• Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Dessert First

a san francisco food and travel blog | all things sweet

  • About Me
    • about pastrygirl
    • faq
    • press
    • Contact Me
    • Disclosure
    • Privacy Policy
  • My Books
  • Recipes
    • Breads
    • Cakes
    • Candy
    • Chocolate
    • Cookies
    • Custards
    • Fruit
    • Ice Cream
    • Pastry
    • Tarts
  • Sweet San Francisco
    • Sweet Spots
    • SF Events
  • Travel
    • Asia
    • Europe
    • California
    • Hawaii
  • reviews and recs
    • Cookbooks
    • Chocolate
    • Tools
  • Conversions

The Construction of a Cupcake (Class)

Mar 16 by Anita 27 Comments

Vanillacaramel

Let's rewind a bit to last fall, when I was still afloat on the excitement of the Field Guide to Cookies having just been released, and honest-to-goodness actually existing in physical form, like a dream materialized. At the same time the reality was also sinking in that I had agreed to do a second book, on the intimidatingly far-ranging topic of candy, and I was going to have to really buckle down and start stocking up on bags of sugar and chocolate molds.

In the midst of this sugary maelstrom I received a call from Tante Marie's Cooking School, my alma mater. Would I be interested in teaching a class on cupcakes for the school? It would be a 3-day workshop in March, almost five months away. At that moment, five months away was like envisioning the first flowers of spring budding upon bare branches in the middle of a frozen winter: in other words, an eternity and a world away. I'd never formally taught a cooking or baking class before, but the class seemed so far off that it dampened any incipient nervousness. Surely, I thought, I'd have plenty of time to pull a class together. It would be fun – I saw it as another facet of sharing my love for pastry, just like I do on this blog.

Fast forward about three and half months, flitting by on candy-colored wings. When I looked up to take a breath from the manuscript, it was nearly February, and – yikes! March seemed a whole lot closer than before. Now dreams of cupcakes intertwined with the familiar candy phantasmagoria at night. What did I want to teach? How should I organize the class? How would I fill up the three days? What if I was a boring teacher?

Fortunately, I already had a lot of notes and recipes from all the testing I've done for this blog – joy! One of the reasons I began blogging was to keep track of my various dessert ideas and inspirations over the years. Now this blog was proving the perfect resource, not just for recipes but for remembering all the mistakes and questions that popped up as I experimented in the kitchen, from whether all-purpose or cake flour would work best, or what happened when I used silicone cupcake liners instead of paper ones, or, most importantly, what was the most delicious frosting I could come up with?

Lemonchocolate

Constructing a class on cupcakes proved to be a most worthwhile and illuminating exercise for me; I firmly believe that teaching helps you understand the material much better, and exploring the intricacies of something as simple as a cupcake actually yields a mini-encapsulation of many basic baking tenets. To wit:

– Techniques for creating butter cakes, including the importance of ingredient temperatures, how to cream butter and sugar, the necessity of sifting, how to avoid overmixing batters, and how to know when cakes are baked properly.

– Tips on creating flavor variations, including how to make infusions, how to combine flavors, and how to consider seasonality

– Methods for making filled cupcakes, and recipes for various fillings, including caramel, curd, and ganache.

– Recipes for different frostings, including buttercream (both confectioners' sugar and Swiss meringue), ganache, cream cheese, meringue, and whipped cream

– Techniques for decorating, including piping with a pastry bag, glazing, using rolled fondant, and bruleeing meringue

I'm really excited to be incorporating all of these baking pointers into my class. It's my hope that the class will serve as a primer and a springboard to encourage bakers to experiment with confidence in their own kitchens!

Of course, one of the most highly anticipated parts of any cooking class is the recipes, right? Suffice to say that for a while candy testing was mingling with cupcake in my poor overworked kitchen! Much tweaking and obsessing later, I've arrived at the following offerings for my class.

