Vanilla Bean Cupcakes and the SUMMER OLYMPICS!!!!

Please note...these pictures were taken a few weeks ago with my old camera : (

I have 3 brothers and a dad.  For some reason they never did watch sports like the typical American male.  They preferred to play as many sports as possible instead.  They don't have any favorite baseball teams, football teams, hockey teams, basketball teams, or anything!  For this reason I know nothing about football...and I am okay with that.

I know many men and their families who are die hard fans of certain teams.  They know all the history, all the facts, all the stats, and never miss a game.  When I watch these fans be so consumed  with love of their team I just sit their in awe not understanding at all how they can feel such devotion to team, or to a player.  This concept of being obsessed with sports is so lost on me.

Now Olympics is a whole different story.  Growing up we didn't have a TV in the house, but every 2 years somehow a TV would appear for 2-3 weeks just in time for the Olympics.  We were hard core fans and would watch constantly every event from start to finish.  Even our curfew was done away with, and we would all sit on the floor until the wee hours of the night staring up at the heroic Olympians striving to reach their golden dreams.

I loved all the back stories, getting to know all the competitors and how their journey's had led to this point.  All the hard work, dedication, and sacrifice was inspiring and mesmerizing!  Oh how we all wanted to be Olympians.  I even remember at one point thinking I would maybe start learning how to throw a javelin...that was short lived. : )  I can't even throw a Frisbee or a football...what was I thinking?

So start the countdown folks, the summer 2012 London Olympics starts on July 27th!  When they do start I highly recommend you make these cupcakes to help celebrate the festivities!

I came across this recipe because I occasionally make birthday cakes for our office parties, and this month I decided to make cupcakes.  I was pleasantly surprised by the end product, and will probably be making these more often now that I know they taste so good.  The recipe is super easy to mix up, and only requires one bowl.  At first I was weary of not mixing the wet together and then adding the dry...instead this recipe basically tosses everything into the bowl and calls it a day.  I originally wanted to use a frosting recipe with heavy cream in it, but since the cupcakes were being made a day ahead and I had no fridge space I opted for this version instead.

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes

Adapted ever so slightly from the Brown Eyed Baker blog

Yield: 12 cupcakes

1½ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

1½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon table salt

1 Stick unsalted butter, room temperature

½ cup sour cream, room temperature

1 large egg , room temperature

2 large egg yolks , room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. vanilla bean paste (optional...if you don't have this just swap it with extra vanilla extract)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line standard muffin/cupcake pan with liners, or spray pans well with baking spray.

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Add butter, sour cream, egg and egg yolks, and vanilla; beat at medium speed until smooth and satiny, about 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula and mix by hand until smooth and no flour pockets remain.

Divide batter evenly among cups of prepared tin. Bake until cupcake tops are pale gold and toothpick or skewer inserted into center comes out clean, 20 to 24 minutes. Remove the cupcakes pan and transfer to wire rack; cool cupcakes to room temperature before frosting.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

2½ cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Whip butter using whisk attachment on blender for about 5 minutes.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla, whisk until smooth and combined.  Frost cupcakes.  Leftovers can be stored in fridge.

(If you want to spice up your cupcake add a little cinnamon to the frosting or some honey...super yum indeed)

Check out this video for a fun way to ice a cupcake : )

Eat your heart out, and watch the Olympics this summer!!!

Dagny