Y’all, we’re ’bout to have a royal wedding this weekend and that warrants the best cupcakes with THE BEST icing known to man. Every celebration merits them. I made these cupcakes years ago for my son, James’, school bake sales. They were legendary and sold in a flash…for big bucks. I’ve always been a cake person, scraping off the icing and pushing it to the side of my plate or peeling off the cupcake liner, turning the cake upside down in the liner thereby avoiding the usual sickeningly sweet and way too fluffy frosting. Doesn’t matter the flavor, I don’t want it. Unless it’s this icing. Mercy! This icing is thick, with the ample and generous flavors of vanilla and butter it delivers just the perfect amount of sweetness. I couldn’t stop swiping teaspoon after teaspoon from the bowl as I crowned each cupcake. The cupcake, as well, is equally astounding. It falls somewhere between the crumb of a layer cake and a pound cake. The flavor is of unadulterated, flawless butter. It is the quintessential bake sale, afternoon snack, birthday or wedding cupcake. And when Prince Harry and Ms. Meagan Markle wed early this Saturday morning, my bff, Andrea, and I will be celebrating with hot cups of freshly brewed coffee and these little royal fairy cakes. Best of wishes to all the brides out there!
Classic Yellow Cupcakes
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 5-ounce can evaporated milk, not reduced fat, divided
- 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups cake flour, sifted
- 1 1/2 cups sugar, sifted
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 cup butter, softened
- Pre-heat oven to 350°. Line muffin tin with cupcake liners and set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk the eggs enough to break them up but not enough to whisk in air bubbles.
- Add 1/2 cup milk to eggs and vanilla and stir until completely combined. Set aside and reserve remaining milk for icing.
- In a large bowl, whisk flour, sugar and baking powder until completely combined.
- Add the butter to the flour mixture and mix with an electric mixer until there are no large chunks of butter.
- Add 3/4 of the egg mixture to the butter-flour bowl and mix until just combined.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the remaining egg mixture and beat on high for 1 minute.
- Fill each cupcake liner 2/3 full and bake for 20-22 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
- Cool cupcakes in tin for 10 minutes, remove from tin and cool cupcakes on cooling rack.
- Allow cakes to cool completely before icing.
Royal Buttercream Icing
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 16-ounce bag confectioner’s sugar, SIFTED!
- 1 tablespoon meringue powder
- 1 tablespoon milk, if you made the above cupcakes you’ll have a tablespoon of milk remaining
- In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, mix butter and vanilla until fluffy.
- Add meringue powder to confectioner’s sugar and mix the sugar into the butter in 3-4 increments beating well in between each addition.
- Add the milk and mix well for 3-4 minutes or until the icing is fluffy.
- Ice completely cooled cupcakes.
The Irreverent Kitchen 