The Friday Baking Project

Coconut Cupcakes

Yield: 21 regular, 9 jumbo muffins

# of Servings:  9 to 21

Method: Creaming method

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

3 cups (13.2 oz / 367 g) cake flour, sifted
1 tbl (.55 oz / 15 g) baking powder
â…“ tsp salt

1 cup (8 oz / 227 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ¾ cup (12 ¼ oz / 347 g) sugar

3 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1 tsp coconut extract
1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup unsweetened coconut milk¹, shaken before using

Finishing:

1 recipe Seven-Minute Coconut Frosting

2 cups (4.8 oz / 136 g) shredded or flaked unsweetened coconut, lightly toasted

Tools and equipment needed:

• 2 regular 12-well, or 2 jumbo 6-well muffin tins
• Regular or jumbo muffin pan liners
• 1.5 fl oz (#20) ice cream scoop
• 21†plastic pastry bag with a #864 French star tip.

Pre-recipe preparations:

• Lightly toast the coconut by placing on a silpat or parchment lined cookie sheet in a 350 °F for approximately 10 minutes, or just until a light golden brown. Be careful coconut can burn very quickly.
• Place liners in the muffin tins.
• Preheat oven to 375 °F.

Directions:

1. Thoroughly whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Set aside.
2. In countertop mixer with paddle, or handheld mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add extracts to eggs. Slowly add to the butter mixture, scraping the sides of the bowl in between additions.
4. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternately with the coconut milk in two parts, beginning and ending with the dry. Use a plastic spatula to scrape up from the bottom to ensure a well-blended batter.
5. For regular-sized muffins, place one scoop in each well, until about â…” of the way filled. For jumbo muffins, place approximately 1 ½ scoops in each well, until about â…” of the way filled.
6. Bake just until the cupcakes the top feels springy and cake tester comes out mostly clean, between 15 and 17 minutes for regular muffins, 22 and 24 minutes for jumbo muffins,
7. Remove from oven and place pans on cooling rack for 7 minutes.
8. Carefully remove the cupcakes from the pans and place on cooling racks.
9. Make the frosting.
10. Spread or pipe the frosting on each cupcake.
11. Sprinkle a generous amount of toasted coconut on each.
12. Store at room temperature.

Notes:

1. There are differences in brands of coconut milk. Read the label before buying to see that it actually contains coconut milk. I have had success with the Nature’s Promise Organic Coconut Milk from Stop and Shop.