cookie butter frosted cupcakes

  The world seems to be dividing into 2 kinds of people.  Those who know about the cookie butter and are completely obsessed, and those who haven’t discovered it yet.  Actually, there may be a third kind of people: those who look at you blankly when you wax on about cookie butter and then ask: “What do you do with it?”

  It’s actually a fair question.  And one that until recently I didn’t have a good answer to.  Because those same people don’t think an acceptable answer is to eat it with a spoon in your pajamas (This is an excellent way to eat cookie butter, btw).

  In case you are one of the unaware but would be smitten, let me tell you about the cookie butter.  It’s called Speculoos cookie butter, and you find it at Trader Joe’s.  And here’s the premise: it’s made like peanut butter, BUT…. instead of using peanuts, they use Speculoos cookies.  These taste like gingerbread and cinnamon.  Are you beginning to understand the awesomeness of cookie butter now? Of course you are.

  So here’s a little recipe I created for it.  Cookie butter makes excellent frosting. You don’t have to add too much sugar to get it to hold its shape, and it’s fantastic with these rich chocolate cupcakes. And out in the world or home in your pajamas, they are equally delicious.

ingredients for cupcakes:

adapted from Cooks Illusrated

• 3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1/3 c. cocoa powder
• 2 tbl. instant coffee
• 3/4 c. hot water
• 3/4 c. bread flour
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 6 tbl. butter, melted & cooled
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp. white vinegar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

ingredients for cookie butter frosting:

adapted from Joy the Baker

• 2 sticks(16 tbl.) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 1 c. Speculoos cookie butter
• 2 c. powdered sugar
• 1 tbl. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

  Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners.  Add instant coffee to hot water and stir to dissolve.  Whisk chocolate and cocoa in a heatproof bowl.  Pour hot coffee into bowl and stir to combine.  Cover the bowl and let sit for 5 minutes to let the chocolate melt.  Whisk to smooth, then place in refrigerator to cool, about 30 minutes.

  When chocolate is cool, preheat oven to 350°.  Whisk flour, sugar, salt and baking soda together in a bowl.  Whisk butter, eggs, vinegar and vanilla extract into the chocolate mixture.  Add flour mixture and whisk together until smooth.

  Pour batter into the cupcake pan evenly.  Bake 17 to 19 minutes, until  a toothpick inserted into a cupcake comes out clean with a few crumbs.  Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely, about an hour.

  When cupcakes are cool, make your frosting. Beat butter on medium high until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Add cookie butter and beat another 3 minutes.  You may need to scrape down the bowl.  Add sugar on low, 1 cup at a time to thoroughly combine.  Add milk and vanilla and beat on high for 1 minute.

  I frosted my cupcakes using a pastry bag fitted with a 1mm. open star tip.  Starting from the outside edge of the cupcake, hold pastry bag straight up and pipe along the edge.  When you complete the circle, move bag in and pipe on top off and slightly inside the frosting already there.  Keep doing this until you get to the middle of your cupcake.  Stop squeezing the bag, then lift straight up.