October 4th, 2009

So I decided to take advantage of the 3rd Ave. feast on Oct. 4th. I can't wait! The only thing I'm a little nervous about is all the cupcake competition in the area! Mine may be better, but how do I convince people to try them out with so many others around?

So my plan is to make some standard chocolate and golden and then focus on some specialty flavors. I plan on having lots of my PB&J's, red velvet, chocolate beer, a coconut, a chocolate cherry and I'm working on a strawberry. I can't wait! Save the date!!!!

I really hope to do as well in Bay Ridge as I did in Coney.

Banana Nut Cupcakes

Ok... decided to try out a new recipe. Banana Nut cupcakes!

I love banana nut, so I hope these are as delicious as they look!

I already tried one while it was still hot and I'm not quite sure if it's "cupcake" or "muffin", but it was delicious. As soon as it cools i'm going to top one with some cream cheese frosting and then judge it's "cupcake" quality.

10 minutes later....

Ok, they cooled enough to be frosted and eaten. I tried one with peanut butter frosting and one with cream cheese. They were both incredibly delicious, but slightly more muffin like. They are very moist, but dense. I guess my hunt continues for the perfect banana cupcake recipe.

BEER CUPCAKES!

I've been dying to try these and OMG did they come out amazing! They don't taste much like beer at all, but they are incredibly moist and chocolaty.

I was going to top these with a chocolate frosting, but since I had some beer left in the bottle (I halved the recipe) I decided to pour some into vanilla buttercream. I would like to try these again with chocolate stout I found at a local grocery store.

Mr. Met cake

Ok, so were working on a Mr. Met birthday cake for Friday. I want it to be perfect. I know it's only Tuesday, but I'm already stressing out. I woke up today and baked 2 red velvet sheet cakes (3 if you count the one that somehow boiled into a syrup because my oven got too hot, which has never happened before so I don't know what that's about)

For about 2 weeks we have been discussing the size of Mr. Mets head. I have a ball pan from Wilton, but it just didn't seem big enough. Then I have a much larger ball pan with an 8" diameter, but that looked too big.

We also planned on using cake for the head, but after a trial run using the red velvet cake we came to the conclusion that it's just too soft. There just arent enough dowels in the world to get a round ball of soft red velvet cake to stay on top of a 4 layer red velvet cake without falling right over. (Trial cake was then broken down into red velvet balls for the 4th of July, I just can't justify wasting cake lol)

So, Rice Krispie treat ball it is! And the best part was that we didn't need a pan to shape it. It took a double batch of the gooey treat to create this giant head by hand, but at least I know I won't have to worry (too much) about it rolling off before they cut into it.

The majority of the body is already stacked and frosted with cream cheese frosting and chilling overnight before we cover it with some home made marshmallow fondant. We just have to build the arms out of the rest of the cake and I will also need to whip up a 3rd batch of cream cheese frosting. I also made buttercream to coat the ball with before we cover it so it's nice and smooth.

Mike is currently shaping out the tiny Met's hat from a 50/50 blend of regular fondant and gum paste dyed royal blue. This should take about 2 days to set. I am so excited to see this all come together! I'm sure it's gonna look great, but I just can't help but be nervous! So far, about 6 hours have already gone into this cake and we haven't even begun to decorate it. Tomorrow we must complete the structure and cover the whole thing with the marshmallow fondant. I hope everything just falls into place from there.

Next mission...

For my next mission I will be attempting some beer buttercream. I know it's pretty basic, but i've never had it before. In order to do this I will first have to figure out what cake base to start with. I am torn between just a basic chocolate cake brushed with beer or a chocolate beer cake (which I have also never tried before). I think I will most likely try out the chocolate beer cake since I am very curious about the flavor. I will also then be able to taste the cake and frosting seperate as well as together. If this comes out good, I know what my July 17th Coney Island special is going to be!

4th of July weekend!

I am so excited! Tomorrow starts our weekend of selling cupcakes! I have been in the kitchen for just about 2 days straight, but it's worth it.

Cupcake choices:
Golden
Chocolate
Red Velvet
White

Frosting choices:
Vanilla buttercream
Chocolate buttercream
Cream cheese
Peanut Butter buttercream

*option of a grape jelly injection for a PB&J cupcake!

Other choices:
Brownies.. OMG these are to die for! Super thick, super fudgy... with chocolate chips!
Chocolate chip cookies... VERY soft!
Red Velvet cake ball truffles... Limited amount, and they go fast!

Come down to the Flea by the Sea and check us out!

4th of July Idea!

Ok... so thanks to Bakerella I just figured out how I'm going to spice up the 4th of July bake sale! Cake burgers and cookie fries! I've seen something like this before, but these are so simple to do that I just have to make them! LOVE the idea!

