Death By Black Friday Cupcakes (chocolate cupcakes with chocolate espresso cream filling and chocolate whip frosting)

It is time. That time every retail/food service worker has feared, ladies and gents Black Friday is upon us. Only in the great country of America can we justify waking up at the crack of dawn and trampling the young and weak to buy stuff the day after being thankful for what they already have.

Nah, I'm not bitter...

...but you know what IS bitter? And sweet, and rich, and sinfully delicious? These cupcakes (see what I did there?)

In order to boost moral and ease our suffering I decided to make cupcakes, but not just any cupcakes!
when designing such a cake, I knew it had to have three components:
Coffee - for energy and sustainability
Chocolate - for the soul
and a bit of booze - for obvious reasons

These cupcakes were super delicious. The cake itself is moist and rich which is offset by the hint of the cherry kirsch (aka my favorite alcohol to use in desserts, you might remember THESE). Also, I added coffee to the batter (to enhance that chocolate flavor) as well as the frosting, because you can never have too much coffee!!

If you're running low on time, you don't necessarily have to make the filling because the cupcakes are moist on their own, it's just a personal preference.

For the cupcakes...

makes 12 regular sized cupcakes, recipe adapted from Pretty.Simple.Sweet

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup hot, bold coffee

Directions:

1.Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Line muffin tin with cupcake liners. Set aside.
2.In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
3.In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary. On medium speed, beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract and beat until combined. With the mixer on low speed, add half of the dry ingredients and beat just until combined. Beat in the milk until combined. Add the other half of the dry ingredients and beat slowly until combined. Add hot coffee and beat just until combined. Do not over mix – the less you mix, the lighter the cake will be. The batter should be liquid-y.
4.Divide batter evenly between cups, filling them about 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes (or 8-10 minutes if making mini cupcakes), until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs. Allow cupcakes to sit for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

For the filling...

1 TBS cherry kirsch (optional)
1 cup heavy cream
About 3 cups icing sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)
1 pinch salt

Directions:

In a bowl start beating the heavy cream, either by hand (you're crazy) or with a whisk attachment. While beating slowly add the sugar, salt and kirsch until light and fluffy.

For the frosting...

1 cup confectionery sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 pint (2 cups) whipping cream
1-2 TBS coffee, cooled
Pinch of salt
chocolate covered espresso beans for garnish

Directions:

1.Place whipping cream in mixing bowl. Shift remaining ingredients together and add to cream.
2.Mix in gently, then beat on high until a thick, frosting-like consistency forms.

To assemble: take cool muffin and cut a small hole out of the center (I would recommend getting one of these), add filling then plug it back up with the cake. Add frosting and devour.

Apple Spice Cake with Salted Caramel Glaze

If there's one fruit I have ALWAYS loved in desserts, it's apples.

Think about it, 9 times out of 10 whenever you smell a delicious dessert baking in the oven, it usually involves apples.
I didn't really know what to call this "cake." It's moist like a cake but it also has a bread-like texture. I love the little bites of apple and the texture of the toasted pecans, it is reminiscent of an apple pie but in delicious cake form. I also had a chance to use some leftover salted caramel sauce which at first I thought would make this cake too sweet but it paired perfectly and created those coveted little pockets of soft gooeyness on top.

Salted Caramel Apple Spice Cake

recipe adapted from Paula Deen

3 cups diced and peeled Granny Smith apples, about 2 apples
1 cup lightly toasted chopped walnuts OR pecans
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 TBS ground cinnamon
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 and 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups vegetable oil OR melted butter
3 eggs

For the caramel sauce, click HERE

Directions:

1.Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease a Bundt pan, tube pan, or loaf pan.

2.In a bowl, mix together the apples, nuts, vanilla, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

3.Using an electric mixer beat the sugar, oil (or butter), and eggs in a large bowl. Add in the dry ingredients and beat until completely combined. Fold in the apple mixture (batter will be thick).

4.Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until a tester inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to fully cool in the pan, about 1 hour, and then turn it out onto a plate. Drizzle the apple cake with some of the glaze, serve and enjoy!

The cake can be wrapped tightly and stored in the refrigerator for 3 to 5 days.

Pecan Encrusted Flounder with Roasted Lemon Thyme Red Potatoes

I am having so much fun with my new herb garden! For starters it's been about a week and I've actually managed to keep it alive! This is a big accomplishment for me, usually I bring home poor helpless plants and smite them withing the first couple of days, despite all my efforts to keep them alive (maybe I kill them with love?...yeah we'll go that).

Included in my garden is lemon thyme, which I had surprisingly never worked with, it resembles regular thyme but with a slight lemon scent. I decided to see how it would roast so I tossed it in with some potatoes last night and the results were tasty! The key to getting super crispy potatoes is a high oven temp, you also want to make sure that you periodically stir the potatoes or you'll have a burnt crispy mess on your hands!

