Only 2 Vanilla Cupcakes {=^.^=} & Vanilla Frosting

1 egg yolk.  1 TBS Soft Butter.  1 TBS Milk. 1 tsp Vanilla. 2 TBS sugar. 1/4 cup AP Flour. 3/4 tsp baking powder.

��Preheat your toaster oven to 300* . Prepare the cupcake pan with 2 cupcake liners.

��In a measuring cup whisk yolks & sugar until pale yellow, then whisk butter until creamy, add milk & vanilla until incorporated. Then GENTLY mix in all the dry ingredients just until wet. Do not over mix.

��Pour the batter in your cupcake liners (try to make them even). Bake for 13-15 minutes or until you test the cakes with a toothpick & it comes out clean.  Cool them before frosting. 

You can add different mix-ins or extracts to make them unique.

Vanilla Frosting For 2 or more ��

��1/2 cup firm but not cold Butter. 1 cup powdered sugar. 1 tsp Vanilla.

��Whip butter until light & fluffy, add powdered sugar & Vanilla. Whip some more. 

You can use egg whites instead... But I had so many yolks (made too many Macarons) I needed to somehow get rid of them... & I don't want to make Leche Flan. ��

Oreos & Hello Kitty & Valentine's Day =•.•=

You can make these anytime. For yourself, for hubsters, girlfriend, boyfriend, kiddos. Anyone!!!

What you'll need:
Cookie cutters
Paring knife or Exacto knife
Sprinkles (hearts, confetti, jimmies) etc.
Oreos or JoeJoes (any variety of colors are fun)

Procedure:
Carefully twist off one side of the cookie sandwich.
Using the cookie with the cream still intact, carefully imprint the cutter into the cream (try not to crack the cookie- be gentle). <\3
Carefully scrape off the unwanted cream away from the intended image.
Carefully lift the cookie cutter.
You may garnish with the sprinkles as pictured or just your imagination.

Notice all the "carefully" words I typed? Have a blessed Valentine's Day!

You can watch this on YouTube or on Vine:
MaggieMae on YouTube
MaedByMaggie on the Vine app.

"We Love HIM because He first Loved us".

Pictures of my Valentine's Day!- Blessed

Tutorial for Perfect Hello Kitty Bows =•.•=

Let's cut to the chase. This is a quick post to show you how to make the perfect Hello Kitty Bow by using Wilton's Hello Kitty Cake Pan as a mold. You will also need a microwave safe bowl, small rubber spatula, Wilton Candy Melts, microwave, and a refrigerator or freezer.

When mixing or handling candy melts make sure you do not introduce anything that has water into the candy melt wafers, in doing so, you will ruin the candy; so make sure to wipe your hands, rubber spatula, HK Pan and bowl with a dry cloth or paper towels before proceeding to melt the candy wafers.

1) Pour about 30 pieces of candy melts into the microwave safe bowl.
2) Melt the candy at 15 second intervals and gently stir in between, make sure you do not burn the candy, but should look silky and not clumpy in a spreadable consistency. Do not over mix to prevent adding unnecessary air bubbles to the candy.

3) Spread the melted candy into the well of Hello Kitty's bow and make sure to concentrate on the areas that may need extra strength. Lightly tap the pan to evenly distribute the melted candy and to eliminate bubbles (lightly tap the pan so you do not warp your pretty little cake pan or add permanent dents and dings).

4) Place the pan in the refrigerator or freezer for about 10 minutes until set and solid. 

5) Once the bow is set, carefully tap it out onto your hand and voila. You can now adorn your perfect Hello Kitty Cake.

Ayden's Favorite "Sprinkles" Strawberry Cupcakes Recipe ='.'=

Wow! Has it been that long since my last blog? I've been a bit stressed out lately, acutally. Why? My favorite son's 7th birthday is on Veteran's Day & I have been preparing for it all this time- eeeps. I only have 7 more days. PANIC TIME!

Since this is the month that God has blessed me with my one and only SONshine, Ayden Matthew, I think that it would be appropriate to share Ayden's favorite fruit and/or flavor cupcake. I know, I know spring and summer is over and finding fresh, red-juicy strawberries are tasking, and their scarcity makes them expensive if you ever do find them. But with this recipe, you too are blessed, because you can use fresh or frozen strawberries. If you can puree it then you can make these. Maybe, I should try other fruits and see how they turn out. Mango? Avocado? Hmmmm...

