Vanilla Frosted Chiffon Cupcake Recreation

I am on a quest to find a perfect cupcake recipe for my son’s first birthday party.  I am looking for a fluffy, light and delicious cupcake with a frosting that is not overly sweet. It would also be great if they do not need to be refrigerated. 

I thought I found the perfect recipe when I came across Alton Brown’s “Honey, I Shrunk the Cake” on his show, “Good Eats” but I am not sure if this is “the one”.  I can’t say that I was disappointed in the recipe itself but quite possibly in my own execution of the recipe. What I thought was going to be an easy cupcake recipe turned out to be quite a challenge for a beginner.  First, I could not figure out nor could I find any information online on how to measure 5 1/4 ounces of cake flour so after what seemed like an eternity of online research, I broke down and bought a food scale from Bed, Bath and Beyond.  The second challenge was figuring out what I could use in place of a paddle attachment on my “wanna be” Kitchen Aid stand mixer. I gave up and decided to just use the regular attachment that came with my hand mixer.  

I followed the recipe to the best of my ability and the cupcakes were not terrible; they just weren’t what I expected.  Something was off besides the frosting being way too sweet! I felt like my tooth was going to rot as soon as I bit into one. My husband took all 22 cupcakes to his softball game and returned with an empty tray.  That’s not necessarily good news considering it was 9:45 at night and the majority of the guys do not eat before the game so I’m sure they would have eaten anything put out in front of them! The general consensus was that the cupcakes were very sweet. Definitely not what I want to feed my one year old or his adorable little buddies.

Aside from the frosting, which I feel can be tweaked by simply adding less powdered sugar, the actual cupcake recipe stumps me. Instead of coming out light and fluffy, they almost tasted like pound cake minus the flavor and they didn’t rise. But this again, could have been my fault. Maybe, I didn’t incorporate the egg whites properly into the batter or maybe opening up the oven door to take a peek at the cupcake’s progress was a “no-no”.  Another thing I know I goofed on was not lining the muffin pan with cupcake liners.  Common sense told me to do so but I second-guessed myself when Alton Brown was saying not to grease the cups.  Later I realized, he was referring to actual mugs not a muffin pan. We live and we learn! 

Calling all bakers! I would really love to hear from you. Help! Where did I go wrong? If you have some advice or suggestions or a new cupcake recipe for me to try, I am all ears! I have until March 5th to create a perfect cupcake from scratch otherwise, I will be taking the box cake mix route.  

The following is a detailed step-by-step synopsis of the "Honey, I Shrunk the Cake" videos and the Chiffon Cupcake recipe found on the Food Network website. If you would like to follow along with the videos, you can find them below my instructions.

Vanilla Frosted Chiffon Cupcakes

You will need for 24 cupcakes:

Dry Ingredients:

• 5 1/4 ounce of cake flour
• 1 tsp of kosher salt
• 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder (aluminum free)
• Food scale that can measure .1 ounce

Batter:

• 5 large eggs
• 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup of water
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• 5 ounces of sugar

Egg whites:

• 5/8 tsp of cream of tartar
• 1 ounce of sugar

Hardware:

• 2 muffin pans
• Food scale that can measure .1 ounce
• Stand Mixer with a paddle attachment (A.K.A. Flat Beater) and/or hand mixer with a whisk attachment
• Sifter or a metal strainer, as in my case
• 2 large mixing bowls
• 2 medium bowls for splitting the egg white mixture into thirds
• 2 small bowls for separating the egg whites
• Rubber spatula
• Cupcake paper liners
• Ice cream scooper (optional)
• Toothpick

If you are making the frosting, you will need:

• 6 ounces of room temperature unsalted butter, which is about a stick and about 1 Tbsp of another stick of butter
• 1 large egg, room-temperature 

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

• Place paper liners into two 12 cup muffin pans.
• If you are making frosting, take out a stick and a half of butter as well as an egg because they need to be room temperature.

