Red Velvet Cupcakes w/ Cinnamon Buttercream

I've felt like I've been in a food coma for the past 3 days...anyone else?  So much food, not a large enough stomach.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends.  I was a baking machine this week.  Since we went to a friends house for turkey day, my contribution was dessert...big surprise there lol.  So I spent all wednesday night making pumpkin cheesecake and the next morning making cupcakes.  My poor kitchen was a disatser, I wish the Keebler elf's would come at night when I'm sleeping and clean my kitchen.

This recipe comes from the show on TLC called George Town Cupcakes  I enjoy watching the sisters aventures in there bakery, just as much as I would probably enjoy their cupcakes.  I finally broke down and bought their  book on amazon with their most popular recipes.  I decided to try the red velvet recipe because 1 I've never had red velvet before and 2 the guys from my husbands office requested red velvet cupcakes with cinnamon frosting for their potluck at work.  Now I'm not sure if the recipe is truly the same one they use at their bakery, normally their cupcakes look very moist.  The cupcake that came out for me wasn't necessarily moist but it wasn't dry either, it was very light, fluffy and spongey. Still good and not very sweet which pairs well with the buttercream.

Red Velvet Cupcakes w/ Cinnamon Buttercream
from The Cupcake Diaries 

Yields: 12-15 cupcakes

Ingredients

3 1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temp
1 3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs at room temp
4 tablespoons red food color like McCormick
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder, shifted
1 1/2 cups whole milk (I used 2% milk) at room temp
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Directions

- Preheat oven to 350F and line a cupcake pan with 12 paper liners.

- Sift together the flour and salt in a small bowl and set aside

- In a electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar at medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes until and light and fluffy

- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing slowly after each addition

- In a small bowl whisk together the red food coloring, vanilla, cocoa powder. Slowly add the mixture to the electric mixer with the butter and mix until incorporated

- Add 1/3 of the flour, followed by the 1/3 of the milk to the electric mixer and mix.  Repeat, stopping to scrape down the bowl as needed.  Add the last third of the flour, followed by the last of the milk and mix until incorporated.

- In a small bowl, add the baking soda to the apple cider vinegar.  It will get fizzy, at it to the batter and mix thoroughly.

- fill the cupcakes liners 2/3 full and bake for 16 to 18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Cinnamon Buttercream
Adapted from Can you stay for dinner?

Ingredients

1 cup 2% Milk
5 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup butter at room temp
1 cup sugar (not powdered sugar)

Directions

- In a medium saucepan, whisk 1 cup of milk with 5 tablespoons flour. Heat over medium until the mixture starts to bubble, whisk constantly. Continue to stir until the mixture starts to thicken, it will soon thicken to the consistency of cake batter. After about 7 minutes of whisking remove the mixture from the heat and add your extract.  Transfer the mixture to a heat proof bowl and let the mixture cool completely to room temperature. (I let it sit for about 30 minutes, stirring the mix every 10 minutes to release the heat)

- In your electric mixer cream together the butter and sugar on medium high for 3 to 5 minutes the mixture should be light and fluffy and white in color. You want the sugar to be completely incorporated in the butter.

- Make sure that your milk/flour mixture is completely cooled and add it to the butter and sugar. (you don't want the milk/flour mix to be warm or it could melt the butter).  Beat all ingredients together for 1 to 2 minutes on high speed, scrapping down the side of the bowl halfway, until smooth and blended. The frosting should be light and fluffy like whipped cream.

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