Cookie Recipe Contest

Over at Mixing Bowl there is this great little contest for original cookie recipes. I have entered my Cranberry & White Chocolate Chippers, so if you like the recipe please click here to vote for them :) Thanks!

#43) Minty Brownie Drops

Since I started this blog I have tried dozens of new recipes.... leaving some old favorites behind. I guess with precious time to spare in the kitchen I find repeating recipes boring.

However, today I had an undeniable craving for my minty brownies, but did not want to spend my baking time with an already-accomplished recipe. So, I took that brownie recipe and tweaked it to come up with a matching cookie recipe.

And the result? Well let's just say I am home alone, and the cookies are almost gone :)

Ingredients

2/3 cup shortening
1 1/3 cups brown sugar (I used dark but light would be fine)
1 tbsp water
1 tsp mint extract
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups flour
1/3 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 cup chocolate chips (I would have used mint chips if I had had any)

Steps

-Preheat oven to 350°F.
-Cream shortening, sugar, water, and extract. Add eggs. Beat well.
-Stir together dry ingredients and add to sugar mixture in three additions. Mix well.
-Stir in chips.
-Drop by tablespoonful onto lined baking sheet (I used a silicone sheet, but parchment paper would do).
-Bake for 10 minutes.
-Let cool on wire rack.

My First Blog Awards!

I received a couple of awards from Liesl quite some time ago, and it the rush of life, forgot to post about it....



This "lemonade award" was for being a refreshing blog...



And this one for being downright fabulous :)

I want to pass these on to some of my favorite blogs:

Joy the Baker
How to Eat a Cupcake
Dine and Dish
Rosie
the chocolate and peanut butter gallery

Please:
Add the awards to your blog.
Link to the person who gave you them.
Nominate other refreshingly fabulous blogs you love (with their links).
Leave a message for your nominees in their blogs, informing them about the award.

Caramel Macchiato "Cuppas"

Entry #2 folks!!! This month's theme is coffee, and judging by the submissions to date, it is going to be one tough competition :)

Our February ETSY PRIZE-PACK is from artists:

DIANAEVANS - http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5599270
as well as a pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6057281.
PLUS, IronCupcake:Earth can not forget our good friend, CAKESPY, http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5243382, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice - sweet!
As an added bonus for February, SWEET CUPPIN CAKES BAKERY AND CUPCAKERY SUPPLY will be tossing in a variety of cupcaking supplies, http://www.acupcakery.com/index.html.

Last and certainly not least, don’t forget our corporate prize providers: HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS, http://www.fiestaproducts.com, HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson, http://blog.hellocupcakebook.com, JESSIE STEELE APRONS http://www.jessiesteele.com; TASTE OF HOME books, http://www.tasteofhome.com; a t-shirt from UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM http://www.upwithcupcakes.com/. Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers, http://www.1800flowers.com .

I decided to put a cupcake spin on one of my favorite caffinated drinks - the Caramel Macchiato from Coffee Matters in St. John's NL. This comforting drink has the perfect blend of strong coffe and sweet caramel!

My cupcake starts with a coffee cupcake base, and when I say "coffee" I mean strong coffee - a good jolt to start off the day with. Inside there is a gooey centre drenched in homemade caramel sauce - a nice way to cut the good-but-bitter bite of the coffee. A nice swirl of sweet and smooth buttercream tops it all off - just for that sweet tooth.



Coffee Cupcake

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
4 1/2 tbsp instant coffee granules
3/4 cup water

Steps

- Preheat oven to 360°F and line 12 muffin cups with papers.
- Cream butter and sugar together. Add vanilla. Mix. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition.
- Add dry ingredients, including coffee, and mix well. Mixture will be slightly dry.
- Add water 1/4 cup at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Divide between the 12 muffin cups.
- Bake for 20-22 minutes. Let cool.

Caramel Sauce

Ingredients

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup water
6 tbsp butter (real butter, margarine will not taste right)
1/2 cup evaporated milk

Steps

- Put sugar and water in a deep sauce pan. Heat over med heat. Whisk until crystals are dissolved.
- Allow syrup to boil at the same temp for several minutes until an amber color begins to show. Add butter and whisk until melted. Remove from heat and count to five.
- Add milk slowly, whisking constantly. The mixture will bubble so be careful!
- Let cool slightly then transfer to a mason jar to cool overnight.
- Keep refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

Buttercream

I used the leftover icing form my Valentine's cake, found here.

Assembly

- Let cupcakes cool til slightly above room temp.
- Transfer caramel to a squirt bottle. Poke tip of bottle into tops of cupcakes and squeeze. The caramel will soak into the cake, giving you the gooey centre, so let them sit and top the holes up several times before icing.
- Pipe buttercream onto filled cupcakes.
- Eat and lick your fingers :)

#42) Chocolate Heart Cake

Well guys, it's almost love day <3

We had an awesome activity at school today for the kids to kick off the love-fest that is Valentine's Day - a cake auction!!!!

Now, I am a cake lover, and I do not discriminate, BUT scratch cakes are the best, and when they are chocolate they are even better - so what better kind to offer up to the cake auction gods than a dark, rich, and moist chocolate cake????

I know the decorating leaves much to be desired, but I am only learning (this is only the 2nd cake I have ever decorated). Please send me along any tips or hints to make it easier or prettier :)

Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup plain yogurt
2 tbsp strong coffee
1 3/4 cup flour
1 cup cocoa
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Steps

-Preheat oven to 350°F and grease and flour your pan.
-Cream butter and sugars. Add eggs, vanilla, buttermilk, yogurt, and coffee.
-Sift together dry ingredients. Add to wet ingredients in three additions, mixing well after each addition. (Try not to lick the spoon yet!!!)
-Pour into prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes.
-Let cool completely before frosting.

Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
2 tsp vanilla
4 cups icing sugar
2 tbsp milk

Steps

-Cream shortening and butter together. Add vanilla. Mix.
-Add icing sugar in several additions, mixing well after each addition.
-Mix in milk.
-Decorate :)

#41) Cranberry & White Chocolate Chippers

So this past Sunday was an interesting day for me...

Since moving back to Labrador again for the winter I decided I was going to make a good effort to enjoy some of the outdoor life the Big Land has to offer. This "good effort" led to my first foray into cross-country skiing ever!!! What a wonderful day the fiance and I had. It was SO fun, even when I was lying on my butt in the middle of the trail LOL!

The local ski club, which offers amazing trails with beautiful views, is volunteer run, so to pitch in I decided it would be a good idea to bring some cookies by for all the skiers to snack on... and a little birdie told me they were very good :)

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries

Steps

-Preheat oven to 350°F. I used a silicone baking sheet, but if you don't have one, grease your pan.

-Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla. Mix well.

-Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to butter mixture in several additions. The dough will be slightly crumbly.

-Stir in chips and cranberries.

-Drop onto pan by tablespoonfuls and bake for 20 minutes. Makes about 4 dozen cookies.