Irish Coffee Cupcakes Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to good cupcakes? ›

Fill cups 2/3 full of batter (about 1 rounded tablespoon each). Refrigerate remaining batter. Bake 10 to 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean; cool.

"Baking fluffy, moist cupcakes is all about creating air bubbles in your batter that expand in the oven," she says. "If you overmix your batter, you collapse those bubbles and end up with a brick-like cake." Always mix at a low speed to avoid this, stopping just as all ingredients blend.

Don't Over-mix, Don't Under-mix

Not too much, not too little. Make sure you're mixing the cupcake batter together *just until* the wet and dry are combined. Overmixing batter, whether that's for cakes, cupcakes, breads, muffins, etc, lends a tough-textured baked good. Don't turn on the mixer then leave the room.

For chocolate, vanilla, and most other cupcake recipes, you'll want to bake for 15 to 20 minutes in an oven preheated to 350°F. Test for doneness by inserting a wooden toothpick into the center of a cupcake. If the toothpick is clean when you remove it, the cupcakes are done.

We recommend one standard-sized cupcake per guest. If you prefer minis, we suggest two to three minis per guest.

Flour is the main ingredient of the batter and provides the base for the cupcake. Butter or oil provides flavor, tenderizes the batter and helps provide volume.

Most box cake recipes will tell you to add water to the mix. Instead, try adding milk using the same proportions. This will make the cake richer and creamier because it ups the fat content. You can even use buttermilk here for a pleasant tang.

Check the temperature once your oven is preheated—if it's much higher, check your oven's manual to calibrate it so that 350 degrees actually means 350 degrees. Patterson also suggests simply lowering the temperature by 10 degrees if you notice your cakes significantly doming all the time.