Samoas Cupcakes

After 2 weeks of “summer vacation”, it’s back to the (harsh) reality of 3rd year – but don’t worry about me, because these cupcakes made life better.  The last day of break happened to fall on our friends Kat’s and Griffin’s birthday, which obviously called for celebration.  I decided to make these cupcakes because both of them happen to love samoas.  I’m a thin mint/tagalong girl myself, but I have the unique ability to see the good in just about any cookie :-).  I thought these cupcakes turned out delicious, but I think if you are really trying to perfectly replicate a samoas you might want to add try making a filled cupcake with toasted coconut and caramel.

These cupcakes turned out to be much simpler to make than my endeavor of chocolate chip cookie dough cupcakes, but I still found it helpful to make the cupcakes one day and then to ice them the next.  I didn’t want to make them too far in advance for fear of dryness, but I shouldn’t have been worried because these are unbelievably moist.   The only qualm I had was that the cupcake itself isn’t particularly sturdy for the heaviness of a caramel icing.  I later found out that putting them in the fridge before serving really helped the overall texture.  The only other change I would make in the future is to use 2 cupcake liners for each cupcake, because the batter is very thin, so tends to wash out the colors of the cupcake liner.  I think baking these using 2 liners would really give it a perfect finish.

For the Cupcakes

• 2 cups  sugar
• 1-3/4 cup flour
• 3/4 cup Cocoa (I used Hershey’s special dark)
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 teaspoons coconut flavoring
• 1 cup coconut, packed
• 1 (scant) cup boiling water

1. Preheat oven to 350° and line 24 muffin tins with cupcake liners.

2. In a large bowl, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

3. Add in eggs, milk, oil, vanilla, and coconut flavoring.  Mix well.

4. Fold in coconut, then add boiling water.  (Batter will be very thin)

5. Pour batter into muffin tins, filling each cup no more than 3/4 full.  Bake at 350° for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool for several minutes, but then remove cupcakes from tins on cool on a wire rack.

For the Salted Caramel Buttercream

• 2 sticks butter, softened
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup caramel topping, plus more for drizzling (I used butterscotch caramel)
• 1 pound powdered sugar (about 4 cups)
• 1 teaspoon salt

1. Cream butter until fluffy.

2. Add in vanilla extract and caramel topping.  Add powdered sugar and salt and mix until smooth.  If icing is still too thin add a bit more powdered sugar (the consistency differs based on the type of caramel topping you use)

3. Wait until cupcakes are completely cool, and use a pastry bag with a 1M tip to ice the cupcakes.

For the Homemade Chocolate Syrup

• 1/4 cup cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s special dark)
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup cold water
• pinch of salt
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Combine all ingredients except vanilla extract in a small saucepan over medium-heat, and whisk until smooth.

2. Bring sauce to a boil and continue to whisk until sauce becomes thick.  Remove from heat, let cool slightly and drizzle over cupcakes or store in an airtight container in the fridge until needed.

To Finish:  Top cupcakes with toasted coconut and using small squeeze bottles (or simply a spoon) drizzle with chocolate sauce and remaining caramel sauce.

Slightly adapted from The Novice Chef