Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

I love custard. I've used my simple recipe in Cream Puffs, Fruit Tarts, Banana Cream Pie and now Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes, and it seriously has never failed me. It's simple, easy and always uber creamy and delicious.

I made these for a friend who just turned 21 and originally intended on making a 'White Russian' Cupcake filled with Vodka cream and topped with Kahlua Buttercream. Good thing I tested a little of the Vodka cream first because blehhh. I'm sure Vodka fanatics would have loved it, but I think that for me, Vodka in cream didn't taste too great. So I used the rest of the non-Vodka cream to fill these little things. I topped the cupcakes with some luscious chocolate ganache and there you have it! A mini Boston Cream Pie cupcake! I believe my friend's words were, "Wow these are the best cupcakes I have ever tasted." Even though he hasn't tasted that many at all, I'll still gladly take that as a compliment.

Creamy custard and butter smooth ganache:

Boston Cream Pie Cupcakes

Yields: 12 cupcakes

Original cupcake recipe can be found here.

Printable Recipe

For Amy Sedaris' Vanilla Cupcakes:

3/4 stick/ 6 tbsn. unsalted butter

3/4 cups sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. salt

1 1/4 tsp. baking powder

1 1/4 cups flour

1/2 + 1/8 cup milk

For the custard:

1 small boxes of french vanilla pudding

1 cup of whole milk ONLY, no substitutions!

1/2 cup of heavy cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the whipped ganache frosting:

10 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces

1 cup heavy cream

How to make a filled cupcake:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cupcake tin with liners and set aside. In a bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, making sure it is well incorporated. Beat in vanilla, add flour in three batches, alternating with milk. DO NOT over beat. Divide batter among cupcake tins and bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.

For the custard, whip everything together until pudding has become thick, about 8 - 10 minutes. Once the cupcakes are cool, use the cone method to remove the tops, then fill it in with custard and replace tops.

To make the ganache, place the chocolate in a large bowl. Heat the heavy cream on medium high until it comes up to a boil. Remove from heat and immediately pour over the chocolate. Let sit for 2 minutes then stir until completely melted and glossy. To pipe the ganache, allow the ganache to completely cool and set up. When you are able to spoon the ganache and and it can hold its texture it is ready to pipe.

Chocolate Marshmallow Cupcakes

So for the 310 Purple order, they wanted a total of 50 cupcakes. I originally only planned to make Samoa, Berry Mascarpone and Chai cupcakes but they didn't total up to 50!! So at the last minute I had to whip these up. I had leftover ganache so that was an easy choice to top these with it and after making those Smores Cupcakes and loving the marshmallow frosting, I decided to use it again and voila, these were born! How did they taste you wonder?! Well think about it: it's chocolate, it's marshmallow, and then more chocolate. Delicious of course! Definitely a little messy though...

Devil's Food Cake with Marshmallow Frosting & Chocolate Ganache

Yields: approximately 24 cupcakes

Cake recipe from here, frosting recipe from here.

Printable Recipe

For the cake:

9 tbsn. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups cake flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/2 cup strong coffee, or water

1/2 cup milk, (I used lowfat)

For the marshmallow frosting: 

4 large egg whites

1 cup of sugar

1/4 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the ganache: 

5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped 

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the cake, sift together the cocoa, flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda into a bowl. In an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, making sure they are fully incorporated. Be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix together the coffee and milk. Add half of the flour mixture, then the coffee-milk mixture, then the rest of the flour mixture until well combined. Pour into pre-lined cupcake pans about 3/4 full. Bake for about 15 - 20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

For the frosting, place the whites, sugar and tartar into the bowl of an electric mixer. Set over a pot of simmering water and whisk constantly until sugar has dissolved and the eggs are warm to the touch. Transfer the bowl back to the machine and whisk, starting on low speed then eventually moving to high speed. Whisk until glossy peaks form, about 5 - 7 minutes. Add vanilla, mix until combined. Now frost your cupcakes! You can spoon the mixture on or use any tip you like. You can also either broil the cupcakes to toast the marshmallow or use a blow torch (which I used).

For the ganache, place the chocolate into a medium bowl. In a saucepan, heat the cream until it reaches a boil, but watch carefully because this happens quickly and it can boil over. Once at a boil, pour over the chocolate in the bowl and let sit for about a minute then stir until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in the vanilla and let sit for about 10 - 15 to slightly cool before drizzling on the cupcakes.