Tahitian Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Buttercream (first photo)

Deep Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache (second photo)

Summertime Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting

Chocolate Cupcakes with Fleur de Sel Caramel Filling and Candied Pecans (first photo)

Meyer Lemon Cupcakes with Lemon Curd Filling and Roasted Meringue Topping (second photo)

Almond Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling and Chocolate Buttercream (third photo)

Coffee Cupcakes with Espresso Buttercream (third photo)

Lavender Cupcakes with Honey Whipped Cream Frosting

I'm so looking forward to meeting the class and diving into the world of cupcakes! The class will be next week from March 23rd-25th. I don't know if there will be other ones scheduled afterwards, but if you are interested please do e-mail Tante Marie's and let them know what classes you are interested in seeing!

If you're interested in some other cupcakes I've played around with on this blog, check out:

Vanilla Saffron Cupcakes with Rosewater Buttercream

Vanilla Bean Fig Cupcakes with Orange Blossom Honey Frosting

Chocolate Cupcakes with Hazelnut Mousseline and Coffee Buttercream

Goji Berry Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache and Himalyan Pink Salt

Olallieberry White Tea Cupcakes

Almondcoffee

Also, this Saturday I'll be speaking about Field Guide to Cookies at the San Francisco International Chocolate Salon, a gathering of chocolate connoisseurs and aficionados. It promises to be a slice of chocolate heaven – I hope to have some yummy photos to share of the event!

Filed Under: Cakes, Chocolate, Field Guide to Cookies

Related Posts

  • Happy Birthday to Snickers
  • Field Guide to Cookies – The Blog Tour!
  • {Book Review} Dreaming of the Mediterranean
  • Two Years, Too Sweet
  • Daring Bakers Challenge: Teeny Bostini
« I'm Back! A Pastry Class at SFBI
Out of Africa – Lychee Honey Financiers »

Comments

  1. 1

    amanda says

    Mar 16 at 11:09 pm

    So, you’re posting the recipes from your class (after the class), right? RIGHT??

    Reply
  2. 2

    cakes philippine says

    Mar 17 at 12:05 am

    I love cupcakes, chocolate cake, cheese cake etc. Those cupcakes really look so yummy. Hope I can collect more recipe to baked with. I’ll be waiting for your next post.

    -krisha-

    Reply
  3. 3

    Rosa says

    Mar 17 at 12:22 am

    These cupcakes are so pretty! Delicious!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

    Reply
  4. 4

    kat says

    Mar 17 at 2:53 am

    all your students will be lucky to have you as their teacher! I wish I could take your class 🙂 have fun!

    Reply
  5. 5

    veron says

    Mar 17 at 4:59 am

    Who wouldn’t love this class! I’ll be experimenting with some lavender ones soon! I’ve been in cupcake mode for a while…they are just fun to play with.

    Reply
  6. 6

    Alex K. says

    Mar 17 at 3:27 pm

    Yummm, that looks so delicious! Great recipes and post, I’ll be sure to try it out myself sometime!

    Reply
  7. 7

    Patricia Kline says

    Mar 17 at 10:03 pm

    I’m signed up for your class so see you there! Looking forward to learning a lot and to meeting you.

    Reply
  8. 8

    snookydoodle says

    Mar 18 at 12:33 am

    wonderful cupcakes! wish I could attend the class but so far away 🙁

    Reply
  9. 9

    Asianmommy says

    Mar 18 at 10:04 am

    So nice! Wish I could try them all.

    Reply
  10. 10

    brandy says

    Mar 18 at 12:05 pm

    Oh I wish I was In San Fran. I have been looking for a baking/pastry class to take and I would LOVE to be a student for this one! Giid luck!

    Reply
  11. 11

    Maria says

    Mar 18 at 1:50 pm

    The cupcakes are super cute. You are one busy woman! We are coming to SF the last weekend in March. I am so excited. I will be at the Ferry Building on the 28th for sure! Any book signings that weekend? 🙂

    Reply
  12. 12

    heather says

    Mar 19 at 7:46 pm

    I will be in that class, i’m really looking forward to it! Haven’t baked in over a month…can’t wait to be inspired.

    Reply
  13. 13

    Ash says

    Mar 20 at 5:35 pm

    can’t wait to see the pic from the event! These cupcakes look amazing! I want in on this class!!

    Reply
  14. 14

    Elle says

    Mar 21 at 8:18 pm

    Wow, I wish I could be in that class!