As for the fish, pairing nuts with a mild fish like flounder punches up the flavor while at the same time adding some much needed texture! You do have to option to bake this in place of frying but the fish probably won't get as crispy.

Pecan Encrusted Flounder with Roasted Lemon Thyme Red Potatoes

For the fish...

for 4 fish

4 fresh flounder fillets, cleaned and patted dry
1 cup finely chopped pecans
2 TBS flour
salt + pepper
1 egg, beaten
oil for frying

For the potatoes...

4 medium red skinned potatoes, diced
3 sprigs of lemon thyme
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1-2 TBS olive oil
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp yellow curry powder

1.Coat potatoes in oil and spices, place on a lined baking pan and bake on 400 degrees F for about 15-20, taking out to stir occasionally (this ensures even potato crispy yumminess).

2.Heat oil on medium high heat (enough oil to cover to bottom of the pan). Combine nuts, flour, salt and pepper in a bowl. In another bowl add the egg. Using a standard breading procedure, use one hand to coat the fish in egg, and another to coat in nut mixture. Carefully place fish in the oil, cooking 3 min. on each side or until golden brown and fish is slightly firm to the touch.

Let's hope the garden lives on! I have my eye on some fresh mint chocolate chip ice cream in the future!

Dad's Birthday Pie (Pumpkin with Pecan Crumble Topping)

I know what you must be thinking, pumpkin pie? In June? Are you crazy?! And to that I say, a)there is always a time for pie and b)it's for my dad's birthday and on your birthday you can eat whatever you want!

Ever since my dad was little he always asked his mom for birthday pie instead of cake, and who could blame him, my grandmother was the pie queen. I have yet to master her perfectly pressed and flaky crusts (as you can see) but despite it's...rustic appearance, it tastes delicious which is what really counts in the end. This time I decided to amp up the usual pumpkin pie with a pecan topping in order to add texture and to stay true to my dad's food philosophy, "anything with nuts in it is health food."

While that statement might not be completely true, the caramelized sugar and spice of the cinnamon in the crumble really takes this pie to the next level!

Dad's Birthday Pie (Pumpkin with Pecan Crumble Topping)

Pie recipe adapted from Libby's

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 and 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice OR (1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, and 1/4 tsp ground cloves)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 can (15 oz.) Pure Pumpkin puree
1 can (12 fl. oz.)Evaporated Milk

For the streusel topping...

3/4 cup chopped and toasted pecans
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 TBS flour
2 TBS cold butter, diced

For my pie crust recipe click HERE

*crust recipe makes 2 crusts, I always freeze half to keep it on hand.

Method:

1.Beat eggs in large bowl, add sugar and spices and mix until incorporated. Stir in pumpkin. Gradually stir in evaporated milk. Pour into prepared pie shell.

2.For topping, mix sugar, flour, salt, and cinnamon. Add nuts and diced butter and mix until butter crumbles.

2.Bake in preheated 425° F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F; and add crumble topping, then bake for 40 to 50 minutes more or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 2 hours. Serve immediately or refrigerate.

p.s. If you don't have any candles laying around, sentimental/slightly embarrassing pictures always work too!

Mustachio Muffins

I Mustache you a question, do you love pistachios as much as I do?! Yeah, I went there. Seriously though, these things have to be my favorite of the nuts (along with almonds) they're so unique and flavorful and like almonds, they go so well with sweet baked goods and other things...like ice cream!

This is my second baking adventure in the new place, still scoping out suitable food photoshoot places, but I'm getting close.

These muffins have a more cake-like consistency, and as you can see I am still adjusting to our new oven (I baked them 20 degrees below set temp and they still got a wee bit toasted). If you can't find pistachio extract you could always either use almond, or just go without it since the pudding mix has it's own flavoring, it's up to you.


Mustachio Muffins

makes about 15 large muffins

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 1/8-ounce package instant pistachio pudding mix
1/2 tsp pistachio extract
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 1/4 cups milk
3/4 cup shelled, coarsely chopped pistachios, separated


Method:

1.Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line the muffin pan with liners and set aside.

2.In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment cream the butter, sugar, and pudding mix until smooth.

3.Add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the side of the bowl as needed. Add the salt, baking powder, and extract.

4.Alternate between adding the milk and the flour, starting and beginning with the flour. Fold in 1/2 cups chopped Pistachios.

5.Spoon the batter into the muffin pan; filling 3/4 of the way to the top.Top each muffin with a few pistachios and bake for 18-20 minutes.

Top with mustaches for a clever disguise.

We also recently added a new member to the Martin family, look for pictures soon!