Irish Coffee Brownie Cupcakes

Recipe and image from:
http://www.pauladeen.com/recipes/recipe_view/irish_coffee_brownie_cupcakes/

 

 

Servings: 16 cupcakes
           

Ingredients

Brownie Ingredients:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt

Cupcake Ingredients:
1 cup whole milk
1 cup whole roasted coffee beans
1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ¼ cup sugar
2 eggs
¼ cup whiskey
Brownie batter from above

Frosting Ingredients:
8 oz cream cheese
¼ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons whiskey

Directions

Brownie Directions:
In a medium-sized bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Mix in eggs and vanilla until thoroughly combined.

Mix in cocoa powder, flour, and salt until just combined.
Set aside.

Cupcake Directions:
In a small saucepan on medium-high, heat milk and coffee beans until just boiling.

Remove from heat, cover, and steep for fifteen minutes.

Using a sieve, remove the beans from the milk and set the milk aside. You will only need ¾ cup of the milk, so it’s fine if some sticks to the beans during this process.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a medium-sized bowl, mix flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

In a separate medium-sized bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add eggs to the butter/sugar mixture, mixing until fully incorporated.

In a small bowl, mix together whiskey and ¾ cup of the coffee-infused milk.

Alternately mix wet ingredients and dry ingredients into the butter/sugar bowl, mixing until just combined.

Fill cupcake liners ¾ full with cupcake batter.

Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon of brownie batter into the center of each cupcake.

Bake for 25 minutes or until cupcakes bounce back when lightly touched.

Frosting Directions:
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, mix cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy.

Mix in powdered sugar a little bit at a time until fully combined.

Mix in cocoa powder and whiskey.

Spread or pipe onto cooled cupcakes. Use Wilton tip 106 for the piping style shown in the photos.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

Ingredients

For the cupcakes:
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons strongly brewed coffee
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour [note: I used whole-grain pastry flour with good results]
1 cup good cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Peanut Butter Icing, recipe follows
Chopped salted peanuts or mini chocolate chips for decoration (optional)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a standard muffin pan with paper liners. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and 2 sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. Lower the speed to medium and add the eggs, one at a time. Now add the vanilla, and mix well.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, and coffee. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

Now, with the mixer on low speed, alternate adding the buttermilk mixture with the flour mixture (add the buttermilk mixture in 2 additions and the flour mixture in 3.) Mix only until blended. Give the batter a few gentle stirs with a rubber spatula just to make sure all the dry ingredients are incorporated.

Use a standard ice cream scoop (or two spoons) to fill the muffin tins; they should be about 3/4 full.

Bake for about 20 minutes, until the tops spring back when gently pressed or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Don’t overbake — better to err on the side of caution and check them a little early.

Cool for 10 minutes, remove from the pans, and allow to cool completely before frosting.

Frost each cupcake with Peanut Butter Icing and sprinkle with chopped peanuts or mini chocolate chips, if desired.

Peanut Butter Icing:

Ingredients
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter [I used creamy all-natural peanut butter]
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions
In the bowl of a mixer, mix together the confectioner’s sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt on medium-low speed with the paddle attachment. When well blended, add the heavy cream and continue mixing on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

Strawberry Cupcakes

Strawberry Cupcakes
Recipe adapted slightly from Martha Stewart Cupcakes

1 3/8 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup cake flour
1/2 T baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/8 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 cup strawberries, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line muffin pans with paper liners or spray with baking spray. Combine flours, baking powder, and salt and sift together.

In mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes on medium-high speed. Add in eggs, one at a time, mixing for about 1 minute after each incorporation, scraping sides of bowl as necessary. Add flour mixture and milk, alternating with flour first and last. Beat until well combined on low speed. Fold in strawberry mixture with a rubber spatula.

Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 of the way full and bake until set about 25-30 minutes. Bake on center rack and rotate pans halfway through baking time. Tops should spring back when lightly pressed. Cool in pan about 10 minutes and then cool completely on wire racks. Finish with icing of choice.