Pumpkin Cupcakes with Burnt Marshmallow Icing

Were you worried I didn’t complete the challenge this month? Don’t worry, I remembered. I was quite worried I wasn’t going to so one day last week, Tuesday in fact I decided to make them. Normally I have my little one under my feet, but she wasn’t…. why? Because she was sick.

Tuesday morning when I woke up the house was chilly so I actually turned off the air (which wasn’t on) and turned on the heater. My girl woke up and she was complaining about being cold, but like I said the house had a chill so I wasn’t worried just yet. As the house started warming up, so did I. But she still kept complaining about being chilly. That’s. NOT. NORMAL. for her. I’m telling you, when the rest of us are cold, she’s just fine or even complaining about being warm. That bothered me.

I felt her forehead and nothing so I went on about my business, telling her we were going to be baking cupcakes soon. Remember, she loves to bake. Later on, as I was clanging around in the kitchen, she wasn’t under foot. I walked into the living room and she was curled up on the oversized chair. Said she was going to take a nap. Red flag number 2. She NEVER takes naps. So I went on the hunt for the thermometer. 101.3. Ugh! I was quite worried. I got her some Motrin and set a timer for 2 hours for the Tylenol. I didn’t want what happened in February to repeat itself if I could stop it. Then I proceeded to sit on the ottoman and watch her for an hour taking her temperature every 20 minutes. A little excessive, maybe….

Finally after an hour it started to slowly come down. She napped for 2 hours. NOT NORMAL. As her temperature finally started to drop, I decided it was time to go in and finish working on the cupcakes. The icing is interesting in my opinion. It’s not marshmallow… it’s egg whites that were heated with sugar until dissolved, then whipped. I don’t own a kitchen torch, one of the few things I don’t have, so I couldn’t torch my icing. Verdict… The cupcake was awesome. The icing not my favorite but not bad either.

Pumpkin Cupcake with Burnt Marshmallow Icing

(Food Network Magazine, January/February 2017, Vol 10 number 1, Page 67)

For the cupcakes:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 cups packed light brown sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
• 1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin puree
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

For the frosting:

• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 4 large egg whites
• Pinch of salt
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Make the Cupcakes: Preheat your oven to 350˚F and line two 12-cup muffin pans with liners. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the brown sugar, eggs, melted butter, pumpkin puree, and vanilla. Beat until smooth. Slowly add the dry flour mixture. Mix until just combined.
4. Using a measuring scoop, divide the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each about 2/3 fully.
5. Bake the pans in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until done. When you lightly press the top and it springs back it’s done, or try the toothpick method.
6. Allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.
7. Make the icing: In a heat proof bowl over a pan of simmering water, combine the granulated sugar, cream of tartar, egg whites, and salt. Do not let the bowl touch the water. Whisk together until the mixture is warm and the sugar is dissolved, about 2-3 minutes.
8. Remove the bowl from the pan, and add the vanilla. Then beat with a mixer on medium-high speed until the icing is cool and stiff, glossy peaks form. About 4-6 minutes.
9. Assembly: Place icing in a disposable piping bag. Cut a hole in the top and pipe the icing onto the cupcakes.
10. This is where I stopped, but if you have a kitchen torch, here is where you brown the icing with the kitchen torch to make the Burnt Marshmallow icing.