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Easy Burnt Almond Cupcakes

burnt almond cupcake on a cooling rack with more cupcakes in the background.
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★★★★★

5 from 6 reviews

Easy burnt almond cupcakes with a buttery yellow cake base, simple almond frosting, and toasted almonds are a delicious spring dessert for Easter and other spring occasions!

Ingredients

Scale

For The Cupcakes

  • 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, melted
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • 1 cup Bob's Red Mill Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp fine sea salt

For the Frosting

  • 1 stick (1/2 cup) salted butter, room temperature
  • 1 lb powdered sugar (about 4 cups)
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • 3-4 tbsp milk
  • 1/2 cup sliced almonds

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 350°F. Line a standard sized muffin tin with paper liners.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, combine butter and sugar. Mix until well blended.
  3. Add eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, and almond extract and beat until well blended on medium speed, but don't over-mix.
  4. Mix flour, baking powder and salt into the batter on low speed until just combined, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary.
  5. Pour batter into cupcake liners, filling each 3/4 of the way full.
  6. Bake 22-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean.
  7. Let cupcakes cool completely before frosting.
  8. Turn oven up to 400°F. Spread the almonds on a baking sheet, and toast for 5-6 minutes, or until golden, watching them carefully so that they don't burn. Remove from the oven and set aside.
  9. To make the frosting, beat room temperature butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and almond extract in the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, until smooth.
  10. Add milk, 1 tbsp at a time, as necessary to reach a fluffy but slightly stiff consistency. If frosting is too runny, add a bit more powdered sugar.
  11. Store frosting in the refrigerator until ready to use.
  12. To frost the cupcakes, scoop frosting into a pastry bag with a large tip or a large zip-top bag with the corner cut out to make a hole. Pipe frosting onto completely cooled cupcakes.
  13. Use the bottom of a teaspoon to make a little hole in the center of the frosting on each cupcake to resemble a 'nest', then fill each hole with toasted almonds. Alternately, you can just press the almonds onto the freshly piped frosting to cover the entire top, if you'd like.

Notes

  • Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Flour is so light that I don't ever sift it.
  • Be careful not to over-mix the batter, which can cause your cupcakes to sink or to become too tough. Mix the flour in until just blended.
  • Make sure cupcakes are completely cool before frosting them so that the frosting doesn't slide off.
  • I love the flavor that vanilla bean paste provides desserts without the hassle of splitting a vanilla bean and scraping out the pods. If you can't find vanilla bean paste, vanilla extract works just fine, or you can use the pods of a vanilla bean (half for the cake, and half for the frosting).
  • Use room temperature eggs for the best blending. You can bring eggs to room temperature quickly by placing them in warm water for about 10 minutes.
  • Set the butter for the frosting out when you start baking the cake so that it's room temperature by the time you're ready to make the frosting.
  • If you make the cupcakes in advance, wait to add the almonds to the tops until the day you are serving so that they stay crunchy.

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Find it online: https://livelytable.com/burnt-almond-cupcakes/