Amy Sedaris's Vanilla Cupcakes

I tend to hoard cookbooks and recipes, so of course I have multiple cooking-related apps on my iPhone. My favorite is the Whole Foods Recipes App. I like the features, since you can search by diet (gluten-free, vegetarian, etc.) and the recipes tend to be health-conscious. Recently though, I tried a pancake recipe (not gluten-free) I found on my Epicurious app, and they turned out really well, according to those who had the pleasure of eating them. So when I needed to bake a quick batch of cupcakes for the Cupcake Cuties kit, I again went to the Epicurious app to look for a recipe.

Since these cupcakes were for somebody's birthday, which is a special occasion, I didn't worry about trying to find a gluten-free or more healthy version. I chose to make Amy Sedaris's Vanilla Cupcakes. She's the author of I Like You: Hospitality Under the InfluenceThey're basic, so I had all the ingredients on hand, and the instructions are pretty entertaining, if somewhat sketchy.

Amy Sedaris's Cupcakes

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (softened)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract (as if I'd use anything else)
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups flour (I used cake flour)
1 1/4 cups milk (I used whole milk)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees and put baking cups in cavities of cupcake/muffin pan(s).

Beat butter in mixer at medium speed until somewhat smooth. Add sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy. The recipe doesn't specify this, but I'm pretty sure the eggs, butter, and milk should be room temperature. That's true of most baking.

Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well.

Now, the recipe doesn't say to combine the flour, baking powder and salt before adding them to the butter mixture, but I did and blended them together with a whisk.

Also, the recipe doesn't instruct you to alternate adding the flour with the milk. But I did. That's how you typically make cakes using the creaming method. Once the batter is mixed, pour into pan(s).

I honestly can't remember how long I baked these for. I think it was around 20 minutes. Also, most cake/cupcakes bake at 350 degrees, but I followed the instructions and set my oven to 375. They came out fine, except some (the ones baked in the darker pans) got a little over-browned on the bottom. If I make this recipe again, I may try baking them at 350. Just to be a rebel.

So here they are in all their thoroughly cooled splendor, just waiting for some hip cupcake sleeves and buttercream icing to wear. Did you want the icing recipe too?

Basic Buttercream

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable shortening (Yeah, I know. Shortening is evil in every way. But it was for a birthday, and Crisco is trans-fat free now.)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 pound powdered sugar
2-4 tablespoons milk or water

Beat butter, shortening, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons milk/water together until combined. Gradually add sugar, so not to create a powdered snow storm in your kitchen. Mix until sugar is incorporated. Add more milk/water to thin icing as needed.

If you's like to see the finished product, check out my Cupcake Cuties review (previous post).