GRAVEYARD CUPCAKES

Posted in Cake by sallybr

Sometimes I see something that grabs my heart really hard… Check out this recent post by Karen, and you will understand I simply had to take matters into my own baking hands…. I opted for cupcakes, so I share with you today the recipes for cake and frosting. The use of Milano cookies for the tombstone is just brilliant!

CHOCOLATE GRAVEYARD CUPCAKES
(from The Bewitching Kitchen, inspired by Karen’s Kitchen Stories)

for the cupcakes (makes 10):
100g all-purpose flour
20g cocoa powder
140g granulated sugar
40g butter, softened
1/8 tsp salt
1 large egg
120mL milk, full-fat
1 + 1/2 tsp baking powder

Heat oven to 350F and line a tray with cupcake liners.

Mix the milk with egg in a small bowl, whisk, reserve.

Put the flour, cocoa powder, butter, sugar and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix until the butter forms a sand consistency. Pour half the milk mixture into the bowl and mix on low-speed for a minute. Increase the speed to medium-high for a couple of minutes. Add the remaining milk mixture, and mix on low-speed until fully incorporated.

Increase the speed for a few seconds, then add the batter to the lined cupcakes. Bake for about 15 minutes, until a toothpick comes clean when inserted in the center.

Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.

CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
210g confectioners’ sugar
20g Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 Tablespoon heavy cream
pinch of salt

With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, heavy cream and salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high speed and beat for a full minute Add 1/4 cup more confectioners’ sugar or cocoa powder if frosting is too thin or adjust with heavy cream if too stiff.

For decoration:
Milano cookies
Piping consistency black Royal icing
crushed Oreo cookies for “dirt”

Frost the cupcakes using a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Immediately cover the surface with Oreo cookie crumbs. Insert a Milano cookie with the RIP message written on it. Add any decorations you desire.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Totally smitten by these little cupcakes! Big thank you for Karen, a very cute concept made very easy with the Milano cookies. Of course, you can always bake some sugar cookies and do the whole thing from scratch, but why not make life a little easier without compromising flavor? Milano cookies are delicious!

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20Sep2025

CAMPFIRE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES

Posted in Cake by sallybr

I cannot take credit for the design, it is from a cookbook I highly recommend: Cupcakes for Any Occasion, by Rachel Lindsay (click here to order it). She used lemon cupcakes for her version, I opted for chocolate, going for a reverse creaming method that is so simple and easy to bake.

CAMPFIRE CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES
(inspired by Rachel Lindsay)

for 10 cupcakes:
100g all-purpose flour
25g unsweetened cocoa powder
140g white sugar
1/4 tsp salt
50g unsalted butter, room temperature, soft
1 large egg
120ml milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 + ½ tsp baking powder

for the buttercream:
226g butter, very soft
452g powdered sugar
1 tablespoon heavy cream (or more to adjust consistency)
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
6 Oreo cookies, crushed fine
orange, red and yellow food gel coloring
Pretzel sticks (four per cupcake)
mini marshmallows (1 to 2 per cupcake)

Heat oven to 350F. Prepare a muffin type pan with cupcake liners.

Whisk the milk, egg and vanilla extract in a small bowl. Reserve.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, salt, butter and sugar into the stand mixer
bowl with the paddle attachment. Mix on a medium speed until all the butter looks like small pieces of sand. Add half the milk mixture, mix to incorporate until smooth. Give it a final minute mixing in high-speed. Add the rest of the milk, and whisk until fully smooth.

Add to the lined pan, a little more than half full. These cupcakes rise a lot. Bake until a toothpick comes clean, about 16 minutes. Let cool completely before icing.

Make the buttercream. Whisk the butter in high speed for five minutes. Add half the powdered sugar, mix at medium-speed until fully smooth. Increase speed to high for 30 seconds. Add the other half of the sugar, pinch of salt, vanilla and heavy cream. Whisk in medium to high-speed until smooth. Adjust consistency if needed.

Keep half of the buttercream in the mixer. Add to it the Oreo crumbs. Transfer that to a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Divide the rest of the buttercream (around 110g portions) to smaller bowls. Dye each portion red, yellow and orange. Place them over plastic wrap as straight lines side by side. Make a sausage with that plastic wrap and insert into a piping bag fitted with a medium size leaf tip.

Decorate the cold cupcakes first with “stones”, using the Oreo buttercream. Add “flames”, stick Pretzels to make the decorations, using small marshmallows for additional touch.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I love the way the addition of Oreo cookies make the buttercream perfect to mimic stones. That could come in handy for Halloween designs in the future. I made a little mistake and used Pretzel sticks to insert the marshmallows, but in the cookbook she advises using toothpicks, and they will work a lot better, so keep that in mind if you want to try these. I am so happy with the way they turned out!

One extra bit of advice: when you pipe the “rocks”, smooth the surface with a brush to make them more round and smooth. I did not do that to some of them, and wish I had. Once the buttercream hardens you cannot quite smooth things out.

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SIXTEEN YEARS AGO: Lavash Crackers

27Aug2025

SUMMER IN CUPCAKES

Posted in Cake by sallybr

My favorite season is almost over, no way to deny it, even if the temperatures outside still give me plenty of reasons to smile. Before Autumn vibes arrive in full force, I share a couple of cupcakes that embrace and celebrate the warmth of the Summer.

