Valentine's Day Special: First cupcake baking for hubby!

Lemon Vanilla Cupcakes!

Didn't get a chance to propose before our marriage but who said life does't offer you a second chance? 

Here is my take on this Valentine, our very first Valentine, a day to express how much THAT someone means to you... yes, we love all of our loved ones round the clock but some days are meant to be there as a reminder of the joyous bond we share! 

Ingredients: 

1. 1/2 cup butter (room temperature) 

2. 3/4 cup sugar

3. 1/2 tea spoon vanilla essence

4. lemon zest from a large lemon

5. 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

6. 2 tsp baking powder

7. 1/4 cup milk

8. 12 cupcake liners

9. Edible pearls for decor. 

Process: 

1.Preheat the oven at 350 degrees. 

2. In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder and keep aside.

3. Beat butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla essence, lemon zest by a hand mixer. 

4. Now put half of the flour with the mix and stir gently. Add milk and then mix the remaining flour. Give it a smooth texture by mixing with a spatula or wooden spoon. 

5.Fill in the cupcake liners with 3/4 of the batter and cook them in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes. Do not forget to use a toothpick to see if the cupcakes are done or not. If toothpick comes out clean, it means the cupcakes are baked.

6. Rest and cool the cupcakes before frosting. I used vanilla frosting with red and blue food coloring. It is note the food colorings are not harmful for health. If you want to make your own icing, even that is possible. The link to make a simple vanilla frosting is: 

http://www.simplyscratch.com/2010/12/simple-vanilla-frosting.html

You can use a piping bag to frost the cupcakes. There is no rule of doing it. Just play around with the icing and cupcakes. If you want to learn how to do different kind of decors with icing, please see the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYy2uiK6T94

7. Now I finished the cupcakes off by writing with a icing gel pen and by sprinkling some edible pearls. My husband absolutely loved the surprise and it just lifted my love towards desserts one step ahead by seeing the smile on his face. 

Make someone smile today! Happy Baking! :)