Late to Create

Let me preface this post first by saying that this is an awesome recipe.  Not only is it really yummy, but it is a bit different than I am used to and I don’t mean different than “out of a box.”  Technically, this recipe is called “White Cupcakes” with “Swiss Meringue Buttercream”.  You can find the cupcake recipe on Page 169 and the frosting on Page 386 of the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook.  Or, you can find it here (minus the strawberry frosting) and here on line.

Hold your horses…this recipe has a dozen eggs or egg whites!

The recipe starts with your typical butter and sugar, add in vanilla and then alternate flour and milk.  Here’s where it goes different…you then whisk 8 large egg whites plus more sugar until you get stiff peaks.

You then fold the egg mixture into the cake mixture which gives you a loamy light and fluffly batter.  This recipe makes 24 cupcakes.

Here they are right out of the oven…nice and golden brown.

 TIP:  make sure you spray the top of your pan with baking spray!  I did not!

Now, time for the frosting.  Here’s my double boiler with my pan and the metal bowl to my mixer.

Sugar and egg whites over medium heat…

until the sugar dissolves…

Now, here’s the crazy part.  You take this and you whisk it while warm for about 6 minutes.

After 6 minutes, the mixture will be cool, flully and form stiff peaks.  This is ONLY sugar and egg whites.  How cool is that?

Next, you mix in 3 sticks (cut into chunks) unsalted butter…this is where you get the “buttercream”.

TIP:  Make sure the butter is room temperature…DO NOT warm the butter as it will make the frosting too soft.

I use a technique I learned over at Sweet Sugar Belle  to prepare my icing for frosting the cupcakes.  You can click on the link here for the tutorial.  Please not that the frosting recipe is different is this, but the technique is the same.

You first lay out plastic wrap and place frosting in the middle.  You then roll the plastic wrap around the frosting and twist the ends.

You then get a pastry bag (disposable or cloth), place the couple on the inside and clip the end open.  (NOTE…I forgot the coupler in this photo).   Then, feed the twisted end of the plastic wrap through the hold in the end of the pastry bag.

Once you pull the plastic through the pastry bag, add the second half of the coupler on the outside and cut the plastic wrap.  With a small squeeze, you will have frosting.  The best thing is you don’t have to worry about a big mess and frosting squeezing out the back of the bag.  TRUST ME!

Here are the finished frosted cupcakes.  I should note here that my frosting was a little warm (because of the butter noted above).  Had I been a little more patient and cooled the frosting a bit, the frosting would have looked much better and set higher.

Regardless….the cupcakes and the frosting tasted super yummy!  Did I say YUMMY!  Amazing!

This is a fun recipe to try because of all the different techniques.

 Give yourself plenty of time and make sure you have extra eggs in case you break a yolk when separating the eggs!

Happy Baking!

You can now follow my blog on Facebook, Twitter and Bloglovin!  See the sidebar>>>>for links!