Recipe Box: Bananas Foster Frosting w/ Pumpkin Carrot Cupcakes

Hello darlings!

Tis the season for baking, that's for sure.  About a year or so back, I posted my recipe for pumpkin carrot cupcakes...yum, right?  Anyhow, as all things pumpkin and delicious seem to be the go to flavor through the fall and winter seasons, this recipe has made it's way into my kitchen yet again and again.  This time around, I gave it an extra punch of flavory goodness by making Bananas Foster frosting...yes, that's right, I did say Bananas Foster!  And not to toot my own horn, but this frosting is pretty much so to die for with it's blend of bananas, brown sugar, cinnamon, and rum.  I altered the original recipe a bit and & added cream cheese, because let's be real, cream cheese just makes everything so much more yummy.  So without further ado...here is the glorious frosting recipe:  

// To see the recipe for the actual pumpkin carrot cupcakes, JUMP HERE. //

Bananas Foster Frosting

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup banana, mashed (about 1 large banana)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar 
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 Tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 Tablespoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons dark rum (I actually used Brandy b/c that's what I had on hand.)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:

Mash banana in a small bowl with the lemon juice.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter & cream cheese until smooth.
Add mashed banana and beat until well incorporated and smooth.
Add powdered sugar, one cup at a time (while slowly mixing).  
Add brown sugar, cinnamon, rum and vanilla.
Beat until all ingredients are well incorporated, and frosting is light and fluffy.

Original recipe adapted from here.

Now frost those sweet little cakes and enjoy!  For photo taking purposes, I frosted my cakes as soon as they came out of the oven and well - the frosting melted a bit just like Frosty the Snowman on a hot day.  Wait till your cakes are cooled down though and I promise your frosting will look much prettier than mine! 

Happiest Sunday Darlings!

What I Baked // October Edition: Pumpkin Carrot Cupcakes with Maple Frosting

Hello and happy Monday Darlings!

Well this weekend was certainly another busy one and has unfortunately left me with a little fall cold of sorts, but nothing some hot tea and a nice big bowl of soup can't cure.  In my case of the sniffles, I always get the urge to bake up something sweet and delicious - I blame that fully on my sweet-tooth.  Anyhow, these pumpkin carrot cupcakes with maple cinnamon frosting have been a favorite since Autumn began and this was my fifth time giving these little cakes a go because they are just that yummy and easy to make.

What You Need:
Cakes:
2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
4 eggs at room temperature and lightly beaten
1 ½ cups sugar
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
15 oz. can pumpkin puree
2 cups shredded carrots
½ cup sweetened coconut flakes

Frosting:
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven at 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and baking soda and set aside.

In a medium bowl blend eggs, sugar, applesauce and pumpkin puree.  Add in flour mixture until well combined followed by shredded carrots and coconut flakes.

Pour in to lined cupcake tins ⅔ full.  Bake for 18-20 minutes until cake tester comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack.

FROSTING: 

Make sure the butter & cream cheese are SOFT. Beat the butter in bowl with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese and beat together until well blended.

Add the maple syrup and cinnamon. Mix until well combined.

Gradually add the powdered sugar, beating until light and fluffy, and frosting consistency is formed.

 **If frosting is too thick for your liking, you can add 1 tablespoon of milk at a time until it reaches the desired consistency.**.

Pipe a dollop of frosting onto the cakes, sprinkle with a little cinnamon and Enjoy!

(Recipe adapted from here & here)

Is your pumpkin craving satisfied?

Before going I just want to thank everyone who stopped by our blog hop.  It's been fun meeting many of you and discovering so many gorgeous blogs.  

Now I'm back to my warm blanket and hot cup of tea.  I'll be back to my normal antics tomorrow.

Catch you then!

Love Bunches, 

What I Baked // Bridal Shower Edition: Lemon Lavender Honey Cupcakes

Oh hello there darlings, 

Just as promised, here is the recipe I used to make my lemon lavender honey cupcakes for my sister's bridal shower.  These were definitely a special occasion cupcake as the hubs and I actually purchased a lavender plant from the nursery to makes these babies.  Truth be told, you can actually just use dried lavender flowers, however, how much more lovely is it now that we can take care of our little plant and have lavender to use whenever we want?!  Anyhoo, I've already made these darling little cakes twice and both times they've gone off like a hit.  

On a side note - I decided to get extra fancy schmancy this time around and fill them with this lemon curd and cream cheese filling which I took from a tart recipe off Mary-Morgan's blog, The Muffington Post, which was very delicious in itself.  So if you do try your hand with these delightful little cakes, be sure to give me a holler and let me know how it goes.

