Cupcake Avenger Strikes Again
Now that I have cupcakes in my baking arsenal, I make them all the time for birthdays and celebrations. They are easy to make if you use a cake mix (and I usually have one or two boxes on hand). Or they can be just as easy with a simple cake recipe. I usually make a buttercream frosting with my standing mixer because the frosting is very stiff and looks great when it is swirled on top of the cupcakes using a cake decorating tip.
Here’s a white buttercream frosting recipe that can be easily transformed into chocolate buttercream. It is very sweet and you can temper that by adding a little milk.
White Buttercream Frosting
Ingredients:
1 stick of butter plus 2 tablespoons
1 cup of confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar)
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 teaspoons of hot water
Directions:
Take the butter out of the fridge about 2 hours before you start this recipe so the butter is softened. Place the butter (cut into 1-inch pieces) and the sugar in the standing mixer. Mix on low until the mixture is creamy and well-combined. Then add the hot water and the vanilla and mix on a slightly higher speed until the frosting looks smooth.
To frost:
This frosting is easy to work with and it can be piped onto cupcakes or spread using a flat knife. Add sprinkles or sugared flowers or silver sugar balls (see my rant on this one here).
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
Use the White Buttercream Frosting recipe above, but add 1 cup of melted semisweet chocolate with the hot water and vanilla and combine until the frosting is a solid, chocolate color.
April 16th, 2007 at 11:35 pm
mmm, I’ll have one of each!