surprise! you’ve got cookies
May 15, 2009 at 8:17 pm | In cookies & bars, my kitchen | 3 CommentsA quick but cute, cute story.
I got an international request probably about a week ago. A co-worker/friend of mine, who has given me many an opportunity to flex my culinary muscle, put in a request for a surprise delivery. As our dialogue via e-mail continued, the details were hashed out and it turned out the recipient-to-be was having a less than pleasant week. This was going to be a happy way to end the work week, we hoped.
So I made pumpkin cookies two ways, wrapped ‘em up pretty, and delivered them, skull-and-roses apron and all. If you saw a woman in an apron walking down 4th Street in Berkeley today, it was probably me.
It turns out that she had started out that morning a not-so-happy gal and then was quite pleasantly surprised. My guess is that the day ended fairly well.
Happy Friday Holly. You are one lucky girl 
Ingredients: Flour, Sugar, Earth Balance, Crack
May 12, 2009 at 8:31 pm | In cookies & bars | 1 CommentTags: frosted, sugar cookies
Maybe I am alone on this one, but I always felt the oddball because practically everyone I knew growing up loved those junky, too-long-ingredient-list-last-time-I-looked sugar cookies, bright pink and yellow with jimmies on top, sitting in their sealed plastic clamshells in the bakery area at the supermarket. Yeah, guilty parties, you know who you are. Honestly I never liked them. Soft cookies usually don’t do anything for me. Chewy or crunchy is more my style. My sister has a soft spot for them. Not me.
But these. Oh man. These made me a convert. Sure, they made me like soft cookies, but just how good were they? Savory is my SO’s style. After dinner last night, he announced excitedly that he was then going to eat those frosted cookies I had made — but I had taken them to work and they were long gone. I believe the dialogue went something like this:
“Noooooo!!! No! No! Make it stop! Make it stop!”
He was banging his hands on his head as he yelled this repeatedly. I ran for the fridge and my apron and made more as quickly as I could. And all was well.
True story.
I want to make one more batch before I share the recipe because I would hate for anyone to be let down! Two batches so far and the second batch was the winner, so… there are tests to be run. Crumbly but cakey, soft and sweet, these babies are worth waiting for. I promise. And then you too can make them so your SO doesn’t go crazy.
come work in my department
April 27, 2009 at 7:23 pm | In cupcakes | 1 CommentTags: hello cupcake, vegetable garden
In my department at work, we like to do birthdays up big, taking over the birthday gal’s desk and surrounding area with an all encompassing theme.
Made for a ‘birthday barn dance,’ I present to you the first cupcakes I have actually made and decorated since receiving a copy of Hello, Cupcake: some vegetable garden cupcakes. While I did not have all the different types of candy they listed, I think I did a pretty good job improvising if I do say so myself.
Everyone enjoyed eating their veggies today!
a birthday wish for the birthday gal
Rabbit got to the carrot patch…
Also, a little shameless self-promo: don’t forget, Iron Cupcake Earth Battle Soda Pop voting is now open! If you fancy, please show my Sunny Piñacocopop Cupcakes and two of your other favorites a little love
Iron Cupcake Earth 9: Soda Pop
April 24, 2009 at 7:00 am | In Iron Cupcake Challenge, cupcakes | 1 CommentTags: pineapple
“Whajamaican?”
I started to laugh. Really, I may have even snorted but if I did, we’ll omit that to save what little posterity I have left.
“I have no idea.”
Yes, it’s true: as much as I love to bake, as much as I draw inspiration from all over, there come times when you just have to stand back and giggle a little because you’re making something but the end result is still a mystery to all, including the maker. It reminded me a lot of those cooking competition shows where the clock is ticking, the chefs are working, but not everyone knows what is about to appear on their own plates.
Lucky for me, his comment somehow got me singing. I worked my way through some Bob Marley, some random bits of things I’d been singing at work, and somehow started singing those playground songs, the ones where you find a partner for the hand-clapping bit and everyone knows the words.
