Camp Cupcake: Banana Pecan Cupcakes

As I made these, among other things, I kept thinking about that Jack Johnson song, "Banana Pancakes." It was raining outside.

While I feel that I have become skilled at various cooking techniques over the course of this experiment, the one thing that continues to elude me is caramel. This recipe goes wonderfully with caramel buttercream, which I attempted to make using homemade caramel, but once again, had to resort to subbing it for this:

I loathe you, Smuckers Ice Cream Topping. You are a reminder of my failings, and I hate that I continue to return to you like a crutch. And yet, I am so grateful for that crutch.

Here is the link on Martha's website. The cupcakes themselves were wonderful, very much like the banana bread my dad loves to make. They would be a perfect way to get rid of the overripe bananas hanging from that weird little banana tree in your kitchen.

Also, if anyone has any tips on how to make good caramel, I would love to hear it. The first batch I made was undercooked, and the sugar was not caramelized. The second batch cooked too long. I need help.

Tonganterror: Week 9 What We've Learned So Far

Week 9

I don't have much to say about the day to day of P90X anymore, so I decided to diverge from the usual format. Instead I wanted to blog about some of the things I noticed about being a P90Xer over the last 64 days....

1. People Don't Buy It

I was surprised when I began the program how many people looked at me like I had embarked in some new multi-level marketing company (or pyramid scheme). There are a lot of fears and frustrations associated with a daily workout schedule. Furthermore, there seems to be a lot of negative perceptions towards workout videos in general. So as we talked about the program and what we were doing, it seemed that many were unbelieving and generally bracing for our failure. The key to these communications seemed to be an undying ridiculous optimism. I lied to myself and them and basically did everything I could to stay excited about this program for the first week.

2. You Will Never Feel Good About "Pressing Play"

The most important thing about the program is to keep doing it. It is difficult, it takes forever, and it is everyday. The first few days of this workout, I felt like I was going to die. I wasn't happy about how bad I felt. I wondered if it was healthy for me to work so hard. I questioned whether I would even be able to do this, or if I was fit enough for the program. But I kept pressing that play button, and here I am. There were days when I felt like I didn't have time, or that I was sick or whatever number of reasons that seemed logical at the time. I just put in the disc for the day and started moving. I don't believe that I always "brought it", but those days were just to keep the habit going.

I believe today marks day 64 of the 90 day journey. I have committed to maintaining the workout schedule indefinitely at this point. I am excited to continue working and see the changes that will come. Thanks to everyone who has been supportive and helpful.

Camp Cupcake: Rhubarb Cupcakes

Confession: Rhubarb kind of freaks me out.

I have always enjoyed it in strawberry-rhubarb pie, but there is something creepy about the way you buy it in the store, with its pink stalk and its disturbing, finlike leaves.

However, these cupcakes called for it, and I am nothing if not a conformist.

In the process of slicing the rhubarb, I again cut myself with my Miracle Blades. Fortunately, I assessed the wound and determined it was not deep or long enough to require stitches, as it stopped bleeding fairly quickly and only required one Band-Aid. Plus, it was almost midnight, and I knew I would have to make a trip to the ER if it was bad enough to need stitches, so that also factored into how severe I assessed the cut to be.

The recipe is fairly easy, and yields what could be classified as a muffin. However, you then top it with whipped cream and a rhubarb syrup, which makes it more dessert-like.

Unfortunately, on my way to work that morning, the syrup spilled out of its container and into the plastic bag surrounding it (that was lucky), so no one had the cupcakes with their syrup. But they were still good with the whipped cream.

More unfortunately, I apparently got no pictures of these cupcakes, so you'll just have to trust me that they looked and tasted very good. The whipped cream made a good topping, even without the syrup, and the rhubarb, once baked, was not too sour, just a little tart.

Martha used to have a link to this recipe on her site. I don't know where it went, but it is gone now.

So here it is:

Rhubarb Cupcakes with Whipped Cream

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. coarse salt

1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

2 c. sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 c. sour cream, room temperature

3/4 pound rhubarb, stalks trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch dice (3 cups)

1 vanilla bean, halved length-wise

1 c. water

Whipped cream (unsweetened)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line standard muffin tins with liners. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

Cream butter and 1 cup sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated. Scrape sides as needed. Beat in vanilla extract. Add in flour mixture in two batches, alternating with sour cream, and beating until combined after each. Stir in 2 c. diced rhubarb.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake about 25 minutes, rotating halfway through. Cool completely.

