baking Archives - In the Kids' Kitchen

20+ Absolutely Gorgeous Valentine’s Day Cupcakes

January 8, 2019 3 Comments

Are you planning on making cupcakes for Valentine’s Day? This beautiful and delicious collection of 20+ Valentine’s Day Cupcakes will definitely give you some inspiration for how to treat your sweetheart this year!

20 Super Sweet Valentine’s Day Cupcakes

We’ve put together a fun collection of Valentine’s Day Cupcakes from our favorite food bloggers!

There are so many clever ideas here that are guaranteed to make your favorite people feel special!

Many of these recipes can be made by and enjoyed by kids of all ages. Don’t write off a recipe because it looks too fancy or complicated to make – you’d be surprised at how easy most of these masterpieces are to recreate!

My daughter, Miss G, made these Natural Strawberry-Vanilla Cupcakes last year for Valentine’s Day and Stacey’s cute strawberry ladybugs would make an adorable cupcake topper, too!

Have fun looking at all of these Valentine’s Day Cupcakes! If you do make any of them, we’d love to hear how they turned out in the comments below!

— Jennifer

Our Favorite Valentine’s Day Cupcake Recipes

This year we’ve added our own favorite Valentine’s Day Cupcakes to the list! Click here to try our XOXO Valentine Cupcakes:

Clockwise from top left (in image at the top of the post)

A Helicopter Mom – Hidden Heart Cupcakes

Belle of the Kitchen – Buttermilk Chocolate Cupcakes with Whipped Ganache Frosting

1 Fine Cookie – Valentines Popcorn Sundae Cupcakes

Glitter n Spice – Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes

Life Love and Sugar – Strawberry Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Frugal Mom Eh – Valentines Day Raspberry Buttercream Cupcakes (not pictured)

The Girl Who Ate Everything – Strawberry Puffcakes (not pictured)

Clockwise from top left corner:

Your Cup of Cake – Red Velvet Cupcakes with White Chocolate Mousse

I Heart Naptime – Pink Velvet Cupcakes

The Cake Blog – DIY Love Bug Cupcakes

Jenn’s Blah Blah Blog – Red Hot Cinnamon Kiss Cupcakes (not pictured)

Tattooed Martha – Pink Champagne Cupcakes with Champagne Frosting (not pictured)

My Cake Decorating – Fondant Topped Valentines Day Cupcakes (not pictured)

Your Cup of Cake – Pink Confetti Cupcakes (not pictured)

Cincy Shopper – Valentine Raspberry Cream Filled Cupcakes (not pictured)

Inside Bru Crew Life – Raspberry Cheesecake Chocolate Cupcakes (not pictured)

Scattered Thought of a Crafty Mom – Heart-Shaped Cupcakes (not pictured)

Lemon Sugar – Marachino Cherry Cupcakes (not pictured)

Below image, left to right:

Mountain View Vineyard – Chocolate Red Wine Cupcakes with Red Wine Frosting

Sprinkle Bakes – Neapolitan Bonbon Cupcakes

Are you in the mood for cupcakes now? Which recipe do you think you’ll be trying this Valentine’s Day?

For more delicious Valentine’s Day treats to make with kids, check out:

5-Minute Pink Peppermint Fluff

Strawberry Cake Mix Cookies

Healthy Baked Avocado Fries

November 6, 2016 18 Comments

French fries are almost universally a hit with kids. But let’s face it, they’re not exactly the healthiest food option. That’s why we love these Baked Avocado Fries as a more nutritious alternative to a junk food favorite!

Why avocados?

Avocados are one of nature’s superfoods! They contain almost 20 vitamins and minerals in every serving — including those awesome B-vitamins that provide energy and an immunity-boost. Avocados are also high in good fats, fiber, and calories, all of which help you feel full longer. (Source) Avocados are also highly recommended by paediatricians to help get healthy fats into young children or those that are at a risk for being underweight. They are a great snack after a busy day of running around or playing in the backyard and there are so many ways to enjoy them – and first up is our crunchy avocado fries recipe!

Crispy on the outside, rich and creamy on the inside — these avocado fries are a delight to the taste buds! Plus, your kids will have a blast helping you make these by dipping and battering the slices… and of course chowing down afterwards!

You can easily double or triple this avocado fries recipe for a crowd, but I’m not really a fan of prepping them ahead of time. Part of their allure is that crunchy coating – which just doesn’t reheat well. Luckily, this recipe takes less than 20 minutes to prepare, from pulling out the ingredients to pulling these beauties out of the oven, so they are a quick side dish you can add to just about any meal – or a fun appetizer to sneak in the veggies before the main dish is served! They’d also make a great late night snack or a movie night appetizer.

(Now, not everyone is a fan of baked avocado. My daughter loves this recipe, while I prefer my avocados raw – spread on toast, used for homemade guacamole, or just with a bit of salt and pepper. If your children don’t love this recipe, be sure to try a couple of our other delicious avocado recipes – like our Mint Chip Avocado Nice Cream recipe, perhaps? – because it may just be that they are like me and don’t like baked avocado. We also have an Avocado Pasta Salad recipe coming up, soon – so keep an eye out for that!)

My daughter loves these with a side of sriracha mayo, but they really don’t need any dip to make them more delicious – they are fries after all!

— Jennifer

Baked Avocado Fries Ingredients

2 avocados
1 egg
1 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons paprika
2 tbsp. olive oil
Pinch salt for seasoning
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice, optional for preventing the avocados from browning when baked

Tip: these avocado fries are best served immediately after baking. They do not reheat well and will brown if refrigerated.