    Reply
  15. 15

    kathy says

    Mar 22 at 12:27 am

    If I didn’t live on the other side of the country, I would sign up for your class. I love cupcakes, and your menu sounds wonderful! Have fun!!

    Reply
  16. 16

    RecipeGirl says

    Mar 22 at 10:08 am

    Gorgeous! Would love to participate!

    Reply
  17. 17

    Holly says

    Mar 22 at 12:58 pm

    Ack!!! Why can’t I live where you are so I could go to that class. I need that class! Good luck – I am sure you’ll be fantastic!

    Reply
  18. 18

    Baking Monster says

    Mar 23 at 6:51 pm

    That looks soo good. Everything you make looks good! I love your site so much, it’s really great!
    http://www.bakingmonster.blogspot.com/

    Reply
  19. 19

    Kirsten says

    Mar 24 at 12:29 am

    What else can I say, than “Your cupcakes are wonder-, wonder-, wonderful!” Bye (from snowy Germany) Kirsten

    Reply
  20. 20

    Dave Jones says

    Mar 24 at 7:45 am

    The cup cakes sounds gorgeous…pictures looks cool.

    Reply
  21. 21

    Coal, Crock & Cabinet says

    Mar 30 at 6:26 am

    WOWZER.
    These bad boys look delightful. I’ll have a go at some on my blog.
    THANKYOU FOR THE MUSIC!

    Reply
  22. 22

    barbara says

    Apr 2 at 11:00 pm

    I’m amazed at the gorgeous creations that come out of such a small kitchen space. I enjoyed the tour over at Jen’s

    Reply
  23. 23

    Bret says

    Apr 4 at 3:56 pm

    I wish I could have been there for the class. These look divine!

    Reply
  24. 24

    Jackie says

    Oct 25 at 1:25 pm

    Hi – I recently came across your blog and you have such wonderful ideas. But where are the recipes??? I clicked on the Recipes link on the top nav bar, but can’t really seem to find any recipes in all the posts that I’ve read so far.

    Reply
    • 25

      Anita says

      Nov 12 at 12:07 pm

      Hi Jackie,

      I’m not sure where you’re having problems finding the recipes? All my recipes are at the bottom of my posts. Currently I’m working to make all my recipes printable, so on the Recipes page sometimes the name of the recipe doesn’t show up, only the post name. But if you click on it you should be able to find the recipe at the bottom. Hope that helps!

      Reply
  25. 26

    Sara says

    Jan 27 at 2:10 pm

    Can you please send me your email?
    I tried to click the email link on your site but it takes me to install outlook and I dont have an outlook account so i wanted to email you from my other account.

    Thanks!

    Reply
    • 27

      Anita says

      Jan 27 at 3:26 pm

      Sara, if you hover your pointer over the “E-mail me” link you should see my e-mail address pop up – it’s anita[at]dessertfirstgirl[dot]com. Thanks!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating





About Me
Mentions in the Press
Want to go to pastry school?
Email me

subscribe to receive posts in your inbox

Archives

best of dessert first


The Making of Macarons (Sucre Cuit Style)

Hong Kong Eggettes (Daan Jai) for Mom


Tis the Season

A Better Brioche for World Bread Day


Consider the Humble Chocolate Chip Cookie

A Feast of Figs


Pure Dessert, Pure Inspiration

My Own Remembrance of Things Past: Dan Tats


The Slow Drip of Coffee on a Languorous Summer's Day

Still Life of Strawberry Tart

disclosure

This site uses affiliate links. Purchasing through the links will give this site commissions. We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

about pastrygirl

Anita Chu, also known as pastrygirl, is a baker, writer, and photographer with a passion for pastry. She trained at Tante Marie's Cooking School and is the author of Field Guide to Cookies, Field Guide to Candy, and Lollipop Love. Anita lives in San Francisco with her husband, baby girl, and rescue cockapoo Snickerdoodle. More about pastrygirl

my latest cookbook


My newest cookbook, Lollipop Love, is now out!

stay connected

Subscribe to new posts by email

  • home
  • my books
  • recipes
  • sweet san francisco
  • reviews
  • conversions
  • shop
  • archives
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

© 2006–2023 Anita Chu. All Rights Reserved. Design by Deluxe Designs