Schneckennudeln "Snickerdoodle" Comfortcakes

  Some of you might recognize the Snickerdoodle title from the famous cinnamon sugar cookie with the same name. Martha tells us in the book that the name is actually a mis-use of the German word schneckennudeln which means crinkly noodles. Crinkly noodles, snickerdoodles... you know easy mistake. It's not one my favorite cookies, but the combination of cinn and sugar reminds me of the cinnamon sugar toast my mom would make for me when I was little. For me, this toast is the definition of comfort, and can cure any blah day. I made this recipe for a Thanksgiving pot luck, and I feel they were a nice addition to the thousands of calories already being consumed.

It felt nice to be back in the kitchen and tackling the Martha Recipe with no distractions. I even took extra time to get an equal amount of batter into each cup, a step that I always regret skipping when the cakes come out of the oven. The smell of cinnamon filled up my kitchen, and I was impressed with myself for "sniffing"out when they were done baking. I mean I used the timer too, just to be sure, but I like to think my nose told me to take them out. I made 24 regular cupcakes, and 6 or so mini ones. The mini ones didn't exactly make it to the frosting round, which took place at my parent's house the next day. 

I finally caved in and made the seven-minute frosting. You know, the one I didn't want to make because I knew it would take me more than seven minutes to make. One of the reasons I decided to make it was because I knew I'd get to use my mom's Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer. (ohh yeaaaaa, no hands!) It was weird to me to be making a frosting that had absolutely no butter in it. The combination of sugar, water, and light corn syrup boiled to 230* on the stove top, then added to a billion egg whites whipped to peaks combine to make one of the best tasting frostings I've ever had. You have to keep the batter mixing until the bowl completely cools from 230* to room temp. Needless to say, my mixer would have puttered out mid mix, since as I predicted it took more than seven minutes. I noted that this frosting can not be made without the K.A. stand mixer. After I frosted each cupcake with a "kiss" of the good stuff, I dusted the tops with cinnamon and sugar to complete the look.
 

Apparently, the comfort of the cinnamon and sugar toast that my mom gave me as a child, was something she also was fond of. I knew this as she was lurking in and out of the kitchen, asking when they'd be done. Since I couldn't show up to my pot luck with 23 cupcakes (one missing from my handy cupcake carrier) I offered her the frosting. I laughed at her when she said, "one more scoop" and stuffed a more-than-heaping-mound into her mouth. All while I tilted back with a nice shot of the frosting straight from the piping bag. Good to know the comforts of cinnamon and sugar (and awesome frosting) run in the family. 














Cupcake Stats:
It made Martha 28. It made me: 24 plus 6 mini cupcakes
W.W. Points: 5

Mocha, Mocha, Moch-ahhhhh! (I'm BAACK!)

I know it's been a while, but hey... things got busy. Martha took some time off during her career, and just because she was in a jail, doesn't mean my time spent coaching soccer and planning for first graders doesn't count as a legit time off. I was pretty much locked up too. If you're a teacher, you understand.

I actually made these Mocha cupcakes back in Sept. to celebrate my co-worker and my sister-in-law's birthdays. I'm finally letting them have their spotlight. My favorite part about making these Mocha Cupcakes, was that I got to buy instant espresso powder. Every year, my family and I travel to Mexico over the New Year's holiday. We sometimes get sick of boozing all day, or just need a pick me up before hitting the discoteque-- so we get an espresso. The espresso in Mexico is tasty... and for whatever reason (they probably add tequila) it seems to have 1,000X the amount of caffeine that normal "american" espresso has. Because of this, when choosing my instant espresso powder, I reached for the one with the oh-so-familiar red, white and green flag printed on the label. Naturally I was pumped to have this special powder in my kitchen. After making a batch of the drink for myself, I was more than ready to tackle Martha's recipe.


The baking went pretty well, with a few Mindy modifications. Since I had the authentic espresso powder, I figured I could 'doctor' up some of the other ingredients that I just didn't happen to have in my fridge. Instead of the called for sour cream, I put in buttermilk. The buttermilk was on the fringe to expired, so I figured it was "sour" enough to count for sour cream. Instead of making what looks like the most delicious mocha flavored buttercream, I took a can of white frosting, and dumped a little espresso in it to make it sort-of espresso frosting. It turned out OK, but was a little runny. Speaking of runny, the batter was like water and barely filled up 22 cups. The combination of cocoa powder and the espresso made these rich and delicious, even to those who don't do coffee.(It was probably the few shots of tequila I added in with the espresso-not) Muy Bueno!

Cupcake Stats:
Martha says this recipe will make 24. It made me: 22
WW points: Yeah took a break with that too. Back on the wagon, so they say.