Pumpkin Angel Food Cake with Salted Caramel Glaze

This is an absolutely divine dessert. And angel food is really so easy to make and the salted caramel glaze makes this seem really fancy, but I promise it's really easy!

Lemon Chiffon Layer Cupcakes

This is a repost of a recipe from my other, short-lived blog. I've decided to focus on masquerading domesticity here, so now it will be a one-stop-shop for all my baking cleverness! So here you go!

These are lemon chiffon cupcakes, with a layer of lemon curd in the middle and topped with vanilla glaze and a homemade candied lemon peel!

Lemon love!



So they weren't perfect! I'd never made chiffon cake before and it wasn't that difficult. But I wasn't really sure what to expect when I baked it into a cupcake. First I knew I wanted to slice them in the middle so I could add the layer of lemon curd, so I baked them without wrappers which is ALWAYS a headache! Never have I ever baked a cupcake or muffin where I didn't murder at least 3 before they came out of the pan when they had no wrappers.

Also I expected they would behave a bit more like an angel food cake which creeps up the side of the pan then keeps going. As you can see here, they didn't do that.

And, my vanilla glaze recipe was wrong wrong wrong, so I ended up adding too much milk. I adjusted the recipe below though so you can make a proper vanilla glaze.

Candying the lemon peel was fun though, if not a little stressful! If you're going to take on all parts of this cupcake, I suggest making the candy lemon peel first, then the lemon curd, then the cupcakes and finally the glaze.

Brown Sugar Maple Glazed Baked Mini Donuts

I love brown sugar. When I can, I've been sneaking it into things to make them extra tasty, like my brown sugar snickerdoodles. I did the same here for these brown sugar, maple glazed baked mini donuts! I brought them to a brunch and they went over very well!



This made about 30 mini donuts. Also the glaze came out a little thin and I had to re-dip them. Although it's possible they could not have been cooled all the way, so just in case, don't add all the milk to the glaze at once! Add it little by little to make sure you get the right consistency!

Also I always use a piping bag to fill the pan with mini donuts. A spoon just won't cut it, so if you don't have real piping bags do the trick with a zip lock bag instead. I pipe in a somewhat thick "layer" of batter into the bottom of each cavity. If filled too much they won't look like donuts after they rise!


Brown Sugar Maple Glazed Baked Mini Donuts
Adapted from Glorious Treats

For the donuts

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 egg

1 1/2 Tablespoons butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 425 F.  Spray mini doughnut pan with nonstick cooking spray
2. In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
3. Add buttermilk, egg, and butter and stir until just combined.
4. Pipe the batter into your donut pan with a piping bag or zip lock bag with the end snipped off.
5. Bake 4-6 minutes or until the top of the doughnuts spring back when touched. 
6. Cool in pan 1-2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. 

For the maple glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

2 Tablespoons milk

1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons pure maple extract

1. In a small bowl, stir together sugar, milk and extract until sugar is completely dissolved.  
2. Make sure donuts are completely cooled, then use glaze immediately to dip the donuts.
3. Place on baking sheet until glaze is set

Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

This is my second time making these cupcakes! They're Boston cream cupcakes with pastry filling and amazing chocolate glaze! They were a request from my dad for dessert following Father's day dinner.



The first time I made these I was very into making all my cupcakes in minis. I still am, but I made a bunch of these as minis, then used the remaining batter in full size cupcakes. The minis were good, but I recommend making them as regular size cupcakes to get as much pastry cream as possible!

Boston Cream Cupcakes
Shame on me, from a magazine I no longer have

Yield about 28 regular sized cupcakes for me

For the pastry cream filling
1 1/3 cup heavy cream
3 large egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
Pinch salt
4 teaspoons corn starch
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 2 pieces
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the cupcakes
1 3/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour, plus extra for muffin tin
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
3 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the glaze
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup light corn syrup
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Make the pastry cream

1. 
Bring the cream to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
   
2. Meanwhile, whisk the yolks, sugar, and salt together in a medium bowl.
   
3. Add the cornstarch and whisk until mixture is pale yellow and thick, about 15 seconds.
4. When the cream reaches a full simmer, slowly whisk it into the yolk mixture.
   
5. Return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thick and glossy, about 1 1/2 minutes.
   
6. Remove from heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla.
   
7. Transfer the pastry cream to a small bowl and refrigerate, with plastic wrap pressed flush against its surface, until cold and set at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
   

Make the cupcakes

1. 
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
   
2. Grease and flour a standard cupcake pan (no wrappers lets glaze drip down the sides all pretty-like)
3. In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, combine the flour baking powder, salt, and sugar.
4. Add the butter in small pieces one at a time and combine until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
   Note: I used a pastry cutter to do this, mixer wasn't doing it for me.
5. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until combined.
   
6. Add the milk and vanilla, increase the speed to medium, and mix until light and fluffy and no lumps remain, about 3 minutes.
7. Fill the prepared pan about three-quarters full (do not overfill).
   
8. Bake approximately 18 - 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
9. Cool the cupcakes in a pan for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
   

Make the chocolate glaze

1. Cook the cream, corn syrup, chocolate and vanilla in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth.
   
2. Set aside to cool and thicken for 30 minutes.

Assemble cupcakes!
Note: My first post of this recipe photo documents this method.

1. Insert the tip of a small knife at a 45-degree angle about 1/8 inch from the side of each cupcake and cut all the way around, removing a cone of cake.
   
2. Cut away all but the top 1/4 inch of the cone, leaving only a small disk of cake.
   
3. Fill each cupcake with 2 tablespoons pastry cream and top with the disk of cake.
   
4. Set the filled cupcakes on a wire rack set over parchment.
   
5. Spoon 2 tablespoons of glaze over each cupcake, allowing it to drip down the sides.
6. Refrigerate until set, about 10 minutes

These cupcakes can be stored in fridge for up to two days. Bring to room temperature before serving for best pastry cream consistency.