Baking Project #1 - Baby Dragon Cupcakes

I'm not sure that I want to kickstart another in-house baking business here in the UK, but I did accept a cupcake project for a baby shower.  The customer wanted vanilla cupcakes with vanilla frosting and a baby dragon design on top.  I finally concocted a pretty darn good vanilla cupcake recipe with vanilla frosting (see previous post) and found an adorable photo of dragon cupcakes that I attempted to emulate (though clearly more practice is needed):

I baked the vanilla cupcakes (recipe #3 in previous post) and frosted them with the creamy vanilla frosting using a 12" pastry bag with a wilton #12 round tip doing a swirl design:

Using regular buttercream frosting (1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temp, 6-8 cups icing/powdered sugar, 1/2 cup milk, 2 tsp vanilla), I divided the frosting into 3 portions and dyed two portions: 1 green using wilton's green leaf icing color, and 1 yellow using wilton's lemon yellow icing color.  The other portion I kept white. 

With a 12" pastry bag and a wilton #12 round tip, I then piped a dragon body, feet, and face using the green frosting:

Swapping a #5 tip for the #12 tip on the pastry bag with green frosting, I made the dragons ears.

Using the yellow frosting in a 12" pastry bag with a #3 tip, I made two lines on the mouth portion of the dragon, three horns next to the ears, 'spikes' down the dragons back and tail, 3 toes on each of the four feet, and made a triangular/heart shaped piece at the end of the dragon's tail.

Next I used an 8" pastry bag with a #5 tip and piped white dots for the eyes and placed a chocolate chip in the center (really needed mini chocolate chips, but didn't have any!).

Using rolled white fondant, I cut out ovals, then cut the ovals in half, and using a scalloped shaped round cutter, cut out a section of the half oval, then cut the half oval in half to use as a pair of wings (did you catch all that?).  I then brushed the wings with a mixture of wilton's orchid pink pearl dust and almond extract to make them pink and shiny.  I bent a tiny section of the wing so that it would insert into the cupcake.  Alas, the final result:

And here's a look at how all 16 of them turned out:

Not quite as cute as the dragon design I was trying to emulate, but not too shabby for a first attempt.  I need more practice in 'free hand' frosting, but I'm encouraged to do more fun designs!

The Almost Perfect Vanilla Cupcake & Frosting Recipe

I landed my first baking order here in the UK:  Vanilla cupcakes with vanilla frosting and a dragon design for a baby shower (see next post for photos of these cupcakes and more about this project).

Now, perhaps you might think vanilla cupcakes with vanilla frosting is boring, but I beg to differ.  I had yet to find a GOOD vanilla cupcake recipe, and trust me, I've been looking.

I've experimented with recipes over the years and, this past week, narrowed down my pile of recipes to three versions in which I hoped one would become my Perfect Vanilla Cupcake.

The first recipe claimed to be 'The Ultimate Vanilla Cupcake Recipe' (shamelessly stolen from Cupcake Project - http://www.cupcakeproject.com/2011/09/ultimate-vanilla-cupcake-test-baked-by.html#ixzz22ElbYXbm).  It had a very lovely vanilla flavor, was very moist, but a bit too 'airy' and slightly greasy for my liking (recipe called for oil, and that's in direct conflict with my butter addiction ;)).  I tend to prefer a more dense cupcake, though moist. 

The second recipe was a creation of my own with the help of a compilation of recipes.  I really wanted to give buttermilk a whirl in a cupcake recipe to see how the flavor and texture was affected.  The result?  Pretty darn good.  Though you can definitely taste the buttermilk/tanginess in the cupcake.  I personally quite like it, but wasn't sure from a business perspective how the customers would enjoy it (it is quite different from a traditional vanilla cupcake recipe).  So far the reviews have been good.

The third recipe was a combination of the first recipe and my addiction to butter.  Essentially I swapped butter for the oil and eliminated the baking soda (someone who tasted the first recipe said they could taste the baking soda - all dry ingredients were sifted and mixed well, so not sure why this was, but thought i'd experiment without the baking soda).  The result?  A GREAT cupcake, almost perfect.  They looked absolutely spectacular when taking them out of the oven (were even, slightly puffed, just gorgeous!), but a few minutes later while they were cooling they deflated a little bit. I'm wondering if that has anything to do with the lack of baking soda, so my next batch of Vanilla Cupcakes will be this recipe WITH the baking soda to see if there is any effect.  If they still deflate, I'll have to do more research and understand why that is happening (there is a lot of liquid in this recipe compared with other recipes, as you'll see).

Let's talk frosting.  I'm just not a huge fan of your typical Butter Cream Frosting.  The icing sugar/powdered sugar is just a bit too much for my palette.  I love the french and italian butter creams, though they are a bit time consuming and might not be the best choice for decorating and/or a quick frosting.  I think my favorite vanilla frosting is one I found a while back that was initially paired with a red velvet cupcake recipe called 'Creamy Vanilla Frosting' (found on Epicurious - http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Creamy-Vanilla-Frosting-241564).  It's an 'old' recipe, from what I gather, in that you mix milk with flour and then boil it and use it as your base for the frosting (almost a roux, if you like).  However, this bit of the recipe is what makes the frosting SO GOOD!  Your initial reaction to this frosting is that it's whipped cream.  That's the texture of it, but the flavor is beyond words, and so much more than just whipped cream. 

So what's the bottomline, you ask?  Though I've yet to perfect my vanilla cupcake recipe, I at least feel that I have a go to recipe (#3) when I receive an order (just needs minor tweaking to correct the deflation issue) along with the perfect 'Creamy Vanilla Frosting'.  Give it a whirl and let me know your thoughts!

