Salted Caramel Cupcakes

It’s now unofficially the season of all things warm and cosy – these salted caramel cupcakes hit the spot just perfectly!

I know you may be thinking ‘I don’t like salted caramel’ or that its overrated and I get that but I don’t care, I still made these and want to share the joy with you.

Starting with a light brown sugar cupcake (the light brown sugar adds a slightly more caramel flavour), filled with salted caramel, topped with a caramel Italian buttercream and finished with a drizzle of salted caramel chocolate spread, copper star sprinkles and a couple of salted pretzels.

It’s easy to think that these cupcakes could be overly sweet and toothachingly sweet to eat but you’d be wrong. The buttercream is slightly different and is more on the side of a buttery taste and the use of salt in the salted caramel actually helps to cut through the sweetness – which is always welcome. It’s perfectly balanced, which is kind of like finding that sweet and salty.

If these cupcakes sound like your sort of sweet treat, why not give them a try? You won’t regret it – I promise. Even those who don’t really like salted caramel were able to enjoy these cupcakes – so you have nothing to lose!

Anyway, let’s get started, shall we?

 

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

175g butter, at room temperature.

175g light brown sugar.

2 eggs.

1 tsp vanilla extract.

175g plain flour.

1 tsp baking powder.

1 tsp salt.

 

Filling:

Caramel or salted caramel sauce for the filling (whichever you prefer).

 

Caramel Buttercream:

125g granulated sugar.

30ml water.

35g egg yolks.

1 whole egg.

250g butter, at room temperature.

100g salted caramel sauce.

 

Decoration:

M&S salted caramel chocolate spread (or something similar).

Copper star sprinkles.

Mini salted pretzels.

 

Methods:

Before you get started on the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep. Weigh up all of your ingredients, preheat your oven to 180˚c/350˚f and get any equipment you may need ready – such as a stand mixer and spatula.

Start by beating the butter and light brown sugar together until they are lighter and fluffier in colour and consistency.

You can then go ahead and add in the eggs, one at a time beating well in-between addition. Add in the vanilla extract and mix until fully incorporated.

Give the bowl and good scrapping down just to incorporate any bits that may not have been fully incorporated.

Go ahead and pass the dry ingredients through  a sieve, this will remove any big lumps from the mixture and won’t ruin your final result.

Mix all of the dry ingredients into the batter and mix just until a clear batter has formed – try not to over-mix at this stage, otherwise the cupcakes will have a tough texture.

Transfer the cake batter into the cases, I choose to use a piping bag but you can also use spoons to scoop the mixture in. Ensure they are filled around 3/4 or 2/3 of the way full, then transfer the cupcake tray into the preheated oven and bake for around 20-22 minutes or until well rises (or better, when a tester is inserted into the centre, it comes out clean).

While the cupcakes are baking, its the perfect time to make the buttercream.

Before you get started on any aspect of the recipe, you’ll want to do some prep work. I recommend starting by weighing up all of your ingredients, grabbing your stand/hand mixer and don’t forget to grab a spatula and thermometer.

To start on the recipe, grab a small-medium saucepan and place in the water and granulated sugar and mix the two until combined, then place on the hob over a medium-high heat. You want this mixture to reach 121˚c, it takes a short while.

While you’re waiting for your mixture to come up to temperature, you can work on the egg part.

Whisk together the egg yolks and whole egg over a medium-high speed until everything is combined and the mixture is a pale yellowish colour and increased a significant amount.

Once your sugar mixture has come up to 121˚c, you can remove it from the heat and steadily pour it over the egg mixture over a low speed. Once all the mixture has been added, crank the speed upto a high and whisk until you can touch the bottom of the bowl with the back of your hand.

Now that the mixture has whisked together and is cool enough, you can start adding your butter, piece by piece. At first, you may notice the mixture looks quite loose and this is normal. As the butter is added and incorporated, the mixture will thicken and start looking like a buttercream.

Add in the vanilla and whisk until everything has been fully incorporated. I also add in the caramel, mixing until its fully incorporated.

If you think the mixture is too loose, don’t worry. Continue to mix it over a high speed until it thickens and place in the fridge and chill until firm.

So, to finish the cupcakes you’ll want to start by coining out a hole in the centre, being careful not to remove all of the centre. Generously fill that with some caramel and repeat the process for all of the holes.

Then pipe your buttercream on top, however you’d like and finish them fully. I like to drizzle over some chocolate salted caramel spread, sprinkle over some copper star sprinkles and add some pretzels – done.

That’s all for today guys, I hope you enjoyed. If you did, don’t forget to share this recipe with your family and friends and enjoy it. I’ll be back soon with another blog post and YouTube video, so join me then. In the meanwhile, don’t forget to check out my other social’s – Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. The YouTube tutorial will be linked down below.