Chocolate Salted Caramel Cupcakes

These are super yummy and use the salted caramel sauce that I posted last week. They are super easy to make, just use your favourite chocolate cupcake recipe (I used my easy peasy chocolate cake recipe halved to make a dozen cupcakes).

Ingredients:
Cupcakes
½ cup sugar
1 tablespoons cocoa
½  teaspoon baking powder
½  teaspoon baking soda
¾ cup flour
1 egg
¼ cup milk
75g butter (melted)
½ teaspoon vanilla essence
Pinch of salt
¼ cup boiling water

Salted Caramel Buttercream
100 grams butter, softened
100 grams cream cheese, softened
¼ cup salted caramel sauce
½ teaspoon vanilla paste
2 ½ cups icing sugar, sifted

Method:
Pre- heat your oven to 180°C and line a muffin tin with 12 cupcake cases.
Place all ingredients in a bowl EXCEPT the water. Add water last - do not mix until it is added.
Beat well with a hand held mixer for about 2 minutes and once combined and smooth spoon evenly into your cupcake cases.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until you can remove a skewer cleanly from the centre of your cupcakes or they spring back when lightly touched.
To make the buttercream, beat butter and cream cheese in a mixer until pale and fluffy. On a low speed add 1½ cups icing sugar and mix to combine with butter and cream cheeses. Add the salted caramel and vanilla essence mixing again. Add the rest of your icing sugar and mix again. If you find your frosting is a little bit thick add some room temperature milk 1 tablespoon at a time. 
Use a large star shaped piping tip (like a Wilton 1M or 2D) to frost cupcakes. Drizzle cupcakes with a little salted caramel sauce to finish.

Cupcake toppers c/o – Wink.  Thank you to Pop Roc Parties for the picture at the top of the post, sharing their attempt at the cupcakes using this recipe.

Salted Caramel Sauce

Doesn’t it look tempting?! A big jar of gooey goodness and the uses for this jar of amber deliciousness is endless! Keep you eyes peeled over the next few days for a post about salted caramel cupcakes which involves using it to make buttercream frosting. You can drizzle it over ice cream, brownies or biscuits or then again you could try dunking apples in it – perfect for Halloween (check out this post from Pioneer Woman for inspiration)!

Ingredients:1 cup white sugar
30 grams butter, chopped into cubes
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup of cream (room temperature)
1 teaspoon flaky sea salt

Method:
Place the sugar in the bottom of a medium-large saucepan and head over a medium-high heat, whisking it until it begins to melt. Don’t worry when it starts to form clumps, these will dissolve.
Once all the sugar has melted and you are left with a clear liquid you can stop whisking and start swirling the pan occasionally while the sugar cooks.
When the sugar has reached a deep amber colour (a reddish brown) it is ready, the best way to be sure of the readiness is to use a a candy or instant read thermometer, your caramel will be 175°C when it is ready. Caramel can go from perfection to burnt in a matter of seconds so it is important that you keep an eye on things. It is at this point you can add the butter and whisk to combine it with the sugar. It will bubble up but keep whisking.
Remove your pan from the heat and pour in the cream, again it will bubble up but you need to keep whisking to ensure it is incorporated and you end up with a nice smooth sauce.
Sprinkle over your flaky sea salt and stir.
Set aside to cool for at least 15 minutes and place in a jar. Cool completely to room temperature before storing in the fridge. It will keep for about two weeks.