TEE (TEA) TIME

 The Noles play so many rivals from the South, that inspiration for new and unique cupcakes is a little hard to come by from time to time.  When the Noles played Clemson, I knew I wanted to find a special cupcake to make for the Game of the Week.  There was such anticipation and such palpable excitement, the flavor needed to be special.

I have made cupcakes with inspiration from Sour Cream Pound Cake, Angel Food Cake, and Red Velvet, but what else is a staple of the South?  SWEET TEA!  That would be great! 

I set out to find the right recipe.  My search found some that called for instant tea, some with lemon or peach, but the one I chose was one with black tea and called for steeping the tea bags in milk.  The recipe sounded simple, but flavorful.  I hoped.  Using new ingredients and baking techniques is a gamble that sometimes pays off big.

As I searched for recipes, I came across several versions of sweet tea and lemon combinations.  Not all southerners like lemon with their tea, but it is a combination of flavors that can work if done well.  During my search, I learned that a drink of sweet tea and lemonade is called an "Arnold Palmer".  Never knew that!  An Arnold Palmer-like cupcake would be good: two distinct and independent flavors coming together into one tasty treat. 

The recipes I was finding for lemon frosting were not exciting me.  Nothing seems to impress me like the Vanilla Pudding Frosting I had found a few months ago, so I wondered how that would be with a lemon twist.  Instead of french vanilla pudding, I could use lemon pudding.  Instead of vanilla flavoring, I could use lemon flavoring.  It could work!

Now, I grew up a tea drinker, but as an adult, I do not have much to do with tea, except for when I'm at family reunions and it's the only drink available.  Needless to say, I don't keep tea in the house, so I needed to pick up a box.  The trip to Publix and the sheer vastness of the choices in the tea aisle was overwhelming!  So many flavors and choices.  I just needed black tea.  Simple black tea.  That does not exist.  After 10 minutes staring at the intricately decorated and oftentimes colorful tea boxes, I landed on the Lipton Black Pearl variety.

On Friday evening, I found myself baking again.  (I'm not complaining.)  This weekend was going to be another busy one with duel football games and an 8pm kick-off.  Long day indeed.  I look forward to Fridays and see them as the time to release the stresses of the work week and ready the mind for the short, sweet weekend ahead.

I quickly discovered that this cupcake batter is thick, with the recipe forming almost a dough base to which the steeped milk and tea is added.  This would be a thick and dense cupcake.  As a twist on the recipe, not only did I steep the black tea bags in the milk, I added one bag of leaves to the batter for extra flavor.  In raw form, it's a bit grainy, but after they bake the leaves are just little pops of flavor.

After the cupcakes baked, I topped them with a drizzle of steeped milk and tea (Milk Drizzle) for extra moisture and flavor.  I let the golden beauties rest in the fridge overnight and on Saturday morning, I finished the project and topped the cupcakes with the frosting and decorations.  The fresh lemon zest and sugar crystals were not only beautiful but added an extra special touch.  Just lovely.

At tailgate, the cupcakes were a hit.  The gamble with the new recipes paid off.  They were gone long before game time.  The combination of flavors and the light frosting were a refreshing treat for the hot September Saturday.  I think this recipe is another strong one for the repertoire.

I hope my inspiration for creating new cupcakes never ceases.  When creativity is slow, I draw from the people and the experiences around me.  Their inspiration and influence is never ending. 

Angie

Now for the recipe...

Sweet Tea Cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

·         1 c. hot milk

·         6 black tea bags

·         4 eggs, room temperature

·         2 tsp. vanilla

·         3 c. cake flour

·         1 & 1/2 c. sugar

·         1 Tbsp. baking powder

·         1/2 tsp. salt

·         1 c. unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into 16 pieces

For the Milk Drizzle:

·         1/2 c. milk

·         3 black tea bags

Directions:

·         Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 

·         Line two cupcake pans with paper liners (24 total).

·         In a small bowl or large mug, steep tea bags in hot milk.  Allow the milk mixture to cool to room temperature. 

·         In a small bowl, whisk milk, eggs and vanilla until combined and set aside.

·         In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  With the mixer on low, add the butter pieces one at a time. 

·         Increase speed to medium low.  Once the butter is fully incorporated, increase speed to medium and beat until well combined.  (Batter will be thick.)

·         Add half of milk mixture and mix on low speed.  Mix until combined, then increase speed to medium high for 30 seconds.  Repeat with remaining milk mixture.

·         Fold in extra black tea leaves, if desired. (I added the leaves of 1 tea bag.)

·         Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full with the cupcake batter.

·         Bake for 18-20 mins. or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean.

