Red Velvet Cupcakes with White Chocolate Peppermint Buttercream Icing

Red Velvet Cupcakes with White Chocolate Peppermint Buttercream Icing
Originally uploaded by thehoneybunny.

I wanted to try something different to bring to my in-laws house for Christmas tomorrow. What better time to make red velvet cupcakes, right?

The batter sure looks scary in that picture, but trust me, it tastes great. I used a Cupcake Doctor recipe and tweaked it a little because I didn't have German Chocolate mix in the house. I also didn't have food dye. But I DID have a box of red velvet cake, so I used that.

Here's the recipe:

24 paper liners for cupcake pans
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain German chocolate cake mix (I used a Red Velvet Cake Mix
1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix (I used Chocolate pudding mix)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 bottle (1 ounce) red food coloring (of course, you'd omit this if you're using Red Velvet cake mix)
3 large eggs
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips ( I used regular size chips, since it was all I had)

White Chocolate Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting (see below)

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 cupcake cups with paper liners. Set the pans aside.

2. Place the cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, water, oil, food coloring, and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides again if needed. The batter should look thick and well combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. Spoon or scoop 1/3 cup batter into each lined cupcake cup, filling it three quarters of the way full. (You will get between 22 and 24 cupcakes; remove the empty liners, if any.) Place the pans in the oven.


3. Bake the cupcakes until they spring back when lightly pressed with your finger, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and place them on wire racks to cool for 5 minutes. Run a dinner knife around the edges of the cupcake liners, lift the cupcakes up from the bottoms of the cups using the end of the knife, and pick them out of the cups carefully with your fingertips. Place them on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes before frosting.



White Chocolate Peppermint Cream Cheese Frosting

Makes 3 cups, enough to frost 24 cupcakes (2 1/2 inch size) generously (although I found that it only frosted about 18 cupcakes, so keep that in mind)

6 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used white chocolate chips)
4 ounces (half an 8-ounce package) reduced-fat cream cheese, at room temperature
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
2 to 2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

1. Place the white chocolate in a small glass bowl in the microwave oven on high power for 1 minute. Remove the bowl from the oven and stir with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula until it is smooth. Set the chocolate aside to cool.

2. Place the cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until well combined, 30 seconds. Stop the machine. Add the melted white chocolate and blend on low speed until just combined, 30 seconds. Add the peppermint extract and 2 cups of the confectioners' sugar and blend on low until the sugar is incorporated, 30 seconds more. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until the frosting is fluffy, 1 minute more, adding up to 1/2 cup more sugar if needed to make a spreadable consistency.


3. Frost cupcakes however you like. I piped it on top of each cupcake to look snowy and festive. You could put sprinkles or crushed peppermints on top if you wish, too. I like them just like this.



4. ENJOY!