Peppermint Cupcake (December)

December's "cupcake of the month" is this wonderful peppermint cupcake with peppermint buttercream frosting. I learned to make these last month at the cupcake cooking class. Even though both the cake and frosting are peppermint, the taste is not overwhelming at all. This nice, minty flavor is of course perfect for this holiday season.

I had planned to post this before Christmas but a lot of my plans got derailed thanks to the blizzard of last weekend that dumped 2 feet snow in the DC area. Oh well, honestly I didn't mind it too much. It made me put down my "to do" list and focus on what is really important...like spending time playing in the snow with these two:



They both LOVED the snow!

And check out the cute snowman we made. A friend from NJ sent a package with all of these wonderful gifts, one being a snowman making kit!

Ingredients:
Cupcake
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1/4 tsp vanilla
1 tsp peppermint extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt

Frosting
1 cup unsalted butter, softened and cut into small pieces
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. milk
6 peppermint candies, finely crushed, plus additional candies for decoration

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard cupcake pan with paper liners.

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together , until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat for one minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and peppermint extract. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the wet ingredients and beat slowly until well blended. Divide the batter among the cupcake cups. Bake for 20-30 minutes and test with a tooth pick for donesss. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove and let cool completely.

To make the buttercream, in the bowl of an electrical mixer fixed with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until creamy. Slowly add the confectioner's sugar and beat until combined. Add in the peppermint and vanilla and beat to combine. Slowly add the milk and continue beating until well blended.

Spread or pipe frosting on the cooled cupcake.