Hey kids! I'm Jenny over at The Brunette Baker and I'm super chuffed for the opportunity to have a small walk on role here at The Cooking Actress.
It should come as no surprise to her readers, or anyone that is blessed to know her, that Kayle is truly something special. I’ve had the utmost pleasure of meeting her through the love of blogging. Although I haven't met her in person (YET), she's the sort of person you don't need to meet in the flesh to know what an amazing girl she is. She's a talented and smart girl with incredible beauty - inside and out. In fact, her heart is bigger than all the Hollywood egos put together. Needless to say, this girl is going places.
I will not be surprised to see her on the red carpet in the near future, wearing a gorgeous vintage Valentino gown donning a jewel-encrusted Balenciaga clutch as the dashing Michael, wearing Armani, escorts her while 10,000 camera flashes go wild. I’ll, of course, be in my living room, wearing my cupcake flannel pajamas and holding a bucket of fried chicken, jumping up and down, screaming, ‘OH MY GARSH! I KNOW HER! I knew her when she made those Browned Butter Brownies and Michael chugged a can of Spaghettio’s!” Then I’ll probably choke on a chicken bo-. Sorry. Tangent.
Anyway. Miss Kayle moved from The Big Apple back to Ohio. I know how tough it is moving in the same town, let alone a couple States away. I was only happy to oblige when she reached out to her blogger friends to help her while she readjusts to her surroundings.
New York City has always appealed to me. When I was 18 before heading off to university, a group of girls and I would hop the 6am bus to Port Authority almost every Saturday and explore all the amazing things the city had to offer. I was only a budding foodie back then, so I didn't have the appreciation I did once I hit my 20s and all ten of my 29th birthdays.
It's been a few years since I've been back to the city, but my memory does not fail me. Eileen's on Cleveland has some proper cheesecake, Serendipity's frozen hot chocolate is moan-worthy, Veniero's on East 11th has the bestest cannoli, and of course, there's William Greenberg's for Black & White Cookies.
Of course, there have been several desserteries (totally a word, yes?) that have popped up since my last visit and have been calling me to visit. Bouchon Bakery (I would secretly like one of everything in that bakery to follow me home), Wafels And Dinges (OMG. Hello?!) And Momofuku's Milk Bar.
I have had the pleasure of hitting Milk Bar’s Toronto location quite a few times (and I'm proud to say I'm officially the first Canadian customer to try their cereal milk soft serve – sorry, I’m milking that bragging right. Pun totally intended) and I can honestly say it's one of the most unique desserteries (Oop. There's that word again) out there. I can’t say there is one thing I tried that I didn’t like. In fact, I wanted to #EATALLTHECOOKIES.
So, to celebrate the NYC-TORONTO-OHIO-BLOGGER-FRIENDS connection (I’m sorry. I have no idea why I was screaming just then), I made some Milk Bar Inspired Cereal Milk Cupcakes. Instead of using the traditional cornflakes Milk Bar uses, I used one of my favourite cereals, Capt'n Crunch. Because, why not?
Keep reaching for the stars, Kayle, and feeding my eyes with your gorgeous creations.
I big, red, puffy heart you.
Xo
MILK BAR INSPIRED CEREAL MILK CUPCAKES
Author: The Brunette Baker
Makes 12-16 servings.
Ingredients:
Cereal milk-- 2½ cups Capt'n Crunch Cereal, slightly crushed
- 3¾ cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar, firmly packed
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups cake flour, sifted**
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup cereal milk
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Cereal milk frosting-
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup cereal milk
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
To make cereal milk-
- Place slightly crushed Capt'n Crunch cereal in a large bowl or pitcher. Add milk and still vigourously for a minute or so. Allow cereal to steep for about 20 minutes.
- Once 20 minutes have passed, strain cereal mixture through a fine mesh sieve. Using the back of a spoon, apply slight pressure to ensure you get all the milk. Don't push too hard as you don't want any cereal getting into the milk. Whisk in sugar and salt. You can certainly add more sugar if you so desire, but I found it was pretty sweet.
- Store milk in refrigerator in a closed container up to a week - if you can make it last that long.
- Preheat oven to 325ºF. Prepare two muffin tins by lining with cupcake liners; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Using an electric mixer, add in butter, cereal milk, eggs and vanilla; beat until ingredients are just incorporated.
- Using an ice cream scoop with a retractable mechanism, fill cupcake liners about three-quarters full. Bake cupcakes for 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from oven and transfer to wire rack. Allow to cool completely.
- In a mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter for 3-4 minutes. Slowly incorporate powdered sugar, along with cereal milk, vanilla, and salt. Beat for several minutes until all components come together and frosting is nice and fluffy.
- Because the frosting is quite sweet, I wouldn't recommend piping this frosting onto cupcakes. A nice, even layer will do the trick.
- Garnish with crushed Capt'n Crunch or cornflake cereal.
Omigosh-HOW YUMMEHHH!
Jenny is the sweetest. And funniest. LOVE!
Jenny is the sweetest. And funniest. LOVE!
You should toootally follow The Brunette Baker!