HAPPY 300th RECIPE! Today I'm celebrating, because I'm 300 recipes old! Can you imagine how many hours of recipe searching, menu planning, grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning, photographing, writing, posting, and photo editing have gone into this project? It's unreal. But I loved (almost) every second of it. There have been those tough moments when posts get accidentally deleted, groceries go bad, dishes turn out disgusting, photos are blurry, or I just get tired. But most of the time cooking makes me feel alive. I get to experience every aspect of my meal- from conception to production to display and it makes eating more meaningful.
Some of you ask, "How do you keep up with this during school?" When I started my nursing adventure back in May, I didn't think I'd be able to. But somehow the time finds itself. School is a big deal (my future patients would like to think I take it seriously, and I do) but it's not my whole life; I like to think I've found a balance. A girl (and her husband) have got to eat- I might as well make it enjoyable!
So now I'll share with you the recipe that I have chosen for this special occasion (OK, I admit, it was up next)... Pumpkin Cupcakes! Perfect for this Fall season. This cupcake recipe came highly recommended from other food bloggers and it didn't disappoint! I picked out a whipped brown sugar and cream cheese frosting to pair it with. You could go with a more traditional cream cheese frosting as well. I liked the frosting's airy texture with the soft sweet cupcake. I added mini chocolate chips to half the batch (up to you). These pumpkin cupcakes are dreamy, light and delicate. The type of thing I'll eat in heaven (no one's stopping me from eating when I'm dead)!
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup firmly packed dark-brown sugar (please, use dark for the added flavor)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 cups cake flour (cake flour ensures a light and airy cupcake)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper (weird, yes, but don't chicken out!)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. pure vanilla
1 1/4 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin
mini chocolate chips (optional)
Whipped Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese
3/4 cup brown sugar (use dark for a deeper color and flavor)
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 cups heavy cream
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cupcake pan with liners or spray with cooking spray.
2. Beat butter and sugars on medium speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and pepper into a medium bowl.
3. Add the eggs 1 at a time, continuing to beat and scraping down the sides after each addition. Alternate adding the flour and milk mixtures, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat in the pumpkin until smooth. Stir in mini chocolate chips (optional). Divide the batter among the cupcake liners (fill them 3/4 of the way full). Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 18-20. Cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.
4. To make the frosting, soften the cream cheese with your hands while it is still in the foil wrapper (you are trying to soften it while keeping it cold). Cream together cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until the sugar dissolves, about 2-3 minutes. Slowly add the cream, whisking on low to incorporate, and scraping down the sides of the bowl as you go. Once all the cream is incorporated, whip on high until the frosting thickens and resembles whipped cream. Frost cupcakes. Frosting can be stored in the refrigerator.
Makes 18-24 cupcakes and more than enough frosting.
(Cupcakes adapted from Smitten Kitchen, Frosting from Sophistimom)
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