Chocolate Graham Cracker Cupcakes with Toasted Marshmallow Icing

I discovered something about Eileen back when I made the homemade marshmallows–she may love smores even more than I do. I know it’s hard to believe, since I’m famous for eating marshmallows until I’m nearly sick, and adding grahams and chocolate just makes it that much better, but it’s true.

Something else you may not know about Eileen–she’s another March baby, with her day of birth just about a week and a half before mine. We’re both in the habit of making cakes for other people’s birthdays, so it’s only natural that we would want to make a cake for each other.

We both wanted to keep the exact type of cake we were making for the other a secret–surprises are fun and all–but of course we couldn’t help dropping hints. When Eileen casually mentioned that she had borrowed a friend’s kitchen torch to make my birthday treat, it hit me–we were planning the same treat!

I asked her, and sure enough, we both had smores cupcakes on the brain for each other’s birthday surprise! It was a great minds moment–and it only took us about 30 seconds to decide that it would be way more fun to make the cupcakes together than apart!

Sadly (only in that it delayed the cupcakes), we’re both busy people, and both of our birthdays passed without any cupcakes. But last friday night we decided it’s always better to be late than never do something–so we had a date! A cupcakes and chick flick date! We baked and watched, cooled and torched. Something about having a certain bad teen dance movie on in the background while we worked a kitchen torch really made for a fantastic friday night!

Chocolate Graham Cracker Cupcakes with Toasted Marshmallow Icing
Adapted from Trophy Cupcakes, via the Martha Stewart Show

It turns out after further examination, Eileen and I weren’t actually planning on making the same cupcakes, but rather just cupcakes with the same idea. I was going to make the smores cupcakes from the Martha Stewart Cupcakes book, Eileen was thinking of this recipe, which she found on the Martha website. I’m glad we went with this one because it’s fantastic, and not nearly as fussy, particularly with ingredients, as the one in the cookbook. But who knows, maybe we’ll get another chance to try a different variation sometime–maybe for next year’s birthdays?

Ingredients (for 2 dozen cupcakes):

• 2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon cocoa powder (not Dutch-processed)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup milk (we used skim)
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (from about 20 squares)
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

For Meringue Icing:

• 8 large egg whites
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions for Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 standard muffin tins with cupcake liners.

Sift 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together into the bowl of an electric mixer. Mix together on low speed with the paddle attachment.

In a separate bowl, mix together eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture and beat on medium speed for 30 seconds. Scrape down sides of bowl and continue mixing on medium speed for 2 minutes. Take the mixer bowl off the mixer base, and by hand, stir in the boiling water. The cake batter will be really thin, this is okay. Set aside.

In another bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and melted butter until well combined.

Place 1 tablespoon graham cracker mixture into the bottom of each muffin liner. Use the bottom of a small glass or a spoon to pack crumbs into the bottom of each liner. Reserve remaining graham cracker mixture for topping.

Place a large pinch of chopped chocolate on top of the graham mixture in each muffin cup. Bake until the edges of the graham cracker mixture is golden, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from oven and fill each muffin cup three-quarters full with cake batter. Sprinkle each with remaining chocolate and graham cracker mixture.

Return to oven and bake until tops are firm and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer muffin tins to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and let cool completely. You can put the cupcakes in the freezer to help quicken the cooling–they should be completely cool before you ice.

Meanwhile, make icing. In the bowl of your electric mixer, combine egg whites, cream of tartar and sugar. Then place the bowl of your electric mixer over a pot of simmering water. Cook, whisking constantly, until sugar is dissolved and mixture is hot to the touch, about 3-4 minutes. Place mixer bowl on the stand mixer and beat with the whisk attachment until stiff peaks form and the outside of the bowl is cool to the touch, 5-7 minutes. Once you have stiff peaks, beat in the vanilla.

Transfer frosting to a large pastry bag fitted with a large plain round or French tip (We used two large star tips). Pipe frosting in a spiral motion on each cupcake. Transfer cupcakes to a baking sheet. Using a kitchen torch, lightly brown the frosting, taking care not to burn the cupcake liners or anything else in your kitchen, or yourself. And don’t get distracted by the flame or you’ll burn the cupcakes! Serve immediately or store in an airtight container, up to 2 days.

And prepare yourself for something amazing, because these cupcakes truly are. With their cookie base, super moist cupcake interior and fantastic meringue top, they’re not only amazing to look at, but amazing to eat as well!

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