Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

My dear friend Sarah over at Chomping the Big Apple is having a blogging event, and while I've been missing from most of those things lately, I had to give it a shot.


So what's this Cooking with Love thing even all about? We are to tell a love-related baking story, and blog the recipe on our site. Well, here you go, Sarah! Settle in with a big cup of coffee and a nice cupcake, I tend to write novels...

Everyone in life is blessed with some kind of good fortune. Maybe it's well-to-do parents. Maybe it's a dazzling voice. Maybe it's that perfect body where said person rarely goes to the gym and eats nonstop and still wears a perfect pert size 0 (hello Tinnie dear, I am referring to you here). In my life, my good fortune is my husband.

My husband has beautiful green eyes and a smart-ass smile. He twirls his wedding band around his finger when he's deep in thought. He has an obsession with all televised sports: when his teams are playing he will cheer yell and carry on like I've never seen before. And while he'd never admit to it, he has the most wicked sweet tooth I've ever seen. He bellows at me if I stir the pan while he's cooking, and he rubs his face whenever he grows tired, and he gives the best back scratches in the world.

My husband is smart, with the accurate answer whether it's a TV quiz show or questions about sports stats or where the stocks are going. He is our household's official bug executioner. He has a remarkable knack for fixing electronics, and he likes to tease me about my shoe collection. When we do the grocery shopping, he always sneaks away at some point and buys me flowers from the floral department. My husband is so good with my family. Often he is quite the goofball, the person who always makes me laugh and brings out my own sarcastic sense of humor. He also has a way of giving me a squeeze when he walks by me and a quick smile that makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the Midwest.

On one of our early dates he took me to one of his fraternity formals, and I remember afterwards sitting in a shady diner in KC at 3am, he in a nice suit and me barefoot in a slinky ice-blue number, laughing and digging into pancakes (and enjoying ourselves much more than we did at the stuffy formal). Even today, when I hear the doorknob turn in the evenings, my stomach does flip-flops and I make sure to quickly run my fingers through my hair.





My husband is tender and patient and kind. Always the level-headed one between us, he never gets overly excited or anxious. He never raises his voice. When everything else is chaos, he's like a deep breath of fresh air. Always calm and quiet yet earnest, my husband. That's just who he is.

I could go on and on and on, but people have other places to be. So let me just say that I'll always consider to be lucky because of him. And I pretty much don't deserve him, at all. He's the thing I'm blessed with in life, no doubt about it.

Now, to get back on topic: I mentioned his sweet tooth. Oh, but that man has quite the raging sweet tooth! Chocolate is a favorite, but if you want to really bring him to his knees: do a chocolate and peanut butter combo. That will get him every time, and so from early on in our relationship I have been making this flavor combination in every imaginable confection I can possibly bake.

In honor of that darling Husband-man: I made his absolute favorite, a peanut butter and chocolate dream. These suckers come from Ina Garten (a cookbook that Hubs, incidentally, bought me for my last birthday). The cupcake itself is deep, richly cocoa with a soft crumb, and the creamy peanut butter frosting tastes just like the inside of a Reeses Peanut Butter cup. 'Perfection', as my husband would refer to them.

Happy (late) anniversary, Sarah!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting
(from Barefoot Contessa at Home, 2006)



Ingredients:
12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 c. granulated sugar
2/3 c. light brown sugar, packed
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 c. buttermilk, shaken, at room temperature
1/2 c. sour cream, at room temperature
2 Tbsp. brewed coffee
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
Kathleen's Peanut Butter Icing, recipe follows
Chopped salted peanuts, to decorate

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and 2 sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. Lower the speed to medium, add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla and mix well.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, and coffee. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. On low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and the flour mixture alternately in thirds to the mixer bowl, beginning with the buttermilk mixture and ending with the flour mixture. Mix only until blended. Fold the batter with a rubber spatula to be sure it's completely blended.

Divide the batter among the cupcake pans (1 rounded standard ice cream scoop per cup is the right amount). Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes, remove from the pans, and allow to cool completely before frosting.


Frost each cupcake with Peanut Butter Icing and sprinkle with chopped peanuts, if desired.



