This is a fairly easy recipe, but it is time consuming. Most of that time consists of waiting for ingredients to cool. Don't be intimidated, the recipe comes together quite nicely and people will be impressed. More importantly, your mouth will thank you for the extra time you put into these delectable morsels of cupcake pleasure.
Frosting: DO THIS STEP FIRST! Trust me, if you save it until last and then need to run out the door in 30 min. You won't get it finished in time!
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk (because I usually have half-and-half on hand from making the caramel sauce, I usually use that instead of milk. Both of them taste great though.)
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 sticks butter, softened to room temperature and cut into tablespoon size pieces
1/3 cup caramel sauce (homemade from the following recipe, or store bought)
Combine sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt in a bowl. Slowly whisk in the milk until the mixture is smooth. Pour through a mesh strainer into a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, for approximately 5-10 minutes until the mixture boils and is thick enough that it starts to become difficult to easily whisk. *Be careful for the splatters!
Transfer to a clean bowl and cool to room temperature. This is the time consuming important step. If you don't let it cool to room temperature, the butter won't incorporate correctly into the frosting.
Caramel Sauce: Do this step second for the same time constraint reason. In fact, you can make this caramel sauce anytime and stick it in the fridge for ice cream, baking, any time you need carmel incredibleness. This recipe only calls for 1/3 of a cup but I make and keep extra sitting in the fridge for a variety of reasons. :D
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cups half-and-half or cream
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon vanilla
Mix butter, brown sugar, half-and-half or cream, and salt in a saucepan (do not use non-stick, it will not cook correctly) over medium-low heat. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook while whisking gently for 5 to 7 minutes, until thickened slightly. Add vanilla and cook another minute to thicken further. Turn off the heat and pour the sauce into a jar. Refrigerate until cold. If the caramel sauce has cooled in the fridge long enough to harden, warm slightly before drizzling on bars.
Ganache and Toffee: This step also requires a cooling time. Plan to have this sit in the refrigerator a couple of hours.
12 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (if I don't have any I use semi-sweet chocolate chips. It works really well!)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons butter
2 packages toffee bits
Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Heat the cream to a bare simmer in a small saucepan. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let the mixture sit, without stirring for 1/2 minutes. Whisk to combine until the mixture is glossy and smooth. Whisk in the butter until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. Transfer the bowl to the refrigerator and let the ganache chill until it is at piping consistency. Stir occasionally to help the mixture cool evenly. If the mixture hardens too much to pipe, let it sit on the counter for a minute until it is softened somewhat.
Cupcakes: This recipe is really easy because of the dump and mix element. You will seriously appreciate that after the time involved with the other steps. :D
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (dutch chocolate works nicely as well)
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
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin cups with paper baking cups. In a mixing bowl, stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix to incorporate. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water. The batter will be on the thinner side. Fill the muffin cups 2/3 full and bake for 16-20 minutes, until a thoothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs. This recipe makes 30-35 cupcakes. Let cupcakes cool completely before assembling.
To assemble Cupcakes:
To assemble the cupcakes, fill a piping bag with the ganache and using a large round circle tip, pipe a ring on the top of the cupcake around the perimeter, leaving an open circle in the center. Pour the toffee bits into a bowl and lightly press the edges of the ganache into the toffee bits, pressing very gently to adhere the toffee to the ganache.
Fill another pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip with the frosting and pipe a swirl of frosting on top of each cupcake, filling the empty space inside the ganache ring. Top with additional sprinkle of toffee, if desired. Refrigerate and let sit at room temperature about an hour before serving to let the frosting soften to cool room temperature.
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