Short Reflection on My Blog

So I have had this blog for awhile now, and it has been one hell of a ride. I’ve had to find new recipes and bake something new every week. Although it sounds like a lot of work, it’s been great. I’ve wanted to start a cooking blog for about a year now and just never had the motivation. Baking every week has been relaxing, exciting and fun. I’m so excited I’ve been able to share this blog with people I care about. Overall I have loved blogging, and I hope ton continue this blog for years and years.

My mom's chocolate chip cookies (no recipe)

This post has no recipe, but is instead dedicated to my mom who taught me to love cooking.

My mom made chocolate chip cookies a lot when I was younger. I remember it being like magic. She'd pour seemingly random ingredients into a bowl, and mix them up to create deliciousness. She'd pour the marvelous dough into a sheet pan and bake AMAZING cookie bars. As a kid, all I cared about was licking the bowl at the end. That was the best part of baking, (and a habit I still have to this day.) She'd always let me, and usually leave me a little glob of chocolate chip. Then in pour wave of warmth the large oven door would open and out came decadent chocolate chip cookie bars. Their scent would waif about the house for hours. When they finally cooled enough for me to eat I'd be ecstatic. It would make my day.

When I was twelve or so, I learned how to make my own chocolate chip cookies. I made them as often as I was allowed. They never came out as good as hers though. My mom never used a fancy recipe or special method. She just did whatever the back of the package of chocolate chips told her to. Somehow it never worked for me like it worked for her.

Something about creaming butter as always been like Zen to me. Mixing got easier with age, as did my cookies. My friends have tasted many of my chocolate chip cookies; it's one of my baking staples. But the smell of chocolate chip cookies always reminds me of my mom.

I searched on the internet for the perfect recipe. I've tried every variation I could find. I tried buying better ingredients, and following the instructions perfectly, but nothing ever compared to her cookies. I don't know if it's just her experience or her love, but whatever it is my mom's chocolate chip cookies will always have a special place in my heart.

General Bee’s Chicken

OMG a recipe for real people food! Occasionally I actually eat things that aren't classified as desserts. This is one of those things.

The first time I went to P.F. Chang's was with my family. We were in Vegas for my mom and step-dad's wedding. I remember ordering something god awful (I have a real knack for picking the crappiest thing on a menu and ordering it.) Out of love and pity my step-dad gave me some of his General Chang's spicy shrimp. I was cautious because I wasn't too fond of spicy things. I cut a small piece off one of the shrimp and ate it.

I fell in love. That night changed my life. I became more adventurous with the food I ate, and I learned that spicy wasn't a bad thing.

This recipe can be used with shrimp, chicken and maybe pork (never tried it). I'm going to use chicken because I'm a poor college student. This recipe has two parts, chicken and sauce. The best side dish for this recipe is rice.

Ingredients:
1lb boneless skinless chicken thighs (cut into 1” chunks)
3 green onions (sliced)
3 eggs (beaten)
½ cup cornstarch
oil (for frying)

Sauce-
1 ½ tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons rice wine
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Step 1: Chicken. In a medium mixing bowl combine cornstarch and beaten eggs. Mix well to create a batter. Add chicken bits and coat thoroughly. The easiest way to do this is to mix the eggs, stir in the corn starch, and then add the chicken. If your cooking less chicken half the recipe. For healthy alternatives, skip this step.

Step 2: Sauce. In a small bowl combine rice vinegar, rice wine, soy sauce, sugar and cornstarch. Mix well and set aside. I often double the recipe because this sauce is the bomb! For healthy alternatives, replace sugar with artificial sweetener, use light soy sauce and substitute cornstarch for whole wheat flour.

