Italian Spumoni Cupcakes Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl and set aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until combined. Add in the whole egg, egg yolk and almond and vanilla extracts. Mix until incorporated.
• Slowly fold the flour mixture into the sugar-egg mixture with a rubber spatula until even. Fold in the chocolate chips, pistachios and cherries.
• Divide the batter into about 1/4 cup balls and space about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10 minutes. Rotate the sheets 180 degrees, switch racks and then bake until slightly golden brown, an additional 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool, and eat on Christmas morning with a hot cup of coffee and amongst piles of wrapping paper and elated pajama'd kids.

Steps:

• Lightly grease a 9-by-5-inch aluminum loaf pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with plastic wrap on all sides, leaving a 2-inch overhang; the cooking spray will help the plastic stick directly to the sides of the pan.
• In a food processor, pulse the chocolate wafers until very fine, like sand. Add the chocolate sauce and pulse a few more times until the mixture comes together. Pour into the prepared loaf pan and firmly press into the bottom of the pan to create a crust. Freeze for 30 minutes to set.
• Meanwhile, remove the chocolate-chocolate chip gelato from the freezer to soften. After 30 minutes, remove the loaf pan from the freezer and spread the chocolate gelato over the crust; use a small offset or rubber spatula to spread the gelato into a flat, even layer. Return the loaf pan to the freezer for another 30 minutes. Meanwhile, let the vanilla bean gelato soften at room temperature.
• When the vanilla gelato has softened, transfer it to a bowl and stir in the sliced Amarena cherries, the Amarena syrup and the red food coloring if using. Mix until the cherries are evenly dispersed and the food coloring is completely incorporated. Remove the loaf pan from the freezer and evenly spread the cherry gelato over the chocolate gelato. Place back in the freezer for at least 1 hour more; it takes longer for the cherry layer to set.
• Thirty minutes before the cherry layer is set, remove the pistachio gelato from the freezer to soften. When softened, spread in an even layer over the cherry gelato; the pistachio layer should come up nearly to the top of the pan. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight.
• When ready to serve, remove the plastic wrap from the top of the pan and invert the spumoni onto a cutting board. Gently lift the loaf pan away and remove the remaining plastic wrap. Slice the spumoni into 3/4-inch slices, using a chef's knife dipped in warm water; dip the knife in the warm water between each slice. Serve immediately.

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a separate, medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, oil, vanilla and egg. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Whisk in the coffee.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out; it will be a thin layer of cake! Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean; begin checking for doneness at 18 minutes.
• Let cool in the pan completely.
• For the frosting: Combine the butter, mascarpone, powdered sugar, salt and lemon zest in a bowl and mix until just combined. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix to combine. Divide the frosting into 2 bowls. Stir the pistachios and green food coloring into one half and the chopped maraschino cherries into the other half.
• To assemble, crumble the cake with your hands and press a small handful into the bottom of a 4-ounce jar, packing firmly, to make a 1/2-inch-thick layer. Spread a layer of frosting (either flavor) on top to make a 1/4-inch layer, then add another 1/2-inch layer of packed cake. Top with a 1/4-inch layer of the other flavor of frosting and smooth out the top. Add a squirt of the canned whipped cream. Finish with a pinch of nonpareils and a whole cherry. Continue with the remaining jars. Serve immediately. (To make ahead, assemble the jars but don't include the canned whipped cream, nonpareils or whole cherries. Refrigerate, covered. Add the whipped cream, nonpareils and whole cherries immediately before serving.)

Steps:

• Remove the lid from the cherry ice cream and let sit at room temperature until the ice cream softens to the consistency of thick cake batter, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove the lids from the pistachio and chocolate ice creams and let soften in the refrigerator until the ice creams are softened to the consistency of thick cake batter, 20 to 30 minutes.
• While the ice creams soften, cover the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with one layer of whole amaretti cookies, flat sides down. Put the remaining amaretti in a resealable plastic bag and crush with a heavy pan. Line another 9-inch round cake pan with plastic wrap, leaving a few inches of overhang. Add the crushed cookies and set aside until Step 4.
• On top of the whole cookies in the springform pan, spread the softened cherry ice cream in an even layer. Tap the pan gently on the counter to remove air pockets. Distribute the maraschino cherries over the cherry ice cream, saving a handful for the top of the cake. Spread the softened pistachio ice cream in an even layer on top of the cherries. Tap the pan gently on the counter to remove air pockets. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, about 2 hours or up to 1 week. (If at any point the ice cream is melting to liquid, pop the cake and ice creams in the freezer to firm to a spoonable consistency.)
• Immediately after placing the cherry and pistachio layers in the freezer, prepare the chocolate layer: Shake to distribute the cookie crumbs evenly in the cake pan. Spread the softened chocolate ice cream in an even layer over the cookies. Press down as you go to adhere the ice cream to the cookies, then tap the pan on the counter to remove air pockets. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, about 2 hours or up to 1 week.
• Run a knife around the cake in the springform pan, then unmold the springform and transfer the cake to a serving plate. Use the plastic wrap overhang to remove the chocolate ice cream out of the cake pan. Invert the layer onto the pistachio ice cream so the crushed cookies are on top (do not remove the plastic wrap). Freeze until set, about 4 hours or overnight.
• When you're ready to serve, whip the cream with the sugar and salt until stiff peaks form. Remove the cake from the freezer and remove the plastic wrap from the cake. Working quickly, with a spoon or offset spatula, frost the sides and top of the cake with the whipped cream, then decorate with sprinkles and the reserved maraschino cherries. Serve right away. (If you find the cake too solid to cut, run your knife under hot water before slicing and wipe it dry between cuts. Also remember that the first piece is always the trickiest to get out.)

Steps:

• Let cookie dough stand at room temperature 5-10 minutes to soften. In a large bowl, beat cookie dough and 3/4 cup flour until combined. Divide dough into three portions., Add remaining flour, cherries and if desired red food coloring to one portion. Add cocoa and liqueur to the second portion. Add pistachios and if desired green food coloring to the remaining portion., Roll each portion between two pieces of waxed paper into an 8x6-in. rectangle. Remove waxed paper. Place cherry rectangle on a piece of plastic wrap. Layer with chocolate and pistachio rectangles; press together lightly. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight., Preheat oven to 375°. Cut chilled dough in half widthwise. Return one rectangle to the refrigerator. Cut remaining rectangle into 1/4-in. slices. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough., Bake 8-10 minutes or until set. Cool 2 minutes before removing to wire racks. Store in an airtight container.