Chocolate – Salted Caramel Filled Cupcakes

Hello,

Who doesn’t love Chocolates? I love Chocolates, and find the combination of chocolates and salted caramel just amazing. I love my salted caramel sauce to be paired with ice creams, cakes, brownies, thick shakes and hot chocolate. My husband had first told me about this amazing cupcake, which his colleague had got for everyone at work place, during X’mas. And, since then I had this in my mind to give it a try some day.

I had made this cupcakes on my son’s birthday for all the teachers, at his childcare. So, it’s a chocolate cupcake with a salted caramel sauce as a little surprise inside and finally topped with a lovely salted caramel cream cheese frosting. 🙂 I love to microwave this cupcake for 8 sec and then serve. As at the very first bite the salted caramel sauce gushes out, making you want to have one more and then one more bite each time. 😉 🙂

Yields - 18 medium cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the Chocolate Cupcakes:

1 1/2 cup flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup hot water

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter

1/4 oil

1 1/4 cup sugar powder

3 eggs

1 tbsp vanilla essence

1/2 cup sour cream

For the Salted Caramel Sauce:

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup thick cream (hot)

3 tbsp butter

3/4 tsp kosher salt / sea salt

For the Salted Caramel Frosting:

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
½ cup salted caramel sauce
4 cups powdered sugar

Method:

         For the Chocolate Cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Mix butter and sugar until fluffy and combined, using an electric mixer on low-medium speed. It should look like wet sand.
3. Mix in eggs, one at a time. Now add oil, vanilla and sour cream.
4. Sift together flour, salt, baking soda and cocoa powder into a separate bowl. Use a fork to mix well.
5. Add dry ingredients to the wet in 3 additions, mixing until just combined after each. Mix in hot water.
6. Fill the cupcake liners 2/3 full and place in the oven. Bake for 15 to 18 mins or until the toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Transfer the cupcakes into the wire rack and let it cool completely.
   

   For the Salted Caramel Sauce:

7. Take sugar and water in a sauce pan, and stir well to dissolve the sugar.
8. Heat on high and bring it to boil. In order to dissolve any sugar crystals formed on the sides of the pan, brush the sides with the basting brush dipped in water.
9. Now reduce the heat to medium-high and continue to cook until the sugar starts to turn deep amber. Immediately switch off the gas and remove it from the heat or it will burn.
10. Now very carefully and slowly pour the hot thick cream into the caramel and keep whisking. At this stage the mixture will bubble up severely and will calm down as you keep whisking. Add butter and mix well. Let it cool down completely. Add kosher salt at the end to make it a salted caramel sauce.
    

    For the Salted Caramel Frosting:

11. Beat together the butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed for 4 minutes.
12. Pour in the salted caramel and beat until combined. Reduce the speed to medium-low and slowly add the powdered sugar, a little at a time, until it has all been incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for an additional two minutes, until light and fluffy.
    

    To Finish:

13. Once the cupcakes have completely cooled, core out some of the middle using a cupcake corer, apple corer or a knife.
14. Fill the space with the salted caramel sauce. Pipe the cooled frosting on top of the cupcakes.
15. Drizzle a little extra salted caramel sauce on top and finish off with a pinch of flaky sea salt.

Notes:

• I recommend making the caramel sauce a day before or you can use a store bought one too.
• Use butter, cream cheese and eggs at room temperature.
• If you don’t want the salted caramel version, and are looking for a regular caramel filled cupcakes then just skip the salt while making the caramel sauce and frosting.
• While drizzling the caramel sauce on the top, i had used the sauce directly from the fridge and thus it looks a bit thick. You can bring it to a room temperature and then pipe or drizzle the caramel sauce on the top of the cupcakes.