·         While the cupcakes are baking, mix Milk Drizzle by heating milk and steeping tea bags.  Let cool.

·         Let cupcakes cool in pans for 5 minutes.

·         Brush tops of cupcakes with 1-2 tsp. of Milk Drizzle.

·         Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

·         Frost with Lemon Pudding Frosting.

·         Garnish with lemon zest and sugar crystals.

Makes 24 cupcakes.

Lemon Pudding Frosting

Ingredients:

·         1 & 1/2 c. heavy whipping cream

·         1 c. sugar

·         1/2 tsp. vanilla

·         1/2 tsp. lemon flavoring

·         1 c. cold milk

·         1 small box Lemon Instant Pudding

·         1/3 c. powdered sugar

·         1 tsp. salt

·         4 oz. whipped cream cheese

Directions:

·         In the bowl of a stand or electric mixer, add heavy cream, sugar, lemon flavoring and vanilla.  Mix on medium to medium-high speed until thick.

·         Place whipped cream into the refrigerator to chill as the remaining ingredients are mixed.

·         In a large bowl, whisk together milk, pudding, and powdered sugar until thick and smooth.  (You do not need to use the mixer for this.)

·         Whisk in cream cheese until fully blended.

·         Fold in whipped cream.

·         Place in the refrigerator for an hour to firm prior to use.

Frosts 24 cupcakes.

IF YOU ARE NOT HAVING FUN...WALK THE PLANK!

Aaahhhrrr!!  How much did the Pirate pay for his earrings?  A "buck an ear" (buccaneer). 

Until this year, I had not realized that there was a day set aside to honor pirates.  It's apparently a big deal world wide.  Krispy Kreme would give a free dougnut to anyone that talked like a pirate and a whole dozen if you were dressed like a priate!!  Locally, I know of two offices that celebrated with goodies and silly jokes.

My alert to the big day was when I was "commissioned" to make pirate themed cupcakes in honor of Talk Like a Pirate Day (TLPD) for one of the two offices.  My friend Julian's boss Shelley requested Red Velvet cupcakes with adult-themed pirate decorations.  With it being close to Halloween, pirate decorations should not be a problem. 

I found fun Jolly Roger flags for the top of cupcakes.  With the black and white papers and the red sprinkles, the blood red cupcakes looked amazing.  Not too over the top, but still festive.

Not realizing that my boss was planning to decorate and put out snacks for the day, I was quite pleasantly surprised when I stopped in to see her that day.  She had snacks like jerky and goldfish, wore a scull and cross bones scarf, and fired off a dozen pirate jokes to anyone who entered.  What fun!  I committed to her that I'd make some for our office next year and agreed to dress up if she would!

These cupcakes were fun to make and added to the light-hearted theme of the day.  I think it's great that there are still grown-ups who enjoy letting their hair down and creating memories at work.

Angie

COMPETING PRIORITIES

Savannah State was our second opponent this year.  It was also the second week of juggling a busy Saturday schedule, fitting in pee wee football and FSU football.  On top of the football overload, we were hosting  my Dad and Stepmother.  They were excited to come watch Mack on Saturday then head to our family reunion on Sunday.  Busy weekend, but it should be fun.

In honor of our southern opponents, I decided on Pecan Pie Cupcakes.  I found a good, new recipe for the cupcakes and went back to a frosting recipe I had tried last year.  The cupcakes had a 'filling' that was baked and then dropped into the batter.  Sounded interesting.

I mixed up and baked the cupcakes and prepared the frosting on Friday evening.  The frosting was a recipe that required a lot of stirring and cooking.  Lots of sugar, butter, and sweetness.  The frosting needed to set up overnight, so I got up early on Saturday to finish.  I must not have cooked it long enough.  It did not thicken to frosting consistency.  It was a runny, gooey mess.  A sweet mess, but a mess nonetheless.  The same problem happened last time.  I won't give up, but for the third try, I really need to do some homework.  More chemistry with this one.

The filling on the top.

The frosting cooking on the stove.

This week's tailgate was going to be the 'C Team'.  T and J were not coming.  Big Dave and Kathi were not coming.  As the day dawned, it also became clear that the weather was not going to cooperate.  Rain, rain, rain.

Mack's game was at 1pm and the Noles were set to kick off at 6pm.  I agreed to pick up Susan and take her to the tailgate and home afterwards.   I picked her up and safely delivered her, the tables and tents, and of course the cupcakes.  It had not started raining yet.  We hoped it may hold off.  We hoped.

I was on my way to Mack's game and more drama.  My car started overheating.  The temperature went up, the A/C went weak, and the MPG was dropping sitting still.  Absolutely still and the MPG was moving.  Either I had gremlins or it was overheating.

