My Birthday Cupcakes

My birthday was last week.  I enjoy a special day for my birthday.  My husband usually leaves it up to me to plan and cook dinner.  I have learned, over the years, that means I will cook my birthday dinner too. 

Mr. Homegrown takes me out to dinner on my birthday, but for the family celebration where the little Beanes give me a card they made and sing happy birthday, it is just dinner as usual around here.  So, this year, I remembered that and decided to make myself a special dinner and dessert for myself.  It was yummy.

I was feeling the years creep up on my with this birthday.  I don't feel old but I am old enough to say that I have had some of the same friends for 30 years.  I had sort of gotten okay with saying that about friends.  I mean, when you grow up in and continue to live in the same town, chances are you will have some of the same peeps as you did in kindergarten.  Last weekend the years really hit me when we were on vacation in the mountains.  We were waiting to in line to go in Linville Caverns.  I was telling String Beane and Butter Beane about the last time I was at Linville Caverns.  I was around 8 or  years old.  My mom and dad took my brother and I to the caverns and I remember it as a really fun trip.  As I was telling my boys about it, I realized that it had been 30 years since that first trip.  Thirty!  That just sounds like longer ago than I should know about.

To make myself feel young again, I made a cupcake that I found online.  It was a throw back to peanuts in Coke!  I used to eat/drink peanuts in Coke while riding to the beach in the summer.  No matter how long ago that was, I feel like a little girl when I think of peanuts in Coke. 

Here is the recipe that I found.  I modified it to make it safe for my String Beane.  It was super yummy.  The frosting is the key!  It was my favorite homemade frosting ever!


Cupcakes
1 cup Coca-Cola

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter (I used Fleishmann's unsalted margarine, milk free)

1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon plus 1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a cupcake pan with paper liners and give a quick spray of cooking spray. 

In a small sauce pan, heat the coca- cola, cocoa powder, and margarine until margarine is melted.  Whisk in the sugars until dissolved.  Revome from heat and let it cool.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together.  In a small bowl, whisk  the egg until just beaten.  Stir the egg into the cooled cocoa mixture.  Add the cocoa mixture to the flour mixture.  Stir until combined. 

Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to pour the mixture into the cupcake liners.  Bake for 25 minutes or until the cake springs back when touched in the middle. 

Salted Peanut Butter Frosting
4 cups of Powdered Sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, softened (I used Fleishmann's unsalted margarine, milk free)
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
3-4 Tablespoons heavy cream (I used vanilla Almond milk)
Ground salted peanuts, for garnish

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine powdered sugar, butter, peanut butter and salt.  Mix on low speed until just combined, then switch to high speed.

Add heavy cream one tablespoon and beat until mixture is lightened and smooth.  Transfer to a piping bag or zip-top bag with the corner snipped.  Pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Garnish with ground peanuts.

These cupcakes were as good as they look in the picture.  They made me happy on my birthday!  That is what a good cupcake should do.

I am linking up with Metamorphosis Monday, Allergy Free Wednesday and these other Awesome Parties!