Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes

HAPPY ALMOST BIRTHDAY TO ME! Yes, its true, my birthday is Monday **feel free to send presents/food/food-related gifts my way** and in honor of the biiiig 2-0, I've decide to make a lot of cupcakes. SO get ready to be swarmed. These aren't ordinary cupcakes either. These are over the top, sinful, mouthwatering lil cakes that take cupcakes to a whole new level. Also, because I'm baking so many, I'm downscaling the recipes majorly and making batches of four cupcakes at a time. Who knew you could do that? Cut it in half and you get 2, the perfect end for a meal without the pressure to eat all 24. This vanilla cupcake recipe is my new one and I'm sticking by it because it is fluffy, light, yet totally rich. Our adventure starts with an ode to one of my favorite desserts of all time, the Banana Cream Pie. A simple vanilla cake is filled with vanilla pudding, fresh bananas, topped with fresh whipped cream and sits atop a graham cracker crust. If you closed your eyes and bit into one of these cakes, you'd swear it was a pie. These are AWESOME, beautiful, and instead of restraining yourself from eating a whole pie, you only have to restrain yourself from eating 4 cupcakes. Harder then it sounds, I mean LOOOK...

Banana Cream Pie Cupcakes *for 4

Ingredients
1 Bowl Vanilla Cupcake Base *recipe from How Sweet It Is
2 egg whites
4 tbs sugar
4 tbs melted butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
3 tbs milk

2 graham crackers
1 tbs melted butter

1/2 package of instant vanilla pudding
1 cup milk

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
3 tbs powdered sugar

1 banana

Recipe: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk the egg whites and sugar together. Whisk in the butter and vanilla until well combined. Gradually whisk in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Make sure to scrape the sides and get all the dry bits on the side incorporated. Slowly mix in the milk.

Crush the graham crackers and mix them with the melted butter. Spoon enough of the mixture into each cupcake liner to coat the bottom and press down. Pour the cupcake batter on top, so it is 3/4 way full. Bake for 12 minutes, or until golden brown and a tester inserted comes out clean. Cool.

While the cupcakes are cooking, combine the pudding mix and milk in a microwave proof bowl. Heat on high for 6 minutes, stirring after every 2 minutes. After 6 minutes cover it with plastic wrap and put in fridge to cool.

In a bowl fitted with an electric mixer combine the heavy cream, vanilla, and sugar. Beat on high for 6 minutes, until stiff peaks form.

Assembly: Make sure the cupcakes are totally cooled. Using a knife, make an incision in the center and cut a cylinder shaped hole, and hollow it out. Slice the banana into thin slices. Stuff one of these slices in the bottom of the hole:

spoon some vanilla pudding on top of the banana slice

 and finish with another banana slice.

 Pipe fresh whipped cream onto of the hole and entire cupcake and top with another fresh banana.

 so take a look at THAT. You have your graham cracker base, some cake, some creamy pudding filling with fresh bananas, and a mountain of whipped cream. Not bad.

 You probably want to hit me/hug me at the same time. Its a common reaction.

this is what love looks like. 

Happy Birthday to ME part 1

xoxo

hungreegirl.