Step 3: Chicken. Grab a regular-sized skillet and fill it with oil about 1/2 inch deep. Deep frying is easier, but I can't bring myself to waste all that oil. Fry chicken bits in batches. The easiest way to do this is holding the bowl close to the skillet, and slowly scooping chicken out. Spread the chicken out evenly so there are no over lapping pieces.
WARNING: OIL SUCKS! Wear gloves when doing this and be super careful. I totally burned the hell out of my hand, and it totally sucked. Don't be a hero, play it safe and wear gloves. For healthy alternatives, cook chicken bits in a skillet with 1-2cup(s) chicken broth or water.

Step 4: Chicken. Drain on paper towels. I use about 2-3. For healthy alternatives, skip this step.

Step 5: Sauce. Heat sauce mixture in a skillet pan and cook over medium heat. Stir the mixture regularly until the sauce becomes thickened and bubbly. It will smell so freakin good.

Step 6: Plate chicken and spoon desired amount of sauce over chicken. Garnish with green onions, and serve with rice.
My friends went gaga over this. It's really the bee's knees! (haha!) Seriously though, I could live off of this stuff. It reheats great and the healthy recipe reheats the best in a microwave. When I had back to back classes and couldn't sit down and eat, I'd microwave this and eat while walking between classes.

General Tso’s Chicken
Ingredients:
1lb boneless skinless chicken thighs (cut into 1” chunks)
3 green onions (sliced)
3 eggs (beaten)
½ cup cornstarch
oil (for frying)

Sauce-
1 ½ tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons rice wine
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch
Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: In a large mixing bowl combine cornstarch and beaten eggs. Mix well to create a batter. Add chicken bits and coat thoroughly.

Step 2: To make the sauce- in a small bowl combine rice vinegar, rice wine, soy sauce, sugar and cornstarch. Mix well and set aside.

Step 3: Grab a regular-sized skillet and fill it with oil about 1/2 inch deep. Fry chicken bits in batches. Drain on paper towels.

Step 5: Heat sauce mixture in a skillet pan and cook over medium heat. Stir the mixture regularly until the sauce becomes thickened and bubbly.
Step 6: Plate chicken and spoon desired amount of sauce over chicken. Garnish with green onions, and serve with rice.
(Makes about 2 servings)

Oreo Fudge Brownies Rock!

I felt like Oreos, and brownies, and gooey-goodness. These were simply splendid. I used store brand Oreos which were softer than Oreo brand Oreos. I will comment more on the recipe tomorrow. (My friend's birthday party was tonight and I helped set up, and clean up.) Pretty much these are best served warm over cold ice-cream. They will rock your socks off.

Cookies ‘N Cream Oreo Fudge Brownies

1 box Brownie Mix
eggs & oil (as called for by the brownie mix)
1 heaping half cup (6 oz) Cookies & Cream (or chocolate, or vanilla) ice cream
1/4 Cup hot fudge topping (or chocolate chips)

Preheat oven & spray an 8×8 (or 8x11)P baking dish generously with cooking spray. Combine brownie mix, eggs, and oil as directed on the back of the box, but do not add the water. Add ice cream and hot fudge to the brownie batter and stir to combine. Pour half of the brownie batter into the baking dish, layer with Oreos, then top with remaining batter. Bake for 40-50 minutes or as directed on the back of the box.

Peaches and hate

Oh how I despise peaches, the smell, the taste, the texture, the sound, the look, everything. I HATE PEACHES. However a good friend of mine loves the damn things and I wanted to do something special for her. So today's recipe is a peach- blueberry crumble. I also happen to dislike blueberries, so I did not taste a bite of this crumble. Apparently it came out really good because almost everyone had seconds.

Also my camera was being a jerk during the peachy death march of hate, so I have no pictures.

Peach and Blueberry Crumbles

Ingredients
For the fruit:

* 2 pounds firm, ripe peaches (6 to 8 peaches)
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
* 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
* 1/2 cup granulated sugar
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1 cup fresh blueberries (1/2 pint)

For the crumble:

* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/3 cup granulated sugar
* 1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
* 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 pound (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Immerse the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until their skins peel off easily. Place them immediately in cold water. Peel the peaches, slice them into thick wedges, and place them in a large bowl. Peeling peaches is kind of like scrubbing a floor with a toothbrush. Horrible. I spent FOREVER trying to figure out how to peel the damn things, and finally just kind of burrowed butter knife into them and cut hacked the skins off. It sucked. My hands were sticky and gross.

Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the blueberries. This part was easy. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes.

For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix on low speed until the butter is finely mixed in.

Spoon the mixture into ramekins or custard cups or some sort of big pan. I used three ramicans and a glass pie pan.

Sprinkle butter mixture evenly over the fruit. Place the ramekins or whatever on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the tops are browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature. Apparently it is great over vanilla ice cream.

If you want to make these early, store the unbaked crumbles in the refrigerator and bake before dinner.

Double Post, Chocolate Peanut Butter Bars

Since Thingamajigs are hard to find, I decided to try to make some of my own. Sometimes I'm just cooking brilliant. Luckily for you this is one of those times.

This is probably the best desserts I've made in a very, very long time, and you don't even have to bake it! I must have great will power because there is still over half a pan of these. I altered the recipe a bit, and by altered I mean improved.

Ingredients



I bought graham crackers, and crushed them instead of buying crumbs (I don'teven know if they sell crumbs by themselves.



I removed them from their package and put them in a gallon sized bag. Be sure to leave the bag "open." You want the bag to be able to "breathe" to prevent rips. Simply fold the top over and grab a hammer or smooth meat mallet. Proceed to crush the graham crackers until they look like the above picture. There is a video of me doing this above the picture.



In a medium bowl, mix together the butter or margarine, graham cracker crumbs, confectioners' sugar, and 1 cup peanut butter until well blended. It will look and smell AMAZING!



Press evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 inch pan.




Sprinkle Coco Krispies over peanut butter mixture evenly. Do not press into mixture. I totally pressed them and it was a bad idea. Regular Rice Krispies may work if you cannot find Cocoa Krispies.



In a microwave-safe container, combine half the chocolate chips, peanut butter, and milk/cream. Microwave for thirty seconds then stir. Microwave for another 30 seconds then stir. If the mixture still seems a bit lumpy microwave for another thirty seconds. Pour the mixture over the crust then repeat the process. Make sure the chocolate mixture is spread evenly.

The Original recipe did not yield enough chocolate for me, so this was my way of fixing that. It tastes way better too.



Refrigerate for at least an hour, and then enjoy.

I LOVE these. I am so making them for my birthday this year. I think this is the best recipe I've posted, I hope you enjoy them as much as I have :)

Peanut Butter Bars I (From now on the titles will be hyperlinks to the original recipe. For whatever reason blogger doesn't blue/underline hyperlinks)
Ingredients
• 1 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs (a regular sleeve of graham crackers)
• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 3 cups Coco Krispies (optional)
• 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup milk or cream
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
Directions
1. In a medium bowl, mix together the butter or margarine, graham cracker crumbs, confectioners' sugar, and 1 cup peanut butter until well blended. Press evenly into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13 inch pan.
2. Sprinkle Coco Krispies over peanut butter mixture evenly.
3. In a microwave-safe container, combine half the chocolate chips, peanut butter, and milk/cream. Microwave for thirty seconds then stir. Microwave for another 30 seconds then stir. If the mixture still seems a bit lumpy microwave for another thirty seconds. Pour the mixture over the crust then repeat the process. Make sure the chocolate mixture is spread evenly. Refrigerate for at least one hour before cutting into squares.

Double post, Bee's Favorite: Thingamajig

For a good portion of my life I believed the Reeses were the greatest candy in the world. Chocolate and peanut butter is one of my favorite combos ever. Another is chocolate and crisped rice.

It was a glorious night three or four years ago. I was living on my own sort of. My significant other and I had rented some cheesy horror movie and decided to go to the Walgreen's next door for some cheap sodas. I meandered past the candy section looking for after Halloween candy when I saw this

Chocolate, cocoa crisps, peanut butter. Love.

