Cherry-Almond Vanilla Cupcakes with Maraschino Cherry Icing

Despite the fact it's been one of the mildest winters I can ever remember, the dreary grey has gotten to me.  It's been rainy, windy, chilly....all gloom all the time.  By the beginning of March, who isn't ready for spring?!  To help cure what ails me, I prescribed myself a large dose of pink in cupcake form to brighten my mood.  What do you know?  It's actually working, and just in time because its' raining again....ugh.

Let's focus on the happy stuff....CUPCAKES!  

These Cherry-Almond Vanilla Cupcakes with Maraschino Cherry Icing are DE-LICIOUS!  I was happy with everything about this cake - it was nicely between light and dense, the right amount of sweet, nice almond flavoring, AND a cherry surprise inside!

Cherry-Almond Vanilla Cupcakes

adapted slightly from Better Homes and Gardens

1/2 cup butter, softened

4 egg whites, at room temperature

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup buttermilk or sour milk*

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

24 maraschino cherries, halved

*To make sour milk use 2 teaspoon of lemon juice poured into a glass measuring cup.  Add enough milk to reach 3/4  of a cup.  Stir, let sit for 5 minutes before using.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place liners in a cupcake pan.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.  Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer set between medium and high for 30 seconds.
• Add sugar, vanilla, and almond extract and beat until combined.
• Add egg whites, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Alternately, add flour mixture and buttermilk to butter mixture, beating on low speed until just combined (do not over mix).
• Fill a prepared cupcake pan liners 2/3 high with cake batter.
• Press 2 halves of cherries half into the middle of each cupcake.

• Bake for 18-20 minutes.
• After cooling in pan for 15 minutes, remove cupcakes from pan and allow to cool on a wire rack.
• Pipe or use an offset spatula to ice with Cherry-Almond Butter Frosting

Cherry-Almond Butter Frosting

2 sticks butter, room temperature

4 cups confectioners sugar
3 tablespoons maraschino cherry juice
1/2 teaspoon almond extract


In large mixing bowl, beat butter on high speed until fluffy.  Add three cups of sugar, one at a time until combined.  Add cherry juice and almond extract, along with last cup of sugar.   Beat until smooth.  Add more cherry juice, one teaspoon at a time, to reach desired consistency of frosting.

Mmmm....like I said, these are good.  If you're suffering from winter gloom, I recommend these happy looking and yummy tasting treats.  Imagine you are eating one under the sun on the beach watching the waves roll in and out.  Hang in there, summer IS coming!! 

"Conversation Hearts" Cherry Pies with Homemade Cherry Pie Filling

I've absolutely loved the adorable individual heart cherry pies I've been seeing on blogs and Pinterest.  I knew I wanted to give baking them a try and was excited when I remembered the conversation heart stencils I bought a few months ago.  How cute would conversation heart cherry pies be?  Pretty cute, as it turns out!

I began by making cherry pie filling.  I feel awful about this, but it was my first time making pie filling outside of  pie and I'm not 100% sure of the measurements I used because I kept adding things - a bit more cornstarch, a little more sugar, a few more cherries.  I can tell you how I started and how you can begin and tweak things to reach the consistency you want.  I learned an important lesson along the way, too, about cornstarch.  Did you know that it will NOT dissolve in hot liquid, instead it will clump in little bits?  You did?  Most of my friends knew that, too.  Me?  I learned the hard way.  Here's what happened:

I started with 2 - 24oz. jars of pitted sour cherries.  I strained them reserving the juice, setting the cherries aside.  I measured a cup and a half of the juice and poured it into a small sauce pan along with 1 cup of sugar.  After bringing it to a boil, I added 2 tablespoons of cornstarch.  It thickened nicely, but I could not get rid of the cornstarch clumps.  I dumped it out and started again.  Cherry juice, sugar, and this time I heated up a splash of water in the microwave adding the cornstarch to it.  I waited for it to dissolve in the hot water.  Nope.  Clumps.  I did not add it to the juice and sugar mixture.  I just stirred and thought about what I could do.  I did not have pectin and didn't want to go to the store.  I wanted to come to an understanding about cornstarch.  I'm not sure why I didn't just Google the answer, but eventually I had the bright idea to try and dissolve the cornstarch in room temperature water.  VOILA!  Completely dissolved.

So, here's where we are at (a.k.a. How to begin the process of making Cherry Pie Filling): 

1 1/2 cups of sour cherry juice

1 cup cup of sugar

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

2 tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in room temperature water

Bring to a boil and let thicken.  Add 1 1/2 cups of cherries.  Let simmer until thick enough to spoon onto pie crust without making a mess.  Real scientific, huh?

