A Change of Pace

Hi all! I know, I know, it's been another long break, I've always been so bad at keeping journals and things. So in order to keep this more current, I'm expanding my premise from cupcakes to just anything I want. I'll still post my cupcakes, when I actually have time to make them, but I want to be a little more active than that.
Sooo as my first random post, I've been inspired by all the "best albums" lists that I want to make my own for this crazy year that has been 2010. Here we go:

5. "Contra" by Vampire Weekend
-I can't believe this isn't on all the lists, but I think most people forget it even came out this year, way back in January. Their first album was so unique, you would think there would be no way they could follow up. I have to say it, but I like Contra way better. The songs from their debut were soooo overplayed, I couldn't stand it any more. It was nice to hear something fresh from them. And their ACL set was perfect. Every girl in that crowd, and probably some of the boys, were in love with Ezra Koenig, the lead singer, by the end of that show. It was right at sunset on a beautiful night, perfect! Best Song: "Giving up the Gun". (Hands down best Vampire Weekend song ever)

4. "Sidewalks" by Matt and Kim
-Another CD that gets on the list because of an amazing set, Matt and Kim finally released a new album, and it's more grown up than their earlier ones, with a much fuller sound. Back up vocals and additional instruments make the album seem more composed. Of course all that goes out the window in a live show. They play with such raw energy and excitement, it is impossible to not fall in love with this couple! I was front row for ACL, and it was hands down my favorite set of the festival. Best Song: "Silver Tiles". I know it's actually an old song, but they put it on this album and i love it, so it counts!


3. "This is Happening" by LCD Soundsystem
-What is likely to be the final album of James Murphy with this amazing group has to be on everyone's top list. Even though I still don't think it's as good as Sounds Of Silver, their previous album, it is still out of this world. I was so lucky to see them live, what an amazing show! And we were right next to an LCD Soundsystem cover band, it was hilarious. Best Song: "I Can Change".


2. "Together" by The New Pornographers
-Anything by the New Pornographers is guaranteed to be amazing, hands down. But this year they out did themselves with this album. My favorite part: the electric cello. I kept hearing this great sound when I listened to the album but i had no idea what it was until i saw them live at Stubbs this summer, and some guy in the corner was playing the electric cello! Of course, Neko Case is amazing on this album, I have such a girl crush on her. It's hard to pick a favorite song, but i'd have to say "Moves" and "The Crash Years" are my two favorite.

1. "Riposte" by Buke and Gass
- I am completely obsessed with this album, especially the first track "Medulla Oblongata". I first heard it on an NPR "All Songs Considered" podcast and it blew me away. It is like nothing you have ever heard. The lead singer's voice is unique and rough, but still melodious. The two members play homemade instruments that make their sound stand out. Stop what you are doing and go buy this album right now.


So that's my top 5. Runners up include: Spoon's "Transference", Sleigh Bells' "Treats", The Black Keys "Brothers" and more! Thoughts? Additions?

Pumpkin-Brown Butter Cupcakes

Hello fellow cupcake lovers! Yes, I am still alive and baking away. But if you have recently noticed a gaping hole in your life where cupcake blogging used to be, do not fear, I'm back! In the last three-ish months, I have moved, started another semester and a new job, and have lost many hours of sleep thanks to the wonderful invention of Biochemistry. So now I'm turning to my old stand-by stress relief activity: eating baked goods.
To get into the season, my roommate and I went to grocery store on the first day of fall and bought pounds of canned pumpkin, which actually turned out to be pumpkin pie filling. It works out to be the same thing, even if Martha says it doesn't. The proof:
In this recipe, you first brown the butter before adding it to the other wet ingredients. I'm not exactly sure why, it probably adds a "fuller" flavor, whatever the hell that means. I liked it because it made the butter much easier to mix than if it was room temp. I went a little light on the sugar because the pie filing already had some, and it worked out fine. I still added the full amount of spices, because you can never have too much Cinnamon. The icing was perfect for these cupcakes, much better than a buttercream.It was just more browned butter mixed with powdered sugar. The recipe was too much for the number of cupcakes I had, which seems to happen a lot with Martha's recipes, and is getting frustrating. The cupcakes tasted delicious, and were great for breakfast :) I highly recommend for getting into the fall spirit!

Coming up next: Halloween Cupcakes (Both me and Martha's favorite holiday!)

