Cinnamon Dolce Latte Cupcakes

I've been on a bit of a coffee fix with my baking lately: first with my mocha cucakes with espresso buttercream for my work Christmas party and then a caramel latte cheesecake for my aunt and uncle's silver wedding anniversary. I can't explain why I am so suddenly drawn to this flavor but somehow I am very tempted to bake many coffee treats this holiday season.

On Christmas day my brother and I made plans to go with some friends to see the new Disney movie currently in theaters however by the time we arrived it was sold out. Instead we came back to our house and we played board games. I thought it would be fun to bake as well so I suggested we make cupcakes. Of course I had ulterior motives as my friend has just gifted me a cupcake stand and I really wanted to use it.

I decided to remake one of the two cupcake recipes that I had used for my work Christmas party because the first time I made it the frosting didn't quite turn out. Rather than takes my chances again I used the same cake recipe but the frosting from the mocha cupcakes. While the cupcakes baked we played a fun game and then once they cooled down I frosted them.

Excitedly I beautifully placed the cupcakes on my new stand and took them into the living room where I do most of my food photography. Unfortunately I leaned over the table the wrong way and one of the legs gave out, sending the whole thing crashing to the floor. Luckily the glass table did not shatter and nothing happened to the camera or the floor.

Even though we managed to salvage the cupcakes themselves, most of the frosting ended up on the floor and had to be thrown away. There was enough left that we were able to redistribute it, though not as beautifully. I was still able to get a nice picture before they fell and they still tasted great so I guess it was a success, though now I have to figure out how to fix the table.

Cinnamon Dolce Latte Cupcakes:
Note: This recipe makes 12 cupcakes. Also, I used the frosting from my mocha cupcakes. The recipe can be found here.

• 2 cups flour
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup (8 tbsp) browned butter, cooled
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup packed brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• ¼ cup milk
• ¼ cup brewed coffee, cooled

1. Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly as it continues to cook and foam. After a few minutes, it will begin to turn a rich brown and smell nutty. Remove from heat immediately and let cool before using in the cupcakes.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt until well combined. Set aside.
3. In a small bowl combine the milk and coffee. Set aside.
4. Beat the browned butter with both sugars until well incorporated. 
5. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated, then beat in the vanilla.
6. Using the lowest speed setting, alternatively beat in the dry ingredients and milk/coffee mixture starting and ending with the dry ingredients.(There should be three dry additions and two wet.) 
7. Distribute the batter evenly amongst a well-greased or paper-lined 12 cup muffin pan. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
8. Frost the cupcakes once they have cooled completely.

Caramel Latte Cheesecake

This year while many families were celebrating Christmas Eve on December 24th, our family was celebrating the silver wedding anniversary of my aunt and uncle. They decided on hosting a big party with many of their closest friends and family and I contributed with my baking. Together with my mom, we baked three cakes for the event over the span of three days. Two of them were well-trusted recipes: my lemon cheesecake and my mom's chocolate cheesecake. The third was a new recipe and also a new shape for me: a caramel latte cheesecake made in a square springform pan.

I was a little hesitant when using the new pan because I had never made a square cheesecake before and I didn't know what proportions to use when scaling the recipe. For example, I doubled the amount of crust and ended up with way too much and was scooping it out of the pan. However doubling the cake batter itself was just perfect and gave me exactly the right amount to fill the pan.

When we brought out the cakes for dessert everyone was thoroughly impressed, especially when they found out we had made all three. They looked beautiful and appealed to people's different tastes with three different flavors. I must say that the chocolate was the biggest hit but this caramel latte cheesecake came in for a close second. I was told by one of my family members that on a scale of 1 to 10 the cheesecake was a 15. My cousin, who loves caramel, was quite pleased when I admitted that I had him in mind when I found the recipe.