“Shimmy shimmy cocopop, shimmy shimmy wow
Shimmy shimmy cocopop, shimmy shimmy wow
I had a girl named a-Triscuit, she said a-Triscuit? A biscuit!..”
Then I probably snorted again: I’d figured out what I was making.
Meet my newest bubbly babe: Sunny Piñacocopop Cupcakes.
And yes, the name makes me want to sing as I hand them out: “Sunny Piñacocopop, eat my cuppies now! Sunny Piñacocopop, c’mon boogie down.” This, my friends, is why sleep is important.
Weighing in with 63% real pineapple juice and 37% fizzy water, the Costa Rican Pineapple Fizzy Lizzy’s Soda I used was no joke! While I have not really drunk soda since my RedBull-fueled college days (where soda was sometimes more readily available than water) I have since had a hard time finding soda – when craving it – that isn’t full of ingredients that sound like my Chem Honors high school teacher lecturing.
What happened to the first round of photos is a whole other story, so please know there are better ones – but I had to get some done ASAP to post in time. Coming back from a Hawaiian vacation to work and cupcake deadlines in the middle of a heatwave makes for a bit of a crunch, but I pulled it off somehow!
The end result: Sunshine in a wrapper!
A naturally sweet pineapple cake hides a golden surprise inside of coc-oat-nut sprinkle over a spoonful of sweet and tangy crushed pineapple. Topped with a smidge of pineapple icing and the satisfying crunch of unsweetened whole flake coconut.
Great for piña colada lovers, sun seekers, and anyone who does not object to warm sand between their toes and a cool cupcake in their palm.
- – - – - – - – - – -
The April ETSY PRIZE-PACK is from artists:
- A creation by FruitFlyPie
- a pair of cupcake earrings from Lots of Sprinkles
- a sweet surprise from Sweet Cuppin’ Cakes Cupcakery
- PLUS, IronCupcake:Earth can not forget our good friend CakeSpy who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice - sweet!
Last and certainly not least, don’t forget our corporate prize providers:
Head Chefs by Fiesta Products
Hello, Cupcake by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
Jessie Steel Aprons
Taste of Home Books
a t-shirt from Up With Cupcakes
And of course, IronCupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers
Sunny Piñacocopop Cupcakes
makes 12 cupcakes with filling and 3 to sacrifice to the tasting gods
(or in my case, one 3/4″ tall 6″ round cake for nom nom noming)
Filling:
1 large Oatibix, broken up
4 tsp brown sugar
3 T sweetened shredded coconut
8 oz can crushed pineapple, well-drained
Cake:
3/4 c juice-based pineapple soda
1/4 c plain soy yogurt
1/2 c vegetable or canola oil
3/4 c evaporated cane sugar
1 1/3 c all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
Icing:
1 1/3 c powdered sugar
2-3 T juice-based pineapple soda
unsweetened flake coconut to top, ~1 1/2c
To prepare the filling: mix all ingredients except for crushed pineapple in a small bowl, set aside.
To prepare cake:
Heat oven to 350 and line a 12-cup muffin pan with papers. In a small bowl, blend dry ingredients, sifting if necessary. In a mixing bowl, stir together pineapple soda, soy yogurt, sugar and oil till thoroughly blended. Add the dry mix in 2-3 (not 203 like I originally typed, oops!) batches, mixing only till just together; do not over mix, a few little lumps are okay.
Place ~2T of batter in each muffin cup. Add 1 packed tsp of crushed pineapple in the center and top the whole thing with 1T of filling mix. Top each cupcake with an additional T or so of batter to cover. Try to cover the coc-oat-nut mix best you can, some peeking is okay. Bake 25-30 minutes or till golden on top and toothpick comes out clean when inserted near the sides (through the middle and you’ll punch through the pineapple.)
Allow to cool in pan 10 minutes before moving to rack to cool completely.
For icing:
Mix together 1 1/3c powdered sugar with 2T pineapple soda, adding more if needed, till a thick, runny paste consistency is reached. Top each cupcake with 1tsp and spread, then dip into bowl of coconut. Add a splash more soda to the remaining icing and drizzle over the top of the coconut if desired.
first year of veganism: complete.
