Blackberry cupcakes and a Love Affair with Dessert

I feel compelled to write and tell you today why I my blog is turning into a food blog.  I have found a passion for baking through my children.  It all started in Franklin, Tn when my daughter Madi kept asking to bake with her.  She become very interested so I found myself baking with her all of the time.  Not knowingly did I become passionate about this art!  I found myself walking into bakeries excited to see all of the beautiful desserts and try new things.  You know the way some people stare at shoes in a window, I find myself doing that with cupcakes and little mousses, macaroons, etc. but here's the great part: they are much cheaper than buying those two hundred dollar shoes.  Of course, the inevitable Jillian Michaels workout video follows...but hey, I'll take a 20 minute workout a day to keep my love affair going!

Another wonderful feeling is handing a beautifully wrapped box with a delicious dessert inside to a friend.  To see their face light up and feel appreciated is a gift in itself. 

I have found so many talented bakers out in the blogging world.  Even a high school student who started baking when she was 8!  You must visit her site: Patisserienatalie. You will be so amazed with her photography, something which I am still learning.  I love to look at food blogs with pictures that make you want to bake right away.  I saw her post on raspberry and blackberry cupcakes and just had to make them that day.  I made only blackberry with vanilla cupcakes but they are so delicious!

Vanilla Cupcakes(Martha Stewart)

1 3/4 cups cake flour, not self-rising

1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes

4 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Blackberry Buttercream(adapted from Patisserie Natalie)

• 2-1/2 sticks unsalted butter; softened
  
• 1 teaspoon salt
  
• 2-1/2 cups powdered sugar; sifted
  
• 1/4 cup blackberry sauce

1. Beat butter and  powdered sugar until smooth. Add blackberry sauce and mix.  Place buttercream in a piping bag and pipe a circle around the outer edge of the cupcake top, spiraling in towards the center.

Blackberry Sauce

• 1 cup blackberries
  
• 2 teaspoons sugar
  
• 1 teaspoon lemon or lime juice

Combine ingredients in a sauce pan and place over medium heat. Stir frequently until juices from berries boil. Using a wooden spoon, crush the berries in the pan. Let boil for 2 minutes to make sauce more dense. Strain the mixture if you prefer to have smoother frostings. Cool in refrigerator.

Thank you to all of my family, friends and bloggers out there that inspire me and encourage me every day. And to my daughter Madi who always inspires me in and out of the kitchen!

Comments

[Julie Berry]

You must check out Bakerella.com - great baking website!

Keep up the yummy goodness! I wish I had "smellalaptop"!

Julie