Fudge Graham Cupcakes

What a nice, short, title. What I ought to have called it was, "Fudge graham cupcakes with crisp graham crust and whipped ganache filling'. However, because the idea that you might think I actually made a simple cupcake and are even now being drawn in...

Well, it's not that complicated. Especially if you have leftover ganache lying around. I generally do. What, you don't? What are you doing with all of yours?

Bet you're wondering where we're hanging out...

So what we have here is a cupcake inspired by a cookie I've hardly ever eaten - the Keebler fudge-covered graham cracker. My mom just never bought those kind of cookies, and at this point in my life my attitude is really, "Why would anyone do that to a graham cracker?" But I'd gladly make a cupcake out of it!

Just mannin' the farm,

So I started with the graham crust and graham cake from my Key lime cupcakes (I mean, why reinvent the wheel?). I whipped up some ganache I had on hand to make it fluffy and then spooned that into the baked cupcakes as the filling, make a very chocolate-y buttercream to frost them with, and then garnished with a few additional graham crackers. Pretty simple, especially for me. So let's do it, shall we?

This makes about 18 cupcakes.

~ Graham Cupcakes ~
For graham bottom:
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup melted butter, salted
1/4 cup sugar
For cupcakes:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla 
1 cup whole milk
1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 18 standard-sized muffin cups with baking liners (or grease well).

In a small bowl, combine the 1 cup graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and 1/4 cup sugar, mixing until crumbly. Press a small amount into the bottom of each muffin cup, dividing the total evenly, and press down with your fingers to form a smooth(ish) bottom layer. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes and let cool before filling with cupcake batter.

Crispy graham cracker bottoms - please don't skip this step!

Cupcakes now:
Beat the butter for about 30 seconds until well creamed. Add the sugars and mix with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add in vanilla and mix again.
Combine the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking soda and powder, and salt into a small bowl. Add in about half of the dry mixture into the butter mixture and stir until combined. Add in the milk and mix well. Finish with the rest of the flour mixture and mix just until combined.  
Scoop the batter into the muffin cups (the ones you already have the graham cracker crust baked into, remember?) and bake at 350 for about 15 - 18 minutes or until a tester inserted comes out clean. Let cool in the muffin tins for 2 minutes or so, then remove from pans and cool completely on a wire rack. 

~Ganache~
8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped 
1/2 cup heavy cream
pinch instant espresso powder

In the top of a double boiler over gently simmering water, combine all ingredients until smooth. Let cool until room temperature and then, with a hand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the stuffing out of it until it is nice and fluffy, then set aside until you are ready to fill the cupcakes.

Once the cupcakes have cooled, cut out a cone-shaped portion out of the top of each cake. Slice off the excess cake from the cone (leaving the flat cap) and reserve the top. Fill the resulting hole with about a tablespoon of the whipped ganache, then replace the cap. Repeat with the remaining cupcakes.

~ For Chocolate Frosting ~
6 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate, melted and cooled
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
4-6 tablespoons whole milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients together in the bowl of an electric mixture until smooth. Frost cupcakes as desired (I piped mine on using a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip). Garnish with additional graham cracker crumbs, if desired.

I'm artsy on the rocks!

I think I AM a rock!

We're coming to get you, Barbara...

Honeycake cupcakes with mixed-berry buttercream filling, vanilla wafer crust, and honey cream cheese frosting

 Ha! Look at the cool golden tint on this image. This is a cupcake that takes itself very seriously...or is it...?

Hi! I'm friendly! Still golden, though.

And then, once you get to really know the cupcake...

"I love everybody! Whoo hoo!"

It makes sense that there would be a golden hue to this cupcake, due to all the honey running through it. And for all its sweetness, this was a cupcake that I very nearly punted out the front door (though with my kicking ability it probably would just have plopped onto my doormat. Jerk.). The finished product is quite good, it is true, but the process was a real test of my (not worth mentioning) patience. 'Twas only stubbornness that carried me through. ANYHOW - there are no process pictures (you'll just have to imagine the purple-faced, harried cook), but there are recipes and if you make these they will be good. Just know they are nothing (NOTHING) like I'd imagined in the first place. I'll try those elusive cupcakes again one day, I promise. And I bet that will go swimmingly (I'll check that the heavy cream is fresh, to start, and that I have enough powdered sugar, for seconds...oh, wait - I am giving too much away...and if a batter LOOKS like a scone batter, it's probably going to bake up like a scone batter no matter how you try to rationalize it in your rock-hard noggin - ok, I really am stopping). Here we go - Honeycake cupcakes with a mixed-berry buttercream filling, vanilla wafer crust, and honey cream cheese frosting:

Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake papers.

~ Vanilla Wafer Crust ~

• 2 2/3 cups vanilla wafer cookies
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten (optional)

In a food processor, chop vanilla wafer cookies until reduced to crumbs. Add in sugar, vanilla extract and melted butter and pulse to combine. Mixture should resemble wet sand.
Divide evenly among 12 lined muffin cups. Press crumbs in firmly to create a tight crust. Use a pastry brush to gently brush the beaten egg white over the surface of the crust (you don't need to use the whole egg white).
Bake for 12-15 minutes, until crust just begins to turn golden brown around the edges.
Cool completely before using.

~ Honeycake Cupcakes ~

• 1/4 cup softened butter
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup honey
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt

In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in honey, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix into the batter until just blended. Scoop the batter into the cups evenly.

Cupcakes are ready when the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 15 - 20 minutes.

~ Mixed Berry Buttercream Filling~

~ For berry sauce ~

• 2 - 3 cups mixed berries
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• dash salt

Combine the berries (honestly, I used what I had in the fridge: blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries), sugar, ginger, and salt into a small saucepan. Cook over low heat for about 10 minutes or until the fruit has broken down and has started to thicken. Pour through a strainer to remove the seeds, but do press down with a spoon to get the pulp through as much as you can. Set aside to let cool.

~ For buttercream filling ~ 

• 1/2 cup salted butter, softened
• 1/4 cup mixed berry sauce
• 4 cups powdered sugar

In a large stand mixer, beat together the butter and berry sauce until it is well-combined. Add in the powdered sugar, a cup at a time, until all is incorporated. You don't need this to be really firm at all; it's the filling, not a frosting. 

~ To fill the cupcakes ~

Once the cupcakes have cooled, cut out a cone-shaped portion out of the top of each cake. Slice off the excess cake from the cone (leaving the flat cap) and reserve the top. Fill the resulting hole with about a teaspoon of the mixed berry buttercream. Then spoon on a little of the remaining berry puree you have (what else are you going to do with it?) Top that with a little more filling, then replace the cap. Repeat with the remaining cupcakes, and then put in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes to chill and set the filling.

~ Honey-Cream Cheese Frosting ~

• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup salted butter, softened
• 6 - 8 cups powdered sugar

In a large stand mixer, blend together cream cheese, honey, and butter until smooth. Gradually add in the powdered sugar, a cup at a time, until it is stiff enough to pipe on (or just spread on if you'd rather). Don't be alarmed if this takes the entire amount of powdered sugar; the cream cheese makes for a very soft frosting. If desired, garnish with a final swirl of honey (or the remaining berry puree if you've any left - I hadn't!). 

Makes twelve (blasted) cupcakes. 

Ooh, look at this guy getting artsy!

Fancier still! I'd better end this blog in a hurry. Thanks for reading!