Kathleen's Peanut Butter Icing:


Ingredients:
1 c. confectioners' sugar
1 c. creamy peanut butter
5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 tsp.pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1/3 c. heavy cream

Place the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

Bittersweet Cupcakes with Cocoa Cream Cheese Frosting

When I was a little girl, all I wanted was a pet. A bunny, to be exact. Only, my mother had 11 kids and 5 fish in a tank so that was more than enough to care for, thank you very much. I wanted more, though.

Then when I was 10 years old, I discovered a family a few blocks down had bunnies. I stopped every day to visit these bunny rabbits, all fluffy and white and A TON of them all living in the same pen. One day, the lady of the house came outside to talk to me while I was stooped down in their front yard, admiring the bunnies. She told me I could have one if I wanted (and now I look back and laugh; she probably started with 2 cute rabbits who quickly multiplied). It was at that moment that I decided come hell or high water: I was getting a pet bunny. So I devised a plan to make a rabbit hutch myself, using some odd pieces of wood and chicken wire I found in our garage, then secretly keep a pet bunny, all my own.

It took my mom One Measly Day to discover the raggedy hutch I built behind the garage. She was very angry with me, oh definitely, but she couldn't turn the sweet defenseless rabbit away. And so Patty the Rabbit became a member of the family and lived in our house. She was the best pet ever, would hop around and willingly let me dress her up; she loved fresh parsley, and would sit on our feet, to keep our tootsies warm. Even my mom loved that bunny to bits.

The sad thing about rabbits is that they get nervous easily. When we moved to Kansas, the change was too much for my dear little rabbit, and one day she was gone. To this day, even though my family has had several more cats (even a dog!) as pets, my mom and I still have a deep love for those darn bunnies. Of course I have tons of bunny things, including these cute chocolate transfers that I used to make small bittersweet squares.

Er, where were we again? Oh, yeah. The food blog. So. The cupcakes were really good, not sweet but nice and rich. The frosting is plenty sweet, and added just what was needed (thanks Natalie for the cupcake recipe!). The bunny chocolates made the cupcakes spectacular though, obviously.

And Hubs said I can totally get a pet rabbit now that we have a house. Only on one condition, that I name him Stuart (that would be Stu for short, or rabbit stu/stew, to be exact). Smart ass.

Bittersweet Cupcakes
(adapted from Food & Wine)




Ingredients:
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/4 c. water
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. granulated sugar
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
1 large egg
1/4 c. buttermilk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper or foil liners.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter with the vegetable oil, water, and bittersweet chocolate over low heat.

In a large bowl, sift the flour with the sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add the melted butter mixture and beat with a handheld mixer at low speed until smooth. Add the egg and beat until incorporated, then add the buttermilk and vanilla and beat until smooth, scraping the bottom and side of the bowl. Pour the batter into the lined muffin tins, filling them about three-fourths full.

Bake the cupcakes in the center of the oven for about 25 minutes, until springy and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool slightly, then transfer them to a rack to cool completely. Frost and top the cupcakes as desired.

Cocoa Cream Cheese Frosting
(adapted from Ina Garten)

Ingredients:
16 oz. cream cheese (room temperature)
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (room temperature)
2/3 lb. confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/3 c. cocoa powder (unsweetened, not Dutch processed)
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Combine the butter, cream cheese, sugar, cocoa, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mixing just until smooth.

Strawberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

If you haven't already guessed, I made these sweet little cupcakes for a baby shower. It is mind-boggling how many pregnant women I know at this moment, but sadly the only time I've been invited to provide the dessert for any of the lucky ladies would be for my two darling coworkers, A. and D. I didn't want to let them down, so searched the Interweb far and wide for a recipe that would be just like them: understated, elegant, and sweet as can be. Enter: Martha (and aren't we all just on a first name basis with the old gal, honestly?).

I changed Martha's recipe a bit, doubling the strawberries and adding a touch of honey to sweeten them up before adding to the batter. While the cupcakes still only had the faintest hint of a pink color, the flavor was sublime. I loved these little cupcakes, not too coyingly sweet and yet the strawberry flavor really came through. Plus, they were super moist. I can only imagine how good they would also be if you substituted the strawberries for fresh peaches, or raspberries, or blueberries, or lime...

Strawberry Cupcakes
(adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients:
1 1/3 c. whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed
1 Tbsp. honey
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour, sifted
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. coarse salt
1/4 c. whole milk, room temperature
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 c.sugar
1 large egg, room temperature
2 large egg whites, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.

