Friday, February 24, 2012

February 24, 2012

I warned you last week that this was going to be a light week of recipes, and I was correct. Ryan missed a few dinners at home so I made some of the kids favorites. This was followed by everyone (except me, thankfully!) getting a stomach bug. Throw in Ash Wednesday for good measure, and you have a week with only one keeper recipe.

Hannah had a friend sleep over on the weekend, and she requested we make a special dessert. We made chocolate cupcakes (with a hint of chocolate chips) with peanut butter frosting. They were delicious! We also tried out a new pasta recipe, but it wasn't really anything special, so it did not earn keeper status. The cupcakes were a hit, though, so I offer you this recipe. The recipe is so easy because it starts with a box mix!

This coming week I hope will be a little more productive in the way of recipes. Keep your fingers crossed that I find some more keeper recipes!

New Recipe
Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting


Ingredients for Chocolate Cupcakes
* 1 box devil’s food cake mix
* 1 small pkg instant chocolate pudding mix
* 1 cup sour cream
* 1 cup vegetable oil
* 4 eggs, beaten
( 1/2 cup milk
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1/2 cups mini chocolate chips

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease and line cupcake pans.
2. In a very large bowl, mix together everything except chocolate chips until well combined. Batter will be thick.
3. Stir in the chocolate chips.
4. If making mini cupcakes, bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.
5. If making standard cupcakes, bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes.

Ingredients for Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting

* 1/2 cup peanut butter
* 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened
* 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
* 1/4 cup heavy cream or half and half
* 2 tsp vanilla extract

Directions
1. Place the peanut butter, butter, sugar, cream and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes.
2. If necessary, add more cream, one tablespoon at a time, beating for 1-2 minutes after each addition until desired consistency is reached.
3. Frost or pipe onto cupcakes.

Notes
Who doesn't like chocolate and peanut butter? 19 minutes was the perfect amount of cooking time for my standard size cupcakes.