DC Cupcake's Vanilla Cupcakes

DC Cupcake's Georgetown Vanilla Cupcake 



INGREDIENTS:
2 1/2 cups flour , sifted
1/2 tsp. baking powder, sifted
1/4 Tsp. salt
8 Tbsp. (4 ounces) unsalted butter
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract + seeds from 1 vanilla bean
1 1/4 cups whole milk , at room temperature

Georgetown Cupcake Buttercream Frosting

16 Tbsp. (8 ounces) unsalted butter
4 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted
1 tsp. whole milk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt

To make your cupcake unique for your Valentine add a mix-in!

• ½ cup Chopped French Chocolate (if you want to INDULGE your sweetheart)
• ½ cup Rose Champagne (if want to LOOSEN UP your sweetheart)
• ½ cup Diced Strawberries (if your sweetheart is ROMANTIC)
• ½ cup Cinnamon Heart Candies (if your sweetheart is SPICY)
• ½ cup of Coffee Liqueur (if you and your sweetheart like to STAY UP ALL NIGHT)
• ½ cup of Dulce de Leche / Caramel (if your sweetheart is SEXY)
• ½ cup of Goldfish (if your sweetheart likes something SALTY and SWEET)
• ½ cup of shredded coconut (if you don't have time for that EXOTIC getaway)
• ½ cup of mashed banana (if your sweetheart is BANANAS)

DIRECTIONS:
For the cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 cupcake pans with baking cups or grease pans with butter if not using baking cups.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.

Place the unsalted butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer. Add the sugar; beat on medium speed until well incorporated.

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing slowly after each addition.

Combine the vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds and milk in a large liquid measuring cup.

Reduce the speed to low. Add one-third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, then gradually add one-third of the milk mixture, beating until well incorporated. Add another one-third of the flour mixture, followed by one-third of the milk mixture. Stop to scrape down the bowl as needed. Add the remaining flour mixture, followed by the remaining milk mixture, and beat just until combined.

Scoop batter into baking cups and bake for 10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

For the Frosting:

Place the unsalted butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer. Add the confectioner's sugar; beat on medium speed until well incorporated.


**If adding a special Valentine ingredient:
Add the ingredient of your choice to the batter, mix for 10 seconds, then scoop batter into cupcake pans!

Pink Lemonade Tea Cakes

Pink Lemonade Tea Cakes:
1 cup butter
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup finely chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans, typically)
1 tablespoon King Arthur brand Lemon Powder
A few drops of LorAnn Oil flavoring, Lemonade flavor
pink food coloring (if desired)

To Coat the Cookies:
approximately 2 cups extra powdered sugar
1 or 2 tablespoons more King Arthur Lemon Powder
pink petal dust or luster dust

Directions:
1) Heat oven to 400.

2) Mix room temperature butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla thoroughly. Add a few drops of the LorAnn Oil Flavoring. This is strong stuff, and a little goes a long way! Stir flour, salt, King Arthur Lemon Juice Powder, and nuts in, and mix just until well incorporated.



3) Form dough into one inch diameter balls and put on a greased cookie sheet.


4) Bake 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are just starting to look golden brown on the bottom. The cookies will still appear pretty pale on their tops.

5) While still warm, roll the cookies in your pink powdered sugar mixture. I like to use a fork and a spoon for this step, both to keep my hands clean and protect my fingers from the heat. This first layer might look a little moist and darken as the cookies cool, but don’t worry. Let cool completely, and roll the cookies in the powdered sugar coating a second time. This will give you the lovely lasting powdery coating.

To make the pink powdered sugar coating:
1) Place approximately two cups of powdered sugar in a bowl or tupperware container. (I like something with a lid, so I can shake the ingredients to mix thoroughly and quickly.) Add one or two tablespoons of King Arthur Lemon Juice Powder to the powdered sugar–it really depends on how lemony you want the cookie to be. Sprinkle some pink petal dust or luster dust in the mix. Luster and petal dusts are essentially powdered food coloring, and are used in cake decorating. You can find it online, or at your local cake decorating store. A word of warning: it is *not* the same as the Wilton brand shimmer dust you can get at major craft stores. Look for the real stuff; it’s much more intense and beautiful. I used Magenta petal dust in these pictures. Mix well, and you’ll have a pale pink powdered sugar with a bright lemon tang, perfect for coating the cookies.