Homemade Hostess-Style Cupcakes
Hostess Brands might be going out of business, but that doesn't mean you'll have to stop enjoying delicious cream-filled cupcakes. Just start making your own.
Andie Mitchell, who dishes out deliciousness from her Can You Stay For Dinner? food blog, gave us this sweet idea for homemade Hostess-style cupcakes — complete with the swirly decorative topping. Her three-part recipe outlines each step for whipping up these iconic treats, but substitutes coffee-infused chocolate cake, vanilla buttercream filling and shiny chocolate ganache in place of the preservative-laden components of their store-bought counterparts.
READ: Homemade Twinkies Recipe
The result is a host of Hostess-inspired cupcakes that are rich, moist, and possibly just as tasty as the original. Try them for yourself and see.
Homemade Hostess-Style Cupcakes
- 1/2 cup hot brewed coffee
- 2 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup canola oil
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter, softened (for the filling)
- 3 cups confectioners sugar (for the filling)
- 3–4 tablespoons heavy cream (for the filling)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (for the filling)
- 3/4 cup heavy cream (for the glaze)
- 1/4 cup light corn syrup (for the glaze)
- 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (for the glaze)
- Preheat the oven to 325 F.
- Pour the hot coffee over the two ounces of chopped semisweet chocolate. Allow the coffee and chocolate to stand for a minute, then stir until the chocolate has melted completely and the mixture is smooth. Set aside.
- In a standing mixer (or using a hand-held electric mixer) beat the egg until it is opaque and a bit frothy, about 30 seconds. Add the sour cream, oil and vanilla. Mix well. Stream in the chocolate and beat until all ingredients are well combined.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder. Add it to your wet ingredients and mix just until combined.
- Divide the batter evenly among a paper-lined muffin tin. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Set the pan atop a wire rack and let them cool for 15 minutes before removing to cool completely.
- For the filling: Beat the butter until creamy and smooth. Slowly add the confectioners sugar, one cup at a time, and beat on medium-high until fluffy. Add the cream and vanilla and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add more cream if necessary, one tablespoon at a time, to achieve a creamy, light consistency.
- For the ganache: In a small saucepan, combine the heavy cream, corn syrup and chocolate and warm over medium-high heat until smooth and well-combined. Remove from heat and let the mixture cool for 30 minutes before spreading on top of the cupcakes.
- To assemble the cupcakes: With a knife or small spoon, scoop out a small section of the center of the cupcakes (from the top). Use a pastry bag to pump 2 tablespoons of cream filling into each, then spoon 1 tablespoon of ganache over the tops and smooth with a butter knife.
- If desired, use the pastry bag to add a small squiggle across the top of each cupcake with any leftover cream filling.