Place strawberries and honey in a small food processor; process until pureed. You should have about 2/3 cup of puree, add a few more strawberries if necessary or save any extra puree for frosting; set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla, and strawberry puree; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until well combined and fluffy. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add egg and egg whites until just blended.

With the mixer on low, slowly add half the flour mixture; mix until just blended. Add the milk mixture; mix until just blended. Slowly add remaining flour mixture, scraping down sides of the bowl with a spatula, as necessary, until just blended.

Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Transfer muffin tin to oven and bake until tops are just dry to the touch, 22 to 25 minutes. Transfer muffin tin to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool completely in tin before icing.

Cream Cheese Frosting
(from Ina Garten)

Ingredients:
2 pkgs. (16 oz. total) cream cheese, at room temperature
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 lb. powdered sugar, sifted
1 tsp. vanilla

Combine cream cheese and butter thoroughly. Add sifted powdered sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla.

Zebra (Cup)Cake

I will admit – it was the look of this cake that made me want to make it, not any special ingredients or flavor components. It turns out that it's a very soft cake with a lovely chocolate flavor, but that doesn't really matter. I mean, who isn't a sucker for those lovely stripes? I bookmarked this recipe awhile ago, but hadn't gotten to it yet. Until last weekend.

What finally seduced me to trying this recipe? Well, I had a free evening to myself with nothing better to do than watch an America's Next Top Model marathon – so it was a no-brainer. Cake that takes patience and a steady hand and lots of time to pour the batter? I'm in! I even did one better, and made cupcakes. Er, but I don't recommend that, to be honest – I was almost out of flour and my only choice was to halve the recipe, which meant I had to make mini cakes. Dropping the batter teaspoon by teeny teaspoon is a bit tedious, even with a good reality show marathon to keep you company.

If you give this a shot (in real cake size, of course): I highly recommend checking out Farida's blog post before getting started – she has photos step by step, which is extremely helpful.

Zebra Cake

(recipe from Farida)

Ingredients:
4 large eggs, at room temperature

1 c. granulated sugar

1 c. milk, at room temperature

1 c. oil

1/3 tsp. vanilla powder (optional)

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

4-5 Tbsp. dark cocoa powder

In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs and sugar. Using a hand-held electric mixer or wire whisk beat until the mixture is creamy and light in color.

Add milk and oil, and continue beating until well blended.

Add vanilla powder and baking powder to the mixture. Gradually add flour and then beat until the batter is smooth and the dry ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.

Divide the mixture into 2 equal portions. Keep one portion plain. Add cocoa powder into another and mix well. The color of the cocoa batter should be quite dark, so add more if needed.
Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Lightly grease the pan with oil. If you don't have non-stick baking pan, grease whatever pan you have then line it with parchment paper.

The most important part is assembling the cake batter in a baking pan. This is what you do. Scoop 3 heaped tablespoons of plain batter (you can also use a ladle that would hold 3 tablespoons) into the middle of the baking pan. Then scoop 3 tablespoons of cocoa batter and pour it in the center on top of the plain batter. NOTE: Do not spread the batter or tilt the pan to distribute the mixture. It will spread by itself and fill the pan gradually. Continue alternating the batters until you finish them. The pictures below will guide you through.

Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes. Do not open the oven door at least the first 20 minutes or the cake will shrink and will not rise. To check if the cake is ready, insert a toothpick into the center. It should come out clean when ready. Remove from the oven. Immediately run a small thin knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cake, then invert the cake onto a cooking rack. Turn the cake back over and let cool.

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

I found this recipe at Chockylit's wonderful site Cupcake Bakeshop (you really need to check that out, the woman makes some amazing cupcakes). Her recipe was originally for truffle cupcakes, but I went a little more simple and just made them dark chocolate. Still fabulous – dark, rich, and absolutely lovely. It's almost like a bittersweet-chocolate brownie, except in cupcake form.

I halved her recipe, hence the "1/8"th measurements. Feel free to double it back up; that would give you about 25 cupcakes. The batter is super-thick but man, it makes one mean chocolate cupcake.