Prepare dry ingredients:

• Measure 5 1/4 ounces of cake flour on your scale along with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder. Make sure it is precise.
• In a medium bowl sift the flour, baking powder, and salt.

 

• Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together and set it to the side.

Prepare wet ingredients:

• Get your two small bowls ready. Separate the egg yolk from the egg whites.  Crack the egg, drain out the egg whites into a one small bowl using the egg shell and drop the egg yolk into the other bowl. Try to make sure that the egg yolk does not accidentally mix into the egg whites. If it does, just scoop it out.

 

• Now, transfer the egg yolks into a large mixing bowl and pour in 5 ounces of sugar.
• Beat the yolks and sugar with a hand mixer until the mixture is a pale yellow color and see ribbons when you lift the mixer in the “off” position.

 

• Add 1/4 cup of water, 1/4 cup of vegetable oil and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and beat to combine until smooth.

Combine the dry and wet ingredients as follows:

• Add the flour, baking powder and kosher salt mixture a little bit at a time to avoid it going all over the place. Beat until blended together. Set the batter to the side.

 

Now for the egg whites:

• Change the attachment on the blender to a whisk. Transfer the egg whites into a large mixing bowl. 
• Measure 5/8 teaspoon of cream of tartar and 1 ounce of sugar.
• Add cream of tartar and whisk the egg whites on a high speed until they become foamy.
• Decrease the speed to low and while gradually adding the ounce of sugar.
• Now, increase the speed to high and continue whisking for about 2 minutes until stiff peaks form.

 

Combine the egg whites with the batter as follows:

• Separate the egg white mixture into thirds. Easiest way to do this is by placing one third of the mixture into 2 separate medium bowls and leaving the last third in the bowl you are already using.

 

• Grab a whisk and pour in the first bowl of egg whites into the batter and whisk in quickly until combined.

 

• Now, grab a rubber spatula and pour the second bowl of egg whites into the batter and gently push your spatula down and fold over while rotating the bowl.  Try to do this as few times as possible.

 

• Next, pour in the last bowl of egg whites and gently fold them in with the spatula even quicker then before without over-beating it. If a little egg white foam is visible, that’s okay.

 

• Take the ice cream scoop and fill the muffin pans with the batter. If you are not using an ice cream scoop, then fill the muffin pans 3/4 of the way. 

 

• Place the muffin pans on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 30 minutes or so the recipe says.  Alton Brown also said not to open the oven door because the chiffon will fall but I did not listen because my gut feeling said to check on them. I took my cupcakes out at 20 minutes and I am glad I did because they seemed overdone. I would use your best judgment.  If you know your oven tends to bake things faster than a recipe calls for, then check on them sooner.  It’s a risk but so is leaving the cupcakes in there for the full duration and finding them burnt to a crisp. So, my ultimate recommendation is to check on them after 15 minutes by sticking a toothpick into the center of the cupcake.  If it comes out clean, they’re done! 

 

• Allow the cupcakes to completely cool before frosting them.

Vanilla Frosting

You will need:

• 6 ounces of room temperature unsalted butter
• 2 ounces of shortening
• 1 room temperature large egg
• 1 pound of powdered sugar, which in my opinion is way too much because the frosting was extremely sweet
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract

Hardware:

• Large mixing bowl
• Food scale that can measure .1 ounce
• Stand Mixer with a paddle attachment or hand mixer
• Rubber spatula

Directions:

• In a large mixing bowl, combine 6 ounces of room temperature unsalted butter and 2 ounces of shortening and cream on high until light and fluffy using the paddle attachment or in my case, a hand mixer. With a paddle attachment, Alton Brown says it should take 3-4 minutes.

 

• Decrease the speed of the stand mixer (or turn off the hand mixer) and add one room temperature egg. Beat for a couple minutes on a high speed until well-combined.

 

• Turn off the mixer and add the powered sugar half cup at a time.  Slowly turn on the machine so the sugar doesn’t fly all over the place. Blend each half cup in before adding another one. Continue adding the powdered sugar until its gone.

