Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

Every year for Thanksgiving I always make Pumpkin Bread and Cornbread.  This year though, I wanted to make pumpkin cupcakes instead.  I wanted to do something a little different than typical Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing.  I decided on makes Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes with White Chocolate Buttercream and Cranberry Syrup.  I also wanted a crunchy element so I added Candied Pepitas as well.  The tartness of the cranberry sauce contrasts the sweetness of the white chocolate buttercream.  The pepitas are sweet and crunchy and full of spices.  The cake is full of pumpkin flavor and warm spices like cinnamon and cloves.  They're the perfect pumpkin treat.

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes
Makes 2 dozen cupcakes
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Ingredients

- 1 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

- 4 large eggs

- 1 cup light brown sugar

- 1 cup granulated sugar

- 2/3 cup brown rice flour

- 2/3 cup sorghum flour

- 1/3 cup white rice flour

- 1/3 cup tapioca flour

- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum

- 1 tsp baking soda

- 1 tsp baking powder

- 1 tsp salt

- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

- 1 tsp ginger

- 1/2 tsp cloves

- 1 15 ounce can of pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie mix)

Baby Cookie Tutorials: Onesies and Teddy Bears

I recently welcomed a new baby cousin into my family. As you can tell by the cookies his name is Zackery.  I wanted to make onesie and teddy bears to celebrate.  I've done tons of onesies while I was decorating for a living, and I wanted to do something different.  I once did a baby shower order that was jungle themed with monkeys and lions and elephants and I thought it would be really cute to do those images but on the onesies.  The great thing about this design is you can alter them and do any decoration you want on the onesie.  You can go to my flickr and see some variations on baby cookies like punk rock baby cookies or jungle baby shower, .  Also, you can do variations on the bears.  Last year for the holidays I made them into polar bears with scarves!

Safari Onesies and Teddy Bears

Decorating level: Medium
Concept, design, and execution by Jesika Rose

• Gluten Free Chocolate Sugar Dough Recipe
• Royal Icing Recipe
• Onesie and Teddy Bear cutters
• 6 Decorating bags, couplers, tips, and rubber bands
• Three #3 round tips
• Three #2 round tips
• Three #1 round tips 
• Toothpicks
• Gel food coloring:
• Lemon Yellow
• Sky Blue
• Orange

Peanut Butter Cookies Two Ways

A while back, Julie911 on tumblr posted a recipe for gluten free peanut butter cookies and ever since I had been wanting to try my own version of them.  These type of peanut butter cookies (I always called them fork peanut butter cookies since the impressions on the top of them are made with a fork) are so reminiscent of being a child.  They're sweet, chewy, and full of peanut butter flavor.  Peanut butter is possibly my favourite food, I eat a spoonful of it for a snack sometimes.  Needless to say, these cookies are addicting if you're a peanut butter lover.  I wanted to do something a little more special too on top of doing just plain peanut butter cookies.  I did milk chocolate filled, semisweet chocolate filled, and jelly filled (like a pb&j) versions as well.  They add a nice little surprise to the cookie and add even more flavor to the already delicious unstuffed versions of the cookie.

When I made the first batch, the plain cookies were absolutely delicious, but the filled cookies, especially the jelly one, stuck the roof of your mouth slightly.  So I developed a different recipe based off the first.  The first recipe is completely gluten, dairy, and all flour free.  The second is gluten free but uses butter and gluten free flours as well.  The recipe with flour and dairy is much better suited for stuffed the cookies.  The flour ones are delicious plain as well, but plain I definitely prefer the flour free ones.  I'll post both recipes for you to decide which ones you prefer!

Best Ever Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

Recipe adapted from Julie911
Makes about 2 1/2 dozen cookies.
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Ingredients

- 1 cup of natural, salted peanut butter (I used Nature's Promise)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp baking soda
- pinch of salt