buttercream frosting Posts

20Mar
8

Guinness Cupcakes with Bailey’s Frosting

I have been waiting to make these cupcakes for several months now.  Being fiercely proud of my Irish heritage (and also a huge fan of Guinness), I knew that I had to make these for the international holiday of my people, St. Patrick’s Day!

My friend Ashley made these cupcakes a few years back, and the first thing I noticed was how unbelievably moist the beer makes the cupcake. Baking with beer is nothing new, but the combination of chocolate and smooth, malty Guinness is just amazing. I revisited the recipe on Smitten Kitchen and decided to give them a whirl.

The original (and many subsequent) recipe calls for a chocolate whiskey ganache, but since I was making these for coworkers, I figured I’d leave the Jameson for our happy hour. Even with just Guinness and Bailey’s, by the time these were devoured, my coworkers had dubbed them “boozecakes”. Next time, I’ll definitely fill these with ganache, and decide whether or not I want my recipients to be hammered.

Being a huge nerd, I decorated these things like crazy. And also listened to “The Wild Rover” on repeat.

I wonder what other treats I can make with beer and liquor?

Guinness Cupakes with Bailey's Frosting

Keep reading and get the recipe…

Posted by Suzy in Cupcakes and tagged with , , , , ,
19Sep
4

Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes

I’m not really sure where the idea for Banana Cream Pie cupcakes came from, since I don’t even like bananas. I hate the banana-flavored Runts, avoid banana nut bread like the Black Death, and let’s not even talk about regular old bananas. Tastes like old socks to me. But hey, I understand that people enjoy bananas. And the homemade banana pudding I made for these cupcakes was actually pretty amazing (yes, I tasted it, and it’s AWESOME). And that’s saying something.

For the cupcakes, I just used a standard vanilla cupcake recipe (courtesy of Magnolia Bakery, of course). I used a standard vanilla buttercream for the frosting, but I bet adding in some cinnamon would be great.

When I was looking up banana cream pie recipes to adapt into cupcakes, I was shocked at how many called for regular vanilla pudding over banana slices….really? No banana-flavored pudding? Sigh. I figured I had to do it the old-fashioned way: making banana pudding from scratch.

As for the filling, I will warn you: it’s a lot of work. I got the recipe from Salon, of all places, and it called for a banana caramel with a traditional pudding base. You could just buy a box of Jell-o vanilla pudding and add in a couple of pureed bananas. but honestly, the homemade banana pudding is worth it.

To fill the cupcakes, I used the cone method, just like I did for the apple pie cupcakes. I topped these off with a crushed vanilla wafer garnish.

I recommend making the pudding first, and have it cool while you’re baking the cupcakes.

Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes

Keep reading and get the recipe…

Posted by Suzy in Cupcakes and tagged with , ,
20Aug
9

French Toast Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream Frosting

I was full of baking inspiration this week! After getting sick of making the same-old vanilla cupcakes, I wanted to do something exciting. Not a copycat recipe, not something shamelessly stolen from Magnolia Bakery…something somewhat original. And it is very hard to find something that no one else has baked before. There are a lot of creative bakers out there. Even though this recipe has been done, I think this recipe has an edge.

When I came up with this recipe, I tried to think about what makes French toast, French toast: cinnamon, egg, and maple syrup. I added an extra yolk to the cupcake batter, and maple extract to the super-decadent mascarpone frosting, since most stuffed French toast is filled with mascarpone or cream cheese. Okay, the mascarpone frosting didn’t work out, so I adapted the famous Magnolia buttercream to taste like maple syrup!

And these cupcakes taste exactly like French toast. It’s almost a little weird.

But, that means they count as breakfast, right?

French Toast Cupcakes

Recipe after the jump.

Keep reading and get the recipe…

Posted by Suzy in Cupcakes and tagged with , ,
11Aug
1

Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

…so I lied in my last post. Meant to post these right after Independence Day but summer got in the way. Nevertheless, here they are: my patriotic Magnolia vanilla cupcakes with complementary vanilla buttercream!

Apologies for the distant photograph; was enjoying the Fourth of July party far too much to take pictures. Sparklers are from a local party store, and sugar lime cookies courtesy of my wonderful friend Ashley, who accompanied me on my baking and Fourth of July journeys this year. It was wonderful having her back in town, if only for a few days! No one (other than my mom) appreciates baking in the kitchen watching good movies more than her.

Embarrassingly enough, on my first attempt making these cupcakes that night, I dropped an entire egg into the batter, and my beloved KitchenAid mixer dutifully chopped the eggshell into bits within seconds. I tried picking out the bits of shell, but soon admitted defeat and started over again. Such is life.

I’ve posted the Magnolia vanilla cupcake recipe previously (when I made my Super Bowl cupcakes earlier this year), but I’m posting the recipe after the jump for convenience. Hopefully Ashley will do a guest post and provide the recipe for her awesome sugar lime cookies!

Keep reading and get the recipe…

Posted by Suzy in Cupcakes and tagged with , , ,
14Nov
17

Magnolia’s Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Frosting

Yes, I know, another cupcake post. But these are so damn good I couldn’t resist. Plus, the recipe comes from my muse and baking inspiration Allysa Torey, owner of Magnolia Bakery in NYC. I bought Allysa’s cookbook a few years back, and her recipes are truly the only ones I’ve found to be infallible. Her cupcakes…wow. If you’ve been to Magnolia you know her cupcake and buttercream frosting combo are pretty killer, and they are super easy to make.

So many of the baking tips and tricks I’ve picked up have come from her (second only to my mom). A couple of my favorites:

  • Make sure all cold ingredients (butter, milk, eggs) are at room temperature before you start mixing. This has been possibly the best tip I’ve ever received; it really makes a difference!
  • You simply cannot overbeat sugar and butter, so feel free to whip away until they are super fluffy. Once you add any other ingredients in, though, be careful. Always cream the butter and sugar before you mix in anything else.

These are pretty simple, just chocolate cupcakes with the famous Magnolia chocolate “buttercream” (I put buttercream in quotes because even Allysa notes that it’s not made like a traditional buttercream). Since my last attempt at piping icing was a disaster, I think I’m getting a little better, no?

Magnolia Chocolate Cupcakes

Note to self: ask for lots of frosting tips for Christmas.

Keep reading and get the recipe…

Posted by Suzy in Cupcakes and tagged with , ,
11Nov
10

Pumpkin Cupcakes With Brown Sugar Frosting

My very first entry!  I was really nervous about which recipe I wanted to post first, but since this is the month of pumpkins, I thought I would incorporate that into my baking.

First, let me tell you something about pumpkins: my family really loves pumpkins.

No, you don’t understand.  We really love pumpkins.

My mother claims my brother got his red hair from all the pumpkin ice cream she ate while pregnant with him.  From September to November, our home is surrounded by pumpkins like a little gourd army.  Pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, even pumpkin puree straight out of the can…nothing was too pumpkiny for us.

If there were a Church of The Great Pumpkin, we’d all be devout followers.

Anyway. Since I love the smell of spiced pumpkin in the fall (if you don’t, you’re a Communist), I wanted to bake something pumpkin that wasn’t pie.  I bring all my baked goods into work so I need something portable.  Hence…the pumpkin cupcake.  Nay, a cupcake cookie with freaking brown sugar frosting.  A sweet, cakey, pumpkin-and-spicy bit of perfection.


Keep reading and get the recipe…

Posted by Suzy in Cupcakes and tagged with , , ,