Roasted Banana Cupcakes with a Caramel Buttercream Frosting
Makes two dozen cupcakes
Cupcakes:
5 medium bananas, just showing dark ripe spots
3 cups all-purpose flour
¾ tsp baking soda
¾ tsp baking powder
1 tsp fine sea salt
2 Tbsp Chinese Five Spice powder (try experimenting with other spices!)
12 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup packed dark brown sugar
5 large eggs, room temperature, separated (yolks and whites)
1 tsp vanilla paste
¾ cup sour cream, room temperature
Caramel Buttercream (enough to frost two dozen cupcakes)
1 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup water
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 ½ cups unsalted butter (three sticks), room temperature
5 large egg whites
1 tsp vanilla paste
¼ tsp fine sea salt
1) Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Place the bananas on a parchment lined sheet and roast for 15 minutes. The skins will blacken. Let cool while moving forward with the recipe. Reduce the oven to 350 degrees.
2) Line your muffin tins with paper liners – or make your own with parchment.
3) Sift together the dry ingredients – the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spice (I use Chinese Five Spice, but try ginger, cinnamon, a dash of chili powder, etc.)
4) In a standing mixer, whip the five egg whites with the whisk to a stiff peak. Spoon the whipped whites into another bowl and return the bowl to the mixer.
5) Cream together the butter and sugars in the standing mixer with the paddle until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time. Once incorporated, add the bananas (peeled, of course) and then the vanilla paste.
6) Alternate adding the dry mix and the sour cream. One-third of the dry, half the sour cream, another third of the dry, remaining sour cream, remaining dry.
7) Gently fold in the whipped egg whites. Start with one-third of the whites to lighten the batter, then fold in the remaining until no white streaks remain.
8) Divide the batter to make the 24 muffins. Bake for 18-20 minutes until just firm to the touch. Let cool completely while you make the buttercream.
9) For the buttercream: Combine ½ cup of the sugar and the water in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan and heat and stir over a medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring and let the mixture come to a boil and caramelize to a deep amber. Immediately remove from the heat and add the heavy cream all at once, whisking together. The mixture will bubble up – be prepared! Set aside to cool to room temperature.
10) In the bowl of a standing mixer, combine the egg whites and the remaining ½ cup sugar. Place the bowl over a simmering pan of water (don’t let the pan touch the water) and stir the mixture until the sugar completely dissolves.
11) Return the bowl to the mixer and using the whisk, whip the whites to a stiff peak and the bowl no longer feels warm to the touch. This could take between 8-10 minutes. Add the room temperature butter, one tablespoon as a time. The mixture will break and then magically come back together into a silky buttercream. Once this happens, lower the speed to the lowest power and fold in the cooled caramel, ¼ tsp of fine sea salt and vanilla paste. The frosting is now ready to top your cooled cakes.
