"She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness." Proverbs 31:27

Monday, August 27, 2012

Dill Pickle Cupcakes

I know, sounds weird huh?  I was at a bakery a few weeks ago and asked them what flavor was their most popular flavor?  They said dill pickle cupcakes!  They don't keep them on the shelf all the time, so I did not get to taste one, they sell out in about 30 minutes after baking them!  Well, of course this meant I needed to find a recipe!  I looked online and could only find one recipe, that's right,  only one and it did not sound very good!  So what is a girl - who is craving pickle cupcakes - supposed to do?  I was worried about the acid in the pickle juice reacting to either the baking soda or baking powder.  I decided to use a lemon cupcake recipe and substitute chopped pickles for the lemon zest and pickle juice for the lemon juice.  I figured the acid from the lemon would balance out the same.  I also added some dried dill.  They turned out delicious!  Some All of my friends, looked at me as if I was crazy.  But everyone who tried one loved it!  It does need more pickle, I only added 4 tablespoons chopped pickle, so I am changing my recipe to 1/3 cup chopped pickle instead.
Just remember not to add any of the pickle stuff to the butter or milk or it will curdle.  I knew not to do that, but for some weird reason I added the chopped pickles to the butter and this is what it looked like.
Pretty gross looking, huh?  That's okay, they still tasted good!
You are going to need one or two dill pickles, depending on the size.  My husband brought me home kosher dill pickles which are not as strong in flavor as regular dills, so that will probably make a difference too.
I used my chopper to chop my pickles.  I got mine from pampered chef, and I love it!  I use it several times a week!  Make sure to read the back of your pickle jar, some of them have high fructose corn syrup!
I also really like my little two tablespoon measuring cup.  It is perfect for stuff like this, just measure it out and  put it to the side until you are ready to add it to the recipe.
My recipe makes 12 normal cupcakes or about 40 mini cupcakes.  Put liners in your pans and preheat the oven to 350 °.  Have all ingredients at room temperature.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat at high speed until light and fluffy:
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter.
3/4 cup sugar (I used palm sugar)
1 large egg
Sift together:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dill
At low speed, add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until just combined.  Do not over mix or it will make the cake dense.

At low speed, add:
1/3 cup finely chopped dill pickles
2 tablespoons pickle juice (from the pickle jar)
1/2 cup milk

Your batter will be kind of liquidy and look like this:
Using a scoop (ice cream scoop for regular size cupcakes and tablespoon size for mini cupcakes), scoop the batter into the prepared molds.
For mini cupcakes, bake 13-14 minutes, for regular cupcakes, bake 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack for 5-10 minutes before removing the cupcakes from the pan.  (I know, I know, I should have moved all my sewing stuff off the table first!)

I would recommend frosting with  stabilized whipped cream, I used some IMBC from the fridge, and it was okay, but whipped cream would be better.  To stabilize whipped cream, just add a tsp of clear knox gelatin to a cup of whipped cream.  If you use palm sugar to sweeten the whipped cream, I put it in the cream about an hour (in the fridge) before I am ready to whip it so it has time to melt.  Add the gelatin right before mixing, and a tsp of vanilla.  Agave nectar works good too!
If you make this for a baby shower, you could scoop ice cream into liners ahead of time and pop them in the freezer.  When it is time to serve, just put a scoop on each cupcake.  What would be better for a baby shower than pickles and ice cream?
FYI:  even Pippi liked them!  I know, weird cat!
I hope you enjoy these as much as my friends and I did!
Missy

18 comments:

Sew Can Do said...

This is very cool - will be pinning it for sure. My husband and oldest son would be into these. The weirder the flavors, the more popular things are these days. We went to an ice cream place this summer that had both pickle and bacon flavor! Thanks for linking to Craftastic Monday at Sew Can Do:)

Unknown said...

Ok, sounds yucky..but, I trust you..it is probably good. Made me smile:)

Denise :) said...

Cute idea for a shower! :)

Crystelle said...

You are right: it does sound weird, but I am sure it TASTES amazing!
Thanks for posting!

Unknown said...

These are crazy....I need to make these for my guys 'cause they all LOVE pickles! I just pinned this so I won't ever misplace this recipe! Following along on GFC so I don't miss any more of your out there, amazing creations! I am SSSOOO impressed! Have a wonderful day!

Marilyn
4you-withlove.blogspot.com

Kathy Felsted Usher said...

Really! Dill Pickle? I had to check this when I saw the post title

Connie Kresin Campbell said...

What a interesting recipe! They look much better than they sound! Thanks for sharing.
Freemotion at the River Linky Party Tuesday

Christine said...

I pinned that - I'll try it when I get brave!

Sarah said...

Definitly a cute shower idea, I'm jus tnot 100% sure I am ready to try them as I am not a dill pickle person...

Lauren said...

I am both disgusted and excited about these. It sounds gross, but this girl sure loves pickles! I have to try them asap!

I'd love for you to share on my Saturday Pinteresting Party this weekend! :)

Katherines Corner said...

what a creative recipe! Thank you for sharing your lovely post at the Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop Linky Party xo

Cutesy Crafts said...

That does sound pretty weird. I might need to try it for my pickle craving pregnant friend though. Thanks for linking up to An Oldie but a Goodie! - Jessica (cutesycrafts.com)

Fluster Buster said...

Very interesting! I may have to try it for curiosity sake. Thank you for linking up at Fluster's Creative Muster. Hope to see you next week!

Robin @ Fluster Buster

Unknown said...

I had to read this recipe! I pinned it!
Thanks for sharing,
Dorothy

Anonymous said...

Those sound bizarre, but good! You should make peanut butter pickle cupcakes next time. They could be amazing...
I'm pinning your recipe! :)

Nancy Lee Thomas said...

As someone from Mount Olive, NC, I thank you for using Mt Olive Pickles. I might have to make these for our annual pickle festival! Cheers!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the recipe. I made these for my wife's birthday, and it was a hit! Like she said, they weren't as bad as I had hoped they would be. In fact, they were rather good, and I don't even like pickles!

I did a couple things different: I used a cheese grater to shred two large pickles, which worked great. And I had to use gluten free flour, which was okay too. For the frosting I used regular cream cheese frosting like you find on carrot cake. There was something about the pickle and cream cheese that balanced out into a really nice flavor. Try it.

Anonymous said...

Cream cheese frosting would be my suggestion! I love eating pickles dipped in cream cheese so i wonder how that would taste...

"Oh taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him." Psalm 34:8