Devil's Food Bourbon Cupcakes + Hazelnut Cream

Maltezers, Pink Sprinkles and luscious Hazelnut Cream is my kind of heaven. Decadent, sinful, slightly girly and not overly macho that could still tempt any grown man to take a bite and your girlfriends going mMMmm! Go on, do take a bite of my DEVIL'S FOOD BOURBON CUPCAKES with HAZELNUT CREAM. Sounded very much like "Yeah! I had you eating out of my hand.. muahahaha". Fret not, these cupcakes are "angels" ahem.. under disguise. Or maybe I had that intention. Whatever the intention maybe, it's pure indulgence. Psssst..Let me let you in a tiny secret. There is "bourbon whiskey" added somewhere. Aren't these the little devil?

Growing up, there is a quaint memory of my mom's Devil's Food Cake frosted with her creamy buttery Classic Chocolate Buttercream. I could still remember the aroma of the freshly baked cake. Although, she used an instant cake mix, then made the Chocolate Buttercream from scratch, the cake tasted so good. In fact it's to die for I should say, till this very day; that has to be the best devil's food cake I ever eaten as a kid. Nothing beats home baked filled with in-depth love. My mom had to shoo me out of the kitchen as I kept licking the chocolate buttercream off the spatula. You can certainly say that there's a fat kid in me.

I had been craving for something sinful and delightful with nothing over the top the past month. Sure last month was filled with my experiments, but when it comes to making treats for myself, I like them simple and sometimes fuss free. Although honest to truth, fuss free-simple isn't necessary always in my book.

Personally as part-time baker to be, I used to think that to impress; I have to bake something special and spectacular. On the contrary. The deeper I dig further into my passion for baking, I find the best cakes are the classic flavours where everyone is familiar, frosted with buttercream and most importantly everything is made with really fresh and good ingredients.

To relive my childhood memories, for this post, I decided to use a packet of Betty Crocker's Devil's Food Cake instant cake mix and added something extra to the batter for the special spin, 2-3 tablespoons of "bourbon whiskey" making this cupcake into more of an adult version. Guilty! as charged. To make up for some shortcut ways, I decided to spend a little more time on making the Hazelnut Swiss Meringue Buttercream or HAZELNUT CREAM, just because I like how fluffy and glossy this buttercream is. If you have not tried making Swiss Meringue Buttercream, you don't know what you are missing out on. It really is fluffy where the texture is almost like a cotton cloud. To make the frosting over the top and extra delish, add heaps of Hazelnut Spread [yuMmmmm]. Don't worry about using a piping bag and tip to frost the cupcakes. I decided to go free form. Rustic and not perfect. Got to love those lines. There is nothing wrong with them as its inviting, and surely reminds me of how an old fashion cupcake looks like. Try not to be too perfect and I know it isn't easy.

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Devil’s Food Bourbon Cupcakes with Hazelnut Cream

by Chic & Gorgeous Treats                              

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* Yields 1 dozen cupcakes, 2 layers 8-inches or 9-inches round cake

*Makes roughly 3-4 cups frosting.

*Hazelnut Spread can be Nutella or any other brands you prefer.

*Hazelnut cream is good with french macarons, cake-cupcake filling or for sandwiched

cookies.

*Remaining hazelnut cream can be kept in a freezer up to a month in an airtight container.

^INGREDIENTS

Devil’s Food Bourbon Cupcakes 1 box Betty Crocker’s instant cake mix 3 large eggs 1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened 1/2 cup warm water 1/2 cup whole milk 2 1/2 tablespoons Bourbon Whiskey 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract Basic Swiss Meringue Buttercream 2 large egg whites 1/2  cup caster sugar 1 1/2  stick unsalted butter, softened cut into cubes 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract Hazelnut Cream Basic Swiss Meringue Buttercream 1 1/4 cups Hazelnut spread 4 oz semi-sweet chocolate 1/2  tablespoon golden syrup 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
DIRECTIONS 1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners. Follow instructions as directed on the instant cake mix box to mix the batter. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Transfer cupcakes to wire rack to allow cooling completely. 2. Mix whites and sugar in a mixer bowl set over a pan of simmering water or in a double boiler. Heat, whisking constantly until sugar dissolves for approx. 2-3 minutes and mixture is warm. Meanwhile, in a heatproof bowl, melt semi-sweet chocolate and golden syrup for about 25-30 seconds in the microwave. Stir with a spoon to help chocolate melt and add in vanilla extract. Set aside. 3. Remove from heat. With a whisk attachment attached to stand mixer, whisk on high speed until stiff peaks form, for about 5 minutes. Add butter, several cubes at a time, whisking after each addition. Mixture will look watery, and curdled. Do not worry. Continue whisking so the butter and the meringue until well combined. The buttercream will hold together nicely, smooth, becoming fluffier and glossy. 4. Add hazelnut spread and melted chocolate then beat for another 2 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl when needed. If hazelnut cream is too soft, chill in the fridge covered for about 20 minutes. Beat it slightly with the spatula to a spreading consistency before frosting your cake. Remaining hazelnut cream can be kept in an airtight container, in a freezer up to a month. To use, thaw at room temperature, then with a paddle attachment beat hazelnut cream until it becomes light and fluffy once more. ENJOY!

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xx