Fresh Banana Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Filling

This past January, my family took a trip to Washington, DC.  A few months prior to that, a girlfriend had been and had told me that she and her daughters went to see Georgetown Cupcakes -- you know, as in DC Cupcakes on TLC?  At the time that she told me this story, I didn't.  I'm embarrassed to admit that now...  I love cupcakes so I immediately looked the show up.  My friend was unable to get in and try any cupcakes due to the long lines.  I saw that you can order ahead and walk right in -- that's what they told Oprah or a morning show host or someone like that -- so I ordered one and a half dozen.  Did I mention that we went in January?  Why did I expect there to be a line around the building during snow and rain in January? More on that in a bit.
So we took the Metro to the closest stop at the end of a day of walking the Mall and then realized that it was one mile to the shop from the Metro stop.  Did I also mention that I had a 5 and 7 year old with me?  And that it was cold?  And that we hadn't had dinner?  We thought about grabbing a cab but we reasoned that it would be better to walk there and take a cab back so off we went.  I still have nightmares about that walk.  I had half of a left over cookie in my purse that I used to lure my children forward several times during that walk.  After what seemed like an eternity, we finally made it and walked right in -- in front of maybe 3 people -- a bit anti-climatic if you ask me.  We picked up our cupcakes and grabbed a table.  This is where you queue up the Hallelujah chorus...  Once each of us bit into our cupcakes, the journey was worth it!  They were delicious.  We ended up buying more before we left and we had to wait in line to do that. I brought some home to my girlfriends.  I couldn't bear the thought of not sharing them with the friend who had introduced me to this heavenly place.

I tell you this story because it is where I fell head over heels in love with their chocolate banana cupcake.  I mean, I want to take a trip back just to eat one.  So I figured that meant that I needed to come up with a recipe that I could make myself and I did!  I have worked on this one all year and it is ready to be shared.  Only, it's not chocolate.  I really wanted to focus on the banana!  And in this version, I added peanut butter ganache into center of the cupcake and peanut butter chips as a garnish.  You can blame it on Elvis.

I started by mashing up bananas.

I added the vanilla and eggs to the bananas because it all gets added in together.

I creamed the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Then I added in the banana mixture and combined that well.  Next was the flour mixture.  And last was the sour cream.  I filled my cupcake liners and let them bake.

After cooling, the cupcakes were ready to be filled with a ganache I made mixing peanut butter chips with cream in double boiler and letting them melt together into a smooth sauce.

Yum!

I just used a spoon to pour the filling into the holes I made using my apple corer.

These are topped with the Vanilla Bean-Cream Cheese Buttercream icing I've used before.

And then topped with a few peanut butter chips on top just because.  These take me back to that wonderful trip.  I still can't wait to visit again but until then, these always hit the spot!

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Fresh Banana Cupcakes          Printable recipe card here! 

½ cup butter, room temperature

1 ½ cup sugar

2 cups mashed bananas (about 4 medium bananas)

2 eggs, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups cake flour

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place cupcake liners in muffin pan.

Cream butter, slowly add sugar and beat until light.  Add banana, eggs and vanilla and beat well.  Mix the flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl.  Add to first mixture and blend.  Slowly add sour cream and beat until well blended.  Fill cupcake liners with ¼ cup batter each.  Bake 15-18 minutes.  Cool in pan on cooling rack.

I'm linking up!!!  Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Recipe Sharing Monday, Mouthwatering Mondays, Makin' You Crave Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Too Cute Tuesday, Tip Me Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, These Chicks Cooked, Works for Me Wednesday, Cast Party Wednesday, What I Whipped Up Wednesday, Foodie Wednesday, Whisking Wednesday, Show & Share, {Wow Me} Wednesday, Full Plate Thursday, Sweet Treats Thursday, Turning the Table Thursday, Sweet Tooth Friday, Chic & Crafty Party, I'm Lovin It, Tasty Thursday, Bake with Bizzy, Friday Favorites, Friday Flair, Foodie Friday, Sweets for a Saturday, Strut Your Stuff Saturday, Sweet Indulgences Sunday, My Inner Baker, Simply Delish

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Tina, over at Mom's Crazy Cooking, has invited me to be a part of her first Crazy Cooking Challenge.  This is a new challenge that will allow us all to find a recipe that a fellow blogger has shared with us in Blogland and give it a whirl.  All of you, our readers, will be able to read the posts and vote for your favorite!  How cool is that?  (My post #20...  just sayin')  I'm really excited to see what everyone comes up with -- our theme for this month is one of my most favorite foods ever!  Macaroni And Cheese!  YUM!

