Maple - Pecan Nuts Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream

The recipe for these Maple Pecan Nuts Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream is, on the one end a recipe I found on the internet. Where, I have absolutely no idea, since I spend half of my free time browsing the word wide web for recepies, ideas, and anything related to cupcakes. The other part of the recipe comes from The Cookie and Biscuits Bible, where I found some lovely Maple Pecan Nut Muffins.

Maple Pecan Nuts Cupcakes with Maple Buttercream (Makes 12 cupcakes)

150 g Pecan Nuts

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (185 g)
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, room temperature  100 g)
2/3 cup brown sugar (150g)
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup buttermilk (80 ml)
1/3 cup maple syrup (80 ml)

Preheat oven to 180°. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

Spread the pecan nuts on a baking sheet and toast them in the oven for 5 minutes. Leave to cool, then chop coarsely and set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in eggs, one at a time, followed by vanilla extract. Stir in buttermilk and maple syrup. Gradually blend in the flour mixture, stirring only until batter is just combined and no streaks of dry ingredients remain. Then stir in the toasted and chopped pecan nuts.

Divide evenly into prepared muffin tin.
Bake for 15-18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean. Turn cupcakes out on to a wire rack to cool before frosting.

Maple Buttercream
1/2 cup butter, room temperature

2 tbsp maple syrup, room temperature
2-3 tbsp milk, room temperature
2-3 cups confectioners’ sugar

Combine butter, maple syrup, milk and 2 cups confectioners’ sugar in a large bowl and beat at medium-high speed until smooth. Add remaining sugar in gradually until frosting is thick enough to spread easily. You may not use all the sugar. If icing is too dry, add additional milk until desired consistency is reached.
Spread or pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Since I had some batter left, and I had been dying to use my tiny tiny silicon ‘pans’, I made some tiny tiny cakes in the shape of hearts and stars. Which go very well with the rest of my personnel touch: “Maple Flakes” and a perfect Pecan Nut saved from being chopped.