Bananas Foster Cupcakes and NYC Cookies!

I always bake things that I find on other people's blogs, and never end up posting about them! I'm a slacker. But sometimes they don't turn out as good as I'd hoped, so then I don't feel like sharing a recipe that I'm ehh about.

I made these Bananas Foster Cupcakes from Cookies and Cups blog a few weeks ago, and they were SOOOO good! The frosting was something that I could have just eaten with a spoon. So much sugar.

I think Bananas Foster is one of my favorite kinds of desserts, like when we go to a restaurant and they have Bananas Foster cake or something like it, I always want to get it. Caramelized bananas are the best.

I took these to work, and they were pretty messy once they sat out all day, but people still took their half of a half to try.

Bananas Foster Cupcakes

Brown Sugar Cupcakes
• 3/4 cup butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
Bananas Foster Frosting
• 1/2 cup mashed banana (1 large banana)
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 cup butter
• 5 cups powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp dark rum (optional)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Garnish with banana slices and caramel sauce.

How to Make

Cupcakes
1. Preheat oven to 350°
2. Beat butter on high until soft, about 30 seconds.
3. Add sugar. Beat on medium-high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
4. Add eggs one at a time, beat for 30 seconds after each.
5. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
6. Measure out milk and vanilla together.
7. Add about a third of the dry mixture and half milk mixture in alternating portions beginning and ending with dry mixture until incorporated and smooth.
8. Bake 15-20 minutes until cupcake springs back when pushed or toothpick comes out clean.
9. Let cool before frosting cupcakes.
Frosting
10. Mash banana in a small bowl with lemon juice.
11. In bowl of stand mixer beat butter for 2 minutes. Add in banana and beat for 1-2 more minutes until well mixed. Add powdered sugar one cup at a time on low speed. Add in brown sugar, cinnamon, rum and vanilla.
12. Turn mixer up to medium and beat for an additional 2 minutes.
Assembly
13. Spread or pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes.
14. Garnish with a banana slice and drizzle with caramel.

Recipe taken from Cookies and Cups Blog 

I went to New York City for work the other weekend, which was kind of exciting since it was my first traveling for work experience. Our flight didn't arrive until 1am because of bad weather, so I hadn't eaten any dinner and was starving when I got to the hotel!! So I ordered the cheapest thing on the room service menu, which was tomato soup and a sliver of grilled cheese. The soup was ehh, but the grilled cheese was so delicious! I wish I had gotten the full sandwich instead, but it was 1am so I probably didn't need all that in my belly since I was going straight to sleep.

 They had some of the softest robes at the hotel.... I wish I could've brought one home with me.

Kevin!!!! Haha I just always think of Home Alone when I see the Plaza Hotel.

 This was the view of Central Park from our office. Pretty nice to look at while you're working!

For lunch, our co-workers took us to Tao. It was so dark inside! And the giant Budda was really cool. It was Restaurant Week so I got the 3 course meal for $25, awesome deal! The Chocolate pot dessert was the best course, followed by the Lobster Dumpling soup (didn't get a picture though), and it had the BEST broth, I was pretty much drinking it up. The sushi main course was just your typical sushi. Nothing special.

 

For dinner, we went to Villagio on the Park, which is a bustling Italian restaurant. It was pretty yummy, and of course we got 3 desserts to share!

I made sure to visit Levain Bakery while I was there! I went before work and grabbed some of the chocolate brioche and muffins for our breakfast, but of course I also got some chocolate chip walnut and chocolate peanut butter cookies for later.

 It's so tiny inside!

I really wanted to eat a cookie right then while it was fresh and warm, but it was just 8am and had all the other breakfast treats to eat, so I saved them. But now I am kind of regretting it! They were still just as delicious after, I just had to heat it up in the microwave a bit.

My brother and sister-in-law met me for lunch, and we had some NY style pizza and cookies from the Momofuku Milk Bar. I was also pretty excited about trying these cookies since I've heard so much about the place!

I got 2 cookies to take home with me, because I was still pretty full from the pizza.

My brother got the cereal milk soft serve ice cream, and I was really interested to try it! It had a very distinct flavor, which was confusing. It was weird at first, but then it was good, just like eating Captain Crunch cereal.

I'm not sure I could live in NYC, there are just people EVERYWHERE, but it's nice to go for a few days. I wouldn't mind walking through Central Park every day.