Chocolate Cupcakes With Butterscotch Icing Recipes

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Prepare the chocolate by melting it in the top of a double boiler, stirring until it is smooth. Add 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of the butter and stir until it is melted and blended. Add the warm milk and stir until smooth. Set the chocolate aside to cool.
• Line the bottoms only of three 9-inch cake pans with circles of parchment paper, or grease each pan bottom only with solid shortening and dust lightly with flour. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.
• Whip the egg whites until stiff using the wire beater of the mixer. Transfer the beaten whites to a separate bowl and set aside.
• In the mixer bowl, cream the remaining 1 1/2 sticks of butter and the sugar together until fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the melted, cooled chocolate and the vanilla. Mix well.
• With the mixer on very low, stir in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Do this by adding about a third of the flour and slowly stirring it in completely. Then add about half the buttermilk and stir it in. Continue adding flour and buttermilk in this manner, ending with the flour. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and stir again. With a long-handled spoon or spatula, fold and stir the beaten egg whites into the batter until the batter is smooth with no visible clumps of whites.
• Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Bake on the middle rack of the oven, allowing at least 1/4-inch clearance between the pans and the oven walls. The cake will rise above the pan edges as it bakes but will not spill over and will settle back down as it continues to bake. The cake is done when it begins to pull away from the sides of the pans and springs back to a light touch. Cool the layers in the pans for about 8 minutes.
• Run a knife around the edges of each pan and turn the layers out onto wire racks that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Cool the layers completely before frosting.
• For the frosting: Place the butterscotch morsels in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water or in the top of a double boiler. Stir until melted, then remove from the heat.
• In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the cream cheese until smooth. Add the butter and confectioner's sugar, and continue mixing. Add the melted butterscotch morsels and the heavy cream and vanilla, and mix until fully combined.
• To assemble the cake: Place one layer on a cake stand and spread with frosting. Frost each layer completely, top and sides, as it is added to the cake.

Steps:

• Bring cherries, sugar, and lemon juice to a simmer in a medium pot over medium-low heat. Cook until sugar is dissolved, stirring frequently. Remove 2 tablespoons of cherry juice from the pot and place in a small bowl. Stir in cornstarch until thoroughly combined. Add cornstarch mixture to the pot and simmer until thickened and slightly reduced, about 5 minutes more.
• Remove compote from heat and cool completely. Measure out 1 cup for the cupcake batter. Reserve remaining compote, about 6 tablespoons, for the frosting.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line or grease two standard 12-cup muffin tins.
• Whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Beat brown sugar, butter, and white sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in vanilla extract. Mix in 1/3 of the flour mixture, stirring until just combined. Pour in 1/2 of the sour cream and cooled coffee; mix until just combined.
• Continue alternating additions of the flour mixture with sour cream and coffee, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, until batter is smooth. Do not overmix. Gently fold in 1 cup cherry compote. Fill each prepared muffin cup 2/3 full of batter.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the tops of the cupcakes spring back lightly when touched, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool in the tins for a few minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Prepare cherry buttercream while the cupcakes are cooling. Beat butter in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla and salt. Add 2 tablespoons of cherry compote and beat on medium-high speed until thoroughly combined. Repeat twice more with remaining cherry compote, beating well after each addition. Add heavy cream and beat until frosting is fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Spread or pipe frosting over the cooled cupcakes.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F Lightly Butter nonstick muffin pan or line with paper baking cups.
• In large bowl, whisk egg. Whisk in brown sugar, Milk, Butter, corn syrup and vanilla. Sprinkle with flour, baking powder and salt and whisk until blended and smooth.
• Spoon into prepared muffin pan. Bake for 15 to 20 min or until cake tester inserted into centre cupcake comes out clean.
• Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minute Transfer to rack to cool completely.
• Icing: In bowl, using electric mixer, beat 2 tbsp of the butterscotch sauce with Butter until blended. Sift icing sugar into bowl and beat until smooth, adding as much of remaining butterscotch a little at a time as necessary to make icing smooth and spreadable. Spread over cooled cupcakes.
• Tips: If you don't have dark brown sugar, use light brown sugar and add 2 tsp (10 mL) fancy molasses.