Cupcakes for Cancer

In high school, you are required to take a writing course your senior year to prepare you for the level of writing in college.  It's just as horrible as it sounds.  But I do like the genre we are just finishing up right now, poetry.  The downside, is the portfolio of seven to ten poems along with several drafts of each poem due tomorrow.

In a fit of procrastination, I decided to bake.  Recently, I have been up to my ears in pink cupcakes for the charity I started a couple weeks ago called Cupcakes for Cancer.  So naturally, I made pink cupcakes in honor of it still being October, and Breast Cancer awareness month.  I'm going to sell them at lunch at my school and donate the money to a recently built Cancer Care Center in our area.  And I needed two more batches.  I really like this recipe because the batter is so fluffy and the end result is phenomenal!

To go with my pink theme, I only used pink cupcake liners.

And I dyed the batter pink.

I got the recipe from a page torn out a magazine that my mom had, and while I would really like to credit the source, I have no idea where its from!  But heres the recipe anyways.

Pink Cupcakes for Cancer

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of flour

1 1/2 t baking powder

1/4 t salt

1 stick of unsalted butter, softened

1 cup of granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 t vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk

Directions:

(1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line cupcake tins with liners.

(2) In a stand mixer, cream butter until soft, add sugar and cream.

(3) Add vanilla extract.

(4) In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt.

(5) Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the butter mixture.

(6) Beat until just combined.

(7) Fill liners 2/3 full and bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

When my dad found out these cupcakes were for charity and not for his dessert, he got cranky.  So, to keep him from sneaking into the freezer, I whipped up a batch of these delicious two-ingredient muffins before he came home from work.  

And, when the cupcakes came out of the oven, I was inspired my one of my portfolio pieces (about chocolate cake) to make something chocolate!  I have been dying to try one of my mom's recipes for brownies that she hasn't made lately.

Brownies made from scratch are one of my favorites because the chocolate flavor is a lot more intense than from a box mix.  So I dug up her old recipe cards and tweaked it just a tiny bit and this is the recipe I came up with!  Hopefully by the time they come out of the oven, I'll be finished with my portfolio.

Double Dark Brownies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup shortening

1/2 cup butter

2 cups sugar

8 T dark unsweetened cocoa ( I used Hershey's)

1 t salt

1 1/2 cups flour

4 eggs

2 t vanilla

1/2 T cinnamon

1 cup chocolate chips or nuts (optional)

Directions:

(1) In a large bowl, cream butter, shortening and sugar.

(2) Add in the eggs one at a time, mixing well between each addition.

(3) Add the cocoa one tablespoon at a time.

(4) Then add salt and flour while mixing on low.

(5) Finally, add the vanilla and cinnamon and nuts or chocolate chips.

(6) Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

First Post :)

With the warm scent of pink vanilla cupcakes wafting through the kitchen, I embarked on the journey of finally creating my own blog.  I had done previous research to find that all I needed was a Google account, a catchy name, and a tech-savvy dad.  After several e-mails to Heather Baird, the author of the tasteful blog called Sprinkle Bakes, I started my trip.  I originally had a name that I thought was very clever, A Spoonful of Sugar.  Cute, right?  Taken.  Along with Cinnamon Sugar, Cute Cakes, Sweet Sugar, Cinnamon Sticks, and Good Grief.  I'd almost had enough, when I was inspired by yet another blogger whom I admire,  the author of Scrumptious South Africa.  I decided to use a little word play, and tie in the Great Lakes, which I live close by.  Thus, Sweet Lakes was born.

I live in Michigan, and on on your handy Michigan map, located on your right hand, my hometown is in the furthest south and farthest west you can go.  (The bottom left, right above your wrist.)  Located in little Berrien County, St. Joseph sits on Lake Michigan.  It's a beautiful little town, and while the water isn't very sweet, the people are incredibly nice.  I don't know of any other avid food bloggers located in the area so the name, Sweet Lakes, must be somewhat unique.  And, the name is kind of growing on me.