To make rhubarb topping, use tip of paring knife to scrape vanilla-bean seeds into a saucepan. Add water and remaining sugar (1 c.) and bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat. and stir in remaining 1 c. rhubarb. Let cool completely. Remove rhubarb with a slotted spoon, and reserve. Return liquid to a simmer, and cook until reduced by half, 5 to 8 minutes. Let cool slightly, then return rhubarb to syrup.

To finish, dollop a generous amount of whipped cream onto each cupcake, and top with rhubarb and some cooled syrup. Serve immediately.

Camp Cupcake: Coconut Chick Cupcakes

This was another one of those recipes where style could have replaced substance. However, the cupcake is a lemon-vanilla bean base, which, by itself, was pretty darn good. I had some leftover mini-cupcakes which I glazed with Martha's citrus glaze, and I got lots of compliments.

Here's a link to the recipe.

A word of advice: Martha advocates using candy that may be difficult for some people (like me) to find.

For the combs, I used Hot Tamales, instead of red Good 'N Plenty. For the eyes, I used blackberry jellybeans instead of black licorice whips. Also, because mine went to Relief Society, I made them more portable by leaving them in the liners, rather than putting them on plates. For this reason, my chicks do not have feet.

I was satisfied with the results and would highly recommend them for a spring party, an Easter function, or a baby shower.

Tonganterror: Week 8: Still Bringing It

Week 8

Days 50-56

I didn’t record my day to day this week. I guess the P90X has just become a part of my life. The 2^nd recovery week was another hard week. The recovery weeks are easier on the joints, but much more painful in the stretching arena. My back was sore for most of the week, which might be a good thing because I am starting to realize I have quite a bit of tension stored up there.

The Yoga is much more fulfilling than in previous weeks. I find a lot of stress relief in the workout. By the time it is over, I am ready for bed. This is a dramatic change from the first week where I was crying in pain for the 15 minutes I was able to stay in it. Now, I am staying in for most of the workout, only missing the shoulder stands (I’m still not flexible enough) and crane (my arms still aren’t strong enough. I’m just doing my best at this point.

Overall, I am feeling better than I have felt in a long time. I was looking at old pictures of myself from 2 years ago well before I ever started on the P90X journey, and I have come a long way from that guy. I feel like I have really begun a workout program that will take me the rest of the way. I have not up to this point worked on the diet, but I think I am about ready. I haven’t experienced the weight loss that I wanted from the program, and it is definitely because of my diet. So for this last phase I’m going to hit it hard and see what we can do. BRING IT!

Camp Cupcake: Blackberry Cornmeal Cupcakes

I made this recipe at the same time I made the flourless chocolate cupcakes.

Both are perfect with ice cream.

I recommend vanilla-bean.

I'm really starting to get into vanilla beans.

They go on the list of things only Martha thinks are necessities, like Dutch-process cocoa, Meyer lemons, and unsweetened coconut.

These toe the line between cupcake and muffin. However, they are almost like a cobbler, which is why I recommend the ice cream. And they are pretty easy to make. And I got many compliments on them from the Relief Society sisters.

Blackberry Cornmeal Cupcakes

Makes 16

1 1/4 c. all purpose flour

1/2 c. fine-ground yellow cornmeal

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 1/4 c. sugar

1/2 c. buttermilk, room temperature

2 large eggs, room temperature

7 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 to 2 containers (6 oz) fresh blackberries (I used 2 containers, but I probably could have gotten by with one).

Preheat oven to 375F. Line muffin tins. Whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and 1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar (you will use the rest later).

In another bowl, whisk together buttermilk, eggs, and melted butter; pour over flour mixture, whisking to combine.

Fill each lined cup with a scant 1/4 c. batter (this is important. I filled mine too full and it overflowed a little). Top batter with blackberries (3 to 4 per cup), then sprinkle evenly with remaining 2 Tbsp. sugar.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool before removing from pan. They are best served warm.

Pie Are Squared: Miss Bradley's Cottage Cheese Pie

I was kind of unmotivated to get a good picture of this pie, since it was not a pretty pie. The top browned very quickly, and I don't think it was supposed to.
Some people may think a cottage cheese pie sounds disgusting, but I assure you it was not. It had this part cheesecake, part custard texture to it that my husband and I rather enjoyed. The flavor was rather egg noggy, which might deter some people. I think next time, I'll omit the nutmeg (to get rid of nogginess) and maybe add something else. Chocolate? Fruit? Cinnamon? I think this is a good base for fun experimentation.

Ratings:

Flavor: 8-I wasn't the biggest fan of the egg noggity, but it was still a tasty pie.

Execution: 7-I think I'll have to watch more carefully next time to avoid too much brown.

Difficulty: Easy. Required egg separating and egg white whipping and cottage cheese draining.

Overall rating: **** 4 out of 5 stars.