April 1, 2009 at 6:35 pm | In my kitchen | 2 CommentsOne year ago today, my boyfriend I cleared the last of the non-vegan items from the pantry. With the exception of a few things that snuck past our label-reading skills, the kitchen and pantry have been vegan ever since.
Also, a special happy two year veganniversary to Seitan is My Motor, as she is not only a skilled baker and cook but posts each post in two languages. Word.
- photo taken at Mighty-O in Seattle, WA. Soy latte and a seasonal cookies’n'creme donut. Om nom nom!
Iron Cupcake Earth 8: Battle Nuts & Seeds, Part 2
March 22, 2009 at 9:28 am | In Iron Cupcake Challenge, cupcakes | 1 Comment
Despite the fact I have a good job and have been out of college for some time now, certain foods and their prices make me cringe still. Perhaps I need to get over it as it’s not like any of these cringe-y sort of items have an everyday home in my diet, but I should be comfortable with trying new foods. If it turns out I wasted $9, oh well, it happens, right? I’ve certainly wasted that amount on coffee and a vegan scone that went uneaten, or a bad frozen convenience meal, or a bad choice on a menu.
I finally bought a bag of raw, in-the-skin hazelnuts. Around the same time I bought hazelnut oil on sale, thinking I would finally make that recipe from Veganomicon (you know-homemade chocolate-hazelnut spread to put on everything!) However, I became chicken very quickly for some reason, and then this challenge rolled along, right when I was beginning to think I had best use up the nuts before they spoiled in the fridge (they’re fine, but I’m a worrier like that.)
Add that to me puttering around on Facebook, of all things, and landing on my old high school classmate Marni’s page. She had made a zebra striped cake — I wanted zebra striped cake! Yes I have yet to attempt a full sized one, but that is where the cross-section inspiration for these cupcakes came from. Thus, thanks Marni, you’re still as bad-ass as ever. Make sure you all go show her some love ’cause her site has real pea cupcakes. Yes, real peas in sweet pea cupcakes. GO. Well, after you see the cupcakes here.
All of these little things came together into what I affectionately nick-named Fancy-Pants Hazelnut Chocolate Cupcakes, but if you want to go by the original name (what I thought I was going to call them before them came out all schmancy,) you can call them Hazelnut Chocolate-Hazelnut Cupcakes.
They are comprised of layers of hazelnut and chocolate-hazelnut batters, topped with a Frangelico-laced hazelnut frosting, toasted hazelnut pieces, chocolate-hazelnut ganache and whole toasted hazelnuts.
The light, airy texture of the cake and how you can actually peel the flavor layer apart, the floral note in the hazelnut frosting, the crunch of the nuts, the creamy goodness of the chocolatey top. Wow.
One more picture for good measure, or something.
I will definitely be making these again sooner rather than later.
————-
- A Bunnycake Easter Plushie by DOGBONEART, the very same maker of the shirt I’m wearing! Yay Pirate Cupcake! — also seen on Ace of Cakes.
- A whimsical piece by CAKEASAURUS.
- as well as a pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES.
- a collection of all new printed cupcake liners, 200 in all from Sweet Cuppin’ Cakes Cupcakery.
- PLUS, IronCupcake:Earth can not forget our good friend, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice – sweet!
Last and certainly not least, don’t forget our corporate prize providers:
Head Chefs by Fiesta Products
Hello Cupcake by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
Jesse Steel Aprons
Taste of Home Books
and last but not least, a t-shirt from Up with Cupcakes.
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers.com.
And as a special thank you, we would like to once again thank Diana Evans for her participation in the February challenge. An incorrect link was posted and we want to be sure that she gets the recognition she deserves. Thanks again Diana!
Iron Cupcake Earth 8: Battle Nuts & Seeds, Part 1
March 20, 2009 at 8:11 pm | In Iron Cupcake Challenge | 1 CommentReally, these are for the child at heart. The child with chocolate on their face and what you really, really hope is peanut butter on their hands.