Overall the party was a big success and I give kudos to my aunt and uncle for pulling it off. I think that the guests all enjoyed themselves and were genuinely happy to celebrate such a special occasion with their friends. The night had a very festive and happy tone and I was so touched by the warm thanks I received from my aunt and uncle in the end. I hope that one day I too will be celebrating my silver wedding anniversary surrounded by so much happiness and joy.

Caramel Latte Cheesecake
Note: I have adapted the recipe for an 10" or 11" round springform pan as they are more common than square shaped pans.

For the crust:

• 1½ cups graham cracker crumbs
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• ⅛ tsp salt
• ¼ cup (4 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
• ½ cup toffee bits

1. Combine all of the ingredients except for the toffee bits in a bowl and then transfer to an 11" springform pan. Gently press down all along the bottom and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 8 minutes. 
2. Remove the pan from the oven and sprinkle the toffee bits in an even layer on top of the crust and press down lightly. Set aside to cool.

For the cheesecake:

• 2 lbs (4 blocks) cream cheese, softened
• ⅔ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup sugar
• 4 large eggs
• ½ cup sour cream
• 4 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp instant espresso

1. Dissolve the instant espresso in the vanilla and set aside.
2. Beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed for about a minute, until smooth.
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, at low speed. Beat in the sugar. Scape down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
4. Beat in the sour cream and then the vanilla and coffee and mix on medium speed until everything is well incorporated. The batter will be fairly liquidy.
5. Pour the mixture into the cooled springform pan and bake for 55 minutes at 325 degrees Fahrenheit using a hot water bath or by placing a pan of hot water on the lowest rack beneath the cake.
6. Without opening the oven door, turn off the oven and leave the cake to cool for 1 1/2 hours inside the oven. Afterward, remove from the oven and cool to room temperature before refrigerating for at least 4 hours, though preferably overnight.

For the topping:

Note: There will be extra nuts left over as this recipe makes more than enough to use as a topping for the cake.

• ⅓ cup sugar 
• 3 tbsp water
• 1½ cups salted peanuts
• Dulce de leche (or caramel)

1. Put the sugar and water in a 2-quart saucepan and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until
   
   the sugar dissolves. 
2. Keeping the heat fairly high, continue to cook the sugar, without stirring, until it just starts to color. 
3. Toss in the peanuts and immediately start stirring. Keep stirring, to coat the peanuts with the sugar. Within a few minutes, they will be covered with sugar and turn white but keep stirring until the sugar turns back into caramel. 
4. Once the peanuts are coated with a nice deep amber caramel, remove the pan from the heat and turn the nuts out onto a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, using a wooden spoon to spread them out as best you can. 
5. Cool the nuts to room temperature and then chop them into small pieces. Sprinkle over top of the cheesecake and drizzle the dulce de leche or caramel sauce on top.

Mocha Cucakes with Espresso Buttercream Frosting

My oven has been seeing quite the action this past weekend. I decided to make my annual holiday boxes a little early this year because I knew I would be too busy later on. Although I sampled a few new recipes over the past month I wasn't satisfied with them so ultimately the box remained the same and no additions or substitutions were made.

However when it came time for my potluck Christmas party as work I knew that I wanted to make something new and I decided on cupcakes. Originally I found a recipe for cinnamon dolce latte cupcakes but when I read further into it I saw that it only made 12 cupcakes. I quickly did some research and found a second recipe for mocha cupcakes with espresso buttercream frosting. I thought that the two recipes paired well together because they had almost identical ingredients except for the fact that one included cinnamon and the other used cocoa powder.

Ironically enough, the mocha cupcakes turned out perfectly but the cinnamon ones gave me some trouble. The cupcakes turned out well but the kitchen was quite warm by the time I was making the frosting and as a result it broke. Next time I will have to be better with my timing so that I'm not scrambling at the last minute to get everything done. Still, when I brought the cupcakes to the party I received many compliments. I also managed to bring some leftovers home for my family and my mother and brother, both coffee lovers, expressed their enjoyment over the cupcakes.

Mocha Cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream Frosting
Note: This recipe makes 12 cupcakes.

