We have some really incredible locally-produced honey here in Tennessee. We pick up a giant jar of raw dark wildflower honey at the Farmers’ Market every few months or so, and use it in everything from tea to salad dressings to baked goods. I swear, once you buy some really good pure honey, you will never go back to the cheap-o store stuff (yes, I’m talking about you, Mr. Bear).
A few weeks back I made a chocolate cake, and the cake recipe I used included honey in the batter. Which I didn’t think much of until we were eating it that night. And you know what? You could actually taste the honey. It was a delicious complement to the richness of the chocolate itself.
So I took that idea (as I often do), and downsized it into cupcake form. Mixed in some roasted peanuts (because as a child who would choose a pb & honey sandwich over a pb&j anyday, I knew they were a perfect match), and topped it off with a subtly sweet and buttery rich honey buttercream. Yum. The honey adds an unexpected note of sweetness and depth of flavor to these cupcakes that you can actually taste in the final cake (surprisingly it does not bake out). Not to mention that since honey is naturally moisture-loving, these are some of the moistest cupcakes you will ever eat. To put it concisely, these cupcakes are all-around scrumptious.
Granted, Taylor has never been a fan of peanut butter and cake in the same bite, and while I had hoped that the ground peanuts would differ from simply adding peanut butter, I still think he would have preferred these sans-peanut. But I am sure he won’t put up a fight when I ask him to help me finish off this batch. I mean, cake is cake, right?
Chocolate Honey Cupcakes with Roasted Peanuts and Honey Vanilla Buttercream
Makes 12 cupcakes.
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup soy milk
- 1/3 cup canola oil
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup honey
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup roasted unsalted peanuts, finely ground
For Frosting:
- 2 large egg whites
- 3/8 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 cups (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line muffin pan with paper liners.
- Whisk together the soy milk, oil, sugar, honey, and vanilla extract until incorporated. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix in peanuts. Make a well in the center of dry ingredients and pour in soy milk mixture. Stir until just smooth (do not overmix).
- Pour into liners, filling each with 3 tablespoons of batter (cups should be no more than 2/3 full). For mini cupcakes, fill each with 1 tablespoon batter. Bake 18-20 minutes (or 10-12 for minis), or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.
- To make buttercream, combine the sugar, honey, and egg whites in a large heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly, keeping the mixture over the heat, until it feels hot to the touch, 7-10 minutes. The sugar should be dissolved, and the mixture will look like melted marshmallow cream. Remove from heat and transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer, and whisk on high speed until mixture is completely cooled and stiff peaks form, about 6-10 minutes. Add butter, 2 tablespoons at a time, on low speed, mixing well after each addition. If at any point mixture looks separated or curdled, stop adding butter. Increase speed to high and beat until mixture smooths out again. Reduce speed, and continue adding remaining butter. Beat in vanilla and food coloring (if desired). Pipe or spread onto cooled cupcakes.
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Those cupcakes look divine, and the cooking tools are perfect for Spring with those bright colors!
I have never had “good” honey, but I want to try some after reading this post! I always went for the peanut butter and honey combination rather than the pb&j, as well.
Oh, yum! Those cupcakes AND bowls look delish! I love the colours. They would bring so much cheer into any kitchen :)
Ohh! Those look yummy. I may have to try these with the honey my boyfriend purchased from a farm located in his hometown.
Pick me, Pick me!
Thanks for giving me inspiration! I have been commissioned to make hundreds of cupcakes for my sister’s wedding!
mmm – cupcakes, if only I wasn’t attempting to fit in a wedding dress…
I’ve never thought of honey and chocolate together before! Sounds fantastic!
chocolate? honey? roasted peanuts??
i’m sold. :D
Love your blog – looking forward to rying the cupcakes!
can’t wait to try this recipe out!! i wonder if subbing almond flour would work out too??
Mmm, love anything with honey in!
I love that even your mom commented. BTW, love your blog. Your cupcakes always look amazing!
I just got a huge jar of home-grown honey from my uncle in S.D. and I wanted to bake w/them, and I LOVE peanuts-this sounds great!
Thanks for sharing
THANK YOU! You are the best. I just tried these with Dominican honey which has a very distinct flavor and they are out.of.this.world. Can’t wait to find some U.S. honey to check out the difference!
Thanks for using honey! My husband and I are new beekeepers, going on our second year and I’m just learning how to incorporate honey into my baking. Love your blog and your recipes. Delicious!
I have the teeniest tiniest kitchen that these would be perfect for. And this recipe looks amazing.
This stuff is so fun, and those cupcakes look delicious!
Such pretty colors! And I must try the cupcake recipe – that sounds like an awesome combo of ingredients.
LOVE your blog. Started following you because http://www.entertainingbyevie.com mentioned you… I’m so hungry after reading your blog!!
the cupcakes look amazing, and so does the giveaway!
I love this site, love the recipes and the giveaways! you guys are great! keep up the good work, and I have to get to baking…. :-)
I must have these :-) !!
ooh, those cupcakes sound amazing!
My boyfriend and I love your blog and try to make at least one recipe from it a week! That chef’n stuff is absolutely adorable!!!
I’m a new reader (found you through Cheap Healthy Good) and I’ve really enjoyed reading your archives. Thank you for the giveaway!
Oh dear. I love chocolate. I adore honey. I’m addicted to peanuts. All of those ingredients in one cupcake? Definitely a match made in heaven (:
WOW! chocolate and honey in one cupcake? looks like an amazing combination. even though my boyfriend is allergic to peanuts, i’m making these!
Those look delicious! I’ll just have to replace the peanuts with almonds due to my allergy but I think that will still work!
The cupcakes are cuteeee!
These look so yummy!! Too bad I currently don’t have an oven..
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1372310716&ref=mf
I will most definitely be making these cupcakes today!
The cupcakes sound yummy! I have many chef’n products in my kitchen and they are all top notch!!
I even use honey as a moisturiser for my hair, how would I not try those cupcakes!?
I’m trying this recipe as soon as possible! Those cupcakes look heavenly!!!
Oooh. . . Your cupcakes look delicious! I’ll have to try that recipe soon.
Those measuring cups are so cute!
So it’s a lucky draw, huh? Cool. Can I campaign on behalf of my friend? If not, pick me! (And I’ll give it to said friend…who coincidentally, has already left a comment here…two, really lol!). She’s a baking aficionado if that helps! :)
Thses cupcakes look amazing .yummyyyyy
We just bought some raw honey and I’d love to try putting that into these cupcakes . My husband’s a fan of chocolate and honey so I think these will be a hit. And those measuring cups are so cool!
The cupcakes look delicious! I love baking with honey.
Oooh! Those measuring cups are on my wishlist too!!! So cool!
That looks great! I’ve used brown sugar in chocolate cake, but I’ll have to give honey a try. I love using it when I make whipped cream.
Those cupcakes look yummy!
These sounds amazing. Crossing my fingers that I’ll get the awesome giveaway this time!
The cake part of these cupcakes (not a fan of icing in general) sound delicious! I can’t wait to get the chance to make these!
This looks really good. I’ve got a bridal shower coming up and am looking to offer a variety of cupcakes and am hoping to add this one to my batch. Thanks!
These look yummy, and Chef’n products rule!! <3 your blog and your cupcakes, and me and my gal pals swooned over the cupcake proposal (I know it's old news, but this is my first time commenting…)
Love the cupcakes!
Oh Yum! I also found some fabulous local honey – this sounds great. Thanks for the giveaway opportunity.