I bought one with low expectations. I hated Whatchamacallit's. I bit into it and a loving love-bond was formed. With love. It was amazing. Hands down the best Hershey chocolate creation I had ever tasted ever. It's kind of like a Nestle Crunch bar crossed with a Reese, but with better quality ingredients.

Sadly these chocolate bars are super hard to find (Wal-mart has them right now for a "limited time".) Very much worth a taste.

Apple crumble, whipped cream, and failure

Well I planned a totally awesome post today about apple crisp. Then I messed up, and didn't have all the right ingredients. I tried salvaging it, but it just didn't taste very good. Apple crisp is one of my favorite desserts ever, so this week I'm going to post the recipe, and talk about the parts of the recipe I didn't fail at. Which amounts to peeling apples, and making whipped cream. Sorry guys, but Bee's are only human.


Apple peeling a cutting are the worst parts of this recipe. It's not hard, just tedious. Luckily I have the apple destroyer! Available here. I love this device, it's great for cooking, making snack for kids, and people who have braces.

I made the whipped cream after the cobbler was done. I love homemade whipped cream, and it's so easy to make! Sadly I didn't get an ingredient picture, but the list is pretty small. You want to whisk/beat your whipped cream till it looks like the picture above. So good you'll want to eat it by itself!

Apple Crisp Recipe
Adapted from here
Topping:
1/2 cup (65 grams) all purpose flour
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar
1/4 cup (55 grams) light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fresh or ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons (84 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/3 cup (30 grams) old-fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup (40 grams) chopped walnuts or pecans
Filling:
2 1/2 pounds (1.2 kg) or 6 cups Granny Smith Apples or other firm, tart-tasting apple (peeled, cored, and cut into 1 inch (2.54 cm) chunks)
1 cup fresh blackberries or raspberries (optional)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 teaspoon lemon zest
3 tablespoons (40 grams) white granulated sugar
Apple Crisp: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) and place rack in the center of the oven. Butter or spray with a cooking spray, a 9 inch (23 cm) deep dish pie plate or an 8 x 8 x 2 inch (20 x 20 x 5 cm) baking dish. (Can also make 8 individual ramekins.) Set aside.
For Topping: Place all the topping ingredients (flour, sugars, spices, butter, oats and nuts) in a food processor and process until the mixture is crumbly (looks like coarse meal) and there are no large pieces of butter visible. (This can also be done with two knives or your fingertips.) Set aside while you prepare the filling.
For Filling: Place the apple chunks in a large bowl, along with the berries (if using) and lemon zest. Toss with the lemon juice and sugar. Transfer to your prepared baking dish Spread the topping evenly over the apples.
Bake for approximately 30-40 minutes (20 - 25 minutes for individual ramekins) or until bubbly, and the topping is golden brown. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 30 minutes before serving.
Serve with softly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Refrigerate leftovers and reheat before serving.
Makes 4 servings.

Basic Whipped Cream Recipe:
Adapted from here. Lots of good variations on their website.
enough for at least 8 dessert servings
Ingredients:
• 1 pint heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Preparation:
1. Mix the liquid ingredients in a bowl. Mix any additional dry ingredients with the powdered sugar then mix the dry ingredient mixture with the liquid ingredients.
2. Whip the mixture with an electric hand mixer until raised peaks form in it and hold their shape. It should take about four minutes (or much longer if using a manual hand mixer or whisk).
3. Serve over your dessert and enjoy!

The Bee's Favorites: Limonata

So once a month I'll do a segment called "The Bee's Favorites." In these segments I'll talk about a food/drink product that I enjoy but don't (usually) cook with. Today I'm going to talk about Limonata. Limonata has always been my favorite soda. It is made by San Pellegrino and is generally rather expensive. When I first had one, they looked like this:


Now they have adopted a new look for organic marketing. I'm not a fan, but luckily they still taste awesome!


