fine granulated sugar – Brownie Mischief

White Velvet Snowflake Cakes

Posted on November 6, 2023February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

White Velvet Snowflake Cakes

Soft, plush vanilla mini cakes with vanilla icing

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 6 cakes

Ingredients

Snowflake Cakes

¾ cup (85g) cake flour, sifted
1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
Scant ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon (115g) fine granulated sugar Not powdered sugar
¼ cup (57g) unsalted butter, cubed and softened
2 large egg whites
⅓ cup (78ml) whole milk, room temperature
¾ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or 1/2 teaspoon Amoretti Vanilla Bourbon 2x Extract
2 teaspoons vegetable oil or neutral oil of your choice

Vanilla Icing

1 cup (113g) powdered sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
¼ teaspoon vanilla bean paste or Amoretti Vanilla Bourbon 2x Extract
2-3 tablspoons whole milk
1 pinch fine sea salt

Instructions

Snowflake Cakes

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (177ºC). Spray a 6-serving silicone snowflake mini cake mold* with nonstick spray. Use a small pastry brush to brush the spray into all of the crevices. Tap out any excess spray. Place the mold on a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and salt. Add the sugar and whisk to combine. Add the butter and beat, with an electric mixer on low speed, until the butter is evenly distributed and the mixture looks like crumbs with no large chunks.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk, egg whites, oil and vanilla. Slowly add the milk mixture to the flour mixture and continue beating on low until smooth, about 1-2 minutes.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, evenly distributing the batter and filling the cavities a little more than half full. Bake until the tops of the cakes are light golden and a toothpick inserted into the centers of the cakes comes out clean, about 18-22 minutes. Be careful not to over bake. Let the cakes cool in the pan for about 7 minutes then turn the cakes out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Brush one or two coats of vanilla icing on the tops and sides of the cakes. Decorate as desired. I used fine opal sanding sugar, candy snowflakes and candy pearls.

Vanilla Icing

In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, salt and 1 tablespoon of milk until smooth. Add additional milk as need to achieve your desired consistency.

Notes

I used a 6-serving silicone mold with 3-inch diameter, 1-inch deep cavities.

Keyword cake, white velvet

Fairy Tale Meringues

Posted on October 27, 2021February 18, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

Sometimes we need a little magic in our lives. These pretty, dainty meringue cookies sparked a bit of magic in my life that I want to share with you. It started when I washed some beautiful little violas. Watching them float in a bowl of clear water was positively therapeutic. After pressing and weighing them down with a heavy book overnight, the reveal of perfectly flat, delicate blossoms was so satisfying. The process of making meringue is also very satisfying for me. I love the moment when the frothy egg and sugar mixture magically turns to glossy, billowy sweetness.

Piping the meringue circles was fun! I traced circles on the bottom of the parchment paper to use as a guide for stress-free piping. I used white chocolate to fill the center of the meringue circles, but you can also use white chocolate chips or candy melts. You can use any small edible flowers or flower petals. Feel free to express your creativity! Try using sprinkles, edible glitter or tint the meringue mixture with a few drops of gel food color.

Fairy Tale Meringues

by Mari Vasseur

Meringue cookies filled with white chocolate and topped with pressed edible flowers

Print Recipe

Course Dessert

Servings 24 cookies

Ingredients

Pressed edible flowers

24-30 small edible flowers

Meringue cookies

4 large egg whites
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup (200g) fine granulated sugar
⅛ teaspoon pure almond extract
1 cup (170g) chopped white chocolate or white chocolate chips

Instructions

Pressed edible flowers

Gently wash the edible flowers. Pat dry with paper towels.
Press between parchment paper. Weigh down with a heavy book for at least 24 hours.

Meringue cookies

Beat the egg whites, with an electric mixer at medium speed, until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and beat to soft peaks. Continue beating and gradually add thensugar and almond extract.
Turn mixer to up to high speed and beat to glossy, stiff peaks.
Preheat oven to 200ºF (95ºC. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Transfer the whipped meringue to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. I used Ateco #864*
Pipe 2-inch circles about an inch apart onto prepared baking sheets.
Bake for one hour. Turn off the oven and let the meringues cool in oven.
In a microwave safe container, microwave white chocolate for 10 second intervals until melted or melt on the stovetop in a double boiler.
Transfer the melted white chocolate to a squeeze bottle or a piping bag. Fill the centers of the meringue circles with white chocolate. Top each one with a pressed flower. Let chocolate set at room temperature. Do not refrigerate.

Notes

*To find Ateco tip #864, click here.

Keyword cookies, meringues

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Icing

Posted on May 1, 2017February 12, 2026 by Mari Vasseur

I was seriously happy when I started seeing donuts appearing at weddings, bridal showers and occasions other than work meetings. I’ve always felt those sweet, fluffy rings of dough had a higher calling. They had such potential! And honestly who doesn’t love donuts? They’re delicious, but they can also be beautiful. These Lemon Buttermilk Donuts could certainly win a beauty contest. They would make a gorgeous edition to any breakfast, brunch or dessert table. The fresh lemon zest and the earthy flavor of honey will bring springtime right into your kitchen.

If you’re on the lookout for a Mother’s Day recipe, any mom will love these pretty, fragrant treats. This is a very easy recipe and the donuts bake up quickly, so you’ll have time to fix mom a cup of her favorite tea. If you don’t have a donut pan, and you’ve been reluctant to buy one, I can honestly say I love mine. It was very affordable and I’m pleased with the performance and ease of clean up with the pan I purchased. To find the donut pan click here.

In keeping with the springtime feel, I decorated my donuts with pesticide-free edible flowers. I used pansies, but if you’re unable to find them, you can substitute pesticide-free rose petals. I found these edible pansies at my local food market in the produce department, near the fresh herbs. You can also find edible flowers at farmers’ markets and online. For a list of edible flowers, click here. Note: The above pictured orange ranunculus flowers on the table are not edible.

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts with Honey Cream Cheese Icing

Print Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 7

Total Time 27

Course Breakfast, Brunch, Dessert

Servings 6

Ingredients

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts

1 cup (4 ounces) cake flour, sifted
½ cup (3.5 ounces) fine granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
⅓ cup buttermilk
1 large egg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
zest of 1 medium lemon

Honey Cream Cheese Icing

2 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons (1 ounce) unsalted butter, softened
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
small pinch fine sea salt
1 cup (4 ounces) powdered sugar, sifted
2 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons milk

Finishing Touches

pesticide-free edible flowers
**sugar pearls
***nonpareils

Instructions

Lemon Buttermilk Donuts

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Spray the wells of a ***donut pan with non-stick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, whisk together cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
In a small bowl, whisk buttermilk, egg, melted butter, and lemon zest together. Add to flour mixture and stir until combined.
Transfer batter to a piping bag or plastic zip bag. Snip off the tip of the bag and pipe batter into prepared donut pan, filling the wells 2/3 full.
Bake for 7-8 minutes or until toothpick inserted into donuts comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 5 minutes, then remove donuts to a rack to cool completely.
Prepare Honey Cream Cheese Icing while donuts are cooling.
Dip tops of donuts into icing and decorate as desired. Serve immediately.

Honey Cream Cheese Icing

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth.
Add vanilla extract and salt. Mix until combined.
Add powdered sugar and mix on low speed until moistened. Turn mixer up to medium speed and mix until combined.
Add honey and beat on medium speed until smooth. Add milk, a little at a time until desired consistency is reached. Beat until smooth.

Notes

*To find sugar pearls, click here. **To find nonpareils, click here. ***To find the donut pan, click here. To find the Bee Teapot click here.