Lemon Lavender Honey Cupcakes:

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 4 sprigs of fresh lavender or 1/2 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
• 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 3 tablespoons lavender honey (I ordered mine from Amazon.com)
•  Zest of one lemon
• 1 cup all purpose flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 cup milk

• Preheat the oven to 350°F; line a 12 count muffin pan with paper liners.
• Put the sugar and lavender flowers in a food processor. Process briefly to combine.
• Tip the lavender sugar into a bowl with the butter and beat together until pale and fluffy.
• Beat the eggs into the butter mixture, one at a time, then add in lemon zest and lavender honey. Next sift in the flour and fold gently. Add baking powder and salt.  Stir in the milk, then spoon the mixture into the muffin cups.
• Bake for about 18 minutes until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.          

Filling

• 1 cup lemon curd (you can make your own, or use store bought) 
• 8oz. pack of cream cheese, at room temperature.

Using an electric mixer, mix together until blended into a creamy consistency.  Once the cakes have cooled, use a paring knife to remove a "plug" from your cupcakes.   Fill hole with lemon cream curd.

Frosting

• 1 stick butter, room temperature
• 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons lavender honey 
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar 

Beat butter, cream cheese, and honey together until combined. Beat in sugar until stiff enough.
Frost cupcakes and top with a blueberry. 

Adapted from  Yummy Mummy Kitchen

                                                           

* Oh and those other chocolate cupcakes you see in the photo are my Bailey's Toffee Espresso ones.  You can find that recipe here.

Until next time!

Love Bunches, 

What I Bake: Nutella Cupcakes with Nutella Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

Well hello there darlings!

Just as promised here is the Nutella cupcake recipe that helped me survive multiple rounds of company in and out of my house last weekend.  The original recipe was taken from here and modified just a tad.  It's as easy as pie and because the recipe yields 36 delicious little cakes - I simply could not go wrong.  Every last one went and were a big hit - so if Nutella and peanut butter are your things, I would most certainly recommend giving these sweeties a go.

What you'll need:
To Cake:

2/3 cup Nutella
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
2 1/2 cups plain greek yogurt (or the same amount of buttermilk)

To Frost:

6 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup Nutella
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

For the Cupcakes:
1. Line 3 dozen muffin cups with cupcake liners or grease using non-stick spray. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Sift together flour & cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar for 5 minutes, until it is pale and thick. Add in the butter. Mix until combined. Add in the nutella. Now, add in the yogurt. Beat until well incorporated.

4. Add the flour mixture in 3 increments and beat until smooth. Divide batter into the cupcake tins. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Do not over-bake. Remove from oven and let cool completely before frosting.

Nutella Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting:

Cream the butter and cream cheese in the large mixing bowl of a stand mixture. Add the nutella, peanut butter and vanilla and continue to cream. Slowly incorporate the powdered sugar as you continue to cream. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat on high speed until fluffy and smooth, adding milk or additional sugar (if needed) to reach desired consistency.

Frost the cupcakes and garnish with shaved milk chocolate or jimmies. Ooh la la - you will soon find out how heavenly these are :)

I'm finally back home from this exciting little week.   I have much to share, but for now I must do some catching up with all of you.  See ya soon and happy weekend!

Love Bunches, 

What I Baked: White Chocolate Banana Cupcakes w/ Honey Cinnamon Frosting

Happy Friday Darlings!

As promised, here is my banana cupcake recipe that was a big hit last week when I had some company over. I'm quite the bananaholic as well as cupcake obsessor so this seemed to be the perfect combination for me. I took the main parts of my recipe from here & here and modified them just a bit to make them my own. 

What you will need:

Cakes:
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup mashed ripe bananas & 1 extra non ripe banana for garnish.
1/4 cup buttermilk (if you don't have buttermilk, you can use 1/4 of plain yogurt)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup white baking chips

Truth be told - I did not use white chocolate chips in my cupcakes - though I wish I had as they taste absolutely delicious when thrown into a batch. I happened to have a bottle of Godiva white chocolate liqueur laying around that someone gave me as a gift so I used 1/2 cup of that instead - since I realize most people don't have this readily available in their house, I know that white chocolate chips would be a fantastic substitute.

Honey-Cinnamon Frosting:
2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp.
3 tablespoons of honey
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon

These are my approximate measurements for the honey and ground cinnamon. You can use more or less depending on how sweet and cinnamon-y you prefer it to taste. I love honey and cinnamon both, so I went a bit more heavy handed then the original recipe called for.  Also, I don't use a ton of frosting on the cupcakes.  Since frosting is sooooo sweet, I always tend to just give my cakes a nice coating instead of piling it on.

Directions:
1. (Preheat oven to 350.) In a large mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugar. Add the eggs, vanilla, bananas and buttermilk.

2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to banana mixture.

3. Fill 18 paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.

4. While baking, begin making your frosting. In a large bowl use an electric mixer to beat your confectioners' sugar, unsalted butter, honey, and ground cinnamon until smooth - approximate 5-6 minutes. Frost cupcakes.

5. Top with a slice of banana if desired and sprinkle with a little extra ground cinnamon on top of the cupcakes as well as on the plate for a little added touch of sweet.

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Now put a cheesy smile on your face and enjoy with your friends:)

If you happen to give these a try, be sure to let me know what you think.

Catch you tomorrow darlings!

xx