I tasted the filling and found it was still too sour.  So added more sugar.  1/3 cup.  And then a little more until I thought it was sweet enough.  However, this made the filling much runnier.  So, I had to add more cornstarch to thicken it, without using too much water to dissolve it so it wouldn't make it thinner while trying to thicken it.  Are you following all of this?  This is the point where I lost the measurements since I was adding amounts at random.  So, I suggest one of two things:

1. Relax and experiment, you're only making pie filling and not  performing surgery.

2.  Just buy some canned stuff.

Either way, the pies will be cute and delicious!  Here's my finished filling (verys tasty, too!):

Conversation Cherry Pie Hearts

1 can of cherry (or other) pie filling (or homemade filling)

pie crust dough, homemade or store bought

edible color dust in pink and red

powdered sugar to dust pies, if desired

To assemble the pies, either make your own favorite crust or buy pre-made ones (I bought crust.  I admit it).  Roll out the dough and cut out heart shapes.  You will need two hearts for each pie.  Place them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  On the top heart, use a small craft paintbrush to brush edible color dust over a stencil placed on top of the dough., You can see this technique by clicking here.  You can buy the color dust at craft stores such as Michael's or online.

Gently lift the stencil off of the dough:

Next, place a spoonful or so of filling on the bottom heart:

After running your fingertips through water, trace around the edge of the heart with filling on it, making sure it's wet enough to create a seal after placing the top heart over it.  Press firmly around the perimeter of the heart:

To complete the process, use a fork and pressing the tines around the heart.  Lastly, use a toothpick to poke a few holes in the pie crust.

Now they are ready for baking!  I followed the instructions, preheating my oven to 425 for baking for 15 minutes, but it didn't work out:

So, I tried again baking for less time (10 minutes) and keeping an eye on them, ready to remove the pies from the oven at the first sign of light browning:

Yay!!  Exactly everything I hoped for *sigh*.  I don't mean to be dramatic, but it was a long morning of trial and error for something I thought should be pretty easy.  Don't let me scare you away from trying these.  They are easy.  Really!  My husband loved them and I did, too.  :)  

Sprinkling some powdered sugar on them makes them even sweeter, though I haven't found a way to do it in an aesthetically pleasing way with the stenciling.  I'll work on it.  In the meantime, Valentine's Day is next week and these are a pretty quick and delicious way to let someone know you love them!

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Things that make you say MMMMMM....Mondays

Cherry Shortbread Hearts Dipped in Chocolate

I am leaving in a few minutes for vacation.  While I am gone I have attempted to schedule two automatic posts on cupcakes.  This is my first time doing it this way, so I hope it works!  If not, I'll post them live when I'm back in a little over a week.  Please bear with me!  Now, onto the cookies....

I'll get right to it....these didn't turn out exactly as I had planned.  I've made this shortbread cookie before and it's heavenly.  This time I forgot to skim the recipe beforehand (have I mentioned it's so important to read the recipe before beginning!) so I rolled the dough too thin.  When that happens they  brown past the edges.  When that happens the don't taste great.  Trust me.  Not that they were AWFUL, just not what they could and should have been.  Here's the recipe, which, if you follow correctly, will produce wonderful, buttery shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate.  Promise!

Shortbread Cookies

Adapted slightly from Ina Garten

3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature

1 cup sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon maraschino cherry juice

1/2 cup maraschino cherries, chopped

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

A few drops red food coloring (to desired hue)

6 to 7 ounces very good semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together butter and one cup of sugar until they are just combined.  Add the vanilla, cherry juice, cherries and food coloring..  In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt and add them to the butter/sugar mixture.  Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together.  Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a disk.  Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

Roll the dough 1/2 inch thick and cut with chosen cutter.  Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and sprinkle with sugar.  

Bake 20-25 minutes or until edges begin to brown slightly.  Allow to cool to room temperature.

When the cookies, place them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Put 3 ounces of chocolate in a glass bowl and microwave on high for 30 seconds.  Stir with a wooden spoon.  Continue to head and stir in 30 second intervals until the chocolate is just melted.  Add the remaining chocolate and allow to sit at room temperature , stirring often, until it is completely smooth.  Stir vigorously until the chocolate is cooled and smooth and slightly cooled.  Stirring makes it glossier.

Drizzle each cookie half way with enough chocolate to coat it.

I also have a difficult time with achieving glossy chocolate.  Still working on that.  The chocolate was too thick for me to drizzle, so I dipped, but the line is uneven and trying to fix it made things worse.  I will definitely make these again and try to improve on it.  The cherry flavor was nice and I like the bits of cherry throughout the cookie.  I thought about skipping posting these cookies altogether, but I promised I'd show the good, bad, and the ugly.  These cookies are a combination of the three, I think!

If you try your own version and have success, let me know!

