Day of Green, pt 2....the greener side.

For a day I didn't even think of a week ago, there was a lot of work and preparation that went into it. 

First the tots and I made little felt leprechauns... this is the surviving, one, they ripped the beards, pipes and faces off of their own. And then we baked. The tots made a Green Soda Loaf with their babysitter as I ran off to get supplies for the truly sinful part of our Saint Patrick's Day dinner, Chocolate Cupcakes with Minty Green Icing. My babysitter comes once a week so I can have some baby free time to run errands and do yoga... She brings all sorts of activities for them such as this bread recipe. 

Green Bread

4 cups all-purpose flour

4 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons oil

1 3/4 cup of milk

1 lemon

1 egg

Green food coloring (optional)

Mix milk and the juice of one lemon and set aside to rest for 5 minutes. Mix flour, sugar, soda, and salt with dough attachment in Kitchenaid.  Beat egg into milk and lemon mixture.  While the mixer is going, slowly add in milk mixture, oil, and coloring.  Let it knead in the mixer for a few minutes.  Form into two balls, sprinkle on some sugar, cut an x into the tops.  Bake for about 45 minutes at 375 degrees F, or until a knife comes out clean.

The milk and lemon mixture can be replaced with the more traditional buttermilk if you have it on hand.

For the cupcakes I used Mark Mittman's (yup, there he is again, maybe he is my own leprechaun... he keeps popping up) Chocolate Layer Cake with Vanilla Butter Cream Frosting: You will notice I do not spare the butter in my cooking and these recipes are no exception.

Chocolate Cupcakes*

• 8 tbsp softened butter (1 stick)
• 2 cups all purpose flour (or cake flour, optional)
• 3 oz unsweetened chocolate, roughly chopped
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs, seperated
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cups milk

 Preheat oven to 350 F, grease muffin tins and line with paper cups* This is a great job for little hands while you are attending the chocolate.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler ove the stove on a low heat. Stirring until nearly melted, removed bowl from heat (the chocolate will finish melting on its own). Give a brief stir making the chocolate smooth and velvety.

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. Add in one egg yoke at a time and continue beating. Add in vanilla and finally the chocolate. Combine in a separate bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to the butter mixture alternating with the milk. 

Beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks and then gently fold into the cake batter. Fill the lined tins and bake for 16-18 minutes or more depending on the size of the tins.

*This recipe made 36 mini cupcakes but will make two 9" layers (bake for 25-30 minutes).

For icing, also adapted from a  recipe in  Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything.

Minty Green Icing

Vanilla Butter Cream Frosting

• 8 tbsp softened butter (1 stick)
• 4 cups confectioner's sugar
• 4 tbsp milk (6 tbsp)
• 1 1/2 tsp mint extract (2 tsp vanilla extract)
• green food colouring (optional)

Add the extract to the milk.

Beat butter in a mixer then add sugar alternating with the milk.  Slowly one drop at a time add in food colouring until the desired colour of green.

Using a bag with a large tip, ice the cupcakes and hand out to all of your friends because you will have way to many to eat!

photos by me, there would be some of them icing but I had to help hold the bags!

thank you to our babysitter Michelle for the Soda bread recipe and my littler leprechauns for all of their hard work and taste testing.