Sesame Street 2nd Birthday

This is a quick brag/idea post before I get into my video making later this week!

My daughter turned 2 on October 30. Hard to believe how fast 2 years went, but it seemed like it happened in the blink of an eye! She absolutely loves Elmo (who doesn't?) and most anything Sesame Street, so I decided on a Sesame Street themed birthday party! 

(Charlotte)

Etsy has some great resources for party decorations. Almost all of the decorations were printed from a party pack file I purchased on the site from Amanda's Parties To Go*. There were a lot of things in the downloadable file including two banners, Sesame Street signs, centerpieces, cupcake picks, food tent cards, candy bar wrappers...you name it, it was there! Here are just a few pictures of some of the things I had printed at Staples.

(printable centerpieces)

(water bottle wrappers)

(napkin rings)

(food tent cards)

(Gift table sign - "G is for Gifts and Grover, too! Thank you!")

Because I am OCD about needing everything to match, I don't have time to make an elaborate cake. When she gets older, she can help with decorating if she wants a cake that takes 8 hours to make, but until then, I am all about cupcakes! 

There were several ideas I had for cupcakes...make them look like the characters with buttercream, make fondant cupcake toppers, or just use cupcake picks. I took a couple ideas and put them into one. Make the buttercream look like the fur on the Sesame Street monsters, but use a cupcake pick to save time. The picks also came in the party pack I purchased!

(for the birthday girl)

Since there were adults at the party, I did some adult friendly cupcakes that were just plain vanilla buttercream and not colored. Those were few and far between, but if my mother didn't want red teeth, she didn't have to have red teeth! Just call me considerate! 

(cupcakes by E. Claire Cake Shop)

How do you make fur with frosting, you may ask? It's simple! A grass tip and pastry bag! Click here to purchase an Ateco or Wilton grass tip and disposable or reusable pastry bags. They will be either the Wilton tip 233 or Ateco 234.

What is the difference between the two pastry tip brands? Wilton is easier to find in your local craft stores as well as Walmart, but I find the Ateco brand is higher quality than Wilton. I do use both because I started out using mostly all Wilton products. You will find things you like and dislike with many different brands of cake decorating supplies.

(cookie monster)

(elmo)

The final test...

(yum!)

*I was not paid or asked to review Amanda's Parties To Go. All opinions expressed and photos used are solely my own. What is my opinion? I loved it! It made easy work of party planning, looked cuter than the ready made stuff you can buy in a party store, and was actually cheaper even having Staples print everything for me. It took a little while to cut everything out, but it was worth it!

Back To Basics...

Cake baking - any baking, for that matter - is a science. The way baking soda and/or baking powder react with other ingredients to make your cake rise. Different types of flours. Regular cocoa powder vs. dutch process cocoa powder. You name it...there is a reason for everything in a recipe! I am not one to even begin to understand how it all works, but I have a pretty good idea. 

(Six layer 25th anniversary cake)

There are many different types of cake. Butter based cakes, oil based, egg white based, quick breads. The the difference in these cakes are, of course, the ingredients, but also the way they are mixed.

Cakes that use butter as the fat in the ingredients will "cream" the butter and sugar together first. Cakes that use oil for the fat will just combine the oil without breaking down the crystals of sugar as creaming butter and sugar does. 

Egg white based cakes - sponge cakes and angel food cakes - rely on the eggs to give us volume! Yes, leavening agents are used in these recipes; however, if you don't get those egg whites just right, your results will be less than desired. More like a flat, rubbery, cake-like substance. Just ask me how I know this........

(Angel Food Cake)

Quick breads and muffins are also considered to be in the cake category. They often use melted butter or oil and are quickly mixed by hand. Mmmm...banana bread! 

I have even made eggless cupcakes when I was in a bind and just happened to be out of eggs and didn't feel like going to Kroger. They use the old volcano trick to help them rise! Baking soda and vinegar! For those of you who have egg allergies, I will definitely share that recipe. It's quite delicious! 

(Piña Colada cupcakes)

The key to a successful cake is to make sure you follow the recipe! Unless you have been baking for years and know how to change one up, DON'T! You will only end up crying like a baby, curled up in the fetal position because you used the last bit of sugar you had in your canister, and the nearest store is closed. (Okay...the crying like a baby in the fetal position is a bit exaggerated, but the nearest store is closed isn't. Ask me how I know this...........)

