9 amazing cupcake recipes from the best bakeries
Magnolia Bakery: Red velvet cupcakes
Few bakeries have captured the worldwide spotlight like New York City's Magnolia Bakery. The sweet shop opened its doors in 1996 and lines regularly spill out the front door and around the corner at Magnolia's original West Village location. Skip the queue and try your hand at the famed red velvet cupcakes at home.
Get the recipe for Magnolia Bakery's Red Velvet Cupcakes
Recipe courtesy of Magnolia Bakery.
Blackbird Bakery: Gluten-free young-coconut cupcakes
Okay, so technically Karen Morgan's Blackbird Bakery isn't really a bakery. This gluten-free guru headed her online bake shop until just last year. Morgan developed gluten-free sweets that rival all other sweets in deliciousness. Last year, she re-envisioned Blackbird Bakery and closed up shop. Luckily, you can still make the treats at home thanks to her book, Blackbird Bakery Gluten-Free.
Get the recipe for Gluten-free young coconut cupcakes
Recipe courtesy of Blackbird Bakery Gluten-Free (Chronicle Books, 2010).
Grand Central Bakery: Jammers
Seattle and Portland's Grand Central Bakery has been a local favorite since 1972. The bakery is known for its tender buttermilk biscuits and flaky pastries. Don't worry—you don't have to be in America to taste Grand Central's tasty treats. The company released a book, The Grand Central Baking Book, filled will all of their must-try recipes.
Get the recipe for Grand Central Bakery Jammers
Recipe courtesy of "The Grand Central Baking Book" (Ten Speed Press, 2009).
One Girl Cookies: Espresso caramel squares with white & dark chocolate swirl
Located in Brooklyn, One Girl Cookies has become famous for its tiny yet flavour-packed cookies and other confections. These bar cookies, called "gourmet Twix" by the bakery's owners, are the perfect salty-sweet-buttery combination with a nice kick from espresso powder.
Get the recipe for One Girl Cookie's Espresso Caramel Squares with White & Dark Chocolate Swirl
Courtesy of One Girl Cookies by Dawn Casale & David Crofton (The Crown Publishing Group; 2012)
One Girl Cookies: Banana whoopie pies with Dulce de Leche filling
Also from One Girl Cookies, Here's a new spin on the old fashioned yet super-trendy whoopie pie. Sweet dulce de leche frosting is sandwiched between two soft banana cakes.
Get the recipe for One Girl Cookie's Banana Whoopie Pies with Dulce de Leche Filling
Courtesy of One Girl Cookies by Dawn Casale & David Crofton (The Crown Publishing Group; 2012)
Back in the Day Bakery: Pink chocolate sno balls
From Savannah, Georgia's Back in the Day Bakery, these soft, marshmallow- and coconut-covered treats are even better than the packaged version you may remember.
Get the recipe for Back in the Day Bakery's Pink chocolate sno balls
Excerpted from The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook by Cheryl Day & Griffith Day (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2011. Photographs by Squire Fox.
Baked: Mississippi Mud Pie
You may have heard about Brooklyn's Baked bakery on the Martha Stewart Show, the Today Show, the Food Network, or if you watched Baked pastry chef Eric Wolitzky compete on Bravo's Top Chef: Just Desserts. The bakery specialises in upgraded-but-classic American classics, and — trust us — lives up to the hype.
Get the recipe for Mississippi Mud Pie from Baked
Recipe courtesy of Baked Explorations (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2010).
Back in the Day Bakery: Summer fruit trifle
Vanilla custard, liquor-soaked tea cakes, whipped cream and fruit are layered together for a traditional English dessert. Make it even more homey by serving the dessert in individual jars (or one big punchbowl).
Get the recipe for Back in the Day Bakery's Summer Fruit Trifle
Excerpted from The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook by Cheryl Day & Griffith Day (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2011. Photographs by Squire Fox.
Flour: Sticky, sticky buns
Joanne Chang's famed bakery, Flour, has three locations throughout Bean Town in Boston and perhaps the most famed of her offerings are the Sticky, Sticky Buns. The brioche-based bun is rolled with cinnamon, pecans and sugar, then baked in a "goo" of heavy cream, brown sugar and honey. The buns are so good, Food Network's Bobby Flay challenged Chang to a sticky bun Throwdown ... and lost.
Get the recipe for Flour's Sticky, Sticky Buns
Recipe courtesy of Flour: Spectacular Recipes from Boston's Flour Bakery and Cafe (Chronicle Books, 2010).
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