Still making regular cupcakes, brownies, cookies and cake pops... for those of you who don't like your food to look like other foods. lol

Oh... and an update on the dog treats...
Made another batch today using regular skippy peanut butter and it worked out great. I didn't need to add an egg this time. It even rolled better. So, I guess the type of peanut butter you use really has a lot to do with it. So, for those of you who like using all natural organic for your furry little friends... just keep in mind that you may have to add an egg.

I'm exhausted tonight, but tomorrow I will upload the pics of the doggie treats. You can see the difference in the dough. I even tasted it.. not bad, but not as peanut-buttery as it smells.

Recipe from BullWrinkle.com:

2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 cup peanut butter (chunky or smooth, I use smooth)
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 375'F. In a bowl, combine flour and baking powder. In another bowl, mix peanut butter and milk, then add to dry ingredients and mix well. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead. Roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness and use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Bake for 20 minutes on a greased baking sheet until lightly brown. Cool on a rack, then store in an airtight container. --- This is the original recipe, but I have found the cookies burn easily.

They said it burns easily... I found that a little tonight. The first time I made it with the egg I had no problems at all but this time they did seem to cook faster. Keep an eye on them. I set my timer for 15 minutes and them kept a close eye on them after that.

Flea By The Sea update....

So, we went back today to get a permit for this coming weekend... we were smart this time and made sure it would be valid for the full 14 days. I can't wait. I really hope it doesn't get rained out again.

This weekend we will have cookies and brownies again, all individually wrapped for convenience.

We will also have golden cupcakes, chocolate cupcakes and red velvet cupcakes.

Our frosting varieties will be vanilla buttercream, chocolate buttercream and cream cheese.

I wanted to make some cake balls, but we agreed to hold out until the 4th of July... so make sure to come on down!

Fathers Day Bake Sale!

Happy Fathers Day!

So, even though the festival got rained out yesterday we still got to sell some baked goods today! We set up in Mike's driveway, tent and all, and pretty much broke even. We sold out of cookies right away and ended up with only a few bags of brownies left. The golden cupcakes sold pretty fast, but we still had 4 left by the time we got rained out.

Had lots of fun though! Big thanks to Linda, Rob and Kristen for the help and support!!! <3

Tomorrow we are going to get the permit for next weekend and the 4th of July. Can't wait! I really hope this rain lets up soon.

Come Check Us Out!! This weekend!!!

Ok.. so I'm back to my old self again! I hate being sick, so glad it passed. Went to the doc and got a clean bill of health.

"Flea By The Sea", here we come!!!!! This means that over the next 2 days I will be baking my buns off! Pardon the bad pun. We will have a booth right off Stillwell Ave. on Saturday, June 20th. Gates open at 12 noon!

Anyway, tomorrow I will be baking a double batch of chocolate chip cookies as well as a double batch of fudge brownies. If I have time left over I will also start baking some cupcakes.

On the menu for this Saturday, June 20th:

Custom Cupcakes!!! Who doesn't love a good cupcake?!?!

Cupcake flavors:

Golden

Chocolate
Red Velvet

Frosting flavors:
Vanilla Buttercream
Chocolate Buttercream
Creamcheese

Pick your cake, then pick your frosting!

Chocolate Chip Cookies!!! Moist and chewy!

I <3> I may even top them with some fudge!!!! Chocolate overload!!!

*Also going on in Coney Island this Saturday:
Mermaid Parade, The Cyclone, Wonder Wheel, and other rides are open AND the Circus will be there! Come on down and enjoy Brooklyn! Rain or shine!

That's about it for this weekend. We will also be there for July 4th and our menu will include much more, like "Liberty Ball" cake pops and possibly Margarita cupcakes with a twist of lime! So come on down and enjoy a cupcake with your fireworks!

The making of a mini PB&J cupcake!

So, the first run was such a hit that I had an order for 4 dozen mini's! I used the same recipe, only set it to serve 12, which was perfect. I ended up with 52 cupcakes and we ate the left overs! LOL

The batter is so white! So fluffy and pretty!

All Baked! Fresh out of the oven!Here they are with the jelly injection.The making of the frostingAll frostedJelly drizzleAnd they're done!

I'm so glad these are such a hit. With the mini's, I found that there wasnt enough jelly inside and the peanut butter was taking over... but once we drizzled the jelly on top, they were perfect.

My rating remains the same...

Cake taste: 5
Moistness: 5
Frosting: 5

Delicious!

Cupcakes!

Ok, I will be working on this blog as often as possible. I would like to post up some recipes that I have as well as images of the cakes or cupcakes produced by them. I will also include a rating of some sort. I have lots of good frosting recipes too!