gimme s'more!

I have to say a great big thank you to the fine folks at cakespy for posting about the unbelievably fabulous creations coming out of Trophy Cupcakes. I know I've always been a visual kid, but it's not very often that I come across an image that leaps out and speaks to me (and my belly, of course) so loudly that I just have to go ahead and make the darn thing for myself.

I'm talking, of course, about the awe inspiring S'more Cupcake. Oh, Trophy, you are madpeople and geniuses all at once!

Here's hoping the feeling is contagious; to all the bakers and cuppy cake lovers out there...let the cupcake madness begin!

And so, we begin...

One Bowl Chocolate Cupcakes
(adapted from Martha Stewart)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups cocoa powder
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

2 large whole eggs, plus 1 egg yolk (save the white for frosting!)
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups warm water (you can substitute coffee, or be boozy like me and sub in Baileys for 1/4 cup of the water...mmm!)

*I should mention that the "official" recipe for the original version is on Martha's website here, but based on some of the comments, I thought I'd stick to a recipe that I've used before, and trust. (Martha will always be my hero, even if a few of her recipes are a little wonky.)

Preheat your oven to 350 while you gather all of your ingredients. Oh, and line two regular cupcake pans (that's 24 cupcakes in total) with those cute paper cups.

Measure out all the dry ingredients and dump into a large bowl...




To the dry, add all the wet ingredients; stir to combine into a smooth mix.

That's it for the cupcake batter; onto the part that makes it s'moreish....

Graham Cracker Base

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tbsp melted butter

1 Hershey's bar, chopped in rough chunks

Combine the graham cracker crumbs and butter.


Scoop about a rounded teaspoon of the crumbly mix into each paper cup. There will be some left over; save this for the topping!


Pat the mix down to form a mini "crust". (Shot glass to the rescue!)



Try very hard not to eat the whole bar...stupid willpower!


Chop chop!



Put a little sprinkle of chopped chocolate on top of the graham base; cover with cupcake mix.



I filled mine about three-quarters full...
(*strange, but this recipe usually makes 24 cupcakes on the nose. This time I had a bit left over, most likely because of the extra bits of graham and chopped chocolate I added. No worries, put the extra in a ramekin to bake for a little bonus treat!)


Sprinkle the rest of the graham cracker mix on top. (I went a little crazy and put more chocolate chips on top as well; no such thing as too much chocolate, is there?)



Bake about 15 - 20 minutes.
Do the toothpick test to check if done, but remember there will be gooey melted chocolate in the middle! (I also rotated the pans about halfway through so everything baked evenly.)


Tah Dah! So cute..but wait, there's more!



I could pack a few of these back right now, but I will be patient, because now it's time for...

Gilding The Lily (aka Marshmallow Frosting)
(adapted from allrecipes.com)

2 cups white sugar
3 egg whites (make sure these are very clean, no yolk bits!)
2 tbsp light corn syrup (I used honey, and it worked out fine)
3 tbsp cold water
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt

Combine all in a stainless steel bowl and set on top of a pot of simmering water. Whisk constantly (electric beaters would've been great here, but old fashioned elbow grease will do just fine!) until mixture is glossy and holds a stiff peak when whisk is lifted.

This counts as my exercise for the day! Once the whites reach stiff peak, remove from heat and keep on whisking until mix cools down. Let it hang out while you locate your pastry bag (or large Ziploc with the corner cut off).



Pipe frosting. Admire. Pipe some more.



Ah, how satisfying to see a little cupcake army forming....


If you're really gonna do it up, and have been itching to use that torch (and who doesn't, really?), now is the time to bust it out! Just remember, light away from the face...


The best part about the frosting is that when it sits for a bit (about an hour, say) it will go crispy on the outside, but still be squishy and marshmallowy in the middle...gaah, it's awesome!


The end result. Chocolatey, crunchy, squishy goodness. Mmm...

Yes, yes, gimme s'more! Enjoy!