Life&Cupcakes

Who doesn't love Andes Mints? I know right! They are so good! I have an amazing recipe that I absolutely love to make that represents an Andes mint cupcake! Absolutely so good! Makes 20 Cupcakes Prep time: 30 minutes Cook time: 15-20 minutes Ingredients Cupcakes: - 2 T vegetable oil - 6 T unsalted butter - softened (I leave them out over night) - 1/2 Cup sugar - 1/2 cup light brown sugar - 2 large eggs - 2 tsp vanilla extract - 1 cup flour - 6 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder - 1/2 tsp baking soda - 1/4 tsp baking powder - 1/4 tsp salt - 3/4 cup milk Frosting: - 1 cup unsalted butter - softened - 3 cups confectioners' sugar - 2 T heavy cream - 1/2 tsp peppermint extract - 3-4 drops green food coloring - chocolate mint candies (optional) I definitely used them! Instructions: Cupcakes: 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 20 muffin cups with any paper liners. 2. Beat together the oil, butter, and sugars until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time be

Frosting cupcakes is just about my favorite part of cupcakes altogether. Who didn't just lick the frosting off as a kid? Hello me. ANYWAYS. There are many tips to frost the perfect cupcake so let's dive right into them. First off, you must decide how you are going to frost your cupcake. By knife, piping bag or with your hands (this way gets a little messy). As I have grown as a baker, I always use Wilton Pastry Bags. I use different sizes just depending on how many cupcakes I am frosting, and how much frosting I made. I am just going to say, the bigger the better. If you fill a small one too full, frosting will explode out the top, and there will be a HUGE mess. Secondly, you must have the right tips for the bags if you decide to use them. There are many tips for many different things that you want to do with decorating. Here is my little reference in a picture that I use A LOT. It shows you the many different tips and what the frosting will look like when you use them.

I found this amazing marshmallow fondant a long time ago, and it is my favorite. If you don't know what fondant is, it is an edible molding that you can make into anything to decorate with. This recipe is super yummy and easier to deal with as some fondant isn't so easy to deal with. Marshmallow Fondant Servings: 4.25 pounds Ingredients: - 2 lbs powdered sugar - 1 lb marshmallows - 1.25 lbs Wilton fondant - 2 tbsp warm water - 1/2 cup vegetable shortening Instructions: 1. Sift powdered sugar and set aside. 2. Place your shortening in the stand mixer bowl. 3. Melt marshmallows for 40 seconds in microwave and stir with spoon. 4. Melt marshmallows again for 30 seconds in microwave and stir with spoon. 5. Melt marshmallows for the last time for 30 seconds in microwave. 6. Add water to bowl of marshmallows to detach them form the edges of the bowl and pour marshmallows into stand mixer with dough hook attachment. 7. Begin mixing. Add in half of your powdered su

The current season is summer, and what does summer mean? Swimsuits. I know I thought the same thing, "EW." Swimsuits mean that you have to be in shape so that you look good in swimsuits. My niche area of baking doesn't exactly have the idea of healthy eating. BUT there are recipes out there that are a lot better for you than some other recipes, and have them still be yummy and delicious. I found this great recipe a couple of years ago on Pinterest, and man was it YUMMY. Here is the recipe and my tips and tricks on how I put my own little twist on it. Who doesn't love peanut butter and bananas in a cupcake? Makes 18 Cupcakes Ingredients: Cupcakes - 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature - 1/2 cup packed light or dark brown sugar (I always use light) - 3/4 cup granulated sugar - 3 large eggs, room temperature (room temperature is key with eggs) - 1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (equivalent to 3 extremely ripe bananas) - 2 tsp vanilla -

Okay, who doesn't love good boxed brownies!? I recently just made some boxed brownies because we needed to make something for a 4th of July party. Before I was making them I thought that something just really needed to be done to them, and that is what made me think of this blog. I thought of a couple different ways that you can made your brownies a little more exciting so that it seems like you put more effort into them, and they are even more delicious! Here we go! 1. Duh, add some chocolate chips! Add about a cup of semi-sweet, peanut butter, milk, or mint chocolate chips to your brownie batter. This will vamp up your brownies and make them even more delicious! 2. Top them off with chocolate chips. Instead of putting the chips inside your batter, add them on top when the brownies are done. This will allow you to add just a little surprise to the brownies. 3. Top them off with frosting. This is kind of a no brainer, but it really makes your brownies extra yummy. You c

This post is intended to show you what I have done the past few weeks and why I chose to do the type of blog that I did. Check out my archives if you haven't already ready all of my posts! Here we go! My first post: "About me" Why does anyone do an about me post? Well, of course, to show everyone that reads your blog to learn about the person making the blog. I love that people could get to know about me through the post. http://emilynslifeandcupcakes.blogspot.com/2017/06/about-me-blog.html Homemade vs, Store Bought: I chose to do this post because my entire baking life is about baking everything from scratch. Of course I have made things from the store, but it's just not fun when you do that. Everything ends up totally better when you make it from scratch. Top 7 Key Baking Tips: I chose this post because who doesn't need a couple good tips while baking! I love to just look at what other bakers have as their tips because it just really shows what kind of ba