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

Ingredients:
3 to 4 oz. Valrhona 85% cacao (or any bittersweet chocolate)

12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) butter

1 1/8 c. sugar

4 eggs

5/8 c. flour

1/8 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened

3/4 tsp. baking powder

Pinch salt

Prepare baking sheets by lining with parchment paper and laying out cupcake cups. Preheat oven to 350 F.

Chop chocolate and transfer into the bowl of a standing mixer. Add butter to the chocolate and place the bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir until chocolate melts and butter is combined.
Remove from heat and stir in sugar. Let mixture cool for 10 minutes. Beat in an electric mixer for 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing for 10 seconds between each.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt into the mixture, return to the electric mixer, and mix until blended.

Scoop batter into cupcake cups and bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

MB Vanilla Cupcakes

MB vanilla cupcakes. That would be Magnolia Bakery (of New York fame) vanilla cupcakes, and yes ma'am: it's the very same recipe that has been doing the rounds on several blogs.

I hosted Miss Northstrom's Bridal Shower this past weekend, you see, and wanted to make a vanilla cupcake for the occasion. I already had a good "pink (lemonade)" one and a lovely dark chocolate, so vanilla was the obvious choice for the third flavor. I decided to give the Magnolia Bakery recipe a shot because hey, what the heck. Plenty of others are doing it too (let's hear it for peer pressure!)

Of note: while a visit to the Magnolia Bakery seems to be a NYC Tourist's Dream, in actuality I hear that the vanilla cupcakes are a wee bit bland and dry (the Hummingbird cupcake there is well received, however, so if you visit the Bakery do go that route!). I didn't want sawdust cupcakes, so I changed the recipe up a little bit. Fats make a cake more moist, so I went with yogurt instead of plain old milk (as the original recipe called for). Seemed to do the trick, my cupcakes were moist instead of dry. The extra vanilla seemed to give it a good flavor as well. I think this is a decent basic vanilla cake recipe if you need one. Definitely worth giving a shot!

MB Vanilla Cupcakes
(makes 2 dozen cupcakes)

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. self-rising flour
1 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 c. sugar
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 c. yogurt or sour cream
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.

In a small bowl, combine the flours. Set aside.

In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar gradually and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until the ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the batter in the bowl to make sure the ingredients are well blended.

Carefully spoon the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about three-quarters full. Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center of the cupcake comes out clean.

Cool the cupcakes in the tins for 15 minutes. Remove from the tins and cool completely on a wire rack before icing. Note: I did not use the Magnolia Bakery buttercream recipe, instead opting to use my regular old stand by (as can be seen in past posts). It worked just fine.

Lavender Fairy Cupcakes

These cute little lavender cupcakes were created with the help of a few of my new kitchen goodies. The recipe is from Cakes and Bakes, a cookbook Christmas gift from my friend Nicole. There are a bunch of yummy-looking recipes in that book :) I thought this would be a good recipe to use to break in my new mini-muffin tin and cupcake liners. And the lavender, the main reason I pulled this recipe out: it's from a lovely little European store downtown, I couldn't help but buy it when I saw it on their shelves (a local product to boot, so I know it's fresh!).

The cupcakes were really good - a nice subtle lavender essence that went well with the sugary honey. The gooey frosting was a nice complement to the cakes. A good one to try if you want a new-ish type recipe and happen upon some edible lavender!

Lavender Fairy Cakes

Ingredients:
1/4 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. honey
1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 eggs, beaten
1 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. finely chopped lavender flowers
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 c. self-rising flour, sifted
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar, sifted
Silver dragees and lavender flowers, for decorating

Preheat your oven to 375 F. PLace 12 paper cupcake liners in a muffin pan. Place the sugar, honey, and butter in a bowl and cream together until fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs. Stir in the milk, lavender, and vanilla extract. Carefully fold in the flour.

Divide the mixture between the cupcake liners and bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until well risen and golden. The sponge should bounce back when pressed. A few minutes before the cakes are ready, sift the powdered sugar into a bowl and stir in enough water or milk to make a very thick frosting.

When the cakes are baked, transfer to a wire rack and place a blob of frosting in the center of each one, allowing it to run across the cake. Decorate with lavender flowers and silver dragees. Serve cakes as soon as they are cool.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

So, I had another drama in the kitchen this week. Only this one's a bit harder to fix.