 

• Now, turn the machine on a low speed or turn off the hand mixer and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.  Turn the machine back up to high speed and beat the frosting until it is smooth and light, about 3 minutes.

 

• Apply the frosting to the cupcakes or you can refrigerate it for a couple days.  If you refrigerate it, make sure it is room temperature before spreading it onto the cupcakes.

Next week, I hope to try out a new cupcake recipe, hopefully one that you share with me. 

Honey Croissants, Rosemary Lemon Roast Chicken, & Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Ah, love is in the air and so is the mouth-watering aroma of roast chicken!  This Valentine’s Day, I am making a Rosemary Lemon Roast Chicken with Red Potatoes and Vegetables along with Honey Glazed Heart-shaped Croissants and Chocolate Covered Strawberries.  I choose Roast Chicken because it really isn’t all that difficult to make.  You throw all your ingredients in one pan, pop it into the oven and you have a protein, starch and a vegetable all in one! Let’s start with the Chocolate Covered Strawberries so that they are set for when you are ready for them.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

You will need: 

• 8-12 strawberries
• Chocolate to melt of your choice (I used Ghirardelli Semi-Sweet Baking Bar.)
• Microwavable bowl
• Sheet of wax paper
• Sprinkles and other fun decorations (optional)

Directions:

• Wash the strawberries and put them to the side.

• Place a sheet of wax paper on a plate.

• Cut up the chocolate bar into small cubes and place them into the microwavable bowl. If you are feeling a little daring and you have some orange or raspberry extract on-hand, add a little bit to the chocolate and stir it up. 

• Melt the chocolate in the microwave for 30 seconds and stir.  If it isn’t completely melted, microwave it for a few more seconds but be careful not to overcook it.  

• Dip the strawberries into the chocolate and place them onto the wax paper.  

• Right after dipping the strawberries into the chocolate, decorate them if you choose to with sprinkles or create a design with a tube icing.

• Refrigerate until the chocolate sets, about 20 minutes.

Rosemary Lemon Roast Chicken and Vegetables

You will need for 2 servings:

• 4 lb. whole chicken, thawed
• 4 medium red potatoes
• 1-2 red onions
• 1 yellow pepper
• 1 orange pepper
• 1 large lemon
• Container of grape tomatoes
• 8 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• Stick of butter
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 4 cloves of garlic
• About 4 cups of water
• salt
• pepper
• Roasting pan
• Baster or large spoon
• Aluminum Foil (optional)
• Meat thermometer (optional but helpful)

Healthy Substitutions:

• Butter substitute or skip the butter all together and just use olive oil
• Don’t eat the skin but keep it on to hold in moisture

Directions:

• Take the butter out of the fridge so it can soften.

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

• Wash peppers, tomatoes, potatoes and set to the side. The tomatoes will go in towards the end.

• Remove any imperfections on the potatoes and cut them into about 1 1/2 inch pieces.

• Place the potatoes into a small pot, add a teaspoon on salt, and pour enough water to cover them. I used a medium sized sauce pot so I needed about 4 cups of water.  

• Bring the potatoes to a boil on a medium heat and boil them for about 4-5 minutes.  This method is called par-boiling).  I want them to be semi-tender so that when they roast, I know they will be soft on the inside.

• Drain the water out of the potatoes.

• Before handling the chicken, I want to make sure all the ingredients are are chopped and ready to go.

• Cut the top of the peppers and remove the insides. 

• Cut the peppers in half and then slice them.  I cut the peppers from the inside because outsides are slippery.  

Now, for the onion.  

• Cut both ends off and slice through one layer from top to bottom to easily remove the top dead layers.

• Next, cut the onion in half and then into 3 pieces.

Moving along to the lemon.  

• Cut the lemon in half. Then, cut off a thin slice to garnish the chicken.  

• Pour a thin layer of olive oil into the roasting pan, just enough to cover the bottom.

• In a medium-sized bowl, take half a stick of the soften butter, a teaspoon of salt and 1/8 of pepper and mix them together.  If the butter isn’t soft, no worries, just pop it into the microwave for about 20 seconds or so and it should do the trick.

