Easy Cool whip frosting

Easy Cool Whip Frosting

This frosting is super easy to make and goes great with the Strawberry cupcake recipe. Its light and fluffy and doesn't overpower soft flavors. 

To start, mix instant vanilla pudding with one cup of whole milk. Let it set up in the refridgarator for 3 minutes.

Mix 2 cups of powdered sugar into the pudding.

Then add a large container of whipped cream to the mixture, fold in gently.

This may seem like a soft frosting, but it holds its shape very well. If it seems very runny try chilling it for 30 minutes.  It also makes a ton of frosting so, frost to your heart's content.

Easy Cool Whip Frosting

Ingredients

1 package of instant vanilla pudding

1 cup whole milk. 

2 cups sifted powder sugar

1 large container Cool Whip

1. Mix the vanilla pudding with milk, and whisk  till it is mixed well. Allow to chill for 3- 5 minutes

2. Mix the sifted powdered sugar into the pudding mix.

3. Fold the Cool whip gently into the pudding mix.

Strawberry Cupcakes

Strawberry Cupcakes

 So, I know it's a little late in the season for strawberry cake, but this is for a coworker's birthday. I love strawberries but I always think of them as more of an early summer thing, not a almost fall food. A trip to the local store in search of some told me the same thing. Luckily, the recipe I'm using (I got it from all recipes), called for frozen pureed strawberries; fresh just tastes better.  I also did a few other things differently.

Start by creaming the Jello mix, soft butter and sugar.

When it is fluffy add the egg yolks one at a time, Mix them in between each addition

Then alternate adding flour and milk, starting and ending with flour.

Next fold in the strawberry puree and vanilla extract till it is incorporated

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 With the egg whites in a separate bowl, mix them till they are foamy. This may take several minutes, It took about 8 on a very humid day.

Finally gently fold the egg whites in to the batter, this will help the batter be fluffy.

Place cupcake liners in the pan and fill 2/3 of the way full.

Bake on 350 for 15- 20 minutes.

Frost and decorate

They taste great. I'm really happy with how fluffy they turned out. I think the key is to make sure once the flour is added it's not mixed too much. Adding the fluffy egg whites also helped add volume. Make sure you use cupcake liners or spray the pan really well. I had a few that stuck to the pan, which just made more for my family and I.

Chocolate Decorations

Chocolate decorations and Molds

I really like the look of molded chocolate for decorating cakes and cupcakes. I feel like it gives it a really sophisticated appearance without too much work. You can also use chocolate molds to make really cute chocolate pops to give out on different holidays. 

To start out you need to choose the type of chocolate you want to use. I chose a semisweet chocolate. One thing you need to do is make sure you use chocolate that you like. I never use the candy melts because they leave a weird waxy feeling in my mouth.You will need a double boiler (I use a pot with a small metal bowl on top), chocolate molds, and something to put the chocolate in the molds. Also, make sure you have plenty of  cloths or paper towels on hand; this can get messy. I like using a squeeze bottle to put the chocolate in the molds, it's less messy that way, but if you want, you can use a spoon or a different way (let me know if you find a really good one). If you don't have chocolate molds, you can pipe the chocolate on to parchment paper in shapes and allow to cool. You also need to make sure everything you plan on using is perfectly clean. If there is any fat or water in the bowl, squeeze container, or mold, the chocolate will not be shiny and will not set up right.

To use a double boiler fill the bottom pan with about an inch of water, place the second bowl on top (if you use a metal bowl it will get very hot), and place on medium low heat. Do not let the water boil, or touch the bottom of the bowl.  Pour the chocolate chips in the bowl, and stir continuously as they melt. It may take a few minutes to happen but once it does it will happen fast. 

When the chocolate is shiny and mostly melted, pull it off the heat and continue to stir until it is fully melted. This will help to avoid burning your chocolate. I have also been able to consistently get shiny chocolate this way without tempering it. 

After the chocolate is melted, add it to your squeeze bottle if you will be using one.
Carefully spoon the chocolate into the squeeze bottle. You can try to use a funnel but I have never had success with this.  I always make a mess with this and have discovered clean up is much easier if it is done over the sink. 

Then all you have to do is fill the molds with the chocolate. You will learn with time how much you should fill it. Every now and then tap the mold on the counter to get rid of air bubbles and help the chocolate evenly distribute over the mold. 

When it's full, place the mold in the freezer. let the chocolate sit for 3-7 minutes, until they are hard. Gently loosen the chocolate, and flip out of the mold. If they break when they come out you can just melt them down and start again. Now you have made beautiful chocolate decorations. 

If you want to learn to temper chocolate try this website. There are also many places to buy chocolate molds. I like Joanne's Fabrics and Hobby Lobby. They are about 2 dollars each there, You can try online too and find a wider verity of choices.