Homemade Funfetti Cake

Hello again, dear readers. Please excuse our long absence. Life certainly has a way of keeping you busy. Since graduating in May, the two of us have been embarking on the great job hunt. Instead of crafting delicious confections, we've been writing cover letters and tweaking resumes. Job hunting has been a drain for both of us. Between nerve-raking interviews and disappointing rejections, it seemed like a good time to bake something cheerful to lift the spirits. There are few things in life as happy as a funfetti cake. Heck, it has the word "fun" right in the name. Conjuring up sweet memories of childhood and happiness, this cake seemed like the perfect cure for the job hunting blues.

The cake itself is a fairly standard white cake recipe. The only difference is the added sprinkles to the batter, which give the cake the appearance of being speckled with confetti when sliced. This cake is very dense, which makes it perfect for carving and decorating. It's also unique due to the fact that it is made without butter or oil. Instead heavy cream is used as the fat agent (Yay! Science!) to create a cake that has an extremely soft and fudgy texture. 

Funfetti Cake

Ingredients:

4 eggs (beaten well)

1 3/4 cups White Sugar

3 teaspoons Vanilla Extract 

3 cups Cake Flour, sifted*

3 teaspoons Baking Powder

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups Heavy Cream

4 tablespoons Sprinkles

*You can make your own cake flour by substituting 2 tablespoons out of every cup of flour with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch

Step 1: 

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees

-Grease and flour two 9 inch cake pans

Step 2: 

-Beat eggs together until very thick

-Add sugar and vanilla to eggs

-Mix well

 (We used vanilla bean paste. It gave the cake a much richer and deeper vanilla flavor, which we absolutely loved.)

Step 3:

-Combine the flour, salt, and baking powder together, stirring until everything is fully incorporated. 

( I'd like to thank my Mom for allowing me to use her ancient Pyrex measuring cups. I'm pretty sure this gem is older than I am.)

Step 4: (The trickiest part that isn't that tricky)

-Alternate adding the flour mixture and the heavy cream to the egg/sugar mixture. You should always begin and end with the flour mixture. 

-This will take you about three turns each of the flour mix and the cream. Mix after each addition

(Adding in flour)

(Adding in heavy cream)

Step 5:

-Once you have added all your flour and cream, beat on medium for one minute, or until batter is smooth.

Step 6:

-Add your sprinkles to the batter. Gently mix them in by hand until just combined. Over mixing causes the sprinkles to bleed into the batter. This will ruin the confetti effect. So don't over mix the sprinkles...Promise? 

                            (One must always use a sprinkled spatula to incorporate sprinkles)

Step 7:

-Bake for 25-30 min, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. 

(Don't worry about not being able to see the sprinkles on top of the cake. You'll be able to see them once you slice it open. 

We finished this off with our super, fantastic, special, awesome, smooth buttercream frosting (Coming Soon!) and some sprinkles. Renewed by the healing powers and happiness inducing effects of this Funfetti cake, we shall soldier on into the void; searching for the perfect job to support our baking habit. 

To those hiring managers who have rejected our resumes and canned our cover letters: well... let them eat cake! :)

(Sorry for the crumby (hehe get it?) lighting in this picture. That's what happens when you bake at 2  in the morning) 

Red, White and Blue(berry) Cheesecake

In honor of America's 238th birthday we just had to make the most patriotic and summer-y desert there ever was! This cheesecake was delightful, rich and refreshing against the oppressive Texas heat. One slice just wasn't enough, before long everyone was going back for seconds!!

You will need one 9 inch spring-form pan along with the following ingredients for this desert.

Ingredients:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
3 (8 ounce) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
8 ounces sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
2 cups blueberries
1 cup Cool Whip
1/4 cup sour cream

Step 1
Combine graham cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons of melted butter and tablespoon of sugar. Press into bottom of your lightly greased 9 inch spring-form pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 5 minutes. Remove and let cool.

Step 2
While the crust is cooling beat  the softened cream cheese and add 1 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons of flour and salt until blended. Add eggs one at a time and blend well. 

Step 3
Add sour cream, vanilla and lemon extracts. Take half of the blueberries and squish them using your hands and mix into the batter. This will allow the juices from the blueberries to blend with the batter and create a richer fruit flavor. Gently stir in the remaining blueberries. Pour the mixture into cooled crust.

Optional Step 1
Use blue and red food coloring and gently place a few drops onto the top of the batter that is ow in the spring-form pan. then use a toothpick to create a light swirl pattern. This will give the cheesecake an added patriotic bonus!

