Cupcakes

After eating all these great cupcakes in Chicago, I decided to try and make my own.. this recipe makes 4 cupcakes. Just enough for 2 people :)

Pretty good stuff..

2 T butter
1/2 c flour
1/4 c buttermilk
1/8 t baking soda
yolk of 1 large egg, room temp
1/2 t vanilla
1/4 c plus 2 T sugar
1/8 t salt

heat oven to 350 and place muffing cup liners in muffin pan.

combine buttermilk and baking soda in a small bowl, and stir to mix. Gently whisk in the egg yolk and vanilla.

Place the flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl and whisk to blend well. Add half of the buttermilk mixture. Beat on a low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Increase speed to medium and beat until the mixture is lightened and has slightly increased in volume about 45 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Pour in remaining buttermilk mixture and beat on medium speed until well blended 20 seconds.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups and bake for 20-23 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 10 min. let cupcakes cool completely. Frost with your favorite frosting or:

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting:

4 oz cold cream cheese
2 T butter
3/4 c confectioners' sugar
1 t grated orange zest
1/2 t vanilla
1 T thawed frozen OJ concentrate (I used normal OJ and it tasted fine)

Mix cream chz and butter until blended. Add sugar, orange zest, and vanilla, beat to mix. Add OJ and beat until fluffy. Use right away or cover and let stand for up to 1 hr before using.