S'mores Cupcakes

Dhanggit is hosting a party and I'm bringing dessert! Ok, so maybe this dessert wasn't just for Dhanggit. Maybe I made them for the engagement party I hosted, but they were still great party food!

I made s'mores cupcakes with a chocolate cake base, graham cracker and marshmellow frosting and graham cracker topping with a hershey bar piece stuck in. Yum! And so cute, no? The idea was from Sew Darn Cute and the recipes are from her and Martha Stewart.

Cupcakes
Makes about 30

• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with liners; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, sift together cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla; mix batter until smooth, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed.
2. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling each about one-third full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely. Frost with marshmellow topping and top with graham cracker crumbs and chocolate bar pieces.

Here's where it got interesting. If you frost the cupcakes with the fresh frosting, the frosting spreads and droops. See Below.

Lesson learned: Mix graham crackers into the frosting to make it more solid and then refridgerate until it will hold it's shape. Ah, much better!

Marhmellow Frosting and Toppings
2 sticks butter, room temperature

1 lb. (2 cups) confectioner's sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
16 oz. tub of marshmallow cream (Fluff)

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

30 hershey bar pieces

Cream the butter on high until it's light and fluffy. Add the confectioner's sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, and beat until fluffy each time. Beat in the vanilla until incorporated. Add the Fluff (this takes patience and a little ingenutiy) and mix until creamy. Add 1/2 cup graham cracker. Transfer to Ziploc bag and put in fridge for a little over an hour and up to overnight. When ready to use, cut off tip, pipe onto cupcakes. Top with graham cracker crumbs and a candy bar piece.