A Limonata is a sour/bitter lemon flavored soda. They taste kind of like carbonated lemon juice, but sweet. Usually they sell for about $5-$7 for a six pack. They are very worth it. Sometimes places like Whole Foods sell singles if you want to try one, and not spend a whole lot. If you enjoy lemon, and soda that doesn't give you cavities, I'd highly recommend Limonata. Either way, Limonata is The Bee's Favorite of the Week.

Zozobra!

The Bee was born in Santa Fe, NM. Santa Fe has the awesome tradition of having fiestas in August/September, and then burning Old Man Gloom (Zozobra). This is where to watch it tonight streaming live. Think of the movie Wicker Man except without creepy paganistic undertones or dead people. This site has a history and information about it, and I bet you could find Zozobra videos on youtube.
So what does all this have to do with cooking? Well in honor of Old Man Gloom I’m going to be baking a delicious New Mexico treat, natillas on a cinnamon tortilla.
Natillas is a Mexican flan, except unlike flan it’s delicious. I’ve never made it before so this should be interesting.



Ingredients, a fairly short list, I caution you this recipe is very sweet, next time I make it I’m probably going to use only ¼ a cup sugar for the “cooking” part.



So this is what separation of eggs looks like. Five yolks and five whites.



Beat the 5 egg yolks. Add to 1 cup of milk. Mix 1 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of sugar. The batter was surprisingly thin.



Warm 3 cups of milk, 3/4 cup sugar (or 2/3 in my case) and 2 tablespoons vanilla, add egg yolk mixture slowly and boil to thicken. This probably took twenty minutes or so. I have a video of how I was stirring since this recipe needs CONSTANT stirring, seriously. I walked away to grab my phone and it got weird on me. I used medium heat, occasionally turning it to medium high for a few minutes, then back down to medium. Natillas are lumpy so don’t be alarmed.



This is about the thickness you want, like pudding.



Before serving, whip the egg whites to a peak,



Add 1/4 cup of sugar, and mix.
Fold the Natillas. I just went ahead and folded them then put them in the fridge to cool. Yay me! On to cinnamon tortilla shells



Ingredients.



Heat a skillet pan over medium heat, either spray it down or add ½ tbsp margarine. Let it heat up/melt. I took pictures with the spray, but switched to margarine because I felt it worked better.



Add tortilla and spray/add margarine to upward side. Once melted sprinkle 1 Tbsp sugar and however much cinnamon across, and flip. There measurements are not exact, this is up to taste. I prefer things to be less sweet, so you might need more.



Add sugar and cinnamon to other side. Flip constantly or they will burn. I burned one a bit and it made me a sad little Bee.


Once both sides have a light caramel color, remove. They smell so amazingly good!



Immediately press it into a bowl with a spoon. Let cool/harden, and then cover with plastic wrap until ready to use. Sadly I did not have time to spoon my natillas into a cinnamon shell, but I plan to enjoy them tonight.
Farewell Old Man Gloom! This one’s for you 

Natillas - Sweet Custard, adapted from here
Ingredients,
1 Cup Milk
5 Egg yolks
1 cup Flour
3 cups Milk
1 cup Sugar
2 tbsp Vanilla
Beat the 5 egg yolks. Add to 1 cup of milk. Mix 1 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of sugar. Warm 3 cups of milk, 3/4 cup sugar and 2 tablespoons vanilla, add egg yolk mixture slowly and boil to thicken. Before serving, whip the egg whites to a peak, add 1/4 cup of sugar and fold the Natillas and sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg.

Cinnamon Tortilla Shells, my own original recipe
Ingredients,
1 Flour tortilla, (preferably not burrito sized like mine)
1 Tbsp of margarine, halved OR butter flavored cooking spray
2 Tbsp sugar, separated
Sprinkle of cinnamon
Heat a skillet pan over medium heat, either spray it down or add ½ tbsp margarine. Let it heat up/melt. Add tortilla and spray/add margarine to upward side. Once melted sprinkle sugar and cinnamon across, and flip. Add sugar and cinnamon to other side. Flip constantly. Once both sides have a light caramel color, remove and immediately press it into a bowl with a spoon. Let cool/harden, and then cover with plastic wrap until ready to use.

