A few days ago when I finally decided to clean out my dreaded kitchen pantry, I realized that a bottle of Frangelico's hazelnut liquor was camouflaged against my mom's asian sauce bottles, including a peculiar fish sauce and lots of siracha. Why in the world was this luxurious bottle of liquor inconspicuously tucked away among such puny (i still love you, siracha) bottles? Oh, the many hazelnut baking ideas I could've totally not really devised all this time.... Wasted. Well, guess I shouldn't try to waste any more time, right? So I introduce to you... "Honey Toasted Hazelnut Chocolate Cupcakes with Honey Swiss Meringue Buttercream!"
I found a similar recipe on Half Baked Harvest, but I made a few changes to the recipe of course! This recipe incorporates hazelnut liquor, honey, AND rich chocolate into one chaotic cupcake recipe. I also topped off this cake with a very light honey swiss meringue buttercream with toasted hazelnuts as well.
With an already light meringue buttercream, I was working with another light flavor... honey. From my experience, it can be a challenge to completely pull out the richness of honey in a recipe (I think I now know why the cute honey bears just can't get enough of this). Even if you believe you used a lot, the flavor can be quite obscure. With a cake that already isn't too sugary, I wanted the flavors of the cream to be the right balance of sweetness to stabilize all the crazy flavors of this whole cupcake. That's why the honey in my meringue buttercream was either going to make or break my recipe... Another reason to definitely keep an extra eye out on this process! Even though it took me multiple tries to get it right, it eventually worked out! There is nothing happier than getting a perfectly balanced cupcake, right bakers? ;)
Remember, unleash that inner honey-bear of yours! You'll be surprised you even had one after making these cupcakes, I assure you.
Recipe
Honey Toasted Hazelnut Chocolate Cupcakes with Honey Swiss Meringue Buttercream
Ingredients
For the cupcakes
- 2 cup flour
- ½ cup butter, at room temperature
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon hazelnut liquor
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅓ cup milk
- ¼ cup warm coffee
- 8 ounces chocolate morsels
For the buttercream
- 5 large egg whites
- 11/2 cup sugar
- 4 sticks unsalted butter, sliced and softened
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ + ⅓ cups honey
For the decorations
- ½ cup chopped hazelnuts
- 1 tablespoon honey, plus more for drizzling
Instructions
Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a muffin tin with 16-18 liners.
- In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, and the salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds.
- Add the brown sugar, honey, hazelnut liquor and vanilla and beat until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Add the milk and coffee into a glass measuring cup or small bowl.T hen alternately add flour mixture and milk/coffee to the butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until mixture is combined. Fold in the chocolate pieces.
- Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each about three-fourths full. Bake for 20 to 15 minutes or until the center of the cupcakes does not jiggle and the tops are puffed and lightly browned. Cool cupcakes in muffin cups for 10 minutes.
- Remove cupcakes from muffin cups. Cool completely. While the cupcakes bake, toast the hazelnuts. Heat a small non-stick skillet over medium heat, add the hazelnuts and honey to the pan. Toast over medium for about 5 minutes, just be careful and watch that they don't burn. Remove and allow to cool.
Buttercream
- Combine egg whites and sugar in a stand mixer bowl and place it over (not on) simmering water. Heat mixture to 160 degrees F while whisking constantly.
- Transfer mixer bowl to stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment and beat on medium high speed (speed 8 on a KitchenAid stand mixer) until mixture cools, doubles in volume and forms stiff peaks; about 10-12 minutes.
- Add butter in one piece at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition. The mixture may appear clumpy and almost curdled looking at first—this is normal. Keep mixing and it will become even and smooth again.
- Add salt and honey, mix until combined.
Assembly
- Pipe the honey swiss meringue onto the cupcakes.
- Drizzle with more honey and melted chocolate.
- Add the toasted hazelnuts.
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