Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

These cupcakes were inspired by my favorite fall treat from Starbucks - the pumpkin spice latte. And to get in the mood to bake them, I stopped for a grande cup of heaven on my way home today...hey, everyone needs a muse! And mine definitely got me in the mood to bake some pumpkin cake. If I had one of these cupcakes while drinking the latte, my head would probably explode as both are equally delicious and an excellent fall treat! Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes w. Cinnamon FrostingCupcake Recipe: 2 1/4 C Flour 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon 1/2...

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Apple Cider Cupcakes

One of my favorite things about fall is hot cider and a recent request led me to a new recipe for Apple Cider Cupcakes. These were delicious - even warm out of the oven with no icing. But, I would highly suggest the icing as well! The combo of this cake and icing provides a solid 1-2 punch of autumn and makes me want to snuggle in a blanket on the couch with a good book and a mug of cider...or another cider cupcake. I was requested to make cupcakes for a baby shower so I've included a pic of the Apple Cider cupcake as well...

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It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

So, I've avoided baking for the last two weeks due to being sick and not wanting to spread the wealth. In my downtime however, I did find some pics I thought were worth sharing. I get really excited for fall because not only is it time for orchards, pumpkin patches and some of my favorite holidays but there are so many amazing ingredients that are in season and fresh (there's an amazing pumpkin roll I'll be posting soon enough and is to die for!). These pics are from my insane holiday antics...what else am I going to do for those...

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Andes Mint Cupcakes

These cupcakes taste just like their miniature candy counterpart, the Andes Mint. Oh, happy day! I did have a laugh with these because I was telling someone what flavor these were just as someone else got to the middle of theirs and exclaimed, "is there chocolate ganache in this?!". And because it was early in the morning and I had not had my coffee yet, I had completely spaced it and was slightly confused for a split second. Then, of course, I had to run and get my own because I had totally forgotten about the chocolate ganache...

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Black Tie Beauties

Even baking divas like myself occasionally fall victim to indecisiveness in the kitchen...okay, especially this baking diva. There are just SO many options when it comes to flavors and blends and toppings! I chose to make these lovely little confections for all the other baked good lovers that have a hard time deciding between a chocolate or vanilla fix. It's the perfect blend of both flavors and honestly just hit the spot. I, unfortunately, have not mastered the marbled effect for the cake yet so any tips on that would be much...

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Banana Pudding Cupcakes

Do you remember when you were a kid and you were enticed by that amazing aroma and warm gooey pudding? These cupcakes pay homage to the wonderful dessert that is Banana Pudding (if only I had thought to sprinkle 'Nilla Wafers on top!). This is going to be one of my top 3 faves so far for a few reasons. I FINALLY figured out why my cakes were coming out a little dense (yay), they have lots of fruit so I can claim they're somewhat healthy, they remind me of one of my favorite childhood desserts & to put it simply, they taste...

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Devil's Food Cake w. Chocolate Mousse Buttercream

Mmmmmmmmm...wait for it...mmmmmm! A moist cake with a ridiculous icing rich enough to make any chocoholic swoon. The icing is a blend between a buttercream and a mousse so it lends a smooth finishing touch to this classic cake. I do think this recipe would be better presented as a cake, but it was delicious enough as cupcakes that I'll be adding it to my cake repertoire. Devil's Food Cake w. Chocolate Mousse ButtercreamThis recipe is adapted from "Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey" by Jill O'Connor Devil's Food Cake Recipe: 1/3 C Dutch-Processed...

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Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes

In keeping with this week's roll of reminiscing and looking back on people and places I've connected with in my life, I thought the Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes would be a good addition tonight. In the last week I've done everything from visit Mammoth Cave to watching some good ol' WWE with my brother to picking up my guitar again. Needless to say it's been quite some time since I've revisited any of those things and it's been a blast to do so! It's also been a hot minute since I've had some Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal. This...

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Dark Chocolate Cake w. Peanut Butter Icing

I've some MAJOR catching up to do on here! I figured a good place to start would be with a new post for a delicious cupcake recipe I found. If a Reese's peanut butter cup had a love child with a rich cake, this would be it. The cake itself is moist and very chocolaty & the icing is definitely unique (and extremely peanut butter-y). I did make the mistake of putting some of the leftover icing on some freshly made chocolate chip cookies and *good lawd* it was delicious. I'll definitely be adding this one to my recipe collection! Dark...

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Champagne Cupcakes: Recipe Coming SOON! ...

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Chocolate Cupcakes: Recipe Coming SOON! ...

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Citrus Cupcakes (new & improved): Recipe Coming SOON! ...

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Very Vanilla Cupcakes

I'm not sure why I've been avoiding the basics for so long, but before today I have never made a (from scratch) classic vanilla or classic chocolate cake. How on earth has this happened?! Well, to fix this problem right away, I've made vanilla cupcakes with vanilla bean frosting. I have discovered one of the most amazing secret ingredients known to (wo)man - Vanilla Bean Paste. It's much more intense than vanilla extract, but I was looking for a vanilla cake that would stand out from the norm so I am A-OK with that. I incorporated...

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Red Velvet Brownies with White Chocolate Buttercream

A recipe that combines anything red velvet, brownies or white chocolate is a friend of mine. Add a Ghirardelli twist and I'm in a state of absolute bliss! Instead of making these in an 8x8 pans, I made individual brownies in a cupcake tin. The edges were crispy but the insides were perfect, so if you're a corner brownie kind of guy/gal I would suggest making (and eating) the smaller servings. You'll notice a lot of my recipes are made for easy sharing and that's because I like to keep things simple for my amazing group of...

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A Lil Bit of Everything = Delicious

These are amazingly simple yet so delicious. The part that takes the longest is unwrapping all the Reese's - they should really sell these in bulk and unwrapped. What would really be delicious is to make bite-size versions of these in a mini-muffin tin. They're extremely rich and although I had no problem eating one (or two...), they would be best shared in mini form in my opinion.Brownie Cookie SurpriseMakes 24 standard cupcake sized goodies. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Smoosh one square of break apart refigerated chocolate...

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White Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

Sometimes things just don't turn out exactly how we would like them to. Even in those instances, there is always something positive to take away. In this instance, I had a case of screwy-recipe-itis. So, I didn't really like the recipe for these too much as the cake was too dense/sticky, the filling was nixed due to texture issues and I completely re-did the icing recipe. The positive spin I am taking on these is that I thought they turned out kind of pretty and I just can't resist sharing the things I find pretty in life! Hopefully...

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Let Them Have Cake (& Time to Eat It, Too)

Here's a quickie recipe if you ever need something light and heavenly but don't have a lot of time for baking. I cheated a little on this one and took the super quick route... I bought one of the angel food cakes from Marsh. But SSHHH, that can be our little secret! I think this took me about 15-20 minutes total to make, which includes prepping the strawberries. The fresh fruit and light cake not only provides a beautiful presentation but also makes this a perfect summer treat. Angel Lush Cake 1 Can (20 oz.) Crushed Pineapple,...

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