• 1⅓ cups flour
• ⅓ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup milk
• ½ cup espresso
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ cup (8 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg 

1. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. Combine the milk with the espresso and vanilla and set aside.
3. Cream the butter with the two sugars until light and fluffy.
4. Beat in the egg.
5. Reduce the mixer to low speed and add one-third of the dry ingredients. Once the flour is almost mixed in, add half of the espresso/milk mixture. 
6. Mix in half of the remaining flour, then the remaining milk mixture, and finally the rest of the flour.
7. Distribute the batter evenly amongst a well-greased or paper-lined 12 cup muffin pan. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

For the frosting:

• ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 3 cups icing sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp espresso powder
• a bit of milk (maybe a tablespoon)

1. In a small bowl, combine the vanilla with the espresso powder and stir to dissolve. If the espresso doesn't completely dissolve add a bit of hot water.
2. Whip the butter for a few minutes on medium-high speed until whitened and fluffy.
3. Reduce the speed to low-medium and gradually add the icing sugar.
4. Pour in the vanilla/espresso mixture and beat on medium for a few minutes to incorporate. Scrape the sides of the bowl as necessary.
5. If the buttercream is still stiff add about a tablespoon of milk so that it becomes more spreadable. Continue to whip for a couple of minutes on medium-high speed until it becomes fluffy.
6. Frost the cupcakes once they are completely cooled. 

Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

A long time ago my friend told me about spaghetti squash, named that way because its flesh comes apart in long strands after being cooked. I had wanted to try it for quite some time but somehow just never got around to it. A few weeks ago I finally bought just one spaghetti squash at the store and decided to bake it at home. I got the idea online to use the squash itself as a serving vessel for a simple vegetarian dish.

Honestly the hardest part about the whole experience was cutting the squash open. If you have ever tried it you would probably agree that cutting squash can be cumbersome and whenever I have the option, I always go for the pre-cut choice. However once I had it split open the rest was a breeze. While the squash was roasting in the oven, I quickly sauteed some onions and peppers and added a little tomato paste to the mix. Once the squash was tender I used a fork to scrape out the insides, mixed it with the sauteed veggies, added a bit of chopped cilantro, and then put the mixture back into the shells. Then I just sprinkled some cheese over top and stuck it under the broiler for a few minutes just to melt the cheese.

Because I was making the squash for the first time I prepared only one, however each shell was a big enough portion to feed two people. Also, I chose to keep the dish vegetarian but some ground meat could easily be mixed in to make the dish even heartier, though I did like the freshness of having vegetables alone. Overall I was quite satisfied with how the squash turned out and I think I will be making it again soon.

Stuffed Spaghetti Squash
Note: Other vegetables such as mushrooms and zucchini can also be added or even ground meat.

• 1 small spaghetti squash, split in half and seeds removed
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground tumeric
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• Handful fresh cilantro, chopped
• Handful shredded cheese
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

1. Lightly drizzle olive oil over the flesh of the cut squash and sprinkle with some salt and pepper. Rub it in so that the flesh is completely coated then place on a baking tray, skin side down, and bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. The flesh should be easy to pierce all the way through with a knife once it is cooked.
2. While the squash is cooking, heat some olive oil over medium heat and saute the chopped onions for 3-5 minutes, or until they start to become transluscent.
3. Add the chopped garlic and continue to cook for another minute until the garlic becomes fragrant.
4. Add the chopped pepper and cook for another 3-5 minutes or until it begins to soften. 
5. Mix in the tomato paste, ground cumin, tumeric, and coriander and stir well to incorporate. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
6. Once the squash is done, use a fork to scrape the flesh from the shell and add it to the sauteed vegetables. Mix the squash with the other ingredients in the pan and add the chopped cilantro as well.
7. Distribute the stuffing evenly between the shells and sprinkle some shredded cheese over top. Return the baking tray with the stuffed squash into the oven and broil for about 3 minutes or until the cheese on top is melted.