Café con Leche Cupcakes

Growing up in a household with a Cuban mother meant when asked if you want coffee it meant one of two things: espresso or café con leche. Suffice to say, I grew up drinking café con leche from a very young age and I still start and end every day with a cup of café con leche. Since the people in my family love coffee, espresso, and of course, café con leche–I figured I would create a dessert that mimics the flavor of café con leche. While the cupcakes are not warm, the taste does make you feel like you care drinking a delicious cup of café con leche! This recipe is also great because it combines three basic recipes into one. And in that sense, it shows how you can combined several basic recipes to make and create your own special recipes. These cupcakes are simple to make, very delicious, and a nice departure from a typical cupcake. So have fun trying this recipe and enjoy!

Café con Leche Cupcakes Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

 

For cupcakes (recipe instructions found here):

• 2 ½ cups of all-purpose flour 
• 2 cups of sugar
• ¼ teaspoon of baking soda
• 4 teaspoons of baking powder
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• ¾ cups of milk
• ¾ cups of hot water
• 2 large eggs
• ½ cup butter, melted
• 3 teaspoons of vanilla extract

For espresso butter cream (recipe instructions found here):

• 1 cup of salted butter
• ½  cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup of shortening
• 1 cup of white granulated sugar
• 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
• 4 tablespoons of heavy cream (or milk)
• 1 cup of espresso, cooled

For whipped cream (recipe instructions found here):

• 1 cup of heavy cream 
• 3 tablespoons of sugar

TOOLS NEEDED FOR ASSEMBLING CUPCAKES:

• A pastry bag
• A spatula

VIDEO DEMONSTRATION / INSTRUCTIONS         

                                                                           

BRIEF DIRECTIONS (See the video demonstration for detailed instructions):

1. For this recipe you need to prepare 1 batch of vanilla cupcakes, 1 batch of espresso buttercream, and 1 batch of whipped cream. The cupcakes should be made and completely cooled down. The buttercream should be at room temperature and loosened up so that it can be put in a pastry bag. The whipped cream should be made and can be refrigerated. Once all three of those components are prepared, you can begin to assemble the café con leche cupcakes.
2. First, take the vanilla cupcakes and top with the espresso buttercream. Put the buttercream in a pastry bag. Then add a generous layer of buttercream about a ½ inch thick (See video demonstration for a visual). I use an open star size #8 tip for my pastry bag but you can use any tip you want. If you don’t have a pastry bag you can use a spatula, knife, or back of the spoon to spread the butter cream on the cupcakes or you can create a makeshift pasty bag by cutting a hole in the corner of a Ziploc bag to pipe the buttercream onto the cupcakes. Repeat this process for the rest of the cupcakes
3. Next, fill another pastry bag or wash, dry and fill the same pastry bag with the whipped cream. Then add a ½ inch layer of whipped cream over the center of the cupcake, leaving a ½ inch or 1-inch uncovered so you can still see the espresso buttercream underneath. Repeat the process for the rest of the cupcakes, then serve. (Note: since these cupcakes do have whipped cream on top of them you will need to keep them refrigerated. I suggest adding the whipped cream to the cupcakes when you plan on serving them).

Multi-purpose Whipped Cream

While growing up, my mom would get cakes from a bakery that used whipped cream frosting instead of buttercream, and the cakes were light, low in sugar, and tasted absolutely amazing! There is nothing wrong with cakes that are covered with buttercream, especially homemade buttercream. However, whipped cream frosting adds a lightness and freshness to cakes that pairs perfectly with fresh fruit! I absolutely love strawberry shortcake! In fact, it has been my go to for making a birthday cake for myself, which is how I developed the perfect whipped cream to use for cakes. Regular whipped cream using whipping cream works perfectly fine if you are adding a dollop on top or on the side of a dessert or drink. However, you need something thicker to make multilayer cakes or to hold the shape when piping out of a pastry bag. My whipped cream recipe uses heavy cream as I found it works well for making a very creamy and thicker whipped cream that can be used for a variety of purposes. This multipurpose whipped cream recipe can be used for cakes (including cheesecakes), cake designs, as an accompaniment for desserts, or put on drinks (e.g. hot chocolate, coffee). So have fun trying the recipe and enjoy! 

Multi-purpose Whipped Cream Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup of heavy cream 
• 3 tablespoons of sugar

TOOLS NEEDED:

• A handheld mixer or standard mixer
• A large mixing bowl
• A spatula and measuring utensils

VIDEO DEMONSTRATION / INSTRUCTIONS         

BRIEF DIRECTIONS (See the video demonstration for detailed instructions):

1. Collect the ingredients and put the heavy cream in a large mixing bowl.
2. Whisk the heavy cream on high with a standard or handheld mixer for 1 to 2 minutes or until the heavy cream begins to ripple.
3. Now, add the sugar and mix for 30 seconds. Then shut off the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl and beater, and mix on high for another 30 seconds, or until the mixture forms stiff peaks (See video demonstration for a visual). The whipped cream will be ready to serve or use to decorate cupcakes/cakes or other desserts.

Important Recipe Notes:

·       You may need to mix the heavy cream for longer if you are using a handheld mixer, so use the consistency of the cream as an indicator for doneness.

·       This whipped cream will be thick enough to put in a pipping bag and decorate cakes, cupcakes or other desserts.

·       You can substitute heavy whipping cream or whipping cream instead of using heavy cream. However, the whipped cream will have a thinner and runnier texture. You can add in a tablespoon of pudding mixture or powdered gelatin to help stabilize the whipped cream. This will make the whipped cream usable for decorating large/ multilayer cakes.