Caramel Cupcakes with Caramel Buttercream Frosting
Caramel Cupcakes With Caramel Buttercream Frosting: These easy caramel cupcakes from scratch are topped with caramel icing and they are bursting with caramel flavor!
Heat oven to 350 F / 180 C and either spray your muffin cups with non-stick cooking spray or line them with cupcake liners and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine sugar, brown sugar, softened butter and vanilla extract. Cream butter and sugar mixture with a handheld electric mixer (or beat with a stand mixer on medium speed), scraping the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed, till the mixture is light and fluffy and everything is incorporated well.
Add the eggs into the butter mixture one at a time, mixing after each addition.
In a medium bowl, add in the flour, baking powder, and salt; mix and set aside.
Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the 1/2 cup of milk to the butter/sugar/egg mixture, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Mix just until combined after each addition- you want everything to be incorporated well, but avoid over mixing.
Divide batter evenly between each of the paper liners, filling each one ¾ full. Bake for 22-25 mins or till a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and the cupcake is beginning to turn golden brown on top.
Once baked, remove the cupcakes from the muffin tray and let them cool down completely on a wire rack while you make the frosting.
Caramel Buttercream Frosting:
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed till it's smooth and creamy.
Add 1-2 tablespoon of caramel to the butter and sugar and beat it again till it's incorporated well.Note - you can add more or less caramel depending on the taste and color you want (more caramel will create a deeper caramel flavor and color).
Swirls:
Take plastic wrap and lay it on your working table; now carefully spread a thick line of caramel buttercream frosting down the center.
Next to the line of buttercream, make another, thinner line with the caramel sauce.
Fold the plastic wrap over the buttercream and caramel sauce, ensuring both ends are twisted closed tightly.
Cut open one end of the plastic wrap and insert this wrapped frosting in the piping bag (or ziplock bag- see FAQs), making sure the open side is towards the large open star tip nozzle.
Use this to create a swirl of icing on top of the caramel cupcake and enjoy!
Notes
To Pipe A Frosting Swirl: You can watch this video for guidance on how to make a swirl on top of each cupcake. For Frosting: You can add more or less caramel depending on the taste and color you want (more caramel will creat a deeper caramel flavor and color). Storage: Buttercream frosting that's made with butter should be refrigerated. If you are hoping to make these ahead and store them at room temperature, we would recommend you store the cupcakes (unfrosted) in an airtight container at room temperature and the buttercream in an airtight container in the fridge.When you are ready to frost the cupcakes, let the buttercream warm up a bit and beat again until it is light and fluffy and then frost away!Equipment: If you have a disposable piping bag (like these), or want to purchase them to have on hand, then great! If you don't though, I've had fairly good success with using freezer bags. Taste of Home has a detailed tutorial on their website that explains it nicely!