Week 45, December 8, 2014 ~ White Chocolate Gingerbread Latte Cupcakes

So I knew I was going to make a gingerbread cupcake for the holiday season and when deciding what direction to take it in I decided to be selfish and make a cupcake that reflects me favorite holiday beverage at work. It is a latte with half gingerbread syrup and half white chocolate syrup. The sweetness of the white chocolate balances out the spice of the gingerbread and tasted like an iced gingerbread cookie! So to replicate that I made a gingerbread cupcake and tried a different technique with filling them by cutting an opening in the top and stuffing them with white chocolate truffles as soon as they came out of the oven. This was seriously so much easier and faster than if I make a white chocolate ganache and cored them and filled them with that. I then topped the cupcakes with coffee buttercream. It tasted like coffee ice cream and it was delicious. 

The recipe makes 12-14 cupcakes

• 1/2 cup canola oil
•  1/2 cup sugar
•  1/2 cup molasses
•  1 egg, room temp and beaten
•  1-1/2 cup flour
•  1/2 tablespoon ground ginger
•  1 teaspoon cinnamon
•  1/4 teaspoon salt
•  1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
•  1/2 cup boiling water
•  1/2 tablespoon baking soda
• 12-14 white chocolate Lindor Truffles (small bag was plenty)

Preheat oven to 350° and line muffin tins with baking cups.

In mixing bowl, using whisk attachment, combine oil, sugar, and molasses; then add beaten egg until well mixed.

In a medium bowl whisk flour, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and cloves. Whisk into molasses mixture until well combined.

Boil water and remove from heat. Add baking soda and whisk into batter.

Fill baking cups 2/3 full and bake for 25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean when inserted. 

With a pair of kitchen scissors cut an X in each cupcake just wider than the truffle and then insert a truffle into each cupcake (see photo below) Set aside to cool.

For the coffee buttercream:

• 1 1/2 T. instant coffee granules
• 1 1/2 T. water
• 1 1/2 T. vanilla extract
• 3/4 lb. (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 3 c. confectioners' sugar
• 3 T. milk

 1. Combine water, coffee granules, and vanilla extract in a small bowl; stir till coffee is dissolved and set aside.

2.  Beat butter on medium speed until fluffy.  Reduce mixer speed to low.  Add confectioners' sugar, 1 cup at a time, until incorporated.  Increase mixer speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes.

3.  Add the coffee mixture and milk; beat on low speed to combine.  Scrape down sides and bottom of the bowl as necessary.  Increase mixer speed to medium and beat until fluffy, 4 minutes.  

I topped my cupcakes with a sprinkle of cinnamon but if you wanted to be really cute you could use mini gingerbread man cookies!

Week 1, January 26th 2014 ~ Salted Caramel Mocha Cupcakes

My Salted Caramel Mocha Cupcakes--not the best photo I know!

I take my inspiration from everywhere! This time I took it from work! I was bringing them to a work event so I thought "How cute will this be!" I sometimes think I am a riot! So I present for you the first cupcake of the challenge: The Salted Caramel Mocha Cupcake! I love salted caramel anything; especially in the salted caramel mocha beverage form so I thought it would make the perfect cupcake. I had found this recipe long ago and pinned it to my pinterest (another addiction of mine! if your interested my name there is cait815 ) and finally was able to bust it out and it was perfect! I got this recipe from www.bakerdom.com I didn't really do anything different to it I liked just the way it was! I am in no way trying to take any credit for this recipe. That site has lots of amazing recipes on it! 

Salted Caramel Mocha Cupcakes 

Makes 30 cupcakes

Ingredients

FOR THE CUPCAKES

• 2 cups strong brewed coffee, hot
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

FOR THE WHIPPED VANILLA BUTTERCREAM

Makes 24 ounces

Ingredients

• 1 cup  unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 pound (about 4 cups) confectioners' sugar
• 3 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

FOR THE SALTED CARAMEL

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon corn syrup
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, crushed (omit 1 teaspoon for regular caramel sauce)

FOR THE COFFEE ICING

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup confectioner's sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 to 2 tablespoons brewed coffee

In a medium bowl, or a two cup measuring cup, stir the cocoa powder into the hot coffee until dissolved. Set aside until cooled to room temperature, or place in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

Once the cocoa/coffee mixture has cooled, preheat oven to 350 degrees (180 C). Line a muffin pan with cupcake liners; set aside.

In a medium bowl sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until combined; stir in the vanilla. Sprinkle 1/3 of the flour mixture over the bowl and mix until just combined. Add 1/2 of the chocolate mixture, mixing again until just combined. Repeat with reamining flour and chocolate mixtures, ending with flour. Mix only until flour is just incorporated. Do not over mix.

Place 3 tablespoons of batter in each cupcake liner. Bake for 20-23 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

While the cupcakes are baking/cooling, place about 3/4 cup of salted caramel sauce in a small sauce pan and bring to a low boil. Reduce heat to low and cook for 3 to 5 minutes to thicken the caramel slightly before using it to fill the cupcakes.

Once cooled, fill each cupcake with about 1 teaspoon of the thickened salted caramel sauce, ice with Coffee Icing (optional), and frost with whipped cream, Garnish with more caramel sauce.

WHIPPED VANILLA BUTTERCREAM

In a large bowl, or the bowl of a standing mixer, whip the butter for 6 minutes on medium speed, until the butter is light in color and creamy.Add the sugar and cream and mix on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Stir in the heavy cream and vanilla. Increase mixer to medium speed and whip the mixture for another 8 minutes, until the frosting is very light and creamy.

SALTED CARAMEL SAUCE

Place the sugar, water, and corn syrup in a small saucepan, stirring to combine. Without stirring, bring to a boil over high heat, swirling the ingredients in the pan occasionally. Continue boiling until the mixture reaches an amber color (not too dark, or red). Remove from heat and very carefully (the mixture will quickly expand and sputter) add the cream in a slow steady stream, being sure to stir constantly. Once combined, add the salt and butter and continue stirring until both are completely melted and combined. Cool to room temperature before using.

COFFEE ICING

In a medium bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Stir in the vanilla until combined. Add the coffee until desired consistency is reached (I only used 1 tablespoon). For more coffee flavor, add more coffee, but you may need to add additional confectioners' sugar to keep a good consistency.

Ice the cooled cupcakes with the coffee icing. Allow to sit for 15 to 20 minutes, then top with cream cheese frosting.

Here is the link to the original blogpost:

Homemade Salted Caramel Mocha Latte, Frappuccino, and CUPCAKES!

I never said these cupcakes weren't a lot of work. It was totally worth it though! I would highly recommend adding the cupcake icing it really amps up the coffee flavor! The stuff on its own is amazing I could of just eaten it straight out of the bowl!  The frosting was so light and fluffy and perfectly balanced out the rest of the cupcake! In addition to putting caramel on the top I also added a sprinkling of sea salt!