Lavender Cupcake à la Mode

Since I was in the neighborhood recently, I stopped by the Ballard Cupcake Royale to try their new line of ice cream. My plan was to pick a flavor that would pair well with Strawberry 66, their cupcake of the month for August. That plan was dashed when I saw the Blueberry Lavender ice cream flavor listed and my favorite Lavender cupcakes in the case. The combo did not disappoint. The cupcake was as moist and scrumptious as I remembered. The generous baby scoop of Blueberry Lavender ice cream balanced blueberry, lavender and sweetness beautifully. If the shop had been air conditioned, it would have been the perfect pause in a hot summer afternoon. Air conditioning aside, I will definitely be back to try more of Cupcake Royale’s ice cream offerings.

Linking up with Tuesday at the {herbal} Table.

Saturday Sweetness: Chocolate Candy Corn Cupcakes

Do you ever get an idea in your head that won’t let you rest until you see it through? I had an idea like that this October: candy corn flavored cupcakes. Over and over I see recipes for “Candy Corn Cupcakes” that are for cupcakes that look like candy corn, but don’t taste like candy corn. Since I couldn’t find a recipe for what I wanted to make, I made one up. A little part of my brain pointed out that if there wasn’t a recipe for Candy Corn Cupcakes yet, there was probably a good reason, but I ignored it.

The first thing I did was make candy corn infused vodka, which was the closest thing to candy corn extract that I could think of. I threw a bunch of candy corn in a jar, covered it with vanilla vodka, and then stuck it in the pantry for the better part of the day. Once most of the candy corn was dissolved, I added a couple teaspoons to the frosting (I used i am baker’s buttercream recipe). Unfortunately, the vodka made the frosting rather flat and sad-looking. It tasted good, but not enough like candy corn. If I ever try this again, I will use more candy corn and less vodka. I’ll also let it sit longer.

In addition to the “candy corn extract,” I added half a dozen candy corns to each baking cup before filling them with chocolate cake batter. Predictably, they melted when baked. In some cases, when the melted candy corn cooled, it made a nice chewy layer at the bottom of the cupcake. In other cases, they just stuck to the baking cup. Next time, I might add them near the end of the baking time, so that they retain more of their candy corn shape.

My Chocolate Candy Corn Cupcakes were yummy, but they didn’t have the strong candy corn flavor that I was looking for. Guess I’ll have to try again next October.

UPDATE: Linking up to Tuesday at the Table at A Quilter's Table. Head on over there for one of my all-time favorite soups recipes!

Saturday Sweetness: Cupcake Royale

UPDATE: I am linking up to the new Tuesday at the Table linky at A Quilter's Table.

Very rarely do I meet a cupcake shop that I don’t like. However, my all-time favorite is Cupcake Royale. I’ve only been to two locations, but each one that I have visited reflects its neighborhood’s personality and charm. They use local ingredients and their buttercream frosting can’t be beat. A few weeks ago, I went out to dinner with a friend and we felt like cupcakes for dessert. I really wanted to try their Huckleberry Cupcake, which was September’s Cupcake of the Month. We drove all the way to Ballard in our quest for cupcakes. The bad thing about scrumptious cupcakes made fresh daily with local ingredients is that when they’re gone, they’re gone. There was not a single Huckleberry Cupcake to be found. I was able to console myself, though, with my second favorite cupcake: Vanilla Cake with Lavender frosting. (My absolute favorite is Chocolate Cake with Lavender frosting, but you have to special order those.) As a bonus, the art in the Ballard Cupcake Royale would make a great quilt. Guess I’ll just have to go back next September for the elusive Huckleberry Cupcake.