My aunty’s recipe for the best cupcakes

Shhh! It’s a secret recipe!

Whenever we have a birthday or a celebration of some sort, we use my aunty’s recipe for the best cupcakes! Her recipe makes the best cupcakes with the most delicious buttercream icing. It is her secret recipe that she keeps stashed away for special occasions, and simply put, they are just too good!

I don’t know what I love more about these cupcakes. Whether it is because they are super light and fluffy or because the buttercream icing is my favourite. These cupcakes go down well. And after having two, your arm tries to reach for a third. Well at least mine does. That is how good they are.

So here is the recipe for the best cupcakes with buttercream icing:

Ingredients

1 cup full cream milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ¾ cup cake flour
1 ¼ cup all purpose flour
1 ¾ cup sugar
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, not softened but remove from fridge and allow to warm for about 15 minutes
4 large eggs

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180°c. Line cupcake pans with 32 cupcake liners. Combine milk and vanilla in a measuring cup and set aside. Break eggs into a small bowl and set aside.
2. Place the cake flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in the bowl of stand mixer and stir together for 30 seconds using paddle attachment.
3. With mixer on low, drop in butter, a few cubes at a time continuing until all butter is in and mixer resembles coarse sand.
4. Add eggs one at a time on low speed. With mixer still on low slowly pour in milk and vanilla. Turn mixer to medium and beat for 2 minutes until batter is smooth, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.
5. Scoop batter into cupcake liners filling cups with about ¼ cup each. Cups will be just slightly over half full – don’t be tempted to over-fill. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until centers are set and toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before frosting.

* My aunty normally halves the amount of ingredients and makes 16 at a time. Unless its a big celebration then the ingredients make 32 cupcakes.

Best Ever Vanilla Buttercream Icing

Ingredients

1 cup of butter (softened)
1/4 cup full cream cream cheese (softened)
5 cups icing sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 ½-3 tablespoons of cream or full cream milk
a dash of food colouring of your preference

Instructions

1. In the bowl, whip the butter and cream cheese until soft and fluffy for about 1 minutes. Reduce speed to low and slowly add 2 cups of the icing sugar. Once the icing sugar is pretty well incorporated, increase speed to medium high and beat for 1 minute.
2. Stop the mixer, scrape the sides of the bowl, then add the other 3 cups of icing sugar. Start out on slow speed again until sugar is mixed in the increase to medium high. Beat for another minute. Mixture will be very thick
3. Add vanilla and 1½ tablespoons milk and beat until nice creamy consistency is reached. You made need to add more milk, add just a teaspoonful at a time until desired consistency is reach. You want a cream but fairly stick consistency if you’re planning on piping the icing. If spreading with a knife, the icing can be a bit thinner. Beat for another 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl several times during mixing.
4. Ice with a knife or pipe on icing with a decorating bag and tip.

So there you have it – my Aunty’s recipe for the best cupcakes. Once you’ve tried the recipe, let me know what you think.

Another recipe: Carrot Cake Muffins

♥