I have scoured the blogs to find the ultimate macaroni and cheese recipe and I think I found the perfect one at Ezra Pound Cake!  Macaroni and cheese is a staple at my house and it is almost always made from scratch.  The recipe I found is similar to the way I usually make it -- it starts with a roux -- but it takes it a step further and instead of serving from the stove top as I do, it includes a trip through the oven to take it over the top!  It also uses ground dry mustard which is something I typically avoid.  My husband isn't a mustard fan so I usually just skip it even though every mac&cheese recipe calls for it.  This time, I used it, and he is so glad that I did.  It's wonderful!  So is the blog that I found this recipe on, by the way.  Its author, Rebecca, is so much fun to read and has great recipes to share!

The only modification that I made to Rebecca's recipe is that I doubled the amount of pasta it called for.  And I didn't include the optional hot sauce.  I may do that next time but this time it was for my kiddos so I was nice...

I don't know about you, but anything that starts with this makes me weak in the knees.  Am I the only one?  Sorry, but a plate of extra sharp cheddar shredded to pieces thrills me!

This is a bowl of the seasoning used in the dish.  Yum!  Fresh garlic also makes me happy!

Like I said, this recipe starts with a basic roux -- butter + flour + milk + heat = thick, bubbly white sauce.

I added all of those awesome spices to the thickened white sauce and stirred them in.

And then the cheese!  Not just the cheddar above but also Monterrey Jack and Parmesan.  Sooooo good!

Once it's all mixed together and heated well, it turns into this amazing cheese sauce!  And you can see all of the gorgeous flavor in it from here. 

I mixed that awesome sauce with the cooked pasta and poured it into a buttered casserole dish.

I topped it with some extra cheese and placed it in the oven for 25 minutes.

This is it!  Don't you want to dive right in???

We did!

And did it again!

Be sure to check out the other blogs participating in this cool challenge and don't forget to vote!

Marshmallow Fondant at Frosting for the Cause

I am so excited to have a guest post over at Frosting for the Cause today!  

If you haven't yet discovered this amazing site, you should check it out.  It is the beautiful idea of Paula, the Vanilla Bean Baker, to have 365 days of guest posts this year from sugar cookie & cupcake bakers/decorators and bloggers from across Canada and the United States.  It such a treat and you can discover amazing people, tips and treats there.  


What makes if even more special, is that each guest blogger donates money to the American or Canadian Cancer Society and donates their baked goods to a women's hospice or to their local hospital or cancer care facility.  As a participant with the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life for the last 7 years, I am so excited to be a part of another avenue that raises money for this vitally important cause!  Please jump over and take a look at my post about how to make homemade marshmallow fondant.  And then read from the other contributors, too.  You'll be glad you did!

Chocolate Irish Cream Cupcakes

I know, I know, I just did a filled chocolate cupcake recipe but I have to tell you about another one... And this one, well, I don't even have words.  Just take a look at them!

I shared these with girlfriends tonight with rave reviews!

These started with my chocolate cupcake recipe that I've previously shared.  They are my favorite cupcakes to make and it's hard to imagine that these cupcakes can be made better.  But what's not better with Bailey's Irish Cream?  Or with a chocolate ganache filling?  I filled these with my cooked chocolate sauce and then saved some to drizzle over the top just for good measure!

The frosting I chose is a basic chocolate frosting recipe that I love but this time, I replaced the milk I typically use in it with Bailey's Irish Cream Liqueur.  And I am so glad that I did.  And if you make these, you will be so glad that you did, too!

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Irish Cream Chocolate Icing          Printable recipe card here! 

1 c semi sweet chocolate morsels
3/4 c butter, room temperature
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 c powdered sugar
3 tbsp Bailey's Irish Cream Liqueur

In microwave safe bowl, add chocolate chips. Heat in the microwave for 30 seconds. Remove bowl from microwave and stir the chocolate. Repeat these steps until chocolate is melted completely. Take care not to over cook. Set to the side and allow to cool but not harden.
Cream butter in mixing bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment until whipped. Add vanilla and cooled chocolate and mix thoroughly. Add sugar, one cup at a time, fully incorporating each addition into the mixture.
Slowly add the Bailey's and allow the icing to whip at medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.

I'm linking up!!!  Melt in Your Mouth Monday, Recipe Sharing Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Too Cute Tuesday, Tip Me Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, These Chicks Cooked, Works for Me Wednesday, Cast Party Wednesday, What I Whipped Up Wednesday, Foodie Wednesday, Whisking Wednesday, Show & Share, {Wow Me} Wednesday, Full Plate Thursday, Sweet Treats Thursday, Turning the Table Thursday, Sweet Tooth Friday, Chic & Crafty Party, I'm Lovin It, Tasty Thursday, Bake with Bizzy, Friday Favorites, Friday Flair, Sweets for a Saturday, Strut Your Stuff Saturday, Sweet Indulgences Sunday, My Inner Baker, Simply Delish