Kitchen tools you might find useful:

How to Make Baked Avocado Fries

Preheat oven to 450°F.

While oven preheats, combine the bread crumbs, parika, and salt in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.

Cut avocados in half vertically and remove the pits. Carefully slice each avocado half vertically down to the peel. Using a large spoon, scoop the avocado slices out of their peels.

Brush each avocado slice with a beaten egg and coat in bread crumbs (repeat process for a thicker coating). You may also dip avocado slices in a bowl with the eggs, then roll them in a plate with the bread crumbs.

Place avocado slices in baking dish (or baking sheet covered with one of these versatile, non-stick silicon baking mats) and drizzle olive oil on top.

TIP: Add a sprinkle of fresh lime juice to preserve the avocado color while baking.

Bake for 12-15 minutes at 450°F or until golden brown.

Serve and enjoy with your favorite dipping sauce.

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Healthy Baked Avocado Fries

Ingredients

2 avocados
1 egg
1 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons paprika
2 tbsp. olive oil
Pinch salt for seasoning
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice, optional for preventing the avocados from browning when baked

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450°F.
While oven preheats, combine the bread crumbs, parika, and salt in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.
Cut avocados in half vertically and remove the pits. Carefully slice each avocado half vertically down to the peel. Using a large spoon, scoop the avocado slices out of their peels.
Brush each avocado slice with a beaten egg and coat in bread crumbs (repeat process for a thicker coating). You may also dip avocado slices in a bowl with the eggs, then roll them in a plate with the bread crumbs.
Place avocado slices in baking dish (or baking sheet covered with one of these versatile, non-stick silicon baking mats) and drizzle olive oil on top.
TIP: Add a sprinkle of fresh lime juice to preserve the avocado color while baking.
Bake for 12-15 minutes at 450°F or until golden brown.

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These avocado fries are a crunchy, baked appetizer with a creamy center – the perfect avocado appetizer recipe or side dish! I hope your family loves this recipe just as much as my daughter did.

You might also like these healthy snacks:

No-Bake Chewy Chocolate Energy Bites

3-Ingredient Homemade Protein Bar Recipe

BEST EVER FOOLPROOF Cake Cutting Method

January 22, 2015 5 Comments

Today, I’m bringing you a simple tip to make layer-cakes a bit easier – and it’s easy enough that I’m going to have my three year old show you how it’s done.

This is simply the best way to cut a layer cake – and it uses a surprising tool that you aren’t going to find in the kitchen, but I guarantee you have it in your house!

Now the first tip I’m going to give you comes before you need to actually cut the cakes. I always cook my cakes at 325F.

I don’t care what the recipe says, I cook cupcakes at 375F to get that perfect “domed” effect and I cook cakes at 325F to get a flat, even layer. I’ve never had a cake turn out badly using this rule of thumb. Whenever I cook a cake at 350F or 375F, I end up getting a giant dome that I just have to trim off anyways – which is fine for a single layer cake or even the top layer of a layer cake, but it’s not great for making an even layer cake.

Another reason for this lower baking temperature is because you generally want a layer cake to be a bit more dense – because if it’s too light, it can cave in under the weight of the other layers or even the frosting! Baking the cakes at a lower temperature makes them slightly denser, but most guests wouldn’t even notice! (If you want super light, crumbly cakes – like an angel food cake, stick to cupcakes or bundt cakes – or at least don’t try to make more than two layers out of a super light cake.)

Even with baking the cakes at a lower temperature to reduce the “dome effect,” bit of trimming is always necessary with a layer cake because even the slightest bump or uneven layer can cause the whole cake to go lopsided! (And after having a cake completely fall over during a party one time, I am very careful not to let that happen again!)

How to Cut a Cake with Dental Floss

You’re going to need:

8 toothpicks per layer
Dental (tooth) floss
Serrated knife

Yup, dental floss – it doesn’t matter if it’s waxed or unwaxed, but for the love of cake – be sure you don’t grab the flavored dental floss! No one wants traces of dental mint on their birthday cake. (Unless you’re serving a mint cake, then by all means – have at it!)

Use something flat to help you insert toothpicks at the same height, all around your cake. Since we did a mini layer cake, we used a large (clean) popsicle stick – about the size of a tongue depressor. A ruler would have worked just as well.

Next, loop dental floss around the cake, underneath the toothpicks.

Cross the dental floss over at the ends so that the floss around the left side of the cake is in your right hand, and the floss that loops around the right side of the cake is in your left hand (criss crossed).

Pull up to ensure that the floss is evenly against the toothpicks and then pull your hands towards your sides, straight away from the cake – like you are forming a giant triangle. At first the floss will seem to “cinch” the cake (it will pucker temporarily) but it will smoothly glide through the cake, leaving you perfect even layers.

I usually don’t need to trim this cake at all after using this method – but if for some reason you placed the toothpicks slightly unevenly, you can carefully trim off bit by bit with a serated bread knife.

If you didn’t firmly insert your toothpicks, you may just pull the toothpicks out and not actually cut the cake. You can re-try this cake cutting method by placing the toothpicks in new spots, and ensuring that they are well-inserted and not too close to the top of the cake.

After trying the dental floss cake cutting method, you’ll never try another way!

Guests in my home probably think it’s weird that I keep a box of dental floss in my baking cupboard, but those in the know will get it.

What’s your best – or weirdest – kitchen tip?

Pin this foolproof cake cutting method on Pinterest:

For some delicious cake recipes to use this dental floss cake hack with, check out our Rainbow Shopkins Cake or our Apple Spice Layer Cake recipe with Salted Caramel.