I made it to the game and made arrangements to borrow Bill's truck.  I could still make it to the tailgate for a bit.  I thought...

As I was pulling in to Mack's game, it started to rain.  As the game progressed, it would rain and stop, rain harder, then stop.  The wind was wicked.  We had to hold down the tent to keep it from blowing away.  The boys kept playing.  They did not mind the rain at all.  Mid way through the 3rd quarter, the lightening came and the game stopped.

The day was was not turning out to be a day to be outside.  With the rain and car problems, we wound up not going back to tailgate and not going to the game.  We dried off and decided to enjoy a meal out.  The Noles managed to run up the score 55 to 0, with their game being called because of lightening in the 3rd
quarter.  What a coincidence.

Some of the cupcakes were enjoyed at the tailgate, but the majority made it to the family reunion on Sunday.  None made it back home from there.  We enjoyed visiting with family members we had not seen in years and others we had never met, and paid our respects to those we've lost.  We drove the back roads of Grady and Decatur counties.  Dad had literally a drive down memory lane.

Sometimes the best laid plans do not come to pass.  You make arrangements and prepare and something more powerful than you corrects your course.  Go with the flow, take the back roads, and enjoy the ride.

Angie

Now for the recipes...

Pecan Pie Cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the Pecan Pie Filling

·         1/4 c. sugar

·         2 Tbsp. all purpose flour

·         1/3 c. light corn syrup

·         1 Tbsp. honey

·         1 egg

·         3 Tbsp. melted butter, unsalted

·         1 Tbsp. bourbon (optional)

·         1/2 tsp. vanilla

·         1/3 c. chopped pecans

For the Cupcakes:

·         1 & 1/3 c. all purpose flour

·         1 tsp. baking powder

·         1/4 tsp. salt

·         1 c. firmly packed dark brown sugar

·         1/2 c. sugar

·         1 stick unsalted butter, softened

·         2 large eggs, room temperature

·         1 tsp. vanilla

·         1/2 c. milk

Directions:

·         Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

·         Line two cupcake pans with paper liners (24 total).

For the Pecan Pie Filling:

·         In a medium bowl, mix together the liquid ingredients with a spoon.

·         Stir in sugar and flour.

·         Stir in pecans.

·         Pour into a small baking dish.

·         Bake for 15 minutes, stirring gently half way through.  The filling will be thick but still fluid.

For the cupcakes:

·         In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.

·         In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine sugars and butter together on medium-high for 2-3 minutes.

·         Add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.

·         Add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the milk in 1 addition, beating on low speed until just combined.

·         Fill cupcake liners 1/2 full with the cupcake batter.

·         Place a scoop of Pecan Pie Filling into each cupcake.

·         Bake for 18-20 mins. or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean.

·         Let cupcakes cool in pans for 5 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

·         Frost with Pecan Pie Frosting.

·         Garnish with whole or chopped pecans.

Makes 24 cupcakes.

Pecan Pie Frosting

Ingredients:

·         1 c. firmly packed dark brown sugar

·         1 c. dark corn syrup

·         1/2 c. cornstarch

·         4 egg yolks

·         1 c. heavy whipping cream

·         1/4 tsp. salt

·         4 Tbsp. butter

·         1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

·         Whisk together first six (6) ingredients in a heavy saucepan.

·         Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly.

·         Boil, whisking constantly, 1 minute or until thickened.

·         Remove pan from heat and stir in butter and vanilla, whisking until butter melts.

·         Place a sheet of plastic wrap directly on surface of mixture to prevent film from forming.

·         Chill about 3 hours or until thick.

Makes 4 cups.

THE FOX FAIRY

For one last year, the kids are in the same school.  This occurrence will never happen again, I am very sad to say.  This is the sixth year I’ve been a parent of a child at Roberts and the teachers and staff have been great!  It’s an “A” school and though each year it’s a lottery as to what teacher the kids get, I’ve been pleased each time.

One of the great things about Roberts is the parent involvement.  The PTO and volunteers add so much value and help meet so many needs of the school.  The events and opportunity to give back begin even before the school year.

I’ve volunteered each year to help in the classrooms or for school-wide events, and each year I find capacity to do a little more.  Last year I was Box Top Mom for Kennedy’s class and I coordinated the Fall Festival activities for Mack’s.  This year, I am the Box Top Mom for both kids’ class and the “Fox Fairies Coordinator”.

Two weeks before the school year started, a lengthy email came out from the PTO Hospitality Coordinator.  She sent a very comprehensive list of events and opportunities for the upcoming year.  When you see it all in one list, you can readily see how much the PTO does for the school.  I answered the call for volunteers with raising my hand (figuratively of course) to coordinate providing treats for the teachers and staff for their birthday: be a “Fox Fairy”.

