cupcakes.

i've been in a baking state of mind recently. it all started with rene's birthday. after the first batch, i decided that i needed to perfect my recipe (courtesy of alice waters). nearly the same ingredients (i used cake flour the second round), but i actually read the advice alice gives in simple food. butter was room temperature. i didn't overmix. the second cake was light and fluffy.

1-2-3-4 cake
1 cup of butter
2 cups of sugar
4 eggs (separated)
1 cup milk
3 cups cake flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt

cream butter, add sugar, then egg yolks (set whites aside), and vanilla. alternate adding flour (sifted with baking soda and salt) and milk, starting and ending with flour. in a separate bowl, whisk egg whites until stiff. stir in a third of them, then gently fold in the rest. bake for 20 minutes at 350°.

batch #1


batch #2


as for the frosting, i usually improv with butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and a little milk.

yum.