Spicy Caramel Chocolate Cupcakes, Brown Butter Whiskey Buttercream Frosting
Decadent, soft and fluffy chocolate cake with spicy caramel filling, topped with a swirl of brown butter whiskey Swiss buttercream frosting. It’s gooey, chewy, sticky with a surprise spicy kick that’s designed to shut yo mouth!
It all started with a funny cat t-shirt of a grumpy cat baking that says, “I just baked you some shut the fucupcakes” and it spiraled into this wonderfully weird dessert. What would a “Fucupcake” taste like? I polled my Instagram followers and the overwhelming majority said:
So here’s what a Baking With Chickens “Shut the Fucupcake” would taste like! Hope you enjoy it. You could also easily make this recipe into a one layer snacking cake in a 9x9 pan, stuff the caramel equally into 9 squares, and cover with frosting and decorate with pretzels.
Baked With Chickens Episode
This cupcake is in the first episode of BAKED WITH CHICKENS, a culinary cannabis baking show where I show you how bake and make edibles at home. Watch the episode (21+ only):
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LEVO Infusion Machine (use my code "BWC" to get a 10% discount)
Make It Infused
Infuse with an indica or indica hybrid with rich chocolatey and caramel flavors, such as Cream Caramel or Chocolate Hashberry. Strains high in Myrcene will also give desired calming effects.
Three ways to infuse, choose one or all three depending on the potency you desire:
Cake Batter with infused vegetable/coconut oil
Caramels with cannabutter
Buttercream frosting with cannabutter
Get The Recipe
Shut the Fucupcakes
Decadent, soft and fluffy chocolate cake with spicy caramel filling, topped with a swirl of brown butter whiskey Swiss buttercream frosting. It’s gooey, chewy, sticky with a surprise spicy kick that’s designed to shut yo mouth.
Makes 12 cupcakes
INGREDIENTS:
Spicy Whiskey Caramel, adapted from The Kitchn
Make ahead the morning of, the day before
*you’ll need a candy thermometer, or a digital thermometer to make caramel
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cups (150g) granulated sugar
1/8 cup corn syrup
1/8 cup water
1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder
1/4 teaspoon whiskey
Chocolate Cupcakes, adapted from Add a Pinch
Makes 12 cupcakes
1 cup (145g) all-purpose flour
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (50g) unsweetened dark cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon instant coffee powder
1/2 cup milk of choice
1/4 cup vegetable or coconut oil
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup boiling water
Brown Butter Whiskey Buttercream Frosting, adapted from King Arthur Baking
Makes: 5 cups of frosting
1 1/4 cups (250g) sugar
1/2 cup (3 large/113g) egg whites, at room temperature
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 cups (4 sticks/454g) browned butter, softened at room temperature
1 tablespoon whiskey
Mini pretzels for decoration
INSTRUCTIONS:
Make the Caramel
1. Line a small baking dish (8x8in.) with parchment paper so that excess paper hangs over the edges and spray with cooking oil spray.
2. In a small saucepan, melt the 2 tablespoons butter into the ⅔ cup heavy cream over low heat until the butter melts. Remove from the heat and set aside.
3. In a large saucepan, combine the ¾ cups sugar, ⅛ teaspoon salt, ⅛ cup corn syrup, and ⅛ cup water. Stir until the sugar is evenly moistened and it forms a thick, grainy paste. Warm on low heat to make the mixture easier to stir and melt the sugar slightly. Stir to combine being careful to not get sugar on the sides of the pan. If there are sugar crystals on the sides of the pan, wipe down the sides of the pan with a damp pastry brush so there are no crystals above the surface of the mixture to prevent seizing. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the pan so that the heat sensor is immersed in the sugar but not touching the bottom of the pan.
4. Place the sugar mixture on the stove and heat on medium to medium-high heat. Let the sugar syrup come to a boil, DO NOT STIR. The sugar syrup will turn transparent and boil rapidly. Boil for a few minutes, WATCH the thermometer for it to reach 300 degrees F.
