Best Ever Maple Cupcakes
These are truly the best maple cupcakes because they're made with real maple syrup, are extremely moist and fluffy, and are topped with a homemade brown sugar frosting. In just about 40 minutes you'll have a fresh batch of cupcakes that are perfect for the cozy winter or fall season.
Servings: 12 cupcakes
Calories: 511kcal
Equipment
- 12-count muffin pan
- Mixing Bowls
- Whisk
Ingredients
Maple Cupcakes
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil (or canola oil)
- ¼ cup maple syrup, room temperature
- ¼ cup yogurt (plain or vanilla), room temperature
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 large egg white, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon maple extract optional
- ½ cup milk, room temperature
Brown Sugar Frosting
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup water
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
Maple Cupcakes
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a 12-count muffin pan with cupcake liners.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, oil, maple syrup, yogurt, egg, egg white, vanilla extract, and maple extract until combined.
- Alternate adding the flour mixture and the milk to the wet ingredients (flour, milk, flour), whisking just until everything is combined (be careful not to overmix).
- Fill each cupcake liner ⅔ of the way full and bake for 15-18 minutes. Use a toothpick to check the centers for doneness and let the cupcakes cool for 10 minutes in the pan before transferring them over to a wire rack to cool completely.
Brown Sugar Frosting
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk together the brown sugar and water until combined. Continue to whisk the sugar occasionally as it begins to melt. This should take 5-10 minutes for the brown sugar to fully dissolve.
- Once there are no more grains, remove from the heat, pour into a glass bowl or jar, and cool completely. Place it in the refrigerator to cool down quicker (my prefer method).
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer using the paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy.
- Add the powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream, salt, and the completely cooled brown sugar syrup and mix on low speed until combined (about 30 seconds). Then increase the speed to high and beat for another 1-2 minutes (frosting should be light and creamy).If the frosting is too thick, add the extra tablespoon of heavy whipping cream (I prefer using 3 tablespoons total for my preferred buttercream consistency).
- Place the frosting in a piping bag and use your favorite piping tip (I used the Wilton 1M) to decorate the tops of each cupcake. You can also spread the frosting using a butter knife.
- Keep any leftover cupcakes in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Video
Notes
Measuring Flour: To help ensure you don’t add extra flour, follow these three simple steps: 1) Fluff up the flour using a fork. 2) Spoon the flour into your measuring cup. 3) Scrape a knife across the top of the measuring cup to level out the flour.
Room Temperature Ingredients: For the best quality in both flavor and texture, please pay attention as to which ingredients need to be at room temperature. If you don't, the cupcakes texture will be off and will result in a more dense cake.
Cupcake Batter: Fill the cupcake liners ⅔ of the way full, which is just a little more than 3 tablespoons of batter.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cupcake | Calories: 511kcal | Carbohydrates: 74g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 59mg | Sodium: 217mg | Potassium: 109mg | Fiber: 0.4g | Sugar: 61g | Vitamin A: 551IU | Vitamin C: 0.04mg | Calcium: 85mg | Iron: 1mg