Temperamental fluffernutters, and hurt fingers

About a year or two ago I decided to make peanut butter cookies. My fiancé was out with friends and I felt like baking. He’s not a peanut butter cookie fan so I figured it would be a great time to make them. However, I had never made them before so I wasn’t aware how thick the dough can be.
While I was mixing my mixer suddenly got stuck and stopped. I was concerned so I stuck my fingers between the beaters to try and get the dough dislodged. I dislodged it and the mixer started right back up, mixing my fingers. Oh my goodness did I scream! I haven’t screamed that hard since I sprained my elbow. I pulled the cord out of the wall and tried to dislodge my fingers. I couldn’t. I grabbed my phone with my free hand and called my fiancé screaming and crying and scaring the crap out of him. He rushed home, and together we dislodged my fingers. They weren’t broken but they hurt for days. I eventually baked the peanut butter cookies and they were so not worth it.
I hadn’t been daring enough to try and bake any again, until now!
A fluffernutter is originally a sandwich where marshmallow cream is smeared on one slice of wonder bread, and creamy peanut butter is smeared on the other. Lucky for you The Bee hates sandwiches so I’ll be making cookies. Well maybe luckily.



Ingredients, I was surprised there was no flour. Peanut butter cookies are not my strong point as will be evident soon. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray two baking sheets (or one if you're lazy like me and don't want to do dishes) with cooking spray and set aside.



In a medium bowl, mix the peanut butter and sugars together until creamy and smooth. I'm not sure if this is creamy and smooth, but my mixer was on high for a long time, and I got tired of mixing. Since the original recipe didn't have picture I just guessed. However I encourage you to beat longer if you want your mixture to really have the creamy smooth look.



Add in the egg and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined. Again, not sure what well combined is, so I guessed. It looks kind of different from the other one.



Add the salt and baking soda. Stir until mixed together.



Add marshmallow cream a stir till just combined (swirled.) This deviates from the original recipe, but I hate marshmallows and didn't want a marshmallow cream center. I think that the swirling was a huge mistake as my cookies came out not awesome. I was originally going to post a different recipe, but the ingredients were literally egg, peanut butter, and marshmallow cream which sounded kinda sketchy. Next time I'd leave out this step and just make peanut butter cookies



Spoon dough into balls, about 1 tablespoon of dough for each cookie. Place the cookie dough balls on the greased baking sheets, about two inches apart.



Bake for 6-8 minutes. Remove baking sheets from the oven. Move cookies to a wire rack and cool. I didn't get a good cooling picture, but these were cooked for six minutes and came out great. I like them gooey in the center, so they might be a little raw for some. I burnt my first batch, badly, as the original recipe has them baking for 10-12 minutes.
Although I had problems with the recipe that didn't stop my I-hate-peanut-butter-cookies fiancé from gobbling up about six of them

Fluffernutter Cookies

Adapted from here

Ingredients
1 cup Creamy Peanut Butter
½ cups Brown Sugar
½ cups Granulated Sugar
1 whole Egg
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
¼ teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 cup Marshmallow Cream

Preparation Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray two baking sheets with cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, mix the peanut butter and sugars together until creamy and smooth.
3. Add in the egg and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
4. Add the salt and baking soda. Stir until mixed together
5. Add marshmallow cream a stir till just combined (swirled)
6. Spoon dough into balls, about 1 tablespoon of dough for each cookie. Place the cookie dough balls on the greased baking sheets, about two inches apart.
7. Bake for 6-8 minutes. Remove baking sheets from the oven.
8. Move cookies to a wire rack and cool.

