Oh cupcakes..how I love you! Cake is probably my favorite dessert. Honestly, it's frosting, but cake seems like the more appropriate answer. Truly, there are few desserts that I dislike (in case you hadn't figured that out). I love that cupcakes are easily portable. You don't really need to eat them with a fork. They are typically covered with sprinkles. It's not necessary to share; built-in portion control. Also, the frosting factor.
I love this combination of yellow cake and chocolate buttercream. The cake is like an extra flavorful vanilla. It had a nice crumbly texture.
This is the perfect cake for those who can't decide between chocolate and vanilla, you get the best of both flavors!
This was a first time cupcake for me. I have never made a yellow cake from scratch and I have never made chocolate buttercream! Honest! This may seem hard to believe, but I wouldn't say chocolate buttercream is my favorite. I love chocolate, but I don't typically gravitate towards chocolate frosting. However, this is the kind of frosting you eat with a spoon. I got the recipe from the back of the Hershey's cocoa powder. It was simple to put together and turned out creamy and delicious. It's almost a dark chocolate flavor. I might be a chocolate buttercream lover yet! You should try these cupcakes, if at least just to make the frosting.
Yellow Cupcakes with Chocolate Buttercream
Yellow Cupcakes
from Cook's Illustrated
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
1 large egg, room temperature
2 egg yolks, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 and line your muffin pan with cupcake papers.
Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder,and salt in the bowl of your stand mixer, or a large bowl using a hand mixer. Add butter, sour cream, egg, egg yolks, and vanilla. Beat at medium speed until smooth, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then mix completely by hand until no flour pockets remain and your batter is smooth. Batter will be thick. Divide batter evenly among cups of muffin tin. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until cupcakes are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
Chocolate Buttercream
from Hershey's
1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup cocoa powder
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter. Remove from heat and stir in cocoa powder. Transfer to your mixing bowl and alternately add powdered sugar and milk. Beat on medium speed, add vanilla last. You may need a little extra milk to reach your desired consistency.
If you're one of those people who "doesn't like frosting", let me know, we should meet up for a cupcake soon!
