Tag Archives: Cupcakes

A Very Special Day

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Today, my friends, is a very special day on The Dreaming Foodie.

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Yes, that’s right, it is Amanda’s birthday!

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I’ve told you about Amanda before. She is my best friend. And let me tell you — I’m so very lucky that the person who is my best friend is one of the kindest and greatest human beings I know. 

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I couldn’t have picked a better person to be my best friend since the day I was born. 

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A beautiful person like Amanda deserves nothing less than a beautiful birthday.

Amanda, I made these Pumpkin S’mores Cupcakes just for you. I thought that you would love the pumpkin + chocolate combo :). And, they are from one of our favorite blogs, How Sweet It Is!

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Even though you aren’t technically eating one, know that they were done just for you! And, I think you’d be happy to know that I enjoyed enough for the both of us :). 

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So, Dreaming Foodie readers, even if you don’t personally know Amanda, trust me when I say that there is no one more deserving of a happy birthday than her, and join me in wishing Amanda the happiest of days today and forever! 

Amanda, happy birthday! You are the most kind, caring, fun, generous, loving friend! Enjoy every moment of this special day!

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Maraschino Cherry + Vanilla Cupcakes

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If you’ve been reading my blog for the past week or so, you know I went to D.C. over spring break.

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While there, we were hoping to see the famous D.C. cherry blossoms. We went during the National Cherry Blossom Festival after all. Well, the blossoms had not yet bloomed.

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It was okay, though. We still had a great time and seeing the blossoms is still on our list of things to do and see.

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We ate so much good food while in D.C. Sweets were consumed multiple times daily. I was not complaining about that at all.

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We visited a bakery in Georgetown called Baked and Wired. It had to be my favorite sweet place we went to all weekend. The selection of sweets was impressive. The atmosphere was cool. The location was amazing. It was an all-around lovable place.

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The cupcake I got? Out of this world. It was a special for the weekend — a cherry blossom cupcake.

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I took one bite and couldn’t help but just devour the rest (really fast). It was undeniably good. Sweet, fluffy and full of cherry flavor. It reminded me of cherry vanilla ice cream, which I just love. I knew I had to recreate that cupcake.

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I thought and thought and here is what I came up with.

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This cupcake is sweet. I did not make the cupcake part itself overly sweet because I knew the icing would make up for it. The vanilla bean studded batter is made even more fantastic by chopped up maraschino cherries. I love the texture they add to the cupcake.

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The buttercream icing is sweetened with maraschino cherry juice. It is sweet, smooth and delicious on top of this cupcake.

These were loved by my family, I hope that you love them too!

Makes 24 cupcakes

For the cupcake:
3 c. flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 sticks of butter, softened
1 1/2 c. white sugar
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1 cup milk (I used almond)
1/3 c. maraschino cherry juice
Seeds scraped from 1 vanilla bean
1 1/2 cups chopped maraschino cherries

Preheat oven to 350*. Prepare your cupcake pan. Place cupcake liners in pan and lightly grease, if desired.

In a bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Use a whisk to stir. Set aside.

Pour milk and cherry juice into a bowl and add seeds from vanilla bean. Mix well, to incorporate vanilla bean. Set aside.

In another bowl, beat together butter and sugar. Beat very well, until light and smooth. Add eggs and egg whites, one at a time, beating well between each addition. Next, add a little bit of the flour mixture, mix and then add a little bit of the milk mixture. I added 1/2 cup each at a time and mixed between each addition. Repeat until all ingredients are combined. Gently stir in chopped maraschino cherries.

Scoop batter into muffin liners. Bake for 15-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

For the buttercream icing:
2 sticks of butter, softened
2 c. powdered sugar
6 T. maraschino cherry juice
2 T. milk

Add butter and sugar to a bowl. Mix with a handheld or stand mixer until well combined, soft and light. Add cherry juice and milk, slowly until you reach a consistency and sweetness that you like. I used 6 Tbsp. cherry juice and 2 Tbsp. milk total, but adjust according to your taste.

Once cupcakes are completely cool, top with buttercream.

Enjoy!

Roasted Banana Bread + Maple Buttercream Mini Cupcakes

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I’ve got a little treat for your Friday.

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And, I know these cupcakes have a long name.

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They can’t just be banana cupcakes because roasting the bananas take these to a different place than non-roasted bananas would. And, they can’t just be roasted banana cupcakes because they kind of remind me of banana bread. A little. In a good, delicious way.

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The maple buttercream is delicious. I want you to try it soo bad!

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And I made mine mini. Because they are cute, and pop-able. And yes, eating three at once is okay. Because they are mini!

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Now, if you desire a true cakey cupcake, these may not be for you. BUT they are so delicious and worth a try if you’re a little scared. They are moist and a little dense, packed with flavor — incredible. The combination of roasted bananas + maple buttercream = wow. So, so good.

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Also, don’t be intimidated by the ingredient/step list. I have it broken down into sections, so it looks more complicated than it really is.

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I think you are really going to enjoy these!

Method

Banana Cupcakes:

To begin:

Place 24 mini cupcake liners into two mini cupcake pans. Grease liners.

Start with:

2 bananas

Preheat oven to 400*. Cut bananas in half, lengthwise, and place on a baking sheet. Roast in preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until soft and skin is black. Set aside and let cool completely. Reduce oven heat to 350*.

Next:

1 c. cake flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

Place all four ingredients in a mixing bowl. Stir well with a whisk.

Then:

1/3 c. milk (I used almond)
2 cooled, roasted bananas (from above)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Mix together in a bowl.

5 Tbsp. butter, softened
1/2 c. white sugar
1 egg, at room temperature, beaten

Beat butter and sugar in a bowl until smooth. Add half the egg to the butter/sugar mixture. Beat until just combined. Add half of the banana mixture to the butter/sugar. Beat until just combined. Add remaining egg and banana mixture and mix until combined. Add to dry ingredients and, using a wooden spoon, mix until just combined.

Fill the muffin liners with batter, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake in 350* oven for 8-12 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

Maple Buttercream

1 stick unsalted butter, very soft
3/4 c. powdered sugar
1.5 tsp. pure maple syrup
Small dash of salt

Beat butter until soft, fluffy and completely smooth. Add powdered sugar and beat well. Add maple syrup and salt and mix until combined.

Pipe buttercream onto cupcakes.

*Notes
-This made 24 mini cupcakes for me.
– Decorate cupcakes with sprinkles, chopped pecans or even sliced bananas!

Enjoy!