Thursday, November 12, 2009

Red Velvet Birthday Cupcakes

Tuesday was both my mother and mother-in-law's birthdays. My hubby and I joined his family for the birthday celebration and I made these red velvet cupcakes. This red velvet recipe, originally from I Heart Cuppycakes, has become my go-to red velvet recipe. I have made these red velvet cupcakes three times now and they have never failed to bake up to a beautiful, tender dome. I posted the recipe on my blog after the first time I made these amazing treats. I was in a frenzy Tuesday afternoon, rushing to Kroger to get buttermilk and cream cheese for these red velvet wonders and throwing together the cupcakes (including handmade gum paste flowers) from start to finish in less than 2 hours. Unfortunately Kroger didn't have regular Philadephia cream cheese stocked and I was in too much of a hurry to ask for some, so I substituted 1/3 less fat cream cheese in the frosting. I was hoping this wouldn't noticeably affect the frosting; however, it didn't set up as firmly as normal. Despite the less than perfect frosting, I was pleased with the way these turned out.

You'll certainly have to forgive these photos, I didn't finish these cupcakes until after sunset and my camera cannot function without natural light. I really want to practice my skill making gum paste flowers. I'd love to get some luster dust in a few different colors so I could add some dimension to my flowers.

What are you favorite cupcake flavors? I've been thinking about pairing a peanut butter cupcake with a rich, glossy chocolate ganache frosting. It sounds divine in theory, no?

2 comments:

  1. I'm curious, what did you do for the center part of your flowers. Is that frosting? I love your cupcakes! It's so difficult working with gum paste but your flowers look amazing!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. For the flower centers I used little sugar pearls (I think they are Wilton brand). They are just small little sprinkles that look like pearls. I attach mine using a "glue" of equal parts water and meringue powder.

    Thank you for your sweet compliments! I have only worked with gum paste a few times and it always frustrates me how quickly it dries out. I really want to try making some elaborate roses, but I can't seem to work quickly enough before the gum paste starts to dry. I've been sticking to simple flowers like these instead. I love the look of them but I am determined to conquer the rose soon! Do you have any gum paste tips you've learned?

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Share Buttons