Now, for the star of the show - the chicken!  

• Wash the chicken, remove the insides, and pat it dry.

• Carefully cut the membrane between the breast muscle and the skin to separate it, making sure it doesn’t rip.  If it does accidently tear a little bit, it’s okay!

• Take the seasoned butter and spread it in under the skin.  Leave chunks of butter in various spots. 

• Now, take the other half of the butter and spread it all over the bird including the inside.

• Stuff the chicken cavity with a few layers of onion, a garlic clove, 2 sprigs of rosemary, and the other lemon half.  Place the lemon slice on top of the chicken for garnish.

• Generously season the outside and inside of the chicken with salt and some pepper.

• Strip the rosemary leaves and sprinkle them over the chicken. 

• Take a lemon half and squeeze lemon juice over the chicken. (A great use for the lemon peel is to cut it up and throw it into the garbage disposal, if you have one.  It freshens it up with a lovely lemon scent. Same goes for orange peels.)

• Take 2 square pieces of aluminum foil and cover the tips of the chicken wings so they do not burn. (optional)

• Next, place the chicken into the roasting pan breast-side up. 

• Place 3 more rosemary swigs and the rest of the garlic cloves throughout the roasting pan.

• Add the peppers and onions around the chicken and then add the potatoes.

• Season the vegetables with salt/pepper, finely chopped rosemary and drizzle some olive oil on top.

When roasting chicken, the rule of thumb is 20 minutes per pound.  Since I have a 4 pound chicken, I am going to roast at 350 degrees for about an hour and 35 minutes. 



If you are roasting a bigger chicken, here is a helpful roasting guide. The chicken is ready when the meat thermometer reads 165 degrees. For an accurate reading, place the thermometer in the innermost part of the thigh.  If you do not have a meat thermometer, pierce the thigh with a fork and if the juices run clear, the chicken is done.  

• With that said, place the pan into the oven and set the timer for 45 minutes.  Flip the potatoes and vegetables and baste the chicken with the juices on the bottom of the pan to keep it moist.  

• In another 20 minutes, baste the chicken again and flip the vegetables. Add the cherry tomatoes at this point.

• Roast and baste often for another 20-30 minutes; check the temperature of the chicken. 

If the chicken is done but you want your vegetables to crisp up some more, move the chicken onto a platter and allow it to rest for about 10 minutes before cutting into it so the juices do not run out.  To keep the chicken warm while the vegetables are roasting, place a sheet of aluminum foil over the chicken but do not completely cover it because the skin will get soggy.  

• Turn the oven up to 400 degrees and roast the vegetables until you get them to the crispiness you like.  I would start with 10 minutes and go from there.

• Once the veggies are done, place them around the chicken. 

Turn the oven temperature down to 350 if you plan on making the Honey-glazed Croissants.  

"Honey, I Love You” Croissants

You will need for 4 heart-shaped croissants:

• 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
• Baking sheet

Directions:

• Oven should be preheated to 375 degrees (350 degrees if you are using a dark or nonstick cookie sheet

• Unroll the dough and separate it into 8 triangles.

• Roll up each piece of dough from the flat end up to the tip of the triangle.

• Shape all the rolled up dough into the letter "C".

• Attach the two pieces into a heart shape.

• Bake for 8-13 minutes or until golden brown.

• Drizzle each heart with honey and serve.

Have a great Valentine's Day and if you happen to have leftovers, throw the roasted veggies into an omelette or make a quick chicken salad. Add mayo, a dash of salt/pepper, and you have got yourself a tasty lunch option.

In the next couple weeks, my little guy is going to be turning one so my focus will be prepping for his frog-themed birthday party.  I plan on following a cupcake and icing recipe from Alton Brown's "Good Eats".  I am torn between sugar cookies or Rice Krispie Treats as favors.  I guess I will make both and decide from there.

Before we meet back up next week, I invite you to take a quick poll.