Or for those who are diehard allergen lovers. PB&C is the combo for me.
When I became vegan, I gave up a lot of things that I still try to replicate at home from time to time, including milk chocolate. When I was in junior high, one of the best things I took away from it was a recipe for a pie-sized peanut butter cup. I’ve made it a few times and it always hits the spot, but thanks to this month’s Iron Cupcake challenge, I have something else that hits that same creamy, ooey, gooey, nutty, chocolately, om nom nommy spot.
Introducing Double Butter Cupcakes:
a creamy, decadent, almond-butter oatmeal cupcake, topped with a combination of chunky peanut butter, semi-sweet and dark chocolate
These are definitely not the sort of cupcakes that win beauty contests, per se, or the sort you can daintily nibble without worrying about mess. No, these are creamy, sticky, you-had-best-just-focus-on-the-cupcake sort of eats, but believe me, they’re worth the minute or two, depending on how long you can make it last. I chose almond butter as I am trying to wean myself off of peanut butter; almonds are better fuel for training (10k this Sunday, 20K in July, half-marathon in September/October.) In all honesty, I would have used almond butter too in the topping, but I ran out – turns out to be a blessing in disguise, as these cupcakes had a perfect balance of sweet and savory nutty flavors.
In the end, I’m just glad the recipe made a lot cupcakes! I ate at least two myself at home before bringing the rest in to (reluctantly) share with co-workers.
See? A cuppie trying to undress is always the sign of wonderfulness inside… the organic hippie paper liners don’t hurt, though.
Ooh. I should try coating these entirely in chocolate like mini-donuts…
————-
The Iron Cupcake: Earth March ETSY PRIZE-PACK includes killer schwag fro the following artists:
- A Bunnycake Easter Plushie by DOGBONEART, the very same maker of the shirt I’m wearing! Yay Pirate Cupcake! — also seen on Ace of Cakes.
- A whimsical piece by CAKEASAURUS.
- as well as a pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES.
- a collection of all new printed cupcake liners, 200 in all from Sweet Cuppin’ Cakes Cupcakery.
- PLUS, IronCupcake:Earth can not forget our good friend, CAKESPY, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice – sweet!
Last and certainly not least, don’t forget our corporate prize providers:
Head Chefs by Fiesta Products
Hello Cupcake by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
Jesse Steel Aprons
Taste of Home Books
and last but not least, a t-shirt from Up with Cupcakes.
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers.com.
And as a special thank you, we would like to once again thank Diana Evans for her participation in the February challenge. An incorrect link was posted and we want to be sure that she gets the recognition she deserves. Thanks again Diana!
busy girl.
March 15, 2009 at 10:27 am | In breads, muffins, rolls | 1 CommentYeah, I admit it. I’ve been slacking on the posting. While they don’t smell like cookies, here are my excuses:
- almost literally buried under catalogs and samples at work for a bit
- baking accidents and laziness of photography
- that whole “life” thing
- gasp! I haven’t been baking as much.
When I promised the savory post I had just discovered the joy of cashew-tofu ricotta. While I thought I was going to be posting pictures of stuffed shells made late at night, me falling asleep before remembering the leftovers in the kitchen made for spoiled food. What was the point of plating and photographing that which I could not eat? Then I began embarking on my first ventures of artisan bread making thanks to the Bread Baker’s Apprentice – but lack of sleep made me forget about things like photographing my work till after I realized it’d been sliced, put out and eaten.
But here’s a few things you may have missed in my absence.
I made a few cakes. Here’s one:
This was not just any cake – it was a birthday cake made per special request for an adorable and bubbly turning-two-years-old vegan babe! I was fortunate enough to have made mini-cupcakes for her first birthday (for mom, dad and guests – the birthday girl had “cake” made of fruit) so I jumped at the chance to make her second birthday cake – one the birthday girl herself would actually be eating. To accommodate the allergies of a couple of the party guests, the cake was apple- and nut-free, as well as gluten-free and alternatively-sweetened. And hey – shout out to mom’s other baby, Mynah Films while we’re at it!
