Bee Sting Cake

I made this for a bear-themed tea party. I've been wanting to try it ever since a friend mentioned it to me, and the tea party was a perfect excuse.

Notes:

• I used cornstarch in the filling because I had it on hand. I was a little worried that it would make the filling too gloopy but it ended up being perfect. I personally think it's worth making the filling from scratch.
  

Verdict: The honey caramel topping all sunk to the bottom of my cake during baking. I removed it from the pan and the middle was very soft; I thought it was underbaked, but thankfully it was completely cooked. However, it was not structurally sound enough to split it horizontally and fill the entire cake, so we split and filled the individual slices as we cut them (which was probably better for us anyway, since it's just two of us and the cake wouldn't get soggy that way). I loved the flavor, but it was a lot of work. I would make it again if someone specifically asked for it, and probably use a different recipe with more flour so the topping is more likely to stay on top of the cake, but I probably won't go out of my way to make it again.

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RECIPE: Bee Sting Cake (Smitten Kitchen)

Honey-Lavender Scones

I was inspired to make these by a gathering I recently went to for my alternative fashion club. It was a small afternoon tea at a pink Victorian house, and the host had made scones with honey and lavender. I inadvertently bought some of the ingredients several days later and then when I went looking for recipes I realized I had everything I needed to make them. I settled on this one from Better Homes and Gardens, mainly because it was the only one I saw with reviews, and the ones that are not on their site are the same recipe anyway.

Notes:

• These are less sweet than many American style scones (there are only 2 tablespoons of honey in the entire batch) but this is OK because they are meant to be eaten with sweetened whipped cream and/or clotted cream and/or jam. Lemon curd is also really tasty on these.
• The dough was still quite sticky even after stirring everything together and kneading. I used a buttered knife to cut them, and a metal spatula to scrape them off the kneading surface and transfer them to a cookie sheet and this worked well.
• Despite having an entire tablespoon of dried lavender in them, the lavender flavor and scent is pretty subtle. If you like lavender a lot you could probably add more.
• My scones ended up measuring about 3x2 inches after baking.
• I froze some of these after baking them to eat later, and I thought the lavender flavor tasted stronger after freezing, which was interesting.

Verdict: Pretty good but could be improved a little. I want to make them slightly sweeter to match the ones I had, maybe with one more tablespoon of honey or sugar or if I had coarse sugar I would have sprinkled it on top of them after brushing with the extra cream (I believe the ones at the afternoon tea had crunchy sugar on top that had melted a bit). I would love to try these again with some tweaks.

RECIPE: Lavender-Honey Scones

Strawberry, Rose, and Honey Cupcakes

I got the idea a while back to try the flavors of strawberry and rose together when I saw a recipe for strawberry-rose jam. I don't like the texture of cooked rose petals in food though and finding edible rose petals seemed like it might be difficult, so I started looking for other ways to incorporate rose into food and decided rose water would be the easiest to find and experiment with given my inexperience cooking with this flavor. I also have an alternative fashion blog called Roses and Honey, a name inspired by songs and books created by one of my favorite bands, and was writing an article for it...when I decided why not mash all of those things together and see what happens? It sounded good, and I'm happy to report that it is in fact good.

Verdict: For cobbling the parts together from other recipes and trying a bunch of new recipes and techniques (using rose flavoring in food, piping roses, adding glitter), I'm very happy with the result. When I first made it I used less rose water than written below, and I didn't think the rose flavor was all that noticeable so I increased the amounts for the recipe below. I also did not initially put rose water in the frosting and thought it would benefit from that addition in the future, so I wrote it into the recipe. They are rather labor intensive so I don't know if I'd want to make them for a large event but I'd be excited to make these again for something like a small, fancy tea party.

