By Request Vanilla Cupcake Recipe + a Random Fact

Here is the recipe Emily! Really simple and delicious. I also posted a picture of the cupcakes I made in a mason jar at the bottom of the post as I remember you liked the idea of baking in a mason jar(from a long ago post you commented on :)!

A little fact about cooking oils... really random but thought I would share (:
My family does not use shortening/crisco, canola or vegetable oil for consumption but vegetable oil does works great for oiling bicycle chains and canola is a wonderful pesticide ;) . We either use olive oil, E.V. olive oil, or butter .
Why? Both shortening and vegetable oil contain soybean. Something many people don't know is soy products are actually hazardous to your health. It is the same with Canola oil which is derived from the rapeseed. The rapeseed was never meant for human consumption. In fact during WWII, rapeseed was the main source of the chemical warfare agent mustard gas. Also rapeseed has been linked to madcow disease and shown to cause emphysema, respiratory distress, anemia, blindness in animals—and humans, and more. You can go here & here to watch and read 2 great article on the hazards of soybean and here & here  for articles/video on canola (disclaimer: I do not indorse the sites that posted these articles). Really interesting articles :)
God has blessed you with one amazingly and diligently constructed body. Do what you can in order to keep it healthy via the food you  put in and the exercise you put out and be informed as to what you are putting in :)

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Corinthians 6:19-20


OK HERE IS THE RECIPE!!

Vanilla Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

Yeilds 18-20 cupcakes or 9 4oz mason jars
Cake:

• 3/4 cup BUTTER softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 1/4 cup sifted flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup milk 
• 5 stiffly beaten egg whites (beat until stiff peaks form)

Frosting:

• 3/4 cup butter softened 
• 1/2 cup heavy cream (milk can be substituted)
• 1TBS vanilla 
• 1/2tsp almond extract
• 5-6 cups powder sugar

1. 
   
2. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line 18 muffin Cups with liners. Or if your using mason jars butter and flour 9 mason jars.
3. Cream butter and sugar until light. Add vanilla and mix well; set aside.
4. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating after each addition. Gently fold in egg white. Divide between muffin cups. I find 1 mounded ice cream scoop per cup is the perfect amount. For the 4oz mason jars 2 ice cream scoops are perfect!
5. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until done and slightly golden. Cool thoroughly.
6. Icing instructions:
7. Cream together butter, cream, vanilla, and almond extract. Add powder sugar 1 cup at a time until icing reaches the right consistency.
8. Pipe onto cooled cupcakes and enjoy!

"O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him."

Psalm 34:8