Stay tuned for a cake baking 101 video coming up next week! I will feature an awesome chocolate cake recipe that involves the creaming method. I will also show you a basic American style buttercream. Yes...American style. That's another blog post for another day - different styles of buttercream (American, Swiss, French, Italian...). 

Until then, enjoy this picture of the outside of the six layer cake I posted above. It was for a 25th anniversary celebration! 

(25th Anniversary Celebration Cake)

Brown Butter Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Buttercream

If you're anything like me, chocolate is the ultimate cake. The more chocolate, the better! I imagine a chocolate cake with chocolate ganache filling, chocolate mousse, chocolate buttercream...add peanut butter to that, and I am in heaven! 

Even though chocolate is my absolute favorite food group, I am always in search of recipes with different flavor profiles. Spice cakes, citrus cakes, caramel cakes...

These brown butter cupcakes were a treasure of a find when looking for a new recipe for a large assorted cupcake order. They were a hit, and I was asked to make them again. For the second time, they were given rave reviews! A great cupcake for the fall months when things turn to caramel and cinnamon spice. In my opinion, a quintessential comfort food. 

For the original recipe from Cupcake Project, click here. She pairs it with a lucuma cream cheese frosting! 

Brown Butter Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Buttercream (yield 12-15 cupcakes)

     Cupcake Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour*
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 egg whites
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup milk**

     Brown Sugar Buttercream Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
• 3 cups confectioners sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

     Cupcake Instructions

1. Melt butter over medium-heat in a small skillet or saucepan.
2. Heat the butter until it turns brown, about 10-15 minutes. Keep an eye on it! You don't want it to burn!
3. Remove butter from heat and cool.
4. Meanwhile, sift or whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 
5. In a medium-sized bowl or KitchenAid stand mixer with whip attachment, whip egg whites until light and frothy.
6. Slowly mix sugar into the egg whites.
7. Mix browned butter and vanilla into the egg whites.
8. Alternately mix dry ingredients and milk into the wet mixture, ensuring all ingredients are incorporated after each addition. End with dry ingredients.
9. Fill cupcake liners 1/2 to 3/4 full.
10. Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes or until cupcakes bounce back when lightly touched.

     Brown Sugar Buttercream Instructions

1. In a medium-sized bowl or KitchenAid stand mixer with beater attachment, beat brown sugar and butter until the brown sugar is dissolved. This will take approximately 10 minutes with a KitchenAid. If you're using a handheld beater, allow at least 5 more minutes of mix time.
2. Add confectioner's sugar one cup at a time and mix until each addition is incorporated.
3. Add vanilla and mix.

*Look for Swans Down cake flour in your local supermarket. If you can't get cake flour where you live, you can make your own! Follow the instructions here. I have used this little cheat many times!

**Any percentage milk is fine, however, whole milk adds a richness to your cake you cannot get with skim/fat-free or 1% milk. Most of the time I have 2% at home, so that's what I use! 

Be sure to click below and watch the video so your 

cupcakes turn out AMAZING!

If you have any questions, please comment below! 

Also, check out my E. Claire Cake "Shop" below for an Amazon directory of cake products I use. Amazon usually has the best prices. I will never post any product I have not personally used! The Wilton cupcake pan I posted in my shop I have used for over 10 years! 

*Look for Swans Down cake flour in your local supermarket. If you can't get cake flour where you live, you can make your own! Follow the instructions here. I have used this little cheat many times!

**Any percentage milk is fine, however, whole milk adds a richness to your cake you cannot get with skim/fat-free or 1% milk. Most of the time I have 2% at home, so that's what I use! 

Let Them Eat Cake!

According to Wikipedia, Marie Antoinette never said, "let them eat cake!", but I do! 

This first blog entry is just an introduction to what you will see from me. For those who have followed me on my Facebook page, E. Claire Cake Shop, you will know I love to create fun and different cakes and cupcakes. 

My goal with this page is to create some tutorials of cakes and cupcakes I am working on or techniques I am trying out for the first time. 

I will share delicious recipes with you as well as let you know when I will offer in person cake decorating classes for beginners as well as intermediate classes. 

I am in no way an expert. I wish I knew as much as Colette Peters or Ron Ben Israel, but sadly, I do not. I don't believe they are human. 

Until next time, my dear readers...if there are any who are reading this in Blogland!