Ayden's Favorite "Sprinkles" Strawberry Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes (adapted from Sprinkles recipe)
FOR THE CUPCAKE:

Ingredients (everything must be ROOM temperature)

• 1/3 cup strawberry puree (fresh or thawed frozen)
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour  (SIFT first before measuring)
• 6 teaspoons All Whites Liquid Egg Whites
• 1 large egg
• 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. coarse salt
• 3 tbsp. milk
• 1 tbsp. sour cream or plain yogurt
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 350. Line 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake liners.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer (medium-high speed) cream butter, oil, & confectioner's sugar, then slowly add all the eggs until light & fluffy. In a small bowl, mix together the milk, sour cream, salt, vanilla, & puree; set aside. Then in another bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder; set aside.

With the mixer on low setting, alternately add the flour mixture & milk mixture until well blended; scraping down sides of the bowl with a spatula, as necessary, DO NOT OVER MIX or you can hand mix until well blended.

Using an ice cream scoop divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake until toothpick inserted comes out clean or the tops are just dry to the touch, 21 to 24 minutes, DO NOT OVER BAKE. Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting. Scroll down for the frosting recipe.

Click to Watch Candace Nelson's Techniques

Sprinkles Cupcakes' Strawberry Frosting

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup frozen whole strawberries , thawed
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter , firm and slightly cold
• Pinch coarse salt
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar , sifted
• 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Directions

Place strawberries in the bowl of a small food processor; process until pureed. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined. Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons strawberry puree (save any remaining strawberry puree for another use); mix until just blended. Do not overmix, or frosting will incorporate too much air. Frosting consistency should be dense and creamy, like ice cream.

Click to Watch Candace Nelson's Frosting Technique

Photo Credit: Cheyenne Kay C.H.M

PB stew & cookies too ='.'=

October 1st, Saturday, what a great day to hang out with Irenie (she's always super busy & rarely has time to herself, so this is a rare occasion). I've known her since our pre-nursing Junior College days. Lately, she's been craving peanut butter... protein... I suppose. She apparently doesn't eat a lot of meat & maybe her body & baby bump is telling her to eat more PROTEIN. So today, we are making Kare-Kare (oxtail peanut butter stew- a traditional Filipino dish) & since the pressure cooker wasn't working well it took about 2 hours to tenderize the meat VS 30 minutes, so we decided to kill some time and bake PB cookies for dessert.


Both Recipes are as follows:



Kare-Kare

 

Peanut Butter Cookies, some with Chocolate Chips, some plain-> HK ='.'=

 

Kare-Kare (adapted from my SIL, Marianne's recipe)

INGREDIENTS


MEAT:
3-4 pounds of oxtail (you can also add tripe & cubes of beef stew meat if you wish)

VEGETABLES (wash these first):
1 large Chinese eggplant cut in small pieces
1 bunch of pechay or baby bok choy or 1/2 head of cabbage (we only used cabbage since her baby daddy only likes cabbage)1 bunch of sitaw (string beans)

OTHER INGREDIENTS :2 cups peanut butter (we used 50/50 mix of Lily's Brand & Skippy -Creamy) Lily's is sweet, so if you'd rather have more savory than sweet you can use the regular PB
2 packets of Mama Sita's Kare-Kare mix
3 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cup of cold water (plus more as needed)
Patis (fish sauce as needed to taste) OR salt to taste


EAT WITH:
Steamed White Rice
Bagoong (shrimp paste- my favorite is Barrio Fiesta Brand, FYI I am allergic to crustaceans, so I take my chances with just a little bit when I eat kare-kare, it is not the same without it).


EQUIPMENTS:
Large wok or skillet
Pressure cooker or a heavy large pot/sauce pan
Medium mixing bowl
2 Wooden spoons


PROCEDURES:
Wash the oxtails & place in a pressure cooker/heavy saucepan with enough water to cover. When using a pressure cooker, once the steam indicator pops up, cook for about 30 minutes (tender meat that falls off the bone is preferred). If using a regular sauce pan/pot simmer/boil for about 2-3 hours add more water if needed. Once tender and the meat has softened, remove pot from heat and set aside (do not discard the stock).


In the wok heat the cooking oil & stir fry the vegetables. Make sure they are tender before adding the meat (without the stock), continue stirring.

In the mixing bowl, prepare the kare-kare mix by adding the 1 cup water, then add 1/2 cup of stock, mix well. Pour this mixture into the veggie-meat combo and continue to cook for about 10 minutes.

Using the same bowl add the rest of the stock & peanut butter, mix well. Pour this mixture into the veggie-meat-sauce combo. Stir to blend well. Cook for about 5-10 minutes until the sauce thickens. 

