Bon Appetit Desserts (38 page)
Read Bon Appetit Desserts Online
Authors: Barbara Fairchild
These gorgeous lemon cupcakes are filled with dollops of raspberry jam. Half of the cupcakes have a pale yellow lemon glaze; the rest are topped with a pink raspberry-lemon glaze. They’re also delicious warm from the oven and simply dusted with powdered sugar.
Makes 12
¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar, divided
4
½ teaspoons finely grated lemon peel, divided
2 large eggs
1¼ cups self-rising flour
¼ cup buttermilk
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, divided
12 teaspoons plus 1 tablespoon seedless raspberry jam
Fresh raspberries
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 standard (⅓-cup) muffin cups with paper liners. Using electric mixer, beat butter, 1½ cups sugar, and 3 teaspoons lemon peel in large bowl until fluffy and pale yellow. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Beat in half of flour. Beat in buttermilk and 2 tablespoons lemon juice, then remaining flour.
Drop 1 rounded tablespoonful batter into each paper liner. Drop 1 teaspoon raspberry jam onto center of batter. Cover jam with remaining batter.
Bake cupcakes until tester inserted halfway into center comes out clean, about 23 minutes. Cool cupcakes in pan on rack.
Meanwhile, whisk remaining 1½ cups sugar, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and 1½ teaspoons lemon peel in small bowl to blend for icing. Spoon half of icing over 6 cupcakes. Whisk 1 tablespoon raspberry jam into remaining icing. Spoon over remaining cupcakes. Let stand until icing sets, about 30 minutes. Garnish with raspberries.
Icing on the Cupcake
Decorating cupcakes is the perfect chance to be truly creative and have fun. It’s also a great way to get kids involved in baking.
WRAP IT UP
: There are a number of pretty, whimsical, and even elegant foil and paper cupcake liners and wraparounds now available. Try baking supply stores for the biggest selection (see Online and Mail-Order Sources, page 632, for details).
FROST WITH FLAIR
: There are two ways to frost a cupcake. You can spread the frosting on with a knife or offset spatula, or you can pipe it on using a piping bag (see Techniques—The Basics, page 27) or a resealable plastic bag with the corner snipped off. Pipe dots all over the surface of the cupcake for a pretty effect, or draw lines from the edge of the cupcake to the center, all the way around the circumference. Place a candied violet or other decoration in the center.
Create tinted frostings by dividing plain vanilla frosting among as many bowls as you want and adding drops of different food colorings to each. If using the piping method, use a different disposable pastry bag for each color.
TOP IT OFF
: There’s no end to the decorative elements that can go on top of a frosted cupcake. Try chocolate or colored sprinkles, colored sugar crystals, candied confetti, small or cut-up candies, candied or edible flowers, crystallized ginger, chocolate curls, candied orange peel, and whole berries (never use cut fruit; the juices will make the frosting run). For inspiration, play off the occasion, the time of year, or just the flavor of the cupcake when choosing your decorations. A dried banana chip would be clever atop a banana cupcake, for example, and appropriate holiday colors are always a good bet. If your supermarket doesn’t carry a variety of decorations, try a specialty baking store.
TOPPING TIPS
: Dip plain frosted cupcakes in sprinkles or colored sugar crystals (for a completely covered look), or sprinkle them by hand over the tops of the cupcakes (for a lighter look). Create geometric designs using colored candies. On chocolate frosting, use decorations in colors that will stand out against a dark background, such as candied flowers or fresh rose petals, pansies, or edible flowers (purple works especially well on chocolate). Gold leaf and glittery sprinkles in metallic colors are also stunning.
Dip a spoon into melted chocolate (use white chocolate for chocolate frosting) and create zigzag patterns directly atop the cupcakes. Or drizzle the chocolate in thick, heavy irregular lines over a piece of foil; sprinkle with crystallized ginger, chopped nuts, or crushed toffee bits, if desired. Chill until the chocolate is set, then peel pieces off the foil and stand them on edge in the frosting.