5. When the sugar mixture reaches 300 degrees F (do not let it go above 320 degrees F), turn off the heat. Remove the candy thermometer and set aside on a clean plate. Slowly pour in the cream and melted butter mixture with one hand, while whisking gently with the other hand. The sugar and cream mixture will bubble up and triple in size. Stop whisking once all the milk and butter mixture has been added.
6. Clip the candy thermometer back onto the pan and heat the caramel to 245°F to 250°F (soft ball stage) over medium heat. DO NOT STIR and let the caramel come to a boil and simmer, it will darken in color. Remove from the heat when the caramel reaches 245°F to 250°F at soft ball stage but BEFORE it reaches hard ball temp. Quickly whisk the whiskey and cayenne powder into the caramel.
7. Pour the caramel into the parchment-lined pan and set aside to cool to room temp and set for at least 2 hours or (ideally) overnight. Store covered in the fridge. These will be soft, gooey caramels.
Make the Cupcakes
1. Preheat oven to 325º F and place cupcake liners in a cupcake tin. In a large bowl or in a stand mixer bowl, stir together 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, ½ cup cocoa, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon instant coffee powder.
2. Add ½ cup milk, ¼ cup vegetable oil, 1 egg, and ½ teaspoon vanilla to flour mixture and stir until well combined. Add ½ cup boiling water to the cake batter. Beat or whisk on high speed for about 1 minute to add air to the batter.
3. Pour cake batter into the cupcake liners, about 1/2 full. Place in the oven on the center rack and bake for about 20-25 minutes until a toothpick poked in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and set aside to allow the cupcakes to cool completely while you make the frosting.
Make Brown Butter Whiskey Frosting
1. Brown Butter: Melt 2 cups butter in a large saucepan and heat over medium heat for 5-8 minutes until the milk solids on the bottom of the pan turn golden brown and have a nutty smell. Do not burn the butter, burnt butter is not browned butter, and it tastes gross! Remove from heat and cool to room temp. Place in fridge to chill and solidify into a softened butter stage while stirring every 20 minutes to make sure it doesn’t solidify while separated. You can make this ahead of time, store it in the fridge, and bring it to room temp when ready to use.
2. Make Swiss Meringue: Whisk 1¼ cup sugar and ⅛ teaspoon salt into the 3 egg whites, then set the bowl over a saucepan filled with just two inches of simmering water over medium-low heat. Do not let the bottom of the egg whites bowl touch the water. Whisk the whites and sugar constantly until sugar is dissolved, mixture has thinned out, and looks foamy, about 4 minutes. Transfer warm mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. On medium-high speed, beat the mixture until stiff glossy peaks form, at least 10-15 minutes. If the bowl and meringue still feel warm, wait until both cool to room temperature before adding the butter in the next step. Place it in the refrigerator. A warm bowl and meringue will melt the butter.
3. Make Buttercream: Your browned butter should be softened and spreadable but not too soft and melty. On medium-high speed, add the room temperature butter 1 tablespoon at a time to the meringue. If the butter is too warm it won’t mix into the meringue properly and you’ll have soupy frosting. If that happens, put the entire bowl into the fridge to chill to 20 minutes and mix again. The butter should be stiff enough to whip. After all the butter has been added, turn the mixer down to low-medium speed and fully beat in the whiskey. Your Swiss meringue buttercream should be thick, creamy, and silky smooth. If it looks runny and soupy, chill in the fridge for 20 minutes and whip again until the butter firms up enough to whip into creamy frosting.
4. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a decorative piping tip. Or if you don’t have fancy cake decorating tools, use a Ziploc bag and cut off a corner to pipe.
Assemble the Cupcakes
1. Cut a small circular hole in the top center of the cupcake. Lift the caramel out of the pan and using a sharp knife, cut the caramel into square pieces that are slightly less than the height of the cupcake. Spray your knife with cooking spray to help reduce sticking. Roll/fold the caramel into a cylinder shape and stuff it into the center of the cupcake. Use the cut-out cake pieces to cover up the center hole. Repeat with the remaining cupcakes.
2. Pipe frosting in the center of the cupcake. Decorate with a mini pretzel.
3. Store covered and refrigerated until ready to serve. Best enjoyed at room temperature.
Did you make this?? Tag @bakingwithchickens and hashtag #bakingwithchickens on Instagram.
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