Tiramisu treats.

Tiramisu Cupcakes

Tiramisu fans, this is your cup of cake.  I have made these Tiramisu cupcakes twice now, and both times, they’ve been a real hit.  To create these moist and delectible delights, you can use any vanilla cupcake recipe you want.  If you are looking for a good recipe, I definitely recommend the one below.  For a gluten free version, try using the recipe for Vanilla Coconut Cupcakes, but replacing the coconut essence with vanilla and leaving out the dessicated coconut.

A coffee syrup is drizzled slowly over the baked vanilla cupcakes, and time given for it to fully soak in.  They are topped off with a whipped cream cheese frosting, and dusted with a light sprinkling of cocoa powder.  The results are simply irresistable.

The Ultimate Vanilla Cupcake (adapted from Cupcake Project)
Yield: 16 cupcakes

1 cup (225 grams) granulated sugar

1 vanilla bean

1 3/4 cups (175 grams) cake flour, not self-rising  *(I made my own- see note below)

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup (57 grams) butter, room temperature

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/3 cup plain yoghurt

1/4 cup canola oil or vegetable oil (60 ml)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2/3 cup (160 ml) milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C).
2. In a small bowl, combine sugar and seeds from the vanilla bean. (For those of you who are new to using vanilla beans, check out this video to learn how to get the seeds out of the bean.)
3. Using the back of a spoon, move around the bowl and apply pressure to break up any clumps of seeds and to better infuse the vanilla flavor into the sugar. Set aside.
4. In a medium-sized mixing bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, mix together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
5. Add the vanilla bean sugar and mix until well combined.
6. Add butter and mix on medium-low speed for three minutes.  Because there is so little butter, you’ll end up with a very fine crumb texture.
7. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, sour cream, oil, and vanilla extract until smooth.
8. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat on medium speed until just combined.
9. Slowly add milk and mix on low speed until just combined.  The batter will be liquid.  (Don’t worry, you didn’t do anything wrong.  It’s supposed to be that way.)
10. Fill cupcake liners just over 1/2 full.
11. Bake for 14 minutes and then test to see if they are done. They are done when a toothpick comes out without wet batter stuck to it.  The cupcakes should appear white with specks of vanilla bean. They should not turn a golden brown.  If they are not done, test again in two minutes.  If they are still not done, test again in another two minutes.
12. When the cupcakes are done, remove them immediately from the tins and leave them on a cooling rack (or just on your counter if you don’t own a cooling rack) to cool.

*To make your own cake flour, see Joy the Baker’s easy and simple to follow instructions here.

Coffee Soaking Syrup

2/3 cup strong coffee (espresso will work)

1/4 cup Bailey’s

1.  In a small bowl or cup, combine coffee and Bailey’s.

2.  Drizzle approximately 1 Tbsp of the coffee/Bailey’s mixture over each cupcake.  Add it a little at a time and wait for it to absorb  into the cupcake before adding more.

3.  Let cupcakes sit for several hours or even overnight to fully absorb the syrup.

*Should you wish to make a non-alchoholic version of the coffee drizzle, skip out on the Bailey’s and instead stir in  2 Tbsp of powdered sugar or honey to sweeten.

Whipped Cream Cheese Topping

8 oz cream cheese, softened

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

300ml whipping cream

1.  To make the frosting, whip cream on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form.  In a separate bowl, combine the cream cheese, vanilla, and confectioners’ sugar and beat on medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Fold about a third of the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture with a spatula to lighten.  Gently fold in the remaining whipped cream until evenly incorporated.

2.  Transfer the frosting to a piping bag fitted with your favorite tip.  I am currently enjoying the M1 tip (Thanks, Mom and Morgan!)  Pipe a generous swirl of frosting on top of each cupcake.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.  Just before serving, sprinkle cupcakes with a light dusting of unsweetened cocoa powder.