I mean, it's no secret that I obviously like to bake.. But let's be real here for a second... Christmas-baking is a whole other level. All my fellow bakers know what I'm talking about. We go bat-shit-crazy once December 1st rolls around, making any & every Holiday treat we can possibly think of. We have a few staples in my family-- you know, the things that are basically required to make otherwise Christmas will be ruined & nothing will ever be okay ever again. For us, it's Oreo truffles, homemade Chex mix, Swedish cremes (the best cookies in the history of forever-- please tell me something else knows what these are!), Russian teacakes, dream cookies, peanut butter kisses, etc.. What about in your family? What are your baking traditions?
If there are three things in this world that I love, it's chocolate.. candy canes... & a perfectly fluffy buttercream. THESE CUPCAKES HAVE ALL OF THOSE THINGS. IT IS PERFECT & AMAZING & CHRISTMAS-Y & WONDERFUL. I'm having a hard time composing myself & I'm sorry for not being sorry about it.
Now, before I go any further, I need to lament the death of my Nikon D90. A part of the lens broke & while I can still use it, it's rather difficult & a pain in the tookus. Not to mention, I've somehow managed to lose the charger for the battery & the battery is dead. So all I have now is the camera on phone. I'm really depressed over the whole ordeal & I don't wanna talk about it anymore. So just deal with my less-than-great quality photos & leave me to mourn. :P
Let's get to the goods, shall we?
Now, for these cupcakes, I used my go-to Chocolate cake recipe. Which I posted in October & that you can find right HERE.
***The only step you need to add to for this particular recipe is that you bake for 10 minutes, then take out & drop in a Candy Cane Hershey's Kiss on top of the center of each cupcake. Then put back into the oven & bake for another 10 minutes (or until done)! This is optional & if you don't have any or don't want to add them in, just skip this!***
Fluffy Peppermint Buttercream
3 sticks of unsalted butter
6 cups confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 teaspoons pure peppermint extract
5 tablespoons of whole milk or heavy whipping cream
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream the butter until smooth on medium speed (3-4 minutes).
2. Add in the sugar, a cup at a time & beat until incorporated.
3. Add vanilla & peppermint extracts (feel free to adjust the amounts of these to your tastes).
4. Add milk or whipping cream one tablespoon on a time & beat on high until desired consistency is reached. You might find you add less or even more, depending.
Pipe mile-high onto your cupcakes, garnish with crushed up candy canes or super-fun Christmas sprinkles & enjoy with a mug of hot cocoa in front of that glowing Christmas tree.
'Til next time! <3