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Heshey Kiss "Cutie Pies" and Cherry Pie Poppers

Hershey Kiss "Cutie Pies"

This past week I had quite a few requests to bake for different events.  Since I had actual orders to fill (and they were all items I had baked before so I didn't photograph them), I didn't have a lot of spare time to try new recipes.  On Friday, however, I had a few hours to experiment while waiting for a cake to cool.  Again, not a lot of time available, so it had to be something quick and easy.

I recalled a recipe for Hershey Kiss mini-pies I happened upon awhile ago, which fit the bill.  All that's needed is rolled out pie crust dough (either pre-made or homemade), Hershey Kisses, an egg wash (egg white whisked with a bit of water added), sugar, and some melted chocolate (if desired).  What could be simpler?

I began by unrolling out one of the pie crusts (take the dough out of the refrigerator ahead of time so it's room temperature) onto a floured surface.  Next, I unwrapped some Hershey Kisses and placed them on the dough.  I used a set of graduated circle cookie cutters, but you can just as easily use a knife to cut a circle around the Kiss.

Be sure the circle is large enough to wrap around the Kiss.  At first I cut out a circle that was a bit too small, making it difficult to wrap the dough around the top of the Kiss.  As I continued, I  cut out the circles using the next cutter size up.

To fold the dough over the Kiss bring the top and bottom part of the circle together over the top of the Kiss and seal it by pressing the dough together.  Then, do the same with the sides of the dough folded over the Kiss and sealed tightly.

After you have used up all of the pie crust dough (I re-rolled the scraps and continued making pie crust circles).  Brush some egg wash over the crust and sprinkle with granulated sugar, if desired.  Bake at 350 degrees for 18 minutes.

You can sprinkle confectioners sugar on top for some extra sweetness.  I did not, and after tasting one right out of the oven, I was not impressed.  The Kiss did not melt into gooey chocolate and, in my opinion, there was too much crust.  They weren't terrible, just not quite my taste.  Perhaps with some sugar added to the crust I would have preferred them.

I believed some improvement could be made, however, so I decided to melt a few chocolate wafers and drizzle the chocolate over the mini pies.  I was much happier with them!  Again, they are not overly sweet and chocolatey, but in some instances they can be the perfect thing to serve, such as an afternoon snack with coffee or tea.

I just love the Hershey Kiss shape in the middle when you bite into it.  So cute!!

UPDATE:  I changed my mind.  I tried one today with some tea and I actually loved it!!

Cherry Pie Poppers

I found myself with little more time and one more pie crust to use.  I didn't want to make any more Hershey Kiss mini-pies and I had a can of cherry pastry filling (which, looked essentially to be cherry pie filling with the cherries cut up into bits) in my pantry, so I decided to give cherry pie poppers a try.

I used two different sizes of circle cutters to make the pie crust dough circles - a larger one for the pie shell, and a smaller one to top the pie popper.  As with the Hershey Kiss pie, you can also use a knife to cut circles out.  Continue rolling out and cutting the dough scraps until you've used it all.  With one circle of pie crust I was able to make 12 pie poppers (using a mini-muffin baking pan).

I lined the mini-muffin pan with the crust circles and then spooned the pastry filling into them.

Next, I took the smaller circle of dough to cover the shell and filling.  Pinch the dough together to close the seam between the shell and the cover, just as you would with a full sized pie.

After each pie popper is covered and pinched together, use a knife to slash a line through the top of the pie popper crust:

Brush each pie popper with egg wash:

And bake for 19-20 minutes (or until golden brown) at 350 degrees.

Oh, they looked and SMELLED so delicious!!  I couldn't wait to try one, and they did not disappoint.  Another thing I love about these poppers is the portion control.  For me, two were quite satisfying, rather than eating an entire slice of pie.  This is good for those of us who are self-control challenged.

Obviously, I could use some work on pinching together seams, since these split.  Then again, I like the bit of color peaking through.  If I were wrapping these in treat bags the overflow would be a problem.  I suppose it will be a case-by-case decision!   Overall, I am very happy with them and can't wait for an opportunity to bake them again.

Some improvements for the next time:  I will add more filling to the pie crust shells.  This was my first time making these and I wasn't following a recipe or instructions, just kind of winging it.  I didn't know how much filling a pie popper would hold.  I could have used more.  Also, I think the placing of a bit of butter under the top crust (as I do with full sized cherry pies) will achieve a nice, buttery crust taste.  Lastly, in the future I will not be using canned cherry filling.  I much prefer my homemade sour cherry pie filling and will make that instead.

As for using pre-made pie crust, well, I am intimidated by making it from scratch.  I have been using pre-made pie crusts and that has worked out fine.  Since I've started to experiment with baking processes more, I think it's time to give pie crust a try.  My friend Karla promises me a tutorial, since she is known to be "pie crust Queen."  We'll see how that goes!

I'm excited to make these pie poppers in additional flavors, such as blueberry, pumpkin, chocolate, etc.  I'm so happy pie season is here!!!  Are you?

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