish!

Banana Butterscotch Bread [adapted from allrecipes]

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup white sugar
1 large egg
4 ripe bananas, mashed
3/4 cup butterscotch chips

Directions
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pans. Set aside.

Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a bowl. Set aside.
Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until light and fluffy. The mixture should be noticeably lighter in color.

Beat in the egg, then stir in the mashed bananas.

Pour in the flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated.

Fold in the butterscotch chips; mixing just enough to evenly combine. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans.
Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

Apple Banana Crumble Pie

This pie was really delicious. It was super easy to make as well.

I brought this with me when I went to a Life Beyond Ramen. This time around we made Japanese curry. It was really delicious as well.

Recipe:

Ingredients:
3 md Apples; cut in chunks
2 md Bananas; cut into chunks
2 tb Lemon juice
1 c All purpose flour
1/2 c Sugar
1/2 c Brown sugar; packed
1/2 ts Cinnamon
1/2 ts Nutmeg
1/2 c Butter or margarine; soften
1 9" pastry shell; unbaked

Directions:

Combine fruits and lemon juice; let stand 10 minutes. Combine flour, sugar and spices; cut in butter till crumbly. Arrange fruit in pastry shell. Sprinkle with crumb mixture. Bake at 400F for 35-40 minutes. Cover top lossely with foil if crumb mixture browns too quickly. Cut in wedges to serve.

Chocolate Walnut Brownies [sms]

This week's Sweet Melissa Sundays pick, Chocolate Walnut Brownies, was chosen by Tiffany of A Spoonful & a Heap.

They were super delicious and fudgy. I really enjoyed them and so did my friend who came from Southern California to visit for her orientation here at Cal. We certainly had fun while visiting SF.

slideshow | Viewer

Make sure to check out the rest of the SMS bakers on the blogroll.

Flourless Chocolate Cupcakes [msc]

I had made these cupcakes soon after the June cupcake. My friends and I were getting together for a sleepover. One of our guy friends had never painted his nails before and we decided one weekend would be nice and we would just talk and paint nails and get facials - normal sleepover stuff. This bond we had was formed over a long car talk around probably 4-5 hours. It was wow. We talked about everything. This sleepover's conversation was mostly about relationships, but I feel like most conversations I have are about relationships.

I decided that since I just got my new place, we could use that place since it will be empty. It would be great since we could just all sit there or be in our sleeping bags and just talk. So we ate some food and hung out and ate my flourless cupcakes. They were pretty good, but they never got the shells like they were on Martha's book. They were a dense little cake of chocolately goodness. The ice cream on top was wonderful as well.

The recipe for this month's Cupcake Club is found on page 146 of Martha Stewart's Cupcake book or here. Thanks to Lauryn of Bella Baker for choosing this.

Apple Cinnamon Cupcakes

As I start to clean my new apartment, I realize that I have loads of food that I brought up when I started summer school. Mostly my mom made me bring apples up. I also bought a whole bunch of fruit recently, too. I'm also trying to make room for my roommate who is going to be moving in soon. With all that, the next couple of non-group posts should be able random fruit that I have in the fridge.

Like I said before, I had loads of apples, I thought that I could make some apple related items. Last year, I made some mini apple pies and this apple dapple cake that were both well received. This time I decided to make some cupcakes with it.

I found this recipe off of Tracey's blog. She's a great blogger and I just love all of her wonderful recipes. She had made this in the fall which makes sense since it does have some wonderful fall flavors, but the weather in Northern California has been fall-like so it just made sense.

Apple Cinnamon Cupcakes
[adapted from Everyday Food]

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup [half a stick] butter, melted
1/4 cup natural (unsweetened) applesauce
3/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup of cubed apple [I'm not sure what type of apple I used, but it was pretty good]

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cupcake pan with 12 paper liners (or butter the pan).

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.

In a large bowl, combine butter, applesauce, brown sugar, and eggs. Whisk until smooth.

Gradually whisk in dry ingredients just until combined (do not overmix). Using a rubber spatula, fold in cubed apple.

Spoon approximately 3 tablespoons in each cupcake. Bake until a tester inserted in cake comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool in pan on rack 15 minutes; remove cupcakes from pan. Enjoy!

Honey Mango Pie

So this one time, my friends and I were talking about pies and one friend said that he likes a mango pie. Although he's never had one, he thought that it would be nice.

I decided that it would be nice to try a mango pie for a Vietnamese food night since it would be interesting and I've never made that before, but also because it would kind of follow the theme - Vietnamese like mangoes, I think. Anyways, I brought it and it was a hit at the party.

Honey Mango Pie
Ingredients:
pie crust [I bought one]
4 mangoes
14 oz [1 can] sweetened condensed milk
3 eggs
1/2 cup honey
1 Tablespoon of vanilla extract
Directions:
Prebake crust at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes.
Peel, pit, and puree the mangoes with the rest of ingredients.
Pour into crust. I had a bit extra; I placed it in a ramekin and made a pudding.
Bake it at 350 degrees F for about an hour.
Place a baking sheet underneath just in case it poofs up too much and makes a mess in the oven.

Blueberry Cupcakes

These blueberry cupcakes were a wonderful summer cupcake to make. I found a wonderful recipe on a wonderful blog and I decided to make it for some friends.

These were a great cupcake and delicious. The blueberries were really cheap and since I got a whole lot of them, I decided to make some cupcakes with it.

Blueberry Cupcakes
Ingredients:
1/2 cup [1 stick] unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup of sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup milk or yogurt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Insert liners into a regular muffin pan.
Cream sugar and butter together.
Add eggs one at a time to the mixture and beat well.
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
Add flour mixture in portions alternating with yogurt/milk.
Fold in vanilla extract and blueberries.
Fill cupcake liner with about 2 Tablespoons of batter.
Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until the toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool cupcakes in pan.