Add the fish sauce to taste (this serves as the salty seasoning). Serve hot with bagoong & steamed white rice.


Note: while tenderizing the meat either in the pressure cooker or pot you can add some cloves of garlic & onions for more deliciousness.

AND FOR DESSERT

Peanut Butter Cookies

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (We used Skippy)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 egg
• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• Some Hershey's milk chocolate chips (will need about 5-7 chips to top each cookie)

 

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with Silpat. Or you can grease your cookie sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the egg, butter, peanut butter, & both sugars until smooth.
3. In a separate bowl sift together all the dry ingredients. Using a small ice cream scoop or roll into walnut sized balls and place 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Flatten slightly with the tines of a fork. If you wish you can place about 5-7 chocolate chips on the top of each flattened cookie.
4. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven. If you are not using a Silpat you can use a spatula to gently lift & nudge the cookies to prevent them from sticking to the cookie sheets. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before devouring.

Hope you enjoy the savory & sweet sides of good old peanut butter, I know we did & Irene's baby was happy too.   ='.'=

El Maggie CHURROS Recipe ='.'=

Bienvenidos!!!

I just came back from "the happiest place on earth" with my Bebesters, Andretti & I just remembered that I forgot to eat a churro. :c

But no worries, I replaced those carbs with two unsalted Mickey Pretzels dipped in nacho cheese & a refreshing Duo Schmoozie (berry smoothie), the chocolatey one is the hubsters. & not eating a churro just reminded me to post my take on the cinnamony-Latin-cylindrical-doughnut-treat. A few months ago, I was chit-chatting with Ate Rianne about how I love Disney's churros but disliked the prices & how Costco churros were not the same. She suggested I look up El Tigre Churro. I found a few YELP ratings about them & how their churro stand was located in the sketchy parts of SD. Ummm, I'm craving them but I don't think I want to get myself killed just to try them. So instead I found a few recipes online and modified them.  Allrecipes has a bunch of rated recipes you can try. But if you'd like to try mine... continue reading...

Deeeeeep fried pastry

Ingredients

For Batter

• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground vanilla bean
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 quarts vegetable oil for frying

For Cinnamon/sugar topping

• 1/2 cup white sugar, or to taste
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Mix/sift baking powder & flour together in a bowl, set aside. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water, sugar, vanilla bean powder, salt and butter. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Stir in flour/baking powder until mixture separates from the saucepan and forms a ball.
2. Heat oil for frying in deep-fryer or deep skillet to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Be warned, the batter & oil is HOT... Pipe strips of dough into hot oil using a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip (I used Wilton 1M). Fry until golden; drain on paper towels.
3. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. Roll drained churros in cinnamon and sugar mixture. They should look like ...

& guess what we found at the Spring Valley Swap-meet? At least we won't have to drive through the ghetto to try them. & you know what??? They taste very similar. & you won't have to pay the extra dollar for the entrance fee.

Tutorial Chocolate French Macarons ='.'=

It's Monday Morning & this is a pictutorial (picture tutorial) for Chocolate Macarons. NOTE:  If you are using regular cocoa powder & not Bellagio Chocolate then you need to change the 1 tablespoon to 3 tablespoons of cocoa & use only 1/2 a cup of Almond Flour.

Ingredients:

Kitchen Tools: AND also need a stand or hand mixer (make sure all are grease free & clean)

PROCEDURE:

 

Time to PREHEAT THE OVEN to 375 Degrees Fahrenheit

Tap baking sheet to release trapped air bubbles.

LET THIS SIT FOR AT LEAST 15 MINUTES 

in room temp. or Until the tops are dry & have formed a skin.

Reduce the oven temp. to 325 & bake 1 sheet at a time for about 10 to 14 minutes, rotating halfway through. 

The tops of the cookies should resemble an "egg shell" quality. The macarons should be crisp and firm. Let it sit to cool about 2-3 minutes before removing.  

Make sure to increase the temp. to 375 to preheat & repeat the baking process for the rest of the macarons.

Sandwich 2 same size macaron with about 1 tsp. filling: Peanut butter, Nutella, Chocolate Butter Cream, Dobrova, or whatever you are craving.

As always, I just can't leave a plain 'ol Macaron alone... ALOHA KITTY!!! She's tanned & wearing a flower instead of a bow.  ='.'=

This post is dedicated to my dear friend, Ate CeCe, she loves Hello Kitty & one day she will get to taste one of my chocolate HK creations. 

Without Christ I am nothing.