ORANGE-VANILLA CUPCAKES
(adapted from several sources)

for the buttercream use this recipe (scaled down to 150g butter)

120g all-purpose flour
150g granulated sugar + zest of 1 orange
40g butter, unsalted, removed from the fridge for 30 minutes
1 large egg
120mL milk
1 + 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
1/2 tsp orange emulsion (I use LorAnn)
1/4 tsp salt

Heat the oven to 350F and line a cupcake pan with paper baking cups. Recipe makes 9 to 10 cupcakes.

Rub the sugar with the orange zest and let it sit for a few minutes.

Put the flour, baking powder, sugar/orange, salt and butter cut in small pieces in the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low until the butter is in very small pieces, almost like sand.

Whisk the egg with the milk, vanilla, and orange emulsion, add slowly to the mixer running in low-speed. Once it is almost smooth, increase the speed to high for a couple of minutes, scraping the bottom of the bowl once.

Stop the mixer and make sure the batter is fully smooth, mixing by hand with a spatula. Add batter to the 9 cupcakes, filling half-way full only. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center.

Leave cool completely before decorating.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

For the beach cupcakes, I used buttercream in three shades of blue, but sadly not different enough to give a nice contrast. There is always next time… The decorations were made with fondant and a silicone mold, plus a final spray with PME pearl luster.

For the butterfly-decorated cupcakes, I used two colors of buttercream, orange and yellow. The chocolate discs were made with transfer sheets and a cookie cutter.

I hope you enjoyed this little duet of cupcakes, and maybe bake a batch or two…

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TWO YEARS AGO: Three Delicious Bakes

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FIVE YEARS AGO: Pickled-Roasted Chickpeas with Cashew Cream

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TEN YEARS AGO: Turkey-Chorizo Burger with Green Chile Dressing
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ELEVEN YEARS AGO:Taco Salad
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TWELVE YEARS AGO: Semolina Sourdough Boule
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THIRTEEN YEARS AGO:Forgive me, for I have sinned
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FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Cracked Wheat Sandwich Bread
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7Aug2025

BANANA CUPCAKES WITH HONEY BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

Posted in Cake by sallybr

These cupcakes are like little bursts of sunshine on a plate… apart from a marbled buttercream, I added compound chocolate discs made by spreading the melted product over transfer sheets (click here for my favorite source), allowing to set and cutting small circles with a cookie cutter.

BANANA CUPCAKES WITH HONEY BUTTERCREAM FROSTING
(adapted from several sources)

makes 16 cupcakes

2 cups ( 260g) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 and 1/2 cups (350g) mashed bananas
1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup (100g) packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup ( 100g) granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup ( 60g) sour cream at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup (120ml) buttermilk, at room temperature

Heat the oven to 350°F. Line muffin pans with cupcake liners.

Whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together. Set aside. Cream the butter and both sugars together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla, then beat on medium-high speed until combined. Beat in the mashed banana. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just incorporated. With the mixer still running on low, slowly pour in the buttermilk until combined.

Spoon the batter into the liners to no more than 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.

HONEY BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

2 + ½ cups (300g) confectioners’ sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat all ingredients until smooth.Divide in two portions, leave one white, and yellow food coloring to the other half. Add both batters side by side into a piping bag fitted with a tip 1M to add a swirl to the top of each cupcake. Stick a little decoration if so desired.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I have not tried the cupcakes but got very nice reviews once I donated them. The chocolate decor is a nice touch, but of course, can be omitted to make life easier. I usually make the discs every time I use chocolate transfer sheets to make chocolate-covered Oreos, so I simply save them in a little plastic container at room temperature.

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FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: A yummy Brazilian cake: Bolo de Fuba’

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19Apr2025

EASTER BAKES

Posted in Cake, Chocolate Bonbons, Cookies by sallybr

A small collection of bakes to celebrate the occasion… Cupcakes, cookies, bonbons…
Let’s start with cupcakes, shall we?

For the cupcakes, I went with chocolate, and used this recipe which is simple and wonderful. Frosting was a simple American buttercream, but the gilding of the lily was the little nest made with rice noodles broken up in little pieces, coated with melted chocolate and assembled in mini-muffin tins. I have tried other methods to make the nests and this was by far my favorite.

This is really a very very messy process, and there was some colorful language going around The Bewitching Kitchen, I won’t lie to you. But aren’t those nest super cute? Totally worth the trouble. Get the noodles and cut them with scissors in small little pieces. It will make a Royal mess in your kitchen and you will find pieces of noodles in unexpected places. Melt chocolate, coat them well (gloves are mandatory), and while everything is still pliable and warm, stick little portions inside mini muffin tins. Add the eggs and let it all set.

TRI-DIMENSIONAL EASTER EGGS

These are not made of chocolate, the shells are my favorite chocolate cookie (click here for recipe, I omitted the chipotle powder for this version) baked into these cute little molds. Once they are baked, I brushed them with luster powder mixed with vodka, decorated with Royal icing and filled with mini peanut butter eggs.

BUNNY BONBONS

A little labor of love, you’ll need a special mold for these babies, found at one of my favorite stores, Evil Cake Genius. It is a three component mold, so you make the top, let it set, fill with whatever you want (I used lemon brigadeiro), then close the bottom with more chocolate. A very detailed video is available here.

EGG NESTS CHOCOLATE COOKIES

Very little icing on these cookies, I brushed them with Americolor White + a touch of turquoise before baking. Then just added a few details with piping consistency icing, and placed mini eggs on top. They went together nicely with the cupcakes!