Slider Cupcakes(!)
Verdict: Success
(Most Definitely) Neighbor-worthy
As I had mentioned in my last post, I had a private event that I was invited to provide some of my treats for last week. I ended up having a ball searching for something fun that I would successfully "WOW" a group with. I found one and boy did I ever. It was easily the most time consuming, effort-heavy recipe I have ever stolen and was 100% worth it as they came out great and had the most impressive presentation of any dessert I've ever made by a mile. (Seriously, look at this pic of them plated.)
I scoured the internet, my cook books, my stockpiled magazines and newspaper clippings (not like on 'Hoarders', just a nice and OCDy organized and lined-up collection in my cupboard) and even bought some new baking cook books for something that would stand out and impress. I found an Andre the Giant (RIP) sized handful of cupcake recipes that I am still dying to try but settled on two that I would make. The first I selected was the following recipe for Slider Cupcakes that are a baked creation made to look (alarmingly) like little burgers.
*This one takes time (like 4-5 hours total).
(Maybe "gotta get")Tools:
1 1/2" round cutter
scissors
small (24) cupcake pan and (72) liners
toothpicks
brush
Ingredients:
Cupcakes/"buns":
2 1/3 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter at room temperature (I USED REAL BUTTER THIS TIME!)
1 1/12 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cups milk
Brownies/"burgers":
Use a box mix (requires eggs and veggie oil)
"Cheese":
60 orange juicy fruit candies I have no idea what that means so I assumed Starburst.
"Ketchup":
"Lettuce":
1 1/2 cup flaked coconut
2 tablespoons honey
water
sesame seeds
Pre-heat oven to 350° and line a mini-cupcake tray with liners.
Night One (IT'S A BITCH): Unwrap your Starburst and lie them (10 at a time) on a microwavable plate sprayed with a vegetable spray (like PAM). Nuke 'em for 10 seconds and flatten them one by one with the bottom of anything flat you can find. Cut the flattened out pieces into 1 1/2 to 2"squares with scissors and lie them out on parchment paper. Make 60. Next, roll out your Fruit Roll-Ups and cut out oblong or roundish pieces that are a little smaller than the "cheese". Make about 60.
In a bowl, add flour, baking powder and salt and mix it up. In another bowl, beat the butter with a hand mixer set at Medium speed until smooth and slowly add sugar a little at a time beating well between each pour. Keep going for a couple of minutes and then add the eggs, on at a time. Beat in vanilla. Lower speed to Low and add some of the flour followed by half the milk, more flour, rest of milk and rest of flour (so, flour, milk, flour, milk, flour). Beat until blended. It will make a kinda-thick batter. Fill your cupcake lines 2/3rds full with batter and bake about 18 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and remove cupcakes and set aside. Repeat pour and bake steps two more times. Cover cupcakes with foil. They will be fine the next day (as will the fruit snacks even uncovered).
Day Two: Make the brownie batter as directed on box. Pour into a greased 10x15 pan with a 1" lip. Bake as directed. Allow to cool and cut out as many rounds as you can. I got about 54.
Throw your coconut in a bowl and add the food coloring and mix up (don't overdo it, make it the color of real lettuce) and set aside.
Cut your yellow cupcakes in half and add a dab of frosting to both sides of a brownie round. Place on bottom "bun" and top the "burger" with a slice of "cheese" so the frosting dab holds it in place. The "ketchup" is pretty sticky, so no need for frosting on the bottom-just add it on top of the cheese. Dab some frosting on top of the "ketchup" and add a pinch of "lettuce".
In a small bowl, combine a couple of tablespoons of water and 2 tablespoons of honey and mix. Add one last dab of frosting to the bottom of the remaining "bun" and, using a brush, gloss the top "bun" with the wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Place that upon your lettuce and thrown a toothpick through the layers and plate.
Notes:
- This treat took SO long to make and yielded about 54 AMAZING "sliders". It was SO worth it as they were beautiful and tasted great.
- I had to order all orange Starburst online. They took a few days to arrive but an hour to unwrap!
- *Fruit by the Foot only comes in obnoxious, super swirly colors/flavors ('cause kids must need something flashy to catch their attention or they won't beg mom to buy them). Needless to say, I couldn't use them for the "ketchup". As a solution I went for Fruit Roll-Ups. It worked but, thanks to marketing geniuses, I had to side-step the swirly kinds they offer and visit multiple stores to find plain Strawberry. I found them but they had shapes and faces and wing-dings and shit on them. So I had to cut around the symbols.
- I ended up with extra cupcakes as I was at the mercy of the number of brownie rounds I could make. It works perfectly if you screw up cutting them up.
I've never been more proud of my(apron)self. I did not make this up but I did make it great!
Do you have suggestions of something fun you want me to try to make? Challenges? These kinds of treats are referred to as "tasty fakes" in 'The Simpsons" universe. Send 'em to me: theManicCheater@gmail.com.
And PLEASE, send me some comments. I'd love to start getting more from you. I'm getting great traffic but want more and comments help drive it. Thanks so much! -Mark Patrick