Cream-Filled Chocolate Cupcakes

I come to you a perturbed baker who tripped along the path towards Martha's perfection. However, I would like to see Martha to attempt this recipe and come away unscathed. The idea is simple enough: put away those Little Debbie snack cakes and make some real chocolate cream cupcakes. The recipe is for jumbo-sized cupcakes, which I do not have a pan for, so I made two dozen normal-sized. I made it through the batter prep relatively easily, but I did notice that it was much more thick than past recipes. The only liquid came from 3 eggs, maybe converting the butter to canola oil would add some moisture.
Another telling sign of possible disaster is that paper liners are not used. This is so that the filling can be inserted from the bottom, but also makes it difficult for the cupcakes to come out of the pans whole, especially if they're too dry. Oh, and another thing, inserting the filling from the bottom is a stupid idea, especially when the filling is marshmallow fluff, the stickiest stuff in the universe. The filling leaks out, sticks to bottom of the container, and gets on your hands. Trust me, I'm speaking from experience. I found the best way to fill cupcakes is the way they do on Cupcake Wars (my favorite show): just jam the piping bag into the top and squeeze.
The icing on the top of the failure cake (pun intended) was the marshmallow cream filling. It gets EVERYWHERE. Luckily it is quite delicious, so you don't mind licking it off your fingers. However, my batch did not set up right and was much too liquidy. The squiggles on the top tuned into blobs and slowly dripped off the sides.
Even though the design aesthetic of these cupcakes failed, the taste was spot on. We had no trouble devouring them all, even if the process was a little messy. Now that I know the ups and downs of this recipe, I feel confidant that the next time I could give Little Debbie a run for her money.

Martha's Baker Apron

Every baker needs a good apron when making their creations, especially when using flour, that stuff can get everywhere. Two days later you'll be in the shower still trying to get that stuff out of your hair. Well of course Martha has a pattern! It was surprisingly easy and turned out great! I found some cheap cupcake fabric at Joann's, about 1 1/2 yards and it was just the right amount. To make the pockets you just fold the fabric up to around the hips and sew two lines, it was so easy.
I ended up lining it with thicker muslin to make it more durable, you can avoid this step by using a sturdy fabric to begin with, like canvas. I also outlined it with brown fabric and added two red buttons at the pockets. After trimming the sides, it was still too wide and long for me, but I'm just freakishly small. Again, I blame my family. Overall it was a quick and easy project that Martha would be proud of. And my clothes are grateful to be shielded from flying batter.


Here's the link to the pattern: http://www.marthastewart.com/article/bakers-apron
Feel free to waste hours on Martha's website, it's amazing.

Buttermilk Yellow Cake

For the Fourth of July I followed Martha's super easy decorating idea: twizzler flags!
The yellow buttermilk cupcakes were super easy and made a huge batch, 36. They were moist and delicious without being too sweet.
However the Swiss Meringue Buttercream icing was less successful. I had made the recipe before and it turned out alright, but this time it was a little too runny. The original recipe makes way too much for a normal batch, so i halved it, but it's difficult to divide 5 eggs in half. I opted for 3, which is where the extra moisture probably came from. The buttercream icing in general is not my favorite, not sweet enough. It's a lot like eating solid butter. Sounds good, doesn't it? Considering the recipe calls for a pound of it, I'm not surprised.
The decorations were super easy, just cut up strips of the pull and peel twizzlers, and add dots of blue icing. Easy as cake!

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

Cupcake number 5 in my journey was the wonderfully simple and oh so delicious Snickerdoodle cupcake! This recipe was one of Martha's easiest, no need to whip egg whites, no strange ingredients. The cinnamon gave the classic snickerdoodle flavor and appearance.
For the icing, Martha recommends her "Seven-Minute Frosting", which, after looking over, I decided would take much longer than 7 minutes. As soon as I saw the words "candy thermometer", I went to the store and bought a tub of Duncan Hines buttercream. And it still tasted delicious. She also decorated them with icing "puffs", which look really cute. I didn't have the right size of icing tip (Ateco #809), so I went with swirls. But never fear, I now have a large tip and I'm super excited to test it out!
Another note, Martha frequently calls for "cake flour" instead of, or in addition to, all-purpose flour. Cake flour does not exist at HEB, and is probably really expensive at Whole Foods, so I use only all-purpose, and it's EXACTLY THE SAME! Martha, you trickster you.

Background

My love of cupcakes and sweet things in general has been lifelong. I blame my family, I'm genetically predetermined to love dessert. My great-grandma's southern cooking is the stuff of legends that would make Paula Dean cry. This particular baking journey began when I spotted Martha's book in one of our many trips to the craft store. Flipping through, I immediately fell in love with the mouth-watering photos in the book and her creative ideas. The mother noticed and got it for me for Christmas, and since then I've been going through, trying to tackle each recipe.
Martha is definitely one of my idols. She is a FANTASTIC business woman. She was the first woman to build her cooking empire. Long before Oprah had her magazine or Rachel Ray had her show, Martha paved the way. She put up with a trivial sentence for a crime that countless men do ALL the time and never get "caught". And now she back on top and continuing to take over the world! A world that is soon to be filled with cupcakes!