Fresh Picked Strawberries!

 There's nothing like fresh picked strawberries!  Look at those beautiful berries!  We came home from the local farm with almost five pounds of strawberries...fresh picked by Little Man, C and I.  Strawberry picking is so much fun.  It's all about picking out the perfect berry...and we picked out a ton of them.  With all these strawberries laying around, I had to get a little creative in how to use them before they spoiled.  Besides just eating them straight from the bucket (which we have done our fair share of), I've also whipped up a few new strawberry creations for us to try.  I'm a HUGE fan of the strawberry, it might be my favorite fruit!  Any time I can scoop up fresh strawberries, I do...then I start the experiments!  So far this week, I have made Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream, Balsamic Strawberries and Strawberry Cupcakes!  And I'm here to share all of the recipes with you today!  It is most definitely your Lucky Day! :)

 Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream
2 cups fresh strawberries
2 cups whipping cream
1 cup half and half
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 drop red food coloring

Place strawberries in food processor and blend until smooth.  In your ice cream canister, mix strawberries with remaining ingredients.  Stir until sugar is dissolved.  Freeze according to your ice cream mixer directions.  **Obviously all ice cream makers are a little different.  We have a Sunbeam Ice Cream/Frozen Yogurt Maker that works just fine for us.  Nothing fancy, makes just enough for a few days!  It usually takes it about 18-25 minutes to mix and then you store it in the freezer for a few hours to harden.  Oh, and this recipe came from the "users guide" for the machine!**

Fresh strawberry ice cream is my signal that summer is on the way.  I can honestly say that I've had the ice cream mixer since before C and I got married (5 1/2 years ago) and didn't use it once until last summer.  I found it stashed away in our kitchen cabinets and it has since become my new summer friend!  This recipe is so fluffy and creamy, and just the right sweetness!  Yum, whip some up the next time you see some really great strawberries!

Experiment #2:  I will have to say that I was a little leery of this next recipe.  I only sliced up about a cup of the strawberries just in case we didn't like the recipe.  Well guess what, we did like them and wished I had made a few more.  This recipe is so unconventional and not something I would ever think to make, but I'm in a creative mood and couldn't resist.  Trust me, the ingredient list sounds very weird but you need to try these!

 Balsamic Strawberries
Adapted from: Ina Garten
1 cup strawberries
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
Pinch of fresh black pepper

Combine all ingredients and let set at room temperature for 30 minutes to one hour!  That's it, so simple.  So irresistibly delicious!

And for my GRAND FINALE!

Sprinkles Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Frosting
 Sprinkles Recipe from Martha Stewart
For the Cupcakes:

2/3 cup whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

1/4 cup whole milk, room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 large egg, room temperature

2 large egg whites, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.Place strawberries in a small food processor; process until pureed. You should have about 1/3 cup of puree, add a few more strawberries if necessary or save any extra puree for frosting; set aside.  In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla, and strawberry puree; set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until well combined and fluffy. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add egg and egg whites until just blended.  With the mixer on low, slowly add half the flour mixture; mix until just blended. Add the milk mixture; mix until just blended. Slowly add remaining flour mixture, scraping down sides of the bowl with a spatula, as necessary, until just blended.  Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Transfer muffin tin to oven and bake until tops are just dry to the touch, 22 to 25 minutes. Transfer muffin tin to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool completely in tin before icing.

For the Frosting:

1/2 cup whole frozen strawberries, thawed

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold

Pinch of coarse salt

3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Place strawberries in the bowl of a small food processor; process until pureed. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined. Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons strawberry puree; mix until just blended. Frosting consistency should be dense and creamy, like ice cream.

Yields: 12 delightful cupcakes

Oh me, oh my!  I've made some really good cupcakes lately, but these take the cake!  Seriously, pardon my terrible pun, but it's true!  The fresh strawberries in this recipe are so light and fresh!  They really make these cupcakes outstanding!  I've never been a huge fan of fruit flavored cupcakes, but these little babies convinced me that fruit and cake can coexist peacefully.  Can you see the strawberry flecks in the frosting?  Pureeing these before mixing them in is the right thing to do.  You get all the great flavor and the pretty color, but you don't have massive chunky frosting!  These are quite possibly my new favorite cupcakes...at least until I find my next experiment!  I have a feeling I'll be making a lot more of these.  Especially if we keep picking strawberries five pounds at a time! :)

Andes Mint Cupcakes

I'm in love!  Yes it's true!  I'm in love with this new cupcake that was just concocted in my kitchen.  Do you know what I'm even more in love with?  My sweet hubby...I made this delightful treat to celebrate the big 3-0 today!  On the count of three everyone saw "Ahhh, that's so sweet!"  One, Two, Three!  Or just make a yucky face at the computer if you don't think it's sweet!

So there's no hiding the fact that Andes Mints are high up on my list of holiday treats.  Haven't noticed?  Check these out...Andes Mint Cake Balls and Creme de Menthe Truffles.  Seeing how popular the Andes Mint Cake Balls are, I just knew I had to experiment in cupcake form.  Generally I wouldn't use a boxed cake mix, I would use this recipe; but today I didn't have the time to whip up a from scratch batch.  It's okay to use a boxed mix when you need too, they have perfected some of those mixes so why not take advantage of it? I chose the Duncan Hines Butter Recipe Fudge for this cupcake.  I knew that I wanted something extra decadent and rich, and it seemed like the perfect match.  I let the cupcakes bake according to the package directions, let them cool for a bit and then whipped up a Mint Buttercream Frosting.  Oh.my.goodness!  I could prepare a batch of this and eat it like ice cream, it is that good people.   I almost didn't want to put it on my cupcakes, I almost sat down in front of the tv with a bowl and spoon.  Okay, that might be a little bit of an exaggeration.  That might be even a little too sweet for me! :)  After piping on the frosting, I adorned the cupcakes with Andes Mint baking chips, just to give it a little something!  One bite of these tasty treats and you will be dancing for joy.  Just make sure no one is watching, okay?

