Churro Cupcakes

For all the cinnamon-sugar lovers out there, this is a delicious recipe! Keep it simple by topping them off with melted butter and cinnamon sugar, or kick it up a notch with cream cheese frosting.

Cupcake Ingredients
2 C flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg (if using dried nutmeg, use 3/4 tsp)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 C buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 C (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/3 C sugar
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 large eggs

Cupcake Directions
Prep the dry and wet ingredients. Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt) in a bowl, and mix together the wet ingredients (buttermilk, vanilla) in a separate bowl.

Cream together the butter and both sugars until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes on medium-high speed.

Add the eggs 1 at a time on medium-low speed. Mix until creamy.

Add in half the flour mixture, the buttermilk mixture, and the remaining flour mixture. Mix until just combined after each addition.

Divide into baking pans (makes about 16 cupcakes) and bake at 350 until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cupcakes take 18-22 minutes.

Top them off, and enjoy!

This recipe originally from the Sprinkles Baking Book.

Grasshopper Cupcakes

A labor of love, and well-worth the result! These cupcakes are amazing. You could skip the frosting and just eat the cupcakes with the mint syrup to save yourself a step and eat these delicious treats sooner.

Mint Syrup Ingredients
½ C sugar
½ C water
Pinch of salt
½ tsp vanilla
4 sprigs fresh mint

 

Mint Syrup Directions

Combine sugar, water, salt, and mint in a saucepan.

Bring to a boil, stir to dissolve sugar.

Add in vanilla.

Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 20-25 minutes.

Strain the mint from the finish syrup (meaning, pour syrup through a sieve or colander into a container).

Use warm or at room temperature, can be stored in the fridge

 

Cupcake Ingredients
2 ½ C flour
1 ½ C sugar
1 tsp baking soda
¾ tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
½ C cocoa powder
4 oz semisweet chocolate, melted and mostly cooled (chocolate chips work well. Zap in the microwave for 10-15 second intervals, stirring in between, until just melted)
¾ C plain yogurt (if you can only find Greek yogurt at the store, thin it down with water until the consistency of regular yogurt)
1 C (2 sticks) butter, melted and cooled (can substitute 1 C oil for 1 C butter)
1 C water
4 large eggs at room temperature

 

Cupcake Directions

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Add in the wet ingredients (chocolate, yogurt, butter, water, eggs) and whisk until no longer lumpy

Bake at 350 until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean (cooking time varies depending on what you are making. Regular cupcakes took about 13-16 minutes, mini cupcakes took 9-10 minutes, 8-inch or 9-inch cake pan would probably take 25-35 minutes)

After removing from the oven, poke holes in the cake/cupcakes and pour on mint syrup. Let the cake/cupcakes finish cooling in pan (for maximum syrup absorption), then remove.

 

Frosting Ingredients
1 ½ C unsalted butter (3 sticks) at room temperature (let butter sit out about 30 minutes)
2 Tbsp cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
4 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted and mostly cooled (same instructions as above)
4 C powdered sugar
For additional labor of love, whip up a batch of plain frosting and divide it into three parts. Flavor one with mint extract, one with vanilla, and one with melted chocolate.

 

Frosting Directions

Combine butter, cocoa powder, salt and 2 cups of powdered sugar on low speed until just incorporated, about 1 minute.

Add remaining sugar and beat on medium speed about 1.5-2 minutes

Add in melted chocolate and beat frosting until very light and fluffy, about 2 more minutes

Enjoy!

 

This recipe from Cake Magic