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Pook's Pantry Recipe Blog

A Life in Food by real-life Chef Cheryl Bennett

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buttercream

Day of The Dead Cupcakes

September 14, 2019

Celebrate Halloween with these chocolate Day of the Dead cupcakes. The cupcake is supremely chocolaty, as you can see from the color. Perfect for a Día de los Muertos party, these mexican cupcakes are colorful and delicious. For a Mexican-themed Halloween party, add these easy pumpkin empanadas to your menu!
Day of the Dead Cupcakes on black background

With colorful sugar skull decorations and fun sprinkles, these cupcakes will be the hit of your día de los muertos fiesta! But, that’s not all. These delicious cupcakes have a unique ingredient, scroll down to find out what it is!

If you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I make a few pennies at no extra cost to you. Questions? Please see disclosure for info.

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Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: buttercream, Chocolate, cupcake, Cupcakes, cupcakes de dia de los muertos, cupcakes de halloween, Day of the Dead, desserts, Día de los Muertos, dia de los muertos cupcakes, Halloween, Mexican, Mexican chocolate

Caramel Apple Cupcakes Apple Cider Buttercream

August 15, 2019

Caramel Apple Cupcakes with Apple Cider Swiss Meringue Buttercream packs all kinds of apple flavor into this little package. Fresh apple cupcakes topped with soft, billowy  buttercream make the perfect autumn treat.

Caramel Apple Cupcakes with Apple Cider Buttercream on clear cake stand

Caramel apple cupcakes are the perfect dessert for fall parties

It’s almost fall and for me, that means apple season. If you are a fan of apple desserts, you are sure to love this cupcake. Filled with warm spices, like cinnamon, this cupcake is sweet without overdoing it.

The cupcakes are topped with a swirl of fluffy Swiss meringue buttercream flecked with a cider reduction. Hands down one of my favorite cupcakes of all time.

If you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I make a few pennies at no extra cost to you. Questions? Please see disclosure for info.

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Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: apple, apple cider, apple cupcakes, baking, baking from scratch, buttercream, caramel, caramel apple cupcakes, cupcake, Dessert, fall, from scratch, recipes, swiss meringue buttercream

Devil’s Food Cupcakes with Mint Buttercream

March 2, 2019

Deep, dark devil’s food cupcakes with mint buttercream are the perfect treat for those who love the combination of chocolate and mint. These cupcakes, along with sweet Irish soda bread are my favorites for St. Patrick’s Day. Shaved chocolate mint candies are the perfect garnish for these tasty cupcakes.

devil's food cupcakes with creme de menthe buttercream on marble counter

American buttercream made with crème de menthe makes this an adults-only cupcake, but there is a non-alcoholic version to make it kid-friendly!

If you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I make a few pennies at no extra cost to you. Questions? Please see disclosure for info.

Devil’s Food cupcakes

I’ve made thousands of chocolate cupcakes in my lifetime, as I’m sure some of you have as well. You wait with anticipation for that dark chocolatey goodness only to find it falls short of being really chocolatey.

Does this sound familiar? That really takes the wind out of my sails.

If I’m promised a devil’s food cupcake, call me crazy, I want a super chocolatey cupcake. 

After many versions, I’ve finally landed on a solid recipe for a devil’s food cupcake that doesn’t leave me feeling like it didn’t quite hit the mark.

mint buttercream in mixing bowl with pastry bag for devil's food cupcakes

Chocolate mint cupcakes

When my brother and I were younger, we had a next door neighbor that would bring us a box of Andes candy to share. 

You would have thought he gave us each a $100 bill we were so excited… as we got older, sometimes we each got our OWN box. Now that was newsworthy.

Opening the box and seeing all of those perfectly lined up little rectangles of foil would make me giddy.

devils food cupcakes with green buttercream

I had to take extra care not to rip it, so as to put the box back inside once we had removed a few… then there was the issue of counting them out to assure that the treasure was evenly divided.

I can still remember that feeling of unwrapping the first one and letting the cool combination of mint and chocolate settle on my tongue as it slowly began to soften and melt. 

Devil’s Food Cupcakes with Crème de Menthe

The inspiration for these cupcakes comes from the “something green” for St. Patrick’s Day. Rewind twenty plus years and you would have found me having a green beer to celebrate, but these days, you wouldn’t catch me within a ten mile radius of those places.

A dozen years ago, you’d have found me at the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Manhattan. But, I no longer live in New York, so I figured making a grown up cupcake was a perfectly good way to have fun with this holiday.

I’ve outgrown green beer and all of that silliness, but I still like to partake in the green on St. Patty’s Day. So, I’ve added a bit of green crème de menthe to this super simple American buttercream. 

If you would rather make it without the alcohol, there is a note in the recipe for doing just that. A couple of swaps and you have basically the same frosting without the alcohol.

How to Make Chocolate Curls for Garnish

This is a really easy thing to make that looks a bit posh. Get the rectangles of chocolate mint candies and stash them in the fridge. 

Using a vegetable peeler, gently pull the peeler toward you along the longest side of the candy. The lighter you press, the thinner it will be and it will curl a bit easier. If you press harder, the curl will be thicker and not quite as curly.

