Hello, friends! My name is Mary, and this, believe it or not, is my first blog post. I started this blog on a whim, with no expectations as to where it will take me, or what it will turn into. I'm not even confident I'll make it to a second blog post. The future of this blog is completely unknown, like when I used to ride my bike as a kid and get lost on purpose just so I could experience that thrill of the unknown.
And now, on with the subject of this first blog post: Cupcakes. Until a couple years ago, I've always preferred either cookies (the perfectly portable dessert/snack) or cake (my favorite is Chocolate Zucchini Cake with Brides Frosting--maybe I'll post this later just as soon as our family Brides Frosting debate gets settled: three sisters, three recipes, go figure). Cupcakes used to seem like a cake trying to be something it's not. But I've recently had a cupcake awakening. Cupcakes, I've learned, are absolutely adorable! That swirl of frosting is so cute, and when you add sprinkles and colorful cupcake liners, they're even cuter. Most importantly, they're fun to make with my niece, who is always the official bowl-licker. And they're so versatile! Make a half batch of this, a half batch of that with two different frostings, and even the most indecisive people can be pleased.
I recently made three different kinds of cupcakes for a neighborhood party, and they were a hit! I made chocolate cupcakes (recipe from Beantown Baker) with chocolate ganache frosting, white cupcakes (I used the Cooks Illustrated recipe found here) with Brides Frosting, and strawberry cupcakes with Strawberry Meringue Buttercream Frosting. The chocolate cupcakes were very good, but could have been a little more moist, and the ganache was wonderful! The white on white cupcakes were okay--no big whoop. I'm not a huge fan of white cupcakes. To be honest, I haven't found a from-scratch white cake recipe I like better than Duncan Hines. Say what you like about box cakes, but Duncan is the MAN when it comes to a tasty cake, any flavor! Let me know if anyone finds one that is better and I will do a taste test. The Strawberry Cupcakes were surprisingly good. I found the recipe on Annie's Eats and decided to give these a try. They were the favorite, by far. And although, I will always be a chocoholic, I have a feeling I will be making these again in the future.
All in all, it was fun and quite fattening (all that tasting) to make these cupcakes. Enjoy the recipes and pictures!
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