Good Evening!
The kids and I have had an absolute fabulous day and it started out by making these freaking amazing cupcakes this morning! There is a new show on Food Network called Spice & Easy and the host, Janet Johnston made these Five Spice Pineapple Carrot Cupcakes and wouldn't you know it, I happened to have all the ingredients in my house, they did not even require a trip to the grocery store. I love that when that happens.
The show is super fun and as an avid home cook and successful spice-shop owner, Janet Johnston brings her bright personality and true passion for spices to Food Network.
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup crushed pineapple
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cups sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2 cups shredded carrots (about 3 to 4 medium-sized carrots)
- Frosting, recipe follows
- Crystallized ginger, as garnish
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper cupcake liners.
In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and Chinese five-spice powder.
In another large bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, crushed pineapple, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and carrots. Then slowly add the flour mixture and beat with an electric hand mixer until just combined, about 2 minutes.
Fill the cups 3/4 full with batter. Bake until the cupcakes are set, about 20 to 22 minutes. When they can be handled safely, remove them from the muffin tins and let cool completely on wire racks before frosting. Garnish with crystallized ginger.
Frosting:
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons Madagascar vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons Chinese ground ginger
- 3 cups powdered sugar
In a large bowl, add the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and ginger. Blend thee ingredients with an electric hand mixer until a creamy consistency is reached, while slowly adding the powdered sugar.
I have to tell you these cupcakes are amazing and worth every little calorie. I did make a few tweaks to the recipe due partly to ingredients on hand and made them a bit healthier....just a bit. I did not alter the recipe to much since I like to try the original recipe to see what they are really supposed to taste like and then try to lighten them up a bit. Today I used substituted Whole Wheat Pastry Flour for All-Purpose, 1/4 cup of oil and 1/4 cup of Mango Applesauce instead of the 1/2 cup of oil. For the frosting I substituted 1/3 less fat cream cheese and 1/4 a stick of butter as well as 2 cups of powdered sugar instead of three. I also ran out of my ground ginger so added 1 tsp of fresh ginger that was finely, finely minced into the frosting. Yum! I was bummed because I know I have crystallized ginger in this house somewhere but could not put my hands on it to garnish them so used walnuts instead. The ginger would have been better.
So as luck would have it I get a call in the midst of my baking extravaganza that a real estate agent would like to bring by some clients in an hour to look at the house. Yikes! I am not the neatest baker in the world and although I hate to admit it I am not that neat in general.... so I had to turn into a maniac and get the kitchen and house clean and ready to show. The kids were awesome and helped there poor Mom out and we managed to have the house spic and span and ready to sell!
I love showings, it is only a matter of time before someone falls in love with this house the way we have so I am going to keep on baking hoping that Murphy's Law prevails.
In my attempt to make it up to the kids for being a bit of a spaz I took the kid's to the Spring Fest up at the Hill Country Galleria where we did a bit of window shopping and then took Emmet to his favorite reptile store to look at the future lizards or snakes that one lucky fellow will be living with us in a few short months. As of a minute ago Emmet has now decided to go with a Crested Gecko (whew...he changes his mind daily or I should say every 15 minutes).
But before all of this transpired I have to share what I ate for breakfast. I am absolutely in love with the La Brea Whole Grain Bread topped with Ricotta Cheese, Apricot Preserves and sprinkled with Pistachios. Wow! It is so delicious.
I also had a little greek yogurt with 1/2 banana sliced, 1tbsp sliced almonds and a drizzle of honey. This was definitely a great way to start the day.
The kids and I ended up having a late lunch/dinner at Freebirds Burritos. That place is really super and I wish that there was one closer to me. I ordered the small Veggie Burrito filled with black beans, onions, bell peppers, lettuce, salsa a bit of queso fresca and gaucamole served on a spinach tortilla.
This picture is taken from my i Phone. How cool is that?
I ate half there and then the rest when I got home. This was so good.