Stay sweet and savory!
The Bee

Drunken Cupcakes

Adapted From here

These cupcakes are WASTED! So as of right now, The Bee does not own a budnt cake pan. As upsetting as it is i just can't justify spending the money, especially since I have no where to store one. Luckily I've found that most recipes can be easily modified to make delicious cupcakes. I'm also not a fan of making frosting. It is super time consuming, and messy. I'll talk about frosting another time though. These cupcakes are definitely not for kids as the glaze is not cooked. The first time i made these I must have had about six or so, and i got a little tipsy. One of my problems is not being able to wait till things cool to eat them. For these cupcakes though waiting is the way to go. That way the alcohol can seep in.


The Bee is poor so all the ingredients are store brand with the exception of the almond extract and amaretto, both of which were gifts


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F or whatever temperature the box of cake mix suggests. I figured a picture of me doing this might be a little much. So picture stuff is up here, the recipe without pictures is below.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix, eggs, instant vanilla pudding, water, oil, almond extract, and 2 tablespoons of the amaretto; blend together well. Yay for mixing!


Spoon batter into greased cupcake pan on into paper cupcake wrappers.


Distribute evenly, or in my case at least try! The brown ugly thing is from some muffins I baked earlier. The pan was still very usable, and I'm a lazy college student.


Bake in preheated oven for the amount of time listed on the back of the cake mix box. Remove cupcakes from oven. WARNING they will smell so amazing!


While they are still warm poke 5-8 holes in each cupcake with a toothpick. It's fun, the cupcakes may sink in a bit, if you want to avoid this wait till they cool. I'm not one for making things look picturesque. The only exception is when I make things for friends.


To make Amaretto Glaze: combine confectioners' sugar with the remaining 1/2 cup amaretto. Blend until smoothish. My pictures got messed up around here, so sorry! I take my own pictures, it complicates things


Spoon equal amounts of Glaze over each cupcake. For me it's a little over a spoonful a cupcake. I use a regular spoon.



You want the glaze to absorb into the cupcake, not drip over the top, so take your time, and don't use a huge spoon.


So tasty!

Makes 24 Cupcakes


Ingredients

* 1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
* 4 eggs
* 1 (5.1 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
* 2 tablespoons amaretto liqueur
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/2 cup vegetable oil
* 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
* 1/2 cup amaretto liqueur
* 1 cup sifted confectioners' sugar


Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F or whatever temperature the box of cake mix suggests
2. In a large bowl, combine cake mix, eggs, instant vanilla pudding, water, oil, almond extract, and 2 tablespoons of the amaretto; blend together well. Spoon batter into greased cupcake pan on into paper cupcake wrappers. Distribute evenly.
3. Bake in preheated oven for the amount of time listed on the back of the cake mix box. Remove cupcakes from oven. While they are still warm poke 5-8 holes in each cupcake with a toothpick. Spoon equal amounts of Glaze (see step 4) over each cupcake. For me it's a little over a spoonful a cupcake. You want the glaze to absorb into the cupcake, not drip over the top, so take your time.
4. To make Amaretto Glaze: combine confectioners' sugar with the remaining 1/2 cup amaretto. Blend until smoothish.

Cooking with The Bee

Hello, and welcome to my awesome cooking blog!
I'm the The Bee, and I plan on sharing all my amazing cooking experiences with you all!
I enjoy writing, cooking, and horror movies. My other blog explores "shock horror" and can be nsfw. I'd prefer it if people treat both blogs as separate entities as they explore different topics, and cover different aspects of my life. :)
I often will post recipes I mined from the internet. Some of these may be missing author information, so if it looks familiar please email me so I may give credit to the wonderful people who created the recipes.
Another thing I enjoy doing is modifying recipes. I will be sure to post the original with my mods in parenthesis.
I LOVE to bake, and I love sweets so many recipes will be of a cake/cookie nature. I don't have oodles of free time so posts may be a bit sporadic.

Stay sweet and savory!
The Bee