Classic Vanilla Cupcakes With Chocolate Frosting

Sprinkles. I don’t know about you, but for me brightly colored sprinkles bring back memories of primary school birthdays and the cupcakes that were often brought into class. For a while, I have been wanting to try my hand at making cupcakes, and let’s face it: cupcakes are not cupcakes without sprinkles.

So here we are. Vanilla cupcakes with chocolate icing. And sprinkles. Surprisingly, I had never tried to make cupcakes from scratch, until now. And honestly, it wasn’t as easy as I had imagined. Yes, these innocent looking cupcakes put me to shame a little bit. But, after no less than two cake recipes and four incredibly frustrating icing recipes, I have achieved my cupcake goal. Finally.

In the end, I think it was actually for the best that I was challenged and forced to put some effort into this project, the icing in particular. And so here is cupcake proof that with a little patience and creativity, you can overcome what challenges you! Hope you enjoy these easy, go-to recipes as much as I do!

Vanilla Cupcakes With Chocolate Frosting

Yield: 12 cupcakes and equivalent frosting

Ingredients

For the cupcakes…

2/3 cup of sugar

6 oz of butter, melted

2 eggs, at room temperature

1/2 cup of whole milk

2 tsp of vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups of flour

1 1/2 tsp of baking powder

1/4 tsp of salt

For the frosting…

8 oz of butter, at room temperature

1 cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips

3 tbs of unsweetened cocoa powder

2/3 cup of granulated sugar

1 cup of whole milk

1/3 cup of flour

Directions

For the cupcakes…

Preheat the oven to 350 F and line twelve muffin cups with paper liners.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.

Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat together the eggs and sugar for 2-3 minutes, or until the mixture is light and foamy. While mixing constantly, pour in the melted butter and vanilla and beat until combined.

With the mixer on low speed, add half of the flour mixture and beat until just blended. Next, mix in the milk and then the rest of the flour. Be sure not to overmix!

Spoon the batter evenly into the prepared tins and bake for 20 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean.

Allow the cupcakes to cool for 10-15 minutes in the baking tin before removing them. Let them cool completely before icing.

For the frosting…

Melt the chocolate chips in the microwave or over the stove. Set the chocolate aside to cool to room temperature.

In a saucepan over low heat, whisk together the cocoa powder, milk, flour and sugar. Heat the mixture until it has thickened to a pudding-like consistency and the sugar has dissolved completely. Remove from the heat and use a fine mesh sieve to strain the mixture into a bowl. Set aside to cool completely.

Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat the butter for 2-3 minutes, or until its consistency is light and fluffy. Next, add the cooled chocolate/flour mixture and beat for another 2 minutes. Finally, add the cooled chocolate chips and continue mixing on high speed for another 2-3 minutes.

Pipe the frosting on to the cooled cupcakes and decorate with sprinkles. Enjoy!

Recipe credit: