Cupcakes

From the end of September:
One day as I wandered through the school library something caught my eye. It was the September issue of Better Homes and Gardens. I quickly sat down and began happily perusing the latest edition of my long-lost friend. There, sandwiched inbetween a couple of ads, I saw my life change. It was at that moment I saw the monthly Prize-tested recipe contest. I don't usually give the food section my undivided attention since I doubt I'll ever make any of it (no matter how delicious it looks). However, this time my poor college student eyes caught hold of the words: Win Money. My attention peaked. I read on:
Your original recipe could be worth up to $400, and winning recipes will be entered to win the 2009 annual Grand Prize - worth up to $10,000 in cash or merchandise. Enter your original recipes (recipes never before published) which features two new categories each month.
I glanced down to see the categories offered in this issue were for cupcakes and salmon. I don't like fish much, but cupcakes, cupcakes I thought I could handle so I kept reading.
Send us your best, most interesting recipe. Do your cupcakes have a flavorful frosting, unusual topper, or filling? Do you make them from a one-bowl yellow cake with added fold-ins or chocolate cake with surprise fillings? How about mini angel food or sponge cake creations, or a spin on one of these classics: carrot, red velvet, or coconut? The cupcakes can be fruit-filled after-school treats or spicy and elegant ganache-topped cakelets baked in cupcake pans.
As the only cupcakes I could remember making came from boxes featuring doughboys, signed by Ms. Crocker, or stamped 'Duncan Hines,' I naturally thought it would be a good idea for me to enter. I thought my roommate would also enjoy the contest so I told her about it and proposed we work together. If one of our recipes won we would split the money. She was definitely game.
Ideas began spewing from our minds and we soon had a list of different cupcakes we wanted to try making: Cranberry with a white chocolate frosting, panipopo (a take on a Samoan dessert), pumpkin with lemon frosting, peanut butter banana with a light chocolate topping, and on and on. We began contacting friends to make a taste-testing panel. If we were going to enter the contest we were going to be serious. The only catch we could see was that we had a week and a half to make and perfect our recipes. Then we realized we had homework. So, inbetween school, work, homework, and a project or two on curfew and the honor code we found time to whip up a couple of our creations.
The panel we once envisioned was replaced by our co-workers and next-door-neighbors - all of whom seemed more than willing to help. Each batch we would watch their faces as they tested the cupcakes. Then we'd quiz them - How was the texture? the balance of flavors? overall taste? They'd answer then usually ask when the next batch would be ready to test.
We finally settled on two. Ah chose to submit a banana peanut butter with a light chocolate frosting and I chose a strawberry with a sour white chocolate lemon cream frosting.
Now we wait. The winning entries will be published in the April 2009 issue of Better Homes and Gardens so it will be few months before we are notified that we have won the contest. Okay, so our hopes aren't that high but we won't put up a fight should we win.