Step 4
Turn the oven down to 325 degrees and bake the cheesecake for approximately 55 minutes. (Cheesecake will be done when it still jiggles in the middle. If you stick a toothpick in the center it will come out dirty, but don't worry!) Turn off the oven and let the cheesecake remain in oven with door closed for 40 minutes. Remove and let cool. Cover and chill the cheesecake in  the refrigerator.

Step 5
Lightly mix Cool Whip and 1/4 cup of sour cream. Spread over cheesecake. 

Optional Step 2
Take the extra blueberries and place them in a grid like pattern over the top left quarter of the cheesecake. Then cut your strawberries into thin even slices to use for the stripes of the american flag. place them along the cheesecake in 7 evenly spaced stripes. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours before cutting.

Your cheesecake should look something like this!!

Now enjoy your wonderfully patriotic desert and share with family and friends! It's sure to be the center of the party! 'Murica!

"Slap Yo Momma" Nutella Cookies

Two chocolate themed posts in a row? You bet your booty. These cookies are some of the best we've ever had. To quote our friend, Cierra, "these cookies'll make you wanna slap yo momma!". Rich and chocolately on the outside with a gooey Nutella inside, these cookies surely will be a crowd pleaser. That is if you want to share them. ;)

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup butter, softened 
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 jar of Nutella

Step 1

-On a plate lined with waxed paper, drop spoonfuls of Nutella. Make them as spherical as possible without touching each other. Repeat until you have approximately 30 of these Nutella "dollops". Place them in the freezer for at least an hour until they are frozen solid. 

Step 2:

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

-In a bowl, whisk together the flour, coca powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. 

Step 3:

-In a separate bowl, with a mixer, whip together butter and sugars until light and fluffy.

-Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each one.

-Add the vanilla extract.

-Once the ingredients are thoroughly mixed, add the dry ingredients with your mixer on low speed.

-The dough should be soft and pliable with a playdough like consistency. 

Step 4:

-To assemble the cookies, pinch off a 2-inch section of dough.

-Flatten the section out

-Place one of the Nutella "dollops" in the center of the flattened dough. (We recommend leaving the dollops in the freezer, taking no more than 3 or 4 out at a time to prevent them from melting)

-Roll the dough in to a ball with the dollop in the center, making sure to seal any cracks. (That way none of your delicious Nutella will leak out!)

Step 5:
-Place cookies 1 inch apart on a greased cookie sheet.
-Bake for 9-12 minutes 
-Allow to cook for several minutes before sampling. (Fresh out of the oven, the Nutella inside is like lava!)

Enjoy! :)

Coca Cola Cupcakes

We love Coke. A lot. There's nothing more refreshing than a cool Coca Cola on a hot summer afternoon. While Alexa prefers the regular variety, Kathryn has sworn her allegiance to its diet offspring. So it's no surprise that we had to make this recipe when we came across it on Pinterest. Surprisingly, you can't taste the Coke in the finished product. Instead the cupcakes end up extremely moist and fudgy, with a very intense chocolate flavor. We paired them with a simple buttercream, and they were absolute heaven. 

Ingredients:

2 C. all-purpose flour

1 ½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

16 oz. Coca Cola Classic soda (Make sure to use the real thing. No diet)

½ C.  butter

¾ C. unsweetened cocoa powder (We used Hersey’s Special Dark)

1 C. granulated sugar

1 C. light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Part 1:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line a cupcake pan with liners.

In a sauce pan, heat the cola, butter, and cocoa powder over medium heat, stirring periodically, until the butter has completely melted.

 Whisk in the sugars and continue heating until dissolved. 

Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla, then allow the cola mixture to cool. 

You should get what looks a big pot o' tar. It's okay. It will taste much better than it looks. :)

Part 2:

While you're letting your tarry lookin' coke mixture cool, it's time to prepare the dry ingredients. 

This part is easy. Simply add your flour, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Stir to combine.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture.

Part 3:

Once the Coke mixture is only slightly warm to the touch, whisk in the eggs.

Pour the Coke mixture into the well of the dry ingredients, mixing them together until the batter is just blended and mostly smooth. 

Fill your pre-prepared cupcake pan 2/3 of the way full with batter and slide them into your preheated oven for 18-20 min.

We chose to frost these with our simple vanilla butter cream recipe, but they would also be fantastic with chocolate ganache. Either way, these cupcakes are sure to be crowd pleaser!