In years past, the Fox Fairies have made cookies or done something special for the teachers and staff.  As I read the job description, I quickly knew I could do a variation on that “theme” with cupcakes.   It’s a way to be able to acknowledge how well thought of the teachers and staff are and it’s a way for me to be able to volunteer, since with my work commitment during the week spending time helping out in the classroom is not always possible.

My adventure in cupcakes has not been a journey that was planned, with known stops or sites to see along the way, but more of a “live in the moment” type of excursion.  My decision to get involved as the Fox Fairy has driven my adventure forward in very pivotal ways.  My commitment had me quickly thinking “How am I going to tackle this project?”, “What will I put the cupcakes in?”, “When will I make the cupcakes?”, “What have I done?”….and many more questions.  Luckily there was time to figure it all out.  These are the fun puzzles life hands you. 

For the “What will I put the cupcakes in?”, I went back to my favorite online box company (Big River Packaging) and found matching boxes and inserts that hold two cupcakes.  Several months ago, I purchased the 12-count boxes in the chocolate brown.  There were so many choices of colors like pink, red, blue, white….but the chocolate brown seemed like just the color.  Fun.  Appetizing.  Classy.

The pretty brown box was not enough though.  To complete the packaging, I would need a logo.  I have thought about one for quite a while and generally knew what I wanted.  Something fun and clean but not cutesy.  One evening, I sat down with a pencil and paper and drew a few cupcakes.  Just grey lines on a page.  No color.  Some were better than others, I’ll admit.  I’m not an artist.  However, they were what I had wanted. 

After I had a few viable choices, I scanned them in and played around with layouts, fonts, and colors in PowerPoint.  I narrowed it down to four choices.  I loved them all.  How could I decide?  Thanks to my friends and family and Facebook, I was able to get unbiased opinions.  The clear winner was…

In week #2 of the new school year, I finally received the list of teachers and staff birthdays.  I won’t lie…the list is long.  There are 103 people on the list.  Their birthdays are fairly well disbursed around the year.  I flashed back to the original question, “How am I going to tackle this project?”.  I decided that if I make cupcakes once per month and deliver to all who had birthdays that month, I can probably do it with one batch of cupcakes. 

With that resolved, my quandary was what to do with the teachers and staff who have summer birthdays.  I decided to group August with the September birthdays for the first deliveries of the year and the July with the June as the final Fox Fairy special delivery of the year.  This way, no one would miss out and the workload would be manageable.

The final touch for the special deliveries was the message.  Instead of cards or handwritten notes, I designed a sticker for the top of the boxes that would convey the sentiment.  It had been a while since I wrote a poem, but I sat down again with pen and paper and put together a few verses. 

These first cupcake deliveries would be the most: there are 26 teachers and staff with birthdays in August and September at the school.  Over the long Labor Day weekend, I was able to set aside the time to bake and package the cupcakes, along with help from my sweetie Phillip.  He was a tremendous help folding boxes and loading cupcakes.

Since I would need to make more than one batch, I chose to make two types.  I settled on Apple Pie and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, two of my more popular flavors and ones that most of the teachers and staff would surely enjoy.

On Tuesday after the long holiday weekend, I loaded up the very sturdy Dell computer box I had acquired from work and headed with the kids to school.  I dropped them off and circled back to the office.  It was just before the published time for the office to open, but luckily there were people in the front office.

As you can imagine, someone walking in with an arm load of box can draw attention.  The two ladies who had been discussing very important school business quickly asked if they could help.  I let them know that I was there to share birthday treats with 26 of their co-workers.  I gave them the list of names and birthdays and asked if they would make sure the right individual got the right box.  They were more than happy and thankful to assist. 

Operation Fox Fairy Birthday Drop #1 was a success!  Later in the day, I heard from the Hospitality Coordinator that the cupcakes were making their way to the special recipients and that smiles were abounding.  All the planning, printing, baking, and coordinating came together for the benefit of the teachers and staff.  I cannot wait until October and the next Fox Fairy delivery!

It’s clear to me every day that my children are becoming very independent people with their own experiences, friends, and life goals.  There are so many people that influence their lives from family to friends, teachers and coaches.  Being a parent is about surround them with the right people and helping them make the right choices.  It's about giving them countless opportunities and helping them to know that they can do anything they want, if they just take a chance.  It is a puzzle that comes with no instructions or picture to follow, but that parents seem to figure out.  I hope that the picture at the end is of two happy, healthy, productive individuals.

Until the next adventure...

Angie