Pina-Colada cupcakes (with recipe)

My mother-in-law came to visit for her birthday a couple weekends ago. We had a great time with her in town and I got to show off my baking skills 🙂 I knew that she liked coconut cake but I wanted to kick it up a notch. I found a recipe for pina-colada cupcakes and thought they’d be perfect. I made a 1/2 batch which yielded 8 cupcakes for me.

These turned out AMAZING. Hubby says they’re definitely in the top 3 cupcakes I’ve ever made. I would agree with that. They were so light and fluffy and the coconut and pineapple flavors blended together perfectly.

Pina Colada Cupcakes – from Annie’s Eats
For the cupcakes (I halved this recipe to yield 8 cupcakes):
2 cups sifted cake flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk, at room temperature
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. coconut extract
4 egg whites
1/2-2/3 cup shredded coconut

For the frosting (I halved this recipe which was perfect for my 8 cupcakes):
2/3 cup fresh pineapple chunks
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted

For garnish:
shredded coconut
fresh pineapple wedges

Preheat oven to 350°. Line a muffin tin with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter on high speed until creamy, about 30 seconds. Gradually add the granulated sugar and continue beating, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl, until light and fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes.

Reduce the speed to low and fold in the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour, until just blended. Stir in the vanilla and coconut extract. Stir in shredded coconut. Transfer batter to a large mixing bowl and set aside. Wash and thoroughly dry mixer bowl.

In the mixer bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold ½ cup of the egg whites into the batter until smooth. Carefully fold in the remaining egg whites until smooth and blended. Divide the batter among the prepared wells.

Bake until the cupcakes are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool on the rack to room temperature.

To make the frosting, puree the pineapple chunks in food processor or blender until smooth. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter on high speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Mix in powdered sugar until well combined. Add pineapple puree to achieve desired pineapple flavor (approximately ½ cup). If frosting is too runny, refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow to set up a bit. Frost cupcakes with pineapple frosting, sprinkle with shredded coconut and garnish with fresh pineapple wedges.

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7 Responses to “Apple Slab”

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    1
    Fun and Fearless in Beantown — November 10, 2010 at 2:21 pm

    You are my hero for emailing the hotline! I always assume that bakers like you and Megan know every trick to baking…but it weirdly comforts me that you get nervous sometimes too!

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    2
    We Are Not Martha — November 10, 2010 at 4:30 pm

    How cool! This is so unique and fun-looking. And I love that you contacted the KAF hotline… I’m definitely going to have to do that in the future!

    Sues

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    3
    Allison@KingArthurFlour — November 10, 2010 at 7:18 pm

    Glad you used the hotline! I called it this weekend for a cake question. So helpful!

    Happy baking season!

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    4
    purple squirrel — November 11, 2010 at 12:39 am

    These look great!
    Nice to check out your blog~ I’m just north of you, and it looks like your food choices lately are VERY similar to mine! Must be the “air” in New England! 🙂

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    Jen — November 11, 2010 at 3:16 am

    Oh I totally have no shame in asking for help. Like I always say, I’m really good at following recipes, but the second I have to do something out of the ordinary, I get really nervous…

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    Nutmeg Nanny — November 15, 2010 at 8:10 pm

    How nice to know they are there for help you out!

    This dessert looks great. Perfect for Fall 🙂

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    Megan — November 17, 2010 at 8:05 pm

    One of the many reasons I love KAF! I think this is a great thing to have in the freezer for last-minute company or planning ahead. I only wish I had seen it when I still had a surplus of apples!

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