I also missed a couple of Iron Cupcake: Earth battles because I was so busy 
One I even had a recipe ready and everything! My creation? Coffee coconut cupcakes, made with coconut milk, housing a layer of sticky coconut filling beneath a Kahlua-laced frosting hat. You know, since cupcakes are little edible heads. Or something.
yes, that’s my new favorite utensil in the background – a rainbow silicon-coated balloon whisk
close-up of the inside, om nom nom
And of course, I found time to try to please as many co-workers as possible with random batches of goodies that save them $5 at the cafe across the street, yummies to help fuel the ongoing half-tri and half-marathon training most of us are participating in, and unofficial muffin Mondays… which I hope to continue tomorrow!
I am now off to finish some care packages and do a bit more recipe tweaking and experimenting. Heres hoping that April will be a big month for me – I am determined to create, photograph and post as much as possible!
Hmm. But first? I think it’s time for brunch I’m thinking maybe scrambled tofu. And that I cannot wait till my next pre-ordered cookbook arrives.
coming soon!
January 2, 2009 at 7:18 pm | In my kitchen | 1 CommentI do things besides bake sweets. Prepare for something savory!
Iron Cupcake:Earth – Battle Chocolate with a Twist, Again
December 13, 2008 at 7:12 pm | In Iron Cupcake Challenge, cupcakes | 3 Comments
Can’t. Stop. Thinking. About. Chocolate. Cupcakes.
GAAAAH.
And believe you me, it doesn’t help when you’re one woman at work who loves chocolate and desserts, surrounded by other women who also enjoy chocolate and desserts. Thus, here we are again, making up another entry for Iron Cupcake:Earth – but I was actually inspired by my boyfriend. Sorry co-workers, don’t think I don’t love you guys too!
Boyfriend, with hair. Seen with me here. Yes, we like to eat mud, and though you can’t see it, I promise in the background (somewhere) is Mount Haleakala in Maui, Hawaii.
I’ll back up even further and say my first wet suit is about 24-36″ in length, a little O’neill spring suit my parents bought me when I was maybe five or six years old. Body boarding in Santa Cruz was a summer must, and once every few years, we would head off to Maui or Kauai. There is something about CookKwee’s (which I sadly no longer eat,) about canned passion-guava juice with sand in your toes, about salty air and being mistaken for kama’aina, that I simply cannot find a substitute for. A couple years ago I was lucky enough to go to Maui with said boyfriend and since then he has been hooked on the idea of moving there.
So. Here I am, a California girl wanting to be local, or if you will, a true huihine. (I’ll start looking for vegan plate lunch places now…) My boyfriend loves coconut and macadamia nuts. It’s ICE Battle Chocolate with a twist.
DING.
Meet my new California Huihine Cupcakes, my second whack at this month’s ICE battle.
These are chocolate cupcakes with just a hint of coconut provided by coconut oil in the cake. The topping is a caramel sauce sprinkled with sea salt and toasted coconut. The filling is a mix of chopped macadamias and more coconut.
Oh yeah, I forget – they’re filled. Like some sort of tropical Hostess-Cupcake-Almond-Joy-love-child.
———————–
As usual, here’s the possible schwag that is an added bonus to being the winner (via vote & drawing) to the month’s competition:
The Iron Cupcake:Earth December ETSY PRIZE-PACK is from artists:
- sweet papergoods from Betty Turbo
- a pair of cupcake earrings from Lots of Sprinkles
PLUS, IronCupcake:Earthicans cannot forget our good friend, Cakespy, who is now going to be doing a piece for our winner each month until further notice – sweet!
As an added bonus for December we have adorable cupcake pincushions complements of Sweet Cuppin Cakes Bakery and Supply.
Last and certainly not least, don’t forget our corporate prize providers:
- Head Chefs by Fiesta Products
- Hello Cupcake by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
- Jessie Steele Aprons
- the Cupcake Courier
- Taste of Home books.
Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers.
-
-
photo gallery
More Photos -
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Blog at WordPress.com. | Theme: Pool by Borja Fernandez.
Entries and comments feeds.
