Whoopie pies

Whoopie pies and macarons are two things I have been meaning to have a go at for a long time. I see lots of recipes for both on Tastespotting.


A couple of weeks ago my sister in law asked me whether I had ever made whoopie pies. She'd seen them in a magazine (which I gave her...) and assured me she would be more than happy to do a taste test!

The same day as she mentioned it, I had seen this list of recipes at the kithcn.

I went ahead and made the first ones on the list. Making a few little alterations to it. They were delicious. My sister in law agrees.

I might have whoopie pies in the shop from time to time, but I feel that, since they are essentially the same as cupcakes but in a different shape and not so easy to transport or eat, it's probably best to stick to cupcakes!


I might have to keep making them until I've made up my mind.

Liz Cupcakes

Peach cupcakes & update

It has been a difficult couple of weeks. We had found a location. We were going to sign the contract. We told the owner we needed to check one last thing about how we would fit an extractor fan. We had to be away over the weekend and when Alex went by the property after the weekend, he discovered the owner had given the property to someone else.

Needless to say we were very disappointed. We had to start the search all over again. Just as you think you are about to move onto the next step then you end up back where you were.

We are still forging ahead but sometimes it feels like we are going backwards instead of forwards.

This week I made peach cupcakes. They were delicious and will definitely be a seasonal item on the menu.


Speaking of the menu. I've been working on the daily/weekly menu of the shop. To take my mind off the things which are progressing more slowly, I sat down and wrote a list of all the flavours I've been working on and a handful which I intend to add but haven't refined my recipe yet. I was quite surprised that the list was pretty long! Then I made a a rough plan of my weekly menu, which cupcakes and how many I'll have available daily, which flavours will rotate, as well as seasonal cupcake flavours, ones with seasonal fruits or vegetables in them.

So that's where we are up to this week. I just realised today that we didn't have our monthly give-away for June. It was a rather frantic month with one thing and another. Keep checking in and we will have a give-away soon. I promise! :-)

Liz Cupcakes

Behold...the hummingbird!

We're still on our little vacation in the UK, visiting Grandad and Granny cupcakes. Wish you were here. Well, not really! The weather has been very good so far with only two days of rain and it's forecast to be sunny for the rest of our stay so I won't be spending much time in the kitchen!





Here's a little something to keep you going until we get back. This is a hummingbird cupcake (you'll have to excuse the light in these pictures ― they were taken on one of the rainy days). Depending on the recipe you use, hummingbird cupcakes have banana, pineapple, sometimes carrot and coconut inside. The frosting is usually cream cheese. So what's so special about this hummingbird?


Well... (blowing trumpet ahead of me) this is my first attempt at a sugar free cupcake. Yes, sugar free!

What's the point of a sugar free cupcake, you might ask. Well there is a lot of point if you happen to be a diabetic. It was time to try out a few recipes for those who have special dietary requirements, so after doing quite a bit of research and asking for some advice from another lovely cupcake baker, Laura, I had my first attempt.

Now, sugar plays several roles in the baking process. Not only does it add sweetness but it also adds volume (as well as colour) to a recipe. Sugar substitutes don't add volume or colour, only sweetness. Take a look inside the cupcake:


You can see that it is very pale. That is something I am going to try and work on. The overall appearance of the cake was good. The overall taste, well, if you are a sugar addict it might not quite hit the spot, but if you are not allowed to have sugar in your daily life and only on a special occasion, then you would find that this little cake actually does it!

For my first sugar free recipe it wasn't too bad, I thought. I'm going to be experimenting more, so we have a sugar free option on our menu some days or available for special orders.

Liz

Sunset at Silloth, Cumbria, UK ― April 2010
(Nafplio / Shmafplio, it's all the same...)

Brownies

The other day we were looking through our photos and realised we didn't have any photos of brownies. How could this be, since I have made them quite a few times in the last few months? I have been trying different recipes to find out which one I like.

To cut a long story short, when I discovered we needed a photo model of some brownies to add to our 'menu' I thought I'd better remedy the situation quickly! Behold cheesecake brownies. Absolutely no calories what-so-ever!!!

The thing I have discovered about brownies is that everyone has a favourite way of making them. Each their own version. Some like it to be more cake like and some like it to be more fudgy. Smitten Kitchen has quite a few different versions. The fact that we didn't manage to take any photographs until I made some especially testifies to how yummy brownies are!

I have made some brownie cupcakes before. You have to find a special recipe for that, though because unlike most cake recipes which can be converted into cupcakes, brownies need a little tweeking (don't ask how I know that :P).


They're divine warmed up with a little cream or ice-cream.

Liz