5. The One with Butterbeer Cupcakes

It's official...I'm going to be a hot mess when my friends leave. I'm already getting teary-eyed thinking about it, which I did not think would be the case.  Don't get me wrong, I love, love, LOVE my friends more than I could ever explain, but I was a little nervous about them coming for a few reasons:
1) They would be here for my last week of summer and first week of class, which is, understandably, a crazy busy time and I sometimes turn into the dragon lady when I'm super stressed.
2) I haven't had roommates since college.  Completely my choice.
3) I guess this technically falls under number 2, but I'm gotten used to not having people here and fully abusing that privilege, i.e. showering with the door open, walking around without pants, you get the idea.

But, aside from having a particularly stressful day last week that had nothing to do with them, it has been a wonderful time!  It's been so great to hang out as ADULTS. Yes, I said it. I still don't believe that I am one, but I guess owning a home is a pretty adult thing to do.  Today, we decided to have a small Labor Day cookout since I had the day off work and they didn't have rehearsal until later.  Initially, it was just going to be me, Emily, Rachel, and Seth.  We asked our friend, Megan, to join us, and then my friend, Tyler.  And then Ryan...and his friend, Justin, was in town, who also happens to be an old friend of mine...anyway, lots 'o people.  It. Was. A. Blast.  We grilled out, laughed until our sides hurt, watched movies...it was the perfect day.  But don't worry; all perfect days also have cupcakes.

I found this recipe online a few weeks ago, and given my Harry Potter obsession, I knew I needed to give them a whirl.  Why I chose to do that on a day when I would be hosting seven other people, I have no idea.  See, not only was this a recipe I hadn't made before, but it also called for ganache (which I've never made before), using a pastry bag (which I've never done before), and filling the cupcakes after being baked (umm yeah...haven't done that either.)  Despite the cards being against me, things started off well. I made the ganache right away in the morning and let it cool while I showered.

Mmmm...butterscotch.

 

Then, I made up the cupcakes.  That part was easy.  I put them in the oven and made the frosting, which I was nervous about.  See, I don't measure when I cook...never.  I've been trying to break myself of that when I'm doing cupcakes, but I guess I got side tracked because before I knew it, I was pouring powdered sugar straight into the bowl...shit.  However, the odds were totally in my favor, and the frosting was effing fantastic!  Seriously, if this cupcake shop doesn't pan out, maybe I'll open a frosting shop...

 

Cupcake batter, ya'll!

 

Emily and Tyler, "helping" me out

Magically delicious frosting

 

Then, everything turned to shit. (Just one of many bodily function references that was made during this process.  Also, lots of "that's what she said.")  You know in "Bridesmaids" when you're introduced to Rose Byrne's character and you just know that shit is going to get crazy?  Yup...my ganache was Rose Byrne and it wasn't messing around.  I was getting ready to do the filling for my cupcakes when everyone came out to the kitchen to see if I needed help. I asked Emily if she could fill the pastry bag with the ganache for me.  I forgot to tell her I'd already cut the bottom of the bag and that she needed to either cover the hole with her finger or twist the bottom closed.  Major ganache explosion.  We decided to use another bag.  Once it was tipped and filled, I took over.  Now, a lot of recipes I've seen with filled cupcakes have you cut out a small piece of the cupcake before you fill it. This one didn't...I was just supposed to stab the cupcake and fill.  So I did...or I attempted.  Now, some of you may not know this, but when you stab a cupcake with a frosting tip with a large hole in it, the cake gets stuck inside the tip, which forces you to squeeze the bag even harder.  I'll spare you all the details, but let's just say I ended up getting ganache all over my hands from the top of the bag, someone was saying, "no, you need to be firm and gentle," and I'm pretty sure Betty Crocker was rolling in her grave.  Then, to top it all off, I squeezed too hard, the tip came out of the bag, and ganache started flowing. (That's what she said. To all of the above.)

 

...This is what happens when you have an open bag of ganache.

 

Filling the cupcakes

...And then the tip broke.

So I improvised.

 

We stopped taking pictures for a little bit after this one.  Let's just say I ended up with frosting all over me and then things just got too inappropriate to post.

Check me out, bitches. I just frosted those cupcakes!

 

The final product

Ryan took over frosting for me.

This is how I SHOULD have made them...with my awesome Ron Weasley wand.

 

 

Despite all the crazy, I was pretty happy with the final product.  All my friends LOVED them! (Again, their exact comments aren't quite appropriate to post, but just think along the lines of, "I love this cupcake so much that I (add "The Lonely Island" song title here)." I liked them too.  I thought the cake part was good, but not great.  They seemed like they were missing something, maybe cinnamon or butterscotch chips.  The ganache was tasty and the frosting was unreal.  I'll definitely be making these again...but maybe when it's just me at home! :)