Anything but Plain Jane

Have you ever heard the phrase "plain Jane" or "plain as vanilla?"  Most people have this weird idea that vanilla doesn't have flavor...and that it's so boring!  Well, I beg to differ!  Vanilla is anything but plain!! It has a distinct, floraly, rich, sweet flavor that is complex, yet comforting and simple at the same time.

I must admit though, that,  although I've always been more of a vanilla person than a chocolate person, I, too, used to think vanilla was pretty plain.  That's because all the vanilla flavored goods I had tasted was...well, boring!  In fact, most of the time, the vanilla flavor was lost in the sea of sweetness.  It wasn't until I started dabbling in the kitchen myself...actually, it wasn't until I started using quality ingredients in the kitchen (because my early years of baking in the kitchen included cheapy ingredients, as I was a poor student...) that I realize the importance of quality!  Real vanilla has flavor!!  Let me repeat that: Real vanilla has flavor!!  By George, it's not as plain as I had thought! :)  Now that I realize how incredibly rich vanilla could be, the real challenge was incorporating it into a recipe where the vanilla would shine...And I chose cupcakes =D

"Cupcakes, eh...how boring" you might think...But let me just say, vanilla cupcakes are actually very difficult to make!  Not making the cupcakes itself, but trying to figure out the right balance of ingredients to create a delicious, moist, vanilla-y cupcake, where the vanilla is the star!  After countless trial and error efforts, I came up with my own version of vanilla cupcakes.  It has a balance of sweetness and richness...and most importantly, the vanilla shines through!  I usually just pipe some kind of swirl upon my cupcakes, but this time, I thought, why not make these cupcakes more fun and elegant?  I had dabbled at making fondant Briar roses a few nights ago and they were happily drying out for the past few days, so I thought , why not..they would look perfect atop my cupcakes!  I should hope that you find these cupcakes anything but boring!  :)
 
Aren't they fun?  The little specks you see in the frosting is vanilla beans!...it definitely makes the frosting much more tasty!

It's very important to me that my cupcakes are moist and flavorful.  Can you see how moist this cupcake is?  I can attest to the yumminess of these cupcakes ;)  I thought they even tasted great on its own without frosting!  It wasn't too sweet but had incredible flavors that were complex and interesting! 

I think I shall learn how to make more fondant flowers!  They look incredible, even atop cupcakes!

I hope that this post encourages you to go out and find the best vanilla cupcakes you can find (or make!) and truly experience the wonderful flavor of vanilla! :)