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Buttermilk Spice Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Buttercream

Makes 24 cupcakes.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cup organic sugar (yeah, the white stuff)
  • 3 eggs, separated
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cup unbleached flour
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ginger
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cup buttermilk

Frosting

  • 1 egg + 2 yolks
  • 3/4 cup organic sugar (or 1/2 c. honey)
  • 1/4 cup water (omit if using honey)
  • 1 1/2 cup butter, soft
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

  • Cream the butter and the sugar together in a large bowl.
  • Add the egg yolks (not the whites, which should be in their own bowl) and the vanilla. Mix well. 
  • Sift the flour, salt, spices, and baking soda onto parchment paper or a flexible cutting board.
  • Add the flour and buttermilk, half of each at a time.
  • Stir together.  You will have a very thick batter.
  • Whip the egg whites in their bowl until soft peaks form.  Then, gently fold them into the batter with a spatula.  
  • Scoop into muffin trays to bake.  Bake at 350 for 20 - 25 minutes, until golden brown and springy. 

Frosting

  • Add your sugar and your water and cook on medium high. Do not stir. Cook for about 15-20 minutes until syrup reaches 240 degrees.
  • While syrup is cooking, whip your eggs until they are thick, quadrupled in volume, and almost gelatinous.
  • Add heated syrup to egg mixture by pouring the hot syrup down the side of the bowl while beating the egg mixture constantly. Keep beating until the mixture is cooled down to room temperature — this should take less than five minutes.
  • Add room temperature butter, a couple tablespoons at a time. The mixture will deflate and become runny, but will thicken up as more butter is added.
  • Add vanilla and mix briefly.
  • Transfer to a glass storage dish and keep in the fridge for a week or so, or in the freezer for a month or more.