Friday night. I am continuing my Cupcake Baking Extravaganza. I have 3 more recipes I wanted to try out this weekend, making small batches and taking all finished products to work. My coworkers are eagerly awaiting Monday.

I pull out this recipe first, it's from How To Eat A Cupcake. Chocolate and mint, can't go wrong with that! And I have some Godiva chocolate-covered mint candies I was dying to use for decoration. Perfect. So I preheat the oven, and whip together the batter. I fill my muffin pan with liners and plop in the batter (the batter was surprisingly thick, hence plopping rather than pouring/ladeling). I put the pan in the oven and set my timer.

After about ten minutes, I hear this strange fizzling noise. It's coming from the oven. Did my super-thick batter explode all over, and is now baking to the walls of my oven? I'm a little confused, so I open the door and peek inside.

And there are flames emitting from the oven's heating coil.

Aaah! I snatched out the muffin pan (must save the cupcakes!) and turned the oven off. The flames went out as the oven started to cool. And my oven is officially dead. On my weekend of Cupcake Baking Extravaganza. No. This can't be happening.

So, I put in a call to the landlord, and hopefully it's as easy as replacing the heating coil. Cross your fingers, anyway. In an attempt to salvage my half-baked cupcakes, I smooshed the batter-filled paper liners onto a plate and nuked the suckers in the microwave. They are a bit mis-shapen and blobby and a wee bit dry, but they still taste really good.

These cupcakes taste just like Andes mints. The cake is dense and rich and chcolatey, with a hint of the mint flavoring. The light buttercream on top has a deeper mint flavor, and balances the heavy cake really well.

Enjoy these! It's probably the last goodie from my oven for a bit, until the darn thing is fixed. Once that's done though, I've got a few interesting recipes up my sleeve...

Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Ingredients:
1/4 c. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 c. granulated sugar

1/3 c. (2 oz.) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped, melted

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp. peppermint extract

1/2 c. chocolate milk

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 c. (6 oz.) mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Insert liners into a medium cupcake pan.

In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Beat the melted chocolate into the butter mixture. Add the eggs, peppermint extract, and chocolate milk. Beat until creamy.

In a separate medium-sized bowl combine the flour and baking soda.

Add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture and beat until well blended (careful not to over-beat the batter). With a spatula, stir in the chocolate chips.

Fill the cupcake liners 2/3-3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in pan.

Mint Buttercream:

3 c. confectioner's sugar + 3 Tbsp.

1 c. unsalted butter

1 Tbsp. milk

Pinch salt

1 tsp. mint extract

Green food coloring

In a small bowl using an electric mixer on low, beat together sugar, butter, milk, and salt until creamy. Increase speed to high and beat until light and fluffy. Add mint extract and a few drops of green food coloring, beating until frosting is smooth.

Spread icing on cooled cupcakes with a knife or transfer to a pastry bag and pipe over cupcakes.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

I found this recipe at Daisycake's blog, and just had to try them. I baked up the cupcakes Thursday night, which I am very glad I did (more on that in another post).

Such a pretty pale pink cake, only a pretty-princess-pink lemonade buttercream would do for frosting them. They taste wonderful too: the cake is moist, with a lovely bright lemonade flavor. The buttercream has only a hint of the flavoring, so it doesn't overpower. Although the buttercream is SWEET, so try not to over-do it, like I did.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

Ingredients:

1 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

Pinch salt

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1/4 c. vegetable oil

2 egg whites

1/3 c. thawed frozen Pink Lemonade Concentrate

1/4 c. buttermilk

2 or more drops red food coloring

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin pan with liners.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, egg whites and lemonade concentrate. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and buttermilk, making three additions of flour mixture and two of buttermilk, beating until just smooth. Add just enough food coloring to turn the batter a light shade of pink.

Scoop batter into liners (fill about three-fourths full). Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack. Top cooled cupcakes with frosting (see below).

Lemonade Buttercream:

3 c. + 3 Tbsp. confectioner’s sugar

1 stick unsalted butter at room temperature

1/8 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. pink lemonade concentrate

Red food coloring

Add the butter, confectioner’s sugar, salt, lemon juice, and a few drops of food coloring to the stand mixer and mix on low using the paddle attachment until combined. Turn the speed to med-high until the buttercream is fluffy and uniformly pink. Pipe or spread onto cooled cupcakes.