Straight Up S'mores Cupcakes
Tell these cupcakes to get out of your dreams and into your belly. If you love the taste of s’mores, they will have you dancing on the hood of your grandfather’s Cadillac DeVille Sedan. The moist chocolate cakes are topped with graham cracker crunch, iced with toasted marshmallow buttercream and crowned with the classic s’mores trifecta, no campfire required. I feel the need, the need for s’mores.
Song: Billy Ocean—Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car (1988)
Yields12 cupcakes
Ingredients
- Chocolate Graham Cracker Cupcakes
- 1/2 cup (60 g) graham cracker crumbs
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tablespoon (15 g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (180 ml) boiling water
- 1/4 cup (42 g) semisweet or dark chocolate chips
- 1/4 cup (25 g) dark cocoa powder
- 3/4 cup (94 g) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Toasted Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting- 2 cups (200 g) marshmallow fluff
- 1 cup (227 g/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cup (180 g) powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) heavy cream
Additional Ingredients- 12 graham cracker pieces
- 12 chocolate bar pieces
- 36 mini marshmallows, toasted with a kitchen torch
INSTRUCTIONS
Chocolate Graham Cracker Cupcakes
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Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Prepare a cupcake pan with 12 cupcake liners.
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In a small bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter and granulated sugar. Set aside.
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In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the boiling water, chocolate chips and dark cocoa powder until the chocolate chips are melted. Set aside to cool for 5 minutes.
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In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda and salt. Pour in the cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until well combined. Add the vegetable oil, eggs and vanilla. Whisk until smooth.
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Pour the cupcake batter into the cupcake liners about two-thirds full. Sprinkle the graham cracker crumbs on top of the cupcake batter. Bake the cupcakes for 20 to 22 minutes, or until their tops spring back when gently touched. Remove them from the oven and let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Toasted Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting
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Spread the marshmallow fluff in a thin layer onto a plate. Use a kitchen torch to toast the top of the fluff. Stir the fluff and continue to toast a few more times until it is roasty toasty. If you don’t have a kitchen torch, you can spread the fluff on a baking pan and broil it in the oven. Set aside to cool.
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In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, or until pale and creamy. Add the toasted marshmallow fluff and mix on low speed. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla and salt, and mix on low speed until fully incorporated. Drizzle in the heavy cream. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Turn the mixer to medium speed and whip the butter- cream for 2 to 3 minutes, or until smooth and creamy.
Assembling the Cupcakes
Fill a piping bag fitted with a Wilton 1M piping tip with the toasted marshmallow buttercream frosting. Pipe an “ice cream swirl” of frosting onto the cupcakes. Garnish the cupcakes with graham crackers, chocolate bar pieces and toasted mini marshmallows.
