KelseyKakes: Cupcakes 101

If study halls were made of sugar...and homework was glazed in liquid fondant and chocolate ganache...you would find yourself right next to me in my latest educational endeavor at the Institute of Culinary Education, Cupcakes Workshop 1.

*Getting Ready!*

Now, as much as I would like to say that I am a full time student in frosting and flour, this was actually a recreational class taught in the evenings by the endlessly talented Melanie Underwood. She spends the 5 hours of sweetness teaching you to whip your way to successful butter cake batter, beat a better buttercream and pipe a fancier frosting. The class runs the gamut of the sugar obsessed, from professional bakers to inexperienced friends who just came along for the ride, there is a place for every baker in this kitchen.

As the clock struck 6 pm, we were off and running. Melanie began the class with a few explanations of how our recipes for the evening would be concocted and delivered some must share tips in the process! Did you know that when you cream together your butter and sugar for a cake batter you should be mixing them for apx. 10 minutes?! Here I was all these years mixing for two minutes max...mostly because I was impatient to cook my creation, but more so that I just didn't understand the difference it makes...and wow, what a fluffier and smoother end product! You must now give yourself that extra time...read a book, eat some frosting, just do it.

Another tip that I am dying to share is all about the flour (you will thank me for this one, and even get back some of the time you lost during creaming)! Instead of slowly scooping bit by bit of your dry ingredients into the bowl (ho hum), you should actually be dumping the whole thing in at once. That's right, just stop your machine and dump it right on in. The time you save doing this is actually the time you save the gluten from over producing and giving you gummy cupcakes, yuck! *Just make sure you don't turn your mixer on high right out of the shoot or you will be wearing it!

Other quick tips...then onto the cupcakes: 1) once you mix the batter, its okay for it to sit out for a little while if you are baking in batches...it doesn't all need to be poured at once. 2) crack all your eggs into a bowl and beat them before adding to the batter (just use your eye to add "one" egg at a time) 3) speaking of cracking, do you know you get a better break if you crack right on the counter surface vs. a bowl? 4) you can substitute out vanilla for any flavor imaginable in you basic vanilla cake and frosting, even alcohol (just be conscious of the ratios). Armed with all the tips and tools I needed, I was off to the races. Let the baking begin!