VANILLA CUPCAKE RECIPE #1

The Ultimate Vanilla Cupcake Recipe

Yield: 16 cupcakes

• 1 cup (225 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 3/4 cups (175 grams) cake flour, not self-rising
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup (57 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/3 cup (75 grams) full-fat sour cream
• 1/4 cup canola oil or vegetable oil (60 ml)
• 1 tablespoon pure (not imitation) vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup (160 ml) whole milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).
2. In a small bowl, combine sugar and seeds from the vanilla bean. (For those of you who are new to using vanilla beans, check out this video to learn how to get the seeds out of the bean.)
3. Using the back of a spoon, move around the bowl and apply pressure to break up any clumps of seeds and to better infuse the vanilla flavor into the sugar. Set aside.
4. In a medium-sized mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, mix together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
5. Add the vanilla bean sugar and mix until well combined.
6. Add butter and mix on medium-low speed for three minutes.  Because there is so little butter, you'll end up with a very fine crumb texture.
7. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, sour cream, oil, and vanilla extract until smooth.
8. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined.
9. Slowly add milk and mix on low speed until just combined.  The batter will be liquid.  (Don't worry, you didn't do anything wrong.  It's supposed to be that way.)
10. Fill cupcake liners just over 1/2 full.
11. Bake for 14 minutes and then test to see if they are done. They are done when a toothpick comes out without wet batter stuck to it.  The cupcakes should appear white with specks of vanilla bean. They should not turn a golden brown.  If they are not done, test again in two minutes.  If they are still not done, test again in another two minutes.
12. When the cupcakes are done, remove them immediately from the tins and leave them on a cooling rack (or just on your counter if you don't own a cooling rack) to cool.

Tips:  Because everyone's oven is just a bit different and your liners may be a slightly different size than mine,  I highly recommend that if you have time, you bake a test cupcake before baking your whole batch of vanilla cupcakes.  Read my FAQ on filling cupcake liners to learn how to do a test cupcake and why it's useful.

VANILLA CUPCAKE RECIPE #2
  
Buttermilk Vanilla Cupcake Recipe

Yield: 15-16 cupcakes

• 1 3/4 cups (175 grams) cake flour, not self-rising
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup (225 grams) granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).
2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3. Using the paddle attachment on a stand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy (about 2-3 minutes).
4. Add the sugar and cream with the butter on medium speed for 7 minutes, scraping the bowl when needed (batter should be nearly white and fluffy).
5. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
6. Turn the speed to stir/low and alternately, add the flour mixture and milk, starting and ending with flour until just mixed.
7. Add vanilla until just mixed. 
8. Fill cupcake liners just over 1/2 full.
9. Bake for 14 minutes and then test to see if they are done. They are done when a toothpick comes out without wet batter stuck to it.  The cupcakes should appear white (also with specks of vanilla bean if you used vanilla bean paste). They should not turn a golden brown.  If they are not done, test again in two minutes.  If they are still not done, test again in another two minutes.
10. When the cupcakes are done, remove them immediately from the tins and leave them on a cooling rack (or just on your counter if you don't own a cooling rack) to cool.

VANILLA CUPCAKE RECIPE #3

Butter Obsessed's Almost Perfect Vanilla Cupcake Recipe

Yield: 16-18 cupcakes

• 1 3/4 cups (175 grams) cake flour, not self-rising
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• (1/2 teaspoon baking soda) - I omitted this, but will reintroduce it the next time I bake this recipe (see notes above re: issue w/this recipe)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup (225 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1/3 cup (75 grams) full-fat sour cream
• 2/3 cup (160 ml) whole milk
• 1 tablespoon pure (not imitation) vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).
2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl sift together cake flour, baking powder, (baking soda, if using) and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large glass measuring cup, add 2/3 cup of whole milk and the 1/3 cup of sour cream and whisk together until well incorporated.  Set aside.
4. Using the paddle attachment on a stand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy (about 2-3 minutes).
5. Add the sugar and beat with the butter on medium speed for 7 minutes, scraping the bowl when needed (batter should be nearly white and fluffy).
6. Add the vanilla bean paste and mix until well combined.
7. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
8. Turn the speed to stir/low and alternately, add the flour mixture and milk mixture, starting and ending with flour until just mixed.
9. Add vanilla until just mixed. 
10. Fill cupcake liners just over 1/2 full.
11. Bake for 14 minutes and then test to see if they are done. They are done when a toothpick comes out without wet batter stuck to it.  The cupcakes should appear white with specks of vanilla bean. They should not turn a golden brown.  If they are not done, test again in two minutes.  If they are still not done, test again in another two minutes.
12. When the cupcakes are done, remove them immediately from the tins and leave them on a cooling rack (or just on your counter if you don't own a cooling rack) to cool.

CREAMY VANILLA FROSTING

• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups milk
• 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. In a medium-size saucepan, whisk the flour into the milk until smooth. 
2. Place saucepan over medium heat and, stirring constantly, cook until the mixture becomes very thick and begins to bubble, 10-15 minutes. 
3. Remove saucepan from heat, cover with waxed paper and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
4. In a large bowl, on the medium high speed of an electric mixer, beat the butter for 3 minutes, until smooth and creamy. 
5. Gradually add the sugar, beating continuously for 3 minutes until fluffy. 
6. Add the vanilla and beat well.
7. Add the cooled milk mixture, and continue to beat on the medium high speed for 5 minutes, until very smooth and noticeably whiter in color. 
8. Cover and refrigerate for 15 minutes (no less and no longer—set a timer!). 
9. Use immediately. 
10. NOTE:  If you do store the remaining frosting in the refrigerator and/or refrigerate it for too long, just put the frosting back in the mixing bowl and beat it again for 5 minutes or so until it's back to it's original consistency (and if it looks runny and not so appealing, just ignore it and leaving it mixing in the mixer. I promise it will come back to life ;)).