Creme Brulee Cupcakes Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Place paper baking cup in each of 24 regular-size muffin cups. Make and bake cake mix as directed on box for cupcakes, using water, oil and eggs and adding vanilla bean paste. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling racks. Cool completely.
• Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray; line cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper. Spray parchment paper with cooking spray. In 2-quart saucepan, cook sugar and water over medium heat, without stirring, to 325°F on candy thermometer or until small amount of mixture dropped into cup of very cold water separates into hard, brittle threads, swirling pan occasionally. (Watch carefully so mixture does not burn.) Immediately remove from heat. Pour mixture onto lined cookie sheet, spreading in thin layer. Cool completely. Break into shards.
• Scoop out small cavity in center of each cupcake. Spoon pudding into large resealable food-storage plastic bag. Cut off 1 corner of bag; squeeze bag to pipe pudding into center of each cupcake, filling full.
• Spoon frosting into decorating bag fitted with #1G star tip. Pipe frosting onto cupcakes. Garnish with sugar shards.

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine the cream, egg yolks and sugar. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture reaches 160° or is thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon. Stir in vanilla. , Transfer to eight 6-oz. ramekins or custard cups. Place cups in a baking pan; add 1 in. of boiling water to pan. Bake, uncovered, at 325° for 25-30 minutes or until centers are just set (mixture will jiggle). Remove ramekins from water bath; cool for 10 minutes. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours., One hour before serving, place custards on a baking sheet. Sprinkle each with 1-2 teaspoons brown sugar. Broil 8 in. from the heat for 4-7 minutes or until sugar is caramelized. Refrigerate leftovers.

Steps:

• For the cake batter: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F; line cupcake pans with 24 cupcake liners.
• Put the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and beat slowly until it is smooth and creamy. Add the granulated sugar and salt and cream at moderate speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Add the eggs and egg whites together a little at a time, beating after each addition until the eggs are absorbed before adding more. Mix until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl to insure even mixing, about 5 minutes.
• Sift together the cake flour and baking powder in a medium bowl and set aside. Mix the milk and vanilla together in a separate bowl. Add one-quarter of the flour mixture to the butter and egg mixture and beat just until blended in. Add one-third of the milk mixture and beat just until blended in. Repeat with the remaining ingredients, alternating the flour with the milk, until all the ingredients are used. Scrape down the sides of the bowl occasionally for even mixing.
• Scoop some batter into each liner and bake until an inserted toothpick comes out clean, 20 to 22 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting.
• For the custard frosting: Using an electric mixer with a whip attachment, whip the cornstarch and egg yolks in a stainless steel bowl until light and fluffy. Warm the whipping cream and confectioners' sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. When the cream mixture reaches about 100 degrees F, add about half of it to the egg yolks, whisking, and then transfer the mixture back to the saucepan. Continue cooking the yolk and cream mixture until it reaches a boil (about 180 degrees F). Remove from the heat immediately and pour into a clean stainless steel bowl. Whip in the butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy. (The mixture may be stored in an air-tight container up to 5 days.)
• For the brulee sugar mixture: Mix together the brown sugar and granulated sugar in a medium bowl.
• Top each cupcake with 1 1/2 ounces of the custard frosting. Sprinkle on some of the brulee sugar mixture and torch. Repeat several times to desired thickness.

Steps:

• Zest lemons into a small bowl and set aside. Juice lemons into a separate bowl and set aside.
• Whisk sugar and cornstarch together in a medium saucepan. Add half-and-half and whisk until fully combined. Add egg yolks and lemon zest and whisk thoroughly.
• Cook on medium heat, stirring frequently with a large spoon. Continue stirring until liquid thickly coats the back of the spoon.
• Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice and butter until blended. Pour through strainer into a container. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, until set.
• Once filling is set, preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Combine butter with brown sugar in a mixing bowl. Blend in eggs, vanilla extract, salt, and half-and-half.
• With a mixer running on low, gradually blend in baking powder and flour, scraping down the sides if needed.
• Place 24 cupcake papers in cupcake tin, and spoon batter evenly into each.
• Bake for 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out cleanly from the cupcakes. Remove from cupcake tin and allow to cool somewhat.
• Remove wrappers from the cakes. This is necessary to keep the paper from buring when the torch is used.
• Scoop out some of the cake to make a well, ensuring it's about a 1/4 inch thick (thinner than that my cause the filling to leak through the sides). Press together any holes that bubbles may formed in the carved out cake to ensure the filling stays in the cake.
• Spoon enough filling to fill the well, and smooth out to make a level surface. Don't spend too much time with making it perfectly smooth.
• Sprinkle a teaspoon of sugar on a few cupcakes at a time. Don't do more than a few at a time because the sugar will start to be absorbed by the filling. Tap the sides of the cupcake to level out the sugar if needed. Using a brulee torch, melt the sugar on the surface of the first cupcake. When it starts to smoke, move on to the next cupcake. Return to the first cake, if needed, to melt the remaining sugar. Repeat, doing a few at a time, until done.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line two 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners.
• Mix cake mix, water, caramel topping, oil, eggs, and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract in large bowl with mixer on medium speed or beat vigorously by hand, about 2 minutes. Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 14 to 19 minutes. Cool in the tins for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely, about 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, mix whipping cream and brown sugar together with an electric mixer until sugar has dissolved. Add remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla and continue mixing until peaks appear in the cream.
• Frost cooled cupcakes and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.

Steps:

• 1. TO MAKE CUPCAKES: Preheat oven to 350° F.
• 2. Mix flour, baking powder and salt together. Set aside.
• 3. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Alternately beat in dry ingredients and milk. Add caramel syrup and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
• 4. Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff, but not dry. Gently fold egg whites into batter.
• 5. Spoon batter into cupcake papers, filling cups about 2/3 full. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool.
• 6. TO MAKE MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING: Put sugar, egg whites and salt into the top of a double boiler over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm (about 160 degrees). Pour heated egg whites into mixing bowl. With mixer on high speed (using whisk attachment if you have a KitchenAid), beat egg white mixture until it forms stiff, but not dry, peaks. Continue beating until fluffy and cooled, about 7 minutes total.
• 7. With mixer on medium-low speed (using paddle attachment if you have a KitchenAid), add butter, two tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. Increase speed to medium-high; continue beating until frosting appears thick, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and continue beating 1 minute to reduce air bubbles.
• 8. TO ASSEMBLE CUPCAKES: Remove center of cupcake by cutting out cone shape. Ovefill cupcake with buttercream so there is no apparent recess. Sprinkle brown sugar on top and caramelize with creme brulee torch. (If you don't have a creme brulee torch in your cooking arsenal, fear not! Place cupcakes under broiler, but only with constant supervision because they will brown quickly, and blackened, while popular in Cajun cuisine, wouldn't appear appealing atop these magnificent morsels.)