Mint Buttercream Frosting
Generously frosts 12, meagerly frosts about 18-20
Double the recipe if you are a frosting gal
Recipe adapted from:Chocylit
1 stick of butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1/8 cup milk
1/4 teaspoon pure mint extract
3-4 drops green food coloring
Cream the butter with an electric mixer until smooth.  Add the powdered sugar, milk, mint extract and food coloring until nice and creamy.  Frosting will be thick enough to pipe using this recipe!

Happy Birthday C!  Another decade down, many more fantastic ones to come!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes

Wow...Amanda over at KevinandAmanda.com has outdone herself today!  She made some fantastic looking chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes.  Hurry, click here to see these amazing creations.  I guess I know what's next on my list of cupcake experiments.  Can't wait to try them out...maybe this week!  Oh how I love her website...there are so many fantastic, amazing, wonderful things to find there!

Chocolate Dulce de Leche Cupcakes

Chocolate+Caramel=Delicious

That's really all you need to know about these cupcakes.  I used this recipe to create these yummy cupcakes last week, and let me tell you they didn't last long!  I shared them with our small group and they went over quite well! :)

The chocolate base of the cupcake was so moist and crumbly.  There was a slight hint of the dulce de leche in each bite, which worked out much better than my caramel candy experiment that you can read about here.  The frosting was super sweet (at least to me)...I will try to adjust the ingredients the next time I make it.  I'm thinking that if I leave out a spoonful of the dulce de leche it will help...I used the maximum that she called for in the recipe.

As C says, "Each cupcake that I try gets better and better!"  That's really the only review you need.  He's basically a cupcake connoisseur, so if he likes them so will you! :)

I knew that these cupcakes needed to be transported, so I broke in my new cupcake carousel!  It's this gigantic container in the shape of a cupcake that holds 24 standard size cupcakes.  Here it is stacked up with cupcakes.

You can see that my cupcakes weren't "standard" by their standards.  I had to cram them in each layer to actually fit 8 per tier.  It's probably because these cupcakes are so puffy at the top!  Either way, I love it and can't wait to use it more!  I found mine at HEB, but they are already gone.  I did find it online here if you want to check it out!  It also comes in a pretty hot pink color.

Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

 

Up next on the cupcake list: Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting.  I scoured the web for the "best" vanilla cupcake recipe I could find.  I read a lot about Magnolia Bakery's Vanilla Cupcakes.  They look incredible, but I read mixed reviews.  I finally decided to try this recipe.  This recipe called for yogurt, and I wasn't sure how that would turn out.  They took much longer to bake then the suggested 15-20 minutes...I think it was more like 25 minutes.  Once cooled, I frosted them with this Chocolate Cream Cheese frosting.  Scroll all the way to the bottom for the recipe. I used my standard Nestle Cocoa Powder to create the frosting, I don't buy into the Premium Cocoa Powder hype! :)  Chocolate is chocolate and that's fine with me!

Verdict:  The yogurt gave the cupcakes a very dense texture.  They didn't puff up like you would expect a cupcake to, which could have contributed to the longer bake time.  They weren't super sweet, and we could actually eat more than one at a time.  The frosting had a very distinct cream cheese flavor.  It was very easy to pipe and had a nice smooth, creamy texture.  I used my Wilton Jumbo 1M tip for the piping.  They turned out much cuter than the previous batch.  We kept the cupcakes stored in the refrigerator so that the cream cheese frosting would stay cold.  C said that he preferred the cupcakes cold!  Even Little Man had a whole cupcake, sans frosting.  His tummy isn't sold on chocolate just yet, so we try to avoid it when we can!

If you are looking for a good go-to cupcake that isn't super sweet, this may be your cupcake!

Chocolate Caramel Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting

Wow...you must make these! They were so rich, fluffy and delicious. I used this recipe for the base of the cupcakes. I altered it some by placing a caramel candy into each cupcake before baking. When these came out of the oven, the smell was like walking into your very own bakery.

For the frosting I chose a peanut butter buttercream. I searched for a recipe and finally ended up combining a couple.

Here's what I did:
2 cups confectioner’s sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 creamy peanut butter
2 Tbs milk

With an electric mixer, beat together sugar, and butter until creamy. Add peanut butter, beating well. Add milk and beat until smooth and creamy. The icing will seem very stiff, but is quite easy to pipe.

Verdict:  The cupcakes were moist and crumbly.  They were so decadent, I could only eat one at a time (but we did finish off the dozen during the weekend...did I mention that we have sweet teeth?).  The melted caramel in the center left a gooey layer of sweet, sticky goodness near the bottom of the cupcake.  Next time, I'll add more caramel to each one.  Have you seen the caramel bits in the chocolate chip aisle...next time I'll experiment with them.  The frosting was very peanut buttery...if that's a word.  If you like peanut butter, this is the recipe for you.  Next time I might cut down on the peanut butter, though my better half might not agree!  He's a fan!  We even let Little Man try them, and he was more than happy to eat more!

As a final note, I am working on my piping skills, obviously.  It's evident that I didn't use the right tip and promptly went out and bought the Wilton Jumbo 1M tip.  Much better!  The next cupcake experiment turned out better!  I also have very limited food photography skills, though I am trying to get better.  I've been reading blog after blog on just about every aspect of food photography, cupcake recipes, blog design and who knows what else!  Bear with me as I start this crazy ride!