Coconut CupcakesCream of coconut gives these cupcakes a delicate coconut flavor. Don’t confuse it with coconut milk—cream of coconut is sweetened with sugar and is available in the liquor or mixers section of most supermarkets. Coconut milk is unsweetened and commonly used in savory Asian soups and curries.
Makes 30
2¾ cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking soda
1⅔ cups sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
⅔ cup canned sweetened cream of coconut (such as Coco Reál or Coco López)
6 ounces Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature
¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
½ cup canned sweetened cream of coconut (such as Coco Reál or Coco López)
1 7-ounce package sweetened flaked coconut
CUPCAKES
: Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 30 standard (⅓-cup) muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, and vanilla in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Beat in half of dry ingredients, then buttermilk, then remaining dry ingredients. Beat in cream of coconut. Fill each paper liner ⅔ full with batter.
Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 18 minutes. Let cool in pans on racks 10 minutes, then transfer cupcakes to racks and cool completely.
FROSTING
: Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar. Beat in cream of coconut. If frosting is too soft to spread, cover and refrigerate until firm enough to spread. Using offset spatula, spread frosting over cupcakes. Place coconut in large shallow bowl. Holding each cupcake over bowl, sprinkle coconut over frosting.
DO AHEAD
:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Arrange cupcakes in roasting pan. Cover pan with foil and let stand at cool room temperature.
Key Lime CupcakesNeon green food coloring gives these cupcakes a vibrant chartreuse color and a fun retro feel, but it can be omitted if desired. The lime peel is what really enhances the fresh lime flavor in the cupcakes.
Makes 12
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
¾ cup self-rising flour
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1¼ cups sugar
2 large eggs
2½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon finely grated lime peel
¼ teaspoon neon green food coloring (optional)
¾ cup buttermilk
1½ cups powdered sugar
1 8-ounce package Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon finely grated lime peel
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
CUPCAKES
: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 standard (⅓-cup) muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk both flours in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add sugar; beat to blend. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then lime juice, lime peel, and food coloring, if using. (Batter may look curdled.) Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with buttermilk in 2 additions. Spoon scant ⅓ cup batter into each liner.
Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in pan. Remove cupcakes from pan; cool completely.
FROSTING
: Using electric mixer, beat all ingredients in medium bowl until smooth. Spread over cupcakes.
Market Tip:
Food Coloring
Food coloring comes in a rainbow of shades these days, so check the color name on the container to be sure it’s the shade you want. You’ll find food coloring in the baking aisle of supermarkets and a wider variety of high-quality food colorings at craft stores like Michael’s and cookware stores like Sur La Table.
Pumpkin CupcakesThese moist, spicy cupcakes are decorated with kid-friendly candy to resemble mini pumpkins. But they’re packed with lots of good-for-you ingredients like pumpkin puree, walnuts, and dried cranberries, so unfrosted, they’re delicious for breakfast or with brunch.
Makes 12
1 cup unbleached all purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
1 large egg
½ cup canned pure pumpkin
⅓ cup canola oil or other vegetable oil
¼ cup buttermilk
⅓ cup chopped walnuts
⅓ cup dried cranberries
4 ounces Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Orange gel food coloring
Sour green apple straws
Sour green apple candy tape
CUPCAKES
: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 12 standard (⅓-cup) muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and cloves in medium bowl to blend.
Whisk egg in large bowl to blend; whisk in pumpkin, oil, and buttermilk. Stir in flour mixture until just blended. Stir in walnuts and cranberries. Spoon batter into paper liners. Bake cupcakes until golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool in pan on rack 5 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to rack and cool completely.
FROSTING
: Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter in large bowl until light. Beat in sugar and vanilla. Mix in orange food coloring by drops to reach desired shade. If frosting is very soft, cover and refrigerate until firm enough to hold shape.