Vanilla Porter Cupcakes with Vanilla Porter Salted Caramel Frosting

I will be the first to say I have never been a big fan of beer, any beer and my goodness I have tried.  We recently had dinner with some lovely friends and they introduced me to Vanilla Porter.  I was so surprised how well I liked it.  So this same dear friend had a birthday coming up and I thought what if I incorporate this deliciousness into a cupcake (cupcake on tap!!).  It definitely turned out better than I expected and I will definitely be making these again.  Indulge!

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE CUPCAKES

1 & ½ sticks butter, room temperature

½ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder

¾ cup Vanilla Porter beer

4 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 & ¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 & ¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

FOR THE SALTED VANILLA PORTER CARAMEL

12 ounces vanilla porter

2 cups brown sugar

6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature

1 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon any flaky sea salt

FOR THE SALTED VANILLA PORTER CARAMEL FROSTING

(Adapted slightly from Pioneer Woman’s, “The Best Frosting I’ve Ever Had”)

5Tablespoons Flour

½ cup milk

½ cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup butter

1 cup granulated sugar (not powdered sugar)

½ cup salted vanilla porter caramel

DIRECTIONS:

FOR THE CUPCAKES

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line muffin tin with paper liners.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat.  Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa until smooth.  Stir in the beer and set aside to cool at least 10 minutes.

Add eggs, sour cream and vanilla into a mixing bowl and beat until smooth.  Add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat until combined.

Add the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.  Beat on medium speed until combined.  Divide the batter into the baking cups, filling them about 2/3rds full.  Bake for 15 to 18 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Cool cupcakes completely and proceed to frost them. 

FOR THE VANILLA PORTER SALTED CARAMEL

Over medium high heat, simmer the porter for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in sugar and butter and whisk until sugar and butter have melted.  Stop whisking once all of the sugar has melted and swirl the pan while the sugar cooks.

Continue cooking until the sugar has reached a deep amber color.  This is where caramel can go from perfect to burnt in seconds.  If you are using a thermometer, cook the sugar until it reaches 350 degrees F.

As soon as the caramel reaches 350 degrees remove the pan from the heat and slowly pour the cream into the caramel.  Whisk until all of the cream until it has been incorporated and you have a smooth sauce.  Add the salt and vanilla and whisk to combine.

Set aside to cool for about 10 to 15 minutes and then pour into a glass jar and let cool to room temperature.  You can refrigerate the sauce for up to 2 weeks.  You’ll want to warm the sauce up before using.

FOR THE SALTED CARAMEL FROSTING

In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and cream, stirring constantly until it thickens.  You will want it to be very thick, thicker than cake mix more like brownie mix.  Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature.  It must be completely cool before you use it.  Stir in vanilla

While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter, sugar and salted caramel until light and fluffy.  Then add the cooled flour mixture and beat the living daylights out of it.  If it looks separated, you haven’t beaten it enough.  Beat until it all combines and resembles whipped cream.

Grab a spoon and taste this wonderful goodness.  If there is any left after your taste test, pipe onto your cupcakes finish with a drizzle of that delicious vanilla porter salted caramel.  Indulge!