Thursday, December 20, 2012

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes

Vanilla Bean Cupcakes

So to start off my holiday baking I decided to try these vanilla bean cupcakes and it was such a good choice. I absolutely love these cupcakes. I'm a bigger fan of chocolate cupcakes myself but when I had these I fell in love. Ok, not really but close. They are Sooooo yummy. I think what makes these cupcakes and the frosting so good is Vanilla Bean Paste. It is quite expensive but really really good and I think worth the cost. I love also that you can see the vanilla bean specks in the cupcakes and also frosting. This recipe both the cake and the frosting is pretty time consuming but so worth the wait. So, here we go:






Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
1 1/2 c cake flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1/2 c unsalted butter at room temperature
1 c sugar
3 large eggs
1/2 c sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the frosting:
5 large egg whites
1 c plus 2 Tbsp white sugar
pinch of salt
3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1/2 c powdered sugar

Directions:
For the cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Prepare cupcake pan with liners.  Set aside.
2.In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cake flour, baking powder, and salt.  Whisk together and set aside.  3.Add the butter and vanilla bean paste in electric mixer and beat on medium-high speed for 3 minutes, until light and creamy in color.
4. Add the sugar to the butter mixture, 1/4 cup at a time, beating 1 minute after each addition.  
5.Mix in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.  
6.Combine the sour cream and vanilla extract in a measuring cup.  With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients alternately with the wet ingredients, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients and mixing just until incorporated.
7.Divide batter between prepared liners, filling about 2/3 of the way full.  Bake 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.   
This is what the batter should look like.


For the frosting:

1. Combine the egg whites, white sugar, and salt in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water.  Heat, whisking frequently, until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture reaches 160 F (This takes a while.  Use a thermometer).
2. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment.  Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form and the mixture has cooled to room temperature, about 8 minutes. 
3. Reduce speed to medium and add the butter, 2 Tbsp at a time, adding more once each addition has been incorporated.  
4. Stir in the powdered sugar
5. Stir in the vanilla bean paste and mix just until incorporated.

This is what the frosting will look like once it's done. Can you see the yummy vanilla bean specks?

And the finish product!! This didn't last very long in my house.

Original recipe came from beachsidebaker. I made some changes in my recipe though. Which I thought turned out a lot better!

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