Blueberry & Strawberry Cupcakes with Whipped Cream Frosting

  » By Keith Prickett

July 3rd, 2008 - Posted in Cupcakes, Dessert | Leave a comment (0)

I had to come up with something to celebrate the holiday with and for some reason around the 4th of July my mouth waters for every cake I see with whole blueberries and strawberries on top.  This cupcake recipe was my answer!  I used the Strawberry cupcake recipe from last week and simply reduced the amount of strawberries and added whole blueberries to the batter.  Then to make it have all the red, white and blue flair I used whipped cream, whole blueberries and strawberries to top it off.  The result is a festive, decadent, delight that we got to share with some friends the other night.  Here’s what I did:

Ingredients for Cupcake:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 egg
• 6 ounces Homemade Applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• About 15 medium sized Stahlbush Island Farm’s Frozen Strawberries (thawed slightly) cut into quarters
• 5 oz whole, fresh or Stahlbush Island Farm frozen blueberries (thawed slightly)

Ingredients for Whipped Cream Frosting:

• 8 to 10 fluid oz Heavy Whipping Cream
• 2-3 tablespoons powdered sugar (more or less to your sweet toothe’s taste)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions for Cupcake:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Beat sugar and butter together until fluffy
3. Add your egg and applesauce and mix thoroughly
4.  Mix the dry ingredients in a separate bowl then add to your wet ingredients
5. Fold in strawberries and blueberries
6. Place in lined cupcake baking tins (I made about 14)
7. Bake for 20 minutes or so, until toothpick comes out clean

Directions for Real Whipped Cream Frosting:

1. Mix whipping cream, sugar and vanilla in a mixer
2. Beat until extra thick (but definitely stop before you make butter)

Put it all together by spreading real whipped cream on each cupcake.  Top with a whole strawberry and a bunch of whole thawed blueberries.

Steamed Homemade Hot Chocolate with Real Whipped Cream

  » By Keith Prickett

June 20th, 2008 - Posted in Dessert, Drink | Leave a comment (0)

Heavenly!  Pretty much sums up this delicious cup up of rich, chocolatey goodness.  I have to admit, I am a coffee snob.  I like my coffee so I go to a lot of good coffee shops.  When I first saw someone order a hot chocolate at my favorite coffee shop downtown I was amazed to see them steam the milk and use REAL chocolate sauce.  To top it all off they put fresh whipped cream on top — something we didn’t have very often growing up.  I suppose it’s this attention to quality and freshness that makes Red Horse my favorite to begin with.  The point is, their hot chocolate amazed me!  I started noticing other coffee shops made it like that too and they were delicious!  Some still use the powder and water method which usually tastes either too watered down, not rich enough or slightly like tin.

Last night I felt the urge to have one of these hot chocolates.  Luckily Rachel bought me (us) an espresso machine for Christmas last year so I had everything I needed.  Most importantly, I had the steamer!  I made a cup for Rachel and I and we were truly in Heaven on Earth!  Here’s what I did:

Ingredients (per cup):

• 8 0z milk
• 2-3 tablespoons chocolate syrup (like Hershey’s)
• Fresh whipped cream (heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar, vanilla extract)
• Dash of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Make the whipped cream (basically whisk heavy whipping cream with small amount of powdered sugar and vanilla extract in your mixer)
2. Prepare your steamer or espresso maker for steam
3. Steam milk and chocolate syrup together until the mixture reaches about 180 degrees Fahrenheit.  The mixture will about double in size with all the foam it creates so make sure to have a container big enough or do it in 8-oz batches like I did.
4. Pour the milk and chocolate mixture into your mug
5. Top with whipped cream
6. Sprinkle lightly with cinnamon and serve immediately.

For a holiday flare you can serve it with a candy cane, or anytime you can serve it with a chocolate stick (just like every drink at Red Horse!! YUM!)