Nutella Swirl Cupcakes - Third Times A Charm

Some recipes must be wrestled with before they are any good to serve the public. Normally, I suggest doing this in the privacy of your own home but I had to use other people as guinea pigs for the first two disasters.

Let me preface this by saying that Nutella cupcakes are common in the blogging world and there are many variations floating around. The concept, in theory, should be easy. A vanilla cake batter swirled with Nutella to form a fudgy ribbon once the cupcakes are baked. Ok so onto the flawed attempts...

Disaster #1: I used a recipe found on the net and ended up with a greasy, bomb like poundcake cupcake with a soggy Nutella ribbon. Seriously rich and not good.

Disaster #2: I decided to use a vanilla cake mix (yes, I know - puritans do not be mad) and I used a name brand. Problem is, cake mixes are extremely light and fluffy and so the Nutella fell to the bottom of the cupcake like a rock and then burned onto the bottom of the muffin papers.

So I turned to my beloved Betty Crocker cookbook for the perfect yellow cake that would hold the Nutella into place. Sure enough, the cake that I picked was the right one - finally! - and the Nutella made these delicious fudgy ribbons in a cake that held together beautifully. Josh's office loved them and I am definitely going to make them again.

Ciao!

Nutella Swirl Cupcakes
24 cupcakes

Ingredients:
2 1/4c. all purpose flour
1 1/2c. sugar
1/2c. butter, softened
1 1/4c. milk
3 1/2t. baking powder
1 t. salt
2 t. vanilla
3 eggs
1/2c. Nutella

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin cups with papers or grease lightly.
Beat sugar and butter until creamy.
Beat in milk, vanilla and eggs.
Stir in flour, salt and baking powder.
Fill each muffin paper with 2T. batter, or about one third full. Top the batter with 1t. Nutella and then top with another 2T. batter or until the papers are two thirds full.
Using the point of a knife or a toothpick, gently swirl the Nutella through out the batter.
Bake for 20 minutes or until knife inserted comes out clean.

The "Diet" Cupcake

With the summer here, I seem to notice more than ever when I have gained some poundage. It seems like every decadent morsel I put in my mouth instantly shows up in my ill-fitting clothes. Problem is, I am not one to ditch dessert. I cannot. It is too wonderful and I would miss it too much. Josh and I are not have as liberal with the sweet stuff as we used to be and I will attribute that to the fact that I rarely keep the baking in the house. We have also tried to have "lighter" desserts if there are such things and I have to admit I think we are being duped. Two of my favorite icecreams claim to be so low fat and low sugar and I am not sure how they can be when they taste that good.

To further the "light" dessert cause, I have been searching Weight Watchers websites and Self.com for some good recipes. This little ditty was listed mainly because the fat is eliminated. The sugar and flour, however, are still front and center. And of course, no one really takes into account that a cupcake is really nothing without frosting. I was completely lazy - as if using a cake mix isn't pure laziness on its own - and I used a container of Betty Crocker vanilla frosting. Whatever the calories are in that product I can only guess.

The recipe cannot be easier. I poured the mix into a bowl, poured in the soda and the egg and beat for two minutes. The batter was extremely lumpy and the minute I poured in the soda some sort of creepy chemical reaction occurred, causing the dough to foam and begin to rise. The batter was also a bit thinner than normal but that did not seem to affect it. I baked for 20 minutes and ended up with nice domed cakes, not overflowing the pan as they normally do.

My only concern - and I will have to wait for Josh's office feedback to confirm - is that the warm cupcakes stuck to the wrapper in the worst way and crumbled the minute you picked it up. Yes, yes I did have to taste one. Quality control and all! The flavor, though was pretty good. Not an intense rootbeer flavor but not exactly vanilla either. I hope that the flavor has intensified through the night.

So to recap, the cupcake is full of carbs and minus a few grams of fat. Kind of a bust when you think about what the goal was. Nevertheless, I give you the Diet Pop Cupcake. Guaranteed to fool the tastebuds but certainly not the waistline. Enjoy but eat at your own risk!

Diet Pop Cake

1 package vanilla cake mix (I used Betty Crocker)

1 can diet rootbeer

1 egg

Pour all three ingredients into a mixer and beat on medium for 2 minutes. Bake in paperlined muffin cups for 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

I have also heard that diet Dr. Pepper with chocolate cake mix is delicious as well.

11am, Josh's office sends an update. The cupcakes are good but not my best. Haha, it's a cake mix, how can that possibly be amazing? However, the crumbly texture is gone and they are not sticking to the liners. Also, they seem to fool the health conscience because the one "dieter" in the office absolutely loved them. A mixed review...

Coconut Cupcakes

It has been ages since I wrote on this blog, mainly because I have not been working for 2 weeks. Now, though, I just found out I start my new job this Monday so I decided to get busy in the kitchen and enjoy the time off.

Josh's office has been craving sweets and I was craving cupcakes so I decided to try a recipe I have wanted to test for a long time. Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa fame, makes amazing food and I love everything that she creates. Her coconut cupcakes were no exception. I scored rave reviews with these, even though I will admit to using storebought frosting in a pinch. I topped the cupcakes with Duncan Hines white fluffy frosting and then sprinkled them with toasted coconut. They were sweet and moist and fantastic. Try them out...

Ina's Coconut Cupcakes
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 1/3 cup flaked sweetened coconut

Line 16 muffin cups with paper baking cups, and set aside.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees, and set oven racks at top and lower middle levels.
In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, beat together the sugar and butter on medium speed for about 3 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
Turn the mixer speed to low, and add the eggs one at a time, beating 1 minute after each.
Beat in the vanilla and almond extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and beat again briefly. Add the flour mixture and the buttermilk alternately to the butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined.
Fold in the coconut.
Fill each muffin cup almost full with batter. Bake in a 325-degree oven for 11 to 14 minutes on the top and lower-middle racks of oven, then reverse the positions of the two cupcake pans (putting the one from the top on the lower middle rack and vice versa), and bake another 11 to 14 minutes or until the cupcake tops are golden and a wooden toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean.

Ciao!

Chocolate Coconut Buttercream Cupcakes

Of all the yumminess in the baking world, I think cupcakes are pretty far up the list. This flavor is our favorite. It was discovered while trying Crave in Kensington for the first time. Their cupcakes are heaven and big and expensive. So if this is anything like that one was, then Josh will love me forever and I won't need Crave anymore... and all that from a cupcake.

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cupcakes
24 regular cupcakes / 350 degree oven
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
1-1/2 cups milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1. Beat butter until softened. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
2. Add eggs, one at a time, beating 30 seconds after each addition.
3. Measure the flour, baking soda, salt, cocoa powder, and espresso powder into a medium sized bowl and whisk to combine.
4. Measure the milk and vanilla into a measuring thing.
5. Add about a third of the dry ingredients to the butter/sugar and beat to combine. Add about a half of the milk/vanilla and beat to combine. Continue adding, alternating between dry and wet and finishing with the dry.
6. Scoop batter into cupcake cups about 3/4’s full. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Coconut Buttercream Frosting
1-1/2 sticks butter, room temperature
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar
1-1/2 cups coconut, sweetened flaked
1. Beat butter briefly, scrape bowl.
2. Add the sifted powdered sugar and milk. Beat until smooth.
3. Add coconut and mix until combined.