The Freshman Cook: May 2013

Today is Secret Recipe Club reveal day! This month I was the lucky blogger who was assigned the blog Mele Cotte, which is authored by Chris. I had a really difficult time deciding which recipe to choose. There are so many great ones and now I have a lengthy list of Chris’s recipes that I will be making in the future! I finally decided to make the Cannoli Cupcakes and I was so glad I did. These cupcakes are just like the Italian pastry, and oh, so tasty!

Cannoli Cupcakes

2 cup cake flour 1 ¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour 1 Tbsp. baking powder 1 tsp. cinnamon ½ tsp. salt 1 ½ cup sugar 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature 4 large eggs 1 cup whole milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cannoli Filling
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

 (drained in a fine-mesh strainer for 2 hours to remove excess liquid) 1 cup mascarpone cheese ½ cup confectioners sugar ½ tsp. vanilla ½ tsp. cinnamon

pinch of salt

Mascarpone Buttercream

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature 16 oz. Mascarpone cheese, room temperature 4-5 cups confectioners sugar

chopped pistachios

Whisk flours, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl; set aside.

Cream butter and sugar, mixing until just light and fluffy. 

Add eggs 1 at a time until combined, 

scraping down the bowl after each addition.

Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of milk 

and vanilla to batter until completely mixed scraping down the bowl as you mix.

  Scoop batter into baking cups filling about 2/3 full. 

Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 17 to 20 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix filling ingredients using a wooden spoon. 

Cover and refrigerate until ready to fill cupcakes, at least 2 hours.

When ready to fill cupcakes, transfer the cannoli filling into a pastry

 bag fitted with a plain tip.

 Push the tip gently into the bottom of a 

cupcake and squeeze in the filling until the cupcake plumps.

 Continue with the remaining cupcakes.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, 

cream butter and Mascarpone until light and creamy.

 Add sugar and continue beating until smooth.

Top with mascarpone buttercream.

Add chopped pistachios.

Chris added a cannolli shell to the top of each of the cupcakes,

and they look so cute!

Thanks for joining me today!

Stop by Mele Cotte and see this great recipe and so many others.

Check out what all the other Secret Recipe Club members made today.