S'more Cupcakes

In honor of the official beginning of S'more season here at work, I made these wonderful S'more cupcakes. My friend Sherry, one of my favorite foodies, came in to the office with a mouthful of cupcake to proclaim them the best cupcake she's ever eaten. That was enough validation for me to pass this recipe along! But first, here are some pictures:

S'MORE CUPCAKES - makes ~24 (recipe courtesy of Woman's Day magazine)

Crumbs:

6 graham cracker boards (oblongs)

2 Tbsp sugar

2 Tbsp melted butter

1/2 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Cupcakes:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

2 large eggs

1/2 cup canola oil

1/2 cup water

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

Marshmallow Topping:

6 large egg whites

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1 tsp vanilla extract

Small butane torch (or, if you're me, a candle and a lot of patience)

1) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners.

2) Crumbs: process graham crackers in food processor until fine crumbs. Add sugar and butter. Pulse until blended. Spoon about 2 tsp into each muffin cup. Top with 1 tsp mini chocolate chips.

3) Cupcakes: In large bowl, whisk flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt until blended. In medium bowl, whisk buttermilk, eggs, oil, water and vanilla until blended, whisk into flour mixture until smooth.

4) Spoon about 1/4 cup batter into each muffin cup. Bake 20 to 25 minutes until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool completely.

5) Marshmallow Topping: Put egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a large metal bowl. Set over a saucepan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and whites are warm to the touch, about 3-4 minutes.

6) Transfer to a large bowl of an electric stand mixer. Beat 5-7 minutes, starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high, until stiff, glossy peaks form. Beat in vanilla. Spoon into a large ziptop freezer bag.

7) Snip a 1-inch opening off one tip, pipe topping onto each cupcake. (It will be helpful to have several peaks in the topping). Using handheld torch*, lightly brown the topping, taking care not to burn the cupcake liners. 

Serve immediately, or store in airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

*If you don't have a handheld torch, you can always hold the cupcakes upside down over a candle. It takes about 1 minute per candle, depending on how many peaks you put in the frosting. It works just as well - just be careful to blow out the cupcakes liners if they catch!

Enjoy & happy eating! :-)