Friday, June 28, 2013

Peanut Butter Frosting

This recipe is a little much to be the only frosting on a cupcake or a cake.  It is better as a filling with regular buttercream as the icing.  I got it from www.allrecipes.com.

1/2 Cup Butter
1 Cup Creamy Peanut Butter
4 Cups Powdered Sugar
1/3 Cup Heavy Cream

It is very stiff like this.  I add more heavy cream while the mixer is going until I get the consistency I need.

I hope you enjoy.  I made dark chocolate cupcakes with this and everyone loved them.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Sugar Cookie Icing

This is a great sugar cookie icing.  Its what I've been using on my sugar cookies.  I do wish it would dry a little faster though and not dry so shiny.  I will keep looking for one that is not shiny.  This one is a good one though if you don't care about it being matte of shiny.

I got this recipe off the all recipes website.

1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tsp milk
2 tsp light corn syrup
1/4 tsp almond extract
assorted food coloring



In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth.

 Beat in corn syrup and almond extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.

Divide into separate bowls, and add food colorings to each to desired intensity. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush.


I will have to work on not getting so much air in my icing.  It shows up too much when finished.

Monday, May 27, 2013

Sugar Cookie

This recipe is a great recipe for sugar cookies that I found on the all recipes website.  They are great for cut cookies.  They only expand a tiny bit and taste great!

This recipe makes about 5 dozen cookies.  I used it to make a variety of sized and shaped cookies and got 56 cookies.

1 1/2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
5 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
  

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

I found that mine definitely needed the full 8 minutes to bake completely.  

Friday, May 24, 2013

The Best Chocolate Icing

This is a great chocolate frosting for cakes. I use it pretty much any time anyone wants chocolate icing on a cake.

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
7 oz unsweetened chocolate squares
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 lb powdered sugar
5 tbsp milk
3-4 tbsp light corn syrup

Melt the chocolate squares.
Cream shortening and butter together.
Add cooled chocolate and vanilla.
Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time beating well on medium speed.
Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often.
Icing will appear DRY.
Add liquids (milk or liquor) and beat until light and fluffy on medium to high
For a smoother silkier version beat on medium for a longer period of time.
For a fluffy, thick frosting beat on a high speed for a shorter period of time.

**Add 3-4 tbsp of light corn syrup to thin icing per recipe.
Keep covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.


This icing dries hard because of the chocolate but must also be put in the fridge if kept for long because of the butter and milk.  It is perfect for smoothing and decorating cakes.  It is also a great chocolate color. Melted chocolate is a great alternative to cocoa powder.  Powder has a flavor I don't care for and it never seems to get a good color to the icing.

Here is a picture of a cake I covered in this frosting.  This cake is chocolate cake, cream cheese filling, chocolate fudge frosting, drizzled chocolate on the outside with chocolate rosettes and shavings.
It is definitely a must try for chocolate lovers.