A trip to Target was on the agenda today and both Zoe and I got new jammies. If you have not been to Target lately you have got to get there pronto because they had all sorts of cute things. I am a sweats and t-shirt kind of gal but was lured into the jammie section by Zoe and got the most comfortable little cami and crop pant set and am lounging around in them right now. I am excited to get a good night's rest and have more fun things planned for tomorrow. Cooking is one of them!
I am off for now and will check back tomorrow. Have a great rest of your evening.
Good Evening!
The kids and I have had an absolute fabulous day and it started out by making these freaking amazing cupcakes this morning! There is a new show on Food Network called Spice & Easy and the host, Janet Johnston made these Five Spice Pineapple Carrot Cupcakes and wouldn't you know it, I happened to have all the ingredients in my house, they did not even require a trip to the grocery store. I love that when that happens.
The show is super fun and as an avid home cook and successful spice-shop owner, Janet Johnston brings her bright personality and true passion for spices to Food Network.
Directions
In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and Chinese five-spice powder.
In another large bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, crushed pineapple, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract and carrots. Then slowly add the flour mixture and beat with an electric hand mixer until just combined, about 2 minutes.
Fill the cups 3/4 full with batter. Bake until the cupcakes are set, about 20 to 22 minutes. When they can be handled safely, remove them from the muffin tins and let cool completely on wire racks before frosting. Garnish with crystallized ginger.
Frosting:
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons Madagascar vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons Chinese ground ginger
- 3 cups powdered sugar
In a large bowl, add the cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and ginger. Blend thee ingredients with an electric hand mixer until a creamy consistency is reached, while slowly adding the powdered sugar.I have to tell you these cupcakes are amazing and worth every little calorie. I did make a few tweaks to the recipe due partly to ingredients on hand and made them a bit healthier....just a bit. I did not alter the recipe to much since I like to try the original recipe to see what they are really supposed to taste like and then try to lighten them up a bit. Today I used substituted Whole Wheat Pastry Flour for All-Purpose, 1/4 cup of oil and 1/4 cup of Mango Applesauce instead of the 1/2 cup of oil. For the frosting I substituted 1/3 less fat cream cheese and 1/4 a stick of butter as well as 2 cups of powdered sugar instead of three. I also ran out of my ground ginger so added 1 tsp of fresh ginger that was finely, finely minced into the frosting. Yum! I was bummed because I know I have crystallized ginger in this house somewhere but could not put my hands on it to garnish them so used walnuts instead. The ginger would have been better.
So as luck would have it I get a call in the midst of my baking extravaganza that a real estate agent would like to bring by some clients in an hour to look at the house. Yikes! I am not the neatest baker in the world and although I hate to admit it I am not that neat in general.... so I had to turn into a maniac and get the kitchen and house clean and ready to show. The kids were awesome and helped there poor Mom out and we managed to have the house spic and span and ready to sell!
I love showings, it is only a matter of time before someone falls in love with this house the way we have so I am going to keep on baking hoping that Murphy's Law prevails.
In my attempt to make it up to the kids for being a bit of a spaz I took the kid's to the Spring Fest up at the Hill Country Galleria where we did a bit of window shopping and then took Emmet to his favorite reptile store to look at the future lizards or snakes that one lucky fellow will be living with us in a few short months. As of a minute ago Emmet has now decided to go with a Crested Gecko (whew...he changes his mind daily or I should say every 15 minutes).
But before all of this transpired I have to share what I ate for breakfast. I am absolutely in love with the La Brea Whole Grain Bread topped with Ricotta Cheese, Apricot Preserves and sprinkled with Pistachios. Wow! It is so delicious.
I also had a little greek yogurt with 1/2 banana sliced, 1tbsp sliced almonds and a drizzle of honey. This was definitely a great way to start the day.
The kids and I ended up having a late lunch/dinner at Freebirds Burritos. That place is really super and I wish that there was one closer to me. I ordered the small Veggie Burrito filled with black beans, onions, bell peppers, lettuce, salsa a bit of queso fresca and gaucamole served on a spinach tortilla.
This picture is taken from my i Phone. How cool is that?