It's All About the Cute Cupcake!

When I first started baking, I really enjoyed making cookies. Actually, I was obsessed with making cookies that I did not make anything but cookies. I preferred perfecting my chocolate chip cookie recipe than trying something new like pastry, cake, or bread. Well, after my little obsession, I was hungry to try something new. That is when I moved into the cake and bread realm and became a more well-rounded baker.

Anyways, my latest obsession has been cupcakes and frankly, I think it is an obsession that will stay. Not to the extent where I only make cupcakes but I think it is something I will never ever get tired of making. It started about a year ago when I decided to make cupcakes for my co-workers as a recognition event. Every month, I would make a dessert and bring it to my meeting of 48 people. I always made something in the lounge but I had to be strategic with what I made because I was in a residential hall with limited equipment and supplies without breaking my piggy bank. I had to make shortbread, brownies, cupcakes - things that were individualized, easy to make, and required little ingredients/equipment. Now, these bake goods can get plain and boring so I began thinking of ways I can jazz up these desserts, particularly the cupcake. That is when I began exploring at different ideas online and came across books such as Hello Cupcake and What's New Cupcake.

That is what I have been doing, jazzing up the cupcake. This is what I have made so far and there will be many more cute cupcakes to come!

Fortune cookie cupcakes

Fried rice cupcakes

Take Out Cupcakes - Would you like some takeout?

Hamburger cupcakes - There's nothing like a good burger! Too bad it came out a little blurry.

Bears on the Beach - Teddy bears having a good time at the beach!

Apple cupcakes - You're the apple of my eye!

Dirt 'n Worms cupcakes - It is just as dirty and gritty as it is delicious!

 Sushi cupcakes - Where's the soy sauce?

Sashimi cupcake - poor fishy

The Good Ole Cupcake!

I am going to be completely honest, I love boxed cake. I think it is delicious and very convenient but as much as I like it, there is a part of me that gets the satisfaction of making it from scratch. Usually when I make cupcakes, I want them to look cute which is why I often use boxed cake mix. I was contemplating what to make last night when my brother told me he wanted simple yellow cupcakes. I thought "how boring" but sometimes the simplest things are the most satisfying. So, I whipped out my Better Homes and Garden cookbook and found the recipe for yellow cake. Instead of making the cake, I put the cake batter in muffin tins and voila, cupcakes!

I decorated the cupcakes very simply, chocolate fudge frosting and my favorite kind of sprinkles! I even scooped out some batter, mixed in cocoa powder and make marble cupcakes too for some variation. They were indeed satisfying, just how simple things can be!

Oatmeal Banana Streusel Muffins

I know, the title is a mouthful! You're probably thinking, "does this actually work?" Yes, it does! I like to think of this as a perfect grab and go breakfast. Usually breakfast muffins are full of bran and bland but this muffin is tasty and satisfying. The bananas keeps the muffins moist and the oatmeal gives it nice texture. To make this healthier than it already is, you can switch the all-purpose flour with whole wheat flour. I made a streusel to put on top of the muffins but of course you can omit the streusel if you want a truly healthy muffin. However, the streusel adds more texture and sweetness to the muffin and is still a fairly healthy muffin with the streusel on top. If you want to mix it up, you can make half with the streusel and half without. I did this because I like the healthier version with no streusel but the rest of my family thinks like the extra calories.

Store bought muffins tend to be overly sweet, moist, and delicious that we often neglect the fact that they are high in fat and calories. Muffins have gained the reputation of being cakes in a muffin tin but these muffins have the taste of cake but just not the fat or the calories.

Brown Sugar Shortbread

Quick! What do you think of when you hear shortbread? Yummy, tasty, light, high in fat. Shortbread is actually a quite simple cookie to make yet the flavor can be as complex as any other cookie. These are delectable shortbread cookies. I have personally never been a fan of the shortbread. My earliest memories of shortbread came from eating te packaged Walker shortbread. While it was tasty because of the buttery flavor, it was not fulfilling as a packaged chocolate chip cookie. If I had good shortbread, I always felt guilty eating such a rich and fattening cookie. As I was flipping through my Mrs. Field Cookbook, I felt so inclined to make shortbread. Perhaps the pictures made them simply irresistible! I was particularly intrigued by this recipe that uses brown sugar instead of white sugar and was dipped in chocolate and pecans. I allowed myself to make these cookies because I was making them for a party and knew that it would be a crowd pleaser. And it gave me an excuse to eat one but only one of course!