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RECIPE:

Strawberry, Rose, and Honey Cupcakes

adapted from Baking Mischief (cupcakes), Sally's Baking Addiction (filling), Savory Sweet Life (frosting)
Makes 12 cupcakes

Vanilla-rose cupcakes:
6 tbsp (85g) unsalted butter, softened
7/8 cup (175g) granulated sugar
2 egg whites (80g) from large eggs
1 tsp (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
1 tsp (5 ml) rose water (optional)
1 cup (120g) sifted all-purpose flour, divided
1 tsp (5 g) baking powder
1/4 tsp (1 g) salt
10 tablespoons (5 fl oz, 148 ml) milk

Strawberry-rose filling:
1 cup (140 g) strawberries, fresh or frozen, chopped
1/4 cup (100g) granulated sugar
1 tbsp (8g) cornstarch mixed with 1 tsp warm water
1/2 tbsp (7 ml) rose water

Buttercream frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks, 225g) salted butter, softened
4 cups (440 g) sifted powdered sugar
1 tbsp (15 ml) pure vanilla extract
1 tsp (5 ml) rose water
2 drops red food coloring
2-4 tbsp (30-60 ml) heavy cream, half-and-half, or milk

Decoration:
2 tbsp (30 ml) honey, the more local to you the better
Edible gold or pink glitter (optional)

Prepare cupcakes: Preheat oven to 375°F. Insert a paper liner into each cup of a 12-cup cupcake pan. Cream butter and sugar together with an electric mixer until lightened in color and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in egg whites, then vanilla extract and rose water. Mix in half of the flour, baking powder, and salt on low speed until just incorporated, then add milk and mix on low speed again until incorporated. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix on medium speed until smooth. Scoop batter into lined baking cups, filling each one to just under 2/3 full. Place pan on middle oven rack and bake for 18-20 minutes. They are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or only with dry crumbs. When cool enough to handle, move cupcakes to a rack to cool to room temperature. While they cool, prepare filling and frosting.

Prepare filling: Heat strawberries in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until strawberries are thawed (if frozen) and have released liquid. Add sugar and cornstarch mixture to the pan, and cook for several more minutes, stirring constantly. When cornstarch has activated and mixture has thickened considerably (this could take up to 5 minutes), stir in rose water, then remove from heat. Let cool to room temperature while you prepare frosting.

Prepare frosting: Using an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Mix in 3 cups of powdered sugar in several additions on low speed (so it doesn’t fly everywhere) until well incorporated. It will look clumpy but this is normal. Add vanilla, rose water, food coloring, and 2 tbsp of cream, and beat until smooth. Add remaining 1 cup of powdered sugar and beat until completely incorporated and smooth. If frosting is too stiff, add more cream a little at a time until it is still thick but able to be piped.

Assembly: Using a grapefruit spoon or paring knife, cut a cylinder or cone shaped core out of the center of each cupcake, being careful to keep it intact and not go all the way through to the bottom. Fill the spaces with about ½-1 tbsp of the strawberry-rose filling and replace the core (you might have to cut some of the cake off the bottom of the core so the filling doesn’t squish out). Load the frosting into a piping bag fitted with a large size petal piping tip (#104). Pipe a rose onto the top of each cupcake. Drizzle honey in a thin stream onto the top of each cupcake; it will bead on the surface after it falls. I find this is easiest to do if you put the honey in a bowl or other container, dip a spoon into it then hold it above the bowl, and once the initial large blob of honey falls from the spoon, move the stream over the group of cupcakes. If using edible glitter, dip a small dry paintbrush into the container of glitter, hold about 4-6 inches above the cupcakes, and gently tap on the handle of the brush to scatter the glitter onto the cupcakes.

Store covered in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Extra filling can be refrigerated or frozen. Extra frosting can be refrigerated.

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Notes:

• Supposedly rose water is similar in strength to vanilla extract. I feel like I was conservative with the rose flavor since I am not experienced with adding it to food and it's easy to overdo; if you really like the flavor of rose, use a little more.
• You might be able to find rose water at your regular grocery store, but if not, try an Indian or Middle Eastern market. Some Asian markets also carry it. Keep in mind that rose water and rose extract are very different; rose extract is much more concentrated. If you can only find rose extract, use it sparingly (drops of it is probably enough). Rose liqueur could probably also be substituted in equal amounts as rose water if it's all you can find; Vom Fass sells a really tasty one.
• Use the best quality fruit you can find. Frozen strawberries can be used since they're being cooked, and often have better flavor than fresh ones most of the year where I live. I used frozen strawberries that I picked the previous summer.
• This Rose Cupcake Piping Technique Tutorial from CakesbyLynz was really helpful for learning to pipe roses on cupcakes.
• This is the petal tip I used for piping (Wilton #104).
• Warning: I have calculated weights/metric volumes of ingredients but have not tested this recipe using the weights.