So the more I think about my cupcake addiction (which I totally don't have!), I was thinking that I think the thing I like most about cupcakes is the artictic, decorating aspect. I mean eating cupcakes is always amazing, but I think more than having cupcakes just to eat them, I like creating miniature works of edible art.
Exhibit A: Joe's valentine's day present (well, part of it):
Exhibit B: Close up of the red velvet cupcake pretending to be a ladybug:
Exhibit C: The rest of the cupcake tower. The ladybugs are red velvet, the non-ladybugs are french vanilla:
This is the red velvet cake recipe I used. It is amazing. I got from the What's Cooking board on the Nest:
Red Velvet Cake
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 cups cake flour
2 Tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 ounce red food coloring
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1) Preheat the over to 350 F and line your cupcake tins with paper
2) Cream shortening and sugar then beat in eggs one at a time
3) Sift flour, cocoa and salt together in a small bowl. Add dry ingredients to shortening mix a little at a time alternating with the buttermilk and food coloring
4) Dissolve baking soda into vinegar and fold into the batter.
5) Fill cupcake tins a little more than 1/2 full and bake for 22 minutes, checking for doneness with a toothpick.
6) After removing from oven, alow cakes to cool in the pan for 5 mintues then tranfer to a cooling rack.
7) Once cool, decorate to your creative little heart's content.
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 cups cake flour
2 Tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 ounce red food coloring
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1) Preheat the over to 350 F and line your cupcake tins with paper
2) Cream shortening and sugar then beat in eggs one at a time
3) Sift flour, cocoa and salt together in a small bowl. Add dry ingredients to shortening mix a little at a time alternating with the buttermilk and food coloring
4) Dissolve baking soda into vinegar and fold into the batter.
5) Fill cupcake tins a little more than 1/2 full and bake for 22 minutes, checking for doneness with a toothpick.
6) After removing from oven, alow cakes to cool in the pan for 5 mintues then tranfer to a cooling rack.
7) Once cool, decorate to your creative little heart's content.
