Cupcake Wars winning cupcake: The Elvis
I love The Food Network. There is something about watching people prepare food that just puts me in a good mood! So you can imagine when, "Cupcake Wars", made it's debut I was hooked. Basically, Cupcakes Wars starts with four bakeries who take on different "cupcake challanges"...kind of like a cupcake olympics if you will and one by one the teams are eliminated until one lucky bakery is standing. When I saw the following winning cupcake being assembled I knew I had to share it with my cyber-friends...you!
This cupcake is a combination of a few of my favorite things...banana, peanut butter, chocolate, and Elvis :). Bake, enjoy, and pass it on!
The Elvis Cupcake
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups cake flour
- 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 2 extra-large whole eggs
- 3 large egg yolks
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon banana extract
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup buttermilk, shaken
- 1 large, overripe banana, mashed
- Peanut Butter Frosting, recipe follows
- Chocolate Coating, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line mini cupcake pans with cupcake liners.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and yolks, 1 at a time, and then stir in the vanilla and banana extracts. Stir in the vegetable oil. Beat in the flour mixture, alternating with the buttermilk. Fold in the mashed banana.
Fill the cupcake liners about three-quarters full. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean, 8 to10 minutes. Cool completely, and then frost with Peanut Butter Frosting and dip in Chocolate Coating and enjoy!
Peanut Butter Frosting:
- 8 tablespoons unsalted sweet cream butter, softened
- 2 cups smooth peanut butter
- 2 cups powdered sugar, well sifted
- 2 to 4 tablespoons cream, as needed
Beat together the butter and peanut butter until smooth and combined. Blend in the powdered sugar. Add the cream, 1 tablespoon at a time, if the frosting is too thick.
Chocolate Coating:
- 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
Melt together the chocolate chips and vegetable oil in the microwave until completely melted