Chocolate Chip Cookies (Another Version)

Chocolate chip cookies are probably one of the greatest inventions ever. I don't know what can be better than a delectable cookie with the pop of sweetness from the chocolate chips. What is great about the chocolate chip cookie is that it is very versatile. You can have different add accessories to your chocolate chip cookies like nuts, dried fruit, oatmeal, etc.

For this chocolate chip cookie, I decided to take the healthy route. When you throw in whole wheat flour, oatmeal, and small amount of butter, you just feel better when you eat the cookie. Okay, the difference may not be that significant but there is a difference.

I do volunteer work with underprivileged children and I helped compile a book of healthy recipes the children can make at home with their families. I didn't have many on top of my head so I did some research online and came across EatingWell and found a gold mine of tasty and healthy recipes. It was here that I found this recipe which are titled Bev's Chocolate Chip Cookies. I don't know Bev but she made some great cookies. Take a look at the nutritional information:


Per cookie: 99 calories; 5 g fat ( 2 g sat , 2 g mono ); 11 mg cholesterol; 12 g carbohydrates; 1 g protein; 1 g fiber; 64 mg sodium; 55 mg potassium

From a calories perspectives, you cannot get much lower than 99 calories for a cookie. The fat is relatively high for the calorie of the cookie but you can experiment with the amount of butter and substituting applesauce or buttermilk to reduce the fat.  Even with 5 grams of fat, it is not as bad as other cookies...just sayin'!

Coffee Cake Muffins

I love muffins. I think they are delicious and convenient whether it is for a breakfast to go, an afternoon snack, or an after dinner dessert. Let's face the facts, muffins you get at the store or from a local bakery aren't the most healthiest things in the world. Just to give you an idea of how unhealthy muffins could be, let's take a look at some non-store bought muffins that are worth eating.

Costco's chocolate chocolate chip muffins
690 calories
58% total fat
55% total saturated fat

Dunkin Donuts' chocolate chip muffin
630 calories
35% total fat
30% saturated fat

Sprouts' chocolate chip muffin
430 calories
40% total fat (app)
35% saturated fat (app)

35-55% of you daily fat intake is dedicated to eating one muffin! If half of fat intake came from one thing I ate, I would either not eat for the rest of the day or not eat it all. It seems extreme but that is way too much fat for a single item to have. I think making muffins at home is the way to go. First, you can control how big or small you want your muffin to be. A Costco muffin is huge and many people can't finish one but if it is there, people will eat. If you make miniature sized muffins at home, you will think twice before you decide to pop one or two more in your mouth. Also, you can substitute healthier ingredients. For example, you can use yogurt, applesauce, and oil as healthier alternatives to butter. You can also use whole wheat flour, add bran or flax to your muffins as well. This way you can enjoy a muffin without feeling guilty!

The recipe I am sharing with you today, I will admit, is not a healthy muffin recipe. However, I made mini muffins to make up for the heaviness of the muffin. Even if you make the standard sized muffin, it is still healthier for you than if you were to buy store bought. I am sharing a recipe for coffee cake muffins that I found on Brown Eyed Baker's blog. It is great for the on to go breakfast! I have tried many muffin recipes and haven't liked any of them which has led me to buying store bought muffins but this recipe is great that it actually tastes like a muffin. The outside of the muffin has a nice crunch and the inside is moist and delicious just like a muffin should be. I would make muffins more often if they all turned out this great!

Guacamole

I have recently became a fan of avocado. I have never liked it ever since I first tried it back in high school when I was on my first cruise. I remember my dad saying that it was really healthy for me and I should try it. So I did and I almost spit it back up because it tasted like eating butter. Even though it was healthy, I couldn't force myself to eat being the health freak that I am. That was until I went camping a few month ago and everyone was eating gucamole. I snacked on the plain chips while I watched everyone swarm over the gucamole. I wasn't sure it was because everyone liked gucamole a lot or because we were camping and we only had so much to eat. Either way, once everyone got their fair share, I thought I would give it another try. Yes, I wanted to conform and be like everyone else! Luckily I did because I thought it was delicious.

One thing that appealed to me when I came across this recipe was the word chunky. I like my gucamole chunky where I can distinguish the textures of the ingredients rather than having a smooth paste. When you try this recipe, smash the gucamole to the your desired consistency. This goes great with tortilla chips, low sodium of course, but I think guacamole can really boost the flavor of a lot of dishes. I don't like salad dressing and I know this may sound weird but I added some guacamole to my salad the other day and it was great! It added more flavor to my salad and it is more healthier than salad dressing!