Banana and Chocolate Cupcake with Grand Marnier Buttercream Icing, drizzle with chocolate ganache, sprinkle with crushed toffee!
INGREDIENTS
Cupcakes
1⅓ cup all-purpose flour
1¼ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
½ tsp. cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1 large egg
¾ cup loosely packed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 large ripe bananas, mashed (1¼ cups)
¼ cup sour cream
½ cup butter, melted
⅓ cup milk
1 cup chocolate chips
½ cup crushed toffee pieces or more
Buttercream
1 cup unsalted butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. orange liqueur (Grand Marnier)
Chocolate Ganache
4 oz. chocolate, chopped superfine
5 Tbsp. heavy cream
1 Tbsp. orange liqueur (Grand Marnier)
INSTRUCTIONS
Cupcakes
Preheat oven to 350F. Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
Combine flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk egg and add brown sugar, mixing until smooth. Stir in vanilla extract. Add sour cream and melted butter and mix. Stir in dry ingredients, then add mashed bananas and milk, mixing until batter comes together. Mix in chocolate chips.
Using an ice cream scoop or ¼ cup measure cup, scoop batter in liners until ¾ of the way full. Bake for 15-17 minutes. Let cool completely.
Buttercream
In a medium bowl, beat butter until smooth and creamy with electric mixer. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add in sugar until combined. Add in vanilla and 2 tablespoons of orange liqueur; increase the speed to medium-high and beat until fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. *** Tip: prepare buttercream right before use as it hardens fast if kept in refrigerator.***
Chocolate Ganache
Add chocolate to a large bowl. Heat heavy cream until just hot (bubbling at the edges). Remove from heat and pour over chocolate. Stir constantly until the chocolate is melted and smooth. ***Tip: take the time to chop the chocolate superfine to avoid chunks of unmelted chocolate.*** Once creamy, add in the orange liqueur, mixing in until smooth.
To drizzle chocolate on your cupcakes, take a small ziploc bag and fill half way with ganache and cut a small hole at the tip of the bag. ***Tip: ganache firms up easily so you may want to wait until your cupcakes are iced to prepare and use the ganache. ***
Top off with crushed toffee pieces.
NOTES
Prepare the cupcakes one day in advance and store overnight in a tightly closed container at room temperature instead of the refrigerator to avoid having dry cupcakes with hard icing.
Thanks to Littlebroken.com for the recipe inspiration!
