If you or anyone in your family likes Harry Potter, you've probably wondered, "What the heck is butterbeer anyway?" Even though I knew it was described as "a little bit like less sickly-butterscotch," for reasons unknown, I always imagined actual butter-flavored (not butterscotch-flavored) beer. Ick. In the books, it does have some alcohol in it--it's enough to affect house-elves but not humans, so not a large amount--but for obvious reasons, I went for a recipe without alcohol. I think if you wanted to add a kick to it, you could. Family-friendly versions of butterbeer, as I imagine the version served at Universal Studios would be, often include cream soda. I'm not really a cream soda fan, but being both a fan of Harry Potter and butterscotch, I was excited to try this recipe for butterbeer cupcakes. They turned out exactly like I imagined butterbeer in cupcake form would taste--success! Also, they were yummy, which is the more important part. I will say that this recipe isn't for anyone who doesn't like rich, sweet desserts. I personally didn't find them overly sweet, but it's definitely a personal preference.
harrypotter.wikia.com
Here are a few things I did/noted while making these cupcakes:
1. I didn't use butter flavoring. I used an extra two tablespoons of butter for the cupcakes and left it out of the buttercream entirely. I prefer to avoid artificial flavorings when possible. The extra butter probably didn't give the cupcakes as intense a flavor, but it gave it some extra and lent a nice richness to the finished cake. Cooking time seemed unaffected by the addition; it might have added a minute or two. You might even be able to get away with adding more, but these were plenty rich for me and others who sampled them.
2. This recipe opened my eyes to the world of correctly-made buttercream. The keys? Unsalted, soft butter, whipping long enough, and not adding milk or cream until you've finished whipping to see how much is needed. If you're piping it, you can pipe some onto a sheet of parchment paper and see if it holds its shape. If it comes out runny, add confectioner's sugar, and if it's taking sheer willpower to squeeze, add a bit more liquid.
3. Waiting to eat the cupcakes for a time lets the ganache settle into the cupcake. I know it's hard to resist sampling, but I ate one straight away and didn't get the nice filled-cupcake bite I was hoping for until I had one later.
On to the cupcakes...
The first step was sifting the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. I used a fork, because I couldn't find my whisk, and the whisk would have been too large for the measuring cup I chose to use anyway. Then I beat the butter and sugar together in a mixer until fluffy. I don't have a picture mixing in the last bit of flour. I know the lighting changed for the final picture; I had taken it off the mixer at that point :-).
Then I beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each, and added the vanilla.
Next, I added 1/3 of the flour mixture, then the buttermilk, then another 1/3 of the flour, then the cream soda, and then the rest of the flour, beating after each addition. I don't have a picture for adding in the last of the flour; the last picture, taken after I had removed the bowl from the stand mixture, is an accurate representation of what the batter should look like (sorry about the sporadic changes in lighting!).
I filled cupcake liners between 2/3 and 3/4 full, so it made 15 cupcakes instead of the recipe yield of 18... pretty close, though! Also, a trick I learned is to fill any empty molds about 1/2 full with water so that the cupcakes in that tin will cook more evenly.
I popped them into a preheated 350˚F oven, and they turned a nice golden brown and were springy to the touch after 18 minutes.
As the cupcakes cooled, I made the ganache and buttercream. I melted the butterscotch chips in the heavy cream and stirred until smooth. (Oh, I did actually stir in 1tsp of vanilla after I took the ganache off the heat to cool to room temperature.) I set aside 1/4 cup of it for the buttercream and poured the rest into squeeze bottles.
For the buttercream, I whipped the butter until lighter in color and fluffy, then mixed in the ganache and vanilla, and salt I added just a smidge less than 3 cups of the confectioner's sugar and beat for about 3 minutes on medium speed (slow at first... you don't want to end up covered in sugar!) until it had about the consistency of smooth peanut butter. Without adding all the confectioner's sugar, I didn't need to add cream, but if you find yours is too stiff, add one tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired consistency.
When the cupcakes had cooled, I stabbed the tops of each with the tip of the squeeze bottle of ganache and squeezed gently until the ganache started to overflow. Then I filled a piping bag fitted with a 1M Wilson (large star) tip about halfway with buttercream and piped it onto the cupcake tops. I had to refill the bag a couple times, but not filling it all the way makes it easier to control and to twist at the top for no spillage. I drizzled some of the ganache on the tops of the cupcakes to finish and, because I liked the idea of signs for the cupcakes, made a few signs of my own:
And there you have it: butterbeer cupcakes!
DEEMS THIS RECIPE:
... Actually a lot easier than pie, despite multiple steps.
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