Vampire Kiss Cupcakes Recipes

RED VELVET VAMPIRE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
• Sift the flour, granulated sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. Whisk together the buttermilk, oil, sour cream, food coloring, vinegar, vanilla and egg in another large bowl.
• Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just incorporated. Divide the batter among the cupcake liners. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out with a few moist crumbs, 16 to 18 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the tin and cool completely on a wire rack.
• Microwave the chocolate and coconut oil together in a small microwave-safe bowl until mostly melted, about 1 minute. Stir, then microwave again until completely smooth, about 15 seconds more.
• Use a small sharp knife to cut out and remove a plug from the middle of each cupcake, making sure not to go all the way to the bottom and leaving a 1/4-inch border around the side (eat the plugs). Brush the holes with the melted chocolate and place in the freezer until the chocolate hardens, about 15 minutes.
• Whisk together the jam, 1 drop of red food coloring and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl until completely smooth. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the jam into each of the chocolate holes; set aside.
• For the cream cheese frosting: Meanwhile, beat the cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat in the butter until smooth. Add the confectioners' sugar and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Scrape into a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip. Pipe on top of the cupcakes so the jam is covered.
• Poke 2 holes into the frosting on each cupcake using the end of a plastic straw to resemble vampire bites, making sure you hit the cupcake and not the jam-filled hole. Drizzle the remaining jam into the holes to resemble blood.

THE FEARLESS VAMPIRE KILLER CUPCAKE

Steps:

• For the black garlic paste: Put the oil and black garlic cloves in a food processor and pulse until it becomes a thick paste (about a minute). Set aside.
• For the cake batter: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F; line a cupcake pan with 12 paper liners.
• Sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, mix the granulated sugar and vegan butter together on medium-low speed until fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes; scrape down the bowl. Slowly mix in the soy milk, applesauce and vanilla, scraping down the bowl a couple of times to make sure everything is fully mixed. Slowly add the flour mixture and mix to combine. Fold in the vinegar and garlic paste by hand, being sure not to over-mix.
• Divide the batter among the liners and sprinkle some white chocolate chips on top. Bake until an inserted toothpick comes out clean, about 18 minutes. Cool the cupcakes completely before frosting.
• For the honey black garlic brittle: Add the granulated sugar and corn syrup to a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes; the mixture should be amber or honey-colored. (Or heat until it reaches 300 degrees F on a candy thermometer.) Add the vegan butter and garlic paste and microwave for another minute and a half. Add the baking soda and vanilla and whisk together. Immediately pour the mixture onto a nonstick pan (or a pan lined with aluminum foil). Freeze for 10 to 15 minutes.
• For the cardamom frosting: Using a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, blend the vegan shortening and butter until fully incorporated and mixed well, scraping down the bowl a few times, about 5 minutes. Add 1 1/2 cups of the confectioners' sugar, 1 tablespoon of the soy milk and the cardamom and mix for 2 more minutes. Add the remaining 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar and 1 tablespoon soy milk, and whip for another minute. If the mixture is too thick, add a splash more of soy milk. If too thin, add 1/4 cup more sugar.
• To assemble, pipe some cardamom frosting on each cupcake. Place a shard of the garlic brittle through each fondant heart and place on the cupcakes.

VAMPIRE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Line muffin tins (you will need 18 cups total) with paper liners and set aside.
• Sift together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer. Add sugar and blend.
• Cut butter into 4 or 5 chunks and drop into the bowl with the flour mixture.Blend on low speed until mixture looks sandy and no large chunks of butter remain, 1-2 minutes.
• In a large measuring cup, combine eggs, buttermilk, vanilla and almond extracts.
• Beat lightly with a fork until combined.
• With the mixer on low, pour 1 cup of the buttermilk mixture into the bowl. Turn speed up to medium and beat for 1 1/2 minutes.
• Reduce speed back to low and pour in the rest of the buttermilk mixture. Continue to beat at low speed for an additional 30 seconds, until liquid is fully incorporated.
• Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat for a few more seconds, if necessary.
• Divide evenly into prepared muffin tins, filling 18 cups as equally as possible.
• Bake for 16-20 minutes, until cupcakes are light golden and a toothpick inserted into their centers comes out clean. The cake should spring back when lightly pressed.
• Turn cupcakes out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
• Filling.
• Puree cherry pie filling - a syrupy mix of sugar and cherries, usually - in a food processor until fairly smooth. Very small pieces of cherries are ok.
• Take a cooled cupcake and, using a small pairing knife, cut a cone of cake (1-inch across by 1-inch deep) out of the top.
• Trim off the pointy end of the cone, leaving a flat circle of cake. Set aside and repeat this process for all the cupcakes.
• Take the cherry filling and spoon about tablespoon or so into each cupcake cavity, filling it almost to the top with filling.
• Top off with the flat circle of cake you just removed to seal the hole and hold the "blood" filling in place.
• Whisk sugar, egg whites, 1/3 cup water, light corn syrup, and cream of tartar in large metal bowl to blend.
• Set bowl over saucepan of barely simmering water (do not allow bottom of bowl to touch simmering water).
• Using handheld electric mixer, beat on medium speed until mixture resembles soft marshmallow fluff, about 5-7 minutes.
• Increase mixer speed to high and beat until mixture is very smooth and thick, about 3 minutes longer.
• Remove bowl from over simmering water.
• Add vanilla extract and continue beating until marshmallow frosting is completely cool, about 5-7 minutes longer.
• Assembly.
• Using a butter knife or a small offset spatula, frost each cupcake with a layer of the cooled marshmallow frosting by placing a dollop of icing in the center of the cupcake (on top of the cut out circle of cake) and spreading from the center to the sides of the cupcake.
• Dip a wooden toothpick or skewer into some leftover cherry pie filling and poke two fang-holes, about 3/4 inch apart, in the frosting on one side of the cupcake.
• Dribble a little extra filling from the holes for effect.
• Repeat until all cupcakes are frosted and decorated. You will probably have frosting leftover for another batch if you are baking more.