And for your viewing pleasure…..(well maybe) – Check out this video… do you like it? Is it boring? Would love to get some feedback.  thx….wt

See what happens as soon as you say the word diet? When it was just me eating lots of protein and not a lot of bread, things were pretty good. But then I wrote that damn diet post, and my brain wrecked rebellious, emotional upheaval. Well that and our pooch died.  All I could think of was baking. Then I thought, just because I make yummy things, I don’t have to eat it all. Yeah right.

Monday and 7 lemon cupcakes later (that does include Sunday btw), I thought, who are we kidding? Of course you are going to eat them. So don’t go playing that self torture tango. So I’m on the Uncle Buck plan. 4 cupcakes on Sunday, 3 cupcakes on Monday, 3 cupcakes on Tuesday, today I’ve only had a 1/2  1 and it’s practically noon…. I gave 7 away and I’ve got 2 and 1/2 left in the fridge for O. Alice (remember my teen incognito)  hasn’t devoured them like she did the espresso ones. She’s my coffee lover.

I could also blame it in on Pinterest which is my new and I think many millions of other women’s and 6 men’s new addiction. There are so many lovely, tantalizing, inspiring photos that often take you directly to a recipe. This was a cake recipe from Alwayswithbutter.com. I followed the recipe except I did whip the whites. I can’t have 5 egg whites pooled together without beating them till they are stiff… chuckle… or at least forming soft peaks.

Please note, I did also make use of one very large bag of kale this weekend. German people buy this leafy green in a quantity that could feed 25 people. That post will of course come after the cupcakes because I also spent an entire day making a 3 minute video in iMovie of still shots of can you guess? Lemons, lemon zesters, poppy seeds, stiff egg whites, frosting, and a  finished product. I was simply giddy at it’s completion. Looking back though, I imagine only another 4-6% of the population being as chuffed visually and emotionally stimulated as I was.             Here is a glimpse of what my ingredients are here in Germany. Basically the same bits in different packaging.

Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting:

Cupcakes:

• 3 c all purpose flour
• 1 3/4 c sugar
• 4 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 T poppy seeds
• 2 sticks soft butter
• zest of 1 large lemon
• 1 1/4 c buttermilk
• 5 egg whites

Syrup:

• 1/3 c water
• Juice of 1 large lemon
• 1/4 c sugar

Frosting:

• zest of 1 lemon minced fine
• 8oz cream soft cream cheese
• 2 sticks soft butter
• 4-5 c powdered sugar

Directions:

Cake:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and poppy seeds in a mixing bowl. (I sifted dry ingredients and added poppy seeds). Hard to break old habits.
• Add butter, zest and 1 cup of buttermilk (reserve remaining for whites).
• Once incorporated, beat for 1-2 minutes.
• In a separate bowl whisk remaining buttermilk with whites (as I said… here, I first beat the egg whites forming soft peaks)
• Gradually add whites/buttermilk to batter and mix till combined.
• Use a 1/4 measuring cup to fill cupcake liners (use liners…  it’s sticky)
• Bake for 20-25 minutes. Make syrup while cupcakes are baking.
• Remove from oven and brush with syrup while still warm.

Syrup:

• Mix water, juice and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and continue to boil, reducing to a thick syrup. (but use your heads here- I over reduced to a very thick mouth watering tartness and had to add more sugar and water… taste it before you go brushing it all over your warm cakes.)
• Let cupcakes cool completely.

Frosting:

• Combine all ingredients in cuisinart and pulse (or like me use electric hand beater. And personally, I like to add 1 T cream. I also love putting frosting into my mouth pastry bag to decorate cupcakes.) God, do you love the strike out option!

Next post will feature our green leafy friend…