Now, it doesn’t mean that I have taken a leave of absence from cooking and baking. Quite the opposite actually. I have had the wonderful opportunity to bake for officemates over the past few weeks, you see, and my to-bake list has not stopped growing. I am so thankful for the opportunity, really.
With so much baking requests on my sleeve, I have not had the time to continue with my baking experiments… Except today. Finally! I’ve been doodling back and forth on what to bake.. I have quite a lot of recipes and blogs bookmarked, and I can’t decide. Wah.
After debating with myself, I settled on an easy vanilla cupcake recipe courtesy of Joy the Baker. It said TWELVE frosted cupcakes with just one stick of butter. Hmm, I just can’t pass up on that! I deviated from the recipe a bit though. I didn’t do the vanilla buttercream frosting and decided to try her “best” chocolate buttercream frosting.
What can I say? Except for the cupcake tops going a bit haywire and just getting 10 cuppies, both recipes didn’t disappoint. I am so pleased.
Here’s my version of vanilla cupcakes with chocolate buttercream:
Vanilla Cupcakes
Adapted from Joy the Baker
1 cup all-purpose flour
a scant 3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup whole milk
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Make the cupcakes:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.
Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and butter into a bowl, and using an electric mixer, beat on low speed until the mixture is a sandy consistency and everything is combined. Gradually pour in half of the milk and beat until the milk is just incorporated.
Whisk the egg, vanilla and remaining milk together in a separate bowl for a few seconds, then pour into the flour mixture and continue beating until just incorporated. Scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side or the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Continue mixing until the batter is smooth. Just a few minutes. Do not overmix.
Scoop the batter into paper lined muffin tins, dividing between the 12 cups (I ended up with 10.. I think I scooped way too much!). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until light golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool slightly in the pan, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.
While cupcakes are cooling, make the frosting.
The Best Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Adapted from Joy the Baker
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup Ovaltine (I used Milo, cos in my part of the world, it's more popular. ;p)
Cream together butter, cocoa powder and salt. Butter mixture will be very thick. Turn off the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl and add powdered sugar. Turn mixer on low and mix in powdered sugar while adding milk and vanilla extract. As the sugar incorporates, raise the speed of the mixer to beat the frosting. Beat until smooth.
In a 1-cup measuring glass, stir together heavy cream and Milo. Turn mixer speed to medium and pour cream mixture into frosting in a slow, steady stream, until you’ve reached your desired consistency.
** You may not need the full amount of Milo and cream. **
To assemble:
Fill cupcakes once cool. I used an apple corer to remove a bit of the center of the cupcakes where the chocolate buttercream filling goes. It made my life easier. Hee. You can fill cupcakes however way you like.
Once filling is almost up to the brim, replace top of the cupcake and spread or pipe frosting as you wish.
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