Valrhona Chocolate Cherry Cupcakes

I work as a number-cruncher by day to afford my food habits, and in this career, there is nothing more than "end-of-months" to bring out the crazies in me. It's true across the board, ask your accountant friends. The only thing that can top that is the "end-of-month, end-of-QTR & end-of-year" combo, and thank the cupcake goddesses (with a small G) it only comes once a year (go figure Cecille, duh!). Anywho, during this phase of the month, I tend to become reclusive, thus I get bored, thus I turn to my kitchen, thus I bake.

Cherries are so inexpensive these days it would be a shame if I did not do anything with them! And there are the Valrhona chocolate bars in my cupboard that are just begging to be consumed (Valrhona Chocolate Bars: "We are expiring soon! Use us! Use us!"). So it was predestined that my July bat-shit crazy day(s) would be balanced by this combination, in a cupcake, of course.

Canning 1: Oven-dried Heirloom Tomatoes & Peppers in Oil

I went to the Green Market at Piedmont this morning with my friend JJ whom I have not seen since he started Grad School this year. We got there at about 8AM, just when the farmers and artisans were setting up their produce, thus we got the pick of the crops! I got some beautiful Heirloom Tomatoes, Peppers, String Beans, Okra, Round Green and Yellow Zucchinis, Goat Cheese (Coles Lake Dairy), and Olive & Ciabatta Breads (Bread Garden). At the end of our shopping, we enjoyed some Scones, Croissants and Coffee from Parish while we watched the parade of happy children and puppies.

Peppers in Oil (makes 2 8-oz jars)

1 lbs Assorted Peppers
Coarse salt
2 cloves garlic
4 sprigs fresh mint
1/4 tsp 5 blend peppercorns
1 tsp salt
Extra Virgin Olive oil to cover

Wash peppers, cut in half lengthwise and remove the ribs and seeds. Dry the peppers on a clean towel, then cut them in strips. Place them in a large bowl, sprinkle with coarse salt and let drain for 8 hours or overnight. Dry the peppers again. Add the garlic, mint, peppercorn and salt. Pack in hot stelized jars, cover completely with oil, and seal immediately. Process in a hot-water bath for 15 minutes.

Oven-dried Heirloom Tomatoes
(makes 2 8-0z jars)

2 lbs teardrop heirloom tomatoes
2 sprigs fresh basil
2 cloves garlic
Olive oil to cover

Preheat oven at 200 F. Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise, leaving them attached at the bottom end, and open them like a book. Line a baking sheet with foil and set a rack on top. Place the tomatoes on the rack, cut side up, with enough space around them for air to circulate. Sprinkle the cut side lightly with salt. Put the tomatoes in the oven, leaving the door slightly ajar so moisture can escape. The tomatoes are done when they are slightly shriveled, dry but not crispy, about 3 hours. Do not allow them to burn. When tomatoes are done, remove them from the oven, cool and pack into sterilized jar. Add 1 basil sprig and 1 clove of garlic to each jar. Pour in enough olive oil to cover the tomatoes and herbs completely, seal and store in refrigerator.

Lavender cream-filled Cupcakes with Cardamom-Citrus Cream Cheese Frosting

"When life gets a bit out of hand, it’s a cue that I have to create something beautiful in my kitchen".

When my friend Vilma asked me if we can have a "bake night", I knew something was bothering her, and of course, I said yes. Vilma just moved from Miami to Atlanta. In two months, she moved to a new city, changed jobs, sold her condo, left her dog with a friend, and left everything that’s familiar to her. Talk about life changes!

She wants to make rose cupcakes, the one’s I made for my friends Drea's & Ife’s birthdays, but my organic rose is not blooming these days. However, I have a stash of organic edible lavender from one of my ingredient hunting expeditions a couple of months ago, so I suggested that we make lavender cupcakes instead. Incidentally, my friend Ife is flying to New York for a weekend of partying, so I have Sweetpea, her beautiful 2-year old Westies for the weekend. Vilma used to own a Westies when she lived in Miami, so it’s added comfort to her to have Sweetpea bake with us that night.

We used Cheryl Porro of Cupcake Bakeshop’s recipe (the only tweaking that I did was to add 1/2 of a teaspoon of cardamom in the frosting). Cheryl always have awesome and tested recipes, she is my #1 Cupcake Diva, one of the people who inspired me to start baking.

Three hours and 2 dozen cupcakes later, Vilma, Sweetpea and I went to bed feeling much better.