I'll never be a hand model...

Tomorrow I will have a more serious V-day post, but today I give you...

... evidence that I will never be a hand model.  And a Valentines "Dump-Cake."

I can't really give you a recipe for these, as I made them from leftover chocolate cupcakes, leftover chocolate and coffee frosting (I mixed them together), then I coated them in Girl Scout cookie crumbs that were still in my freezer from last year, and finally filled them with leftover whipped cream from making ganache. I threw it all together and came up with a Valentines Day post, aka Dump-Cakes!

What are you making this Valentine's Day?  I am making quite a few cakes this week, but tomorrow I am making something very sweet for my sweetheart.  It is quite a bit more intentional, and completely devoid of pink hearts.  OK.  Maybe one pink heart.

Have a lovely day, and I'll see you back here tomorrow.

Yes, tomorrow.

Rachel Bee

Making my steps sure.

I have had a lot of baking opportunities this week, in addition to an exceptional amount of hair-doing.  Oh- and in addition to starting P90X.  If anyone has seen me out and about town, yes, that is the reason for my slow, methodical waddle.  I can't really say more than I am worn out, and I am looking forward to tomorrow's "day off."

I have to say that (like most people) I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook, but in the last few weeks it has brought more god than bad.  Through my husband's photography page, a delightful person saw pictures of some of my baking, and contacted me to do some work for her and her business.  This week I made my first two dozen cupcakes for her, with a deficit of 3 more as well as a cake (to which I have dedicated a pinterest board).  The first two dozen I made were my "Lime in the Coconut," and "Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup."

I used the recipe shown here (which is also an exceptionally gorgeous post about my kid), and topped them with those cute little Reeces Mini Cups that come in a bag.  Very delicious, very addictive.

I did not take a picture of my Coconut Lime cupcakes as when I finished them, they looked way too beige to me.  That night I went to four different grocery stores looking for key limes to plop on the top, but perhaps they are out of season.  Finally at Walmart I found miniature fruit slices (the gummy ones that are completely covered in sugar), and wedged them into the Cream Cheese Frosting.  They were adorable!

I also took the plunge and purchased new cake boxes, complete with cupcake inserts!  They are very cute, but a bit pricey.  Here are the cupcakes, all boxed up...

I love it.  You know, I am well aware of the sovereignty of God, but I feel like I am in the exact and proper pinpoint of the place He has planned for me.  I mess up often, but as the Bible states all through the Psalms (18:36, 37:31, 119:133 per example), God makes my steps very sure.  When my path seems precarious and narrow, as I follow after Him, my next move becomes very obvious.

Sorry.  Just a side-thought.

I love Him.

I love You.  Have a great weekend.

Rachel Bee

Recipe for Blackberry Curd!

I posted pictures of these gorgeous cupcakes on Saturday, and I promised a recipe.

Here it is!

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Blackberry Curd and Dump Frosting
(One recipe Pumpkin Spice Cake*)


Blackberry Curd
1/3 C blackberry puree, seeds removed
juice of 1 lemon (or lime)
1/3 C + 2 T white sugar (if your puree is extremely tart, go ahead and make it 2/3 C sugar
3 eggs
4 T butter, in cubes


Place all of the ingredients in a heatproof bowl over simmering water, and stir constantly until the temperature reaches @165 degrees.  Remove from heat.  Your mixture should be moderately thick.  Add the butter a piece at a time, and set aside to cool.  After 30 minutes, cover surface with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator at least 4 hours.

Bake your cupcakes. *I baked 12 cupcakes and poured the remaining batter into a 6" cake pan.  I would hesitate to halve this recipe, as it is hard to properly cream a half a stick of butter with a stand mixer.  When cooled, I put the cake layer in the freezer, maybe for some cake pops down the road.

When your cupcakes are cool, core the center.  I use a 1" round cookie cutter and press it into the center, that way they are all uniform.  Make sure you leave an ample amount of cake in the cupcake, as no one wants a mouthful of custard (and that pumpkin cupcake is too, too good!).

Drop a few tablespoons of the curd in the cavities of the cupcakes, and then frost as desired.  Like I mentioned in my previous post, I used a combination of leftover Swiss Meringue Buttercream, cream cheese, and butter.  There was no rhyme, no reason.  I knew I wanted it to be fluffy, almost the consistency of whipped cream, but with more staying power.  Perhaps a Seven-Minute Frosting?  I do love Seven-Minute Frosting, but I was out of corn syrup.  Besides, why not use what you have laying around?

Please do try this blackberry curd.  It is simple, refreshing, and purple- for heaven's sake!  It is not too often we get to indulge in purple food.

Have a great Monday!

Rachel Bee

A foray into fondant...

It is true, I have made a few fondant flowers (daisy cut-outs and teeny balls), but I have never had a desire to work too much with the stuff.  I really don't care to sacrifice taste on the altar of cuteness.  Personally, I would rather receive a box full of cupcakes oozing fresh fruit and chocolate shavings, than stare at a cake wondering if the top layer is even edible.

The artist in me is, however, a little anxious to play in the doughy fun that is fondant, and when I received two themed cupcake requests for this weekend, I thought, "Why not?"

The first is for a hair client of mine: one of my oldest and most faithful.  She is a nurse in an ICU, and from what I can tell her hospital is implementing a new program- or maybe just her floor- I dunno.  All I do know is that she needed some cupcakes with stars atop them, and I told her I would deliver.

And this is what I came up with:

And another...

And what the hey, I love this one.  My hubs is so stinking creative.

Summery hues of tangerine, pink, and salmon; an ever-so-slight sparkle- all atop a mound of Swiss Meringue Buttercream and the lightest of cakes.  I also added a new ingredient: Princess Cake Emulsion.

Citrus, vanilla, and almond- all mixed into one magic little jar.  Delicious.

Delivering to a hospital was the largest challenge in this endeavor, as I really don't care for hospitals.  I don't care for them, not because of the obvious hospital issues, but because they are so big and confusing- and I get lost very easily.

And I got lost.  Actually, I didn't get lost- the information lady on the phone told me I was lost, and as I am inevitably always lost- I believed her.  I got back into my car for 15 minutes, only to find out that I was in the right place all along.  I was supposed to have the cupcakes there by the start of a meeting, and I was late.

Aargh.

I am sure they were just glad to have cupcakes.  And I was glad to make them.

Oh yeah.  There were chocolate ones, too!  They were so ooey and gooey, I bet they were a mess to get out of the box.  Chocolate: about the only thing worth making a mess over.

I get to make the second delivery this morning, and although I do know where I am going, my challenge will be: a toddler.

Ha.  I lol-ed.

Have a great day, people!

Rachel Bee