Yasmine Sandhu

At the place I work, we always bake our cupcakes with a hotel pan of water on the bottom rack. I find it keeps the tops (and insides) moist and speeds up the baking process. We discovered through trial and error that this was a good consistent way to bake our cupcakes after having many issues with dry and crumbly cupcakes. Although it seemed odd at first, we had such good results, it become our standard in cake/cupcake baking. Good luck!

Hunters Head Tavern (a great country pub) can be found in Upperville (the next town over.) The pub is affiliated with the equally excellent butcher shop, Home Farm, on the main street in town. Also, for casual lunches and great wines and cheeses, check out Market Salamander (also on the main road in town.) Hunter's Head Tavern Market Salamander

This technique sounds very intriguing! Could you describe it a bit more? How do you melt down your buttercream and to what consistency? Do you generally glaze with more than one coat? I am very interested to hear more... Thanks!

In regards to the carrot cake method used above -- I've had great luck with the oil/egg emulsion. The cake stays moist for days and doesn't feel greasy at all. I whip the hell out of my eggs (for over 10 minutes) and then stream in my oil and whip for another 5- 8 minutes, dump in sugar, whip for another 2-5 minutes and then fold in my dry ings. and carrots separately. But speaking of fruit purees -- are there any out there that don't impart too much fruit flavor? I know it might seem contradictory, but I'm looking at making some of my more neutral cakes (yellow, white, etc.) a bit more moist without taking on an apple/pear/banana/whatever flavor or color. Or has anyone found a nice ratio of fat to puree that they have had good results with? Thanks for the responses (even though I am a bit off-topic.)

At the bakery I work at we make our batter, scoop into liners and freeze without any problems. When we bake the muffins, they go in directly from the freezer without any noticable increase in baking time. If you wanted to cut down on some waste, could you do your muffins on a more baked to order basis or if you anticipated larger orders? Also, freezing the batter doesn't seem to affect the overall texture/rise of the muffins. If you have the freezer space (which it sounds like you do) you could give this a try -- I was surprised, but I find it really works well.

I've been experimenting with some eggless cakes recently and found a neat trick online. You can substitute ground flax seeds made into a paste for your eggs -- obviously not for any sort of rise, but the richness of the flax (oil?) really makes for a good cake. The ratio that I was working with was something like 1 Tablespoon ground flax with just enough water to make a thick paste equals one egg. I did the whole thing in the blender and then added to my batter. Seriously, it was not bad at all. (And I was working off of a basic butter cake recipe.) Maybe someone with more expertise could explain what it is about flax seeds that makes a good egg replacement? An added bonus, flax seeds are great for you! Good Luck!

Does anyone have a good apple cake recipe that relies on fresh apples for most of the sweetness? I'm looking for a cake that isn't terribly sweet and has a strong apple flavor. Nothing with processed apple juice/apple sauce would also be a bonus. Thanks!

I've had great success with the following method from David Lebovitz. It's very simple and not too scary either. Just remember to properly whisk up the condensed milk after it comes out of the oven for that lovely and luscious consistency.

I forgot how much I love these type of scones! They really are the perfect breakfast pastry, a handheld fluffy/crumbly pancake with syrup. I've always had great success with Ina Garten's recipe. The only major difference I see from the others is that she also uses some whole wheat flour, which is a great addition, in my opinion. Ina's Maple Scone Recipe

Anyone know where to find hollow chocolate truffle shells for regular (retail) people like myself? Thanks....