May

 We had such a fun Cupcake night in May! The lovely Anne taught us all how to make the perfect buttercream frosting and taught us how to do the fancy piping onto the cupcakes. Of course we wanted to try ALL of the cupcakes, so we cut them in 1/4 and had little bites of each. We had lots left over to take home and share with our husbands this time :) Every single cupcake was delicious and I wanted to eat them all night, unfortunately I was in a sugar coma  from the quarter pieces I did eat (and of course sampling mine as I made them)...but it was totally worth it. I recommend trying them all. Just not all in the same night.

Stacey: Glazed Doughnut Cupcakes

Rebecca: Coconut Macaroon Cupcakes

Anne: Perfect Buttercream Frosting

Cierra: Salted Carmel Cupcakes

Haylie: Vanilla Bean Cupcakes

Larissa: Root Beer Float Cupcakes

Cupcakes: Perfect Buttercream by Anne

(Thanks to Jessie for making the chocolate cupcakes for us to practice our piping skills) 

The ratio:
1 stick butter (room temp) to 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar to 1 tablespoon milk

(Cream butter and sugar first, then add milk.)

Now that you know the ratio, you can make as big a batch as you need. For a batch of 24 cupcakes, I would double it if I were spreading frosting with a knife, and triple it if I were piping the frosting out with a pastry bag.

As far as flavor is concerned, you can add vanilla, vanilla bean paste, mint extract, coconut extract, etc. (Start with a teaspoon, let your taste guide.)

Cupcakes: Root Beer Float Cupcakes by Larissa

Ingredients

    ¾ cup butter

    3 eggs

    2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

    2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

    ½ teaspoon salt

    1 ½ cups sugar

    1 tablespoon root beer extract

    ½ teaspoon vanilla

    1 ¼  cups root beer

    Float Frosting (see recipe below)

    24 root beer-flavor hard candies (optional)

Directions

1. Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, line twenty four 2-1/2-inch muffin cups with paper liners. In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, about 1/4 cup at a time, beating on medium speed until combined. Scrape sides of bowl; beat on medium speed about 2 minutes more or until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in root beer extract and vanilla. Alternately add flour mixture and root beer to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined.

3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each two-thirds to three-fourths full. Use the back of a spoon to smooth out batter in cups.

4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in muffin cups on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from muffin cups. Cool completely on wire racks.

5. Pipe or spread Float Frosting over cupcakes. If desired, top each cupcake with a root beer-flavor candy and a straw half. Makes 24 (2-1/2-inch) cupcakes.

For Frosting:

¼ cup butter

¾ cup vanilla ice cream

½ teaspoon vanilla

4 cups powdered sugar

Directions

Allow butter to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Allow ice cream to stand at room temperature for 10 minutes. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in 1/2 cup of the ice cream and the vanilla. Gradually beat in powdered sugar. If necessary, stir in enough of the remaining ice cream, 1 tablespoon at a time, to make frosting piping or spreading consistency.

 See original recipe here

Cupcakes: Salted Carmel by Cierra

Salted Carmel Cupcakes

3 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

1 cup unsalted butter

2 1/3 cup packed brown sugar

4 large eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

1¼ cups buttermilk

Beat butter and brown sugar until fluffy.

Add eggs one at a time.  Beat well after each addition.

Add vanilla.

Add dry ingredients, alternating with buttermilk.

Divide into 24 cupcake papers.

Cool and Frost with Salted Carmel Frosting.

Salted Carmel Frosting

1 stick unsalted butter            2 cups packed brown sugar

1 stick salted butter            ½ cup heavy cream

3 to 4 cups powdered sugar

Melt butter in heavy saucepan.  Add brown sugar.  Bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Boil for 3 to 5 minutes, until sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat; add cream.  Cool to room temperature.  Beat in electric mixer add powdered sugar to desired thickness.  Pipe onto cooled cupcakes.  Sprinkle each cupcake with coarse sea salt as soon as you frost it.  Frosting sets quickly, takes very little salt!

Cupcakes: Glazed Donut by Stacey

Cupcakes

1. 1/4 cup butter
2. 1/4 cup vegetable oil
3. 1/2 cup granulated sugar
4. 1/3 cup brown sugar
5. 2 large eggs
6. 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
7. 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
8. 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
9. 1 teaspoon cinnamon
10. 3/4 teaspoon salt
11. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12. 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
13. 1 cup milk

Glaze

1. 3 tablespoons butter; melted
2. 1 cup confectioners’ sugar; sifted
3. 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
4. 2 tablespoons hot water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with muffin liners or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter, vegetable oil, and sugars till smooth. Beat in eggs, one at a time. With the mixer on low speed, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt and vanilla until just combined. Stir the flour into the butter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure everything is thoroughly combined.
3. Spoon batter into cups, filling the cups, and smooth tops. Divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups. Bake until muffin tops are a pale golden and springy to the touch, 15 to 17 minutes, rotating halfway through baking time. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool 10 minutes before glazing.
4. To make the glaze, In a medium bowl mix together the melted butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and water. Whisk until smooth.
5. When muffins have cooled slightly, dip the muffin crown into the glaze and allow the glaze to harden. Once hardened, dip a second time  and allow to harden then serve.

Yields: 12 muffins

Cupcakes: Coconut Macaroon by Rebecca

Recipe Coming Soon!

Cupcakes: Vanilla Bean by Haylie

Found this cupcake recipe HERE for The Ultimate Vanilla Cupcake, and it certainly was that. Anne made her perfect buttercream frosting and added vanilla bean paste and let us practice frosting and they were amazingly delicious!

The Ultimate Vanilla Cupcake Recipe

Yield: 16 cupcakes

• 1 cup (225 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 3/4 cups (175 grams) cake flour, not self-rising
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/3 cup (75 grams) full-fat sour cream
• 1/4 cup canola oil or vegetable oil (60 ml)
• 1 tablespoon pure (not imitation) vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup (160 ml) whole milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).
2. In a small bowl, combine sugar and seeds from the vanilla bean.
3. Using the back of a spoon, move around the bowl and apply pressure to break up any clumps of seeds and to better infuse the vanilla flavor into the sugar. Set aside.
4. In a medium-sized mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, mix together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
5. Add the vanilla bean sugar and mix until well combined.
6. Add butter and mix on medium-low speed for three minutes.  Because there is so little butter, you'll end up with a very fine crumb texture.
7. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, sour cream, oil, and vanilla extract until smooth.
8. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined.
9. Slowly add milk and mix on low speed until just combined.  The batter will be liquid.  (Don't worry, you didn't do anything wrong.  It's supposed to be that way.)
10. Fill cupcake liners just over 1/2 full.
11. Bake for 14 minutes and then test to see if they are done. They are done when a toothpick comes out without wet batter stuck to it.  The cupcakes should appear white with specks of vanilla bean. They should not turn a golden brown.  If they are not done, test again in two minutes.  If they are still not done, test again in another two minutes.
12. When the cupcakes are done, remove them immediately from the tins and leave them on a cooling rack (or just on your counter if you don't own a cooling rack) to cool.