Monday 6 March 2017

Genius Hour: Week 6

Lemon Cupcakes with Blackberry Butter Cream Frosting 


For week six of my genius hour project I made lemon cupcakes with blackberry butter cream frosting. I used a recipe from a blog I found on Pinterest. I was excited to try out this recipe, however I was not expecting it to be as challenging as it ended up being. The recipe said that it should take around 1 hour start to finish...it ended up taking me 2 1/2 hours to finish these cupcakes by the time everything was made, had cooled, and was decorated. Although my genius hour project this week turned into a genius two and a half hour project, the cupcakes turned out pretty well!  

In case you have some free time and would like to try out these cupcakes for yourself, I have documented the process below so that you can follow along.




Ingredients: Lemon Cupcakes 


1 3/4 cups flour 
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream 
1/2 cup milk 
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
2 large egg whites (room temperature) 
4 ounces unsalted butter (melted) 
1 cup granulated sugar 
Zest from 1 lemon 

Instructions: Lemon Cupcakes 


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin with paper liners. (I found really cute easter cupcake liners in my kitchen so I decided to make mini easter cupcakes using the liners).



2. Separate your egg whites and let them sit aside until at room temperature. As you can see in the video below this took a couple tries for me to perfect...its harder than they make it look on tv!!



3. In a mixing bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.


4. In a separate mixing bowl, combine the sour cream, milk, vanilla, and egg whites.


5. In a small mixing bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar. (This helps to rub the flavour from the lemon zest into the sugar).



















6. Beat the melted butter and sugar together until combined.



7. Add in the flour mixture to the butter and sugar mixture, beat until combined.


8. Add in the milk mixture and beat until combined.



9. Fill your cupcake liners with the batter. Bake for 16 minutes. (10 minutes if using mini muffins like I did).


10. Set the cupcakes aside to cool completely before icing.


Ingredients: Blackberry Butter Cream Frosting 


1 cup blackberries
2 tablespoons lemon juice
8 ounces unsalted butter (softened) 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
4 cups icing sugar 

Instructions: Blackberry Butter Cream Frosting 


1. Place the blackberries and lemon juice in a pot. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Stir constantly until the blackberries mash easily.




2. Using a strainer push the puree through the strainer to catch any seeds or larger chunks. Let the mixture cool.



3. In a mixing bowl, beat the butter until completely smooth.


4. Add the blackberry puree into the butter mixture and beat until combined.


5. Add in the icing sugar one cup at a time beating until combined and smooth.


6. Ice the cupcakes and finish off with a blackberry on the top!





Results 

The cupcakes turned out very well and they tasted good too. The lemon flavour from the cupcakes worked well with the blackberry frosting. However, I wasn't as keen for the texture of the butter cream frosting. I had never previously made or tried butter cream frosting and it is not my favourite, simply because of the buttery texture. I think that these cupcakes are very taste specific meaning that some people will really like them while others may find them too sweet or rich. The majority of my friends really liked the cupcakes and my roommates ate multiple in one night. 




I probably won't make these cupcakes again simply because of how time consuming they were. Waiting for the cupcakes to cool, and then waiting for the blackberry puree to cool before I could continue with the frosting took up a lot of time. 

This genius hour process has helped me to realize that I do have a passion for baking and that it is something I will continue after this course ends. That being said, I have also realized that I need to be in the right mood to actually enjoy baking. Tonight I came home after a long day at school, going to the gym, and working on assignments and really didn't feel like baking. Unfortunately, this made the process of making these cupcakes feel more like a chore instead of something to enjoy as I had throughout the previous weeks of my genius hour project. I am relieved to be done week 6 and I am planning to set aside uninterrupted time next week to complete my final genius hour baking project so that I can enjoy it!!  

1 comment:

  1. Miss Ropp, I absolutely adore your blog! There are so many great pictures of each step you took during your baking, and I definitely want to try out your recipes. It all looks so delicious and like a ton of fun to make! You have expressed all of the required elements for this digital portfolio, and it is very eye catching. You have provided a ton of detail as well and I found it very engaging and exciting to read. I want to wish you the very best in your future with education and all the best in your future!

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