Say Peace!~Ginger Cupcakes

This post is dedicated to Aspiring Bakers theme for November.  Wanted to take this opportunity to learn something new and hopefully interesting enough to share with others.    I settled for this although I knew this would be something I would like but the boys wouldn't fancy :)  But we deserve to act selfish at least once in awhile, don't we?

I have never tried baking with ginger although I love ginger cookies.   No, not those little men that come marching out around this time of the year but those small round ones with cracks all over them.  I love them with my coffee.  Ginger makes one warm and fuzzy, which I thought would be good at this time of the year, wintery or rainy.

So, I had a go at this one.  Verdict?   Nice, I love the spice in them.  It was soft and moist too.  Although it has 3 forms of ginger in it (ground, fresh and crystallized), I would have preferred it to be more intense, will spike up the amount of ginger powder the next time around.  The other thing that I  I would change is to cut down on the amount of sugar, it was a tad too sweet for me.

Recipe

Seen on Alpine Berry with recipe from Fine Cooking issue #64  
(Half the recipe yielded 12 cupcakes)

• 4 ounces (1 cup + 3 tbsp) sifted cake flour
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp baking powder
• 6 tbsp (3 ounces) unsalted butter, softened at room temp.
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
• 1 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1-inch cube fresh ginger, finely grated (plus any juice) (Took juice only)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350F. 
2. Sift together cake flour, ground ginger, nutmeg, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
3. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the lemon zest, grated fresh ginger, and vanilla extract and beat for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg and beat until smooth, about 1 minute. 
4. Using a rubber spatula, fold in one-third of the flour mixture. Fold in half of the sour cream. Repeat ending with the last third of the flour mixture. Fold in the chopped crystallized ginger.
5. Fill the cupcake liners approximately three-quarters full. Bake until light golden brown and cupcake springs back when lightly pressed, about 16-20 minutes. 
6. Cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack. Allow cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

• 6 ounces Philly cream cheese, softened at room temp.
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened at room temp.
• 2 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar (1/2 cup)

1. Beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. 
2. Mix in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Gradually mix in the confectioners’ sugar. 
3. Continue to beat until frosting is smooth and fluffy.
4. Frost cakes as desired.

I am submitting this post to Aspiring Bakers #13: Enjoy Cupcakes(November 2011) hosted by Min of Min's Blog.

Update : I was pleasantly surprise to see these feature on Cupcakes Take the Cake :)

Posted in: Cupcakes