Serious S’Mores Cupcakes

Alright, I did it. It took me over two days, but I finally made these s’mores cupcakes that I’ve been dying to make for the last week.

I was super intimidated by them at first; the frosting is a marshmallow meringue, the recipe is complicated, butt I am satisfied with how mine turned out!

I had a lot of kitchen errors, but these cupcakes, adapted and altered from a recipe from Annie’s Eats, are worth the trouble.

S’mores Cupcakes

S'mores Cupcakes, courtesy of Annie's Eats

For the graham cracker crust:

3 cups graham cracker crumbs (two packages from the Honeymaid variety)
1/2 cup sugar
12 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
4 sqaures bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Line two cupcake pans with paper liners, if desired.  In a small mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar and melted butter; mix well with a fork.  Drop about 1 tablespoon of the graham cracker mixture in the bottom of each cupcake liner and firmly press down to line the bottom (I used a shot glass to compress the mixture). Sprinkle a small amount of the chopped chocolate on top of the graham cracker crusts.  Bake for 5 minutes.  Remove from the oven, and maintain the oven temperature.

For the cake:
2 cups plus 2 tbsp. sugar
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup plus 1 tbsp. cocoa powder
1½ tsp. baking powder
1½ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
½ cup vegetable oil
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cupcake liners, filling each about half of the way full.  Return the pans to the oven and bake about 18-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, rotating the pans halfway through baking.  Allow to cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then remove and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the cake batter, sift together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on low speed just to combine.  In a mixing bowl, combine the eggs, milk, vegetable oil and vanilla extract; whisk together.  Add to the dry ingredients and mix on low speed for 30 seconds.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.  Add the boiling water and stir just to combine (batter will be thin).

For the frosting:
8 large egg whites, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
½ tsp. cream of tartar
2 tsp. vanilla extract

To make the frosting, combine the egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar in the top of a double boiler. (Note: I just set my clean, dry mixer bowl over simmering water, to avoid dirtying two bowls.) Heat the mixture, whisking frequently, until it reaches 160° F with an instant-read thermometer.  Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Whisk starting at low speed and gradually increasing to medium-high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form.  Mix in the vanilla until combined.  Frost cooled cupcakes as desired, using a piping bag or a ziploc bag with a small hole cut in the corner.  Brown with a kitchen torch (Note: I simply broiled the cupcakes on high for 1-2 minutes) and garnish with chocolate and graham cracker segments (optional).