Monday, December 15, 2014

Vanilla Cupcakes with Whipped Eggnog Frosting



Holy eggnog frosting Batman!

Oh my goodness. This frosting is... There are no words. It's, like, eggnog-a-licious. It's creamy. It's sweet. It tastes exactly like eggnog! I tried an eggnog cream cheese frosting a couple of years ago, and it just didn't taste like eggnog. I believe that recipe only called for 1-2 tbsp's of eggnog, while this recipe calls for a cup and a half. It makes a huge difference. I paired my simple, but completely delicious, vanilla cupcakes with this statement frosting. It's a perfect pairing. All you need is a few sprinkles, and these cupcakes are Christmas fun!

The hubby went nutty over these Christmas cupcakes. I was surprised, as he's not the biggest lover of eggnog I've ever met. He gave these 2 big thumbs up. 



I know you're all thinking, what is this girl doing baking cupcakes when this week is going to be Bake-A-Poolza?? 

In truth, I baked these to keep me from diving into baking the Christmas cookies way too early. I'm revved up and ready, so I needed a project to keep me busy. And my plan worked!



Today, however, I'm allowed to get excited about Christmas baking. Because it's time! The hubby and I are headed out with a fairly large list that if it were to be found on the ground, one would assume they'd found Will Ferrell's "Elf" grocery list. Boxes of cake mix, melting candy, cream cheese, M&M's, Reese's, Rolo's, Oreo's, etc. I have no idea what the cashier will be thinking when she rings up my order.

Actually, come to think of it, she'll probably think, "Christmas baking". So scratch that :)


Did everyone have a great weekend? I did! I accomplished everything I set out to do. Ran, rested, did yoga. Did my weekly cleaning of the house. Baked and photographed cupcakes. Made and photographed Salted Caramel Milkshakes. Actually, I made them Boozy Salted Caramel Milkshakes, and that was the end of productivity. The boozy milkshakes led to immediate relaxation and a frantic Pinterest pinning session. A perfect end to a fairly productive weekend. It's back to reality today however, as the hubby has an early morning MRI on his knee. He's been having some knee pain while running, so we are sneaking in an MRI at the end of this year since our deductibles have been met. If his MRI is clear, I'm guessing he'll start physical therapy on his knee so he can rejoin me in running in the future. 


Before I go, I'll point out that this is another post brought to you completely by my artificial photography light. I've been really pleased with the results I'm getting. Practice makes perfect!

Happy Monday friends!


Ingredients (makes 1 dozen cupcakes):

Eggnog Frosting-
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
3 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups eggnog
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 sticks unsalted butter, softened, cut into small cubes
pinch of nutmeg

Vanilla Cake-
1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup granulated sugar
2 egg whites
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
3/4 cup milk (I used 1%)
2 tsp vanilla extract

sprinkles (optional)

Directions:

1. Frosting- In a small saucepan, combine sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt. Add eggnog, and whisk to combine. Place saucepan over medium heat. Cook mixture until very thick, like brownie batter. This should take 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat, and place in a clean bowl (I used my stand mixer bowl). Chill in fridge for 30 minutes. Remove from fridge and allow to come to room temperature. When mixture is room temperature, mix in vanilla. Piece by piece, begin to incorporate the butter (I used my stand mixer to whip the frosting). Whip for 4-5 minutes, or until butter is completely incorporated. Allow frosting to sit for 30-60 minutes at room temp before using to allow frosting to stiffen. 
2. Cupcakes- Preheat oven to 350º and line a cupcake pan with liners. Set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Whisk to mix. In another mixing bowl, combine melted butter and sugar. Whisk to mix. Whisk until no lumps remain, mixture will be thick and gritty. Mix egg whites, yogurt, milk, and vanilla extract until well combined. Add flour mixture to butter mixture. Mix until mixture is smooth (I just did this by hand). Divide batter among cupcake pan, bake in preheated oven 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted comes out with moist crumbs. Allow to cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting. 
3. Divide frosting among cupcakes, and sprinkle with sprinkles, if using. Store in an airtight container. You may have extra frosting, frosting can be kept in the fridge for up to 1 week. 


Frosting recipe by Eat Cake For Dinner.  Cake recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction


Looking for other cupcake recipes? Try these!






2 comments:

  1. You know I don't like to drink eggnog but I love the taste of it in my baking and cooking. These would be awesome and I could sink my teeth in them now.. Thanks for linking up to Foodie Friends Friday and I am sharing these on my fan facebook page later today.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you!! I'm not fond of drinking eggnog either. It works so much better in cupcake form! :)

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