You want the candy to be cool but not very cold. If it is too cold, it will be brittle and it’ll break into shards, which is also fun. 

After a few candies, you will quickly find your sweet spot and what you like best.  You’ll see what I mean when you make them. 

It is very easy to do, it just takes patience. If the candy breaks, just eat it and grab another piece. No one will be the wiser.

I really hope you love this recipe. If you make it, snap a pic and share it with me either in the Fabulous Foodie Friends Facebook group or on Instagram by tagging @pookspantry and using hashtag #pookspantry.

Here are a few more of our favorite cupcake recipes:

  • Caramel Apple Cupcakes with Apple Cider Buttercream
  • Vanilla Cupcakes with Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
  • Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcakes
  • Ginger Cupcakes with Lemon Buttercream
  • Halloween Day of the Dead Chocolate Cupcakes

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Your shares help this site to grow and I appreciate it so much. Do you know someone who would like this? I’d love it if you would share it on Facebook or pin it to your favorite recipe board.

Yield: 36 cupcakes

Devils Food Cupcakes with Mint Buttercream

devil's food cupcakes with creme de menthe buttercream on marble counter

Devil's food cupcakes with american buttercream flavored with crème de menthe for a 21+ treat

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 16 minutes
Additional Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 31 minutes

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:

  • 3 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
  • 3/4 cup cocoa powder, dark
  • 3/4 cup water, hot
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 1/4 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs, large
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste or extract, I prefer Nielsen-Massey

For the Buttercream

  • 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate, melted, room temp
  • 4 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
  • 2 lbs powdered sugar, 2 boxes
  • 1/4 cup green Creme de Menthe
  • *pinch kosher salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.  Line cupcake pans with papers.   
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk cocoa and hot water together until smooth.  
  3. Let cool slightly, then whisk in sour cream and melted chocolate until combined.
  4. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
  5. Using an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.  
  6. Add eggs, one at a time, beating to combine after each.  Scrape down sides of bowl.  Beat in vanilla.  
  7. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture in two parts, alternating with the cocoa mixture and beginning and ending with the flour; beat until combined.
  8. Using a scoop (I used a size 20 scoop - 1 5/8 oz) divide batter evenly into cupcake liners.  Bake for 16 - 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
  9. Let cool completely  before frosting.

Mint Buttercream

  1. Using an electric mixer, beat all ingredients together on low speed for one minute until combined, then at high for another 3 - 4 minutes until light and fluffy.
  2. Transfer into piping bag fitted with star tip & pipe frosting onto cupcakes. Garnish with shaved creme de menthe candy

Notes

To make this recipe kid-friendly, omit the creme de menthe and replace with a drop of green food coloring and a teaspoon of peppermint extract.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

  • KitchenAid 7-Speed Digital Hand Mixer 
    KitchenAid 7-Speed Digital Hand Mixer 

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

36

Serving Size:

1 cupcake

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 227Saturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 94mgCarbohydrates: 49gFiber: 1gSugar: 39gProtein: 2g

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Instagram

© pook
Cuisine: American / Category: Desserts

Thanks for stopping by! Have a delicious day 🙂

Questions? Send me an email, I’m happy to help. I’d love to send you weekly tips and recipes, so you can get updates about what’s happening in the kitchen!

Hello! All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use my photos or recipe without prior written permission. Thank you!

The recipe and photos have been updated from the original publish date of 03/13/13

Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: alcohol, baking, buttercream, cake, Chocolate, cupcake, Dessert, devil's food, easy recipe, Food, how to, mint, recipes

Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

December 14, 2016

Bittersweet chocolate cupcakes topped with a peppermint swiss meringue buttercream – Peppermint Hot Chocolate Cupcakes are a dreamy little cupcake perfect for the holiday season. 

Grownups can enjoy a mug of homemade peppermint hot chocolate with these tasty treats to make the holidays extra jolly.

peppermint hot chocolate cupcakes with buttercream frosting

Perfect for holiday parties or sharing with friends and neighbors, these peppermint hot chocolate cupcakes are a hit with kids and grownups alike. 

 

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Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: baking, buttercream, cake, Chocolate, Christmas, Christmas cupcakes, Cupcakes, Dessert, Holiday, holidays, hot chocolate cupcakes, how to, peppermint, peppermint buttercream, recipes

Blushing Valentine

January 21, 2013

I know it may seem a bit early to start thinking of Valentine’s Day, but it’s only a few short weeks away.   If you like to make a special treat on Valentine’s Day, this is the cake.  
It is a towering 4 layers high and lovingly encased in the most delicate rose-scented buttercream.  It is outrageously good and worth every. single. calorie.  

This is also the type of cake that could easily become adorned with say a few candles for a little celebratory birthday party?   The colors could be swapped out for any, the flavor of the buttercream could be adapted to whatever you’d like it to be.  Using a vanilla base for both cake and buttercream allows you the flexibility to change colors and flavors to suit the occasion or intended recipient….

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Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: baking, butter, buttercream, cake, Dessert, eggs, flour, milk, sugar, Valentine's Day, vanilla

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Hi there and thanks for stopping by!  I'm Cheryl, Chef by day and Blogger by night!

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